Shopping Barney’s was my very first experience with discovering then-unknown and cutting edge beauty products like Kiehl’s and Molton Brown. And today, Barney’s continues to impress with a very well-edited selection of pricey products, and some you’ve still never heard of (like Lipstick Queen) – even in this day of the WWW and Sephora. So, yes – it is possible to still impress your friends with a new luxury brand that’s not yet mainstream.

While the staff can run the gamut between completely snobby to writing down your favorites and letting you know when new goodies arrive, they are knowledgeable and passionate about what they sell.

Even though, when you become a mortgage-paying adult, you will bang your head repeatedly against the wall remembering what an idiot you were, you will shop here because you’re caught up in labels due to the fact that all of your school mates look like they stepped out of Vogue so it must be how college students are supposed to dress, right? And so you’ll buy a Prada bag but every month you’ll bring your laundry home because you can’t scrounge enough quarters together for the washing machine. I speak from experience.