“Parisian Prep” & Brooks Brothers… on Twitter?

Hello-Hello, happy Monday!

We begin with an interpretation of the prep aesthetic we hadn’t previously encountered, one dubbed “Parisian Prep” by a writer at the Daily Gamecock, USC’s student newspaper.

“Parisian prep is the preppy style to be influenced by, and is not to be confused with the Ivy League prep of Oxford shirts and plaid skirts.”

The writer is Amber Rose, here is more from her column:

“As flawlessly showcased at Louis Vuitton, it includes the classic black-and-white-striped tee paired with bright pastels such as pink, green and muted browns.”

We’re not sure if this is what Ms. Rose had in mind or not, but below we show looks from the upcoming Louis Vuitton Resort collection.

(A personal aside: the logo/LV monogram dress on the right is utterly hideous.) Back to the story:

“Bold tweed suits or accessories are always classically French, beginning years ago with the classic Chanel suit. To make it more “of the now,” pick a graphic pattern in black and white, throw on a solid V-neck or graphic tee underneath and again add some cute flats and a scarf.”

The piece is illustrated with this photo, rather odd as the story’s focus is on feminine styles. But knowing the tight budgets at newspapers these days, let alone student newspapers, we understand the paucity of images, and applaud Ms. Rose for seizing the topic and running with it.

MCT via The Daily Gamecock

It is always fun seeing other interpretations of the style, and hope you enjoy reading about the topic as well.

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A few quick techno-updates of note, both involving prep retailers.  In the “Will wonders never cease?” category, Brooks Brothers has joined Twitter. Upon ‘following’ Brooks on Twitter, one receives a message from the retailer:

“Thx for following America’s Original Clothier. Please view our style legend to see how we’ll be fashioning our Tweets.”

The message links to this image, a brief explainer of acronyms the venerable retailer plans to use when Tweeting. (For the uninitiated, “Tweets” must be 140 characters or less, so abbreviations like these help keep the word count down.)

Courtesy Brooks Brothers

How exactly does the company use the micro-blogging/messaging service? Here is one of today’s Tweets:

While we don’t have any snappy acronyms, we do Tweet; pop over and say ‘hello’ if so inclined. (If interested, Brooks has also established a Facebook page, done in a very Brooks manner.)

Our other update involves Lilly Pulitzer, the company has overhauled its blog, A Colorful Blog.

"A Colorful Life"

The new design is light, bright, and very easy on the eyes, while also maintaining the whimsical style one associates with Lilly.

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We also have a few Sales & Savings to pass on, we’re guessing these will be plentiful between now and the end of the week.

• Fans of Tory Burch may have an interest in tomorrow’s sale at RueLaLa, one of those online ‘members only’ shopping sites; the merchandise will be offered starting at 11am. If in need of an invite, just click here. (Those with a sweet tooth may be intrigued by the Mrs. Prindable’s sale as well, beginning at the same place and time.)
• Neiman’s Last Call is touting 40% off one’s entire purchase, both online and in-store, through Tuesday night at midnight. And call us crazy, but somehow we expect Needless Markup Neimans to offer more discounts this holiday week and weekend.

Speaking of Last Call, the two new Last Call Studio stores are now open in Paramus (NJ) and Rockville (MD).  Leilah at Madison Avenue Spy actually visited one, and posted about the shopping experience, saying the store “…closely resembles a Nordstrom Rack or a Saks Off Fifth.”  Here is a photo at the Studio store Leilah shot.

Via Madison Avenue Spy

We posted about the new ‘Studio’ stores back in October when the company announced their addition to the Neiman’s family and must say, we did not expect the new outlets to look this… well, spartan.  Our sense of how the new chain will do?  On the surface of things it seems likely to further dilute the brand, shoppers won’t know the difference between the three shops: Neiman Marcus, “regular” Last Call stores and Last Call Studio stores.

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For today’s Pretty in Pink feature we leave you with two items, both from museum shops, wonderful places to while away the time as you whittle down your shopping list.  One such place that we love is the MOMA store; below left we show the Fuchsia Lollipop Snowman, $20 ($18 for members); on the right we see the Pink Heart Vase from the Philadelphia Museum of Art, $22.

With that, g’bye until next time!

