Find It Cheaper Wednesday: 1st Edition: A More Affordable Alternative to Burberry's Wrap Front Silk Blend Dress

In my shopping lately, I've been finding some beautiful designer items that I know I can't afford so I thought maybe I should do a weekly blog post where I find more affordable solutions to current trends.  I know that several magazines do this already, as do many blogs, etc., so this is nothing new in the fashion world.  However, it has always bothered me that a lot of these places will take items that cost thousands of dollars and replace them with items that are still several hundred dollars.  Yes the more affordable items are significantly cheaper, but I don't feel like they are realistically affordable to the real, average woman.  Or at least they aren't to me and I don't think they are to many self proclaimed fashionistas my age.

So for today I have Burberry:

This safari style, wrap front, silk blend dress is $795.  Not a ridiculous price in terms of designer wear but still steep for the average Jane.  Dress can be found here.

The alternative I've found:

This belted trench dress from Banana Republic made of modal, rayon blend.  This one comes in at $140 which still could be considered high but Banana Republic has a sale going from now until the 8th that dresses, shorts, and polos are 40% off so that would bring this down to $84.  That's a pretty good deal, especially when compared to the Burberry dress above.  Total savings would be $711 or nearly 90% off and the dress is a pretty good alternative in design, textile, and quality... At least in my opinion.  Dress can be found here.

I just have one for today but more to follow soon...

Italian Style at Portland Art Museum

As I mentioned on the blog yesterday, I spent the weekend in Portland visiting a very old dear friend of mine.  While I was there, we went and saw the Portland Art Museum Italian Style: Fashion Since 1945 Exhibit.  This exhibit was amazing!

This coat was amazing!  I would kill for it! The pattern is incredibly intricate and woven together.  The picture on the right shows how they mapped out the design.  WOW!  Just WOW!  It is so amazing!

This gown is spectacular!  It's hard to tell from the picture but all the silver are beads and sequins that (I am sure) were applied by hand.  Exquisite!

I love this whole look!  I would wear this all the time.

I loved this dress.  It reminds me of lilacs, which are one of my favorite flowers.

Very sexy!

I love the details on this skirt.  It is gorgeous!

I LOVE this coat.  I want to live in it.

This dress is leather.  It is awesome!  I kind of want one but don't know where I would have any occasion to wear it.

Who wouldn't want to rock these shoes?

I believe the exhibit is in the last week now, so if you are in the Portland area, you should definitely go check it out.  It was worth the adventure!

Age of Adaline

Over the weekend I got to spend time with one of my oldest and dearest friends in Portland.  While I was there we went to the Portland Museum of Art to see their Italian Fashion Exhibit (which I will talk about in a different post) and we went and saw The Age of Adaline.

I was so excited to see this movie.  As you all know by now, I love Blake Lively (I think we are meant to be BFFs - someone work on that K?) so of course that's a big reason why I wanted to see it, but also I was really exited to see the fashion from the film.  From all the press I had seen for the movie previously, the ward-robing looked amazing and the movie itself did not disappoint.

For those that aren't familiar with the premise of the movie, Adaline has an accident and from that point on, no longer ages, so the movie spans decades of her in her 20s (I'm guessing on age but she still is a young adult at least).

This look is from early on in the movie, before her accident, 1920s sometime.  Very simple, sleek, and spot on for the decade.

The evening gowns in the film were my favorite by far.  This gown was for modern time (however I think it may also have shown up in a flashback to a New Years Eve party in the 1930s, I can't remember for sure though) and it was stunning.  The burgundy velvet is beautiful and elegant.  The fit is incredible.  It's almost as though the dress was painted onto Blake. 

I believe this look was for the 60s, maybe 70s, and it is another of my favorites in the movie.  While it was what we would now consider vintage, it still is very classic and modern.  You could wear this exact outfit today and still be chic.

Classic, simple, sophisticated look, again for modern time.  (Anyone else have a flashback to Gossip Girl with her sitting on the steps eating her lunch?)

Jacket envy here.

This look is amazing.  It's such the classic 1950s woman.  Perfect hair, beautiful, fitted dress, spotless makeup.  Gorgeous!

These are only a few of the looks from the film but everything was really spot on.   Costume designer, Agnus Strathie, did a fantastic job in this movie.  She absolutely built a believable and realistic wardrobe for the character.  The modern look and wardrobe of Adaline still has a very classic feel and you can spot pieces within it that she probably had in her closet for decades.  Adaline is a sophisticated and classy woman.

