Shampoo Solo

For some reason I feel like not a lot of people know about Mindy Ephron’s fabulous blog, Things I’ve Bought That I Love, and I don’t know why that is.

First of all, the writing is amazing; here is a little scoop for you to sample:

J.Crew totally went off its meds this year and I fucking loved it. Zebra stripes. Book prints on textiles. Embroidered critters on ties, pants, even cashmere. Polka dot satin shoes. Platinum silver down parkas. And oh, the colors!

(Yes, I have been saying that things have gone off their meds recently, and this is where I stole it.)

If that’s not enough to convince you to read — and, frankly, it should be — perhaps I should tell you that Mindy Ephron is actually Mindy Kaling, one of the fabulous (striking) writers of The Office*. Oh, and she also plays Kelly.

Go ahead, bookmark it.

*Yes, I do feel like an ass for linking out to Hulu episodes.

In my never-ending pursuit of clothing, I used this three-day weekend to finally take a look at two very hyped low-level lines, which I’ve been meaning to do for months, and even moreso recently, given my self-imposed ban on designer goods in Q1 (Disclaimer: I failed; I found a Marc Jacobs blouse for 80% off at an outlet, and I just couldn’t resist. Ban revised to apply only to designer prices, not the clothes). I like to think that Dr. King would be proud (he wouldn’t).

Gentlemen, please proceed to the next site on your browsing agenda.

Simply Vera
Grade: B-
In theory, Simply Vera is everything I like about clothes, be they Vera or not — muted colors, careful ruching and pretty draping. The designs are pretty, and still inventive, even for a thrify label; the prices, though, are still of the break-the-bank variety ($70 for a cardigan, $50 for a camisole). My biggest complaint — the sizing is odd, and I don’t love how cheap chic has simply come to mean unfinished hems. The fact that I got the dress below for $13, though, means I would make a return trip — it’s listed online as $53. Oops!

Bitten
Grade: D
I’ve wanted to check out Sarah Jessica Parker’s Bitten line — available only at Steve and Barry’s, a store you’ve probably never heard of (I hadn’t) — since it launched. The nearest store was a haul, so we built a few other out-of-the-way errands around it. SJP’s ‘manifesto’ about Bitten is: ‘It is every woman’s inalienable right to have a pulled-together [sic] stylish, confident wardrobe with money left over to live.’ Essentially — nothing should cost more than $20. (SJP apparently only plays a writer on TV: In addition to that dropped comma, I found a number of tags where ‘wardrobe’ was spelled ‘watdrobe’ throughout the store.) I could crap all over the clothes all day but I’ll sum it up this way: Nothing I saw of Bitten should cost more than $10, and, even though everything in the store was on sale $8.99, I didn’t buy a single thing. It was all cheaply made knits, unlined pencil skirts, and lame logoed tees.