Friday, December 30, 2011

The Boxing Day Sales... thoughts?

The boxing day sales. 
Ladies, let's go there.
We all like a good sale, don't we? And on-the-whole I rather enjoy a frivolous romp about the shops; I can cope with crowds; I have no problem double-parking in a loading zone to avoid circling the carpark 47 times stalking those holding carkeys and bags in hand...
But the boxing Day sales?

I dunno.

In the good-ole-days (ie. three years ago bc (before children) I used to save my pennies weeks before the BD sales. On Boxing Day, I would burst through the yawning early-morning doors of Myer with fists ready to box anyone who would dare snatch that half-price pair of designer jeans before I laid eyes on them; and come home hours later sated but with bags and bags of bargainous joy to happily last me until the next Boxing Day sale madness.

Yes, the good ole days. 

Then, I fell pregnant with Fern. And that Boxing Day I was 39 weeks pregnant with feet like boats. No Boxing Day shopping adventures to be had that year. Then last year, Elliott was just four months old and would not be parted from my boobs for longer than an hour at a time and - having already established that my son had zero tolerance for shopping even by four months, I had to skip another Boxing Day sale.

This year was my year, folks. And I was NOT going to miss out!

Nursing a slight hangover and feeling slightly dog-of-the-bone I nonetheless fronted up at the shops at dawn along with my sister. Sensible shoes. Loose, comfortable clothing that could be slipped easily in and out of. Folks, I went prepared!

But sadly, it all turned out to be a little fizzle. Sale? Is anything really on sale on Boxing Day? Anything worth lining up for and grappling through crowds to part with hard-earned cash for, that is??? Most of the department stores had sales on before Christmas and to be honest, I saw nothing that excited me at Myer on Boxing Day. Despite circumnavigating the mall brandishing my credit card for a couple of hours that morning, I came home with a couple of measly little bags and a large amount of disappointment! Has it always been this way? Am I just a little more prudent about my purchases? Or has the concept of Boxing Day 'sale' as defunct as a shop selling CD's next to the I-store?

Ok, I did get a few little trinkets. And one great bargain -- a $100 bikini from Country Road for just $30. Oh, and some half price and seriously delishy body wash from Lush called "snow fairy" that I would like to drink straight from the bottle. A couple of stationery items from Kikki K. A pair of jammies for Elliott. Some invitations to the 3rd birthday party Fern does not yet realise her mother does not have time to plan for her next week (?!). But I wanted shoes! Clothes! An unnecessary but too-great-not-to-grab handbag! And I found none of it on Boxing Day..... oh well. There's always next year.

And you? How did you fare? Did you 'do' the Boxing Day sales? Am I just having a whinge or are they really a little overrated? Do share! I want to see what YOU snared!!

xx

My Boxing Day 'loot'. 

13 comments:

  1. good blog..nice article publishing by you...appreciate on you...thanks for giving detail..
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  2. Sorry, not for me. Never have been, even BC. I went once, it was with my mother just before I was moving away from home to go to Uni (ha, ha, literally BC as in Before Christ), so needed a bunch of homewares. Actually got some good stuff which I still own (eg corningware) but I have never been tempted to go again. I don't love shopping at the best of times, and I consider a mad sale to be not the best of times. Don't get me wrong, I hate paying full price, but I don't believe I've paid full price for some time now, the whole world's on sale. I reckon these days they hold stock back to eke it out over a few weeks. Love your bikini though, wish I could get into mine!

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  3. Hmmm I am feeling a little unexcited over BD sales these days. BC I was all over it and keen but now I just find things on sale throughout the year which excite me.

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  4. Oh gosh, I avoid the shops at all costs on the best of days, especially when the sales are on..though give me an Op Shop any day of the week and I am there with bells on :) I am probably in the minority of women when it comes to shopping actually...I have never liked it.

    You did score a few great bargins though so it wasn't a complete waste of a day.

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  5. you know...i never really got into the intense boxing day sales much but i did (and still do i suppose) like to go out on boxing day. it was because i found christmas to be so dull as i got older. in the sense that my family does it the european way and celebrates on christmas eve so on christmas we were just supposed to play with out toys. but when you are 11-...17 etc, you aren't getting toys anymore. do you play with your new clothes? so i liked boxing day because it was this kind of freedom where i could go places (malls) again and DO things!

    adorable blog nicole! i hear you do little posts on "inspiring artists" - i would love to sign up if you'll have me! i'm doing this super cute collaboration with flapper doodle (from etsy) and i'm excited to get the word out in january!

    cheers,
    patience

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  6. With a 3yr old & a newborn, I avoided the shops this Boxing Day but have been a couple of times this week to check out the sales and haven't been overly impressed I must say!
    I think with the boom & ease of online shopping & the way our economy has been going, 'sales' just aren't the same anymore :)
    Love your new bikinis though :)
    x

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  7. I've kind of gotten over 'sale fever'.
    I can't stand shopping in a mess of strewn clothing and feel that there are sales around the place all year long anyway.
    Yep - I'm officially old!!
    Nice buys though.
    :-)

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  8. I don't do the boxing day sales anymore, because I never really find anything I actually 'want' in them. So I kind of just spend for the sake of spending, defeats the purpose I guess :o/ Though they're not bad for manchester and cutlery/glassware. Sounds like you got a few nice things though, so not a total loss.
    Oh and I can relate to the party planning that you have no time to organise... except mine is a 4th birthday party and it's on MONDAY! :o/
    Happy New Year Nicole xo

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  9. I used to love the BD sales too, but as I get older the thought of the crowds turns me right off them. I did go with my sister this year though, and managed to not buy a single thing. Things have definitely changed!

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  10. I can't stand the crush of crowds so you'll never find me in-store at the boxing day sales.

    I did let my fingers do the wandering and splurged online on Boxing Day. I took advantage of 60% off some clothes I'd been desperately wanting to buy.

    Kate

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  11. I don't know what your talking about dear sister. The Meyer boxing day sales are the only time during the year that I buy clothes and I am genuinly more excited about boxing day then xmas day. I can't afford clothing during the year so I am like a kid in a candy store. Clothing flavored candy. I go to a smaller lesser known Meyer and enter with maybe 40 other people and no lieup as such. This year I brought home many bags filled with my new fav cloths for the year. Some already worn out :-)

    Meyer, do NOT stop having boxing day sales. Yes, You had them online b4 xmas this year but being in there and trying on bundles at a time just isnt the same as an online purchase.

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  12. Just the thought of the Boxing Day sales and the clips of crowds running through the doors seen on the news has me shuddering. I hate crowds so me and big sales don't mix. I'd rather pay full price! I also got turned off them after working at David Jones while at uni during the holidays and seeing the rubbish they would bring out just for the sales that had been in storage all year. It was like all the good stuff was put away and they had stuff stored specifically to bring out for the sale time. Not sure if it's still the same but I didn't like that, felt like I was being deceived!!

    Love the Kikki K stuff you scored! You can't go wrong in that store.

    Happy New Year too! I'm finally back in the land of the bloggers!

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  13. I applaud your enthusiasm Nicole! I have lived in Melbourne for ten years and have never been to the BD sales.. there is nothing I need badly enough to warrant being trampled or elbowed in the face to get to the racks/registers first....!!!! haha Boxing Day for me has always been slow morning with tea and pjs enjoying the Christmas Day loot. I do love your new toggs! Happy New Year, looking forward to seeing the studio transformation! x

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