If you’ve been living under a rock, get out from under it and whip out your credit card because the Lilly Pulitzer After Party Sale is happening RIGHT NOW. I know, I know, it’s so cruel that this happened on the same day as the Kate Spade Surprise Sale, but honestly, who needs to pay rent anyway? Part of the reason Lilly is so special and elite is that it never – and I mean never – goes on sale. Their website literally doesn’t have a sale or clearance section because Lilly never wanted to see her clothes sold at a reduced price. What a badass. The only exception is the 48-hour After Party Sale that happens twice a year, and it’s going on right now, and by the time you’re done shopping the sale, you’ll be broke.
As someone who has literally shopped the sale twice today – once online and once in person – I’m here to tell you everything you need to know about these glorious two days, so by the time Labor Day rolls around, you’ll be able to camouflage yourself with any surrounding trees, flowers, or Lilly pads (see what I did there?) you may encounter.
What To Expect
Long Waits
Whether you’re shopping the sale online or in person, be prepared to wait for your chance to purchase the items of your dreams. For online shoppers, as soon as you visit lillypulitzer.com, you will be redirected into a virtual queue that tells you exactly how many people are in line ahead of you and exactly how long you have to wait. At this point, the lines probably won’t be too long, but that’s a gamble you must be willing to take. I refreshed my browser at exactly 8 A.M. and this was what my queue looked like.
I know, it sucks, but people in line in front of you won’t want to wait that long, people will drop out, and the wait most likely won’t take as long as predicted. If you’re shopping in stores, the same applies. Many stores have lines out the door, girls scrambling to find the right print in the right size, and limits on what you can bring into the waiting room. A HUGE benefit of shopping in stores is that there may be items left that have already sold out online, so I would recommend driving yourself to the nearest mall immediately if you want more selection.
Slow Shipping
Because this sale is so huge and so many thousands of people are shopping all at once, you’ll receive a disclaimer when you check out online that shipping could take up to three weeks, and no, you can’t pay extra to expedite it. Ugh. While that pretty much eliminates the possibility of wearing any of your new dresses to a wedding this weekend, in my experience, the shipping probably won’t take longer than a week, so try not to fret.
No Returns
Whether you shop in stores or online, you won’t be able to return any of the items you purchase in the After Party Sale, so make sure you’re truly in love with everything you buy. However, the thought of returning Lilly honestly just brought a tear to my eye, so I feel like this is the least likely scenario for any of us.
A Bloodbath
Okay, so people probably won’t physically bleed, but this sale is a huge effing deal. If you have your heart set on a particular shift in a particular print in a particular size, you might as well go home because this sale isn’t for you. It is a mad rush free-for-all, so you should grab everything in your size that you even remotely like and check out as fast as possible because items in your online shopping tote are NOT reserved until you hand over your credit card, so you want to check out fast as you can.
HUGE Discounts
This is what makes it all worth it. A typical Lilly shift costs in the $250 – $300 range for 361 days of the year. Today I spent that amount getting eight items in the online sale. Shirts under $20, shorts under $30, and dresses under $40 can all be found right now for the next day and a half. Don’t get me wrong, you can still expect to pay upwards of $75 for a shift, but that’s such a good deal compared to the regular prices that you should probably just buy them all.
What’s In The Sale
Honestly, what isn’t in the sale? Tanks, tees, dresses, shorts, skirts, accessories and more are all waiting to find a home in your dorm room closet. The point of the After Party Sale is for Lilly Pulitzer to clear out its inventory, so you’ll see lots of summer items as they gear up for fall, as well as last season’s prints. If this doesn’t bother you, get ready to shop until your checking account literally bleeds.
What’s NOT In The Sale
Sorry ladies, but not everything sold by Lilly is included in the sale. Two main items of interest you’re probably concerned with that won’t be included are brand new prints and agendas. Since these items are brand new, the Lilly marketing team is well aware that you’ll purchase these items without a discount anyway, so they don’t need to include them in this sale – although you may be able to score them when they have their winter After Party Sale. Don’t worry though – if you see something you love that’s full price, you can still include it with your After Party order and it will ship free with the rest of your order.
That’s everything you need to know, so get shopping immediately. While your wardrobe will thank me, your credit card definitely won’t. Sorry!.
[via Lilly Pulitzer]
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RecruitmentChairTSM
RecruitmentChairTSM (@TheRecruitChair) is a contributing writer for Total Sorority Move. This current grad student and ex-sorority girl survives solely on Diet Coke and the tears of the pledges she personally victimized. She's a Monica, a Marnie, a Miranda, and a Regina. Her favorite hobbies include drinking $14 bottles of wine and binge-watching season 2 of Grey's Anatomy until she cries. You can send her annoying e-mails at RecruitChairTSM@gmail.com
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