GIVEAWAY

Sorry. To all of you who are just tuning into my blog today because you saw the headliner "GIVEAWAY", you are out of luck, because I am posting this entry to share with you the woman's blog I'm actually entering as a possible winner of a $25 gift card! Her blog is all about J.Crew, my favorite place, so obviously, her blog is a great one that I would highly recommend you follow! Here's the giveaway and blog about her anniversary of one year of having: Jcrewismyfavstore.blogspot.com

Happy Blogging and J.Crewing!

WISH & WANT

I was at J.Crew this past weekend, and picked up a few items that I will discuss in my next blog post, but I thought I would share with you something that I saw that I WANT SO BAD. I didn't have the money to buy it at the time, but I plan on getting it soon. You see, last year in the February catalog for J.Crew, there was a picture that I saw that inspired me to be on the look out for a light, dusty, mauve-y pink. Here's the pic:

Here is what I saw in the store over the weekend:

The two cardigans shown are obviously different, and the color of the bottom one is even softer in person. It's the perfect pink color, despite this picture's candy pink color. I want it so bad! Early Christmas present anyone? This long pink cardigan is SO cute, and I can wear it with so much! This outfit is adorable, and this is a new sort of post. The Classic Merino Cardigan is what I wish for and want so much! 

LOOK FOR LESS #5

J.CREW

Heart Me Sweater: $88

VS.

OLD NAVY

Women's Boatneck Sweater (Graphite Heather): $24.95

SADLY...

So, until I get pretty situated at UW-Stevens Point, where I will be a freshman moving in next Saturday, I won't have any outfit inspirations or anything special like that posted. Once I get the hang of how to be a college student, I'll continue on with those posts. BUT, until then I plan on still posting J.Crew purchases, and any other sort of entry I feel like posting...enjoy for now!

LOOK FOR LESS #4

J.CREW

Crystal Starlet Earrings: $35

VS.

TARGET

Crystal Ball Stud Earrings (Silver Plated): $14.99

UNFORTUNATELY...

The only downer about working at Old Navy is that I can't really wear skirts. I wear my jeans and capris every time I work. I can't really wear my favorite J.Crew skirts! :(

HUGE HAUL

I went on a huge shopping spree on Tuesday, picking up lots of lovely clothes, jewelry, and accessories. I spent my entire most recent paycheck at J.Crew and my mom was kind enough to pick up other pieces that I needed throughout the day. FIRST, I'll start off with my purchases from Forever 21:

I picked up a rusty-brown skirt for around $18, something I've been looking for for a long time. I really would love to pair it up with a button-up shirt like in this J.Crew 2010 catalog.

I picked up a piece of jewelry at Forever 21 as well, including this ring that I LOVE. It is a a gold chain-like ring. I love that Forever 21 jewelry is so cheap, so I don't feel guilty about purchasing an item like this to try out!

Now...drumroll...J.CREW! 

So, I'm going to list what I bought, then show it and also give a picture from J.Crew.com or a catalog. Also, I'm also 18, and I spent a whole paycheck's worth on these clothes from J.Crew and had some help from my mom as well. This was a BIG DEAL. 

WHAT I BOUGHT:

Linen City Mini in Navy

City Mini in Brilliant Flame

Naomi top in Polka Dot

Black Minnie pant in stretch twill

(FAVORITE PURCHASE)>>>>>Tippi cardigan in Neon Fuchsia

plus...

FACE Stockholm nail polish in Vibrant Flame

FACE Stockholm nail polish in Neon Sunset

With college just around the corner, and with the price of this clothing, I really wanted to buy pieces that I knew would be...hardy...if that makes sense. I was looking for some items that I KNEW I would wear a lot and wouldn't get ruined quickly. Clothes that are easy to wash and care for. Pieces that would LAST. 

