Even though summer doesn’t officially end for a few more weeks, once Labor Day comes and goes it usually feels like the season is over.

Kids are back in school. Most vacations are over. Seems like everything kicks back into high gear.

If next week’s going to be a harried one for you — here’s something to look forward to.

Contact, a woman’s boutique in Briarcliff Manor, is holding a special shopping evening. Stock up on fall fashions while enjoying wine and cheese until 8 p.m. Thursday.

And if you can’t make it to the event, the store — owned by Denise Zaccheo-Ozeri and Marcie Kesten — is extending its hours for the whole month of September.

Visit Contact, at 549 N. State Road, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and noon to 4 p.m. Sundays.

For more details, call 914-941-7760.

I have heard about a pretty unusual sale thanks to Helaine Fendelman.

If her name sounds familiar maybe you recognize the former Scarsdale resident (now living in Manhattan) from the “world of antiques.”

Fendelman, past president of the Appraisers Association of America, Inc., author and columnist for Country Living magazine, has always been generous with her time — and her knowledge.

I first worked with her a good seven or eight years ago. I’ll never forgot how she braved a sweltering summer morning at Stormville with me and our photographer for a “how-to-shop-a-flea market” story for the paper. We’ve kept in touch since, with Fendelman pointing out some great things along the way.

That’s why I know this sale is going to be pretty special.

Kuttner Prop Rentals in Manhattan, said to be the oldest property-rental business in the country, is holding an “Unreserved Complete Inventory Sale” on Sept. 18.

The sale, to be conducted by Stamford Auction Gallery, will be held at Kuttner, at 601 W. 26th St. (Room 330).

The shop got its start as Julia Kuttner Antiques right after World War II, a shop on Second Avenue. Over the years, Kuttner began to rent her antique American furniture, pottery and porcelain to clients ranging from interior designers to photo stylists for television, advertisements and the movies. She became known for the quality of her inventory, best known for her “tabletop� collections.

When Kuttner retired, her son-in-law ran the business for a bit before Barbara Genest bought it in 1988, eventually moving it to larger quarters a decade later.

Now, the pieces are to be offered for sale — at prices expected to start at $10. A preview will be held in the days before the sale.

Here’s just a glimpse of what’s to be on offer:

I can only imagine the stories behind the pieces, can’t you?
For more details, visit the auction-house Web site or call Kuttner at 212-242-7969.

Sometimes you see something in a shop that just strikes a chord.

It’s just so lovely it makes you stop — and sigh.

That’s happened to me quite a few times at Transformation By Design Interiors and Antiques, the treasure trove that Lenny and Ilana Perles run in Suffern.

It’s an antiques shop that features a sprinkling of new merchandise — and serves as the headquarters for Ilana’s design business.

I was spending time in Rockland shops yesterday, looking for some “kitchen essentials� for an upcoming piece I’m doing for our sister publication Rockland Magazine and decided to stop in and say hello to Ilana.

Perles, no surprise, has some fun things that we will likely feature in the story.

I also got some great design ideas from her, things I hope to put to use in future stories.

And I got an informal tour of some of the Perles’ newest finds.

This piece was the perfect example of their great (collective) eye — they find pieces that are truly distinctive.

This lovely lady is a spelter (zinc alloy) bronze figural lamp, inscribed “Mignon par Bruchon.�

It’s probably, Ilana said, from the turn of the 20th century (1910-20s).

The asking price is $2,250.

It would look so lovely in a foyer or on a great old table… hey, I can dream!

For more details, or to visit, the shop is at 14B Lafayette Ave. Call 845-357-5543.

Nyack is a great shopping destination, so it’s not surprising that this work week had only just begun when I came across two bits of Nyack-related shopping news.

First, I got a phone call from Jo Ann Basile, who asked me to pass something along.

As I’ve mentioned here before, Basile’s taking another busload of shoppers up to the antiques markets of Brimfield, Mass.

The trip will start around 6:30 a.m. Sept. 6 when the bus leaves from Nyack — and there are a few seats left.

I went in May, writing about it here, and this time around am taking a vacation day to make the return trip.

It was that good.

Check out this earlier entry for the specific details on the trip — and consider going yourself. I know I’m looking forward to another memorable shopping excursion. (Basile’s at 845-641-1413).

