Tuesday, April 24, 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! :)

58 comments:

  1. Huge sale update tonight with over 1860 items.

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  2. I missed it all...or at least anything that I might be interested in. Oh well, on to the next one!

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  3. I woke up in the middle of the night and saw that, but realized items I was looking at last week on sale (and in my cart) are now full price. Nothing I need.

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  4. So many popbacks but I keep missing the items I want. Updating the sale section several times a day is great but or is exhausting to keep looking so often. So frustrating to see your size listed but ghosted out!

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  5. very quirky performance last night - out of 6 items in my cart, 3 were exempt from all promos and 2 sold out while I was trying to check out. Finally the site worked and I am the lucky purchaser of a pair of socks. If they ship.

    There was a great article in the NY Times about how Brooks Brothers listened to its customer base, bit the bullet, and is bringing back quality and turning the company around. I’m working on getting a link copied to share it with the JCAs.

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    1. yes! Hope you can get the link, I'd love to read that.

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    2. https://mobile.nytimes.com/2018/04/21/business/brooks-brothers-looks-to-the-future.html

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    3. wellfedfred, thanks for pointing out the Brooks Brothers article. It was a great read. Someone at J Crew needs to read it, pronto!

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    4. Great Article! I didn't know Teri Agins was writing for the Times now, I always loved her work for the WSJ.
      We need a Mr. Del Vecchio at J Crew!!

      "I am here to reinforce a culture,” he said. “I have to make sure that we are building a company that will last after me. I don’t want to be here another 20 years. Forget about another 200 years. It’s really about trying to build a culture that will last longer than the business. That will make it very hard for the next guy to screw it up.”

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    5. Wow-wish he would run for president!

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    6. Julie Taylor, that quote practically makes me cry. J Crew HAD this ... look at the catalogs over time ... and they threw it away in a race to the bottom with fast fashion.

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    7. Thank you for sharing the Brooks Brothers article. What a revelation!!! Listen to your customers, get back to quality materials, work on fit. I am heading over to Brooks Bros right now! Wish Mr Brett at JC would read the article and take a leaf out of Mr Del Vecchio's playbook. JC has had a rich seam of customer feedback on this blog for years. Supportive, loyal customers who want to buy JC and stick with the brand, see it surviving and successful. Yet there has been season after season of over produced failed items. OTS, one shoulder, cold shoulder, postage stamp skirts, dropped shoulders, exposed zips which all dwelled too long in store inventory even at discounted prices. Add in the decline in fabric quality and composition and Mickey's debt loading in the midst of a challenging retail era and JC has dug itself a great big hole on several fronts. I just hope it is not too late and they can pull out.

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    8. Yes, thank you for sharing that! It was refreshing to hear about focusing on quality and listening to the customer when it seems they really mean it. I rarely see B.B. stores in Canada (I can only think of one at an outlet mall that wasn’t very impressive) but next time I’m in the US I will have to spend some time looking through a store.

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    9. Does anyone else remember that J. Crew did this before, circa 2004? Did a mea culpa, "we pursued the fickle young trendy consumer at the expense of our base of customers looking for timeless, quality items, we're going back to our roots."

      The price point increased 20% or so, the product descriptions got all trumped up and emphasized it was *Italian* whatever or "handmade." While it was silly, it did bring around the J. Crew styles that most of us love.

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    10. Thanks for the article and link. I do think this is the inevitable corrective trajectory that retail will take, that it is only a matter of time before people tire of quantity and long for quality. It sounds like a lot of folks here are already at that point.

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    11. @GoWest Great list. I'd also like to add laser cutouts, thin strapped tank tops, ill fitting short sleeve tops, words on tees, words on other things, everywhere ruffles, everywhere lace, and stripes practically on stripes. :)

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    12. Thank you Brooks Brothers, what a wonderful article. Reading about their cashmere and merino wool quality makes me think of how different my cashmere sweaters from 2008 are from today. They were so thick and soft. Same thing goes for wool sweaters, I still have several from pre-2006 in rotation and several from post-2014 that look like rags. :-(

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  6. Now that they have tons of prints...it looks dated (the dresses). Not sure how it will look IRL. 😞

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    1. I like 3 new dresses with flowery prints. Unfortunately they are poly and rayon. I'm hoping to get one of those but not sure about the sizing. I'm hoping that someone will review them soon enough.

