Y’all, I was so impressed with my shopping karma Friday night that I almost broke my unwritten rule about blogging on the weekends! (but then I figured the weekend might be pretty boring so I should save the post for today, I was right to do so, trust me)

Anyway, so, shopping karma. You know how it works, it’s a good sign when you find a parking spot close to the front door, a better one when there’s an unexpected ‘SALE’ sign in the window. Those things are all helpful but actually played no part whatsoever in this little trip.

Honestly? I was on my way to Wal-Mart, some place I’ve successfully avoided for a couple of months I think. Unless I go at midnight or something, I really detest Wal-Mart, but I felt like shopping, had nothing specific in mind, and I knew if I went on the way home from work I would actually do it whereas if I put it off I’d find reason after reason not to drive out that way during the weekend.

First, though, since I was passing it, I decided to stop in at Beall’s Outlet just to see. Sometimes I get lucky in there, and Friday night was no exception at all. Bouyed by my luck I drove the small block but in the general direction of ‘out’ to Cato semi-nextdoor and was, again, touched by the bargain fairy.

Between the two stores I spent a total of $60 and brought home:

• one pair of the cork-soled suede mules in pink, very ‘not me’ in style, but cute in their clunkyness and fitting for the upcoming air travel
• 2 skirts, one filmy panelled ivory and one ivory twill button fly
• 2 tank tops, one pink and one khaki-floral with built-in bra-shelf
• 2 shirts,one long sleeve sweetheart-ish neckline white knit and one coral-pink henley-style with beads/sequins instead of buttons

People have asked before how I do this. How do I come away from an hour of shopping with 7 items and spend what, in some cases, one would cost regular retail. Well, honestly, I never pay retail. I don’t make deals or anything like that, I just know what stores have reliable sales and decently timed clearance racks or stick to the overstock/outlet style stores. It helps, I suppose, that I do not strictly follow trends and feel no need to have what everyone else is wearing. If I like it and it looks decent on me, I buy it… but only if it’s on sale.

Now, granted, sometimes I really do luck out. I went into Catherine’s (whose sales I usually consider too expensive) in early December only to have looked at one thing and decided while heavenly it was still too much and then have the cashier tell me that starting the next day all clearance was an additional 40% off, etc. Suddenly that suede-finish skirt with the bronze rivets was much more do able. Sometimes you just have to be in the right place at the right time and I’ve worn that skirt so many times in the last two months… in fact I think I’ll wear it today!

When I left Cato it had started to rain. I decided that my shopping jones had been sated and headed home without setting a single toe inside Wal-Mart.