Best buy

[mew1]

I just had to share, I got a evening dress for only 6.95 on a clearance rack in the BonTon, I couldn't even believe the buy!! Mary

[LittleBee]

Mary, Congratulations on your bargain. For my last cruise, I brought two evening gowns which were bought as a bargain. One, was a gown with a matching bolero jacket from E-Bay for $30, the other was even better! I purchased a gown with jacket at an estate sale for just $3.00!!! Dry cleaned the e-bay gown, but gently machine washed the $3.00 dress. Got more compliments on the dresses , but couldn't keep my mouth shut. Had to share my thriftiness with our friends! Have fun wearing your evening dress!

[Nebr.cruiser]

Wow, aren't bargains fun. Congrats. Last year on a $9.99 clearance rack at Herbergers I found FOUR dresses that actually fit and looked great--two evening gowns, one dress of the type to wear to a wedding and one nice sundress. Besides that, they were all an extra 20% off that day. I usually can't find even one dress I like that fits right in a whole year, even paying full price. I wore all four dresses on our cruise last year.

[Texas_Diver]

I found one of my dresses on ebay for under $20 and one at Goodwill for $7.00.

 

Incredible deals!

 

D.

[Jill and Jo]

We leave on Celebrity Century next Thursday! I bought two dresses at Ross (in Florida)...one is a black velvet gown and the other is a black cocktail dress. They came right off the clearance rack...$2.99 each!! I almost had a heart attack when they both fit perfect!!! Bargain shoppers unite!!!

[sea_u_onboard]

A great time to check the big department stores is after Prom season - they really start to mark them down once the rush is over. Your choices may be limited but the prices are great.

[MrsMoose2001]

Enjoy and wear in the best of health

[RevSmith]

Wow, that is a great buy!

[Silvery Seas Cruiser]

You know what. It nevrer would have occurred to me to buy a gown from E-Bay, but so many of you have had incredible luck with gowns you have purchased there and been so kind as to show them to us here, that I plan to check out E-Bay soon.

 

As you may know, I don't enjoy dressing up, but if I only had to pay a few paltry bucks for a really classy gown, well, it might not be so bad.

[SV-650-Girl]

If you look around there really are some great deals there. I just purchased three Victoria's Secret babydolls, brand new, for $10 each. The orig price was around $48/piece. One thing I can tell you is shopping on eBay can become an addiction...you can pretty much find ANYTHING!

 

Have fun and happy dress hunting!

[jenischmeni]

And the Goodwill idea is great too. I personally have had great success finding formal/cocktail dresses there. Too often ladies refuse to wear something twice and toss it off to Goodwill. For 4 bucks, I'd be delighted to be the second wearing! I've found though, that the selection is considerably better Mon - Fri than it is on the weekends. If you get lucky, it's a 1/2 off color that day and gorgeous cocktail dresses can be had for as cheap as $2!

 

And the idea of the bridal shops AFTER prom is superb. But even those can still be $50 - $100.

[Janutz]

I LOVE eBay! This cruise I will be wearing two formal gowns from them - the most expensive at $17 (including postage) and the less expensive just under $10. Also a cocktail dress for $7. The trick is to only bid on those items that list measurements in their description which would fit you. Did I mention my lighted magnifying travel mirror for $25 or my Birkenstock sandels for $45 from eBay?

 

[Oh-oh...maybe we should be keeping this to ourselves. Wouldn't want all of you bidding against me.]

 

A few weeks ago I wasn't sure what size capris I should be looking for, so I went to the stores and tried everything on. The cheapest I could find in the malls was $20-$30 and the styles were weird, to say the least. I had to search for a few weeks more to find the exact capris on eBay that I wanted, but it was worth the wait...two capri pants for about $5 each.

 

Then to top those prices, I stopped at The Salvation Army and found the best fitting, exactly-what-I-was-searching-for black capri pants for only....

 

...............(wait for it)...............

 

..................50 cents!!!

 

God bless Salvation Army. They do such good work and really deserve to be supported, either by donating to or shopping at their stores.

[luv2craft]

I am also not big into dressing up...mainly because I have put on so much weigh....but someone told me to try Fashion Bug....So I went into one yesterday and found a pretty nice gown in just my size for $14.98!

I was so excited that I just about peed myself in excitement! LOL!

I just love bargains!

[monton2]

I LOVE bargains too. Too much probably. I always head to the clearance rack at every store I go into.

