https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/full-price-vs-on-sale-vs-price-point Style Advice for Fashion Lovers en-US Wed, 22 Apr 2026 19:28:45 +0000 http://bbpress.org/?v=1.0.2 q https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/search.php https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/full-price-vs-on-sale-vs-price-point#post-850377 Fri, 15 Feb 2013 23:25:32 +0000 Ingunn 850377@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Very interesting read! I like Jayne's approach a lot, and have done similar choices (white chinos, Jayne!). However, I often find that some of my most cherished items are bought on sale, items I never would have paid full price for because I felt they were too expensive. I have a skirt that must be eight years now, and I still love it to death. I remember feeling that it still was a little pricey, but a great find at the time. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/full-price-vs-on-sale-vs-price-point#post-850367 Fri, 15 Feb 2013 23:18:36 +0000 MsMary 850367@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Becky! It's great to see you!!! </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/full-price-vs-on-sale-vs-price-point#post-850345 Fri, 15 Feb 2013 22:52:40 +0000 Becky 850345@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Love this topic. Such a great aspect of purchasing to consider. I'd say my practices are similar to Suz's. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/full-price-vs-on-sale-vs-price-point#post-850154 Fri, 15 Feb 2013 18:46:13 +0000 jayne 850154@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I have been a victim of buying sales items because they seemed a bargain before. Now I rarely buy sales unless I had that particular item in mind at some point, but didn't buy at full price, and it comes on sale...I feel allowed.</p> <p>But the best use of sales and low end priced items is the experiment when I am trying something outside my style comfort zone. Cheap, I can try it, wear it once or twice and give up, or upgrade. Learning to allow myself to upgrade to a better version was hard, cuz I already had that cheap and maybe not perfect item already, but learning to PPP helps let me take the step up. I think this has almost become my shopping pattern now and it lets me experiment and walk away from things that do not work without guilt also.</p> <p>cases,<br /> black pleather cheap slacks from H&amp;M led to TDF leather look waxed jeans from SAND - love and use my upgraded pair much more than the plastic feeling H&amp;M cheap version (since donated)</p> <p>stretch moto cotton jacket, bought on serious sale, let me try the style and I felt much more confident when I purchased a real leather moto later at full price.</p> <p>white cotton chinos from H&amp;M let me try white bottoms and also chino bottoms at the same time and led to purchase of white cambio jeans later, which are favorites now. ironically I also still love the H&amp;M versions and duplicated them when they went on sale because, hey, they are white</p> <p>cobalt blue high low blouse in polyester led to cobalt shirt from hugo boss, which makes me drool to wear it just thinking about it. And also taught me there are types of polyester I cannot stand. I actually like alot of the silky polyester...</p> <p>I feel pretty good about both the cheap and later more expensive purchases. I would not have dared the high end without the low end confirmation. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/full-price-vs-on-sale-vs-price-point#post-849474 Fri, 15 Feb 2013 01:35:31 +0000 Nicole D 849474@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>You are right Thistle, I would feel like a chump paying full price when I could have waited a bit and got a 30 or 40% off code. It also seems as though many stores mark new arrivals down by 25% right off the bat! What gives? </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/full-price-vs-on-sale-vs-price-point#post-849461 Fri, 15 Feb 2013 01:14:42 +0000 Thistle 849461@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>My size sells out fast. There are so many items I pop on a wish list when I get the "see what's new" e-mail and the they are sold out in a week or two. Then, I am just stalking my size, much less the sale!</p> <p>That said, I feel "trained" by sales. I KNOW that GAP is going to have another 30% off sale. Just like Ann Taylor will have the 30% off all full priced item sale. You don't have to wait long. Because of this, I sort of feel like everything at GAP is really 30% less than what they charge. This is their retail price, not the sticker price.</p> <p>I don't feel this way about Nordstrom's. * I am look at you RL wide leg trouser that were in stock in my size for less than a week!* </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/full-price-vs-on-sale-vs-price-point#post-849460 Fri, 15 Feb 2013 01:12:25 +0000 Aziraphale 849460@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Actually, now that I think about it, I DID buy something at reduced price that I probably wouldn't have bought otherwise..but there were extenuating circumstances. It was a fine-gauge merino sweater. It felt soft, but I have a history of skin trouble with wool. I bought the sweater as an experiment, to see if I would get a rash. It was greatly reduced, so it seemed like a good opportunity for an experiment.</p> <p>Now that I know I can wear merino wool against my skin, I would happily buy another one at full price, though. