One-Dollar Wonders

The good thing about window shopping is that you can "get" everything you want.

The bad thing about window shopping is that you can "get" everything you want!

I've collected a bunch of things on my wish list during May Madness, and now I'm confused as to what is the top priority.

- Sandals: I only have three pairs of sandals, but I can only wear them two days a week, plus summer evenings. Is it better to go for an oxford for work?

- Oxfords: I don't have any oxfords and one pair of wearable pumps - and I have thought they'd go well with three+ outfits so far, but I do have white booties. Are the oxfords redundant?

- Light and white jackets: Should I just be happy with my cream cardi and forget about this?

- Convertible vest: I did want another vest to go with soft blouses - and this one is long, cropped, and also a jacket. But is it a need?

- Orange blazer (the most expensive thing here): Wanted to replace pilling orange blazer. But should I hold off until a sale?

Please let me know if any of these are BBQ for next month, if any should be eliminated, or if any might be perfect for me. Thanks so much!

Taking a page from the book of IK today and putting together a hit list instead of shopping for myself! There has been some talk recently about adding structure to the soft, flowy blouses of summer, and my favorite solution so far has been the VEST (waistcoat in some parts of the world). Vests give jacket-like structure and toughness while leaving the arms free to breathe! Here are a few that tickle my fancy...

Denim:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B005V.....=484833573

http://www.madewell.com/newarr.....RS_ohyLutg

Cotton/Utility:
http://www.yoox.com/item.asp?c.....y=3FD17CD7

http://www.chicos.com/store/br.....Affiliates

http://www.ralphlauren.com/pro.....opping.com

http://shop.nordstrom.com/s/la.....HvSYE1madA

Edgy:
http://www.farfetch.com/shoppi.....69962.aspx

http://store.delias.com/item.d.....8;crTYPE=2

http://us.topshop.com/webapp/w.....ory~209876|208640]&noOfRefinements=1&siteID=J84DHJLQkR4-TfEf5LMqXB4rEjT57EP2tQ&cmpid=aff_ls_tsus&_$ja=tsid:21416|prd:J84DHJLQkR4#13371014340571&currencySymbol:$^preferredUrl:us.topshop.com^langId:-1^country:United%20States^language:English^explicit:true^viewed:true^storeId:13052^salesCatalogId:33060

I'd never ordered custom jeans before, although the service has been available for quite some time. I never felt that I had complete control over the fit, details, washes, etc., and that is very important to me.

Getwear, however, drew me in with its real-time, Photoshop-esque design interface, which lets you construct, distress, and embroider with your mouse and appraise the result on a lifelike mock up - much better than choosing miscellaneous "fading" from a menu list. On this front, Getwear does very well. Designing is easy and fun, and they have pretty much all the information you need there on the design page - a catwalk video, fit descriptions. I would have liked to know the fabric content when designing, however. This information is available on the link to your jeans if you decide to sell your design, but not on the design page.

It was also very easy to put my jeans up for sale (Getwear offers a portion of sales to you if your design is purchased). After designing, you give them your email address. They send you a confirmation link, you click it, and you're set up. Mine didn't work on the first try, but an email to the company fixed that very quickly.

In terms of production and shipping times, they were spot on in my case: a week to produce, and 3 days to ship. The only negative was that the Fedex had to be signed for, so my apartment manager was disturbed for the signature. Next time, I would ship to my office to avoid this.

And now... yak yak yak, get to the final product, right? Well, it's not perfect, but it's pretty good. The jeans FIT, no gaping in the waist, nothing tight, perfect inseam measurement. The denim is thin - and don't mistake their "raw" wash for actual raw denim... this is not that heavy, scratchy stuff you'd find LA hipsters wearing unwashed for years on end - but the fabric is nice and dark, soft and not scratchy, and neatly constructed. HOWEVER, I am not their easiest customer.

I know that I have an unusually small rise by normal retail standards, so I specifically asked for a 7-inch rise. Hubs is also very picky about back pockets, so I gave them the below measurements (sans pictures - I took the ones below for my second try). The service rep got back to me quickly and asked for pictures of the jeans I wanted to mimic. I supplied the pictures and was notified when production started and when the jeans shipped.

The jeans, sadly, arrived with a 9 (!!) inch rise (is that really "low rise" on any planet?) and, while the top corners of the pockets were in the correct place, the bottoms of the pockets were angled out a lot, making my backside look really wide. I did not opt for fading or embroidery, as I wanted these jeans to be dressy for work, so I can't speak to those options.