About Those True Prep Reviews, Savings of the Preppish Sort

Hello-Hello, and welcome to a Wednesday.

Today we have our promised follow-up to yesterday’s post.  That piece focused on our recent interview with True Prep author Lisa Birnbach, and we promised to look at reviews for the book. The Palm Beach Daily News speaks highly of the book:

“Like its predecessor, True Prep sardonically skewers the social customs of the blue blooded and Blue Booked — and, in keeping up with the times, is a far more egalitarian sort of social X-ray.

Preppiness is not for everyone, and that is the gift. It is a club that requires a certain comfort in its singularity — and that, book or no, is what continues to give Birnbach plenty to celebrate in her own effervescent way.”

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At the opposite end of the spectrum, the Crimson’s story is fairly negative:

“For the most part, the book—a series of short little features on subjects as diverse as trunk shows, second weddings, and different types of loafers—is an entertaining encapsulation of one of the most recognizable (and ridiculous) styles under the sun, and the author certainly maintains a healthy sense of humor throughout. But underneath the humor and behind the fun, the book has an odd dimension that suggests some things that are somewhat less whimsical.”

“Birnbach Defines and Undermines the World of ‘True Prep’” was written by a junior at the Harvard daily paper, James K. McAuley; it is unlikely he is fond of “preppies” real, or literary:

“Naturally, there is never an explanation of why prep culture is something worth glorifying or even a subject worthy of two whole books.”

“It just so happens that almost anyone can assimilate into our world of prepdom,” Birnbach says with regard to the subject of preppy Muslims. But, after 234 pages, one has to wonder: why would anyone want to?”

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Spencer Baily at the Book Beast is essentially positive in his look at the new book.

“Birnbach and Kidd’s book proves that there’s a lot about preppies that you probably never knew, nor did I, despite my own preppy background—boarding school, a good beat-up pair of Sperry top-siders, and, well, did you notice my name? To the contrary, I discovered a culture far more widespread—and diverse—than I ever imagined. In the 21st century, prepsterdom is pervasive.”

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Many articles have used a question and answer format, including Allan Peppard’s story in the Dallas Morning News:

“What has the digital age done to the foundation of preppydom?

Rocked it to its core. One thing that defines a preppy is our very primal need for privacy and the digital age has disemboweled that. Privacy is fundamental. Having money was never the goal of life. The goal of life was having fun, having friends and outsmarting the hangover.”

Mr. Peppard notes the challenges of following up on a classic:

“Duplicating a cultural phenomenon is Sisyphean work, but Birnbach is on her way back up the hill…”

Elizabeth Wellington’s story in the Philadelphia Inquirer offers a positive critique in addition to her interview with Ms. Birnbach:

“Certainly 30 years has not been enough time to break through the members-only barriers of some preppy pastimes (still sacred are private school, a second home on the beach, even the three-martini happy hour), but the door to prep fashion is now open to the masses. What once were elitist department store-only brands – Lacoste, Coach, and Lilly Pulitzer – now have their own mall stores (not to mention their own Facebook and Twitter pages). And anyone can masquerade as a preppy, thanks to H&M and Wal-Mart, the modern-day go-to stores for polo-style shirts and khakis.

So much for exclusivity.”

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A substantial amount of verbiage is devoted to the way the prep world has changed since TOPH (The Official Preppy Handbook) was published 30 years ago. (Eek!)  Ms. Wellington posed a number of questions to the author, including one on a topic covered in many interviews:

“How has hip-hop influenced preppy, and how has preppy influenced hip-hop?

Hip-hop borrowed this aesthetic in a big way. They went big and bullish with preppy. It was preppy with a twist. . . What happened is it got to be too much. The logos were too big. Tommy Hilfiger had to ratchet it back a bit because he found it corrupted his mission.”

The hip-hop topic also comes up in the Dartmouth Independent story:

“There is a classic prep style associated with Dartmouth and other Ivy League colleges. I’ve noticed, however, that the hipster look has been trickling in lately. Some have joked that hipsters, rather than being true counter-culturalists, are actually ironic preps.

It’s funny―I’ve never heard him say it, but I have a son who I think is a hipster, or at least he thinks he’s a hipster.”

To see the rest of Ms. Birnbach’s answer to this question, just click here.

