I know you're all just chomping at the bit because I haven't updated you lately on my Bat Mitzvah plans. [cue sound of people immediately clicking over to some other blog ... any other blog]
The latest is that last Thursday I found a dress! I shopped and shopped and shopped. It seems that all they're showing this year is suits and party dresses. If we were doing a morning service and then an evening party, I would absolutely get a suit and a party dress. But I need something to go straight from temple to an afternoon party, and that, my friends, is hard to find.
I finally found a dress at Macy's that is not at all my usual style (if I have a "usual style" for dresses, which I don't really). It's purple and close fitting and completely plain except for a whole lot of purple fabric flowers along the neckline. Anyhow, it fit great and I brought it home, where Andy and the kids all gave it the thumbs up!
However!
A few days later I went to Bloomingdale's to buy my first Spanx. Yikes! It's true, now you know. I came home to try on the dress with my new, slimmer, stuffed-into-a-latex-tube self, and I noticed a smell. A smell of B.O. Horrified, I whipped off the dress and gave my armpits a quick sniff. But I did not smell. I picked up the dress and ... you guessed it: PEE-YOO! I don't know how I didn't notice it in the store or when I got home—maybe I had tried on so many dresses that I was just not aware of anything.
Yesterday I brought it to the dry cleaner, who said, "This dress is not brand new." I showed him the tags, and he showed me the faint white residue on the underarms.
Everyone together now: EWWW! I don't know whether someone bought it, wore it, and returned it, or what, but ... yeah, EWWW!
But the thing is, there are no other dresses anywhere for me, and it was the only one at Macy's. So I left the dress at the dry cleaner and begged him to work some magic on it. If he can't get the stink out, I don't know what I'll do. I suppose I'll start by calling all the other Macy's to see if they happen to have this dress.
OMG, you definitely have to take this dress back to Macy's and at the very least get some sort of credit from them. That is ridiculous (and really gross).
Posted by: Elena | January 21, 2010 at 09:46 PM
I know someone (who used to be related to me but isn't now) who wore a dress to a wedding and then returned it. She didn't even take the tags off, but tucked them in her sleeve. Come to think of it, the dress was purple. But that was a long time ago, and in another state!
Posted by: kate | January 21, 2010 at 09:55 PM
Even if you keep the dress, you should write to Macy's. At least they should pay for the dry cleaning. In my opinion they should discount the dress as well.
Posted by: Susan | January 21, 2010 at 10:13 PM
Yes, people do buy dresses, wear them for a long night of drinking and dancing, and then return them. Pretty shady. Get a refund or something.
In my role as wedding photographer I've seen more Spanx than you can possibly imagine. Sometimes it's pretty hot. Sometimes... well, sometimes I wish I could unsee what I've seen.
Posted by: scott | January 21, 2010 at 11:11 PM
I’m pretty new to your site…
And have quickly become a huge fan!
Posted by: Get Paid To Complete Surveys | January 22, 2010 at 12:49 AM
This was on Boing Boing the other day:
http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/gma-found-clothes-clean/story?id=9482373
Posted by: Kirsty | January 22, 2010 at 02:32 AM
An idea - Go to Macy's customer service (go and don't call so you are not put on hold, but you are in FRONT of a real human); and show them the dress and have them look at the inventory nationwide and have you ship a BRAND new dress to your home address. That is terrible. Paying for a new dress, only to find it was used.
Posted by: Stephanie | January 22, 2010 at 08:17 AM
I haven't laughed out loud like that in a long time. Your story sounds like the Seinfeld episode when Jerry can't get that B.O. smell out of his car! LOL
Posted by: Rachel | January 22, 2010 at 09:37 AM
That stinks.
Posted by: steve | January 22, 2010 at 11:37 AM
I'm with Stephanie. Tell Macy's what happened and I bet they can find you another one. Good luck!
Posted by: Sandy | January 22, 2010 at 02:48 PM
Well, that sounds like a hassle you don't need. I do agree with the others that *in your copious spare time* you should return the dress in person and ask the customer service representative to find you another one or compensate you for the dry-cleaning. What a yucky drag.
Posted by: Naomi | January 24, 2010 at 09:28 PM
Yuck! I'm terribly behind on e-mail. But I would also suggest Googling the brand and any other pertinent info about the dress to see if you can find it at another outlet. If all else fails, even seek out the name and number of the buyer for that Macy's. He/she may have some ideas. Good luck...with this...not Scrabble. ;)
Posted by: Di | February 06, 2010 at 05:06 AM