The Perils (and Virtues!) of Prince Street

Prince Street is proving utterly perilous. Like a Bermuda triangle, er, straight line, of impulse buying fits. A couple years back, I decided it would be good to get a bit of exercise and walk from Grand Central home across the Williamsburg Bridge. I bought a Prada purse on the way. There was the Louis Vuitton trunk purchased on a coffee run this spring. And two weeks ago, it was this Hermes H Hour watch on a stroll to the 6 train. NOT GOOD (but SOOO GOOD!). 

The thing is - these are some of my favorite purchases of all time - mostly because I'd coveted the items for years and then found them waiting for me, like holy grails unveiled, at prices I could swallow at consignment shops and sample sales. 

The watch came from A Second Chance, this incredible shop filled with so much vintage Chanel that Coco or Karl might even be envious. The exterior is painted a frightening color of hot pink, so I'd been walking past it for years, thinking it was some no-name version of Claire's Boutiques. I couldn't have been more wrong. The Prada bag was from INA - which is always fantastic (as is the men's shop next door - I went for a coffee with a friend and talked him in to a pop-in. He left with three Ralph Lauren herringbone tweed blazers).

(AND I thought it would be fun to update the watch a bit, so I replaced the tan leather Hermes band - which was really great - with this gator one from Central Watch at Grand Central. They've got loads of beautiful lizard and croc/gator ones - as well as more nylon stripes than you can imagine).