Downtown Duncan

Scoop NYC Sale

I should have posted about this last weekend, but it’s going on until the end of the month, and they are replacing items they sell out of all month (it’s all coming from the warehouse). I stopped by the Meatpacking store (430 W. 14th St.) last Sunday thinking the choices would be slim since the sale started last week. I couldn’t believe what great deals I found; many things are close to 90% off! You take an additional 50% off everything on both floors, and most items are already on sale. They carry many of my favorite lines, including 3.1 Phillip Lim, DVF, Rag & Bone, Elizabeth & James, Zac Posen, Theory, Missoni, and more. I walked away with great heels from Elizabeth & James, Michael Kors, and Moschino.

They have a sale section on the website, but it’s really just a few items (Scoop). You can take a look, but I recommend that if you’re in nyc, you should go to the store. They also have a decent selection of men’s clothes, shoes, and accessories. 

LF Semi-Annual sale this weekend

This is a view of the Soho store on Spring St. There is also one on 5th Ave. (between 19th and 20th) as well as stores in Southampton, White Plains, Greenwich, Westport, Boston, Miami, LA (where they originated so there are 5 of them), Santa Barbara, SF, and Dallas.

It’s one of my favorite stores, because there is such an eclectic mix of clothes, shoes, and accessories that you can find, but it is overpriced most of the year. In August and February each year, they hold a big sale where everything is 60% off. On Monday, I received an invitation to their private sale on Friday. How this works is that the customers who have spent the most money at LF since the previous sale are invited to shop Thursday evening. Then tomorrow, the stores will remain closed to the public and will let the next group of best customers in starting in the morning, and then they will close between 1-2pm to put things in order. At 2pm, they will invite the last group of select customers to shop. During the private sale, everyone receives an additional 10% off on top of the 60% off. 

On Saturday, the 60% off sale will open to the public, and it will be madness. Go in the morning when the stores open, and try to go in with an idea of what you want to buy if you’ve shopped recently or if you’ve checked out their lookbook on their website (LF Stores). After a few weeks, they will begin to mark down items significantly, such as tops, jeans, and dresses (woven tops: $24, jeans: $28, dresses $24). Then shoe prices will drop to about $24 and boot prices to about $34. Stores will continue the sale through March; they will get Spring merchandise in sometime mid-March, but there will be a section of the store with leftover sale items, and they usually finish up at the end of March when any leftovers are sent to the warehouse in LA, which will hold a big 2-day warehouse sale at the beginning of summer.

This week’s sample sales: Update

I wanted to add a couple more sales to this week’s list.

Christian Louboutin: If you missed their private sample sale, they are hosting a private pre-sale event TODAY 3-6pm.

Expect shoes to be marked down 30-40% off and handbags 50% off (and free champagne and macaroons). 

Send a quick email RSVP to: Events.MadisonNY@ChristianLouboutin.FR

Elizabeth & James Jewelry: 233 Spring St., 10th Floor, Thursday, Dec. 15: 11am-6pm

This week’s sample sales

(Source: ny.racked.com)

Online Fashion Week

Vogue.co.uk is holding an online fashion week this week, Dec. 5-9, which seems like a Fashion’s Night Out online version. Currently they have promotional codes for Zadig & Voltaire (private sale), ASOS (20%), CollardManson (free purse), Whistles, Alexander McQueen (10%), and more specials being posted daily this week at:  http://www.vogue.co.uk/online-fashion-week

This week’s sample sales

(Source: ny.racked.com)

ShoeMint launches

First came JewelMint from Kate Bosworth, then StyleMint from Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, then BeautyMint from Jessica Simpson, and last Friday, ShoeMint launched from Rachel Bilson. These are membership sites that give you items to choose from each month.

For Rachel Bilson’s shoes, each pair is $79.99 (sizes 5-11). She teamed up with her stylist, Nicole Chavez, and Steve Madden. Users will get recommendations every month based on the results of a personality quiz you take when you sign up at www.shoemint.com

Below you can see some of the shoes that will be featured on ShoeMint.

