Friday, July 7, 2017

Tips For Shopping The Nordstrom Anniversary Sale & Why You'll Hear So Much About It

Happy Friday! Although it has been a short week the lack of routine has left me in need of a weekend to get my life together. Between paying bills, laundry, and catching up on all things blog related there is no doubt that I am happy it is Friday. And even better than that, this is the only Friday this month that I'll have an afternoon class and starting in two weeks I won't have Friday class at all. Clearly, I am pretty pumped about that! 

So while my weekend is clearly shaping up to be a wild one (ha!) I am so excited to get posts prepared to help y'all in order to shop one of my favorite sales of the summer, the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale. Here is my disclaimer of a paragraph for y'all before we really get into the excitement of why it is actually the best. I know that you will be hearing TONS about this on various blogs you read and while the hype may seem a bit much at times the deals are actually that good. In addition to that, it is no secret to most of y'all that a lot of bloggers have monetized their blogs and are able to make commission from links used based on the sales. Talk about the best job ever! The posts you'll be seeing from bloggers have had hours and hours poured into them from shopping the sites to creating the image and the content surrounding it. It makes sense that money is being made since even though it is really fun work it is still work nonetheless. I am included in that population of readers but want to make something really clear with y'all. By sharing all of my picks from the sale with y'all as well as  my favorite items in different categories of the sale I am in no way trying to convince you that you need a new pair of riding boots or a coat (aka material things) to be happy. I think we all get that that is not my intention. I work really hard to make sure that I mix up my more materialistic/shopping style post with posts that provide you with advice in different situations to genuinely help you out. I wouldn't be raving about the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale if it wasn't something that I actually shopped and looked forward to every year. I have been brainstorming a number of fun post ideas both surrounding the sale and not so that hopefully regardless of whether you plan to shop or not you'll want to come back to my blog to see my posts because you know that there will be a mixture. With that said, if there are any specific posts surrounding the NSale that you want to see or have me incorporate never hesitate to let me know! 


Now that we've covered that here are the answers to your next question: When is the sale?
July 13th begins Early Access which is for Nordstrom Card Holders (we will get into that in a minute).
July 20th is the last day of Early Access.
July 21st is the first day of public access to the sale! 
August 8th the sale ends and you can anxiously await your mail man delivering your last minute packages (since I know I usually do). 

So, here are my reasons as to why I think that the Nordstrom Sale is the best and well worth the hype it receives from bloggers:

You're able to shop new fall pieces before you'll even start wearing them.
This is one of the few sales I know of that allows you a discount on pieces brand new for the season before said season even begins. This means that things you'll want to wear all fall and winter get to make their way to your closet before it's too late to wear them like most other sales. 

Big purchase items are often hundreds of dollars off.
If you're like me then you hate having to dish out money for jackets, handbags, and riding boots even though you know that given how frequently you wear them they end up being completely worth the cost. Fortunately during the Nordstrom Sale those are the pieces that tend to be most heavily discounted! We are talking hundreds of dollars off making biting the bullet on those pieces a little less painful. 

Basic pieces and essentials are also on sale.
While a lot of people enjoy shopping this sale since they are able to get trendy new fall and winter pieces on sale it's also important to note that basic pieces and essentials that serve as the foundation for your wardrobe are also discounted. For me those essentials are definitely jeans and comfy versatile sweaters. Both of these pieces can be transformed with accessories but are staples to have in your wardrobe and build around. 

Many makeup items (including palettes and gift sets) are super discounted.
So I am no pro when it comes to makeup but I do enjoy testing out some new products on occasion. Typically I don't want to spend a lot of money on something I am not positive whether I'll like or not so the Norstrom Sale is great because I am able to purchase those pieces on sale and oftentimes in gift sets that allow me to try out a range of products in a singular purchase. 

The deals are better than Black Friday.
This may sound dramatic but I promise you that a lot of the deals during this sale are better than those you'll find on Black Friday AND you'll get more time to actually wear the pieces since you won't have to wait until the end of December.

