Splurge VS Steal - Valentino Studded Tote

We all know the gorgeous Valentino studded tote bag that retails around $1,995. It's a gorgeous bag that comes in a few different styles, but not many of us can afford that price tag. 

 I was super excited to see a close dupe at TjMaxx for only $29.00! It appeared to be quite well made too for that price point. I absolutly love TjMaxx, they have great brand name items for less so I shop there quite often. Last time I was there a saw a bunch of Kate spade wallets and purses :)  Now if I can only find a good dupe for the Valentino studded flats I'll be in business lol

Have you come across any good dupes lately at TjMaxx or elsewhere?

Not a sponsored post, I just love TjMaxx lol

Splurge VS Steal - Céline Horizontal Cabas Zip Tote

I'm sure you guys have seen the Celine zipper tote all over the blog world by now. If you haven't, this is the one I'm talking about below. I know there was a frenzy to get the look-a-like one from Forever21 that was around $24 and a lot of people said they were sold out. I actually got the one from F21 and ended up returning it. I thought it was too big for my frame (I'm a size 0 for reference)

I believe the Celine tote retails for around $2,000 if i'm not mistaken.  While it is a gorgeous bag, I think that price tag is a bit outrageous for a simple leather tote with side zippers. 

You can get this dupe here for much less!

This one is $63 on chicwish.com while it's not leather, it still looks like pretty good quality and the overall rating was 4.5 out of 5 stars. 

If you would prefer leather you can get the one below from Etsy

This one is $95 and is handmade with Genuine leather.  It appears a bit smaller than the Celine, but for me that's a good thing.

Were you guys able to get the F21 dupe? Do any of you have the real deal?

not a sponsored post

Splurge VS. Steal ~ Christian Louboutin Daffodile Pumps

Who doesn't love these go-with-everything pair of Loubs? Well Steve Madden makes a pair just like them for way less!

Christian Louboutin Daffodile pumps $1,075

Steve Madden Dejavu pump $99.00 (on sale currently)

You definitely can't go wrong with these. 

Splurge VS Steal - Givenchy Antigona Sachel Bag

I'm in love with Givenchy's Antigona bag. It's such a classic that I'm sure will serve you well for years to come without being out of date. Unfortunately it comes with a huge price tag, but I found a similar bag for less on eBay.

$2,405 @ Bergdorf Goodman

$11.99 + $12 S&H eBay

Splurge VS. Steal - Prada Retro Sunglasses

It's been a while since I've done a splurge VS steal so I came across these Prada sunglasses I knew I had seen a similar pair elsewhere.

Prada Baroque Sunglasses $300

eBay of course, $2.99 w/ free shipping!

What do you think of these retro looking sunglasses? I think the tortoise shell is my favorite.

Splurge VS. Steal - Hermès Collier de Chien Bracelet

Ok girls, I think I've found one of the best Splurge VS. Steal's out there! The Hermès cuff bracelet.  Here is the original.

