Along with chocolate and boot cut jeans, I hereby declare my love for Salvation Army. Sally, as I affectionately call my love, is perhaps best store to ever exist. Saks, my former love, has nothing on this store. Where else could you find a John Paul Gaultier shirt, from BERGDORF GOODMAN, for $1.50? Two months ago, I found two vintage Norma Kamali dresses, perfect condition, $2.50 a piece. When I gave them to my best friend ( they were a size 4), she was so excited that she started to shriek, hysterically, like she was possessed by some strange budget-shopping spirit. Later, she told me that sometimes she just likes to wear dresses around her apartment, because they make her feel special. This is power of Salvation Army.

There are many times that I head to Sally's as a fashion last resort. For example, this weekend I needed a cocktail dress to wear to a business function. I found a beautiful black dress from Salvation Army with black lace insets for $5.00. I added a silver leather belt from GAP, a pair of silver flats from NineWest Outlet and a pair of silver square clip on earrings from Nordstrom Rack- for a completely stunning outfit. Totaly cost- $48.00.

My most recent pleasure was helping one of my dearest and arguably fashion deprived friend develop a professional closet. My friend, Monique, has been buried deep in recess of a hospital for past three years, finishing a residency in Orthopedic Surgery. Needless to say fashion is not at top of her do-to list, her closets consists of white coats, worn scrubs, and these tank top bra things that make her look like she has a "uni-boob". The girl needed help.

It is not like Monique doesn't have style- she has quite a bit. But her style is most suited for warm, tropical climate of her native Jamaica, rather than harsh winters of Connecticut. Plus, she doesn't have much time for pursuit of fashion between removing bullets from people's butts and reading thrilling works on treatment of scoliosis.

So, last week Monique called up and said "I have a big problem". Okay, I thought, she has finally snapped from all those hours spent under horrible fluorescent lights and wearing plastic clogs. As a made a mental list of possible attendees for upcoming intervention, she continued, "I have a free weekend and desperately need a professional wardrobe. Help!". Having not seen my friend since my wedding two years prior, I jumped at chance to spend sometime with her and willingly offered my services in exchange for lunch.

When I arrived in New Haven, first thing we did (after eating about a billion maki rolls) was to develop a budget. By some brilliant banking maneuvers, Monique was able to gather $600 for this new wardrobe. Our goal was to focus on quality, rather than quantity. She needed a wardrobe that would last her until May 2007, end of her residency.

This was our shopping list: -Bra's and new underwear (No matter how much money you have, always start with underwear.) -Layering tops (great for wearing under suit coat jackets, sweaters, and other t-shirts) -Black velvet suit jacket (Very sexy and slimming) -Basic Black Dress- (can dress it up or down) - Pair of earrings (something basic that could be worn professionally) -Shirts (white, black) -Pants (black, grey, brown) -Shoes (black boots, black heels) -One fun item/ shirt

We set out in Monique's 1989 Nissan/ Toyota/Hyundai ( It is so old that I don't think it had any label on it) to Westfarms Mall in central Connecticut. The main reason we chose this mall was because it had a Lord & Taylor and a Nordstrom- two key stores to look for when trying to build a professional closet on a budget.