Have a Knockoff Holiday Season

Holiday shopping is here. Are you done with yours? No? Are you perplexed over what to get and for whom? Are you concerned with adhering to a strict budget this year? (Better than last year). Yet the desire to score the perfect gift still drives you to the mall... repeatedly.

Why not save time, sanity, and expense... choose a knockoff. Knockoffs can be purchased from several places nowadays, and no longer need only to be purchased from the trunk of a car down a questionable alley.

My friend who recently returned from a shopping trip in New York offered several bits of knockoff advice to us not in the know.

Knockoff rules - be a risk taker

The best buy for knockoff wear are shoes. She informed me that since shoes are not at eye level it is almost impossible to tell the difference between the Manolo Blahniks knockoffs and the much pricier originals. Okay, since I know nothing about shoes other than are they comfortable and cheap... I gave her that one. Besides who am I to say anything about the trendy Christian Louboutins she was wearing?

Knockoff rules- a stitch in time can save a dime

Want to score a great bag purse for your best friend? Look closely at the stitching. Straight seams with tone on tone stitching can make any bag look more expensive. Misaligned seams with white stitching can cheapen a look.

Knockoff rules- color it right

Have you seen a purse that all the "it" people are carrying, yet when you went to price the purse as a perfect gift for your mother in law... you gawked at the price. Peace during the holidays comes from within and is free... forced peace should never carry that high of a price tag. So what to do? You know she would love that purse. Buy a similar purse in the same color. The color was what she was initially drawn to, not the style. Additionally, with the money you saved, treat yourself to a purse in a color you desire.

Knockoff rules- the truth is in the lining

A knockoff that has cheap lining is not worth the money you paid or saved. If a jacket has cheap wrinkly looking lining, are you really scoring a deal with it? Fabric lining does not need to be expensive, but it does not need to be wrinkly and plastic looking either.

Knockoff rules- patent pending

Pick patent leather. Real patent leather is shiny and has a plastic look to it already; consequently, this is the easiest look to replicate. The only tricks are to make sure the knockoff you opt for does not have a filmy look to it and has an even finish.

With these tips in hand, I hit the malls and the sales over the long weekend and was able to find the perfect gifts for even the most difficult person on my list... all at deeply discounted prices- so yes, I purchased a gift for myself as well.