October 7th, 2008
Save or Splurge: Studded ballet flats by Daniblack and Giuseppe Zanotti
OK, let’s be honest: neither of the items in this edition of Save or Splurge are what you could call “bargains”, are they? Even the “save” option, the Daniblack shoes on the left of the picture, are $150, which is only a “saving” when you compare it to the $650 price tag of the Giuseppe Zanotti flats on the right.
Do the comparatively high prices make a difference, though? If you’re spending $150 anyway, does that make you think, “what the hell, may as well spend a few hundred more?”, or are the designer shoes just too expensive to justify, even if you’re already committed to making a bit of an investment in the style?
Tell us: assuming that you were hankering after a pair of studded ballet flats in the first place, would you choose to save or splurge?
Shoes are actually the only fashion item I could picture myself paying 650 bucks for. However, flats are just not my thing, and, in most cases I don’t see a very big difference between cheap and expensive ones. Actually, in this case, if I were deciding between these particular two options, I think I’d choose the cheaper ones – they seem less girlie kitsch.
Well, I actually prefer the cheaper version here. But, I can’t ever see myself spending even $150 on ballet flats, let alone $650.
I prefer the cheaper version but $150 is still too much to pay for flats.
Sigerson Morrison for Target has a pair of flats that look reasonably similar to these and they only cost $29.99.
http://www.target.com/Sigerson-Morrison-Target-Glitz-Crystal/dp/B001BA95R2/qid=1223389783/ref=br_1_13/602-9331528-8998209?ie=UTF8&node=689276011&frombrowse=1&rh=&page=1
The Daniblack ones are much nicer.
Try the cost-per-wear formula on the shoes. Usually you want to wear them until you reach the point where it costs you only $2 per wear (well, that’s what I do when I make purchasing decisions.) If you absolutely love the look and know you’ll wear them at least 325 times across the lifetime of the pair, then by all means get the upscale Zanotti (they’re quite likely to be better quality too). But if you break them out only once in a blue moon, then go for the less expensive pair where you’ll recoup your fashion investment a little more swiftly.
I really like cost-per-wear formula presented by Elizabeth, but flats are not my thing, so I’ll pass.