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Hello Moto

Hello Moto: Where To Find Jackets Now

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If you have been thinking about adding a motorcycle jacket to your wardrobe, now would be a good time to do it.

Hello Moto

SALE ALERT | Everyone’s favourite bad girl jacket—the moto—was a big deal on runways in this past fall, with innumerable high fashion players putting their own spin on the snaps, zippers, ribbed leather panels and belt loops that characterize this iconic piece of outerwear. Naturally ready-to-wear followed suit—and sure as Christmas rolls round in December, the purveyors of these less expensive versions have now put their jackets on sale.

If you’ve been thinking about adding a little biker chick chic to your otherwise girly wardrobe, here are a few great value motorcycle jackets we found for your consideration. Read more

Korea Italy Towels, Classic Green, and Red

Use A Korea Italy Towel For Smooth Skin

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Nothing does more to invigorate and revitalize your skin than to scrub it with a Korea “Italy” towel.

Korea-Italy-Towels-Calssic-Green-and-RedCULT PRODUCT ALERT | Forget scratchy banana-shaped loofahs or stiff-bristled long-handle body brushes, the dirt cheap Korea “Italy” towel is the easiest and most expedient way to remove every bit of dead skin from your body and polish the new epidermis beneath it to a fresh and peachy glow. 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

Now For Something Completely Different

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High-fashion rebel Martin Margiela moves down market with a wonderfully unconventional collection for H&M. (LOOKBOOK)

Martin Margiela for H&M

 

 

CULT FASHION ALERT | I’m a grown-up woman with grown-up kids and I can’t believe I just called my local mall to ask about the protocol for camping outside overnight. Because that’s exactly what I’ll need to do if I expect to acquire a single piece of the—“wonderfully weird and wearable,” to quote WWD—clothing from Maison Martin Margiela debuted at select H&M stores November 2012.

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Fall Topshop 2012

New Topshop And Uniqlo Stores Open

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Two top international fashion brands cast their nets ever wider with new shops on the west coast, one in Vancouver, the other in San Francisco.

jun-takanashi-uniqlo-fall-winter-collection-2012-2013

 

CULT SHOPPING ALERT | It’s no secret Frugalbits loves Uniqlo; we’ve spilled enough digital ink to prove it. The Japanese fashion behemoth has captured our hearts with inexpensive, well-made fashion staples such as cashmere sweaters in a dazzling colours for $50 to $89 (take that, J. Crew), barely there ultralight down sweaters and coats for $50 to $90 (take that, Patagonia) and crisply executed men’s long sleeve dress shirts for $30 (take that, Brooks Brothers). 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

JOE FRESH PEA COAT FALL 2012

It’s Pea Coat Weather! Our 6 Top Jacket Picks

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Fall is pea coat weather. Here are six hot jackets that can handle the oncoming chill. (LOOKBOOK)

JOE FRESH PEA COAT FALL 2012

 

BUY RIGHT | While it may not possess the enduring absolutely-have-to-have status of an archetypal trench coat, the classic pea coat (it’s actually a jacket) is one of those iconic fashion items that enjoys recurring cachet. 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