3 Reasons Why I am In Love With J.Crew

Okay for those of you who don't know I have had an obession with J.Crew for quite a while now. Yes, a huge crush!!!!

So I want to give you three reasons why my love for their clothing is soooooooooooo STRONG!!!

1. Color: J. Crew's chose of color is beyond AMAZING, it is truly exciting to walk into a J.Crew store and see what it looks like for a clothing line to do so right by their color selections. They are able to be bold and creative with their color selections by mastering their merchandising/display. Just try going into your local J.Crew without your jaw dropping in aw :) You can go into a J.Crew and find nearly any color you are looking for...

2. Quality is something we see so seldomly today. We are so use to poor quality that we now accept disposable clothing (like Forever21) and we no longer expect to use pieces in our wardrobes for longer then 6-12months. We should be able to have pieces in our closets for years without it pilling from low abrasion resistance, crocking, bleeding, getting holes because of loose seams, etc. J.Crew is so on top of their quality that they take the time and money to make the inside of their clothing look just as good as the outside. For example, I own several pieces of their outerwear from blazers to peacoats and I was highly impressed with how they finish the garment on the inside with gorgeous colored piping and lining, its just amazing!

3. Classic/Timeless: Its is so nice to be able to purchase an item that you can wear five years from the day you purchased it and it will still be in fashion. However, there is nothing more disappointing then spending $150 on a jacket that you can no longer wear because it is out of style nearly the next month and with never come back into style, what a waste of money! Well the other reason why I love J. Crew is because they take this into consideration and make  sure a huge amount of their selection is classic/timeless. For example, cardigans, peacoats,blazers, trenchcoats, buttoned up collared tops, etc...

BONUS: One other little bonus perk about J.Crew is how they have started with rather humble beginnings only selling their product out of a catalogue to expanding into an empire...

J.Crew is a one stop shop for the whole family. With clothing for women, men, and CrewCuts for the kids, wedding wear, dog wear, jewelry, shoes, accessories....they have it all and do so well at it not slacking in any area!

Andre 3000 named one of the "Best New Designers in America" by GQ Magazine

Andre 3000, part of the group Outkast has a background in hip-hop, has recently moved toward his acting career, and is now in the fashion limelight. Will his line Benjamin Bixby do well after signing with upscale Barneys.com exclusively in the U.S.?

We shall see.....

Andre's pieces range from $95-$395

Even though I want Andre Benjamin's line to do really well I am not sure I believe it will with price points that are so high. I also don't think it was a necessarily good idea to sign an exclusive contract with Barney's unless they offered him a significant amount of money.

Andre brings something new to the fashion Industry he's going with an era that not too many designers touch, circa 1935 and adding a modern day flare that I can appreciate. I am cheering him on and hope for the best....

Will Beyonce's House of Dereon/Dereon collection do better then it has in the past?

Hey all!

Here is the link to check out Beyonce's new Campaign for her Dereon and House of Dereon Spring Collection....

Let me know what you think:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4is3x5WTJaE

What's hot Spring/Summer 09 WOMEN

Women:

Fabrics:

Lightweight fabrics/Sheer

Must haves and silhouettes:

blouses rather then so many t-shirts and tunics, one shoulder designs (thanks to Mrs. Michelle Obama she helped this come back to life) "cutaway" bikini's

What's back:

Fringing is suppose to be back in but I am very interested to see how this works out because this is a trend that people in my opinion often give a bad look as well as the old school teared jean look which is also suppose to be back in come spring/summer, 

Color/Prints

I personally think COLOR and FLORAL PRINTS are definitely still a PLUS!

What's hot Spring/Summer/Winter 09-2010 MEN

Men:

Fit:

Fitted and more tailored clothing (stay away from the oversized/baggy fit)

Colors:

natural earth tone colors (browns, black, grays, nude),  bolder color will be used as an accent rather then the main display.

