The Tory Burch Sofa, “Preppy Tec” & Barack Obama Inaugural Sketches (including Vineyard Vines)

Hello-Hello and Happy Day!

We have a number of quick topics we shall fly through this blustery day, but first we must say “Thank you” to everyone playing along in what has been dubbed the ‘Quiz the Consort Post‘ from this weekend!  In case you missed it, the Consort did a post about the next Giveaway, and all anyone need do to enter is leave a comment on any post asking the Consort a Question! (Frankly, we are a bit concerned; does anyone really think we need to encourage his behavior? Honestly.)

First, the Tory Burch Couch at Nordstrom, part of their Ultimate Gift Collection.

Tory Burch at Nordstrom

The group of upscale gifts was introduced the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, partly in response to the Black Friday discounts at Nordie’s competitors. Other items in the six-piece Collection include a family portrait sitting with noted photographer Sam Jones; there are two of these packages at $50,000 per package.  Perhaps of more interest to TPP readers, an armoire loaded with “everything from the world of Juicy” at $15,000.  FYI, these items are only available online.

If not inclined to partake of the Ultimate Gifts, the Nordstrom sale continues, providing an opportunity for today’s Pretty in Pink! For your consideration we offer the Smythe Quilted Mini Jacket, at $384.90, 40% off the original selling price. Free shipping with purchases over $100 is also available through the 18th; the promo code is HOLIDAY08.

Smythe Quilted Jacket at Nordstrom.com

And speaking of Tory Burch, we neglected to mention she opened her new shop in Manhattan last week.  Located in the Meatpacking District, it is just one of five the designer plans to open in the next year.

PHOTO: Talaya Centeno for WWD

It is the second Manhattan location for Ms. Burch, who is hoping to expand into the Home category in 2009.  And she is relaunching the Tory Burch website within the next two weeks.

PHOTO: Talaya Centeno for WWD

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We learned a new term today, “Techno-Prep.” This comes from online fashion retailer ASOS.com, described in part below by Ian Bryder, in charge of the company’s Menswear Design.

“For our Preppy trend – which we’ve christened ‘Preppy Tec’ – we’re presenting a sharp, contemporary take on the classic American Ivy League look but with a softer, more colourful palette, influenced by the Italian Paninaro scooter gangs that influenced terrace fashions of the 80’s and 90’s.

Courtesy ASOS.com

In describing their Spring/Summer 2009 Men’s collection the UK-based retailer also notes:

“Collegiate takes a new direction, fusing the classic all-American preppy look with urban sportswear influences to create a sharper, more contemporary feel. ‘Ivy League’ shirts and college sweats are updated…”

Courtesy ASOS.com

There you have it. Indeed.

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And for those unable to sleep peacefully at night for wont of worrying about precisely what a ‘preppy hotel room’ looks like, TP brings you the following from a story on Hotel Chatter:

“… The Betsy’s new rooms, in all their preppy white and lavender glory, got us all excited…”

The Betsy Hotel

The story updates progress on the newly renovated Betsy Hotel (we knew it as the Betsy Ross in its former life) in South Beach, scheduled to reopen early in 2009.  While the rooms look lovely, we are not seeing the ‘preppiness’ of the decor; the inability to grasp this is clearly a lack on our part, no doubt.

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Following their success with the designer sketches of proposed inaugural gowns for Michelle Obama, WWD repeats the exercise with possible fashions for President-elect Obama from some of the top menswear minds in the US. Below, one of the two looks submitted by Brooks Brothers to Women’s Wear Daily.

WWD/Brooks Brothers

Next, a Rag and Bone night look:

Rag and Bone via WWD

Most fun to see? The submission by the gentlemen at Vineyard Vines!

Vineyard Vines for WWD

We shall post more of these in coming days; they are fascinating, and more than enjoyable to look at! But if one can’t wait, click here and hopefully WWD (Women’s Wear Daily) will have the story and accompanying photos in the free content potion of their site.  We’ll leave you with a Reem Acra sketch of their vision for the entire Obama family’s Inaugural fashions, including daughters Malia and Sasha.

Reem Acra via WWD

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Don’t forget to leave a comment asking The Princess Consort a question!

May the rest of this Monday be fun for you and yours!

Cartier & Saks Light Up, Ultimate Preppy Girl’s Christmas Sweater

Hello busy blog friends!  We’ll simply share a few ‘quick hits’ today as we are off shortly for an all-afternoon volunteer shift.

In a Pretty in Pink special we just fell onto this darling sweater at Best Dressed Child.  Are you ready for the full name of this sweater? Meet the Glorimont Girls Hot Pink Preppy Christmas Trees Cardigan.

The sweater is available in toddler sizes, and imagine this: the trees are removable so it can be worn much longer than most holiday-themed clothing! Bets of all, it is on sale for only $27, marked down from $54.

