Tuesday, January 1, 2013

J. Crew + Alligator Purse: Got $1,500?

"Thanks!" to GigiOfCa {of the delightful Gigi's Gone Shopping blog} who shared the following article from the Huffington Post (click here to read in its entirety) with us:
J.Crew's Alligator Purse Costs A Cool $1,500
By Ellie Krupnick
December 28, 2012

J.Crew has slowly but surely been moving into the high-end market, with a showing at New York Fashion Week, the pricey "Collection" pieces and even a Manolo Blahnik collaboration that never really took off.

The retailer's latest move into luxury comes in the form of an accessory -- a very expensive accessory. This month J.Crew introduced an alligator version of their signature Edie purse, a small boxy bag with a long, thin strap. The pricey piece, which arrived "just in time for the holidays," clocks in at $1,500 and is being sold exclusively at J.Crew's Madison Avenue location.


There were just nine alligator bags made, the brand writes on its Tumblr. But if you're really desperate, you can settle for the python version, which costs only $795 and is available on JCrew.com. While you're at it, you can snag the matching python pencil skirt for a cool $1,800.


The J.Crew Tumblr calls the alligator Edie bag "the perfect 'I was very good this year' gift." We're calling it ridiculously extravagant, especially for something with a J.Crew tag. What do you think?
Oh. my. I cannot imagine spending that much on a single {tiny} bag, let alone from J.Crew. At least J.Crew only made a few of these. Yet, I have to wonder... besides Jenna, who else is getting this bag?

I often question with items like this, if J.Crew does it more for the publicity than the actual belief that they can sell it...

What are your thoughts on the Alligator Edie Purse? Do you think J.Crew is crazy for offering such a pricey little thing? Do you believe this is a good move for J.Crew, as it enters a pricier market? Please share your thoughts! :)

55 comments:

  1. I feel bad for the poor 9 alligators who gave up their life to only become a Jcrew handbag.

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    1. Don't worry, that bag is so small it was probably only two gators.

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    2. Agreed. I'm no vegetarian but I don't wear fur or reptile. I wish J. Crew wouldn't sell those either.

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  2. I actually saw - and touched - the bag, and discussed it here .

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  3. If I had $1500 to spend on a bag it would not be a jcrew one.

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    1. Here, here! For that price point, I look to Ralph Lauren. I know their animal skins are exquisitely made...

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  4. Bleh. Don't like reptiles, snakes or gators. ESPECIALLY on my body. And seriously, if the quality is as good as their regular cow purses, it's overpriced junk.

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  5. fugly,
    $1500 on a bag isn't gonna be at JC

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  6. They are not a high end brand and they need to stop pretending they are. Why not spend time fixing quality and sizing issues with their current products before even entertaining the idea that they can create more expensive pieces? This actually made me very angry. They continue to tell me that they're abandoning their core customer. Those of us who want good fitting basics, clothes to wear to work and great outerwear have shopped at J. Crew for years. Now we can't make a $30 tee shirt last through one wash, the sweaters pill and develop holes, the pants are unlined, buttons crack and fall off, the list goes on and on. To add insult to injury, they want me to buy half of it on final sale so they don't take responsibility for their poor quality. And now they want me to spend $1,500 on a bag?! Or even $795 on the "lower price" python version? I'm livid.

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    1. Ditto. Jcrew needs to return to the Banana Republic-esq market. They were a beautiful brand. Now they're trying too hard and missing the mark on all accounts. If I can find similar, if not better quality at F21 or Target then they are not ready for the upscale market. Period.

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  7. Yes, this just made me LOL. I wonder who their "core customer" is these days--she can drop $1500 on a python bag, wear a Jules dress to work, and sport ankle pants all winter long. This customer is having another month without a J.Crew bill . . . I was putting together a PV list of my best JC purchases of the year, and realized they were all 2008 items found on eBay or the JCA exchange.

    I may be a little disappointed in JC right now but I love my JCAs--happy new year, everyone!

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  8. As I said on WellFedFred's post, lipstick on a pig.

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  9. I agree with every comment made thusfar. I was a hardcore JC shopper for many years. Have now tired of their declining quality, skirt and pants' lengths, and available sizes. If they don't want the six-digit salary money of 50-ish, size 14 women like me, who don't believe in the wearing of sequined formal shorts, they need to seriously reassess who their desired "core" customer is. I could afford a $1500 purse - but the one I do own was a 50th birthday present from a high-end, luxury store that qualifies as an investment piece. Other women come up and stroke it. Can't say that's ever happened, with anything I've bought at J Crew.

