Falling Into the Gap

I don’t know how much I’ve talked about it before, but I love to shop. It can make being frugal a challenge – but I also almost exclusively buy things on sale or clearance, so that helps. Our town is pretty limited on shopping options. One of my favorite stores to shop at is the Gap. We used to have one at the mall, which then turned into a Gap Outlet, and then disappeared. Our mall is kind of pitiful, actually – we usually only go to let the boys play in the little indoor playground they have set up.

Well, this weekend we’re in DFW (that’s the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex for you non-Texans) and we got to go to a REAL, HONEST-TO-GOODNESS MALL!! Ok, so the only store we went to was the Gap, but it was so nice to have options. I’m having the boys’ photos taken this afternoon (wish us luck! I’ll let you know how it goes) so I wanted to find matching shirts for them to wear. Yes, I’m that mom that dresses her children in matching/coordinating outfits when possible. I figure I better do it now before they’re old enough to protest!

So, my mom and I headed (with boys in tow) over to Baby Gap and I was immediately all aflutter at the sign I saw next to the door: All Sale Items an Additional 40% Off. Score! Right off the bat we found these great sweaters:

So cute, no? They’re a soft sweater material, and I’m a sucker for hoodies anyway so I couldn’t pass these up – and they had one in 3T & 18-24 months, perfect for the fall. They were originally priced at $30.00, but I got them each for $7.19 + tax.

I still needed to find shirts for photos, and I had pretty much settled on some striped tees ($10 each, but really cute in bright colors) when I looked over and saw these button-up shirts:

They were marked down to $9.99, so with that additional 40% off they were just $6.00! Ours have a little bit different coloring in the stripes – I’m going to have them wear jeans and black Converse with them (did I mention we’re a Converse kind of family? Brian practically lives in his, and I even told him I was pregnant with J by presenting him with a pair of tiny little Converse) for some of the photos. These shirts were originally $25.00 each.

We mosied on over to the women’s section and I found…. wait for it…. cardigans! I don’t know when I became a Cardigan Person, but I am. I am working on collecting them in all different colors because I wear them all. the. time. Today I found a beige cardigan with contrast trim, and a white one – both new colors to add to my collection (I’m SO exciting. I know).

These were originally $49.50 each, but I got them for $7.00. So, that brings my total spent to a little over $43 including tax. If I’d bought everything at full price I would have spent about $225 including tax. I know most people wouldn’t consider shopping at the Gap bargain shopping, but I was really happy with my finds – and Gap clothes are generally really good quality, so we should get a lot of good use out of them (not to mention the fact that they sell GREAT at my town’s local consignment sale).

Now just cross your fingers that photos go as well as my shopping experience! :)