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    2. I like the liberty prints on everyone but myself. I either think I look elderly or juvenile. It just me...I love them on everyone else.

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    3. Hi JSR, I'm not feeling them either - did that the first time around (with a velvet choker and Doc Martens, ha!).

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    4. @Silver Lining - OMG, yes! 😂 Is this the trend now, or just J.Crew doing this? It’s okay to use the print as long as they make the design modern. Total downgrade from how it was 5-10 years ago.

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  7. Geez, stuff that was on sale last week (linen perfect shirt, some jewelry), is no longer on sale, back to full price. Free shipping today did entice me to try the embroidered midi and a cropped lightweight cardi. Warm weather finally arriving in Michigan has me feeling optimistic I suppose...

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  8. I may not be in the mood to buy anything this go 'round (or just not interested), but I will say that I like the new banner. Those too-many word promos over the last few days gave me a headache.

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    1. I agree the new banner is better but still think their old web design which included no banner at all is superior. I know everyone likes a good sale but I'd rather buy one outstanding piece at full price than chase a 20/30 mark down (because you know they've upped the retail price to accommodate the inevitable discount) on two or three mediocre pieces.

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  9. I like a lot of things, I'm pleasantly surprised! The prints are pretty, especially the Liberty magical bouquet. I also like the floral wraparound sandals, and the mom tote although I need another tote like I need a hole in the head.

    Why do the leopard easy pants say the fabric is easy and then not specify said fabric? To my eye they look like the same material as the ruffle pant or last spring, and I'd like to know if that is the case.

    @Lynn, I am wearing the embroidered mules today and am noticing a slight squeak, however no one in my office has commented (they would, we are all friendly) and it is not annoying me. I think it may be correlated to moisture of my feet. They are very comfortable so far though.

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    1. @cheritheberry, happy to hear that you had better luck with them than I! As I mentioned mine were so noisy they scared the daylights of both Shih-Tzu and hubby! All the best to you with your job too. Thanks so much for your feedback.

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    2. I've been noticing their product descriptions are becoming increasingly vague overall.

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  10. most of the items i'm interested in aren't included in the promos and the other items that are marked as being part of the 30% off, aren't checking out properly in my cart. nice job, jcrew.

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    1. I noticed that, too. The product page states 30% off full priced but when I add to cart and put in the promo code, no discount is applied. Don't feel like calling so I guess I'm not ordering today.

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    2. Everything is working properly for me, however, once again, their free shipping is not as advertised for me.

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  11. I stopped into jcrew and Madewell and didn't see anything of interest. Honestly. I think the only thing I even looked at was the pleated poly pants which are now NOT on sale and in Madewell, a striped cap. I noted that Gap and many other stores had spring like flowy linen (or linen like) wide leg/cropped pleated pants which I think are a great alternative to shorts. Not sure why Jcrew doesn't do anything like that. Yes they are offering the linen easy pant but it's a thicker stiffer material.

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  12. Long shot: if anyone has a lands' end catalog with one of those 40% off your order cards/code in it.. I'd really appreciate it. I had one (got it in the mail last week)and can't find it now (recycling?) and that code was good for everything and the only other ones I can find are only for full priced merch. Ah, the relentless chasing of promo codes. :D
    Thanks! julielion96ATgmail

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    1. That one is only applying to full priced items (I'm such a cheapskate and want percent of the sale stuff too), but thanks so much! That one will be my fallback if I can't find the other one. It was one of those postcard insert things in my catalog and when I tried it, it was 40% of your order total (everything). Should have used it when I had it in my hand!

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    2. This may not help immediately, but you might consider signing up for LE’s texts. I got a 40% off last week (already used it-sorry).

