What are your criteria when deciding whether to buy an item?

When I am out shopping, and it comes to that critical moment of having to decide whether to buy an item or not, I follow three absolute rules. If any one of these three criteria is not met, the item stays at the store.

1. Is it flattering?
This can include a whole host of issues, including fit, color, style/cut relative to body type, etc. My philosophy is that clothes and accessories are meant to bring attention to me (the wearer), not to themselves. There is one exception to this rule, which is if the item is perfect in every other way but can be altered in order to make it fully flattering, then I give myself a green light.

2. Is it me?
Basically, this is a question of self-introspection, and whether the piece will fit into the rest of my wardrobe and my personal style. For example, my own style just doesn't work with open-toed or platform heels, so regardless of whether such a shoe meets my other two criteria, it gets passed over. Of course, there can always be exceptions; many times with style, it is the exception that makes the rule.

3. Do I LOVE it?
This, I find, is the hardest question to answer. Most of the things that I want to buy when out shopping are, upon reflection, things I only "really like." Only a handful are items I really cannot live without. My most recent example of finding something I can't live without is a pair of camel-colored flat ankle boots that I found at the local second-hand shop. They were a perfect fit, a flattering style, very "me," but what really sealed the deal is that they were hand-made. Being someone who likes to make my own clothes, the fact that these boots were once someone's "project," made me absolutely fall in love.

What are your criteria?