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Sarah Boslaugh writes in Playback St. Louis:

“True Prep is dutiful where The Official Preppy Handbook was cheeky and seems more interested in promoting the virtues of prep-dom than taking a satirical look at its foibles.”

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A Continuous Lean

The über-cool Michael Williams at A Continuous Lean was pleasantly surprised by the book:

“When I first learned of the new book I instinctively cringed. Not to be pessimistic, but I just couldn’t see how anything could be as good as the original.

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Though there are a few style related things in the book that I cannot endorse (which will go unnamed here), I have to say that after reading it with the mindset that the book is not meant to be a “part II,” (it is designed to complement the original) I really liked it. I also must admit that I was wrong about Lisa and True Prep. It is a worthy read and money well spent.

Clearly it is a mixed bag among the professional writers, just as it is with the preppy blog world.

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Many retailers are not having the much-improved 4th quarter sales they hoped for, and that means prices are dropping, promotional efforts are underway and discounts abound. We leave you with a sampling of several Sales & Savings Opportunities.

• Neiman Marcus is doing First Call.

Neiman Marcus

• And Neiman’s Last Call is taking 30% a broad range of products.

• Saks has its ‘Sneak Peek’ sale underway. (Perhaps we’re just thick, it looks very much like a regular sale to us.)

Saks Fifth Avenus

• Ever-more-promotional J. Crew is touting its Holiday Sale. (We’re unsure what holiday is being celebrated.)

J. Crew

• And Talbots is offering an additional 25% off all sale items.

We sign off with a wish and the hope that our military veterans will receive special goodness tomorrow, and every day.

The List: a Preppy Black Friday

Hello-Hello and Gobble-Gobble!

For those thinking about an excursion (there’s a euphemism!) of a retail kind in the next several days, we offer our list of Sales and Savings this Thanksgiving weekend.  We may update it once again before the weekend concludes, but are more likely to revel in the company of family and preparations for our Pink & Green Monday!

That’s right, 20% off everything at The Princess for one day only, complete with our free gift wrapping! Use promo code PGM at checkout to receive your discount on all of our preppy goodies!

Here is information on other preptastic retailers; well, mostly preptastic. As always, check with your local store, shopping center or outlet mall for specific hours and details.

J. Crew: Already underway online, take an additional 20% off merchandise only, use promo code EXTRA20 at checkout.

J. Crew Outlet stores: before 8am Friday morning take an additional 40% off Clearance merchandise, other weekend discounts at Crew outlets include 30– 50% off select holiday styles & 30–40% off select Crewcuts holiday styles.

Lacoste: Already underway online, 30% off all merchandise, use promo code THANKS09 at checkout to receive the discount; ends 11/30/09.

Lilly Pulitzer: On Friday only spend $500 and receive a limited edition Resort Tote like the one seen below (a $200 value); gift wrapping is also complimentary all day on Friday.

Courtesy Lilly Pulitzer

Polo Ralph Lauren: Already underway, 25% Off, use promo code HOL2009, ends 12/7/09

Ralph Lauren Factory Stores: 20% discount on purchases of $150+ after midnight Thanksgiving night/Friday morning until 10am.

Brooks Brothers: Friday & Saturday 7am – Noon receive an additional 15% off your entire purchase; receive an additional 5% when using your MasterCard or your Brooks Brothers Platinum MasterCard.

Brooks Brothers Factory Stores: 40 percent off all items until Sunday, and an extra 10 percent off of this Friday and Saturday until noon.

Banana Republic: We have heard but have not confirmed that on Friday only cashmere sweaters will be Buy One, Get One free

Banana Republic Outlets: 40% Off Any Purchase.

Ann Taylor: “Style Steals” on various items now through Sunday.

Ann Taylor Loft: “Style Steals” on various items now through Sunday.

Tommy Hilfiger Outlet Stores: 40% off the entire store all day on Black Friday and additional discounts for specific days; to download coupons providing these markdowns, click here.

The Gap: Already underway and online-only, 50% off all regularly-priced  Men’s & Women’s Sweaters, Kids & Baby Cozy Fleece styles.