So now that you are hopefully excited for the sale here are my tips for successfully shopping the sale:

Sign up for a Nordstrom card and/or their reward program.
So if you have checked Nordstrom's site recently you may have noticed that the sale has two different start dates. The first date, July 13th, is when the sale opens for Nordstrom Card Holders. The second date, July 21st, is when the sale opens for non card holders. In the past, products have been known to sell out in sizes or color choices during the time where only card holders have access which is great incentive to sign up for your own Nordstrom Credit or Debit card. You can do this in store or online and it's not too late to go ahead and do that now in order to shop the sale early. 

Another great option if you're not wanting to sign up for the credit or debit card but are a loyal Nordstrom fan would be to sign up for their reward program. By doing this before the sale you will get a $10 credit to use during the sale (I'm sold!) and will gain points to be used on future rewards thanks to your Nordstrom purchases. You can be both a card holder and reward member so consider signing up for both for added bonuses but know that the sale is still worth shopping even without these two things.

Sign up for the reward program here and your own Nordstrom card here

Browse the catalogue to familiarize yourself with the products and deals offered. 
One great thing the Nordstrom does before their sale is release a catalogue featuring some of the products you'll be able to purchase during the sale. This gives you a pretty good idea of some of the items that you'll be able to shop during the sale as well as some of the trends that are on the horizon for fall. Stay tuned next week before the sale when I share some of my favorite items from the catalogue to give you a taste of what the sale is going to be like. 

Peruse your closer to discover what fall staples you actually need.
Sometimes big online sales can lead to impulse buys. While that can be good on occasion you definitely don't want to end up purchasing tons of pieces that may look cute but may not be practical for your wardrobe. I suggest making a list of items that your closet may be lacking and start by shopping for those pieces. 

Take advantage of stocking up on the essentials.
You can never have too many basics to have on rotation to make getting dressed in the morning a breeze. While those basics may differ for some people the sale offers a great selection of essential items for your wardrobe at a discounted price. I know I hate spending money on boring things that are just must haves in your closet so the sale is the perfect time to purchase them.

Know that Nordstrom has free shipping and returns as well as great customer service. 
Nordstrom's free shipping and returns is great since you are able to check out more than once without having to worry about paying for shipping for each transaction. Lots of times I will put off ordering things online since I don't want to have to pay an additional amount just for shipping. This feature is especially nice during the sale since there are so many pieces on sale that you are bound to find other pieces you may want after already making a purchase. Additionally, Nordstrom's customer service is top notch so don't be afraid to take advantage of that during the sale as needed! 

Use this sale to replenish any beauty items you may be running out of, gather hostess gifts, or gifts to give during the holidays.  
This one is pretty self explanatory but my last tip would be to take advantage of this sale as a way to stock up on items you're running out of (especially in the beauty realm). This is also a great sale to go ahead and stock up on small gift items to have on hand for whenever you may need them while also making some bigger purchases to put away and bring back out around the holidays!

So in a nutshell: Sale opens to cardholders July 13th and general puplic July 21st. The sale ends on August 8th and features new fall merchandise marked down before the season even starts! New items are added daily which makes it worth checking out the site periodically for any new pieces that may be offered! 

To make it easier for y'all, I have created a label on the side bar of my blog "Nordstrom Anniversary Sale 2017" so that you can look at all of my posts related to the topic in one place. I did this last year with the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale 2016 label so if you want to see some of the items offered then you can check that out easily. You'll also see a new page at the top of this page that says NSale (the nickname for the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale) which will also be a good place to check for anything related to the sale! I'll also be using liketoknow.it during the sale on instagram so if you haven't signed up for that or aren't sure exactly what it is then you can find those details here

I'd love to hear why you may love the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale or what specifically you're hoping to shop for during it! 

3 comments :

  1. Like you, I can't wait for this sale! I'm going to try and snag some new riding boots since mine are falling apart.

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  2. Sounds like a great sale! There isn't a Nordstrom where I live, so this is a great opportunity for me to dip into their products!

    Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
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