Prada: A Tale of Regret

voltee ♦ September 5, 2010 ♦ 3 Comments

Item:  Sweater    Color/Fabric:  Merlot, cashmere     Designer:  Prada     Where Purchased:  Prada Sample Sale, Woodbury Common   Years owned:  5

When I moved to New York, one of the higher numbers on my To-Do list was to go to a Designer Sample Sale.  Having read about them in numerous fashion magazines and websites, I was thrilled by the prospect of fending off  greedy women who would gladly rip a bargain out of my cold dead fingers if they had to.  So when I got an inside scoop that Prada was having a sample sale, I immediately drew up my battle plan.  I figured we would leave the house at 5:30 in the morning, get to the store by 7, and wait outside until they opened at 9.  And I would bring a large handbag for beating down the competition.

On the morning of the sale, all went as planned, except that I was hungry.  I had Nate stop at McDonald’s for an Egg McMuffin.

That McMuffin cost me some of the most fabulous finds I have ever encountered.  Or probably ever will again .

When we got to the store, about 20 minutes later than planned, there was already a line, although not that big.  There were maybe about 50 people in front of us.  I think there were exactly 50 people in front of us.  Because when they opened the door at 9, they let 50 people inside, and shut the beautiful glass doors right in my face.  I wish the door hadn’t been glass.  It was a cruel sort of torture, having to watch people just grab and grab, gorgeous piles of shoes and clothes heaping up into their arms.  No one had handbags, though, because the first person in line went straight to the bags, curved both arms like giant hooks, and threaded them through the handles of every last one.  It was smart, since they were all $75, and I’m sure he sold them for much more.  Clearly he had trained much harder than I had.

I wish that tonight I was writing about a pink cocktail dress with a feathered skirt.  But it was not meant to be.  I watched the dress sitting alone, for minute after minute, while women just passed it by repeatedly.  Sometimes someone would pick it up and contemplate it.  I sent them mental bullets with my mind.  “No,” I said. “That will not fit you.  Put it down.”  And they did!  Then, when at last they opened the doors, I went straight for my feather dress.  And someone beat me by a fraction of a second.  I entertained the idea of beating her with my handbag like the women I had read about, but I decided to let it go.  It was like a dagger in my heart.

But then I found this cashmere shell.  And a lovely silk skirt.  And another sweater.  And four pairs of shoes.  Suddenly the world did not seem so dreary and hopeless!

I wore this sweater with an orange skirt and a chunky beaded necklace on the day that I went to apply for the job at Next Boutique.  Somehow just knowing that that label was touching the back of my neck gave me a much needed confidence boost.  Silly, right?  But it worked.  I got the job, which started a new chapter in my life, and lead to my making many lovely friends and many lovely purchases.

Would I have kept this sweater, though, if it didn’t have a designer label?  I’m not sure.  It is very soft and classic, and a pretty color, but it does have a pretty big flaw.  It has some fading in the front from where it was folded.  You can see it in the picture.  But if I wear it underneath something it’s not even noticeable.  Am I just making excuses?  Maybe.  I am very fond of this sweater.

Yet I will forever be haunted by that feather dress, and the McMuffin that broke my heart.  

**Yes, I kept this.  I may not have even worn it, but I just can’t let it go…