You can get 20% off your first pair with the code 20InStyle.

At www.beautymint.com, take $10 off your first order with code MINT10. The website charges $39.99 or $49.99 per month, depending on if you want 4 or 5 skincare items with each monthly shipment. 

Kate Bosworth teamed up with celebrity stylist Cher Coulter for www.jewelmint.com, where jewelry is $29.99 per month for your favorite picks. Your first item is 55% off with code RETAIL.

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen pick out some of their favorite basic t-shirts for www.stylemint.com. Use code SAVER for 15% off your first shirt (they are $29.99 normally).

All of these websites offer free shipping both ways.

Favorite Swimwear

Many of you will be traveling to warm destinations next month to escape the cold, so I wanted to share my favorite swimsuit brands with you.

Vix: I became a fan of this brand over the summer when Club Monaco was carrying it. I ended up buying 3 great bikinis. Vix also has some nice one piece suits if you prefer more coverage. The fabric is 84% polyamide and 16% elastane, and because of the quality, I’ve found that the swimsuits retain their shape really well (and it ensures that you will avoid having saggy bottoms). People have told me that they look “expensive.”

I like the combination of gray and gold. The top comes with a detachable strap that goes around your neck as a halter. I couldn’t find the above 2 suits online, but the black one also comes in white: 

It took me a long time to find the perfect white bikini (so many of them end up being see-through when wet). I got this twisted bandeau top 

with this bottom: 

It comes with a detachable strap that turns it into a halter (you can use it if there are some big waves, and you’re worried about losing your top).

I like bold, solid colors, such as red and royal blue (looking at the photos below, maybe this has something to do with growing up in Kansas and liking KU colors), but I think they look good on most skin tones, especially royal blue.

Salinas: I usually prefer solid colors over prints, but this colorful print is so fun, and even though I got it many years ago, it’s still one of my favorites. I have several Salinas bikinis, and I think they fit great (maybe this has something to do with them being made in Brazil since Vix is also made in Brazil).

AllSaints: I have a couple different swimsuits that I ordered from their archive site when they were about 70% off. I especially like the sequin Paloma bikini. Even though the tag warns you not to wear the suit in chlorine, salt water, hot water, direct sunlight, etc. I had no problem wearing it on the beach and swimming in salt water (just remember to hand wash in cold water immediately after wearing it).

Gap Body: I like their basic string bikinis; a few years ago, I bought them in several colors, and I like how these fit more than other basic string bikinis.

Please take care of your swimwear to make sure it lasts for more than one wear or one season. This means you should hand wash everything in cold water and mild soap or baby shampoo immediately after wearing it and set it out to dry. Keep in mind that some bathing suits in bright colors might fade if you spend time a lot of time in the jacuzzi or chlorinated water (as well as direct sunlight). To help prevent this, you can try to soak new suits in 1 tablespoon of vinegar mixed with 1 quart of water for 30 minutes.

Student Discounts

Many businesses offer student discounts if you show your ID, but they’re usually not advertised well.

• Club Monaco (20% off; I use this one a lot)
• Topshop (10% off; in Europe, if you have an NUS card, you get 20% off)
• ASOS (Europeans get 10% off with their NUS card)
• J. Crew (15% off)
• Almost all museums in NYC and many cities offer student discounts
• Broadway shows (some have tickets in front two rows for $20 and go to the first people in line when the box office opens around 10am or noon on Sundays) info: http://www.playbill.com/celebritybuzz/article/82428-Broadway-Rush-Lottery-and-Standing-Room-Only-Policies
• Opera (in nyc: $25 weekdays, $35 weekends for students under 29 available morning of performance)
• Concerts (carnegie hall: $10 student rush tickets available online too)
• Many restaurants (especially near universities) offer at least 10% off
• Many salons and spas offer discounts, so don’t be afraid to ask
• Comedy clubs, movie theaters, etc.
• Transportation (trains, car rentals, etc.)

Allure Beauty Box ($29.99 for $250 worth of products)