Deal of the Weekend!

I've never been a label snob. I've always been more concerned with getting a good deal than with the name on the tag, my mindset being that if it's cute, fits well and is an affordable price, who cares if it's Chanel or Mossimo? There are, however, two luxury labels that I adore, and I've been wanting to own a piece of each for awhile: Tiffany & Co and Dooney & Bourke. I crossed Tiffany off my list a few years ago via a somewhat unwise and impulsive purchase (that I don't regret one bit). Today, I crossed Dooney & Bourke off my list in the exact opposite fashion: running the numbers and making sure that it was a purchase I could actually afford instead of just slapping it on a credit card and telling myself I'll worry about it later.

I'm not a huge handbag person, but I love Dooney & Bourke. It's the same reason why I love Tiffany & Co.: it's such a classic style. Dooney & Bourke handbags go with anything and class up even the most casual of outfits. I've been itching for one, and have been keeping my eyes peeled for a good deal. I've had a few close calls. I saw a handbag at a TJ Maxx in Kentucky, but it was a crazy orange color and ugly as hell. I saw a wallet at Marshalls, but no handbags. I almost bought a bag at a consignment store in Kentucky, but I wasn't crazy about the cowboy boots and spurs design and my friend Monica pointed out that it was kind of tiny and couldn't hold very much, and if I was going to drop $50 on a purse, it should be able to hold all my things. She was right, so I sighed and put it back on the shelf. It wasn't meant to be.

Today all that changed. On a lark, my friend Ali and I went to Macy's to look at some rings that were on sale. Before we left, I wanted to go by the handbag section just to see if there was anything good. Lo and behold, an entire table of Dooney & Burke purses were on sale! They were only in two color schemes and designs, but they were the styles and designs I loved: simple and classic. Problem was, even at the clearance price of $146.25, it was still out of my price range. A sales woman saw us browsing and was using all her methods of persuasion to try and get me to buy the bag, and asked if I had any coupons. I said no, and Ali jokingly asked her if she had any coupons to offer us. The sales lady said no, but that she was working with another customer who had some coupons and that she'd ask her client if she would give me one. Her client did, and gave me one for 20% off. On top of that, I had $37.65 credit on my Macy's credit card, bringing the grand total of the purse to $87.54. Totally in my budget. Let me put it another way:

Original price of the bag: $195.00

Clearance price: $146.25

After 20% off coupon was applied: $125.19 (including tax)

After $37.65 credit is applied: $87.54

Total savings: $115.65

Who's the (wo)man?! This girl.

I love my bag, and the great deal I got it for makes me love it even more. I'm proud of myself. Instead of impulsively buying it, I took my time, crunched the numbers and was prepared to walk away if it was too much. And now I have a nice handbag and zero buyer's remorse. Life is good.