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  10. At one point this was a blog for people who actually like J. Crew. It has turned into a place where people seem to constantly make negative, and sometimes downright nasty, comments. Like any retailer, not all items appeal to all people. Perhaps this blogger, and many of her followers, should rethink their so- called love for the brand.

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    1. Oh, dear Ramona, people who read this blog DO like and even love J. Crew. We only complain in the hope that change will come. J. Crew is a mere shadow of her former self. If we did not care, we would not take the time to write about our despair. I have seen some positive changes with J Crew that I can attribute to this blog, so obviously our concerns are getting through to someone! Otherwise, we wouldn't even bother.

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    2. I second that Shekster. I love J.Crew. They have long been my favorite retailer, since I 'discovered' them in college. But these days, I cry sad little tears on the inside everytime I have to deal with or hear about their recent problems. I am sure there are other JCAs who has loved the Crew even longer.
      Anyway, like Shekster said, someone over there at Mickey's Dreamhouse seems to be checking up on us, poor JCAs. So, we will continue to express our honest disdain and our true love. Long live the Crew and all us JCAs who obsess over it.

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    3. what she said. And after having tracked back thru the early days of the blog, even then, amid the worshipful reports of musts , there were reports of pilling, of failure to survive washing, of... and does anyone remember an early Questionable Item of the Week, the cloth-of-gold short-sleeved wrap jacket? A community has formed here, and its members pass on tips, and respond to requests for advice, where to find something in a size or color, what's with prices, what's nicer than it looks, and what's not. Not negativism, helpfulness. It's true that JC has issues, and it's true that sometimes it's hard not to laugh. I can only imagine what a Michael Kors blog would say. All apparel comanies, well, most, go through changes as a designer or manager comes or goes. We are not here to like or dislike JCrew, as it says I. the blog header, this is a place to discuss all aspects of J.Crew. Which we do.

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    4. oh, autocorrect! that's in the bog header. Sigh.

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    5. I couldn't agree with you more. Yes this is a website for those who love to shop at JCrew but that should not preclude us from airing grievances on items we do not like or chose not to purchase.

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    6. I agree with all of the above and I understand Ramona's attempt to correct the course of this blog. Alexis has built a flourishing, nurturing community and I for one love the mutual admiration society. J Crew brought each of us here and we talk of the Crew, but I believe and I feel that there is a great deal more going on here than shopping sharing.

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  11. Ramona, you are right. At least for me. I can honestly say I no longer like J. Crew. I keep hoping with every roll out that I will like it again, because I used to love it. My closet holds many J. Crew clothes from years past. I guess I need to realize that the J. Crew that I knew and loved is gone. I'll stop complaining about it and reconcile myself with that fact. I've found a few other clothing lines to love that now make up the bulk of my purchases. Time for me to let J. Crew go. Such a fitting day to make such a decision!

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    1. Desert Flower, What other lines?

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    2. Yes, please share! I have lost that loving feeling for the Crew too. :(

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    3. I've had good luck with Boden this past year. I have gotten cashmere from them that holds up nicely, some cute skirts and dresses. I also did really well at, of all places, Talbot's on Black Friday, where I picked up cobalt and plum colored cashmere cardigans for $80 each and 100% wool a-line skirts. I do need to take all the skirts to my tailor because they hit this really awkward, mid-calf length, but the material was 100% wool and high quality. I don't wear pants, and I tend to stick to a skirt with cardigan outfit for everyday in the winter. In the summer I do dresses.

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  12. Such an interesting set of comments.

    First, I am new to JCrew and I love it. For years I thought it was a boring and stodgy brand. This past year was the year I fell in love. I have always loved fashion. But I have a creative job and am always broke and am thus a bargain hunter. It is possible to love and wear JCrew--even Collection pieces--and be a bargain hunter. I love that.

    The comments on the changing face of JCrew have been interesting to read. I don't have pieces from 2008, so I don't know what I am missing. There were a series of posts on Roxy's blog, too about how Anthro had changed and wasn't core anymore. And a part of me wonders if perhaps people just tire of a brand because they tire of a brand and maybe the brand didn't do anything.

