By: Abigail Femi-Ogunyemi

Oh, Black Friday. As a broke college student, I have been saving up for Black Friday since Nov. 1. Let's just say, my tri-weekly latte has turned into  a cheap chug of green tea given out at my dinning hall. Oh well, it was all worth it.

I planned to hit up some staple stores such as Gap, H&M and Urban Outfitters.  Each of these stores is located either on M Street or Wisconsin Avenue.

I set my alarm to rise at 4:26 a.m. although I didn't roll out of bed until 7:27 a.m. Granted, this late start was actually a blessing in disguise. I knew that stores like Urban Outfitters and H&M opened early in the morning (5 and 6 a.m. respectively), but many shops on M Street were closed and scheduled to open at 10 a.m. I was shocked!

Black Friday calls for early openings and late nights. The streets were dry and bare. I didn't see many lines once stores opened, either. Most of the lines I noticed were at sport apparel stores, such as Sports Zone and K Sports. There soccer moms and young men stood around, waiting for the stores to open.

The morning progressed well. I found several treasures at Urban Outfitters. There shoppers received an extra 50% off sale merchandise. I was in total bliss. The workers seemed pretty jolly too. I love when people love their jobs.

I got 5 pieces without breaking the bank. As much as I love Urban Outfitters, I tend to find much of  their merchandise greatly over-priced so I was glad to snag such a deal.

I then journeyed over to H&M. The store offered a variety of holiday deals. There were five different styles of sweaters, usually $24.95 going for prices ranging from $5 to $10.  Though I found them to be a bit short in length, I'm sure someone will find something they love in there. 

My next stop was GAP. I was in search of a gray infinity (circle) scarf. Or I was until the fire alarm went off. Some sort of "malfunction," according to the store manager. The store had a 60% sale on select items. But because of the fire alarm, customers could not go upstairs. This made shopping a bit challenging but most of the workers had friendly smiles. While still in the store two, big fire trucks raced in front of the store. Here fire-fighter promptly got out to address the issue at hand, although there was no physical fire. No fears, ladies (and gentleman) GAP is still open so you can get your shop on! 

At the corner of Wisconsin and M Street Ghirardelli chocolate had lovely workers handing out some peppermint chocolate. It was delicious. In addition there were some carolers from Ghirardeli singing carols as well.

I know I originally said there was only a line at some sport apparel store, that was a lie. Starbucks had a line out the door! Although the chocolate was a good pick-me-up, I needed to refuel. So I endured the the line and grabbed a latte!

Ah, the fast was over. My first latte in 22 days 16 hours and 11 minutes, but who's counting?

Now for the fun part! Here are all the goodies I got. Check out photo 6 above to see my haul:

• I now finally have a black "boyfriend" blazer. I've had a navy, Donna Karen one but I needed the black one to be a staple in my wardrobe.
• I was so excited for the cream, maxi skirt. I'd had seen one similar to this one at American Apparel for like $80 and I didn't have money like that for such a skirt.
• Some of the pieces such as the neutral tank and red shirt will be saved until next spring or worn under blazers, sweaters, and cardigans this winter.
• I bought the NYX lip gloss at Urban because I've heard good things about the NYX brand so why not?
• And the black loafers will be cute, quick shoes to throw on this winter season.

I feel like a woman on "Extreme Couponing" because I saved so much money! God is good.

All in all, I think I had a pretty successful Black Friday.