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Books Take On New "Dark Continent:" Women's Buying Habits
New York, 8:19 AM
Mon Dec 21
18 posts in the last 24 hours
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Books Take On New "Dark Continent:" Women's Buying Habits |
Original material is licensed under a Creative Commons License permitting non-commercial sharing with attribution.
10/12/09
Maybe women shop more because, across the spectrum, they have less power than men and need that illusion more?
10/12/09
I shun chain stores and brand boutiques--unless we're talking Chanel or Comme des Garcons, in which case all bets are off. (HA! Like I could ever afford buying anything there except perhaps a pair of socks..) I guess it's the retail version of being a locavore.
Instead, I have a list of mom-and-pop shops and boutiques that I love; they tend to be projects of passion for the people who own them, and you can tell every item they stock was selected with care, and/or they have made it themselves. The retail environment reflects their personality and tastes. Things cost more, but you get attentive service and careful packaging (I'm a sucker for that!). If you keep going back, the owners get to know you and occasionally toss in freebies on top of what you're already buying. It's a very civilized shopping experience. There is one tiny store in Venice, Calif. that exclusively stocks hand-crafted things made in Japan--I must have dropped at least $1,000 there over the years, and I have had zero guilt about it.
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I don't buy things if I have to plug them in or I don't have room for them.
10/12/09
Books -- I enjoy books. I've read seventy-eight of them this year, no lie. When I buy books, I'm buying them off of literary reputation or blurbs that sound interesting, not the pink shoes/martini glass covers. Shockingly, I still read a lot of female authors. Publishing industry take note.
Food -- I enjoy cooking. I enjoy eating more. I like to eat quality meals, so I buy base products (meats, vegetables, wine) and then make them into meals. Also, I enjoy food with taste, so I will hold out and buy higher quality products, and not automatically opt for the pasty-looking tomatoes in January.
Tools -- I have a small car which I enjoy working on. I need lots of sockets to do things like oil changes and transmission swaps.
Clothes -- I can't go naked, now can I? That said, it's a mixture of Target (which is affordable and lasts a lot longer than I expected) and more expensive pieces, which were purchased for their craftsmanship and flattering looks.
Yarn/Fabric -- I enjoy crafting and knitting. It's my hobby. I'd much rather sink forty bucks into a yarn shop spree than two trips to the movies.
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It helps someone else (girl scout cookies, art/craft show Christmas gifts, other charity items).
It occupies my kid for a little while (DVDs).
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1. Order a grande in a venti cup (or a tall in a grande cup) and keep it between your legs and/or the seat and the hand brake.
2. Only buy 18 cubic feet worth of crap. This totals four grocery bags, or three department store bags, especially if you don't mind getting the bags kind of crumpled by the trunk hinges.
Now get yourself a glam headscarf and go. Not having a backseat is liberating.
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I should write a book.
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1) It makes my life easier (e.g. Crockpot that cooks me a nice dinner and keeps it warm until I get home)
2) It saves me money. (e.g. A showerhead that uses half as much water)
Reasons not to buy:
1) It serves a redundant purpose (e.g. "Quesadilla maker" = skillet, "Margarita maker" = blender, etc)
2) The reason it's expensive isn't quality of the item but the arbitrary status of the brand (e.g. Mercedes, Prada)
10/12/09
Ahem. Not that I sat through a Good Eats marathon recently or anything...
10/12/09
My crockpot (or slow cooker, as we call them this side of the drink) also has rice cooker and steamer functions. An excellent birthday present from my sister a couple of years ago.
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For a while, the stores around here were charging $5 for a 10-oz piece of Cracker Barrel cheddar. That was when I thought grocery prices had finally gone fatally haywire. I never paid that, ever.
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Buy them from Better World Books! They stock both used and new books, with free shipping anywhere in the US. Plus, you can pay an extra 25 cents to offset the carbon cost of shipping your books. But the best part is that a portion of their profit goes to a bunch of different literacy programs worldwide.
To sum up: cheap books, free shipping, carbon offsetting, and promoting literacy.
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My mother always had the "$10 Rule" that said she'd never pay more than 10 bucks on a top. I scoffed for years! Now, guess who doesn't like paying more than $10 for a shirt?
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Hence, I am terrified of using credit cards. Having said that, we too are a family of shopping enablers. If it's slimming, it can't be passed up. If it's pretty, it's art. If it's jewellery, it's an investment.
We're very good at this game.
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So is this a thinly veiled "I don't shop at Forever 21"? ;-)
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