    But I always see three kinds of comments about JCrew. First--it should "go back" to being what it was and second, it should stop "trying so hard." It should stop the uppity Collection thing and the trying to fit in with fashion people and be sensible. Which . . . how can you tell this to, say, Margaret who suddenly got to star in a show on Broadway and doesn't want to come home to sing in church any more? You can't tell anyone--hey, you aren't what you used to be. Cut it out and get back in line. The thing you can do is to leave them. But no one "goes back" to what they were before. Not in this country, anyway. How many times have we heard that the Gap is "going back to the basics." Has it gone back to the basics and succeeded yet?

    I'm rooting for JCrew. I think their quality is great. I compare the sad state of BR shirts (remember when BR was great?), and their sweaters (although maybe the new Narcisso Rodriguez partnership will turn it around), and I weep at the beauty that is a finished seam on a Liberty shirt. And, yes, I had to wait for months while Katie Holmes got to parade her Liberty shirts around this fall because she could pay full price after leaving Mr. Xenu in the dust, and I had to wait until she got tired of them for them to move to Final sale, and then percent off sale. But whatever. I got my Liberty shirts and they are so me, I know I'll wear them for a while. Ditto for these amazing cashmere turtlenecks. Ditto for the Lulu Frost stuff which . . . after visiting her studio and meeting her and realizing what an artist she is . . . I get to wear her designs at JCrew? And it occasionally goes on sale? When is that going to happen in history again?

    But this is thinking like a fashion person who loves fashion for fashion.

    And as for the high end stuff--it forces their staff to think creatively and to aspire. It means that everything--down to Factory--will be more creative. And I love that. I love that I, as a consumer, will get to be part of this brand. Because if Mickey Drexler succeeds, he'll have done what no other retailer has done, which is to be all things to all people. Not even the Gap really managed this--it was everywhere. But it didn't *really* penetrate all levels of fashion society.

    The third thing I hear is that the quality sucks which . . . maybe it's uneven. Certainly the sizing is uneven. And I don't like how JCrew avoids the internet. I could use a reviews section! So far, though, I just don't see it a failure to commit to quality. In general, the work is superior to other competitor retailers. I always hear how you can get the same thing at F21. But I don't think you can! Maybe there is the occasional exception, but I think of F21 as truly disposable fashion. I don't see JCrew that way at all.

    I find the evolving JCrew story fascinating. Will I keep up? Can I keep up? Who knows. Who cares. It's just clothes.

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    1. Great comment. I totally agree.

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    2. Those finished seams that you love on the Liberty shirts used to be how all of the seams were finished on all of J.Crew's shirts pre-2008. And none of those shirts cost over $100, in fact most of them were $60-70 bucks full price. I think that's what a lot of people are talking about when they yearn for the J.Crew of seasons past, because it was awesome, and I think that's true for most mall brands (BR, Anthro, etc.).

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    3. The seams on the Liberty shirts are not that great. I returned them because several were poorly done this yea.r if I look at the seams on my old J Crew shirts they are beautiful even and nicely finished! if you think the Liberty shirts are great man you're really missing out

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    4. I totally agree. I've been buying J.Crew on and off since early 2000. The times it was off was because J.Crew wasn't fashionable enough for me, as I gravitated towards Marc by Marc Jacobs or similar designers.

      At one point I even worked seasonal at J.Crew during Christmas of 2004, and I found the clothes to be okay but not 'great', as far as the designs (not quality) go. Since 2008, I started obsessing over J.Crew because their designs were starting to change, and it looked cool for the price point. Fast forward to 2009, got laid off my job, I became a full time college student, and J.Crew became my go-to store to buy fashionable clothes at a reasonable price since I couldn't afford MMJ, Theory, Vince, Barneys CO-OP anymore.

      As with quality, I've had my share of F21 and H&M, fast, super-trendy clothes (polyester-yuck) does not last. It may be a score for $20, but the fabrics and quality suck, IMO.
      Believe me I too am obsessed with fabrics and quality since my major was fashion merchandising. I am familiar with how clothes are sewn, or what the fabric content is on a jacket, to warrant what I think was nicely or poorly made.

      At the end of the day, its just business. We pick and choose what works well for us and what doesn't.
      My only gripe with J.Crew is that I wish I can afford some of their collection pieces. I am one of the lucky few that hasn't had a bad experience with the merchandise, as some JCAs have...I've had my share of holey cotton tops, but that's about it.