Luckily, while shopping, I was assisted by a college student who worked there. She helped me find some things that are smart to have for college, and gave me lots of tips on how to wear J.Crew in college. She was so sweet and friendly, and let me in on the student discount of 15%! <3

Finishing this haul, I also ordered a pair of gladiator sandals from Aldo that arrived in the mail already! I was really worried they wouldn't fit, but was pleasantly surprised with the way they fit my feet. They are PERFECT! They look like J.Crew sandals, too! I've been looking for some new glads, so I'm super excited to wear them for the fall! (My signature look is a skirt/capris and gladiator sandals. LOVE THEM.)

This was a lot, but I bought a few other things that I might talk about in a blog post some other time. For now, I thought I'd give a brief overview of my best finds for the fall and college, which is so close! Summer's almost over, which means new clothes! I'm getting super antsy and excited! Be ready for posts about some of these items in the near future! :D

OUTFIT INSPIRATION

Color inspiration: yellow (mustard), peach, pink, and coral.

Today's look: 

Pale yellow (fitted) tank top-Old Navy

Mustard yellow cardigan-Old Navy

Coral flower pin-J.Crew

I was channeling J.Crew from June 2009 today, inspired by the cover photo, featuring Mona Johannessen in a mustard yellow jacket with huge flowers on them. I LOVE how fun and feminine this is, and I found a way to make this work today.

I've purchased J.Crew flower pins over the past couple years, and I NEVER KNOW HOW TO USE THEM! Even after buying my new mustard cardigan, I was worried it wasn't me. You know? Like, how am I going to actually make this piece of clothing more me? I put two and two together, and voila! My inspired look got comments at work tonight, and I felt so cute, I actually got hit on while folding some clothes. Ew! That's another story, but... enjoy this look, inspired by none other than J.Crew!

PRETTY PURCHASE #1

Want those pretty red/coral lips that grace almost every page of those J.Crew catalogs? I do! I've been trying to create a perfect red pout for a long time, and while I like my Covergirl Outlast lip stain, and while I love my berry pink Just Bitten lip stain, I really wanted a reddish orange lip color that is a little more long-lasting and way more moisturizing. I am someone that has chapstick on me at all times. I can't go for more than an hour or so without lip balm before I have to reapply it, because my lips are so very prone to chapped lips. I've had my eyes on the Clinique Chubby Sticks for a long time, and tonight, while on a impromptu shopping trip with my mom, we stopped by the Clinique counter in Boston Store and I tried a couple colors. My mom bought me a chubby stick in the color Two Ton Tomato-what a cute name! It's a gorgeous reddish-orange shade that is bright and moisturizing. What I also love about the chubby sticks is that they are mixable and buildable. Not only mixable with other sticks (you can customize your own color!), but the more you apply, the more opaque and bright the color will be! You can apply a little bit and get a sheer, pretty tint, or you can keep building the color on and get a super vibrant color if you want! I love how moisturizing they feel and how long they last! For $16, I am happy to buy a lip product I know will get tons of use and last me a long time. AND I am NOT a lipstick kind of girl! So if you are like me, I would HIGHLY recommend purchasing one of these color sticks by Clinique. What a pretty purchase!

                 Two Ton Tomato                                                    Clinique Moisturizing Chubby Sticks

STRIPES, POLKA-DOTS, OR RUFFLES?

The other day, while reading through the a blog post at J.Crew Aficionada that had to do with the new polka-dot fad that is being introduced for the fall, a great point was bought up by JCA-that every fan of J.Crew could most likely be classified into one of the three different categories of J.Crew clothing: STRIPE, POLKA-DOT, or RUFFLE. When I thought about this, I immediately put myself into one of the categories! I am "a ruffle". The feminine, flowery, embellished items are what drew me into J.Crew initially. As J.Crew changes, it features new prints and patterns and the like, but a huge part of my personal style includes the ruffly, textured clothing that J.Crew featured a couple years ago. For a while it was stripes, and now they are moving into polka-dots this fall. I don't have too many polka-dots in my wardrobe, but I probably will after the next few shopping trips I make. Stripes are plentiful in my collection of clothing, but I am overall, most definitely, "a ruffle". 


