shopping for presents
You know what is worse than shopping for yourself? Shopping for others. Not because it's a tough thing to find a present for your loved ones but because you end up spending a fortune and not even worrying about it because "it's for other people's happiness". If it was only for you, you'd stop long before because for a shopaholic, shopping=evil. Like yesterday, I ended up spending $250+ in exactly 2 hours and 10 minutes. Had it been only selfish shopping (like shoes or clothes), I'd have stopped long before, but since it was all presents for people I love, I didn't even care and I only stopped when I realized I was stocked in presents for my dad up until Fathers' Day next June and presents for a few close friends up until next Christmas included (except you and I both know I won't resist the temptation of buying them a little something in bonus when next Christmas comes around the corner).
In my own defence, I started my shopping day with a once-in-a-year event: the silk market. I may have mentioned before that, Lyon, my town, has a long history as a silk-producing town. It gradually slowed down during the 20th century but it's still a major spot for silk-production in small manufactures and workshops. Most of these places work on demand and only sell to fashion designers and interior designers. They do however keep some of the leftover material and, once a year, they gather in the gorgeous building of the chamber of commerce and everyone can come, have a look and buy silk. Many craftsmen bring their tools and, if you like a certain pattern and want something specific, you just have to ask and they'll make it for you right away. It's pretty amazing. I spent the entire time cursing myself for not bringing my camera. I did take a few pictures with my phone, though.
What you can see spread out on the tables are fabric rolls.
For those of you who are interested, the event takes place every year roughly at the same time (around Nov 25th). Feel free to join me next year.;-)
So when I was done shopping for others, sipping a hot latte and starting reading a new book (True Tales of American Life, for those of you who are interested), I wandered for the first time in ages in the Zara store next door. I gave up long ago on Zara because, about when we switched to the Euro currency, prices skyrocketed there more than anywhere else and suddenly it became too pricey for what I was worth. Also, more recently, I never seemed to find a good style there. And yesterday night, for some reason, not only did I LOVE the style of the current winter collection, I also found it much more affordable than it used to be.So, first time in years that I wanted to purchase like 3/4 of the store (I'm not sure if that's a good thing, though). But, considering what I had already spent the same day, it would have been inconsequetial to try or purchase anything so I quickly left without looking back (I swear I did not look back. I didn't even look at the storefront. How proud of me are you?)
In my own defence, I started my shopping day with a once-in-a-year event: the silk market. I may have mentioned before that, Lyon, my town, has a long history as a silk-producing town. It gradually slowed down during the 20th century but it's still a major spot for silk-production in small manufactures and workshops. Most of these places work on demand and only sell to fashion designers and interior designers. They do however keep some of the leftover material and, once a year, they gather in the gorgeous building of the chamber of commerce and everyone can come, have a look and buy silk. Many craftsmen bring their tools and, if you like a certain pattern and want something specific, you just have to ask and they'll make it for you right away. It's pretty amazing. I spent the entire time cursing myself for not bringing my camera. I did take a few pictures with my phone, though.
What you can see spread out on the tables are fabric rolls.
For those of you who are interested, the event takes place every year roughly at the same time (around Nov 25th). Feel free to join me next year.;-)
So when I was done shopping for others, sipping a hot latte and starting reading a new book (True Tales of American Life, for those of you who are interested), I wandered for the first time in ages in the Zara store next door. I gave up long ago on Zara because, about when we switched to the Euro currency, prices skyrocketed there more than anywhere else and suddenly it became too pricey for what I was worth. Also, more recently, I never seemed to find a good style there. And yesterday night, for some reason, not only did I LOVE the style of the current winter collection, I also found it much more affordable than it used to be.So, first time in years that I wanted to purchase like 3/4 of the store (I'm not sure if that's a good thing, though). But, considering what I had already spent the same day, it would have been inconsequetial to try or purchase anything so I quickly left without looking back (I swear I did not look back. I didn't even look at the storefront. How proud of me are you?)