Outlet Scores! Brooks Brothers, Barney's, Vineyard Vines

Why do I love holiday weekends so much? For the insane deals you get at stores...and the even INSANER deals you get at the outlet malls! I headed to the Woodbury Common outlet mall yesterday night to do some...um, Christmas shopping. Early, I know, but it's the last big holiday weekend sale before the craziness of Black Friday (nooo thank you!). Even weirder was the fact that I was Christmas shopping for myself....

...While that may sound strange and/or self-indulgent, it's actually my family's way of maintaining a Christmas tradition for a little while longer. I'm at that weird young-adult stage where I'm no longer a child, but I'm not yet an adult with a legitimate income. Therefore, my parents still like to buy me Christmas presents. However, seeing as how what I mostly want is clothes, and how finding those clothes would mean me having to give my Mom an explicit list and a journey all over the tri-state area, they prefer to give me a budget and have me pick out the gifts myself. The catch is that I don't get to see the clothes again till Christmas morning, when I unwrap them. Most of my friends' parents just give them cash, but this way, my parents still have physical presents to wrap and put under the tree, which in some way preserves the magic a bit longer. Christmas traditions get a bit hairy as you get older...when do/did your parents stop doing the whole stocking & Santa thing? My guess is that it'll stop once my brother and I officially move out. But no rush! :)

Anyway, I managed to find *almost* everything I was looking for. Here's what I got:

**Click to see larger.**

Brooks Brothers Fleece, XS: Oh my goodness! I loved this fleece from the moment I saw it, and even more from the moment I felt it. It's my favorite color, and is as soft and cozy as it gets. I originally went to Vineyard Vines to find a similar sort of pull-over fleece, and was very surprised to end up finding it at BB. Although the Brooks Brothers outlet brand is made-for-outlet, the quality is still wonderful and I got it for a STEAL. I wish I didn't have to wait for Christmas!...

Barney's Wallet: The most challenging part of my hunt was my long and strenuous search for a solid-colored leather wallet in a bright color, for a good price. Kate Spade surprisingly didn't have anything I liked (and a KS wallet I saw a few months back was what I was basing my preference on), Longchamps had several but for unfriendly prices, and everything else was either too sparkly/textured, not leather, or black. As a desperate last attempt, I went into the Barney's New York outlet to see if they had wallets. Imagine my surprise when I see a WALL of genuine leather wallets in every pretty color imaginable, that were on sale for a very reasonable price!! I was ecstatic. Not to mention, it had all the features I needed (long dollar pocket, attached coin purse, many card slots). So I got one in my favorite color.

(P.S.- My current Vera Bradley wallet is in such a sad state of affairs that I'm embarrassed to post a picture...let's just say you can barely make out the pattern, and a pen exploded on it. Never again will I buy a fabric wallet, no matter how pretty!)

Vineyard Vines Tunic, Chid's Medium: Vineyard Vines is always my favorite outlet stop since the clothes come from the actual stores, and are not made for outlet like most outlet shops' clothing. As much as I love the styles, however, Vineyard Vines is NOT petite friendly. I was mislead in that post from March...the skirt I found must have been a lucky find! Some things are worth altering, however, like my Seawater Cardigan which I recently got taken in.
Luckily for petites, though, they have a GREAT kids section! Structure-less items like this cute tunic work, but I would recommend staying away from the dresses and button-downs, since there's no room for curves or shoulders. I was very happy to find this seahorse tunic though, which I got only got for 25% off the outlet price, but also at the bargain of it being a children's item! There's always a silver lining in a world of vanity sizing.

I had wonderful success shopping for my family as well...only I can't post what I'm getting them! That will have to wait till Christmas.

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I'm not allowed to take the tags off of them yet, as I'm really not supposed to see these again until Christmas. Expect to see future OOTD posts with these!
And don't walk, RUN to the outlet malls this weekend. Arm yourselves with comfy shoes, a water bottle and plenty of stamina.

***P.S.- College Prep is hosting an awesome Angela Moore giveaway- her bracelets are adorable! Check it out here.***

Happy Shopping!
*ShortBlonde*

Petite Clothing Review: Work Attire from the Outlets

I finally was able to take some photos of my most recent purchases at the wonderful Tanger outlet mall in Rockville, NY (we took a visit on our way back from the Hamptons). During this outlet trip, my main goal was to find teacher attire for my upcoming student teaching: I needed well-fitting slacks, and I was lusting after another non-iron shirt from Brooks Brothers. Needless to say, the trip was a success!! Here are my great petite finds:

ANN TAYLOR FACTORY STORE

I wasn't even planning on visiting AT Factory, since I'm always horrified by how the prices of the made-for-the-outlets clothing are often more expensive than the sale prices of the good quality normal-store clothing. However, I decided to take a peek anyways, and I'm glad I did! Turns out their trouser pants are roughly the same quality and price as LOFT, AT's sister store, with the exact same fit system. As advised by my tailor, I always go for the low-cut modern fit, which is the appropriate cut considering my short stature and low butt-to-thigh ratio. For slim-legged  ladies with a bit extra in the derriere, stick to low cut pants as higher cuts won't drape properly and will cause bunching (as taught to me by my tailor, Noemi!).

