shopping Archives - Page 8 of 9

Simply Seasonless: Denim Shirt

Denim shirt – Marc by Marc Jacobs

Denim shirt – Marc by Marc Jacobs, grey pants – Stella McCartney, scarf – Hermès, blazer – Allsaints, grey loafers – Dune, zigzag scarf – Missoni, grey sweater – VPL, jeans – Mango, sneakers - Converse

Denim shirt – Marc by Marc Jacobs, black skirt – DKNY, black cardigan – L.L.Bean, scarf – Etro, opaque tights – Armani Exchange, pumps – Stuart Weitzman, grey pearl earrings – Lord & Taylor, tweed dress – Dolce & Gabbana, grey tights – Topshop, loafers – Tod’s

Denim shirt – Marc by Marc Jacobs, moonstone earrings – Andrea Fohrman, white cardigan – Rag & Bone, black cropped pants – Emilio Pucci, ballet flats – See by ... View the Post

Paris: scarf shopping at Crimson

October 19, 2012

Crimson is an absolutely irresistible, tiny little Paris shop that specializes in cashmere. A dreadful temptation...

The above is a close-up of the scarf I purchased. It's a bit sheer-ish, and it's FIVE FEET WIDE, and SEVEN FEET LONG... It is about the most gorgeous thing I've ever owned; it looks great with black, delicious with grey, and I have a hunch I'll be able to wear it for decades.

I could have bought another sweater, or another dress, but this scarf will outlast anything like that, and will remain gorgeous long after another piece of clothing is forgotten! love,

Janice ... View the Post

Paris: shopping @ Agnes B., Muji, French Trotters

Of COURSE we shopped. It would require super-human discipline for belovedest and I to stay out of stores in Paris. Partly, of course, shops in Paris are a great opportunity to get some insights into the French aesthetic - the way the stores are arranged, the way the merchandise is displayed - it's just NOT like shopping in Chicago.And then, there are some stores that just don't exist in Chicago - specifically Agnes B. (who had a store here which closed a few years ago), Muji, and French Trotters. If I were absolutely forced to purchase all of my clothing from one store, it would be Agnes B.; her designs appeal to me completely. And Muji is just cool - streamlined products of every possible sort. French Trotters ... View the Post

“It’s Not in My Plan”

My best friend, whom I refer to as Slim, is possibly the best-dressed woman I've ever known. What makes this fact even MORE fun is the knowledge that she buys over half of her clothes from ebay or from consignment shops and thrift stores. Her taste is exquisite, and her ability to find a high-quality item in a sea of ordinary is almost supernatural.

She told us a story Saturday about a recent shopping excursion to one of her favorite consignment shops. She was looking for black pants, and found a pair of Jil Sander pants for $50. (easily less than 10% of the original retail price)

But the extraordinary part of her tale: she also saw a sea foam green cabled cashmere sweater, in her size, on sale for $28. ... View the Post

Capsule Wardrobe Project 333: from the sublime to the ridiculous

After we got back from Paris, belovedest and I agreed that we could have packed less - we had more options than we strictly needed, and we wouldn't have minded having even SMALLER bags...And that made me start pondering the number of options inherent in any "Project 333" that includes 33 pieces of clothing - theoretically more than 1,000.

So, I started illustrating them all.... and my brain ground to a halt at 160 outfits. This would easily get me through 5 months, and I haven't even begun to address the possibilities of my dresses. Wow. I really do NOT need a lot of clothes - I re-learn this fact every day.

Note: although you can't really tell here, the 3 pair of black pants are VERY different from each other ... View the Post

A Common Capsule Wardrobe

September 5, 2012

I used to work in advertising, and thus I have hung around with some of the most eccentric, exotic and extraordinary people imaginable.

Flash back to a large conference room in a major European city (this happened at LEAST three times...). The room is full - a couple of hundred advertising professionals from around the world. There are amazing haircuts, astonishing eyeglasses, jewelry you've never seen before or since, scarves of every possible description, tied in every way you could envision. Shoes? The mind reels just at the memory. And the socks were a thing of beauty...

