Conspicuos consumption

So I've been browsing the I Luv Fabrix site, so kindly found by Serena, and I've been gasping over the beauty of the fabrics, and the periodness of the patterns, and the periodness of the pricing point.

Pricing point? Economist term that means the point on the demand curve that the goods are priced at to attract a certain clientel. Nordstroms or other high end department stores have high price points, or high average prices, because they want to attract a higher quality clientel, people for whom price is not an important consideration because they can afford to not worry about price. Walmart on the other hand has a lower price point to attract people who want a bargin deal.

I Luv Fabrix has goods that are period in content, weave, design and are definitly priced out of this middle class persons budget, makes me think about fabric and budgets in period.

For example, take this wool damask for example. Its $36 a yard. With my budget I could buy a yard for a gollar (shoulder cape) and it would be pricey (and I would get some weird looks from my husband) but I could afford it.
http://www.iluvfabrix.com/products/product.php?pid=1205&page=2

This fabric, which greatly reminds me of the strap-work dress in Patterns of Fashion,
http://www.iluvfabrix.com/products/product.php?pid=1328&page=1
at $53 a yard, it is sufficiently priced out of my price range, but if I was in the upper class, it wouldn't be.

That's all for now on fabrics and economics. Off to get some schoolwork done.