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/full-price-vs-on-sale-vs-price-point#post-849442 Fri, 15 Feb 2013 00:43:08 +0000 Freckles 849442@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I do buy things on sale that I wouldn't buy if real priced also. Sometimes it is just out of my price range. Other times, gardening or going to the cottage where the red sand kills anything in an instant, I'm going to destroy it in two minutes flat and I really don't want to pay a lot of money for it. I might prefer a slightly different silhouette in those things but this one is fine as it is cool in the hot weather, is not too sheer, the silhouette also flattering but not the particular style I'm into right now.</p> <p>Another reason I might is when I just don't trust my eye. Did this yesterday with a necklace. I have wanted to update my jewellery since joining ylf but really have no idea what is current. Saw a necklace, loved it but it was not for me. Too blingy. Tried another one that the SA brought me and loved it also, seemed to fit my comfort zone but not sure if it fits my body shape. We will see. I wouldn't have wanted to try this at full price when I am yet unsure of my eye.</p> <p>For most things that I find on sale I do ask myself if I would have bought it at full price though. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/full-price-vs-on-sale-vs-price-point#post-849295 Thu, 14 Feb 2013 20:55:00 +0000 Suz 849295@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Well, I obviously fall into the camp of those who will purchase something at the sale price that they might not have bought at the full price -- I just did so today! </p> <p>But I didn't buy it "because" it was on sale. I bought it because I was looking for an item like that and it filled a need and was within my own mental value-per-cost estimation. So I guess I fall into Mo's way of thinking. I have an idea of what I think is acceptable for ME to pay for this or that type of item. And I won't go a lot over that. </p> <p>I also think that sales can be an opportunity to buy basics (i.e. undies), essentials like layering Ts or turtlenecks or the like, or those "wild card" items that, as you say, are game changers. The things we might be afraid to try at full price. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/full-price-vs-on-sale-vs-price-point#post-849273 Thu, 14 Feb 2013 20:40:49 +0000 Echo 849273@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Mo makes a great point that as a person starts to shop higher quality items, perhaps one's perceptions of price or what is "reasonable" changes. I compare it to buying anything wiht a higher price point. When we first started looking at homes, I was floored at how expensive they were, but after months of looking and understanding the differences, what would have seemed a fortune to me at the beginning seemed a bargain. Likewise with clothing and accessories for me.</p> <p>Of course that doesn't mean that I will ever have a closet full of designer items, but there are times when the splurge is worth it for me, and careful shopping the rest of the time makes that possible. I also find I buy far fewer items if I see and try something and walk away. If I am consumed by the thought of it later, I usually return to purchase; but just as often I will forget about it, meaning it wasn't as special as it felt in the store. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/full-price-vs-on-sale-vs-price-point#post-849270 Thu, 14 Feb 2013 20:36:57 +0000 Jules 849270@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>With the way most mid-range retail works these days (ie/ constant discounting), I kind of figure everything is inflated, so those 25-40% off coupons, events etc are often more my speed.<br /> If it's Joe Fresh or H&amp;M, full price is so cheap to begin with, I just go for it, and correspondingly I rarely find much on the sale racks. The best stuff sells, so I grab it when I see it (I do my thinking it over after purchase).<br /> I *will* buy things that I wouldn't have bought at full price. Right now I am wearing a rust coloured waterfall cami that has gotten plenty of wear this season, but I just wouldn't have been interested at $40; at $14.00, I snatched it up, an "unexpected delight" that was not on any lists. Probably because I don't love rust (but it suits me, and was trendy for the season, and went with a few other things I already had) and I'm mostly over waterfall cardis I think (I don't expect to wear this much next fall/winter, if at all). But even so, the would-I-have-bought-this full price is a good test/thinking point when shopping. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/full-price-vs-on-sale-vs-price-point#post-849269 Thu, 14 Feb 2013 20:36:52 +0000 texstyle 849269@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I don't shop specifically for sale items any longer, but I also don't just pay full price without shopping around a bit. Example: this morning I went into an actual jcrew store (something I rarely get to do). I tried on a lightweight blazer I liked a lot. It was full price at $138. I almost bought it but then asked "Is it available online?" knowing that I might find a promo code. Sure enough I ended up coming home, ordering the blazer at a sale price PLUS 30% off - I saved 40% just by being patient and willing to walk away. I feel so much more confident about buying these days -- thanks YLF! </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/full-price-vs-on-sale-vs-price-point#post-849257 