Quote Originally Posted by tctrek View Post
Holy cow -- I want your closet!! Thanks for the tips. I'm going to check out several for this winter. I don't mind spending a bit more for the right outerwear that's going to keep me warm and covered, but still give me a chance to breathe a little ie: with pitzips or other features like that.
My closet was bought in various bargain sales - can't afford any of this stuff full price.

You're in Atlanta... Check out The Gear revival:
http://www.thegearrevival.com/

I've bought stuff off ebay from them and had a friend who worked for them for a while - they do consignmnet outdoor gear, and the owner used to work in the outdoor industry, so he's friends with a lot of the gear reps and they sell their "sample" lines through him... So you can ocassionally get good deals on their stuff, and their women's gear does not sell very well on ebay typically. They normally get the icebreaker sample line (merino wool) and usually it doesn't sell for all that much in the women's stuff. But given that they sell a lot of the sample lines, most of their stuff is medium.

But I bet you could go in store with your helmet and try on quite a few jackets. You could also do that at REI and given that they currently have their superclearance going on, you may find a great deal.

You can also watch steepandcheap and their related websites for deals.... backcountryoutlet.com has been clearancing a lot of stuff. cleansnipe.com or gearattack.com show you what's on all the backcountry/steepandcheap sites... all of those put one discounted item up till it sells out, if you're not familliar with them. Sometimes great deals can be found.