My trip to BNY and my teeny tiny purchase....

powderpuff100

Life is a beach
O.G.
Aug 8, 2006
4,910
16
Well I finally went to BNY. We got into NYC around 11 AM and it was cold, really cold. I wore a coat and boots but my ears were freezing so I ducked into some shop, have no clue what the name of it was and grabbed a knit scarf and hat. It was too cold to worry about being stylish at that point. I’m used to 80’s not 40’s. I went with my Aunt and Uncle, my 2 cousins, 14 and 18 and my DH. The first place we went was Chinatown. That was an experience, especially the pitiful fake Balenciagas that were plastic and had Balenciaga on the front. I was so tempted to buy one and take with me to Balenciaga, see how grumpy the SA would get. :PI planned to carry my black flat brass but my DH left it at the house. I put a few things in it, I told him to grab my bag, he grabbed my Sandstone City which is what I brought on the plane. We got halfway to the train station and I wanted lipgloss, grrrrrrrrrrrrr no black bag. Great! At least the cheap scarf I got had pale blue and sandstone colored stripes.
See my sandstone sitting there getting scuffed corners:
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My 14 year old cousin bought a fake wallet and a fake plastic Gucci bag despite my lecture. Some creepy guy was touching me and following me, while trying to sell me fake LV’s so time to get out of there. We went to Times Square, Barney’s and some other shops then headed to Balenciaga. I wrote down the wrong street number of Balenciaga so when the taxi dropped us off and it was nowhere to be seen and the neighborhood looked pretty bad. After a quick phone call we found it was only a block away and one of the SA’s even offered to go outside so we would see her and be able to find it, but we arrived before she had a chance.
I had my uncle snap a pic of me out front then we went in. I was hoping to leave them all somewhere else so I could go alone, that didn’t pan out. My 19 year old cousin is somewhat into designer bags, but she is in college so her funds are limited. She got her beloved Chloe Paddington and has a couple of LV’s so she’s satisfied although she was drooling over my Balenciagas.
Here it is!
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I asked for Daphne, she’s not there. I don’t know the name of the SA who helped me but she had blondish hair and she was actually very nice, not at all snobby. There were 2 guys there and they were a little standoffish and weird but I never really felt uncomfortable. It takes a lot to make me feel intimidated and I didn’t feel that way. Everyone, aunt, uncle, cousins, all piled in there. It is hands down the ugliest most depressing, dreary, weirdest shop that I have ever been in…EVER. Bleak, bare, very strange. My first thought was OMG how do these people come here every day and work here? It’s just so bizarre.

I asked the SA if they had any 2008 bags and that I wanted to see a Petal Pink. She said okay let me go in the back and see what we have in. WOW, I thought I was ready to really score, until she emerged from the stockroom and said no, they haven’t come in. Now I thought that was odd, and had the feeling that some were in, but they weren’t ready to reveal it yet. I really think that when those bags come in it is a very big deal and if none had come in, that she would have immediately said that they hadn’t arrived yet. I debated on whether or not to try to sneak into the stockroom and have a look. KIDDING!


I looked at a couple Cinnamon City bags, one was really gorgeous. I said I wish my Mom could see this bag, she would love it. My cousin took out her cell phone and said I’ll take a picture. OOPS!! Hahaha, that got the SA’s all excited as they explained no pictures! It irritated me because I told my cousins BEFORE we went in NO PICS. There was also a Plombe clutch with GH that caught my eye but after a little deliberation, I decided I didn’t need or really want a Cinnamon and that Plombe looked a little too much like faded black. If I lived in NYC I might have gotten both, but for the Florida Keys .There are too many 2008 colors that I want a lot more.

I had a list of tassels that I needed and some that my Mom needed so I asked for those, and she got all of them for me. They were out of several, no eggplant, no black, and I really needed the black for my flat brass, oh well. There was no attitude and she was very pleasant about the tassels, so they aren’t hard to get from what I saw and there was no limit.
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I looked at the sparse display of shoes and decided there wasn’t one pair I would wear if they gave them to me. My cousins were laughing at some that they thought looked like Leggos or some kids toy. I don’t think the SA’s appreciated that. I looked at the clothes, saw a few that I liked, but they really had very few to even look at. My Aunt said she saw a camisole for 40,000.00 so she decided that it was a little pricey for her. I didn’t see it and I still want to know what it looked like for 40K or if she needs new glasses and it was 4K.
So that was the extent of my short visit to BNY and I so wish they had gotten their shipments in of the 2008’s so I could have hung around for a couple of hours, made them bring every bag out and fondled them until I found the ones that I loved. I’m sure if all of the new bags had been in, it would have been heavenly. Without lots of yummy bags to look at, it isn’t a shop I would yearn to go back to.
 
Powder, what a wonderful story and you look so cute all bundled up. I really felt like I was there from your descriptions and pics! Thanks for giving us the heads up on Balenciaga. I haven't been to NY in over 17 years, I remember I liked it alot- especially the people. The food there is amazing. We used to stay on the upper west side. What a disappointment to not get to see the New 08 bags!
I hope you have a wonderful trip- bet you can't wait to get back into shorts and T- shirts!
 
Thanks for sharing your trip! That's really funny how the store is so bleak, I guess they were going for the artsy look. Your family sound so fun, that's great they went into the store with you :smile: Did you have to pay for the tassels? I'm still debating about whether or not I should call BalNY for some tassels for my camel first. I wonder if they'll ship such a small order out to CA. I can't wait until I visit BalNY one day, though I hear a BLA is opening up soon :smile:
 
lovely story dear...tnaths exactly how I felt at my first time there..what shocked me the most was it beeing so quiet?! there was no music and noone was talking even though there were quite some SA's around..
It was crazy;)
Love the tassle bunch..That's what I bought the last time I was there..they were super nice with it and even found me some 05 olive's
:heart:
 
thanks for the story and pics! you sure are very pretty woman:yes:. i think we are soo used to seeing you with florida weather and background it was strange to see you all bundled up!
p.s. did your doggies had to stay back home?
 
When I went to Bal a few weeks ago, all I got were tassels too! But they only gave me 4 because they said you can only get two pairs... Still, I was happy, because I got blue 03 tassels which are pretty rare anyway.
 
niice, thanks for sharing your experience there for those of us who live so far away and never been to BalNY before!! I'm glad they were nice to you, and you got as many tassels that you needed (that were instock).
 
Awesome story!!! Thanks for the great recap :tup: Of ALL people you should have been given access to the new bags, which I agree it sounds like they probably have :yes: Ah well, I am glad you got to go anyway!
 
Interesting story. I guess the store designer is on some acid trip or something because Hong Kong balenciaga looks something that came out of Penguin's lair! white tiles all over the place and it kinda reminds me of an igloo...
 
Thank you for sharing your experience with us; I have not been to NYC since I have became a B-bag fan, so it was really cool to hear your story.

You looked so cute in your hat and scarf!
 
Powder, thanks so much for the narration! I loved it. Living vicariously through you right now! It is strange how Balenciaga has created this uninviting retail environment - in this day of marketing, and wanting to make the customer feel happy and welcome.... Loved the photo of your tassels!