Can Curly interest you in some swamp land in Florida?

While we waited on pins and needles for the results to be announced for Mini's competition, we walked over to check on the used dresses.

Mini's first dress.  Shortly after this purchase
 ( bought used at a feis) they outlawed bling
on young dancers. 
Translation:  I couldn't sell this.  EVER.

Every time we attend a feis (term for a dancing competition if you don't know that by now!), I drop off our used dresses at the used sale rack.  Then, when no one buys them, I haul the same dresses home with me.  I have tried the power of suggestion approach in the past.  'Has your daughter tried on this one?  I think this looks like her size.'  Still no success.

We were walking back to the awards area when we saw a family looking at an absolute eye-soar of a dress that was marked $100.  I have a couple of dresses that fall into that same category, but I leave them home.  They are from ions ago.  Worn before rules changed about who could wear bling, etc.  This dress that they were ogling had no business being on the rack.  Why were these people looking at it?

My friend walked by and noticed the look of horror on my face.  'You should have them look at  Curly's old dress - that one they are looking at is gross!' she whispered.

I did it.  Shameless as it was, I pulled Curly's old dress off the rack and approached the family.  Why not?  The dress was a true classic.  Mini had worn it too.  It had no bling (suiting younger dancers who can't wear bling), but the no-bling jacket could Velcro off and be replaced with a blinged-out jacket.  Bonus.  I assured them that it was a stunner on stage.  If they were interested, I would give them a good deal.

Our first Irish dance school (we are on our
 third - unheard of, but I won't 
play the games some of these
 schools force you to play) tried to get me
 to buy a used dress for $650.  
And that was the budget dress! It
was filthy.  Embroidery was falling
 out of it.  I knew I would never be able
 to resell it.  Consider that this was
 about 8 years ago.  That price for a
 used dress in that condition was nuts!
 The other dress they had in 
mind for Mini was $1600
  USED.  Gasp. They controlled all
 dress sales and were FURIOUS
 about the mint green number I
bought initially without their permission.
 I opted to make this dress for Mini.  I do
think it is quite cute.  The bubble skirt
look is no longer an acceptable style.
  I never planned to sell it.  I didn't
 use a pattern and if you look at it
 closely it is quite obvious. 
It resides in my closet.

I left them to ponder the dress as we went back to the awards area.   Then I sent Curly back to see if the people were still trying on our used dress.

Curly returned a bit later.  'Um, these people are clueless.  They don't even know who can wear bling and who can't.  I am filling them in on everything.  The dress is a bit big for the girl, but I told her it looks great and that she can grow into it.'  Curly, future used car salesman extraordinaire, marched back to them.  Less than 10 min later she returned with the family in tow.  Her face was a glow.  'I think they want to buy it!' she hissed at me when they were not yet in earshot.

The dress was marked at $550.  I knew that I would accept a much lower price.  Maybe $175?  I was tired of lugging it to feis after feis.  The dad pulled out his checkbook.  'This is the dress that my daughter likes.  Um, you said you would give me a deal?'

'OK, what were you thinking?' I asked him.  'How about $500?' he asked.  I bit my lower lip.  I had to try hard not to bite so hard that I would make it bleed.  $500!!??  It was hard to hide my joy.  'Sure,' I said, 'I can do that.'  He wrote me a check for $500 and I handed him the dress that we truly loved.

The dress is really great.  Promise.  Nothing wrong with it.  It is just that I have been trying to sell it for a year and a half, so I was ready to be VERY flexible with the price.  These dancing dresses don't have a very long shelf life.

Curly leaned over to me a minute later and whispered, 'See, I told you they didn't know anything about Irish dancing!'

These are the two dresses I have been
dragging around trying to sell forever!
 The black and green one on the right is
 the one that Curly sold that day.
 Still looking for a buyer for the coral/black one.  
The styles change so fast that people often
 get stuck with a dress that no one wants 
because it is outdated.  Just one 
of the joys of Irish dancing.

There was much rejoicing on the way home from this feis.  So rare.

     1.  Mini won a first.
     2.  I sold a dress for an outstanding price.
     3.  I had gotten a job.  Early on in the day while we were still busy with makeup and wigs, a woman had texted me.  She and her husband had come over the day before with their triplets (almost 4 yrs old) and son (almost 6 yrs old).  They live in my school district.  She was looking for someone to watch her kids during the school day while she taught at a nearby school.  The preschool/kindergarten bus would pick her kids up at my door.  We clicked.  Her text read that she didn't really want to wait to check my references.  She really liked me and wanted to secure a place in my house for the school year.  Yippee!!!

Mini and Curly and I agreed.  BEST FEIS EVER!