Recently I had some time to kill, and a Bath & Body Works gift card to burn. I snapped up a bag full of body wash, but then I realized I still had more than an hour until I was meeting friends for sushi. So I decided to poke around Kohl’s and J.C. Penney to see if they still had any of the Derek Lam and Pearl by Georgina Chapman (of Marchesa) pieces on clearance.

Well, I definitely hit the jackpot. Obviously these designer collaborations didn’t go over very well at the Southridge mall. It really pays to wait around here. I immediately spotted the maxi dress that I had been admiring at Kohl’s, marked 80% off. Score! It was $18, original price $88. At J.C. Penney, I grabbed two dresses – one for $10 and another for $20 (originally $70 and $110). The lace overlay dress, shown above, actually feels kind of Dolce & Gabbana-esque.

I didn’t like any of them enough to pay full retail, but I love them for the clearance prices. It’s great to have cute dresses that you didn’t spend much on, so you can wear them without panicking if someone spills something on you. I just wish I would have had the Derek Lam one last weekend for the Jimmy Buffett concert.