Tuesday, May 15, 2018

J.Crew Reviews {straight from the JCAs!}

This is the weekly "J.Crew Reviews {straight from the JCAs}" post, to help each other share our reviews.

So if you have recently purchased, or stopped by a J.Crew store to try on an item (or two) from J.Crew, maybe you might be willing to share that information with us in this post.

Also, this request is not just limited to clothes. Please feel free to discuss bags, shoes, jewelry, accessories, etc.

In particular, if you could mention a few of the noteworthy details like fit, size, fabric, and the like— that would be fantastic! Thanks in advance! :)

33 comments:

  1. Full priced items where the promo applies are now showing up in the sale section. ugh.
    Also I know others have mentioned this, but factory seems to have a lot more offerings in natural fibers, linen/cotton, whereas jcrew has so much poly. I just ordered super cute scalloped shorts (blue muslin sunburst) in linen/cotton and a chambray shirt in perfect fit in cotton, for about 20 dollars each. The shorts are the kind of print I would hope for from regular jcrew. I notice factory has pencil skirts, cardigans and tees in the bright 'jcrew' kind of colors I would expect, lots of jewel tones. I'm sure the quality must be lower, but... why can't jcrew still do this?
    I honestly feel like if the designers and corporate side would just read jca and follow what people are actually asking for, they could turn the entire company around.

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    1. Those shorts look great! I like a bunch of the shorts but returns to factory are such a hassle for me, and sizing can be so inconsistent. If they accepted returns at my retail store I'd order a few sizes and take a chance.

      Maybe that's the way it's headed though, since a retail order I received the other day had an invoice from factory. Oddly because it was a pair of new balance that I got several pairs of and only one invoice was from factory.

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    2. Stripedsocks, it does seem that there’s been a bit of a role reversal w Factory and less distinction between the brands. On purpose, I think.

      J Crew - or their PR agency - most definitely reads this blog, as well as other social media content about them. It seems crazy to ignore the “free market research” here, but JCAs are actually a very small and biased group of customers. In truth, JCAs are extremely loyal but not the
      company’s “core” customers, or even close to representing their whole market. Tweenager underwear, swim, nail polish and the infamous rayon dresses are evidence of who they think they’re targeting and competing with now.

      Most great marketers embrace their most loyal fans as brand ambassadors, but J Crew seems afraid of JCA and reviews in general. They were late to the online review game and seem to eschew honest feedback. The only recognition goes to the blogger(s) whose J Crew content is 100% “fabulous.”

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    3. @ruffles don’t forget how the website sorts the reviews so the great ones are first and the negative ones seem to get buried at the end. I always sort by recent first. I said the same thing yesterday in regards to core customers- clearly me and most JCA’s are not the core customer any longer. The only thing on my wishlist are about 5 Liberty tops. I have plenty already and don’t need them unless they get marked down. It is a double edged sword. I love the Liberty tops but how many does one need. I complain when they don’t make the classics but when they do I have too many already to justify buying another.
      @striped socks-the few work pieces i have found this year have been from factory. I needed to replace some pencil skirts and also got a seersucker cotton dress and the dupe of the retail eyelet shirt dress. The retail version was frumpy on me and the factory version fits me better.

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    4. Ruffles, That irks me because everything is NOT fabulous!!!

      In the past if there was a quality/fit issue with an item and that was noted in a review, a customer service rep might post a reply such as "we are getting in touch." I assumed that might still happen when I posted a review of the unstructured cotton linen blazer I received, but nope...it was at least two sizes small, I could barely get it on. I did order an exchange but it has yet to ship (ordered on Friday!). That's too long to wait! (Sorry for the tangent!)

      I also always sort reviews by most recent first.

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    5. Hi all - I agree that the Factory/retail line is being purposely blurred. A few months ago, the manager at my Factory B&M said that they were told they'd be starting to carry "retail basics" like the Jackies and cropped pants that used to be in retail stores but are now mainly online. I think they'll eventually try to morph them into "J.Crew Mercantile" that sells sub-brands such as Point Sur. On the subject of PS, some of the reviews of the newer jeans/pants mention that they are NOT made in LA as the description suggests, but the garment tag says “Made in China”. Sigh.

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    6. S_L, I was wondering the same thing about the new Point Sur collection. I loved the original denim. Made me suspicious when the copy on the website said ”Inspired by our original collection of LA-made denim ...” I guess “inspired by” is code for “not the same and made in China.”

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    7. Yup, I was just looking at a PS top and I noticed that it stated it was “imported”. I’m really hating what JCRew has become:-(

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    8. The inconsistency answered my question about why some of the newer PS jeans were so much cheaper than the last couple of years. Weren't the originals $248-298? Now they have a pair for $98 (H6415), but they're "imported". I guess a lot of people don't really care about the details, and that's why they're core customers and I'm not anymore.