As far as service goes, I emailed the company with my issues and got a reply the same day, asking a couple of followup questions - this is when I emailed the below pictures. I was pleased that there was no push back about either issue, and the rep said that they would accommodate me.

I can't say quite yet whether I'll be 100% happy with the jeans. I believe that, once you get all your desired measurements in, you can re-order and re-design your jeans using the same data - in that regard, it is worth it to work with the company to get the perfect fit - and it's all going to come down to that. If I can get a killer, flattering fit out of it all, for 1/2 the price of premium jeans, I'll be thrilled. So far, I'm a wide, hippy mess, but it ain't over 'till it's over.

http://www.modcloth.com/shop/s.....el-in-dots

I'm not supposed to be a dot person, but they are catching my eye lately. The also come in a flat oxford version and a red/navy version.

https://bassshoes.harborghb.co...../start/all

I'm a little high on my love for super-cropped jackets right now - for my purposes, that means something that hits above my natural waist, so it can adequately reveal my waistline while still allowing me to cover up my arms and break up the expanse of my chest. My favorite one hits around my bustilne as an empire waist would.

I've worn the look a lot lately with positive response, so I thought I'd share a few options I've come across in my online travels. There seems to be a lot out there if you focus your search on young, trendy stores. This may also help create an even more cropped look, since younger clothes may hit higher on a more developed bod.

Denim:
http://www.forever21.com/Produ.....=affiliate

http://www.gbyguess.com/Catalo.....rralID=NA#

Woven:
http://www.forever21.com/Produ.....=affiliate

http://www.forever21.com/Produ.....=affiliate

http://www.bluefly.com/bcbgmax.....IA_jackets

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004J.....=481921409

Faux Leather:
http://www.charlotterusse.com/.....-_-ADZCHIC

http://www.bebe.com/bebe-Cropp.....ch-results

http://www.bebe.com/bebe-Cropp.....ch-results

Genuine Leather:
http://www.drjays.com/shop/P87.....rop-jacket

I'd been in the market for some slim work jeans, so when I came across another custom jeans site, I had to take a look. Great distraction from back/insurance issues, too.

I'll write a real review once I get them, but so far I really like the UI. I didn't see this when I was designing, but when you look at other people's designs they also have an ASOS-like catwalk feature that shows the fit of the jeans on a model - nice! They also have a cool feature that lets you put your design up for sale, so that you get some of the profit if your design sells.

Here's the pair I've done - pretty simple compared to some of the others but, sometimes, that is the hardest thing to find in a jean: http://getwear.com/women/3905/

I will definitely share detailed results!

I came home feeling sick today, but I thought I'd snap these pics before I got undressed and went in for a nap. Please excuse the sicky-face... Hank graciously lent himself as a second model to save the photo shoot. I had a heckofa time getting this package, but I'll fill that in to my USPS thread later.

Quickie review is that it's almost exactly like the Madewell trench, but subtly upgraded in almost every way. Real lining, better tailoring in the back (not as flat as the Talbots, but much better than the Madewell), a couple inches longer, better drape of the fabric (IMO, possibly because of the lining). It photographs to about the same color as the Madewell, but IRL it is a little more brown and less yellow-based than that one. It feels a little narrower in the shoulders but doesn't pull over the bust, even with my thick, cable knit sweater underneath.

I feel like it's a good length for warmer weather, and I think I like how it goes with the dress here. What say you?

Pardon the glowing demon eyes in my pics...

My first "dressy work trench" contender was waiting for me when I came home today - sooner than expected. I hurriedly unboxed it and threw it on over my work pants.

The color is very pretty and really does remind me of grenadine, its namesake. I noticed the nice, heavy-ish buttons and buckles straight away. The button holes are all very solid, stitching is nice. The fabric feels fairly luxurious - it is softer than the Madewell I tried, without the paper-like quality. The shoulders and back are nicely slimmed for a more sleek look. The sleeves are lined in silky fabric for comfort over long sleeves. It definitely feels more luxurious than either the Madewell or the Scottvest (winner of my travel trench challenge) because of the fabric, construction, and "hardware."

I did notice a couple of drawbacks. Although the sleeves are lined, the rest of the body is not. Once you zip out the quilted liner, you are up against the shell fabric. Talbots has also decided where everyone's waist ought to be and put a horizontal seam there, which makes the coat feel a little high-waisted and small, even though I have plenty of room in the body, shoulders, hips, etc (and I sized down based on Parsley's review of this coat). Since this coat hits mid-thigh on the model, I thought it would surely be longer on an almost-petite like me, but it actually falls shorter than my Scottvest by about an inch, maybe a bit more. It would also need to be waterproofed.