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  13. Hi Julie, just sent you an email. Good luck!

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  14. Didn’t find anything appealing online except the Regatta Sailboat print skirt which I ordered yesterday at full price. Reminds me of the Old JCRew. The Ratti prints are disappointing. Recently visited the factory in Italy and a showroom in Dubai. They have so many beautiful prints both in silk and cotton and this was the best JCRew could do??? Not good. If anyone has seen the skirt in person please post your opinion. Thanks

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    1. Lynn,
      I'm interested in your visit to the Ratti factory in Italy. Can you buy fabric there?

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    2. No Mary, not within the Factory, however there is an outlet in the area where you can purchase as well as other places in Italy. I’m simply fortunate to be friends. Wish that I knew how to sew, I failed at the age of 12 in school trying to complete an A-line navy skirt. My unfinished work of art was kept by my mother until she passed away last year and found it I one of her trunks. I get teased all the time, can’t even sew a button properly so I’m totally dependent upon tailors or my husband:) I can provide you with names and addresses if you would like, let me know happy to help.

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    3. Lynn,
      I am also interested to hear more about your visit to the Ratti factory in Italy! I have a friend going to Italy soon. What part of the country is it in? If you are able to share contact info I'd be interested , too. Thank you.

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    4. Guanzate in the Lake Como Region is the location of the outlet.

      Via Madonna, 30 Guanzate (Como)

      +39-031-3535668
      They are only open in the afternoon

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    6. Thanks, Lynn. I plan to get back to Italy one of these days and it sounds like the factory would be a good stop. Maybe you should try sewing again? I picked it up after 30 years and find I have more patience and am also less perfectionistic about things going wrong. I ask myself, "Is this better than the craftsmanship in some Third World factory?" and that puts it all into perspective : )

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    7. Thanks Mary for the encouragement. I lost complete interest after my teacher failed me for the skirt project.Patience unfortunately is not one of my virtues. Forgot to mention I never even finished it. :) I do hope you get to go to Italy soon and I’m certain you will love it. Just don’t visit in summer. I’m backing living in Monte-Carlo now and so happy to be close to Italy. If you decide to come over at some point let me know I would be happy to show you around. I grew up half time in the U.S. and Florence,Italy. My mother was from Bologna and my father was Florentine. At least I can cook well.:) Happily married with a little Shih-Tzu named Tango for reference.

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    8. Come on over for a visit and we’ll all have a JCRew party and suggest future Ratti patterns!

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    9. Thanks, Lynn. My father's parents came to the US from Romania, but I've recently found out through DNA and some other research that we're probably from Tuscany. No wonder I felt so at home in Florence when I visited as a teenager many years ago!

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  16. I was really excited to see new versions of the cap-sleeve midi dress for about five seconds. I love everything about this dress except the new floral prints. I think the print from the last iteration was better.

    Noticed they now have a drop down menu under the product image on the "Classic" size page that allows you to view the dress on models of different sizes, no petite size model though. I like the idea behind this feature, although it might be more useful to depict different body types (pear, apple, etc) than different sized bodies. Curious what others think.

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  17. Sorry this too:

    Seteria Ratti
    Villa Sucoto
    Via Cernobbio, 19
    Como

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  18. There are new JCrew arrivals at Nordstrom that aren't on the website yet. There is a very nice dress.

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    1. Nordstrom carries Boden now, too. Free shipping both ways works for me! :)

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  19. jmclaughlin in the U.S. is carrying Ratti Print designs if anyone is interested.

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  20. Great information, i was searching of this kind of information, thank you very much for sharing with us. i also have some links to share norton.com/setup
    www.norton.com/setup

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  21. Últimamente he estado navegando en línea más de tres horas, pero nunca descubrí un artículo que llame la atención como el tuyo.
    Es un precio encantador suficiente para mí. Personalmente, si todos los propietarios de sitios web y blogueros hicieran un excelente material de contenido como
    lo hizo, la web será mucho más útil que nunca.


    https://www.safecasinosite.net

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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! :)