Then, I also got an e-mail from Anne Beneville, the owner of Hip Chik in Nyack.

The boutique at 5 S. Broadway is holding its “Fall Update Sale & Summer Clearance,” which means savings of 50 to 80 percent off items “you want right now — shorts, casual sportswear, tees and more.”

Sounds like some great savings, from a shop noted for its style.

The sale is on only until Labor Day, so stop by, visit the Web site or call 845-353-3644 for more details.

I hadn’t been to the Palisades Center in West Nyack in awhile, so I decided to stop by last night.

I was popping in and out of stores, when I headed to JC Penney. I have found some pretty nice bags in there over the years, and their sales are always great.

In other shops in the mall, I had seen what looked like a new style bag — on the small side but with an extra-long strap.

And here I saw one that really caught my eye, a silver-gray “crossbody� bag by Genna de Rossi. It was $50 and 30 percent off.

With a vacation coming up in a couple of weeks, I thought this would be perfect to take along, just throw in a camera, wallet and phone. It would also be great the rest of the year for those quick runs to the grocery store or into the city.

So, I bought the bag.

But when I got home, I glanced at my receipt, which said I had bought two items.

Huh?

I looked — I had paid the $35 (yeah, sale!) for the bag but also .07 — 7 cents — for “Afterschool Donation.�

And at the bottom of the receipt it says “Donations to JC Penney Afterschool Fund are non-refundable.�

Something’s not right…

So I called the store when I got in to work today. It wasn’t open yet but the operator said she’d try to help.

I immediately told her I was calling as a matter of principle, not on the “monetary value� and explained what I was seeing on my receipt.

She said that the cashier should have asked if I wanted to make a donation, but I said she had not.

She also mentioned something about rounding off the sale to the nearest dollar.

I see from the Penney Web site that customers can opt to round up their sale (this drive seems to be running through mid-September) to the next dollar and the difference is considered a donation — but my purse was $35 even, so I would have then ended up paying $36, right?

And honestly, if they had put me down for a $1 or $2 donation — which I may have even considered had I been asked — that would’ve seemed less “fishy� than having a percentage of my sale “grabbed.�

Sure, it’s a measly — .2 — percentage but wouldn’t just a few cents from thousands of customers add up to quite a lot?

Finally, the operator (who was extremely polite and helpful) suggested I come back to the store, speak to a manager and get my 7 cents back.

Not sure I care to do that, but you can be sure I’ll be checking my receipts more carefully.

In this store — and others.

Any golf fan knows that The Barclays officially begins tomorrow morning in Westchester.

And that the PGA Tour event is part of the new FedEx Cup series.

But how many knew that the actual FedEx Cup — the prize (along with $10 million, of course) — is on display this week in White Plains?

The cup, it turns out, is a creation of Tiffany & Co.

Pretty sharp, right?

It will be awarded to the victor of this playoff series that includes four weeks of competition at four different courses.

And the Cup will be following the same path as the players, on its own tour as it’s showcased in Tiffany & Co. retail locations near each of the tournament sites.

So, now through Sunday, this elegant piece — destined to be a part of sports history (and memorabilia) — can be viewed during the regular hours at Tiffany & Co. in The Westchester, at 125 Westchester Ave.

Why not go take a look?

After all, it might be fun to get a close look at what Tiger Woods surely expects to capture, even though he opted out of this week’s play.

A couple of days ago I was asked if I’ve been busy shopping at all the antiques shows this summer — and I had to say no.

Sure, there are shows scattered here and there but for me, the serious time is about to get under way.

I always use Antiques in the Park, just over the Rockland border in Westwood, N.J., as a sign my “busy season� is about to start.

I’ve made a point of going this late-August show for the last few years. (This year’s edition is set for Sunday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Veterans Park on Broadway. Admission is free.)

It’s a good-looking show and one where I always tend to do well. I might not pick up a lot — but I always love what I find, be it a brooch, vase or piece of ephemera.

And from there, it begins.

I’ll hit Stormville on Labor Day weekend, head back to Brimfield, Mass., later that week and then poke around in south Jersey when on vacation the week after that.

And that just takes me to mid-September!

