Confessions of an almost-Shopaholic

I have a confession to make. Last week, I almost bought a pair of shoes. But it was Cruella De Vil who snapped me out of my impending splurge and I am now 2 days away from successfully completing my no-clothes-shopping-for-40-days self-imposed rule.

The shopping trip:

I had been working long hours at work last week (still am!) and when I finally walked out one evening, I could resist stopping by WINNERS on my way to the Métro… you know – just to have a sneak peak and zone out for a bit while wandering aimlessly amongst the shiny accessories and clothes. Before I even before entered the store, I started to justify the upcoming purchase in my head as I have a $45 store credit in my wallet. Whatever I bought wouldn’t count as shopping within my 40-days-rule since I technically bought said item with money from last January.

The thing with WINNERS is that you can’t go in looking for a specific piece as you’ll never find it – you just have to be willing to browse until you find the ultimate-must-have-it item to splurge on. And that’s what happened to me last week – well, almost.

My favourite pair of beige-but-cutely-studded GEOX kitten heels for the summer are likely on their last leg as I’ve already replaced the heel twice in the 2 seasons that I’ve worn them and I don’t know what I’m going to do when they finally go. They are so comfortable for walking, but give me an extra bit of height height. (While I may be the real Sporty Spice, I also subscribe to Posh’s thinking that the extra half-inch is extremely important and I see nothing wrong wearing high heels to the supermarket.)

As luck would have it, I stumbled upon a pair of Kenneth Cole beige wedges with a fun buckle for exactly $39.99 and decided that I would get these just-in-case something happened to my favourite pair.

The encounter:

As I was standing in line (still justifying that this was a January purchase) the woman in front me turned around and complimented me on my white rose-collared coat (my first clothing purchase last November when I finally paid off my credit card).

While this woman was friendly and likely very lovely, she was about 70 years old wearing a giant faux (I hope!) fur black & white mink coat that covered her UGGS and was paired with a furry leopard print hat while she wore dark sunglasses (inside!) and had bright red lipstick slightly smeared across her thinning lips.

And then I noticed it… in her hands, the EXACT pair of wedges that I was about to buy.

“Oh look that, excellent taste we have!” Cruella said to me.

"Don't we!" I replied. My mind was racing and in that instant, I realized that I did not need the wedges and I certainly did not want a pair that Cruella would also be wearing while waltzing along Ste-Catherine.

“But would you look at that. I grabbed a size 7 ½… I’m going to go see if they have a 7.” And with that comment, I bolted out of line.

Once out of sight, I tossed the shoes in the men’s underwear bin and quickly darted out of WINNERS. While my exit was rash, at least I held my head up high as I managed to resist the shopping temptation and although it was at the last second, I kept my commitment to my 40-day ban and re-confirmed my need to do clothes shopping with a purpose.

While I only have 2 more days to go sans shopping, I don’t think I’ll be rushing out on Friday night to make purchases just for the sake of it. Instead, I plan to flip through some of my favourite magazines and decide what looks I can put together with my spring wardrobe (ie: shopping my closet) and what are some key pieces that would greatly enhance them. And then let the window shopping for the best deals begin!

*Rosie*