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  2. What I find interesting is how "fresh faced" the models are. Not a slick of red/orange lipstick anywhere. And all have long hair...messy hair....can't you hear your mother yelling "Brush your hair!" I miss Jenna! It's all too casual and bordering on sloppy. Jenna took casual and made it look couture. I keep looking out for her to start her own line.....anyone know what is is doing now? Anyway, I ordered the dress I've been eyeing...the chambray sleeveless shirtdress. Ordered regular and tall lengths both for comparison.

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    1. Jenna elevated the brand and made it cool. I don’t understand why J.Crew couldn’t continue that aesthetic after she left. Are all the designers new? And the ones working under Jenna left, too? It feels like the cool sister left, and left the younger sister is now in charge of the company, and is clueless on how to run a fashion brand.

      I sometimes look in Instagram (under #jennalyons) to see what’s new w/ her...a few appearances and photo shoots..

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    2. I like minimal makeup and easy hair. I appreciate that society moves in that direction in general. Finally I do not have to feel like I’m half a women because my nails are not done, hair are messy and no mascara or eyeliner 

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  4. Anyone here tried the strappy heel with the raffia pompom bow? I kept watching it, think the colors caught my eye, but wasn't a real fan until it popped up in my size. Not happy with the 4in heel but online reviewers sound very excited about the shoe.

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    1. I have no business buying those shoes but they make me happy just looking at them!

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  5. I ordered both Liberty D'Anjo print shirts (the peasant and the slim perfect) with the intention of only keeping one but I'm keeping both. They are both gorgeous and the peasant style is surprisingly flattering, especially with the button left open. I can't wait to wear them. This is the J Crew I know and love.

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  6. i thought there would be new arrivals this week... next week?

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    1. I was sure I had heard this week?

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    2. Last week we had a small rollout and theJune rollout will be at the end of the month.

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    3. My vps said the 22nd but then again the company keeps these poor people in the dark most of the time. Shame.

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    5. I’ve never understood JCrew’s rollout schedule. They seem to make the same mistakes every year. Why release same week as a holiday weekend...why not realease the week before so that people can actually receive the new stuff and pack/wear it for holiday weekend events.

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    6. Last year I complaint vehemently to my local store that the rollouts were all too late. They were rolling out items the day of holidays....remember the Xmas rollout was like on Xmas eve! And to make matters worse things sold out immediately or went right into back order. Don't these people live normal lives with holidays and things scheduled? I was very irritated with them.

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    7. I didn't get my champagne tee until way after the holidays. Backordered but of course it was available in the stores. Things have really gone downhill. Poor scheduling, no catalogs, really slow shipping. Shopping shouldn't be this difficult.

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  7. Is there a way to filter out Mercantile from the mainline J.Crew website? It stands out like a sore thumb and I absolutely HATE IT!

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    1. I’d like to know as welll...I’m spending much less time on the website because of it,

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    2. I’ve tried JCRew only in the search bar, it appears to work at times. I stress at times

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  8. Does anyone have the Hugo Guinness Dog Tee? Check out the Daily Mail Meghan Markle’s mother has been photographed wearing one. Still have mine in perfect condition...the good old JCRew Hugo Guinness and Donald Robertson tees are still my favorites. Wish they would do another series.

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  9. Not sure if anyone remembers this item but it's something I wanted back then but it was never available in store and from what I remember' never really got reduced enough or was available in my size.
    The drapey twill skort. I found it on Poshmark months ago but wasn't sure if I needed a size down. Totally forgot about it but saw it in my likes again, measured an existing skirt and decided to go for it.
    I admit I've resold or given away two other items I've bought And had to have so I hope this one works.

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    1. I purchased this years ago and this one fit true to size. I have the cream color. Hope it works out for you.

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  10. I ordered the sleeveless chambray dress in small and tall small. Got the small today and it was a couple inches above my knee, which didn't bother me too much for a summer dress. I'm 5' 9" for reference. The problem is that I'm either too flat chested or the dress has huge arm opens....seriously gaps...just looked a size too big on the bodice. Bummer. Also got the straw sun hat. It's cute but it has a very wide brim...really wide. I'm afraid I would be hitting people or things with it! They go back.

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Dear J.Crew Aficionadas & Aficionados: Please feel free (and encouraged) to share your thoughts and opinions. :) However, please note that this is still a personal blog. So comments that are considered inappropriate (e.g. obscene, racist, homophobic, personal attacks, rude, and just plain mean) will be removed.

And now back to J.Crew! :)