Although I love the color, the clean shaping of the back, and the zip-out liner, the short length and high waist mean it does not feel dressy enough to keep. Parsley actually called this one dead on when I PMed her, predicting that it would fit a lot like my Scottvest trench - it does! But that means it's not different enough to earn a place in ye olde closet.

The dressy coat search should continue tomorrow (fingers crossed... it's only coming from San Francisco!), with the arrival of the J. Crew Icon in Burnt Caramel.

ETA: comparison photo of the Talbots vs. the "secret agent" coat (waving at Rita).

No time to change or style an outfit; I had to drop what I was holding and put this on (don't worry, it was a purse - not a baby or anything)!

The color is SOOOO beautiful! The Gallery sizing chart was way off, though. According to that, this should have been snug on me, and it is roomy in the shoulders (ETA: about 1.5 inches wide on either shoulder) and bust. It is not that noticeable when I tie up the waist, but I wouldn't be able to wear it open, I don't think. I'm thinking the length would work with pants and above the knee skirts, so imagine that instead of the midi.

What do you think? Keep or ebay?

Added some styled pics. Y'know, I was leaning toward reselling it, but it doesn't look as big in the pictures as it feels... perhaps I need to adjust.

3- open, as-is
4 - tied in front
5 - belt cinched in back
6 - open with belt cinched in back
7 - with pencil skirt
8 - unposed, hair back to show shoulders clearly
9 - with purple Hunter wellies from swap meet :)

Someone, get the smelling salts ready! I am truly excited about this trench - not just from the standpoint of a gal who loves a good gadget and gimmick, but also from the standpoint of an increasingly picky Youlookfab protege. Rather than a usual keep/return, I thought I'd do a proper review in case anyone is considering this for the future.

I'm crushing on the color *hard.* Not quite orange, not quite red, and not quite brown, yet is has the qualities of all three for me. It's saturated and unique.

The fabric is 100% polyester, but it's nice and matte and looks almost like cotton. Definitely not slicker or rip-stop material. It's soft to the touch, has a nice drape, and resists wrinkles - you know how I hate wrinkles. Construction is solid and clean. From a fashion standpoint, I wish the buckles on the waist and sleeve belts had been black to match the buttons, but it doesn't bother me. The buttons and buckles could also have been a weightier material - however, the buttons are on par with the $200 trench I tried from Madewell, so this could just be the reality of the price point. Also, I imagine Scottvest might have wanted to keep the trench light, as they specialize in travelwear. The trench is fully lined in a nice, silky fabric - Zapotee is right: that feels much better over clothes than cotton lining.

Fit-wise, I was pleasantly surprised. I kept my expectations low at first, because the trench does not come in size XS and does not come in knee-length. I was afraid the shoulder seams would sag off my frame and that the hem would not comfortably cover my rear and the sleeves would be ridiculously wide and baggy. In reality, though, the fit is very similar to the Madewell trench of the same size. The shoulders and sleeves are maybe a bit wider, but the drape helps that a lot IMO. The drape also saves the day when tying the belt behind the back to wear the trench open - I can create a much slimmer silhouette with the Scottvest trench. From the picture, I also feared that the trench would be drop-waisted, but it seems to work just fine at my natural waist.

The fun part? 18 crazy pockets grace the coat's lining - enough to stuff in all your travel essentials and then some. You can thread your mp3 and phone headphones/earpieces *through* the lining (yep, no ripping of cords when you stuff your arms in in a hurry); you can clip your keys to the included bungee cord in an outer pocket (magnetized, which helps keep a clean line and add security); you can clean off your glasses with the attached glasses cloth in an inner pocket.

Picture 10 shows the coat loaded up with more than I'd ever use: an old-school, single-use film camera; oversized sunglasses; large wallet; cellphone; passport. There is a decently sized bulge that you can see on the left side of the picture, near my waist. Those are my shades - but as I said, they are oversized. One drawback is that the glasses are placed so near the waist that you may have to take care not to crush them in a fit of frenzied belting. On the other hand, the indent of the waist helps disguise the bulge of the glasses. It is a trade-off.

Finally, pictures 11-12 are side-by-side comparisons of the Scottvest trench and the Madewell trench.

I have not worn this coat outside yet, but I can already tell it is warmer than the other (no shock with the polyester). I held the end of the belt under the faucet, and the water rolled right off. Assuming the forum let's me keep it, I will have to do a follow-up on the breathability of the material.

So... what do you say? I'm leaning very heavily towards keeping this, unless there is a very good argument against it.

ETA a minor detail... the product link:
http://www.scottevest.com/v3_s.....l#pd_video