One of the reasons that The August Neels resonates so well with me is her attitude towards fiscal prudence. Sure she splashed out when her doctor was secured (that's an IRA I can get behind) and her allowance was coming in regularly. But I don't believe she ever let her heroines make overdrafts on the quarterly pin money (unless the hero needs to be taught a lesson in the form of a wildly expensive Gina Fratini frock).So, where do cash-strapped nurses and penny-wise orphans do their sartorial splurging? January sales. And the way Betty writes, it sounds as though every shop owner in Pax Brittania, like some swelling (fabled) body of lemmings, surge toward the cliffs and at a pre-arranged signal, flinging themselves into the surging seas of clearance shopping.
The Pacific Northwest has a version of January sales. A large chain store, Fred Meyer (but locals who know call it Freddy's so if you visit, you don't have to be a gomer and say the whole name) unloads all of their clearance apparel at the end of February (but I think I'll still call them January sales as it makes me feel Neels-y).
So, I picked up some court shoes for a song. Now, I'll try to ransack our Marks and Spencer equivalent for undies and hopefully I'll have just enough left for a cocoa and roll and a felt hat with a flattering brim.
My mom was in Birmingham last New Years and brought me back a TON of stuff from the January sales. Pretty sweet. I can thank her for my epic tights collection.
ReplyDeleteMarshall's -- do you guys have Marshall's in the Pacific Northwest? I ♥ Marshall's. It's one of these stores with closeout stuff from other stores. I know that T.J.Maxx is the same (and in the UK it's known as T.K.Maxx!), but to me, they are like chalk & cheese.
ReplyDeleteMy cousin in Boston swears that she never finds anything at Marshall's. She believes that when I walk in, they take me to the Secret Back Room where everything is perfectly lovely.
Betty Suzanne must also have a pass to the "Secret Back Room" at Marshalls...she comes out looking fabulous (she's horrible that way).
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