How to shop when on vacation. When taking breaks from sightseeing, I like to check out local stores. You never know what you’ll find but even more importantly that’s when you get to meet and talk to locals and sometimes they have the best tips on what to see and do.

Over the years, however, I’ve found myself with some completely useless items that didn’t fit into my lifestyle one bit but that I bought in the spur of the moment.

I’m the biggest sucker for pretty pieces of locally made jewelry which look great when I’m staying in a small beach town but when I return to the city they don’t quite fit.

HOW TO SHOP WHEN ON VACATION

The other day I was in a shop purchasing a sweater and the lady behind the counter laughed and said that, years ago, she had gone on a back to school shopping trip in New York, with her sister. They had returned with all-black clothing that absolutely didn’t fit in with the brightly coloured prints everyone else was wearing.

Usually, I like to go into local shops so that I can pick up a unique item, but recently when I was in Milan we hit up the luxury chains. You can’t really avoid them and it is kind of fun to check them all out. I found myself standing at Gucci, looking at a pair of fabulous sunglasses that were outlined in a row of pearls. My husband had just pulled out his wallet when a random woman pushed me aside. The sales associate took her attention away from me and I wound up putting the sunglasses down and walking out. At the time, I was disappointed but in retrospect, I would probably never have put them on again.

Then again, there was the time I was in Morocco and my mother bought me a fabulous black and white checkered bag. It was so different from the pieces that my friends were carrying but I loved it. I wore that bag down before I was ready to part with it.

The key, when you are traveling, is to picture whatever you are lusting over in your home environment. If it’s an item of clothing, I visualize myself wearing it and how it will fit into the rest of my wardrobe. If I think that I really and truly will wear it, and I really love it, then it might just come home with me.

Just the other day, I was shopping on Cape Cod and I bought a beautiful cream sweater with a rolled neck and a red lobster on it.  It’s not one of those cheesy pieces that I usually run from, but I did pause and think about where I could wear it once I got home. It passed my test and now I can’t wait for the next cold night. On the other hand, the decorative, pristine white shells, stayed in the store, after I admired them. I decided that if I ever buy a beach-side cottage I will come back for all of them but right now, in my city apartment, they would look ridiculous especially since they don’t match anything else I have.

I’ve bought some of my most favourite items while away on vacation but it does pay to stop and think of how you will use them once you are home. Then again, if you really really love something and you kind of know that you can’t (or don’t want to) live without it, just buy it. Who knows, it might revolutionize your wardrobe and it might become your new favourite piece.

Not sure if you’ll like it after you get home? Read, HOW TO FIND YOUR STYLE and STYLE RESOLUTIONS WE SHOULD ALL BE MAKING

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