On the day after Thanksgiving, I went to the large shopping center in downtown San Francisco, the one which has a Bloomingdales and Nordstrom’s. I went to have lunch with a friend at Out the Door, the sister of Slanted Door, in the basement food court. To my surprise, although the shopping center should have been mobbed — it was after all Black Friday — it was not terribly crowded.

I went to Bloomingdales after lunch and found very good bargains in the shoe department: more than 40% off designer shoes from Kate Spade, Michael Kors, Cole Haan, Sergio Rossi and more. Of course the Sergio Rossi boots I had my eyes on were originally $1000 so 40% off means they still cost $600, which is not exactly cheap.

Upstairs in the women’s designer clothing department, it was 40% off on Marc by Marc Jacobs, Theory, Diane von Furstenberg, among others. But some markdowns were very disappointing. For James Perse shirts and dresses, the discount was only 20%. I’m waiting till the end of Christmas or even till January. James Perse makes the softest, most body hugging cotton shirts but they cost $74 or more.

The most disappointing aspect of the sales, whether at Nordstroms or Bloomingdales, is that the makeup, skincare and fragrance items are not discounted. Annick Goutal perfumes are still sold for $80. Bliss Body Butter is still $35. The sales people try to tempt you by giving you an extra small gift, but the gifts are pathetic. I spent some time at the cosmetics counters of Bloomingdales and Nordstroms to see if a lot of people were buying. Usually at this time of the year, these counters are packed. This year, the sales people seemed bored and desperate to move merchandise.

Here’s a tip from a friend who buys her Jan Marini and Peter Thomas Roth skin care products on Ebay. She says that with many salons going out of business, salon owners have been putting their inventory on Ebay. I decided to test if this is true for my favorite hair product, Kerastase Mousse Nutri-Sculpt, which retails at salons for $30 (excluding sales tax).

I went to Ebay and found several people selling it for $18 to $19 but with shipping fees of around $5. The discount isn’t sgnificant enough to get me to buy. I found one salon owner who had a batch of 20, and offered to pay $30 for two bottles, but she declined. If I wait two more months, I will see even more of this Kerastase product come on Ebay, and then I’ll start bidding.

So head over to Ebay and do a search for your favorite expensive hair and skin care products. Don’t bid the first time, just watch and see what people are paying and look for sellers who have a lot of inventory.

If you still have enough money to shop, you should check out this list of ten companies that may not see 2009 and check if they have amazing bargains: Williams Sonoma, Dillards, Bon-Ton, Rite-Aid, Talbots, Pier 1, Cost Plus, Chico’s, Pitch and Eddie Bauer.

A friend of mine who went to Williams-Sonoma a few weeks ago told me that expensive items that rarely go on sale, were marked down 30% – 40%.

Tired of generic office supplies stores that sell the same ugly, gray office accessories — you know the ones I’m talking about: cheap and ordered by the bulk and totally depressing to look at, perfect however for a cubicle office in Hell.

Fortunately, there are alternatives. Check out See Jane Work, an online shop where you can find gorgeous desk calendars, binders, pens, organizers, and whatever you need to create an office environment that inspires creativity. Better still, right now (November 24, 2008), they have a sale: 25% off everything in the store. Just enter this code when you shop: TURKEY.

I have ordered storage boxes and binders, as well as blank notebooks and paper. Now my desk looks much more inviting.

It’s almost impossible to find chic laptop bags. They’re either too rough and messenger-bag-ish, or they make you look like a geek. Even if you are a geek, there’s no need to walk around looking so unstylish. So I was thrilled to find that Hlaska, a men’s and women’s bag boutique, has just opened a store on Fillmore Street in San Francisco. The laptop bags range in price from between $140 to $200.

The leather bags, such as the cream Presidio tote bag shown above, is pricier ($595). Nevertheless, they do have sales and smaller leather items that make great gifts for your dearest friend or for yourself.

Hlaska
2033 Fillmore Street
San Francisco, CA
+1 415 440 1999
www.hlaska.com