Monthly Archive for June, 2009

You’d Better Shop Around …

Published on June 29, 2009 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

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Frugal is as frugal does.

Are you getting ready to pull the trigger on that dress you’ve been eyeing on Bluefly? Planning to order photos on Snapfish?  Need to buy necessities at drugstore.com?  Before you click “purchase”, make sure your items are saved in your shopping cart and look around online for discount coupons.  These coupons knock off anywhere from a little bit to a lot from your purchase prices with deals that include free shipping, 10% off, $5 off and the like.  Never buy anything online without looking for a coupon first.  Simply google “[item] coupon” and websites like CouponCabin.com, Retailmenot.com, momsview.com, couponmountain.com, dealtaker.com, and gogoshopper.com will pop up – some of these sites feature over more than 1,000 online retailers.  The savings are definitely worth the extra 5 or 10 minutes that it takes to locate the coupon.  While not all of the coupons you’ll find are valid, if you persevere and are shopping at a name brand retailer – Bloomingdales, Target, Walmart, Neiman Marcus, JCrew, Saks, Victoria’s Secret,etc – you will find a coupon!   Take a moment to shop around and guarantee yourself some savings.

And you thought clipping coupons was something your Grandmother did – get with the times!

Full Figure Fashion Week

Published on June 21, 2009 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

The first ever Full Figure Fashion Week (FFFW) takes place this week, June 25th – June 27th, in New York just a few blocks away from Bryant Park and the tents of the famed Olympus Fashion Week.

The event is the collective brain-child of independent fashion designers, retailers, event producers, models and plus size industry businesses to increase economic development in the area of plus size fashion design, clothing merchandising and plus size modeling. The group’s goal is to highlight the very best in plus size fashions – both retail and independent designers, while providing an inaugural showcase of talented designers, models, stylists and plus size industry businesses that serve the plus size consumer.

Approximately 40 million women, that’s 60% of  women in the United States, wear at least a size 14.  Full-figure or plus-size refers specifically to clothing labelled size 14 and upwards for women.  Historically, it’s been difficult for full figured women to find well-made stylish clothes.  The internet, however, has birthed many online retailers catering to plus size women, including eskandar, Old Navy Plus, Figuresque, Torrid, iGigi, eShakti, Evans and b&lu to name a few. In fact, industry researchers actually expect the plus size clothing market to continue growing faster than the overall clothing market into 2011. With this growth comes trendy new styles that – at one time – were only made available to straight sized women.

Gwen DeVoe, the Executive Producer of FFFWeek says, “It is time for designers, retailers, boutique owners and businesses with an interest in the plus size market to combine their resources and their talents to create a memorable event that will rival all other Fashion Weeks. We are uniquely qualified to make this event a success because we work directly with plus-size consumers and know what they want. They want great fitting, fashionable clothing that is readily available in stores and online. The plus-size consumer is a loyal consumer and because quality fashion items are so hard to find, they will be loyal to brands that they like.”

Kudos to those behind this momentous event!  It’s about time that all shapes and sizes are celebrated by the fashion industry.

Good Things Come in Small Packages

Published on June 15, 2009 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , .

Petite is defined in Webster’s as “one having a small trim figure – usually used [to describe] a woman.”  Petite-sized women account for 56% of the female population. Isnt it ironic that the fashion industry seems to based on tall thin women when a larger portion of the retail buying population is the exact opposite of the illusion created by the fashion industry? Well I guess if we learned nothing else from The Devil Wears Prada, we learned that fantasy rules the retail industry, not reality. In the retail world, manufacturers consider anyone under 5’4” petite, whether you are a size 2 or a size 16. Petite sizes aren’t just smaller than Misses sizes; if made well, they should be proportioned differently with shorter neck-to-waist and waist-to-hip measurements. Kim Williams Dahlman, a petite fashion industry expert, says, “[t]he most common misconception about petite fashions is that they are designed strictly for the diminutive woman whose size is in the single digits. Petite sizing actually is based on height, not weight. People mistakenly perceive petite as being for small women. There are a lot of women who would get a better fit with petite sizes, but they don’t realize it.”

Half the battle for those of us smaller in stature is finding clothes that are made with the proper proportions. Some manufacturers do a better job of this than others. If you find a retailer or a designer whose clothing proportions fit you perfectly, count yourself lucky and buy as much of their clothing as your budget will permit. If you’re like me and find that even though petite sizes essentially provide a better fit, but not a perfect fit, you may still need to have even your petite-sized clothes tailored. I’ve learned the hard way that it’s much easier for my tailor to tailor a petite-sized item to fit my frame than it is for her to tailor the same item in a Misses size. My motto is: The petite woman’s best friend is her tailor, not diamonds! I’m on a first name basis with my tailor, she’s one of my BFFs. Whether tall or short, thin or a bit thick around the middle, having your clothes tailored to your physique really can make all the difference.

Kalyn’s Shopping Rate of Return

Published on June 7, 2009 in Uncategorized. 3 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , .

Is it time for a new purse? Suit? Do you need a new cocktail dress for the round of parties you’re invited to this Summer?  It may be time for something new, but for most of us the question is, “Can I really afford to buy a new XXX right now?”  I’ve come up with an equation to help you really figure out how much one of these “needed” items may cost you, I call it KALYN’S SHOPPING RATE of RETURN:

The Relative Market Value of the Item ≑ The Number of Wears Per Year = The Expected Rate of Return on Clothing Assets

Look at it like this, most of us have, at a minimum, a few items we regret purchasing. You know, those items you haven’t worn because: (i) it looked better on the hanger in the store than it does in your closet; (ii) you thought you’d lose that 5 pounds you needed to in order for it to fit properly, or (iii) you bought it in a pinch because you didn’t have something to wear, you wore it one time and each time you reach for it you put it back because you just don’t love it … So, let’s say you’re in the process of dusting your resume off and your old interview suit as well. If your old interview suit doesn’t make you feel like a million bucks, you may want to consider buying a new one that does – think of it as an investment in your future. Now, its time to do the math. If the suit is on sale for $600 and you wear it 10 times in the next year (let’s say you wear it to 4 interviews, a Bar Mitzvah, 2 luncheons, and to work 3 times because you did get that new job), the suit only ends up costing you $60 per wear. That’s as much as you spend on Starbucks in a two-week time span …  Think it over while you sip that latte.