Gifts

Draft:

Composition:
gray studded bag (Marshall's)
OPI nail polishes - from right to left: Russian Navy (matte), Jade is the New Black, Pamplona Purple, An Affair in Red Square, My Chihuahua Bites!, Japanese Rose Garden
sting ray charm necklace

Usage:
After my semester ended, I decided that I needed some serious retail therapy.  A lot of big stuff happened during spring semester 2010, including getting into a PhD program, defending my MA project, and getting my MA degree.  So, with seminar papers and my thesis behind me, I decided that I wanted to buy a present for myself.  Normally, I gift myself with shoes, but after scouring the usual sources - Zappos, Piperlime, Shoes.com, ShopItToMe, etc. - I couldn't find any pair that I really wanted.  Ahem...with the exception of these Betsey Johnson wedges (size 7) which I am utterly obsessed with and have been for some time.  However, I am a graduate student, and I'm in two weddings this summer, so I'm not in a financial situation to really indulge myself.  So, I had a splurge lite (a diet splurge?), which sounds like a contradiction, but welcome to grad school reality.

I love shopping at Marshall's because while they tend to be, in my experience, hit-or-miss, I almost always manage to find at least one or two items that I really like for low prices.  I never particularly liked the bags with a lot of hardware, but I've been looking for a non-black neutral bag, like a light beige-y brown or gray, like this one.  I was drawn to it for the color and the size - big enough to hold my essentials, plus a small notebook and/or books, essential for class going, but small enough that it's not a Bermuda Triangle bag where my lipsticks can never be found.  The metal doesn't overpower the bag; it just gives it enough interesting texture to separate it from a plain neutral purse.  And for $30, a major steal.

Since I got a great deal on the purse, I decided to get a second "self gift."  Liz and Anne-Marie always have cute manicures, and they've inspired me to pay more attention to my nails.  I consider buying several new nail polishes a splurge for me since I would never normally spend money on them - thus, making them the perfect, relatively inexpensive "Woo-got-my-MA" present.  In total, I spend less than half of the cost of the aforementioned Betsey Johnson wedges.

The necklace was not a self gift, but rather part of my (early) birthday present from my boyfriend.  I love all aquatic animals.  I jump and coo and generally act like a 5 year old when in an aquarium.  My roommates joke that I missed my calling as a marine biologist.  Of all sea creatures, I particularly adore sting rays.  I think that they are so cute and adorable (yes, I realize that I am in the minority here).  The chain of the necklace is the perfect length, and the charm is just quirky and cute and totally me.  I love it.  Normally, I'm wary about other people buying jewelry for me.  I have my signature necklace and ring and some other fun pieces, but I'm pretty particular about what I wear.  This necklace, though, is a great little piece that I'll definitely use to switch up my necklace choice.

Prompts:

• Do you buy gifts for yourself?  Do you call them gifts to justify spending money, like me?
• What style related gifts do you receive?  Do you get them from men or women?  Do you like your significant other to pick out jewelry or clothes for you?