New York,California...The 5 Best Upscale Outlet Malls in the US

It's hard to look but not touch, but there is an answer – and it takes you out of the city and on the road. Here are some of the country's best upscale outlet malls.

Shopping in New York City can be quite the experience. Depending on your tastes, it can mean braving long lines for fitting rooms and cash registers, weaving your way through large crowds of wide-eyed tourists, or stumbling upon the cutest little boutique on a random street. New York is the fashion capital of the country, but it comes at a price, and many of us simply can't afford the clothes we really, really want.

1. Las Vegas
You're already in Vegas, but it's time to save some cash rather than losing it. Make up for your bad luck playing the slot machines and bask in the warm glow of 150 outlet stores. Located just five minutes off the Strip, you can fit in some shopping at Perry Ellis, Polo Ralph Lauren, and Hugo Boss between rounds.

2. Florida
You've done the beach thing and even did a day or two at Disney, but shoppers know that Ellenton Premium Outlets, located about 30 minutes from Tampa, is one of the best ways to spend your holiday. If you are looking for shoes, you check out any of their 24 different shoe stores and snag those heels you've had your eye on at Stuart Weitzman.

3. New York
Just 50 miles outside the city sits Woodbury Commons Premium Outlets in Central Valley, N.Y. With 220 stores, you want to plan a full day, as you'll need to comb through the racks searching for slashed deals at stores like Barney's New York Outlet, Saks Fifth Avenue OFF 5TH, and Neiman Marcus Last Call. It's important to keep in mind that these are outlet stores, which means that you will definitely find a better price, but the selection can be hit or miss. Be sure to check out DVF, Theory, and Betsey Johnson, who have better selections than most, and some hard-to-pass-up prices.


4. California
Just 20 minutes west of Palm Springs, you'll find 130 mid-to-high end outlet store at Desert Hills Premium Factory Outlets. Why shop Rodeo Drive when you can hit up Gucci, Giorgio Armani, Prada, and Michael Kors for way less. And if you're still not ready to drop four digits on a dress, then check out stores like True Religion, William Rast, Miss Sixty, and J. Crew for discounts on your brand faves.


5. Texas
Texans know that San Marcos Premium Outlets is the best place to find 140 of your favorite stores. Take a trip 45 minutes south of Austin to find savings on Abercrombie & Fitch, DKNY, Tory Burch, and pick up your favorites undies from La Perla.

Christie watch the clock up to $ 91M No ', is the highest ever in 2010 sales

With the final December 14 auction in New York, Christie's International wrapped up a record-breaking year for fine and rare watches that realised US$91.2m in total sales, the highest annual total ever achieved for watches at the global auction house.
During what has emerged as a remarkable year for  investing in fine timepieces, every watch sale hosted at Christie's salerooms in Dubai, Hong Kong, Geneva, and in New York achieved sell-through rates above 90% by value.
The top watch of the year was a unique Patek Philippe Reference 1527 manufactured in 1943 that sold for a World Record US $5.7m at Christie's Geneva. According to Christie's, no other auction house in the world achieved as many record prices for important timepieces during 2010.

"Our sale in New York this week marked the culmination of a truly stellar year for watches at auction, and re-affirmed Christie's dominance of the global market for fine and rare timepieces," said Aurel Bacs, International Head of Watches at Christie's.
"We have welcomed in a wealth of new collectors to this field in the past year, and witnessed an exponential growth in buyer participation from Asian countries, led primarily by mainland China and Hong Kong.
"At the same time, established collectors from the private, trade, and institutional sectors in Europe and the US continue to add great depth and strength to this category, giving us a solid foundation for the year ahead. We look forward to our first round of sales in April 2011," said Bacs.
Amongst the leading collections of the year was The Millennium Collection in Hong Kong, A Connoisseur's Vision, Parts II and III in Geneva, and most recently, the collection of award-winning actor Anthony LaPaglia in New York - all of which exceeded their pre-sale estimates.
Together with Part I, offered in the fall of 2009, A Connoisseur's Vision achieved of grand total of some $19m and became the most valuable private collection of wristwatches ever offered at auction.
at the same time, Christie's attributes this year's success to the convenience and increasing popularity of online bidding. At the December 15 sale of Important Watches in New York, 321 clients from 19 countries registered to bid online - the highest ever for a Christie's watches sale.