Pants: Ann Taylor Factory Store, Modern Fit, sz. 00P

With heels, no shortening is necessary! The length is perfect as is. I also picked up a pair in a subtle plaid pattern:



I realize they draw attention to my backside, but I prefer to err on the side of overly flattering than overly frumpy (as long as it's tasteful, of course)!!
While in AT, I also found a nice top:


Top: Ann Taylor Factory Store, sz. XXSP(Watch: Vintage)

The quality of this top is nothing exceptional, but it's good enough, and it fits very well. I'm very fond of bunched necklines, since they draw attention away from my tiny bust and give my narrow neck/shoulder area some dimension (note: if you are also narrow on top and wider at the hips, bunched or gathered necklines are a great way to balance your figure!). This top could be worn as is during the warmer months, and paired with a blazer during the colder months. The black and white coloring and subtle pattern makes it super easy to pair with pretty much any solid blazer or cardigan.

BROOKS BROTHERS FACTORY STORE
Lo and behold, I found my petite non-iron shirt!! Although it wasn't the exact fit I wanted (I wanted the more feminine "tailored" fit), this "fitted" shirt works just fine, and it's my favorite color:


Shirt: Brooks Brothers Factory Store, Miracle Shirt, Fitted, 0P

This shirt fits me how a "classic" fit would fit most women- slightly looser and a bit more modest. The cut is perfect, and the sleeves are the perfect length (although I think I look hideous with the sleeves rolled down!). The quality is great for a made-for-factory shirt: when I asked the saleswoman the difference in quality between the factory store shirts and those from the regular store, she said the only differences are what country the shirt is made in, and a slightly lower thread count. It still has the same non-iron "miracle" fabric as the regular store's shirts have.

GAP OUTLET
I have never had any luck with Gap (they usually run HUGE), but I remembered reading something about a petite-friendly pair of Gap pants in the Alterations Needed forum, so I decided to give the store a try. I am so happy I did, because I was SHOCKED by how well these pants fit:



Pants: Gap Skinny Pant, sz. 1

(Shoes: Payless Shoe Source, sz. 5. These pants are dying to be worn with a cute pair of flats, but I had to make due.)

I'm guessing these pants are meant to fit average-sized ladies as a cropped pant, although the tag didn't mention anything about it being "cropped." What's even more shocking is that the sz. 0 was too small!! Just to make sure I wasn't going crazy, I checked out a different style of pants in sz. 00, and sure enough they were super long and too big. This pair alone is magic, I guess. Even so, I will no longer write off Gap as being hopeless.

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Successful shopping trips are such a mood-booster, even more so when I'm pleasantly surprised. I'll soon be posting about a slight tragedy that happened with my Brooks Brothers shirt, as well as some wonderful news regarding a J.Crew cardigan.

*ShortBlonde*

Spotlight on: Vineyard Vines

Although the company's only been around since 1998, Vineyard Vines is already a well-loved icon of preppydom that I'm sure you preppy readers already know and love. For those outside the preppy realm, however, the brand's pretty much unknown (my college friends have NO idea what Vineyard Vines is! Remember, my college is in the middle of hippie country). For my petite readers, I'm delighted to tell you that Vineyard Vines is petite-friendly! (yay!) I recently went on a MASSIVE shopping spree at the VV outlet, and thought I'd share a few finds:

 T-shirt: XS Banana Republic
Belt: Vineyard Vines sz XS
Skirt: Vineyard Vines sz 0

for reference, my measurements are 31-25-34, and I'm 5' tall.

This was my first time trying on bottoms at the store, and I was thrilled! (In my past visit to the VV in Southampton, I've only tried on tops such as their susie-fit polos, which I also had success with.) The company doesn't have a petite line, but many of their smaller-sized items have a petite-friendly length and waistline.On me, the size 0 fits well in the waist and especially in the length, which I was really happy about when buying these shorts:

I got this picture from the website, since my pair is back at my parents house. I bought them in a lovely shade of blue (my oh-so-favorite color), and was very happy with the length, which was flattering to my shortness without being "hooker shorts," as my mom would call them. I also liked the lack of frills on the waistline, which gets in the way when I choose to wear them underneath my shirts rather than over.

They also had a seriously adorable collection of belts, and although the belts covered in little whales and pina coladas were too cute, I opted for this beautiful rope knot design that I could wear regardless of the season:

Unlike Ann Taylor and J.Crew's outlet stores, Vineyard Vines' outlet carries clothes from the actual store that are not made for the outlets (shocking!). Therefore their clothes are of the same quality as the clothing in their regular stores, but are usually from the past seasons. Now I know not to pay full-price for store staples like their polos, since I can get the same shirts for half-off at their outlets!

Blogger ROS over at Cincinnati Prep is giving away either a Vineyard Vines or Lilly Pulitzer drink coozie, depending on the winner's choice! The VV ones feature the adorable pink whale logo, and the Lilly ones come in a super pretty Lilly-style floral design. Check out his prep-tastic blog and his giveaway here.

 

Until next time,

*ShortBlonde*