When in Rome...Shopping Like a True Fashionista on a College Budget!

Brandeis’ February break was approaching and I was bored with the same old scene. I’d been there done that, I’d seen and been seen and I’d looked great doing it. No I’m not talking about Brandeis’ fabulous party scene because, truthfully, I’d rather not waste my time frequenting that arena; I’m talking about another kind of who’s who: Massachusetts’ shopping scene. Because let’s be honest, when people ask me what I did last weekend, they usually already know the answer.

I’m a girl who—much like my favorite film character Becky Bloomwood, from “Confessions of a Shopaholic”— likes to shop. And as such, I tend to spend much of my free time in a jungle that differs significantly from Brandeis frat parties. I like clothes, and there’s nothing wrong with that, right? (Wait, please refrain from answering that question because I don’t think I really want to hear your response.)

Given the choice between going to a fancy restaurant to spend my weekly paycheck on delicious food, or buying myself a cute new dress or pair of heels, I’d almost always choose the latter. Because for the most part, food is a temporary pleasure, but the high you get from shopping lingers a bit longer.

But two weeks ago, I’d gotten sick of frequenting the same malls and the same stand-alone shops. I’d grown tired of seeing the same clearance racks and the same choice of clothing in my usual haunts. So I went where I knew I’d be able to rejuvenate my sense of style—Rome.

At the risk of sounding totally pretentious, let me admit that I didn’t just hop on a plane to Rome to enhance my personal spring clothing collection. Unfortunately, I don’t have the funds or the time of someone like Victoria Beckham, who can just jet off on the weekend to do a little shopping. Alas, I didn’t really go to Rome just to shop; I went with a group of students from Brandeis’ Catholic Student Organization. Yet while we saw a host of breathtaking religious and cultural spots, we also visited temples of a different sort: shops, boutiques and flea markets.

After all, what’s the harm in a girl doing a little shopping? I traveled all that way, so it would be a sin not to do so, right? And since I was on a religious pilgrimage, I wanted a clean moral slate, so I was practically left with no other choice but to indulge my inner shopper.

Even though I embrace my inner Becky Bloomwood, that alter ego of mine also runs on a college student’s budget. So as appealing as it sounded, I didn’t intend on spending my life savings on a designer piece while in Rome. I’m a cheap Brandeis student like the rest of you, and I was out to find some cute, unique Italian pieces, but not blow all my money in one place. Alas, Rome is a dangerous place to be if you have a bit of a shopping…um, hobby. After all, there are so many beautiful items of clothing that it’s easy to convince yourself that you were being a bit too stingy when setting that budget for yourself.

But I’m happy to say that I managed to get through Rome, Florence and Assisi without spending more than € 59,50 on one single item of clothing! Strong and frugal, enough to make even Becky Bloomwood proud.

So here I am, back from Rome for a little more than a week now. Back to reality and back to climbing the Rabb steps to get to class each morning. But I’m a bit more rejuvenated and my wardrobe is a bit happier what with its new Italian additions. And I’m excited to share with all of you Brandeis fashionistas my tips for staying frugal while shopping abroad.

Whether you’re going abroad or planning a trip of your own, here are my tips for enjoying your international shopping experience on a Brandeis budget:

Seek and you shall find

Shopping tip #1: Do your research before you go shopping
Use those Brandeis smarts and seek out small, out of the way boutiques online and in guide books. They’re sometimes hard to find, but they’re usually worth the trek! After all, while Rome offers shoppers a host of designer fashions,

there are also smaller (and cheaper) boutiques to be found. You can find affordable fashion anywhere you go around the globe; you just have to be willing to look for it!

In my quest for stylish and cheap clothing, search!

I came up with seven affordable items, all under €59,50. The one problem was getting them all to fit into my suitcase on the return trip!

Coat: €59,50
Coat: €29,50
Shirt: €9,50
Sweater: €14,50
Sweater: €2,50
Dress and Sweater: €22,50

Shopping Experience: Priceless

?Shopping tip #2: Hit the clearance racks
Don’t be afraid to scour through racks of clearance clothing because it’s here where you’ll find some of the best purchases! One of my friends actually found really cute boots on clearance for €5. Practically all of the items I bought were on clearance, and they’re all adorable, so take the time to

Hit the flea markets, but stay focused

Flea market tip #1: Stay focused and bring a support group with you. Florence is known for many things, shopping being one of them. I’d heard there were some great deals to be had at the flea markets in Florence, so I decided to give them a try.

As I roamed through the flea markets, my eyes wandered and my feet stayed stationary, but my support group of friends encouraged me to move along, reassuring me that there would be plenty of time to relieve my wallet of its excess cash later.

First, as they instructed me, we were off to work in some cultural events, like seeing Michelangelo’s famous David statue. Meh, I thought to myself, who needs culture anyway?

As soon as I saw the beginning of the flea markets, my heart started racing. I’d done flea markets back at home, but these were like no other I’d ever experienced. They stretched for miles and all featured new, unique items to be conquered. It would have been easy to buy everything I saw in sight right away. But I knew better, and I knew to shop around for the best prices and compare each vendor to the last. It also helped to have a group of friends with me who could tell me when to walk away.

Flea market tip #2: Haggle like there’s no tomorrow. Many of my friends were worried that since they didn’t speak Italian, they wouldn’t be able to haggle with the vendors. I myself only know minimal Italian. And when I say minimal, I really mean minimal. But haggling is a universal language, my friends. While you might not be able to get through your life in Rome not speaking a word of Italian, you can certainly survive a week and bring back plenty of beautiful souvenirs with you by knowing a few little words and by using those Brandeis smarts to charm your way into getting the best price.



Most vendors speak English anyway, and if worse comes to worse, do what I did—grab that vendor’s calculator and type in the price you want him to sell you your items for. It worked for me, so it will most likely work for you too!
One more thing to know: You have to be willing to walk away if a vendor isn’t going to sell you something in your price range.

I know it’s painful to do, but if you’re shopping on a budget, sometimes you have to swallow the defeat and go on to the next conquest. You’ll most likely be followed by the vendor anyway because as a general rule of thumb, they’re all really eager to sell their merchandise.

Happy shopping!