Do you like window shopping?

When I was growing up, window shopping meant walking around downtown Toronto looking at the Christmas displays in the store windows. They were always animated and every store had them. Today, I don't think there is such a thing as window shopping. There is comparison shopping, which my husband and I just did today for stoves and dishwashers. But if I took my girls out to the mall there would be no way getting out of there without buying something for them and for me. I will go in with the intent of buying my daughter a pair of jeans but end out buying clothes for myself as well. With money issues, I just don't go out. I know I will spend money if I go out so I don't go anywhere. If my kids really want something then they have to pay for it, depending on what it is and how expensive.

I love window shopping! Me and my friends tend to do this often. When we hang out in the city or the shopping mall where all the expensive brands are, we simply just go in the shops and check out the stuff and clothes. I don't have the money to buy such expensive brands so I simply window shop. When I like something I would stare at it and hold it in my hands only to back away when I check out the price tag But window shopping really does pass the time, especially when you have nothing better to do. Of course going with kids would be a hassle because they would bug you for everything they want.

I think my problem is I got burned out on window shopping or something. We used to do it all the time, and never had an issue. We'd wander through stores almost daily and point out all the things we'd like to buy when we had the money. Then one day I just got sick of it. Maybe it was the realization that we'd never have the money for all of the things we wanted..

Yeah sometimes although the kids understand that we cannot spare the money for said wanted items they still at times ask and get disappointed. I remember one girl where I use to work who said that she absolutely would not window shop and or browse anymore as her 8 year old one day said to her, that he wanted something where they were at. Well her usual response was I can't buy it right now as I have no money. The little guy was very upset and said, how come you never have money but you are always working. So you are right they know but can't really understand and they do get disappointed. When mine were little I would tell them at home that I would go but only on one condition, that they knew I could not pay for anything they wanted at the time. So sometimes I simply just would not agree to go, but perhaps did something else that I was sure there would be no spending involved.

I like window shopping and preferably alone, because only then can I have my own sweet time walking to just about any shops I want. Even if I go with a friend, not that I mind, but they like going to shops that I don't have interest in. So, I prefer window shopping alone.

but still you're enjoying yourself more when you have kids around right? or not? i mean the bonding and enjoyment is priceless. There are also kids that when you say 'no' they already know what to do, there are also kids who are well you know the rest. so bear with it, you used to be a kid too so you know what kids feel.

I am not too much of a shopping guy. But if I do decide that I need something, then I do a bit of research before buying it. During that period, I do some extra time of window shopping to get a feel of the product. And then finally, I will buy it from a shop that offers me the best value for my money. Cheers! Ram

I don't particularly enjoy window shopping but I do like to leaf through catalogs. I see something I'd love to have then, since I'm at home, I have the time to think of how I could make it myself or use something else around the house for that particular use. I never did enjoy going to a mall and looking at things I could not have.

I also never take the kids window shopping! They always pester me to buy things and sulk if I say no. Another place I rarely take them is grocery shopping! The cart gets full of items I did not intend on buying and do not need. I learned a long time ago that kids and shopping do not really go together.

its a no for me, i really dont like going for window shopping, i feel i,m just wasting my time and my energy..maybe ones in awhile but not often..dude...i wish going to the mall if i have something to buy rather than loitering around for window shopping..

I have always enjoyed window shopping. true, it is more fun to be making the purchase when we see something that we like but i am just as happy to go window shopping and look at all of the things that i would like to have. Sometimes it is hard to pull away but it is still a good shopping experience for me.

The only time window shopping doesn't encourage unnecessary spending of money on things you don't need, and never knew you wanted until you seen it , is when you plan on returning to purchase something that requires your signature, or when customizing is involved in the calculated price.

I enjoy window shopping alone or with friends but with my kids, I'm not comfortable just thinking of what might the kids ask me to buy for them.

window shopping is great. i do it all the time in the stores here. the mall is a big opportunity to do this kind of shopping. i am with you about the kids. never have kids with you when you go shopping as they ask to much all the time.

I don't really like to window shop, if I can't afford anything, I don't want to be tempted... granted I don't have kiddos, but I'm bad enough on my own!

hate it.cause i know i'd see something i want,and when i have the money it'll probably be gone.i'd just rather not.plus it can be boring if it's someone else doing the real shopping.my brother will dawdle for hours if you don't tell him to hurry his butt up.

I love to window shop and I window shop a couple times a week, I'm sure. I go just for something to do and don't always buy anything. I just like to look around and it is just a means of getting out of the house without spending a bunch of money. I live in the city now so it is close for me to shop but I used to live in a town that was a good 30 minutes from the city and so it was more like with you...needing time to drive and money for gas..so I didn't go as often as I do now. I live in a city that has one of the biggest malls in Canada near by, 10 minute drive just up the highway from me...and the biggest mall for sure...in Edmonton which is only a couple hours drive. I have been to the Edmonton mall a few times and that mall is crazy. They have a waterslide park and ice skating rink and carnival rides amongst many other things. It isn't just for shopping. But the one closer by me is really good too, just not all those other extras. Two of my sisters came to visit for a week during Thanksgiving and I took them to the mall by my house and they couldn't believe how big it is. We spent about 5 hours just walking and shopping from one end of the store to the other. It is that huge!! Cheers my friend and happy mylotting, Chris

I agree with you. I like to look at things sometime in the windows but not very often at all! Becuuse I am like you I think it takes the fun out of going if we can't afford things!

Yes i love window shopping, i find it quite therapeautic sometimes. Things that i dont plan to buy but i will keep in mind which shop has it. The funny thing is it is when we are with the kids that was the time we see all the nice things that we want, dont you think

I have a friend who loves to shop. I don't. When I was much younger, before I had kids or a home business, I enjoyed a bit of window shopping or even actual shopping. I liked to go into greeting card stores and read the cards. I'd always leave with a handful of them. Same with bookstores. Then I became a greeting card buyer for a store. The picture will show you part of the store that I bought for and managed. Part of being a buyer meant attending gift shows in Los Angeles twice a year. These filled the Los Angeles Convention Center and some of the surrounding hotels and merchandise marts with exhibits of every kind of gift imaginable. That meant there were miles of aisles of booths to walk past, only a small percentage of which sold things I was there to buy. I and the other buyers would map out what we wanted to see from our guide books ahead of time and then start walking the miles of booths, each of us stopping where interested and then catching up to the others as we could. We'd meet for lunch and then start again. We had only two days to cover everything. This had the potential of becoming the ultimate window shopping experience, if you can imagine walking past all the best glassware, pottery, wind chimes, jewelry, books, games, China, stationery products, etc. you could ever hope to see. However, I had a job to do. Getting distracted at any of those booths I wasn't going to buy from wasted my time. I had to learn to speed down those aisles at a fast walk, slowing down only to look into booths that actually sold cards, posters, stationery, and gift wrap, and trying not to notice anything else. As a result, I can now walk into a store and not "see" anything I don't have an interest in. For me, shopping had become a job to do, and that's how I still look at it. I stay out of malls unless there is nowhere else to look for something. I have friends that consider shopping and window shopping as almost a sport or entertainment. I did look at it that way when I had lots of time on my hands and my husband had a predictable paycheck. When I had the kids, I had to take them shopping for clothes, etc. The only friend I'm comfortable shopping with is someone who will walk into a store with me and agree to go our separate ways and meet me at a certain time after we each get what we need. I hate trying on clothes or watching others do it. My tendency is to get in and out of the store as quickly as possible.