oh paris, your charm and culture are irresistible...but not quite as irresistible as that 13% v.a.t. (value added tax). for those who may not be familiar, when shopping in europe the tax is included in the price on the tag *cough* america...get on that *cough* and any non-european resident has the opportunity to get that tax back when leaving the country. i know! this makes shopping in europe that much more fun because you seemingly get a 13% discount wherever you go! and when there is a big purchase i want to make and know i'm going to be travelling, i do all the research that i can before leaving for any overseas trip. but let's break this down a little further. of course, prices are going to vary between brands and different countries (with different currencies) that they may be located in so it's always handy to do a little leg work if you are going to be visiting multiple countries. however, more often than not, the home country of the brand is going to be the least expensive (i.e. ted baker is the least expensive in england and tory burch is the least expensive in the us) so i knew my trip to paris would be my opportunity to finally get my hands on the céline clasp bag - to obviously complete my transformation into a 95 year old woman.