Mmkay, so, where basic tees and tops are concerned, the quality and trend-factor of Alternative Apparel’s obvs on par with American Apparel. The problemo? Some of the styles cost upwards of $50 a pop. NOT COOL.
Yes, they go on sale and yes, Buffalo Exchange usually has some old Alternative inventory priced in the fifteen dollar [...]

This morning, I set out on a Google quest. Objective: To attain a general understanding of vintage price points in order to calculate the extent to which NYC-metro-based vintage rips off those who purchase it. This lead to a ‘wholesale vintage’ search, which affirmed my suspicions. More on that later, for the ‘wholesale’ component yielded [...]

Fashionista released the first images of Zac Posen for Target last week. Here’s my knee-jerk reaction to a selection of the JPEGs.

The Raincoat – dig the color, cut looks reasonably flattering. The Ruched Skirt – meh overall, demerits for an in-between length that makes 90% of legs look stumpy. The hat – why?

The Snap Tape [...]

Yesterday afternoon, I checked out the second installment of Jil Sander x Uniqlo (a.k.a. +J). It did not disappoint.

The Spring collection proved more varied than its Winter counterpart, but still managed to maintain Sander’s sleek, minimalist chic.
Egads, I just sounded like a fashion writer there. Gross. Sorry.
I waited in line for approximately five minutes [...]

Mmkay, so, I’m in the MoMA store the other day, drooling over all this uber original shiznat I want to give as gifts but can’t afford to buy, when I happen upon the Muji section.
Muji is basically the epitome of modern, minimalist, practical chic. It’s like Uniqlo’s aesthetic applied to a smaller, cooler selection of [...]

Some foodstuffs are better left unmixed. Take peanut butter and blue cheese, for instance: Delicious individually, vomit-inducing when paired.
Some materials and prints are also better left unmixed. Velvet and Leopard are fine on their own, but their marriage is not a happy one.
Witness the carnage in the form of Diane von Furstenberg’s Wilma Joon [...]

I’ve got nothing against occasionally splurging on athletic-inspired apparel; if it’s comfy enough to wear to the gym and cute enough to double as weekend attire, you’re probs going to wear it 24/7. I haven’t tried on anything Alexander McQueen for Puma, so I can’t honestly speak to how it fits or feels. I can, [...]

Nearly nine months ago, I took a bold and possibly misguided stand against $24 camisoles.
Maybe Anthropologie’s Plain and Simple Eloise Cami was the most magical one I’d ever purchased. Maybe I’d worn it for two years straight to the point of pilling. But I’d bought it before my Cheap JAP days; a time when such [...]

Additional merch and musings on last week’s exhaustifying Century 21 excursion:
I heart 8020 Wedge Boots for two reasons:
1. They prove heel height and walkability are not mutually exclusive.
2. They’re on sale at Century 21, which means I never have to pay full price for them again.

I’ll reiterate the numbers above: Every 8020 style was on [...]

Until yesterday, I’d never seen Simply Vera Vera Wang up close. That’s because until yesterday, I’d never before set foot in a Kohl’s. There’s still a JAP in Cheap JAP, after all . Some field research resulted in multiple surprises – some good, some bad, some reallyfuckingugly.
Overall, Simply Vera’s a line of decent quality [...]

Mmkay, so I’m in the market for some kickass ankle boots, preferably ones with a walkable heel. A bunch o’ Googling shoes of this ilk yielded too many options, so I decided to challenge myself a bit. I narrowed my search to include only eco-friendly and/or vegan boots (same diff, as far as I know, [...]

Note: I wrote this on October 1 – the day UNIQLO + J came out – and apparently forgot to hit the Publish button. Can I get a ditz?! Oy. See below.
Today, I pulled the nucking futs move of waiting in line for a look at Uniqlo’s collabs with Jil Sander, UNIQLO + J. Waiting [...]

So. I’m all kinds of obsessed with Only Hearts, in part because I’m a layering fiend, in part because I’m all about wearing lingerie-esque things in public. I snagged two tops at last week’s Only Hearts Sample Sale; a thick strapped cami ($14) and a wrap/tie tank ($16), both in cream, because cream is for [...]

Tell editorial fashion peeps you’re in the market for faux, and you’ll likely be directed to Joie’s $318 Glimmer Faux Fur Vest, Juicy Couture’s $328 Faux Fur Cropped Easy Coat or What Comes Around Goes Around’s $495 St. Morritz Faux Fur Jacket. Lucky for you, I’m not that big of an asshole.
(Oh, and I’ve [...]

Cher: Been shopping with Dr. Suess?
Dionne: Well at least I wouldn’t skin a collie to make my back pack.
Cher: It’s faux.
Cher’s concern for animals trumped her desire for authentic fluff – she did “fully intend to brake for animals” post-passing her driving test, after all. So, on this day of atonement, let’s pretend to [...]

So. I recently purchased the black Silk Jumper from Anna Sui’s mostly-cute-albeit-grammatically-challenged Gossip Girl line for Target (as previously mentioned).
I did not buy this piece to wear on its own (I mean, it’s cute, but not nearly fitted enough for my usual standards – I’m not shaking the Jersey any time soon). I bought it [...]

Clutches are exactly what the name implies; to carry this kind of purse, you have to give up a free hand. I thought clutches of the wristlet ilk were the only means to making the burden more bearable. Then I saw this:

You’re probs thinking Qui gives a shit? It’s got a freakin’ bow on it. [...]

Is Burlington Coat Factory a slightly creepy brands-for-less chain? Yes.
Is Burlington Coat Factory a place where you can buy a season’s worth of hosiery and socks for under forty bucks? Also yes.

Back in June, I made the mistake of cutting the feet off of every single pair of tights I owned. I wore them with [...]

Okay, so ASui for Tar-jay has a few downs; it’s also got a whole lotta ups. I’m referring specifically to the Dresses category, which boasts an abundance of awesomeness unparalleled in any designer collabs collection to date.
Of the four dresses I tried on, I genuinely liked three, was borderline-obsessed with two, and ended up purchasing [...]

The moment McQueen for Tar-jay hit the racks was the moment I stopped giving a shit about designer collabs. I’m not overly familiar with McQueen RTW, but I assume it’s a bit more attractive than his cost-friendly effort (and I use that term loosely). Is copying your own designs really that difficult? Oy.
I can, on [...]