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    5. and about that bag...if I had (disposable) money i wouldn't buy that J.Crew alligator purse. Where was it made, China from European materials? Uh...rigghhht, I don't think so.

      I would rather buy something classic like Hermes or Chanel-timeless pieces I can pass down to my daughter.

      Speaking of obnoxious and outrageous pieces, this is not as bad as when the Olsen twins' brand - The Row, produced an alligator bag pack that cost $35K. That was probably more than an Hermes, right?

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    6. I wanted to reply to UNKNOWN's comment.
      I noticed since the 'great recession' fashion companies have been cutting corners on their quality, this applies to JCrew, BR, GAP, and almost all other companies I could think of. However, at the same time these companies are either keeping the items at the same price point or higher. For example, the shirts/skirts I purchased in college (08, 09, etc) were fantastic in its classic design, material and always kept their shape after wash. The current items are trendy (which is fine), but when comparing to the old items the qualities were not the same (colors fade, seams undone after hand-wash) etc. I will say that JCrew’s quality seems to be still better than BR. However, consumers should keep the retailers to a high standard especially when we know the higher standard was achieved in the past. (It’s like you toke Calculus and got an A in 08 so how can you accept a B- when you take the same class again in 2012…)
      In terms of design, being trendy is good, it is keeping the company relevant. However, having classic items is just as important especially: 1) price point is high and 2) a good company do not want to turn away a good customer, even thou the customer have aged 4 years (but just think their earning potential also increased).

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    7. I certainly can't speak for anyone but myself when I say this, but I have absolutely no issues with J.Crew trying to become a hipper, less stodgy brand. I've been shopping at J.Crew since about 2002-2003.

      My only issue is the quality. You can't go down on quality and go up on price.

      I wouldn't complain so much if the quality was still the same and the price had gone up a bit. Or conversely, even if quality had slipped but the price had stayed the same, that would've been less annoying than not maintaining at least one of these variables.

      So the whole quality-price ratio is off. And I miss how customer service used to be. A lot more helpful, that's for sure.

      Unknown, if you had seen what J.Crew's quality was like back in the mid-2000s, I don't think you would think the brand was well-made now. I have a multitude of pieces from back then that still feel and look nearly brand new, despite having worn them for nearly a decade.

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  14. Micky & the Mickettes read these blogs so keep the comments coming...maybe it'll make 'em think
    differently. I just miss the old J CREW. I appreciate Fashion & the Artist that create but honestly, sometimes its just too much....way too much...silly.

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  15. I grew up with a guy in my hometown, we'll call him Alex. Alex was a nice guy; friendly, attractive, not especially ambitious or intelligent but everybody liked him because he was so easy to get along with. He went to college, and did his senior year overseas. When he came back to our hometown, he was a completely different person. He now dressed entirely in black, wore really expensive shoes, spoke with a slight accent, and took every possible opportunity to lecture his friends on why his macrobiotic diet was superior to the foods they were eating. Everyone was like "Wow, what happened to Alex?"

    My point is that it's cool if you want to re-invent yourself, but you can't really do that when you're surrounded by the same people who knew you when you wore the clothes that your mom bought for you, mostly ate foods that came from a can, and spent the bulk of your Saturday afternoons playing Super Nintendo. You're trying to be Alexandre, but everybody still knows you as Alex. You've either got to move, mellow out a little, or wait until your old friends drift away and you make new ones. From what I hear, Alex mellowed out and found a nice compromise between his old image and his new one. I'm hoping that J.Crew is able to do the same, because I still like them better than all the other stores in my price range.

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    1. That's what I'm saying! You *can* reinvent yourself and God bless Jcrew for trying. Let Alexanderovsky be what he wants. Why should he be held back? Why should anyone?

      Would I buy this purse? No way! Do I like python and dead snakes? No! But if you don't push yourself, nothing changes. I'd rather this JCrew that pushes itself and makes mistakes but still tries.

      The earlier comment about BR and the decline of mall quality clothing... So true. I have a pair of gorgeous BR pants circa '99, made it Italy, wool and lined. Gorgeous. They'd never do this now.

