Tag Archives: stylemint

friday finds

It’s Friday and it’s a holiday weekend…is there anything better? I’m off to spend a few days with my family, so forgive me if I take a little extra time off next week. For now, I’ll leave you with enough goodies to keep you sated until I’m back.

First up, a winner for that wildly popular kate spade new york contest! You ladies love your bedding, that’s for sure. I’m always so thrilled when one of our giveaways is a hit like this, so thanks for that. Our winner is lucky number 7, Emily, who won with her Twitter entry @emma621. Congratulations, Emily!

Now, on to more pressing business. Like jewelry. Pretty, delicate, utterly-perfect-for-spring jewelry, to be precise. Amy Wing’s spring collection has me in palpitations, and not just because she’s a dear friend (and because her stunning lookbook was styled by our inimitable Trends Columnist). Particularly this Tiny Blossom lariat, which I’m envisioning as the perfect finishing touch for everything I want to wear all summer.

You may very well fall over when I show you this next find. It’s from Payless Shoes (I nearly fell over just typing that). But hey, even the bargain bins get it right sometimes, and this sweet strappy sandal is spot-on for summer. I love the grosgrain detail, the color-blocking, the woven wicker edging on the wedge (and a very reasonable 2″ wedge it is, by the way). In short, a very excellent summer shoe…for $39.

Remember those Athena Procopiou scarves with which I’ve been utterly obsessed this spring? Well, guess who has two thumbs and found one for half off? Yep…this guy! Best of all, I didn’t snag the only one for myself…get thee to Anthropologie stat, and nab yourself this beautiful thing, which is even more bold, bright and statement-making in person.

I’ve been seriously tempted by these Tribeca pants at StyleMint for the last few weeks, but was convinced I couldn’t pull them off as anything other than sweats. Then, I went to the hairdresser yesterday, and my stylist was wearing the cutest version of sweats ever: a black version of these pants, a cropped, elbow-length sweatshirt, and black suede ankle booties. Her hair was in a perfectly messy side braid, and the whole thing was so fantastic, I was distracted into getting my hair chopped about 3 inches shorter than I was expecting. If you’re feeling brave, this just may be worth a try.

Last but not least, I thought I’d start showing you my favorite thing I’ve pinned on Pinterest each week. Are you pinning yet? I’m itching to bust out a certain perfect black pencil skirt I bought last month, but it’s been too cold. This look might just be the solution!

{via Models Off Duty}

Have a fantastic holiday weekend, friends…don’t forget to splurge on a frosted sugar cookie (or two)!

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test case: stylemint tees

A few of you might have noticed my annoyance with StyleMint, as I vented pretty liberally on Twitter (have you noticed that social media has become the official place to whine?). But, for all of my customer service woes (not to mention my serious irritation with their response-challenged public relations team), I somehow managed to buy a tee to test out for the blog.

For those that don’t know, the basic premise is this: Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen design tees, and sell them in a “club” setting. So, you pay $30/month, and you get one tee for that price, which has been selected for you based on your style preferences. Of course it would be easier to just charge $30 for the tees, but this gives them an air of exclusivity (each is limited edition, and new pieces come out every month). Plus, they charge you the $30 whether you buy a tee or not, unless you “opt out” sometime between the 1st and the 5th of the month.

Confused? Me too.

But, I somehow navigated all those waters and tried out the Prince tee, because I was in the market for a white crew neck tee to pair with my pretty, pretty Valentino jacket from the Outnet $2 sale madness. As we know, crew necks and busty silhouettes don’t mix…so I’ve had a hard time finding a winner.

Turns out, it was worth the work. The Prince tee is pretty excellent. Good shape, sheer without oversharing, and the neckline is sort of a wide crew, so it still shows a bit of skin, which is much more flattering. The cut is great, the fabric is soft, it washed well…two thumbs up to the Olsen girls. If I had one complaint, it’s that I’d be even happier if the tee were an inch or two longer, but then, I’m a tall girl at 5’8″.

So, the upshot: Not so great customer service, but good tees. In fact, I bought a second of the white Prince (if you find a perfect white tee, always buy in multiples!) when they launched a 50% off discount, good today only. If you’re at all interested in testing out StyleMint, it’s a great chance to try the brand, and it’s the first coupon I’ve seen from them. Use code SUMMER50 to nab the deal….just make sure you keep an eye on that account so you don’t get billed for September unless you really want the tee!

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