Top of bracelet is above & bottom side is below

I've found that this retails for $1,000

~~~~~~~~

Here's the one I found on eBay for only $8.59 w/ free shipping!

I was really blown away by the quality of this. It's heavy and feels very durable. I can't wait to wear it out. I looked up the seller to get the link for you guys in case anyone else is interested and it looks like he raised the price to $18.59. It's still not bad considering I've seen much cheaper (as in cheaper looking, not price wise) looking fakes that don't look anything like the real thing.  

What do you guys think?

Splurge VS. Steal - House of Harlow Resin Necklace

I'm sure you guys have seen this necklace everywhere. It's Nicole Richie's House of Harlow resin necklace.  This retails for $145 on this site here

I found mine on eBay for only $4.99 w/ free shipping! I even saw some for $3.50 w/ free shipping. 

Now for $5.00 the quality isn't great, but only in feel not look. I just hope the gold coloring doesn't rub off too quickly :)

What do you guys think?

Splurge VS. Steal - Louis Vuitton Leopard Stole Scarf

So this post might be a little late since winter is on it's way out, but better late then never right? One of my favorite pieces for winter is scarves. You can easily dress up an outfit or give it that special something by just throwing on a scarf. I'm not really into animal prints, but I though that the Louis Vuitton one looked so classic and chic, not too mention that it goes with pretty much anything. 

Louis Vuitton Leopard Stole Scarf $715

I found my scarf on eBay for only $4.99 w/ free shipping!! It's not as long as the LV scarf but for the price it's still really good. 

Here's the link to the seller if anyone is interested in purchasing one. He has many different colors.

I ended liking this one so much that I went back and bought another one in purple :) 

Splurge Vs Steal - Sam Edelman Spiked Pumps

I've heard a lot of things about the Sam Edelman Spiked Pumps. Good and bad; the bad being that the spikes fall off after just a few wears. I would be so pissed if I payed for $200 shoes just for the spikes to fall off. The ones below are the real deal for $200.

Splurge:  Sam Edelman Pumps, $199

These look just like the real Edelman pumps and are only $60. Imo I actually like these better. The heel looks about a half in or so higher than the Edelman pumps which makes a big difference.  The ones below come in 3 different colors too. 

Steal: Highlife Spiked Pumps $60.50

Some of you may remeber the Splurge Vs. Steal post I did on the spiked Louboutin sling backs for $20 . Well, I wore those a few times (to the clubs) and have yet to lose a single spike =)

Do any of you own the Sam Edelman spiked pumps? What are your thoughts on them?

Recent Purchases & A Dupe

I was at K-mart the other day filling a Rx so I thought I would check out the Halloween makeup.  Of course I had to pick up a Style Watch magazine too, It's one of my favorite magazines to get the latest scoop on the trends of the season.

 I picked up this Fantasy Makers palette from Wet n' Wild thinking it would be similar to NYX's glitter palette. It wasn't :( This was was kind of dry, especially the top layer, when I pressed my finger in it a little more I noticed it was creamier, but the swatch of it was chunky and uneven and almost impossible to blend out evenly, kind of a waste of $3.99 if you ask me, but i'm still going to try again to make it work. The lashes aren't all that great either. They lashes kind of point downwards so it doesn't give my eyes a flattering shape and even if I curl them the curl won't last for more than 10 minutes (I've tried w/ similar styles). The glitter on the other hand was fabulous! 

The glitter is very fine and sparkly and I would even say it's a perfect dupe for MAC's 3D silver glitter. The best part is you get 5.4g for only $2.99! They also had this glitter in white, silver and red. I'm thinking about going back for the red one. 

Have any of you tried these Fantasy Makers makeup products?

New Jewelry Purchases & Splurge Vs. Steal

I was on Hautelook.com the other day when I came accross some gorgoues piece by Bansri. I'm not really much of a jewelry person, but I do like unique pieces. One of the items I purchased was a black and gold clover necklace that instantly reminded me of the one by Van Cleef & Arpel's Alhambra. If any of you watch the Real Housewives of Orange County you may have noticed that Alexis wore this necklace a few times. 

This necklace is so expensive that you actually have to request the price. I'm not sure of the exact price, but I've seen similar shorter versions of the necklace going for over $6,000 on eBay. Yeah, it's that expensive!

So I purchased this gold plated Bansri piece for $41 marked down from $98

I also got these gold plated evil eye bracelets (in Turkish we call call the evil eye a nazar boncugu).  I love things with the evil eye, despite it's name which can be kind of strange; it's actually kind of like a talisman as it's known in many cultures to protect against the evil eye. The idea of using these is that it will attract the evil eye (nazar) before it can damage the thing or the person that it is directed to, absorbing the damaging power of voluntary/involuntary "evil look". Therefore the nazar bead is always out in the open, not a secret talisman. In Turkey you will often see a nazar boncugu pinned to a baby's clothing and if it ever breaks it is usually replaced immediately. 
  [There's your educational info for the day hehe]

The closure has a little hamsa (hand) that dangles from it.

To be honest, I was kind of disappointed in the quality of these. A set of 2 was also $41 marked down from $98. They are definitely cute, but too pricy for the quality.

Splurge Vs Steal - Spiked Louboutins

My friend called me over the weekend to go shoe shopping with her on Magazine St. One of our favorite shoe stores, Shoe Nami, was having a huge sale. The whole store was $19.99 or less!

So, on to the Spluge VS Steal. Many of us know and love the spiked Louboutins that Kim K, Lindsay Lohan and other celebs wear. 

At $775.00, they are definitely a splurge.  Check out the shoes I found below at Shoe Nami!

I got these for only $19.99! I wanted the nude pair, but they didn't have any of those. I love slingbacks b/c they are the most comfortable heel for me to wear, and because pumps always slip off my heel. I have an all black pair of slingbacks from Jessica Simpson that I always wear so it will be nice to mix it up a bit with these.

What do you guys think?

Splurge VS. Steal - Hermes Leather Cuff

I've had my eye on the the Hermes Collier De Chien Cuff Bracelet for as long as I can remember, but like most fancy items I lust after, the price of $795 is just out of my reach.

However, I did find a pretty good imitation for only $46.95! Gennie's Gold Pyramid Studded White Imitation Leather Bracelet