Who Doesn't Love a Pretty Floral Dress for the Summer?

A couple of months ago, I wandered into the D&G boutique on Robertson Blvd. in West Hollywood. A really nice female SA greeted me and showed me some dresses. I had dropped 3 dress sizes and literally had no dresses in my closet that fit me. I saw this gorgeous white long dress that had a blue-purple floral print with black lace trimming. I wanted it...but it cost $995. It would've cost nearly $1100, including sales tax. I can't justify spending that on a dress, so I walked away, disappointed that I couldn't give the nice SA her well-deserved commission.

I'd literally dreamed about that dress, imagining sitting in a hip LA restaurant wearing it. I imagined what shoes I'd wear and the face of the man who'd sit across from me, admiring me in it. Yeah, I'm a romantic.

I wandered into D&G again yesterday. Knowing that the designer boutiques are currently ridding their Spring/Summer '11 merchandise by marking them at various discounts, I knew there was a chance I'd find that dress. I knew it'd be on sale. The question was, Would it still be there...in my size? I was greeted this time by a male SA (who turned out to be the assistant manager). I saw my dress on the rack and told him I wanted to try it on. I glanced at the tag. Size 40. Score! He informed me it was 50% off. Score again! I marched into the dressing room and tried it. It fit. But...even at 50% off, could I really afford this dress? The short answer is yes. However, I needed to consider that I'm going on 2 big trips next year and still haven't purchased my first home, and I really want all that to happen. I needed to stick to a strict budget, and could I do that after the purchase of this dress? I wasn't sure. I needed to take a breather, get out of there. The SA immediately came up to me as soon as I pulled the curtain. I said that I'd hoped it would cost $500 total, so I had to think about it. He was very pushy and rude. He said, "Seriously, you're not saving that much". He even brought a calculator to me, punched in a few numbers, then facetiously said, "If you like the dress, what's another $38?". I said, "I know. It's the principle, though". Why say that to me? I was carrying a Chanel bag and drove up in a luxury car! I really would've gotten the dress, even if it cost $38 more than what I wanted, but I don't believe in supporting bad customer service, so I walked away.

I went home, did the calculations and found that if I purchased the dress, I'd still be good. I'd still have a lot of money to do the trips and save for a home. I wanted it, but I wasn't going back to Robertson. I called the Costa Mesa boutique, and they told me that they had one of that dress left, and only in a 44. Too big. I then called the Beverly Center boutique, and the guy who answered was so nice. He said he had one of the dress left, in a size 40! He offered to hold if for me until closing. I made it there a half hour before closing, and the guy brought me the dress. It was in better shape than the one at the Robertson boutique. It looked like no one ever tried it on. Of course I snatched it up and took it home!