Did You Just Google "Finance?"

When Confessions of a Shopaholic first hit theatres, I joked that it was the ideal movie for me. The truth is, some might classify me as a "shopaholic" with a penchant for getting a bit credit card happy--and who also finds herself working for a finance company. Coincidence? Clearly, the Louboutin fit.

However, if you have actually seen the movie (or read the book, which I confess I have not), then you know there is a more serious subtext: debt. It's all fun and games until you're running from the debt-collector, wearing 4-inch stilettos. But joking aside, debt has driven the economy into troubled waters, taking many victims along with it.

Perhaps you read the recent New York Times coverage of Annie Leibovitz's financial woes? Frozen by the headline earlier this week, my first thought was: no, not Annie! My photographic hero (next to my amazingly talented Aunt Suzie, of course) on the brink of financial ruin? How could it be possible? Then I read the article and was sobered by the realization that success doesn't necessarily require financial smarts. Or, as my Daddy so bluntly put it, Amazing people can be so stupid with money. Truly amazing. And to think, he likes Annie as much as I do!

The moral of the story, darling fashionista friends, is this: there is nothing fierce about fiscal disaster. So we must smart and stylish, which is totally possible. Though the New Year has come and gone, it's never too late to make resolutions. Here are a few to consider:

1. When pondering your next purchase, be sure you can think of three things already in your closet that you can wear with that item.

2. How many pairs of [fill in the blank] does a girl really need? Sell your stuff on Ebay or at a consignment shop to make room in your closet--and your budget--for new items.

3. Shop resale! I've already bragged about my consignment conquests. Check out the consignment shops in your area to score designer duds at a fraction of the cost.

4. Don't charge it! Enough said. In fact, sometimes I have to leave my credit card at home to force good behavior. I wouldn't go so far as to freeze it in a block of ice, but do you what you have to do.

5. Mommy, can I have my allowance now? Put yourself on an allowance, allotting a certain amount each week/month/whatever for "extras," like clothes and beauty products. When the pot is empty, you just have to wait for the next installment. I know, I know; life can be so unfair.

All is never lost; let the financial plight of one Miss Leibovitz be a lesson for women everywhere. Did you just google "What is finance?" Cheers to fiscal fashion.




To read the full article, For Annie Liebovitz, A Fuzzy Financial Picture, click here.


Images, in order of appearance: (1) Isla Fisher, as Rebecca Bloomwood in Confessions of a Shopaholic; (2) Annie Liebovitz, photographed by Tony Cenicola for The New York Times, online at www.nytimes.com; (3) also from Confessions of a Shopaholic.