Thu, 14 Feb 2013 20:28:35 +0000 milehighstyle (Linda) 849257@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I know that I've made a great purchase if I buy something at full price and it goes on sale a little while later and I don't even care. I am happy to say that I have several items that fall into that category. Ideally I should feel that way about every purchase, I suppose. On the other hand, the very few designer pieces that I own are out of my range at full price, not that I can't save up for them, just that I think we all have a price in our head that no matter what the quality is there is no way a (fill in the blank) can be worth (fill in the price). So I am grateful for sales that bring these things into my range. Then there are my go to stores (Ann Taylor, LOFT, Banana) that I know will be sending me a coupon every week or having a special so I wait - sometimes 15% off is good enough if I'm worried my size will sell out. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/full-price-vs-on-sale-vs-price-point#post-849220 Thu, 14 Feb 2013 19:57:30 +0000 Aziraphale 849220@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Well, yes. For me too. I don't -- I can't -- buy full-price items that I cannot afford! Conversely, I don't buy sale items unless I would have bought them anyway at full price. It's kind of a nice bonus if I find out that an item that I'm going to buy anyway happnes to be on sale, but usually that doesn't happen, mainly because "shopping the sales" is not one of my bugaboos. (I have plenty of others). </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/full-price-vs-on-sale-vs-price-point#post-849211 Thu, 14 Feb 2013 19:51:56 +0000 unfrumped 849211@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>Yes, Mo! Sale mentality problems occur when the sale is the overriding factor; value-thinking incorporates the whole range of issues.</p> <p>I do think it is refreshing when some of the YLF posts include remarks such as, I really love it but it just doesn't have the right value for me right now. Or we get feedback to keep that in mind. That helps inject some reality into the ooh, love, buy it. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/full-price-vs-on-sale-vs-price-point#post-849209 Thu, 14 Feb 2013 19:49:29 +0000 rachylou 849209@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>If something is on sale, I say "great" and feel lucky. But I don't shop "the sales," because I am suspicious of marketing tricks. I definitely have a price point for everything. E.g., I will not give $100 a month to Comcast for any reason. If movie tickets are gonna be $12-$14 a pop, I will only go to the movies twice a year.</p> <p>Admittedly my price point for clothing items is more variable. I don't balk at a $25,000 hand-sewn gown, but then again I certainly am not saving up for one. Lol. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/full-price-vs-on-sale-vs-price-point#post-849203 Thu, 14 Feb 2013 19:42:28 +0000 Mo 849203@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I think when you boil it all down, we have an internal price limit in our heads that we just won't consider going over. This does gradually shift as we get into buying better quality and used to spending more overall. But I know for sure I do not at this time consider any items in the $300+ range, for instance. I don't care if it's a leather jacket, or boots, or designer, or whatever. This is out of my range - period. I understand it's very different for others - on both sides of this. Some can spend $500 on a blazer and others can't even spend $100 for a winter coat.<br /> I do think value for your money is different than a sale. Mentally, we place an intrinsic value on items that we believe they are, or should be, worth. </p> https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/topic/full-price-vs-on-sale-vs-price-point#post-849192 Thu, 14 Feb 2013 19:32:08 +0000 unfrumped 849192@https://youlookfab.com/welookfab/ <p>I think there is a difference between these concepts, and it makes a difference for flexible and sensible shopping.</p> <p>The "on sale" problems for me are not that you can't buy on sale, but that I shouldn't buy ONLY on sale, or always wait for sale, or buy things that aren't good, just because of "sale mentality".</p> <p>It also doesn't mean that I would pay ANY price for an item I "love". I bought a couple of blazers at full price because the price was acceptable and worth the likely difference between losing out on the item vs. saving a percentage. I have "loved" some items that, sadly, or luckily, I would not pay full price for! I can also buy an item on sale that I would NOT pay full price for and of course in view of budget constraints we do get some very fun and game-changing items that way when we could not otherwise.</p> <p>So, whether I'd pay full price for an item does of course depend on what that full price would be! </p> <p>Conversely, I can buy a low-cost item that serves a specific purpose even it there are likely some better quality items available at higher prices. </p> <p>Careful and more limited shopping makes it more likely that I can afford a higher cost item when I do find one, though it doesn't necessarily change me into someone who buys Armani (sigh). </p> <p>I keep trying to keep these ideas in mind for wardrobe strategy. It's the item first--do I need it, will use it, it helps make dressing easier/more fun (style, capsules, weather needs) ; then evaluate the price and make a decision, which may be yes or no. </p>