Are you ‘recession chic?’

Later on this evening, you can catch me on Lucy Torres’ show, The Sweet Life (QTV 11), where we talked about how to live on a budget without going “losyang” as Lucy herself calls it.

It was an interesting evening when we taped the show, as I had a front row seat watching fashionistas talk about how they have fallen prey to the urge to splurge (but have since learned their lessons).

Giselle Sanchez, a schoolmate at UP Diliman, was as usual funny, smart and very much honest with her spending binges. She talked of how she ended up buying almost all of the bags in a Louis Vuitton shop in Italy (guess how much it cost her), because the snooty manager tried to boot her out of the store because he mistook her for a Filipina domestic helper. (You must watch the show to fully appreciate her effort—albeit costly—to defend Filipinas).

This made me think about how much we spend on clothing (my weakness is clothing for my kids), bags, shoes, accessories, perfumes, mobile phones. Yes, the techie gadgets are as much a part of being in vogue these days, as clothes and shoes. Work places that require power dressing like media, show business, and anyone above vice-president level in a big company, needs suits, barongs, spiffy shoes—and these are all expensive.

A New York Times article says there’s a new trend that allows fashionistas to respond to the call of the times by turning into “recessionistas” or recession-chic.

In an economic climate in which buying a handbag with a four- or five-digit price tag is starting to seem gauche, the free-spending style hounds formerly known as “fashionistas” are rebranding themselves.

Consider the $1,235 patent-leather satchel with golden hardware designed by Anya Hindmarch.

Mary Hall, a marketing manager at I.B.M. in Redondo Beach, Calif., heard its siren call. Then she went to Target to purchase a similarly shiny purse, made out of polyvinyl chloride, by the same designer. Price: $49.99.

“In the current economy, I thought I would reform,” Ms. Hall said.”

Now, is this a money-smart move? Or is it falling prey to a marketing spin that makes you feel it is alright to spend because you’re after all spending just a portion of what you normally would? The article goes on to say:

In part, the word reflects the efforts of fashion and beauty publicists to spin the economic downturn as an attractive retail trend. For instance, Bourjois, a moderately priced makeup line from France, sent a recent press release by e-mail to reporters promoting the brand’s cheapest mascara and lip glosses as “the Recessionista Collection,” an antidote to gloom. An e-mail message sent last week on behalf of Salon Eliut Rivera in Manhattan promoted “Recessionista Beauty,” offering discounts on haircuts and eyebrow shaping.”

To me, there are no seasons for being money-smart. If you are used to buying what you need, looking for quality items that last long at a good price (hmm, just like Warren Buffett’s criteria for a good company to buy), whether you are in boom times or in a recession, you won’t have to adjust your spending habits.

It’s when we are used to luxuries we cannot afford, perennially trying to keep up with someone that’s two notches above our income levels, when we find it hard to adjust to crunch times.

Lately, I was going through my eldest sister’s office clothing she left with me when she and her family migrated to the United Kingdom earlier this year. I found suits and clothes she bought more than 10 years ago that still look good and haven’t gone out of style. Classic cut; good quality textile. They were pricey, I bet. Her taste dictated that. But for the items to last 10 years? That’s recession chic

If you feel like it’s time to try this new skill, here are some tips I found helpful:

1. Shop with friends who are like-minded. Frugality is now back in vogue! If it’s tough to schedule it, then phone-a-friend when you feel that you’re about to splurge!
2. Tune out advertising. Remember, what you see on television as “the good life” is almost always way out of line with reality.
3. Don’t give in to the siren song of easy credit. Swiping a card seems painless, but that’s just an illusion. You still have billing day to deal with.
4. You will NEVER run out of things to buy. Believe me! There will always be a sale, always be a pair of shoes, a bag or an outfit that’s jut perfect for you, your spouse or your children.
5. Always know how much you earn. It’s not bad to enjoy what you earn; what’s not right is wanting to spend what you haven’t yet earned.
6. If you feel that you can’t resist, don’t go inside malls or shops. In Makati, the best way to go to my office is through the Ayala mall walkways and buildings and buildings of eye candies. When I first walked through them without buying a single item, I was as pleased as a cat that has just finished a meal!

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