But the most interesting thing, to my mathematical, always analyzing mind, is that literally 90% of the people in the room, male ... View the Post

Shopping at Art Galeries

July 28, 2012

Just a quick reminder - when you need a new accessory, don't forget to check the websites of art galleries. The above brilliant little idea is available from the Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art. My favorite tiny handbag is from there...

And you get to support smaller designers, you don't sport big gaudy logos, and you don't see yourself coming and going on the street...

love, Janice ... View the Post

Imaginary shopping: a wee “pick-me-up”, in pink

My last springtime adventure in imaginary shopping is the "how to experiment with a fashion color" question. I'm totally smitten with this striped top, and my desire for it would be sufficient to convince me to introduce pink into my wardrobe for six months or a year - however long the top lasts. Here is a case in which I would NOT spend a lot of money on jewelry, and I would buy a decent pair of shoes or sandals, but not a long-term investment pair. This small shopping spree is designed to brighten up my wardrobe for spring, indulge in a garment which I love, and participate in the "brightly colored pants" trend, without breaking the bank.

Tee shirt – J. Crew, cropped pants – Diane von Furstenberg, pink ... View the Post

Imaginary shopping: basics, in blue

Today, I've scaled back my purchases a little bit, and chosen to "buy" a more trendy color - cobalt blue. I loved cobalt when we all wore it back in the 80's, and am happy to see it back again. But I'm not willing to make quite such a major investment in blue as I was willing to consider yesterday in my imaginary red extravaganza... So I would look to purchase the following:

Cardigan – J. Crew, tee shirt – DKNY, pants – Piazza Sempione, skirt – Diane von Furstenberg, scarf – Givenchy for Liberty of London, lapis earrings – Astley Clarke, lapis & onyx bracelet - Nordstrom Based on the idea that I want to leverage these core wardrobe items:

And this is how I would wear my new ... View the Post

Imaginary shopping: extravagantly red

I'm not shopping these days, but I do LOOK at lots of things (as you well know!). So I decided to do some imaginary shopping; sort of walking through the process of what I would do IF I were in a shopping phase of my life. First up: What basics do I already have in my wardrobe that I wear a lot, and want to use as a basis for leveraging my purchases?

Now, what do I want? I've chosen to splurge on red this shopping spree. It's an on-trend bright color, but it's dead classic, and never goes out of style. It's a color I wear well, I already have a couple of beautiful scarves with a lot of red in them, and it mixes brilliantly with black.

So... a cardigan and a tee shirt (sort ... View the Post

A Chic Sighting, and a cautionary note on “payday shopping”

So I finally get a day off, and wandered about down in the "Loop" meeting a friend for lunch, stopping by to see belovedest, and just hiking about taking in the sights... The young lady represented in the above assembled outfit was a shining light of cheer on a gloomy day; I first noticed her radiant smile, but her well-curated outfit caught my eye too!

And another thing I saw: payday shopping. Back when I was in soft-goods retail, we always knew that the 15th of each month, and the last day of each month, would be very busy at lunch time, and after the end of the office work day. Why? Insert graphic of money burning a hole in someone's pocket.

There's nothing theoretically wrong with shopping the same day you ... View the Post

Maximize Your ROI: Statement footwear

Navy sweater – Acne, navy bag – Debenhams, Striped tunic - Jaeger, sunglasses – Cutler and Gross, Melange sweater – Black Fleece, Jeans – Alexander McQueen

Silk blouse – Stella McCartney, earrings – Tiffany, silk sweater – Private B, gold necklace – Ben-Amun, tee shirt – Burberry Brit, 6-button cardigan – John Smedley, drop-collar cardigan – Eastex, Navy pants – Joseph,

Silk blouse – The Row, hat – Topshop, turtleneck – Woolrich, tee shirt – Isabel Marant, floral scarf – Erdem, boucle coat – Jil Sander, Navy skirt – Debenhams, navy tights – Falke

Ruby earrings – Lord & Taylor, Paisley drop earrings – Max and Chloe, ¾ sleeve dress – Crumpet England, ... View the Post