If you are stopped by a J.Crew store this past weekend to see what's available (if anything!) in the FALL sale, or to see some new HOLIDAY arrivals {sigh!} in person, maybe you might be willing to share that with us in this post. In particular, if you could share with us a few of the noteworthy items that are available, at what prices, and potential sizes the store is carrying (as well as the store location)- that would be fantastic!Also, please let us know if your local store was/ is carrying an additional percent off sale. Thanks in advance!!! :)
Collection & 5th Ave B&Ms BURSTING with HOLIDAY CRAFT SUPPLIES. Price-y, but what a thrill to this city girl to have JC recognize my creative spirit. Jingled home with new Exhibitor Mega-Tote STUFFED with goodies. Of course crafts don't make themselves, but I have plenty of equipment. Every hotel room comes with a tiny sewing kit, which I always keep, and with those, cuticle scissors, stapler and safety pins, am as well able to craft as any pioneer. Altho bedazzled tweezers might be helpful…
ReplyDeleteTinsel mini project. TIP: wear safety gloves, or at least hand cream gloves, because this thing is prickly. Stitch one open end of mini closed. Then stuff mini through remaining open end. Appropriate stuffings are: unwearable JC tights, pilled cashmeres, out-of-shape dream sweaters, tees with holes, and such. Cut larger items into pieces first, probably with something larger than the cuticle scissors. Like poultry shears. Positively therapeutic. Sew remaining open end closed. Yield: sparkly holiday sofa pillow, perfect size for an apartment sofa! TIP: do not confuse hotel room sewing kit with hotel matchbook (easy mistake but tinsel does not seem to be fireproof).
Next tinsel mini project. Spread (another) mini on newspaper to catch drippings. Using poultry shears, slice across at 2-inch intervals, first from right to left, then from left to right, then from right to left and so on. You will now have a large loopy thing. Carefully lift off newspaper and drape or fling on tree. TIP: draping & flinging works better after tree is set up in stand.
Silk sequin shorts project. I used the silvery color. Remove ribbon belt-y thing and reserve. Lay shorts flat and cut over newspaper, but this time each cut should go all the way through, which will yield a mix of small and large shiny loops. Cut a large loop open and glue strip to belt-y thing the long way, starting at middle and pressing out, to get a long shiny thing. Then string other loops onto shiny strip, largest in center, to smallest at ends, striving for symmetry. Dab some glue spots on & dip into drippings on paper. Feathers optional. Yield: dazzling necklace or door festoon.
Old-fashioned holiday project – tribute to JC's preppy roots and to HOLIDAY CHEER. Invite 4 or 5 or 8 or 9 friends over. Whatever. Give each a double old-fashioned glass that is at least HALF FULL. When all glasses are empty, hand each guest a different JC holiday mini, a marker and a scissors or shears. Guests trace & cut out circles from minis, using glass as pattern. Discard linings & waistbands, if any; hide sharp instruments, refill glasses. Then each guest runs simple stitches around edge of circle, pulls up thread, fastens, cuts thread, squashes circle,repeats. Again & again. Continue refilling glasses. Yield: eventually hundreds of shiny assorted yo-yo discs, which you & friends will attach to other discs at edges with little shiny safety pins to form sparkly shiny JC holiday sofa throw. Pair with deranged mini pillow (above).
Triple black sequin sash drape for mirror in elevator – not recommended. Neighbor thought I was in mourning, brought cake, stayed for patchwork /glass-full project. Still here. TIP: If you used real estate section of newspaper for crafts, discard without reading. Will dampen holiday spirits.
I did visit my J. Crew and I hate to say it but I was pretty underwhelmed. I went to check out the new items thinking I'd like them more in person but most things fell flat. Even with the things I liked I was worried about quality and/or fit. I also completely understand "lack of fashion newness" being a reason J. Crew's profit margin is down; I left empty-handed.
ReplyDeleteWhen J. Crew repeats items over and over, not only does it disincentivize buying at full price (i.e. a lot of merchandise is not worth full price anymore and if it goes on sale and I miss my size, I know they'll probably bring it back) it kind of disincentivizes buying at all because the clothes aren't as special.
Like my Lexington Blazer. J. Crew brought it back slightly refashioned as the Professor. And then there was a factory version of the Professor after it came back for another fall. And now there is the Boutonniere which is the Professor with a flower pin. And I'm sure there will be a factory version of it. In short, it makes me not want to wear my Lexington because everyone has it.