      As for seaming and quality-I used to go to the Escsda and Tahari sample sales. I have some amazing things but they were expensive, even discounted. Tahari's quality is still there-Esacada not so much. In their heyday, Escada partnered with this super high end designer whose name I can't remember. My god that was amazing stuff.

      But for basics-I love jcrew now. And I love that their aspire for more. Aspiration is great. Not everyone in this world gets to dream and strive and I love that the company is trying. This will not always be true as all things eventually end (remember when The Limited and Gloria Vanderbilt were good?)

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    2. Haha, if reinvention means a lower quality product, you'll have to forgive me for not getting excited that J.Crew is trying to live their dreams ;) If they really want to play with the big boys, they need to up their game and line their trousers.

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  16. I think the hardware on that bag is substandard for the price point. I returned an Edie bag because of the hardware (it bent).......so I would never in a million years pay ANYTHING for any bag with that kind of closure. The brass is too soft. The hardware on a Coach bag is superior, IMO.

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    1. Ok. I don't have a problem spending 1500 on a bag ( I just don't have it right now) but I sure as heck wouldn't buy Jcrew handbags. Hardware, lining, quality. Not there.

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  17. I am a huge handbag collector and if it were a good quality bag, I would - but not from J.Crew. Their bags have disappointed every time! I only buy on clearance bin from them when they are clearanced for cheap because the quality does not exist.

    If you are going to spend that on a bag, go quality in hardware and design, which is not a j.crew bag.

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  18. I don't think anyone on this blog would tell J Crew to stop being creative. If they want to design a pair of bold-patterned silk ankle pants, good for them and all the creative people in creative jobs who can pull that off. But throw a bone to the rest of us -- the professional women in professional careers who like to be stylish and interesting but still need to be taken seriously. And live in cold places where our ankles freeze in the winter.

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  19. I love many of my J. Crew bags, but I have stopped buying them all together. I have a few in my collection from the year I think J. Crew had some fine bags, 2008. After 2008, there were some interesting and lovely bags, but for the price, I was all, "no way, Jose." In fact the only "big" purse (not including the small clutches/wallet bags) that I purchased from J. Crew post 2008 was from a re-seller on ebay, who was selling the Brompton in carob for about 100 dollars less than J. Crew had it. That bag is lovely, has great leather, but I definitely think the hardware is lacking and the stitching isn't the best. Comparing that one to my Andie bag, my Quincy hobo, and my Jamie bag, I can see the quality decline, even though I love the Brompton.

    I think the alligator purse is really pretty, and it looks great on Jenna, but if there isn't significant quality control on this item, the person who pays 1500 dollars is gonna be mighty ticked. I just saved (and saved and saved) for a Phillip Lim Pashli Satchel, and upon receiving this bag, I looked all over to make sure that every seam was finished, that the zippers worked, that the leather was finished nicely, etc. Had I found a problem, I would have immediately opened a case with ebay (another re-sell item) as the reseller promised pristine condition, etc. Of course it was delivered exactly as stated and now that I have this high-end bag, I get what people mean when they say they won't buy expensive bags from J. Crew.

    For my money, I will go elsewhere for any future bag purchases. Unless, of course, J. Crew can prove that their quality and style is really on par with other designers. As of now, most of us think they are not ready to join that competition. :)

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  20. I agree with the folks that said that they do spent alot on handbags, but they expect quality materials and hardware. I haven't seen that at the Crew. I returned a Crew bag because it just didn't have the quality I like in a bag. I can be wearing a pair of Levi's and wearing a t-shirt, but I always carry a quality handbag and it's the first thing I notice about a woman's outfit. Fancy skins and leathers don't make up for an poorly made bag.

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  21. The hardware on the Edie bags is atrocious. I can't tell you how many Edies have landed at the clearance store with the clasp just snapped right off.

    I recently bought the biennial hobo because in my experience, J.Crew pebbled leather is always high quality. It is, but I spilled a drop of water on it and when I went to blot it with a napkin, the blue dye came right off. Sigh. I do love the bag though, and the water didn't leave a mark or anything. Just, be careful around light colored clothes, as it says right on the tag that was attached to the bag when I got it.

    I'd never buy any of the smooth leather bags from J.Crew such as the Edie. They look shopworn in about 2 seconds!

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  22. Another thing....when I first looked at the picture I didn't see the bag....I saw the ackward stance, the painful looking pointed high heels, the nerd glasses and the bony chest. Handbag? Didn't even notice it!

