*SAMPLE SALE* Wrap It Up

Diane von Furstenberg's sample sale finally opened its doors to NYC bargain shoppers today morning. Whew! The last few weeks have been a whirlwind adventure. When news broke that DVF might skip this summer's sale, it was a shock to many fans including myself. Thankfully, everything has returned to its rightful place and all is well (but not without a little drama inside).

Surprisingly, when I arrived at the sale this morning, not many people were waiting in line. I quickly learned that the sale organizers opened earlier than planned. I was told by a 260 staff member that they started letting in shoppers around 8:30am. This was a godsend as I was worried about today's hot & humid weather. So, with only a handful of ladies anxiously waiting in front of me, I was let inside within minutes of my arrival. Entering the showroom, I found the space filled with DVF's fabulous prints and exotic patterns. The inventory was more than adequate for a 5-day long sale, even to the point that I found the aisles narrower than usual to accommodate the additional racks of clothes.

Speaking of clothing, lets dive right in to the offered selection. Summer really is the best time to bring out colorful patterns and today's sale had lots of DVF's signature styles. From busy spirals to graphic florals, I spotted many dresses that can add the maximum "wow" factor to your style. Prices on RTW were almost identical to last December's sale. DVF's iconic wrap dresses could be had for $150 while evening frocks were $275. Blouses were priced $80, sweaters & skirts were $80, and coats were $350. Also, I would like to mention there were more sample racks this time around. I spotted 6 full to the brim racks of samples situated near the fitting room in the back corner. Samples were priced $50 and damaged items were $30. As my usual rule, you'll want to head here first. As for sizes, today's inventory was fully stocked with sizes ranging from 0 (petite) to 14 (large).

As I mentioned earlier, the aisles seemed much narrower than usual. Claustrophobic people and people in general should be aware that unwanted bumping, shoving, elbowing, and poking will be the norm throughout the duration of the sale. For this reason, I highly suggest my fellow Mizhattanites try to keep their cool when it comes to the chaos inside. Let's remember, the lack of spatial awareness is a long standing tradition when it comes to bargain shopping. And for whatever reason, please please please DO NOT FIGHT like you're in kindergarten. I stumbled across a small tit-for-tat feud between two shoppers today. These two ladies were arguing about who found what first--grabbing at the item in question like a tug-of-war game, yelling that they would go "tell the staff"--all right in front of 20 or so ladies waiting in line for the communal dressing room. Sigh~ Anyway, let's move on.

The handbag section was situated near the cash registers. 13 plastic bins were filled with clutches, top handles, crossbody purses, and leather totes. There were a few designs that I noticed such as the 440 top handles, Adele clutches, and Tonda box clutches. Tonda clutches were available in various styles like studded leather, snake skin, and metal mesh. All leather handbags were priced $285 while clutches were $100. Adjacent to the bags were boxes full of small leather goods, accessories, and a single rack of scarves. Everything was priced under $100 and there were belts, wallets, and iPhone/iPad cases.

Finally, let me take a moment to mention the dressing room. The queue to try-on items moves very very slowly. This is where the bottleneck happens and for this reason you'll be spending a lot of time waiting around. Instead, I suggest you wear something light and thin so that you can try things over your clothes. If you are shy and can't fathom trying on stuff in front of a huge crowd, you'll want to bring a friend along. The reason is that each shopper was only allowed to try 10 items with NO HOLDING. That's right. If you have 11 items, you'll be asked to throw one item away. And that is a choice I don't want to make, do you?

For those seeking bigger bargains and a somewhat smaller crowd, further markdowns are expected later this week. I'll make sure to keep you updated via a comment below and Twitter. Okay folks, that's a wrap!

Price list:

RTW
Gowns/cocktail dresses $275

Wraps and vintage $150

Dresses $125

Jackets $125

Blouses $80
Shorts $60
Skirts $80
Pants $80
Tights $10
Coats $350
Sweaters $80
Leather $250

Samples $50

Damages $30

Handbags and accessories

Handbags $285

Crystal/Studded clutches $100
Canvas bags $60
SLGs $50

iPhone cases/Small tech $20
Belts $60

Scarves $75
iPad clutches $70