Any DC frugalites?
Sharon McKenna
--
The opinions expressed are my own.
I know we are supposed to be ostentatious and get every dinner party
catered by Ridgewell's, but I admit to ducking into thrift shops and
participating in a baby sitting co-op...
Are there any others out there from the DC metro area?
Sharon
imb...@aol.com
In article <329698...@hr.house.gov>, Sharon McKenna
<smck...@hr.house.gov> writes:
>Are there any others out there from the DC metro area?
>
>
How about woodbridge, VA
about 25 minutes from DC
Home of "Potomac Mills- the east coasts largest outlet mall"
You can come down and we can go laugh at all the people who are "spaving"
as they call it. "Spending + Saving"
I save a lot. I don't buy!! :)
Becca
jlayo
If "outlet mall" is supposed to mean reduced prices, for the most part,
Potomac Mills doesn't qualify. But I do *love* Waccamaw Pottery -- and
they do have some good prices.
Lisa
Maria Rost Rublee
I disagree: Potomac Mills is one of the best places in the whole DC to
save money. That doesn't mean everything in there is automatically less
than elsewhere. But I do think you can get tremendously discounted prices
there. I can recite some cases that will have you all drooling. :)
Boston Traders is GREAT. Everytime we go in there, we find something. I
got women's Timberland hiking boots, normally about $80-90, for $20. My
husband got a pair of men's hiking boots, about $90-100 normally, for $20.
I bought a really thick, great quality sweater in there for $8. Oh, and
they had their Timberland duffel bags and back packs, all with lifetime
warranty, on sale for $12 each!!! The sales associate said she had never
seen them below $25. We bought 4, one of each for us and 2 for Christmas
presents.
Teh key is to go there about every 1-2 months and look around. Go under
the premise you won't buy unless you see something you need and the price
is really great. We are always chancing upon great buys. Like my
Dexters, which at cost for a regular shoe store are about $25. I got them
for $17 at Penney's. I've worn them for over 2 years and they still look
almost new. My husband always gets his shoes from either Pennys or Syms,
because you can find Bostonians or other good shoes that *last* for really
great prices.
Our best find ever was the day we fell into the Nature Company's
unannouced "manager's special." Not only were they pricing everyting to
sell, everything was also an extra 20% off. Plus EVERY Christmas orament
was $.10. This included 10-foot, handmade, clay garlands made in India.
It also included leaves from the Amazon, dipped in 14kt gold, normally
selling as ornaments for $12 each, for only $.10. Yup, that's a dime!
All of their handpainted greetin cards, $.35 each. (Normally $2+)
Anyway, Potomac Mills is a great place for stunning bargains if you are
willing to bide your time and look. :)
Maria
jlayo (jl...@prodigy.net) wrote:
: Lisa
--
imb...@aol.com
In article <57dv40$9...@cronkite.seas.gwu.edu>, mru...@gwis2.circ.gwu.edu
(Maria Rost Rublee) writes:
> Potomac Mills is one of the best places in the whole DC to
>save money.
IF you were willing to pay full price in the first place, then yes it is a
"Bargain"
But you would not belive the amount of fools who drive here every weekend
and spend money that they can justify as "saving". THAT is what I laugh
at.
Believe me I know. I live right behind the hiddious beast. When I
ABSOLUTLY must buy something "new" I look for it there. But the tv ads
make me laugh.
"I saved 150.00 on this 300 dress!!!" - hell my whole clothing budget for
the YEAR is less than 150.00 !
As far as the definition of "outlet", only a certain percentage of the
stores LOCATED IN THE MALL have to be discount stores in order for the
mall to call themselves "outlet" and of those stores, the stores only have
to carry a certain percentage of discounted merchandise. So you could wind
up paying MORE than full price on an item. (I forget the percentages, but
I worked at the mall for more than 5 years)
This is not to say you cant find bargains, Im just saying I get a kick out
of the people who shop there and are so proud of themselves for "saving
money" when if they HAD NOT SHOPPED AT ALL -then they would have really
saved money.
Becca
James A. Chamblee
I date myself; but I remember when an "outlet store" was the little shop
actually and physically next to the factory where the items were made.
Therefore, by definition, there could only be one outlet store per
product or factory. No factory, no outlet. The items were cheaper,
because some of the wholesale and retail profit was missing, and the
transportation cost was zero.
When there were clothing mills along the Hudson River, sometime just
before the dinosaurs became extinct, I bought my first suits there -
brands like Hickey-Freeman, and Hart, Shafner & Marx. My first H-F suit
was $45, and it was pure wool, very expensive (but a lot cheaper than
retail), wore like iron, and looked great.
So now when I see an ad more an "outlet mall" which includes an "outlet"
for Japanese products like china (Mikasa), I just have to laugh.
Jim
Md.
jlayo
imb...@aol.com wrote:
>
> In article <57dv40$9...@cronkite.seas.gwu.edu>, mru...@gwis2.circ.gwu.edu
> (Maria Rost Rublee) writes:
>
> > Potomac Mills is one of the best places in the whole DC to
> >save money.
>
> IF you were willing to pay full price in the first place, then yes it is a
> "Bargain"
> But you would not belive the amount of fools who drive here every weekend
> and spend money that they can justify as "saving". THAT is what I laugh
> at.
>
> Believe me I know. I live right behind the hiddious beast. When I
> ABSOLUTLY must buy something "new" I look for it there. But the tv ads
> make me laugh.
I worked there for a couple of years, and while there are some deals to
be had, IMO, there's a lot of stuff there that isn't worth buying at any
price.
Waccamaw is a good store, their prices are usually the best around (for
some of their stuff anyway).
> This is not to say you cant find bargains, Im just saying I get a kick out
> of the people who shop there and are so proud of themselves for "saving
> money" when if they HAD NOT SHOPPED AT ALL -then they would have really
> saved money.
>
> Becca
Its kind of amusing too the attitudes some people bring when they shop
at Potomac Mills -- they expect stuff to be given away! The mall is
huge, so I guess when people come all the way from MD, or WV, or even
further away, they can probably find *something* they like, so it
doesn't seem like a wasted trip.
LIsa