Shopping On The Tablet - iStock

Go With What You Know—And Other Rules For Shopping Cyber Monday Week

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Shopping online for extreme deals during Cyber Monday Week is not without pitfalls. Here’s what you need to know before going in deep for cheap goods.Shopping On The Tablet - iStock

 

BUYER BEWARE | What seems sweet on the surface, can be bitter underneath. The internet is at all times crawling with scammers, but they’re out in full force during Cyber Monday Week (like Black Friday, Cyber Monday is no longer a 24-hour blowout) when online shoppers are apt to let their guard down. Here’s what we know about cyber shopping this week. Read more

Joe Fresh Goes Monochrome

How To Layer Deep Vee & Scoopy Crew Tops

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As necklines plunge, top fashion brands offer a variety of ways to layer up their deep V-necks and scoopy crews.

Joe Fresh Goes MonochromeHave you noticed how the necklines of pullover sweaters have all gotten deeper this season? While there’s nothing wrong with showing a little skin, some of these necklines may be too impractical and drafty (not to mention unflattering—protruding collarbones, anyone?) for daytime use. Read more

Design Sponge No-Buy Guide -M Pessaris

Here’s The Best Way To Do Black Friday Week

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Here are 11 good reasons to avoid BLACK FRIDAY and 10 no-buy gifts to pull together with all your new free time

While we would never say no to getting a great deal, we do think that unless you are in the market for something specific and you know for sure that it will be on sale at a shockingly low price, shopping on Black Friday weekend can be a colossal waste of money and time. Read more

Merino Sheep

Wool Power: Merino Tops At A Killer Price

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I came for the goat but went home with the sheep: high-quality merino wool sweaters at a bargain basement price.

 

BIG DEAL | On the hunt for inexpensive cashmere, I trekked out to Costco last month to see whether their most recent shipment of Kirkland brand cashmere sweaters included the V-neck version in navy I’d been pining for. Sadly, it didn’t, and I was resigned to returning home without new apparel when I spotted a display table piled high with shockingly inexpensive V-neck sweaters in 100 percent merino wool. Read more

Jane Birkin straw basket

Our 6 Favorite Straw Handbags For Summer

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Nothing says summer like a straw carryall. Here are six we’d love to take everywhere from the office to the beach. (LOOKBOOK)

Jane Birkin straw basket

 

CHEAP & ICONIC | According to Wikipedia, the infamous Hermès Birkin handbag, which retails for a minimum $9,000 and has “ultimate fashion indulgence” written all over it, was conceived in the early 1980s after a chance meeting between then Hermès CEO Jean-Louis Dumas and singer/actress Jane Birkin on an airplane. She was travelling with a bag she’d already made famous, a wicker market basket she employed as both a handbag and weekend luggage.

This original Birkin, the Jane-invented one (pictured above as she carried it in the 1960s), was a holdover from her hippie chick days, when proletarian peasant sacks and straw bags of all sorts were in fashion—as they are again today.

Here are six cool straw totes—priced from $18 to $60—we’d take along to France (where Birkin still lives), or anywhere else for that matter. —Annabel Lee Read more

steal-of-the-month-may-vogue

Get The French Preppy Look For Waay Less

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We love French preppy as much as the next fashionista. But is Altuzarra for J. Crew’s interpretation of it worth the money when you can pull together an equally acceptable version for an absolute rock bottom price?

steal-of-the-month-may-vogue

 

THE LOOK FOR LESS | “Steal of the Month” is a feature—actually a double page spread—that appears at the very back of Vogue magazine every month. In the current issue, the steal is the top from Altuzarra’s capsule collection for J. Crew pictured above, and it’s been paired with wide leg jeans from Acne ($350) for an overall look Vogue editors have labeled “French preppy.” Joseph Altuzarra’s tops start at around $800 (on Net-A-Porter), so, of course, the J. Crew pullover seems shockingly inexpensive at $85—and it would be an absolute steal if it looked less basic J. Crew and more quirky Altuzarra, but it doesn’t.

What we are trying to say is that wardrobe pieces this iconic and familiar don’t need big label validation. To prove it, here’s our version of French preppy for a quarter of the price. Read more

Salma Hayek, and Daughter Valentina in Redfish Kids butterfly Dress, $55

Redfish Kids Store Opens In Vancouver

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It’s about time Canada’s most original children’s wear designers/manufacturers set up their own shop made of brick and mortar.

Salma Hayek, and Daughter Valentina in Redfish Kids butterfly Dress, $55CULT SHOP OPENING | There are any number of interesting clothing designers in Vancouver, but when it comes to kids’ apparel, one company in particular stands out: Redfish Kids. Their clothes for girls and boys are not inexpensive, but they are great value when you consider that they’re impeccably made (in Metro Vancouver) and not about to wear out (think coveted hand-me-downs). Still, qualities like durability don’t begin to explain how Redfish Kids came to achieve a cult status, with celebrity moms such as Salma Hayek (pictured above) outfitting their offspring in the label. Read more

Joe Fresh Maxi Skirt + Tee

The Latest Joe Fresh Fashion Is Here—Yeah!

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The fabulous Fresh Off The Runway collection has landed at Joe Fresh boutiques—quick, check the sofa for pocket change!

Joe Fresh Maxi Skirt + TeeTHIS JUST IN | We write so much about our love of all things Joe Fresh that you might think the company pays us to chat them up (they don’t, btw); it’s just that we remain perennially impressed by the fashion coolness that surrounds everything this brand creates.

We don’t care who you are or how much money you have to spend on your wardrobe, you are going to want to have a few pieces of Joe in your closet because they are just that interesting—and fun. Here’s what we’re loving (our own mini lookbook) from the limited edition SS2012 runway collection, which is in select Joe boutiques (in Vancouver that means Granville Street) right now.

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Roma dress - Icebreaker

Icbreaker’s Roma Is The Ultimate LBD

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The perfect little black dress will take you from dawn to dusk, office to dinner—oh yes, and even around the world.

Roma dress - Icebreaker

 

BUY RIGHT | The perfect little black dress is to women what a well-tailored suit is to men: a garment that works in a range of situations. And the most perfect little black dress of all may be the Roma wrap dress from Icebreaker. Read more

Hermes Scarves - Hermes

Our Favourite Scarf Tying Tutorials (VIDEOS)

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With more than 23 million Google entries for how to tie a scarf, here are the ones we found most useful.

Hermes Scarves - Hermes

 

WHAT THE PROS KNOW | If you, like me, have been tying all your scarves with the same two or three knots for years, and you want to add new and different twists and loops to your repertoire (I know I do), then this Frugalbits post is for you. Read more