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Here is what we can share on the more standard department stores, offered with an apology for the more East Coast-centric emphasis:

Saks 5th Avenue: Starts online Thursday and at 8am Friday in stores, up to 60% off original prices on selections for her & him, various additional offers too lengthy to list; also free shipping for any online order, use promo code HOLIDAY9, offer valid through midnight Monday night (the 30th)

Neiman Marcus: The Women’s Apparel Sale is already underway with up to 40% off original prices; there is also free shipping on any online orders until midnight 11/3/09, use promo code NMNOV at checkout.

Neiman Marcus Last Call: Shoppers using their Neiman’s card will receive an additional 25% off, ends 12/1; select stores are open midnight-8am as well, click here for details.

Barneys: their sale is already underway online with up to 40% off on select merchandise.

Bergdorf Goodman: free shipping with any online order, use promo code SHOPBG at checkout.

For more information on special sales, promotions and the like, here are a few general interest sites that may be of assistance:

• Black-Friday.net
• BlackFridayAds
• GottaDeal.com
• BlackFriday2009.com

With that, farewell until next time, and may everyone enjoy a simply splendid Thanksgiving!

Gobble-Gobble.

Those ‘Filthy Rich Teens’ & The New T Studio at Tommy Hilfiger

Hello everyone, how is everyone today?

Regular readers know we aren’t prone to public navel-gazing or introspective monologues in this space, with the exception of a few posts related to respect and remembrance of our military personnel. So we shan’t go into any long dissertations on the events of yesterday afternoon and evening, other than to say it certainly was a rather strange and bizarre turn of events.

Moving on, we have a quick glance at Gossip Girl star Blake Lively‘s latest style statement as she headed into last night’s gala opening of the new Swarovski Crystallized store in Soho.

PHOTO: Andrew H. Walker/Getty

Much of the conversation among guests centered on yesterday’s west coast events, especially as it was only Wednesday that Swarovksi announced they were doing the costumes for Michael Jackson’s upcoming concerts.

Also out and about in the city last evening, Ms. Lively’s co-star Leighton Meester, seen in Thakoon as she heads over to MTV for a taping.

PHOTO: Janet Mayer/Splash News Online

We seem to have spent an inordinately large amount of time discussing  Gossip Girl this week, including this post on sales of actor Chace Crawford’s People magazine cover issue vs. a Kate Gosselin cover on another magazine. (The numbers favored Ms. Gosselin.) Now it seems People is heading down the same path as that other magazine; behold their July 6th issue:

Courtesy People Magazine

As we have already spent too much time on G2, it seems only appropriate to spend even more time on the topic, sharing this link to a very funny WaPo (Washington Post) story comparing Gossip Girl with NYC Prep.  Here is the paper’s synopsis:

After watching the first episode of Bravo’s new “Gossip Girl”-as-reality-series show “NYC Prep” (it debuted last night), WaPoTeamTV’s “Gossip Girl” correspondent Emily Yahr decided she much prefers watching the filthy rich Made-for-TV Teens of the CW soap to the filthy rich Actual Teens featured on “Prep.”

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A few speedy more updates for you this afternoon, particularly a reminder the rather significant Sales & Savings opportunities continue at almost any establishment where preps might shop.  Not only are Brooks Brothers, J. Crew and Talbots all doing substantial markdowns and discounts, the major department stores are as well.

Neiman Marcus is promoting “An Additional 25% Already Reduced Prices” along with complimentary shipping regardless of how much one spends.

The promo code to receive no-cost shipping at Neimans is NMSUMMER.

Barneys is doing the additional discount, without the complimentary shipping:

Completing the trifecta is Saks, also offering no-charge shipping at any purchase amount, use promo code SAKSSHIP9.

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In other retail notes, on the heels of a successful opening for their new Tommy Hilfiger store in the Hamptons, there is word the retailer has plans to generate buzz for that location in another way, with the launch of ‘T Studio.’

PHOTO: Courtesy Tommy Hilfiger via Hamptons.com

Starting next Saturday (July 4th), the first 50 folks visiting the new Studio at the East Hampton store receive a silk-screened tee made to their specs. There will only be 50 made each week, so these are being dubbed “limited editions,” a very interesting maneuver on the part of the Hilfiger marketing machine.

It will be fun to watch this one play out and see if the concept is launched in other locations. This is only the company’s 10th free-standing store, an excellent location to test-drive the idea.