DAILYLOOK Month 2 Review

I got my second DAILYLOOK Subscription box yesterday and had a better experience than last month so I thought I should do another review to explain some of the differences this month compared to last.

The first thing that I was impressed with this month is that on the packing slip, my personal stylist wrote a note that she was sorry that my box didn't work out last month and that she hoped things would be better this time around.  She also provided me with contact information for her so I may communicate with her should I feel so inclined.  I thought this was a nice touch and appreciate the sentiment.

Like I mentioned in my review last month, when you return items you get to review them so that they can make changes on future orders.  I didn't show this in the post so I'll share snapshots of the process I went through this time around.

As you can see from above, for each item that they send you, you answer a series of questions and also have space to leave notes, should you feel the need to leave any additional feedback.  I have been trying to make it a point in leaving comments with everything I both keep and return so that my stylist can have a better understanding of me and why I keep some things and not others.

I received 8 items, same as last month, and decided to keep 4 this time, whereas last month I sent everything back.  A couple of the items that I kept are not my normal style and I really debated on keeping them or sending them back  but then I reminded myself that one of my goals in signing up for the service in the first place was to try new things and get out of my comfort zone so that is what I am doing.  There also were a couple of things that I would have kept had they fit better, so overall this box was a pretty good success.

In addition to reviewing each item, you also get to review your overall experience, make suggestions, or request items for a special occasion.

The items are a little more expensive than I feel like they maybe should be or than I would normally spend on similar things, but they are still reasonable (I'm just a bargain shopper and love a good deal).

Want to see what I kept this month?

I really wasn't sure about the vegan leather leggings but they look a lot better on than I had expected and are different for me but I'm going to try them out.  The other item I wasn't too sure about was the Ally McBeal Boyfriend Button Down because I don't often wear button-up shirts but this one is long, which I love, so I decided to keep this and will probably rock it with the leggings.  I'll have to post a picture on Instagram when I do.

And the items I returned:

I liked the Origami Mini Skort (and so did my husband) but they were too small and I couldn't zip them up, so they had to go back.  I also considered the Classic Knit Jumpsuit (that would be very different for me too) because it looked awesome in the pants but I felt like the top drew too much attention to my belly so that had to go too.

I think I'll keep trying DailyLook out for a while and see how it goes.  But this month was better than last so that is promising!

If you want to try out DailyLook for yourself, sign up here: http://fbuy.me/ch8hh

My Rachel Zoe Box of Style Has Arrived!!!!

When I posted my review of DailyLook last month, I mentioned that I was going to sign up for Rachel Zoe's new Box of Style and my first box (the first box they've done also) just came.  I am so excited and thrilled with this box!

As I also mentioned in the DailyLook post, I am a sucker for packaging, textiles, stationary, etc, so opening this package was a treat all in itself.  I can't believe the amount of time and effort that must have gone into putting these boxes together.  The products were all wrapped in tissue paper, like the lovely presents that they are, then wrapped in a gorgeous package.  I am VERY impressed with the presentation associated with this.  It really impressed me.

The box costs $100 each season and you receive an assortment of beauty and fashion products selected by Rachel Zoe and her assistants.  I think I calculated that the retail value of everything I received was $338.  That is a pretty sweet deal, and like I said before, I was excited about everything in the box so I don't feel like anything was a waste.

This months box had 3 colors  of nail polish from Zoya ($30 value).  Some of which were designed in partnership with Rachel Zoe, Tartie Mascara ($20 value), Stylin Tape (to keep things in place) ($10 value), TOMS Sunglasses with a plush sleeve to keep them protected ($68 value), and a gold cuff bracelet from Miansai ($200 value).

I also really like that the box came with a product information fold out that tells about all the products and suggestions on how to style them.

I really don't have anything bad to say about this.  I am super excited about the products and the subscription service all together.  I highly recommend it to anyone that is interested.  My thought is, it is all quality products so if there is ever something you aren't excited about, you can give it as a gift to someone for all the lovely gift exchanging holidays that we have, or for just because and you are still giving someone something nice and of quality.

If you are interested though, sign up soon because the summer box is already sold out so if you want to get one in the fall, you probably will want to act quick!

DAILYLOOK Review

About a month ago I signed up for DAILYLOOK.  It's a subscription service that will send you a box full of items picked out especially for you (by a personal stylist that will review various social media pages that you provide to them to get a sense of your style) every month.  I've recently been doing a wardrobe overhaul and have cleared out probably half of my clothes.  I've been working on the mindset that I want to be excited about what I wear every day, so why own clothes that you don't love or don't make you feel like a million bucks?