I'm not some special snowflake that can be the only person in the world with a retail item but instead of getting excited and smiling at someone who is wearing the same J. Crew item as me, I just wonder which version they got and how much they paid. Instead of being proud when someone compliments something I'm wearing and saying "I got it at J. Crew two years ago but they constantly have amazing styles" I reply "I got it at J. Crew two years ago and they have the same thing now. I think the price may be a little higher but it'll go on sale."
Maybe I'm being unreasonable. I'm not so crazy as to wonder why everyone has a tan trench coat, black peacoat, or blue jeans! Those are basics that can be styled in a million ways. I'm not asking for ridiculously limited runs of items but I wish J. Crew would at least think about re-doing special items ad nauseum to the point where buying it will make everyone look like everyone else no matter how he or she styles it.
As of Sun nite...30% off sale + free shipping on $150 or more with JCREW
ReplyDeleteYay! I caught the extra 30% off sale before they took down the 20% off promo on tees, and it actually applied! Add my rewards card to it, and it really made it worth it. I guess it pays to be a night owl sometimes!
ReplyDeleteI'd been holding on to that thing for what seems like forever and it was literally buring a hole in my pocket, but I knew that there had to be better sales coming.
The drapey baseball tee in red that I had my eye on only ended up being like $22! Ha!
Went to the Ontario outlet but didn't get anything. They were still putting out new stuff. Graphic tees were 50% off and the clearance was only 30% off. Lots of other promo signs but i cant remember.. I did see a handful of downtown field jackets in the clearance for $35 after the discount if anyone is looking for one.
ReplyDeleteI Wanted to pull the trigger on knits all weekend but I'm so glad I waited till now! Got some great deals with the new promo! I did take advantage of AE's f&f as well as the Give & get promo too! Great deals!
Yep, great deal for west coast night owls. I also got 30% off of the tee and knits promo which is good until midnight, PST. Who carea about sleep when you can shop?!
ReplyDeleteI was waiting for the tissue crewneck tees to go to final sale, but got them for $16 each which is half off. Crazy to pay full price for those.
WFF - thank you!! Pricey - but fun and oh so festive! I'm now ready to take on the holidays :) who needs michaels when you have JC!
ReplyDeletenomoneyfun- well stated, well said! I completely agree - I tried to post the same sentiment a couple of weeks ago when they were giving all of their sweaters away. The clothes aren't special anymore - I remember feeling that way about banana a few years ago, and for the most part, stopped shopping there because everyone had the same sweater, blouse, etc. I now feel that same way about JC... Too bad :(
I guess J Crew lower margin can be due to lack of newness, aggressive promotions and maybe higher materail cost. I read somewhere about cotton price gone up 80% since July and 5 times since just a couple of years ago. Always told hubby to stock on cotton underwear/socks. Still, I think US consumers are the luckiest. Clothing here are among the cheapest in the world(I think competition here are also one of the fierest).
ReplyDelete@wff: I also enjoyed reading your craft suggestions a la JC style. ;-)
ReplyDelete@nomoneyfun: ITA with you... I think a lot of JCAs are feeling the same way.
@Ashley: How is the factory version of the downtown field jacket? Did they have the black one as well? Also, did you take a XS or S (I think we're same size)? The retail one is back ordered and I'd rather get the factory one for that price. TIA!
Subscribing. :)
ReplyDeleteI went to the store and I found the Soleil necklace already on sale for $59.99. They had several of them and the SA told me they had just marked them down.
ReplyDeleteAlso the gold mesh sequin skirt is on sale at some stores but not at others.
thanks, I've been waiting for the additional 30% off
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ReplyDeleteJcrewphd- I have no idea how the retail version is but the outlet one is great for the price. I did notice the wax coming off a little in certain areas on my jacket but it doesn't look bad, just "worn." They did have black when I went. I bought mine in an xs for a more fitted look but if you need to layer, you might want to size up to the small. The small on me was too baggy in the body but good enough for sweater sleeves in the arms. For $35 it's a great deal because it looks just like the retail version. Hth!
ReplyDeletequestion from someone who hasn't been paying attention to the sales lately. :) was the 20% off knits and tees promo only on full-priced items? or were people able to get 20% off sale knits in addition to the 30% off all sale items for a few hours last night? (just trying to figure out if i missed something major last night!)
ReplyDeletethanks!