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As discussed in this post, the Coach Poppy line is officially on sale today, and there are some wonderful, fun, whimsical pieces.

This of course circles back to that whole ‘new definition of luxury’ and ‘changing pricepoint’ issue we keep reading and posting about. As this story from AP notes:

“The Poppy collection follows through with Coach’s previously announced plan to lower prices 10 percent to 15 percent … The strategy includes offering half of its handbags – about 70 different types – for $200 to $300.”

Do let us know if you end up acquiring any treasures from the Collection, sharing is caring!

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Finally, how many readers would recognize this as a Target store?

PHOTO: Bruce Bisping/Star-Tribune

Yes, it is the new Target concept store located in downtown Minneapolis, not far from the retailer’s headquarters. This story in the Star-Tribune explains the mini-grocery store opened in October:

“the company has since added fresh meat, chicken and produce to 14 general merchandise stores around the country. Other Twin Cities test stores are at Ridgedale and Medina. The concept will expand to 100 stores by year’s end.”

Would you purchase fresh fruit and veggies at your local Target? It is how the company plans to compete with the behemoth known as Wal-mart. Perhaps the one and only Queen Bee Swain can investigate, it is in her neck of the woods, although not in her back yard.

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With that we say adieu until next time, may your weekends be splendid, full of fun and spent in the company of those you love.

Le Wintour, Preppy Sales #34

Hello and Happy New Week everyone!

Did everyone watch the goings-on over at Roland Garros leading up to this photo?

PHOTO: Christophe Ena/AP

We’ll cut to the chase and simply say we were ever-so-pleased to see Roger Federer win the French Open, completing his career Grand Slam, tying Pete Sampras’ record of 14 major singles titles.

Now, we don’t want to offend anyone by discussing something not entirely devoted to what took place on the court, but we simply must lower ourselves and wallow in some idle gossip, rumor and innuendo. (If you’re doing one of those, why not all three?)  What magazine editor recently profiled on Sixty Minutes suddenly disappeared before the Jason Wu resort show even started last week? And where do we think said editor went in such a rush?

PHOTO: Benoit Tessier/Reuters

Presumably you spotted Ms. Wintour in the photo, one row behind and to the right of Mr. Federer’s wife, Mirka.  Yes, she scooted out of the Wu show and headed to the far side of the pond, making it in time to see the finals.

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We have lots of offerings in our Sales and Savings category today, beginning with Bergdorf Goodman continuing their Designer Sale.

Next, J. Crew is taking an additional 20% off their Sale prices. That means one of our faves, the Super 120’s Blair dress is now roughly $112; its original selling price was $188.

J. Crew

The darling Girls’ Spring Court Tennis shoes are approximately $39.60 when factoring in the additional discount; marked down from $60, that’s a reduction of about 33%.

J. Crew

Not what some might refer to as a ‘screaming deal,’ but in These Challenging Times, any savings is nothing to sneeze at, oui? To receive the discount at Crew use promo code EXTRA20 at checkout.

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Also offering fiscally friendly pricing, Neiman Marcus with new additions to their Sale and Clearance sections in store and online.  Many readers know of our insane obsession fondness for the Stella McCartney Sail Print dress:

This treasure is now $597 at Needless Markup Neimans; the company is also offering complementary shipping, no minimum purchase required, a beautiful thing IOHO.  Just enter promo code NMSHIP during checkout. (Net-a-Porter has the same dress on sale; their price is currently $696.)

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No one is ever surprised when hearing one of our online favorites is LL Bean. 

There are loads of goodies on sale at Bean as well; don’t dawdle too terribly long or someone may snag your size.

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We want to mention Talbots as well; they are taking 40% off their already reduced sale items. This includes their Petites sale merchandise, as well as all sale items in both Woman and Woman Petite sizes.

In other news about Talbots, word today they have *finally* managed to unload sold J. Jill.  A private equity firm is purchasing the women’s clothier for a reported $75 million; Talbots paid $517 three years ago.  According to Reuters:

“Talbots will close 75 J. Jill stores within 60 days. The remaining 204 stores will be transferred to Golden Gate Capital.”

Is there a J. Jill in your corner of the globe….?

With that, we say “tune in tomorrow,” as we have a bit of an announcement scheduled for this space.