So I ask, what are YOU? Are you "a ruffle", "a stripe", or "a polka-dot"? Which category do YOU fall into? Think about it!

Is this you? Then you are a RUFFLE!

Is this you? Then you are a POLKA-DOT!

Is this you? Then you are a STRIPE!

LOOK FOR LESS #4

J.CREW 

Silk Boy Shirt in Heart Throb: $135

Pleated Jardin Skirt in Heart Throb: $128

VS.

OLD NAVY

Women's Ruffle-Trim Tie-Belt Dresses: $29.94

 

REMINISCING

I LOVE J.Crew now. Don't get me wrong. J.Crew continuously produces beautiful, high quality clothing that make me go weak, to the point of stumbling upon walking into any J.Crew store in any mall. 

But...

I miss some of the old J.Crew. 

I know J.Crew needs to keep changing to maintain status and keep customers coming back, but I really really really miss the J.Crew that I fell in love with the fall of 2009. Here are a few scans of my favorite catalog pages throughout the end of 2009, transitioning into 2010:

August 2009

Spring 2010 (April)

There is something about 2009-2010 that is so beautiful. J.Crew, in my mind, was feminine. It was so elegant. What I loved about J.Crew at that time:

Ruffles

Pastels

Accent colors

Jewels & Crystals

Flowers

Softness

Romance

Embellishments

Sparkle

Neutrals

Muted colors

So much of my style and fashion derived from these few beautiful pictures, recorded in catalogues from years past. I still reference them often. Something about the subtle feminine, girly, RUFFLY, embellished, sparkly pieces makes me drool. The first time I walked into a J.Crew store, I was like a little kid in a candy store. Every item was like art in my eyes. To this day I believe J.Crew stores are spectacular and gorgeous.

But since 2010 there's just been some thing missing.

Again, I cannot complain for very long, because in the long run, I basically worship J.Crew and everything they offer. But I miss THIS J.Crew...of almost three years ago. 

I hope I am not the only one who does.

KNOCKOFF NEED

With my new job as a sales associate at Old Navy, I find that I lose track of time when I'm on the floor, folding clothes for hours at a time, constantly on my feet, or catering to customer needs in the fitting room. For this reason, and because it's frowned upon to have my cell phone on me while working, I would really love to get a watch. But not a huge, tacky one. I really love J. Crew's Timex watch with the cute coral strap color. BUT because of price issues-as always-I found an alternative. Target has a new line of Timex Midsize Weekender Slip Through watches. They are selling different cute colored straps separately as well! So, if you're like me, looking for a decently priced watch that is going to last, Target's Timex watches might just be the answer. I need this knockoff!

TARGET

Timex Midsize Weekender Slip Through Watch: $34.99

J.CREW

Timex Military Watches: $150

LOOK FOR LESS #3

J.CREW

Ballet Flats (Classic Metallic & Patent): $125-$135

VS.

OLD NAVY

Ballet Flats (Metallics and Patent): $19.94

LOOK FOR LESS #2

J.CREW 

Stretch Perfect Shirt in Mini-gingham (dark poppy): $75.00

VS.

OLD NAVY

Women's Oxford Shirts (Hot Times): $26.94

LOOK FOR LESS #1

J.CREW 

Collection Cashmere Polka-dot Sweater (green atlantic): $268.00

VS.

OLD NAVY

Women's Boatneck Sweater (imperial jade): $24.94

OUTFIT INSPIRATION

A huge part of developing this blog was my love of all things J. Crew. I am J. Crew obsessed. I study their clothing and style guides to use as inspiration in my daily outfits. Another reason I wanted to start this blog is because I just got a job at Old Navy and I am starting to see clothes that are very similar to J. Crew products. Knock-offs you might say. So, I thought I'd share my ideas with you in this blog. Looks for Less, knock-offs, ideas, and other thoughts J. Crew and fashion related.