What's happening to me? I used to be such a practical person. I shop for bargains, I use coupons, and I look for sales. I couldn't make myself spend $70 on a pair of tall Express jeans, when I could get tall Levi's for under $30. I always bought $1.50 Wet N Wild nail polish instead of salon polish...but now I've discovered that there really is a difference in OPI polish...it is SO nice! I've become addicted to tea from the Republic of Tea ($8 a pack instead of my old $3 Lipton tea bags.)

I blame the jeans on Liz and Allie. I started to realize that I was becoming more picky about how my jeans fit me. I got tired of jeans that didn't make my butt look great and fit snug down through the knees. I got tired of jeans that gaped in the back when I sat, showing my underpants to the world. I admired their jeans and the way they fit so perfectly on their long legs and slim waists. Since we share the same GENES, I thought I should try their JEANS. (I know BAD pun...but don't pretend you didn't laugh at it just a little!)

I blame the OPI nail polish on Eleanor. We decided to paint our toenails...and the only two polishes she had were Wet N Wild in black or OPI in red. Black isn't really my style...so I used the OPI. I fell in love with it's smoothness and ease to apply. It came out perfectly. I noticed that the salon near my house has a whole rack of OPI polish. I would have gone in there are bought about 50 different colors, except that they were closed...so I resolved to return another day.

I blame the tea on Renee, and also her mom and her sisters. They were having a tea party, which was so fun, by the way. We had little yummy cucumber and cream cheese open face sandwiches, all kinds of delicious cheeses, and cranberry scones. They also had a variety of tea. One of which was "Cardamom Cinnamon" from the Republic of Tea (Link in my sidebar). It is so good. I had to go buy some. Then I bought some more flavors. And some more. Then I sent Allie home to Seattle with some. Because I got her hooked too.

The one friend whom I thought was actually influencing my tastes in a positive was was Helen. She keyed me in to these cute t-shirts from Meijer's that fit so perfectly, go with everything, and look great. Plus they were only $5 most of the summer on sale! Can't beat that. Thing is...Helen is also my hairdresser. Because of her, and how fantastic my hair feels after she shampoos it with her fancy salon shampoo, I actually bought a bottle of shampoo this weekend with the sticker price of $20.95! Don't worry, I didn't pay that much...it was on sale for 50% off, and I had a coupon for $10 off when I bought 3, so I stocked up. The point is, now I'm addicted to Salon quality shampoo and conditioner, when I used to buy Garnier Fructis...only when i had a coupon. What happens when I run out of my stock, and I have to pay $20 for another bottle?

I guess I just began to realize that some things are worth paying a little extra for. I still consider myself a frugal person, and I still try to save money where I can. But after years of settling for $25 jeans I wasn't quite happy with, and then letting them sit in the drawer while I always wore the one pair that was my favorite, made me realize getting the quality you want is better than saving a little on something that is ALMOST as good. I still buy store brand products all the time. But on certain things like my jeans and my tea and my haircare, I'm gonna buy what I like.