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Do You Dress Up To Go Shopping?
Check out Rachel Bilson. She’s looking seriously put-together in her majah heels, chic black pants, fab Phillip Lim bag and pretty blow-out. (And her friend is looking adorable, too!) Where’s the party or red carpet, you ask? There isn’t one — she’s headed out for a day of shopping … looking so on top of her sartorial game. There isn’t a pair of tattered, L.A. cool jeans in sight! This reminds me of when I used to spend an entire Saturday shopping. Before hitting up, say, Barneys or Bergdorf’s to browse the racks, I’d spend a ridiculously absurd and laughable amount of time planning what I was going to wear. (Yep, all just to go shopping.) I had to look very put-together, but not like I was trying too hard. And while you may find this a colossal waste of time, I gotta point out that dressing up before shopping in fancy-pants stores really did get me better customer service from the sales floor staff (sad, but true!) and I just felt better about myself, even if I was just there to find a new pair of, say, gloves or something small. Do you ever do the same thing—seriously think long and hard about what to wear for a day of hitting the stores? Or can you just not be bothered? Keep reading »
What Happens When You Call Something “Trashy” In A Store
Today’s issue of the U.K.’s Guardian features a fashion Q&A section, highlighting the following scenario:
Q: Is it ever acceptable to inform a shop assistant that the item of clothing they are trying to sell you is “trashy”?
A: It depends on what country you’re in, Natasha. If you’re in America, of course, they’re all about blunt honesty. If you’re in Paris, the sales assistant will look at you as if you’re crazy as she certainly wasn’t talking to you, let alone helping you. If you are in Italy, they will be delighted, as “trashy” is a compliment of the highest order there. And if you live in the UK, the shop assistant will have a heart attack in shock that you didn’t just smile and nod in embarrassment at the attention and then feel obliged to buy the damn thing out of awkward politeness. National stereotypes: as Homer Simpson says, they’re funny because they’re true.
So what exactly is this “blunt honesty” that goes on in American stores? Does this mean it’s your duty as a shopper to say when clothes are trashy? Or that if you tell a sales clerk that the clothes she sells are trashy, that you can expect a ripe slap in the face? Perhaps this all depends on the store you’re in. Let us examine the possibilities … [Guardian.co.uk] Keep reading »
I’ve Lost My Passion For Shopping
I don’t know what’s happened to me. I used to love shopping. Next to having sex, drinking, and eating great food with friends, shopping used to rank pretty high on my list of activities that make me happy.
And no, I was never one of those girls who “bought to fill the void” or anything like that. As a fashion lover, the biggest draw of hitting the boutiques was a satisfaction of being able to change my style with something simple. I never dumped huge amounts of money on clothes, but I definitely had patterns. Maybe one nice designer purchase every three to four months; one to three smaller things per month like tops, accessories, and sometimes shoes from places like Urban or Forever 21. I rarely bought out of necessity.
Now that’s not the case … Keep reading »
Sample Sales Are My Vice
Growing up in Ohio, I didn’t encounter many, er, any sample sales. In fact, I had no clue what one was until I went to college in the big city of Chicago, and all the girls who grew up in L.A., Connecticut, and New York would be all, “I’m going to Wicker Park for so-and-so-designer’s sample sale.” By then I had started subscribing to Daily Candy and had a little bit of a clue, but I didn’t go to one myself until I moved to New York after school. It was terrifying. All these normally expensive clothes and accessories for less! And you had to try everything on in front of other shoppers or on top of your clothes! And you couldn’t return or exchange anything! I didn’t buy anything at the first few I went to, but I kept tagging along with friends because I didn’t want to “miss out” on some amazing, one-of-a-kind steal. And then I broke my sample sale seal.
I know designers and showrooms hold sample sales because they need to get rid of inventory, and causing a frenzy can make people purchase things they wouldn’t under normal circumstances. I know that sometimes my adrenaline gets the best of me and I make a truly questionable spur-of-the-moment purchase. But, I’m OK with being tricked into pulling out my credit card, because if it weren’t for sample sales, I might never buy anything, ever. Keep reading »
Death By Defenestration And Fashion Go Hand In Hand
Apparently, the buyers at New Zealand boutique Superette think the clothes they sell are so bitchin’ they’d still look cute on a dead girl. Congrats on turning the statement “I wouldn’t be caught dead in that!” on its head, but we think your ad is a bit tacky (and creepy), guys. Let’s take a look at the implications of this particular ad, shall we? Keep reading »
Does Shopping Make You Feel Guilty?
The retail industry is getting pretty desperate these days—how many more special events and functions will we see that scream “Oooo! Please, please come shop in our store!” According to the Wall Street Journal, the latest tactic in trying to woo the recessionary customer is to assuage shoppers’ guilt.
In some cases, this goes straight to the point instead of tip-toeing around the you shouldn’t be spending atmosphere. Take, perhaps, the best example out there, Gilt Groupe, a sample sale website (and admitted Frisky obsession) whose name is a play on the word “guilt.” The site’s co-founder, Alexis Maybank, explains that now retailers like her are placing emphasis on battling this new culture of consumer guilt: “It used to be about keeping up with the Joneses, and now it’s about outsaving the Joneses … We need to encourage people to get excited about fashion.” Gilt’s short-timed sales have set off a wave of similar online initiatives, which rev up shoppers and distract them from negative feelings.
TheFind Makes Shopping Easier And Harder All At Once
At The Frisky, we’re always on the hunt to find awesome products to tell you about (and to buy for ourselves, on occasion). But the internet is huge! It can be overwhelming to visit site after site after site in search of the perfect pair of boots. We’ll often search for clothes on ShopStyle, but they have partnerships with a particular handful of stores, which, at times, can be on the pricier side.
So, we’re excited to try out the newly relaunched shopping search engine TheFind.com. Type in whatever you’re looking for, and this little engine that could will check with more than 500,000 sources to give you tons of options — and links to discount codes for each store, if they’re available. No more randomly searching those sketchy-looking coupon sites! Plus, you can limit your search to local sellers and “green” options. And TheFind isn’t just for clothes. The site can help you search for everything from home goods to electronics. Keep reading »
Do You Feel Like A Ditz Because You Love Fashion?
“Fashion trends speak volumes about the human condition and wordlessly point us towards the zeitgeist,” writes South Africa Times columnist Jacquie Myburgh. Huh? They do?
Ms. Myburgh, like many a fashion journalist, didn’t originally seek a career in the style world, acknowledging the frivolous-sounding nature of such work. She explains: “Telling your parents you want to go into fashion is right down there with acting and air hostessing on their list of favorites.” But, over the years, she’s come to understand its importance in society, when, especially in an economic downturn, our instincts are to shun conspicuous spending and get back to less “superficial” activities.
However, maybe we should start taking the fashion industry more seriously. Keep reading »
How Often Do You Buy New Jeans? And How Long Until You Chuck Them?
It goes without saying—the one item in your closet that’s older than the latest “High School Musical” star? Probably your favorite pair of jeans. A new survey from the Lakeside Shopping Centre in Essex, England finds that Brits hang on to their jeans longer than any other piece of clothing, and that nearly two million people have pairs they bought as much as 40 years ago.
Hole-y jeans! Keep reading »
