6:01 AM
Salsa Circuit
"Fashion isn't a necessity. It pulls at your heart. It's a whim. You don't need it. You want it." Marc Jacobs is right: acquiring on-trend trinkets is now a mass-participation leisure pursuit. And in the next few weeks, it is open season - the year's best opportunity to pick up high fashion at knock-down prices, online and on the high street.
Christmas sales directory 2011
There are some mouth-watering bargains. But before you brave the shops or lunge at your mouse with intent, consult our seven sales guidelines to emerge bathed in the righteous glow of sales success.
Our top sales picks
1 Before you start, look in your wardrobe - then make a list
Avoid the easy trap of buying yet more of the same. Remind yourself where you have an embarrassment of riches - 10 pairs of jeans, say - compared to a gaping wardrobe blind spot - what, no pencil skirt?
2 Yes, you may want it, but will you wear it?
Remain cool in the face of sales-induced mass hysteria. You are about to buy something because you love the idea of it - and it looks like a bargain: but can you imagine wearing it, and if so, when and where? This is the best test to avoid hauling home trophy items that lurk forever unloved in the wardrobe.
3 Relish the discount, but never overlook the price
Anything north of a 40 per cent discount is giddy territory. Before you hand over that knock-down sum, however, ask yourself this: if the price was, in fact, the full price, would I still desire this item? If the answer is yes, carry on.
What to buy and what to avoid in the sales
4 Don't be distracted
Try not to quail when faced with feral fellow-shoppers and stores deploying every weapon in their arsenal to compel you to buy. Eat before leaving the house to ensure your energy levels stay high, and consider wearing headphones as you shop: a spot of Mozart or Radio 2 will soothingly insulate you from the most grating in-store soundtracks.
5 Shop around
Spotted an unmissable bargain? Just make sure. If your contract allows cheap browsing - or there's in-store Wi-Fi - a quick Google should reveal all. Alternatively, use the RedLaser app to scan the barcode and rustle up a list of prices elsewhere.
6 Don't be rushed
It's easy to succumb to the illusion of scarcity: if you don't buy this now, you'll never get it this cheap again. None the less, refer back to rules 2, 3 and 5 before bagging your item.
7 Stay within your budget
Desire, even as articulated by Marc Jacobs, is no excuse for debt.
-Luke Leitch
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