You Get What You Pay for at Clothingline's $10 Sale

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We've seen people make all kinds of mistakes at sample sales. Whether it be not bringing water to wait in line in 100 degree weather, or forgetting to charge their phones in anticipation of a four-hour wait, we thought we'd seen it all. We would never have thought we would find ourselves stranded at the Clothingline $10 sale without a credit card. That said, we weren't too distraught when we had to put down our Ikea bag and let other ladies take their pick with our finds.

If the Alexander Wang clothing giveaway and the most recent Theory sale had a baby, it would be this sale. The crowd was eager to sift through the merchandise, but not overly manic. Theory took up most of the sale, with merchandise from Free People, Gryphon, Bibelot, Helmut Lang, and Comptoir des Cotonniers lining the edges of the space. The staff wasn't kidding about a "limited selection" for men. There were only around four racks near the entrance with Theory shirts and pants for the gents.

Most of the Theory merchandise consists of pants, but with no try-ons allowed, they weren't getting a lot of attention. There were also some unappetizing accessories in the plastic bins. Rosette clutches and Free People tights in hunter green and fuchsia were largely ignored even though they were only $1 each.

Inspect your purchases carefully, because a lot of the merchandise has stains, rips, pulls, or holes in them. One particular snagtastic Theysken's Theory dress inspired many a "make it work" moment. No joke, we saw one lady tugging and pulling on the dress for a good 15 minutes.

Most shoppers weren't daunted by the sale organizers' threats to take stuff from you if they caught you hoarding. They congregated in the middle of the sale space to apply the "Would you wear this if you had gotten it at full price" test to their bags of merchandise.

Despite the rampant hoarding, most shoppers only ended up checking out around ten items each. However, when we left the sale there were still at least 100 people waiting to get in. With no restocking, we doubt there will be anything left for the after work crowd. Unless you're in the market for Theory pants. The one-day sale closes at 8pm tonight. —Joy Fan
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