There’s no shopping list for any of this — which makes the possibilities unlimited.

Do you like to hit the flea markets and antiques shows?

I sure do — and can’t wait for Sunday’s “season-opener.�

My friend and colleague Gayle Williams forwarded me a story today from The Washington Post about — get this — a $52,500 bag.

Yes, you read that right.

Fifty. Two. THOUSAND…

It’s a Louis Vuitton “Tribute Patchwork� bag, one of just five to be sold in North America (and 24 in the world).

Are you shocked? I was… but then not so much.

See, that came on the heels of my amazement this morning, when I was reading the New York Post. The paper wrapped up its “Fall Bag Extravaganza” series.

The first day was devoted to “luxury� bags of $1,000 or more. Fair enough.

Yesterday was “mid-rangeâ€? at $500 to $1,000…. um, ok.

And today — “affordable.�

But affordable apparently means anything less than $500.

I had been looking forward to this final day — and admittedly, there are some of what I consider (relatively) affordable bags — $55 for one from Kohl’s, $98 for another from Jessica Simpson.

Sorry, though, I don’t think that a Cole Haan model for $425 or a $268 one from Kenneth Cole are real “choices for tight purse strings.�

I remember back in the fall, when I saw “The Vertical Hour� on Broadway with the fantastic Bill Nighy.

Julianne Moore had some line where she mused about a world — and I’m paraphrasing here — where acquiring the latest handbag had become more important than “real” issues.

As anyone will tell you, I love bags… and have quite a few.

To me, though, a splurge is something scored for $50 or $75 at T.J. Maxx or Annie Sez… not something that gets into car-payment territory.

Still, all this all made me stop and think.

How much do you spend on bags? What do you consider affordable?

I guess I’m living in a different world…

I have yet to make it down there but have heard much about that new shoe “department” at Saks Fifth Avenue in Manhattan.

It’s a marketing ploy, I’m sure — but the eighth floor of the flagship even has its own zip code — 10022-SHOE, as a visit to the store’s Web site tells you.

There’s a beautiful drawing of the department on the site, as well.

It looks quite elegant, a place reached by “express elevator,� with “spectacular decor.�

It features “coveted collections,� a “private VIP room,� two cafes and “expert repair service.�

Hmmm… I have been considering a pair of Oxford tie shoes for autumn…

I guess the “catalog season,” where we’re all urged to shop early for the holidays, is about to kick into high gear.

I got home last night to find a catalog had arrived from a company I never heard of before — The Lakeside Collection.

This company’s motto is “The best things in life don’t have to cost a fortune.”

Sounds good, right?

And since it was late when I got in and I didn’t really feel like popping on the TV, I decided to skim Lakeside’s 224 (!) pages.

After all, I’d like to know more about “the best things in life.”

And the first thing I saw was the Coleman Fish Pen.

The what?

Apparently this wondrous product “lets you cast off anytime, anywhere.”

It’s further described as a “handsome” fishing rod that collapses into the size of a standard ballpoint pen (that’s 8 inches for those of us who didn’t know), making it easy to fit in a pocket, backpack, glove box or briefcase.

The “complete starter tackle kit” also comes with a variety of accessories, such as fishing hooks, bobbers and weights — all for just $19.95 per set.

Wow.

How had I lived without a catalog like this?

After all, now I know where to buy Whimsical Pet Bowls in “wacky” shapes. You can “Give Fido his own toilet to drink out of!” for just $11.95.

I can finally get that Collectible Stadium Seat and Ball, which is (brace yourself) “the best seat in the house” and just $8.95.

And I’ll have to go over my holiday gift list again to really decide just how many of the Animal Accent Lamps — horse, eagle or bear head — to order. After all, these are pieces (just $8.95) that “show the spirit of our animal brothers.”

To be honest, the catalog does have a great variety of gift ideas. There are the expected things. The catalog standards. You’ll also find country-inspired kitchen canisters and plush comforter sets, stools and pub signs for the home bar, generic NFL scarves, tool kits, toys and picture frames.

I guess when you offer more than 200 pages of gifts, you will end up with quite a mix.

I really just wonder how many of those Coleman Fish Pens will be shipped out to shoppers across America in coming weeks.

Any takers?