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    1. You know, I'm getting a little tired of the personal attacks on Jenna and anyone that some people on these boards deems "too skinny." I have a "bony chest"-- so? If it's not ok to make fun of fat, why is it ok to make fun of skinny? I would like to stick to the topic, which is the bag and not attack the physiques of people pictured.

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    2. There is nothing wrong with having a bony chest. I think straycat was just remarking on how horrible or unflattering Jenna's styling was, so horrible that the $1500 bag was not even noticed. Jenna does not seem to buy into the concept of accentuating the good and perhaps camoflauging the not as good. Which is fine if it works for her, but most of us prefer to look our best, don't we?

      I used to have a bony chest and I would never have gone around with it hanging out like that. It looks as tacky as someone with a large chest going around with mega-cleavage, IMO!

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  23. I really like this discussion. I have shopped Jcrew since I was 12 which is now 16 years ago. Fashion has certainly evolved in such a span. First off 16 years ago I would have never seen any "mall" brand attempting extravagances as $1,500 purses let alone BR's line of couple hundred dollar ones. Mall fashions were more, well dorky, khakis, tees, shrugs, peddle pushers, but were definitely sturdier, they held up to usual wear and tear of life much better. And they reflected personal income more closely. If you shopped designer you did not shop the "mall".

    Over the last decade our culture has shifted to more consumer based. One where fads rule the fashion scene. For me it is strange to see such huge cross overs in fashion. Some one who wears Prada or even Ralph Lauren wears Jcrew or gasp Old Navy! In my teens I didn't even have any awareness of high fashion. I didn't know what Gucci was, of course I knew it had to do with clothes but that was it.

    But in the incurring decade and a half our media culture has drastically changed. It's strange to think that in my teens cell phones were a novelty, and so was the internet. The first was for professionals and the second for nerds and weirdos. However over the last decade the pervasiveness of technology has given us a window into world's unknown to the vast majority of middle class citizens. Namely the fashion scene.

    Blogs and credit seem to have changed fashion forever. Instead of normal fashion of being simply clean and put together we are now more exposed to what it is to be fashionable. And with credit and increasingly frequent role outs we are conditioned to be forever seeking something new. I know that in average house holds in my youth new clothes were a great novelty purchased a couple times a year, at the beginning of summer and school. Frequent purchases were for the wealthy. But even for myself now I find myself buying new things at least five or more times a month.

    And the worst part is that even though for my income they are all relatively inexpensive, they are poor quality compared to even cheap brands over ten years ago. There are more frequent holes and pilling and strechting and fading. But it is because we have demanded fashion instead of wardrobe. Being fashionable instead of lasting quality.

    Jcrew was my favorite brand. My mom has a white scoop neck tee from well over ten years ago which she has worn a lot and comparing this to my newer tees is shameful. The cotton is truly, noticeably better quality, with no hint of holes or underarm rubbing wear. And I'm sure that it cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $12. I can't imagine finding a tee like this today, not to mention one that is worse quality for nearly $50.

    So forgive me for ranting and lamenting like the "old", but if "moving forward" or "evolving" means leaving behind the best parts of oneself for something shinier (and I'll be the first to admit more fashionable)but overall more hollow and superficial than I don't want to evolve. I'd rather be simple and well put together any day over "fashionable" but cheap.

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  24. Funny! That's all I have to say as far as the price. Now, let's talk about the cruelty to animals factor-- Python? Alligator? What's next? Mink stoles? Sorry, but I do not support companies that support cruelty.

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    1. I don't think alligator (which is farmed, especially in Florida, for both skins and meat) is any more cruel than leather from cattle. Now, if you don't wear leather shoes, I can definitely see saying no to an alligator purse. But why should the death of an alligator be any worse than the death of a cow?

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  25. Actually, places that sell python skin (like those that sell alligator) will tell you that it's from python farms. The truth is that pythons grow slowly and and there are nearly enough farmed pythons to furnish the industry. The other source of python is from python hunting, and some of their practices are barbaric - skinning them alive to get the best quality skin - when I learned that MY FAVORITE clothing connection, JCrew, was selling python, I had them take me off their mailing list. I would never wear python no matter what, but I can't spend my dollars with a retailer that even might be involved in such inhumane practices!

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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.

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