The art of digging for clothes often means spending hours sifting through mounds of hit and misses to find the right something, according to Meg Lamb, a student and bride to be."If you are really serious about finding something, say a Vera Wang wedding gown, you do need to show up early and be prepared to wait," says Lamb.

Lamb is a sample sales enthusiast. Sample sales offer high fashion at discounted prices. Lots of sample sale shoppers will brave the crowds and long lines. "I prefer coming in the afternoon, when the initial rush has died down and the stock has been reorganized," Lamb says. "Sometimes they even bring out more stuff."

However, the samples are not necessarily inexpensive, warned Lamb, who once landed a Richard Tyler wedding gown at a 60 percent discount from a Saks Fifth Avenue sale. "It was much more civilized than Vera Wang," Lamb says. "I arrived on time and only waited a few minutes for a dressing room and was able to try on as many dresses as I wanted."

hile Lamb hits sample sales, most people who scavenge for clothes buzz around second-hand shops, where someone's castaway is another person's treasure.

On the Upper West Side, Laura Miller manages the inventory of Reruns, the consignment section of the Off Broadway Boutique. "My favorite part of this job is being able to play all day with pretty clothes and gorgeous customers."

But Miller and her fellow manager can't refrain from being customers as well.