Please pardon this long-winded post, but I thought I’d share something about the lessons I’ve learned about my personal shopping style as a result of this NAS opening weekend frenzy. I benefitted from doing a closet purge the past two weekends and making a list of wardrobe gap items to be on the lookout for, in addition to browsing the NAS catalog beforehand. This preparation helped keep me on track so I didn’t lose focus and start impulse-buying too far outside of my needs and budget. I did pick up a couple items I hadn’t planned on, like belts and the Me Too Lightning wedges, but I also scored a great white button-down shirt, which was one of the items on my list of wardrobe gaps.

What’s interesting to me is that this whole NAS was a catalyst for becoming more conscious of my own shopping habits and what works best for me. I know everyone’s shopping style is different, and here’s mine: I am a prudent, budget-savvy shopper who demands decent quality at a reasonable price and above all, versatility, long life and multiple wears for my investment. I spend the majority of my life working in a professional environment, so it’s rare for me to invest precious dollars from my clothing budget on casual wear. I passed on the boot selection at the NAS because although I saw many boots that I liked, they were mostly too casual to double as both office and weekend wear, which is a must for me.

I finally realized what works best for me personally is to identify a need/wardrobe gap, search online to identify potential items that fulfill that need, then try them on in a bricks & mortar store to see what they’re like in person. In general, I don't enjoy shopping without an objective in mind and I don't like to impulse-buy. I like to mull over potential purchases and sleep on them, rather than snap them up outright. While there’s the risk that the item might sell out while I’m thinking it over, if I buy it and bring it home immediately, there’s little chance that I’ll return it if I’m over 50% in love with it. I impulsively bought a couple belts while shopping with Rosie and Melissa on Friday night, and only one of them really fills a wardrobe gap for me; however, I’m 100% in love with the other two and won’t be able to bring myself to return them, even though neither fills a wardrobe niche. But for me, an impulse buy is okay in the case of a lower-priced item like a belt. Sometimes an impulse buy like a lime green belt can shake my wardrobe out of a rut and inspire me to experiment in a different direction. I also picked up the Me Too Lightning wedges in bordeaux when I stopped back in at Nordstrom’s last night, and though I feel I have plenty of shoes and don’t really NEED them, I don’t regret the purchase, as they were a very reasonable $60, are amazingly comfortable, and will be extremely versatile in my wardrobe this fall and winter.

I also tried on a Calvin Klein brown leather moto jacket that got the thumbs up from Rosie and Melissa, but decided not to purchase it immediately, but sleep on it instead. I don’t really NEED a leather moto jacket. I know it’s a great classic piece, but it would only get occasional weekend wear due to the constraints of my lifestyle and I already own a wonderful gray wool moto jacket that I adore. So I’m glad I approached the decision about the Calvin Klein jacket this way, because I stopped back in at Nordstrom’s last night to try the jacket on again and decided that, although it’s a great jacket, it isn’t quite right for my particular style.

Finally, I think my biggest revelation was that I enjoy shopping with other people--YLF people, that is. Ordinarily, I prefer to shop alone because most of my friends either do not have a very developed sense of style and resort to blanket criticism of everything I pick up, or they are unable to see beyond their own particular style in order to be especially helpful to me. But it was a delight to shop with Rosie and Melissa because I knew these were two extremely stylish women whose advice I could rely on. They were open-minded, and when I asked for their opinions, they were able to see beyond the question of “Would I buy this for myself?” and instead consider whether an item really fit me well, whether the coloring worked on me, whether the item would be versatile, etc.

Are any of you having similar revelations as you shop this sale?