I have to agree with everyone on the ebay thing. You can get really great bargains there. Just watch out for the ones who try to charge an arm and a leg for shipping. I got two dresses worth $200 each off of ebay for about $90 total. Way more than I'm used to spending, but much better than $400.

Also, the after prom sale is a very good idea. I have bought a few bridesmaid dresses at Dillards, JC Penneys, and Deb for $20 or less (the cheapest was $7 from $70). You may have to wait about a month or so for them to get pretty cheap though.

Don't forget you can sometimes get lucky and find an online promotion code from certain stores. Just type the name of the store and coupon in your search window. This has helped same me quite a bit too!:)

[caviargal]

I love ebay!

 

I buy Wacaol and Chantalle bras, Tommy Bahama clothing, shoes (Merrell, Pliner, Via Spiga) and have also gotten some great deals on my favorites.

 

My latest bargain was 4, 5 piece place settings of my Victoria and Beale china that they stopped producing back in 1999. Replacements wanted 49.95 a setting and I paid 10 per place setting on ebay and only $20 total for shipping.

 

I also buy some cosmetic products (Lancome moisturizers) and perfumes on ebay at great prices!

[Jason's Storm]

My wife found a $169 dress for $25. It is beautiful, and the right size for her. Only little problem is that it is little long so it would have to be hemmed.

 

~JS

[10splyr]

I detect either a snide remark or major sarcasm from mrsmoose re: the "good health" remark!

[Silvery Seas Cruiser]

I detect either a snide remark or major sarcasm from mrsmoose re: the "good health" remark!

 

Gosh, I don't take it that way at all. Mrs. Moose is always very friendly and caring. I have never read any comment from her that smacked of sarcasm. I'm sure she was sincere and meant it exactly as it was written. Gosh! I'm just amazed it would be taken any other way.

[Happy ks]

I've tried Ebay a couple of times and we have looked at Goodwill, never have we had any luck with either, but I love hearing of a good bargain. I've found my last couple of purchases at major dept. stores for under $25, brand new with tags and never been worn, so I'm happy with those.

 

MrsMoose is a cancer survivor and not snide or sarcastic in any way. Why would you read into it like that?

 

Anyway, I love to hear of a great buy :) congratulations!

[angelkisses]

I earn my extra cruise money by selling on eBay. My specialty is formal/cruise wear and children's dresses. I find these great bargains at thrift stores like goodwill. I'm very particular with what I purchase and it has to be like new or I will not sell it. This requires frequent trips to all the goodwill stores in my area. I'm probably inside a goodwill at least 10 times during the course of the week. Sometimes, I'm lucky and somtimes I'm Not. I sometimes find evening gowns valued between $300-$800 and occasionally I find some that are new and still have the tags. Once on eBay, I sell CHEAP. I would rather sell more dresses and keep my supply constantly changing than holding on for the top dollar. Everyone is Happy this Way! I think the most I have ever sold one of the gowns for is $40 but most around $20. I sold a NWT this week that retailed for $260 for only $15 am I upset ... NO WAY .... I'm $5 closer to my next cruise. I offer a BUY NOW price that is SUPER LOW on all my items.

 

 

Don't dis the local thrift stores or eBay as resources for your bargains or to sell and make money for future cruises. Two weeks ago I found a pair of used Seven for All Mankind Jeans for $4 and sold them on eBay for $60!!!! I offered a BUY NOW at $19.99 but the buyers got caught up in a bidding war.

[Happy ks]

I'd never "dis" Ebay or Goodwill, I read here many people find great buys there. I just haven't had the best of luck and prefer the department stores.

 

Did you read the story here of an Ebay buy of a couple weeks ago when the person received an item that reeked of cigarette smoke? I ordered a pair of cufflinks in May for an August cruise, we got them the end of September. I bought a gown for my daughter once that only cost $15, plus $5 for shipping. It didn't fit and it would have been almost $80 for the alterations.

 

I'm very happy for the people who get great bargains that work out. There is always another side to the story, though.

[10splyr]

I apologize if I offended mrsmoose. As I have said on another thread, things in print often don't come out the same as in your head.:o

[Silvery Seas Cruiser]

I apologize if I offended mrsmoose. As I have said on another thread, things in print often don't come out the same as in your head.:o

 

I really do know what you mean by how easily written Internet posts can come off the way they were written. I just reread my own post in this thread and decided someone could take what I wrote as unbridled sarcasm too, even though it definitely wasn't.

 

That is the danger of communication that is not face-to-face. We all run that risk here at the message board. I bet we've has some pretty spirited discussions here because the intent of a post was misunderstood.