Nordstromania
The more I go into Nordstrom, the more I like it. It’s the shopper’s nirvana. I bought 5 pairs of shoes today. I haven’t bought that many shoes at once in 10 years – because no place sells in my size! Retailers think there are no women out there with feet past size 10. The one place in town who sells larger sizes (9-14) also caters to drag queens, so the shoes there are sometimes a little funky.
Anyway, Nordstrom carries up to a size 14, and they also carry everything from trendy Burberry to earthy Birkenstock. I have this pair of adorable Stuart Weitzman shoes on order, since they didn’t have black in stock. The sales lady was so helpful and not overbearing, bringing me not only what I asked for but other shoes in my size that she thought I would like based on what I’d picked out. It’s like TiVo for feet.
Then I headed over to the MAC cosmetics booth trying to find that perfect shade of lipstick that Gillian Anderson used to wear on The X-Files. Couldn’t find it, but the people working there showed me a spectrum of colors and demo’ed them all on their hands for me. I ended up getting a bottle of jojoba essential oil (supposed to be good for rosacea) and strolled up to lingerie, where I got measured for a bra for the first time in ages. The sales lady there brought me something like 10 different bras to try on, but hub called and needed me to come home, so I only ended up getting one. On the way out I stopped and checked out the womens’ sales racks (Fresh Produce stuff on sale, gotta go back) and bought Jo some more big girl panties.
Maybe it is not the cheapest store in the world, but their customer service can’t be beat. Between Nordstrom and Stein Mart, we have 2 really excellent stores within 2 miles of the house. And Nordstrom, although located at the mall, never has overfilled parking, and doesn’t assume you’re a criminal. They had their $895 Marc Jacobs bags sitting out on a table, for heaven’s sake! Other department stores have them under lock and key. I have to wonder what the Nordstrom security force is like in order for the store to leave pricey merchandise out so blithely.
But that’s ok, I’m not planning on stealing anything.