Texture/print/fabric

Subtle plaids, herringbone and houndstooth prints, course and dull textured fabrics

Shoes:

Men, substitute those sneakers for a fresh pair of leather dress shoes, or some Clarks, or some Perry Ellis nude colored desert boot, a more formal sneaker that you can wear to your dressy casual clothing....

Must haves:

Skinny ties and Pants rather then a closet filled with denim only

They DON'T fit the look!!!

Okay here it goes guys, here are some of the no no's in the industry, just a handful....

They fit the look!!!

I can truly appreciate those who fit the look. By saying "fit the look", I mean someone who is dressed in attire that suits their personality, their hobbies, their day to day interests fit their image and what they are wearing, etc ..... So, do I want to see Oprah in a leather studded jacket with spiked hair...NO! Do I want to see David Beckham in baggy pants, an oversized T-shirt and a fedora.....NO THANKS!

There are so many celebrities today that have stylist who don't do their job and don't take advantage of the ability to make their clients look great and fit the look!

They dress these celeb's up to be something their not. So when a stylist or celebrity does the job right I can truly admire what they are wearing, even go to the next step of figuring out what designer they are representing and enjoy what Im looking at almost as if its artwork. Otherwise I am disappointed and probably wont pay their clothing any mind past being turned off.

I think its important to make sure you are enhancing who you are when you get dressed rather then changing the way you are completely. 

BOY's get the short end of the stick?

Here are some awesome pic's of boys clothing as well.

But most of my sources listed in my top six blog cater to both boys and girls....

P.S. the blazer and the snickers are for boy's in my last blog as well

If any of you are on the look out for boys clothing and having trouble finding things, let me know and I would be happy to help :)

Top 6 CHILDREN'S clothing lines

There is such a huge growth in children's apparel. So many designers are jumping on the band wagon and launching children's clothing lines. Here are some of my personal favorites!!!

1.Crewcuts by J.Crew: AMAZING!!!! Watching the Inauguration if you didn't notice, the Obama girls looking beautiful in J.Crew's children line crewcuts. Crewcuts offers a wide variety of classic pieces that are timeless for children from silk skirts to your cashmere sweaters and classic oxford shirts. 

Parents check it out!  http://www.jcrew.com/AST/Navigation/CrewCuts.jsp

2. French Connection: French Connection UK has a minimal children's selection that is offered online only.   http://usa.frenchconnection/category/kids/kids.htm

3. Sugar Free Baby: A free spirited, hip, fun line for kids that is ORGANIC with an inspiration from our environment. 

www.sugarfreebaby.com

4. Phillip Lim: Has an adorable line for girls with peacoats, leggings, and  my favorite adorable bows...

http://www.31philliplim.com/main.html

5. Little Marc Jacobs by Marc Jacobs: If you enjoy Marc Jacobs you will find the same interest in little Marc Jacobs

6. Ella Moss Kids: Very cute dresses paired with their leggings, and longer blouses that can be paired with leggings as well...

More on the economic hardship hitting the fashion Industry

Who else is being affected?

Mens Vogue: Downsized from 10 issues annually to two issues and will now just be added to the regular Vogue magazines bounded to the reverse side. This way they are reducing cost and still reaching a customer base that still buying.

Macy's: Is sadly closing 11 of their stores nationwide. The following store closures will affect 960 employes. These closures with cost nearly $65 million.

On the flip side there are mass clearance sales to get rid of their stock!!!   :) You know what that means....

Fashion News Report!!!

Economic crisis 

Milan, Italy:

Fall-Winter 2009-2010 Runway for men is dealing with buyers who are in a financial crunch.

Designers take this into consideration with their lines for upcoming seasons.

Neiman Marcus:

On Tuesday January 16th 2009 it was reported that Neiman Marcus will be cutting up to 400 jobs throughout from due to our economic climate.

J.Crew:

J.Crew's stock is reported at a low of $8.56....

Hopefully we will start seeing a change in things soon!!!

Any Suggestions in what we can do to help better our economy?

Spring Runway 2009

WHAT DO YOU PREFER THIS SPRING???

Stripes

OR

Polka Dots