Mirror, Mirror: Lessons of 'a Shopaholic'

Every time I walk into Max Studio on Center City's Walnut Street, I find something - usually a dress - that I

must

buy. Last month I fell victim to a black and silver knee-length cocktail dress. It was so cute, so one-size-fits-all, so easy to wear. I started seeing visions of myself looking fabulous at city soirees everywhere.

But like many women who get high from instant retail gratification, I was a bit flummoxed when I got my Visa bill a week ago. Shoot. Darn. How did that happen?

This is why Sophie Kinsella's Confessions of a Shopaholic became a best-seller. We can relate to the story of Rebecca Bloomwood, a flighty, shopping-obsessed yet fashionably unfocused business journalist.

Although my bills aren't nearly as nuts as Bloomwood's, I've been where she is: shopping with such verve, such excitement about purchases that those bald alabaster mannequins might as well be egging me on to shop until I drop.

The movie, which opened Friday and stars actress Isla Fisher, is very loosely based on the book. Still, the story, filled with punchy one-liners and silly scenes, especially Fisher on the dance floor, is cute.

But the outfits - which were styled by famed Sex and the City costume designer Patricia Field - weren't anything I'd want to see in my closet.

All of the ensembles - the purple ruffled mini that Bloomwood wore on a morning talk show, the crisp white skirt suit she accessorized with a sparkling turquoise anchor, the pink bridesmaid dress accented with a crinoline - were audacious and tacky.

But this is what happens when shopping becomes sport: Your sense of style gets lost in reams of labels.

"Becky Bloomwood is a neurotic shopaholic," Field said, noting that the character is worlds apart from Manolo-worshipping Carrie Bradshaw or The Devil Wears Prada's Andy Sachs. Yet, in true Field fashion, the clothes were entertaining, and that helped make Confessions fun to watch.

"She shops every day. She brings home clothes every night. Her room is filled with clothes. She has a coat in every color. She just doesn't have a defined style," Field said.

Tell me about it. In one scene, dozens of airtight wardrobe bags burst out of her closet and bury her roommate. Bloomwood skips work appointments to fight her way through sample sales. Even though she can barely walk around her room, she always shops for a new occasion.

There has been some criticism that Confessions is inappropriate for the times. After all, these are dificult economic times, and gross materialism has no place in our pop culture right now. Even the designers making their fall presentations this week in New York are paring down their shows, abandoning the decadence of recent seasons.

But I think Confessions is, in fact, quite timely. Bloomwood's character is the prototype for many of us who, during the last 10 years, shopped till we dropped. Some of us have clothes in our closet with the tags still on them. (You know who you are.)

More than our credit history is in jeopardy. Our sense of individual style has almost completely tanked. Whether we're Target, Bloomies, or Chanel shoppers, we've all become more concerned with volume than with style.

This recession is miserable, no doubt. But one good thing: As our generic purse strings get tighter, we'll be forced to purchase only pieces that celebrate our personalities and define our senses of style - just like Bloomwood's forest-green pleated scarf.

As for me, I decided to return that glittery cocktail dress - turns out it didn't look as great as I thought. And truly, I didn't need it, but I neglected to read the fine print - no cash back on sale items.

So I decided to trade it in for a coral sheath with a round collar and tulip sleeves. It didn't scream Elizabeth, but maybe it will in time.

Lesson learned.