Remember the bag that I stalked? The “one that got away?” The obsessive bag-hunt continued even after I publicly proclaimed the Rebecca Minkoff treasure a loss. I promised our readers that I would update you if I ever found the bag of my dreams: or an acceptable second-place love. Well, here’s living proof that it’s now (finally!) mine! (Or, you know, a picture of the proof.) Read on to see how my persistence- if you’d like to call it that- literally paid off! You’re not going to want to miss this one.

I headed to Bloomindgale’s on my regular Tuesday evening route and I saw that Rebecca Minkoff Cheetah Laser Cutout Beau Bag I had been eyeing for months had returned to the shelves! Within seconds of spotting it, however, my emotions swung from beyond excited to totally depressed as I noticed that the bag on the shelves was pretty beat up: someone had obviously been using it before returning it. Normally I wouldn’t really mind, (because hey, a white bag would only stay white for an hour with me as its owner) but for my big ticket purchase, I wanted perfection.

Luckily, Bloomie’s delivers nothing short of perfection.

The saleswoman checked the store databases for me and found that a brand new one could be mailed right to my house! This was a total miracle and surprise, considering how I already knew the online world had sold out. The only catch was that it was full price ($330.) I decided I couldn’t let my bag get away again, so I bought it, cashing in a $25 Bloomingdale’s card reward points coupon. (Final purchase price including sales tax= $328.)

My bag was delivered in 3 days and when I unpacked it, I was just as excited as the first time I had set eyes on it. The bag of my dreams was mine! But, wait! Something was wrong! As I unwrapped my bag, I noticed a sale sticker stuck to the tag. What?! The sticker read: Original price: $330, Now: $247.50! I had my shoes on in seconds, and my mom and I (the tag-team shopping duo of the century) were on our way to Bloomies. We showed the saleswoman the price ticket and she automatically refunded us the difference- which ended up being $88!  (New purchase price including sales tax = $264.83.)

I thought that I had already scored a great bargain on my bag. $88 off the regular price and already mine to love? But the story doesn’t end here. Today, I scored extra bargains that would put all my earlier antics to shame.

This afternoon, my mom and I headed out to Bloomingdale’s for their early 4th of July sale. All sale handbags were an additional 40% off their lowest price, plus they were giving another 15% coupon on top of that!! We decided to see if the price of my Rebecca Minkoff Beau Clutch had dropped since last Friday, even though we didn’t see any of them in store. Today, my exact same bag was $148.50! We asked the salesgirl to do a price adjustment and we were credited another $105.93 back. Want me to do the math for you? $88 of our original adjustment + $105.93 of today’s = a savings of $193.93! That makes my final purchase price including sales tax = $159.17.

Now I bet you’re wondering if I did anything creative with my savings, since my mom and I already resolved to pay the original $330 for the bag. Well, in fact, I did! Another Rebecca Minkoff bag had made it’s way to the sale table: The Mab Mini in Natural that you’ll see here! The original price was $550, but it was already marked down to $412.50. (A savings of $137.50.) Then, with today’s additional 40% off sale and %15 off coupon, the final price including sales tax was $225.11.

If you take into consideration the $193.93 that we got back in adjustments today adjusted to our Bloomie’s card today, the price we actually paid for this bag was $31.18.

Yes, I’ll repeat it so you don’t think I forgot a zero somewhere. $31.18.

Lots of people always ask me how I can afford my expensive taste in fashion. Let me tell you, it’s work. I’m never mindlessly charging my favorites to a credit card. Getting two Rebecca Minkoff lovelies for the price of the cheaper one isn’t an everyday thing, but I’ve never paid full price for a stitch in my wardrobe. (And, as you’ll see, even when I do, I eventually get it adjusted.) Here are my quick tips:

1. Do “shop” often to get a feel for prices, sale days, and store policies. This doesn’t mean buy often- just keep your finger on the pulse of your favorite stores.
2. Don’t be afraid to get what’s rightfully yours, but don’t abuse the store’s policies or get greedy about it- you’ll ruin it for all of us if the store does away with price adjustments. There’s no reason that I should overpay $194 on a single item when the price drops in a week.
3. Do keep your receipts handy, in case you see a sale in a store. The price won’t necessarily be the same if you come back in a few days when you’re ready with your receipts.

Keep checking back for more crazy bargain shopping adventures and let us know if you have any tips or stories to share!