Then I thought that I do limit myself in what I wear.  I do have a set style, as I'm sure most of us do, but I rarely branch out of that.  So I thought trying a subscription service would be a fun way to try new things, thus the decision to try DAILYLOOK.

When I got home from work yesterday, there was a fairly large box on my doorstep.  While I have been expecting a delivery from them, I was surprised at the size of the package.

When I opened the box, I was thrilled by the packaging...  I am a textile nerd.  I love fabrics, stationary, packaging, etc.  Most of my career has been involved in packaging and shipping so I really appreciate when someone goes the extra mile.  The above picture is after I fully opened the package, so you don't get to see how nice it looked before I ripped open the tissue paper and dug through the package, but how cute is the inside of this box?  I LOVED it!  For one thing, it is orange, which is my favorite color, and for another, it just makes you feel happy.  It was like getting a present.

Above are all my goodies laid out.

This was one of my favorites in the box.  A black lace dress.  I didn't keep it though as it was too small.

These pants were too small and I couldn't zip them up (thus the picture from behind) and I am not confident to pull off the crop top at this point in time either, so those went back.

Cute color, cute cut.  Just didn't love it though.

I apparently deleted the picture actually showing off the bracelet they sent (see just the littlest bit of it in the bottom left corner?) but I did get a picture of the cute packaging!  The bracelet was probably my favorite thing that they sent.  However, I didn't feel like it was worth the $69.99 they were charging for it.

All together they sent me 8 things to try.  Items not pictured are a skirt, a white tank top, and a handbag.

I ended up sending everything back from this shipment due either to dislike, size, or price.  When you send products back, you get a survey about why you are returning them so your stylist can adjust according to the feedback as necessary.

For some reason, when I signed up for the service, I was expecting a variety of brands of clothes and accessories and was disappointed that everything seemed to be DAILYLOOK brand.  I don't know if I just misunderstood this, or if it was not clearly expressed on the website, but if you sign up, I will say that is something to be aware of.

I think I will try the service for another couple of months to see if my feedback on my returns provides better results going forward.  On the initial package, I was honestly underwhelmed overall by both selection and quality, but I do think it is worth another shot.

But, I did see online this week that Hollywood Stylist Rachel Zoe will be launching a subscription service called Box of Style, starting next week.  I will absolutely be checking that out, once you can sign up for it on the 9th.  If you want more information on that, go here: http://thezoereport.com/shop/

Holy Crap! It's Been 2 Months Since My Last Post!!! I Suck!!!! TBT: To Catch A Thief

Time sure flies when the holidays are around!  I can't believe I haven't posted since before Thanksgiving!  Total fail on my end!

I decided on my FB page today that I would jump on the TBT bandwagon.  My throwback for today is Grace Kelly in To Catch A Thief.  I specifically posted the following gown on FB but there are so many incredible articles of clothing in the movie that it'd be a shame to skip over those.

This is really my favorite gown from the movie, which is why I selected it for my image today.  I feel that it is truly timeless.  Grace Kelly looks as incredible in this Edith Head gown as Oliva Pope (Kerry Washington) would today 60 years later, without any changes at all being made to it.  How many garments can you really say that about?  I can't think of many.

This blue chiffon gown is also very stunning, but I do feel as if it is more dated.  I can't pinpoint why exactly I feel it is a more dated gown (perhaps the bright color? or the straps?) but I do feel that it is stuck in that era.  I could definitely see Jackie O in this dress but I don't see many girls grabbing this one for prom or for bridesmaid dresses today.

Perhaps the most remembered dress from the film though, is:

It's a gold, lame ball gown though.  How could you not remember this dress?  I remember reading about the costume design for this movie and that the wardrobe for Grace was made to reflect her character during different points in the film as her character developed.  In the beginning her clothes are very sweet, innocent, and light colored but as the film goes on and you start realizing more about her and that she isn't as perfect and innocent as she originally seemed, her wardrobe progressed to be more bold and extravagant until you get to the end with her in this gold gown.  I love when that much thought goes into every aspect of films.  It just adds that much more to them.

This film, and wardrobe, are iconic.  I love both pretty equally.  I grew up watching Hitchcock movies.  For anyone that hasn't seen this film, you should definitely check it out.

Want to learn more about the collection of clothes from the movie?  Watch Cinema Style File: http://youtu.be/JFL8npiVibU