Jen- the knits & tees promo was just on FP items online. Some people that went to b&ms got 20 off sale ones too. When the new promo went live like at midnight you were able to take 30 off both discounted fp knits as well as the sale ones. Major discounts! You could have gotten the Haya sequin sweatshirt (if you were in the market for that) for like $76 or the drapey sequin tank for like $39! Hope that helps!
ReplyDeleteJen,
ReplyDeleteThe 20% off regular price tees and knits was still on line before midnight last night. And then, J.Crew posted the new promo - 30% off all sale - before midnight also. So there was a window there where both promos worked at the same time.
Visited the J.Crew at Fashion Valley yesterday in San Diego, and was not particularly impressed. Many sale items were priced higher than website (e.g., skimmer pants at $29.99 rather than $14.99). They had a 20% off sign over part of the sale section, but it may have applied only to knits/tees.
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ReplyDeleteAny suggestions for a tree topper? Perhaps a few pins clipped together? ;-)
Thanks Ashley! I'm going to call this morning to see if they have any left. :-)
ReplyDeleteWWF - thanks for the craft suggestions.
ReplyDeleteI definitely wish J Crew would stop reproducing most of their popular items as factory. I really have zero interest in spending nearly $100 for a sweater (the ocelot merino, for example) to see it end up as a factory piece. I feel like a fool for buying the original item.
I feel the same way about Coach and other retailers who do this. It cheapens my purchase and does not make me have very good feelings about the company.
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ReplyDeleteSorry, I meant WFF. Can't type this morning. Thanks for the laugh...
ReplyDeleteooh, right, Belle, forgot tree topper! Remove staples from holiday catalog, squiggle glue on cover, lay flat on spangly newspaper glue side down, roll up tightly from short side, tape closed to form cylinder, make vertical cuts from top of cylinder to depth of 4 ins. all around, carefully insert fingers inside cut part of tube & slide shreds upward. Add feathers & necklace fragments to taste. Nothing I'm ordering anyhow.
ReplyDeleteLove the crafts, wff. And yes, everything would have gone just that much better with bedazzled tweezers.
ReplyDeleteI should learn to read your posts AFTER I swallow...
kitsmommy, don't feel bad about buying retail versus factory. IMO the factory versions can be spotted a mile away and are much cheaper looking.
ReplyDeleteSorry if I confused you, Cass.
ReplyDeleteI agree that most of the factory items are inferior. My point was that if I had any idea of what retail items were going to end up being produced for the factory store, I would not buy them at all.
You almost always see knock offs of desirable items to some extent, but once I start seeing cheesy but very similar versions of something I purchased floating around, I don't want to wear my nicer version anymore as it isn't special any longer.
OT, but my word verification for the last post was "crewgie." Sounds like a good nickname for a JCA
ReplyDeleteIf anyone is looking for the novo stripe wrap top, the North Michigan Avenue Chicago store had a bunch of size 12s and at least one size 10 for $19.99. Beautiful top, just didn't find my size. With the 30% off, it would be a great bargain. Note that the extra 30% off sale in store makes the purchase a final sale.
ReplyDeleteI found nothing at the B&M but might have to stop in tomorrow now that there's an extra 30% off sale. The sale section at the Asheville B&M was fully stocked.
ReplyDeleteI went to the warehouse sale in Arden (both Sat and Sun, I'm nuts but good stuff always seems to pop up the second day) and on the second day I found the golden roses dress in my size! I have no idea why no one bought it on the first day (they don't put new stuff out) but I am happy. I've been stalking it on eBay for the last two years and now I have it, and for only $25.
Em: AWESOME! Congrats on such a great find! I always wonder about the Sunday sales...I always thought they'd be picked over, but I bet the crowds are less heavy and clearly, you never know what you'll find!
ReplyDeleteAppGal, yeah... whenever I'm in town for the sale, I always reluctantly go the second day, thinking I won't find anything. And yet, I always wind up with something awesome. I think many people are reluctant to purchase samples... but being a JCA, I knew the sample golden roses dress I bought was the same as the retail version. Now if I can just find the matching Astrid jacket...
ReplyDeleteWFF your post is hilarious! Thanks for a good laugh!!
ReplyDeleteOh, and yes there were not many people there at all on the second day. No waiting in line! I went around 1pm.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the congrats, too. :)
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ReplyDelete@Ashley, SE Mom -- Thanks! :)
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