Best Dressed Child

If seeking something special for the young master of the household, how is the Glorimont Boys Green Check Longall?

Here at the Prepatorium, we are simply ga-ga over the vintage station wagon that adorns this little outfit.

If the name of the shop sounds familiar, it is one of the retailers TP suggested readers check with if hoping to buy the Biscotti Precious Jewels Christmas Dress worn by Malia Obama on election night.  (If still desirous for information on the Biscotti dress and/or the Gerson & Gerson dress worn by Sasha Obama, click here.)

Fun, fun, fun last night as Tory Burch helped Saks turn on the holiday lights for the season at their Fifth Avenue store.

PHOTO: Scott Gries/Getty

The designer along is seen with her two boys at last night’s annual Snowflake Spectacular and window unveiling, accompanied by designer Zac Posen.

Also unveiled to the public yesterday, the Cartier windows. A rotund fellow named Santa was assisted by Kelly Ripa and her husband Mark Consuelos in unveiling the windows.

PHOTO: Peter Kramer/AP

All of the excitement is a good reminder for us to remind you about entering the Great Preppy Giveaway contest, with free goodies from PreppyPrincess.com! Just leave a comment on this or any post and tell us something you are grateful for…that’s it! You’re in!

Here is a sampling from a few we have already received:

Jessica at the oh-so-fun Gifting Gumshoe shares:

“I am thankful for my wonderful husband, family, friends and sweet Shar-Pei, Gilligan!”

From Amanda:

“I am thankful that my 87 year old grandmother is still alive and kicking and that I get to see her in January.”

And the irrepressible McMommy wrote:

“I’m not gonna lie to you, Princess….. I am thankful for my vino every evening.

I love, love, love this giveaway!!!!!!! You have no idea how much I’ve been craving a new apron!! I’m hoping and praying I win!”

We have learned what Brooks Brothers is planning for Black Friday: 15% off all purchases, and we are told this even includes Black Fleece items from TP’s favorite designer, Thom Browne.

If seeking substantial markdowns, we recommend heading over to the Brooks’ website to look at the Black Fleece merchandise currently on sale, as there is quite a bit. For example, the Women’s Cashmere Morning Coat that was $2900 is now $840, and the Men’s Cashmere/Cotton Canvas Reversible Coat is discounted by almost 75%, now $1050 from the original selling price of $3500.

We’ll be back tomorrow with more on J. Crew’s situation and the rest of the Black Friday information.  (We are receiving so many inquiries about J. Crew or Banana Republic Black Friday info that is currently posted, just click here if you need it.)

Until later!

The Ultimate Preppy Tea Sandwiches, “The Towering World of Jimmy Choo” & Saks Sales

Happy Thursday, ’tis The Princess back again from visiting the Queen and still in a dither about the Princess Consort’s revelations yesterday. Really. I thought we had agreed some things just didn’t need to be made public, lest people think less of The Princess. And then he just goes and tells everyone about his fear of swimming in the ocean, and the time he “…hired a man to swim in the ocean for me”. How embarrassing for everyone to know he hires people to do his swimming for him!

On a side note, all Wall Street reporting aside, one would not know from the number of cars in the Nordstrom parking lot they hadn’t been enjoying a completely stellar year; they were quite busy yesterday. But then again, their sale section seemed really very large, especially when one considers this was not their Anniversary Sale section, but a “regular sale area,” an oxymoron at Nordstrom, for until recently (this year we believe) the only sales were the Anniversary Sale and the Shoe Sale.

We couldn’t resist putting up this image of pink and green sandwiches, the shot was simply too good not to post! It is from flickr, posted almost three years ago. The description follows:

pink and green tea sandwiches: egg with capers and smoked pimentón, turkey with a cranberry-pecan-orange zest cream cheese, smoked salmon with cucumber and an herby cream cheese.

The fillings sound yummy although TP isn’t sure how she would do with the bright and vibrantly-hued bread! Now the next item on our hit parade,

isn’t available until March of next year, but we couldn’t resist at least alerting you to its impending arrival. The Towering World of Jimmy Choo: A Glamorous Story of Power, Profits and Pursuit of the Perfect Shoe comes to us via Bloomsbury Publishing, and is written by Laura Goldstein Crowe, the former (and fab) Fashion Inc. blogger at Conde Nast’s Portfolio magazine, and Sagra Maceira de Rosen, an executive specializing in Luxury and Retail investments for Reig Capital.

One of our favorite websites, the Business of Fashion, managed to get an early and exclusive look at the book. As they put it, “The book is sure to cause a frenzy when published…” and we couldn’t agree more. This one sounds like it has all the makings of an outstanding non-fiction book so filled with inside stories it’s better than many a fiction book. Or, as you frequently hear from TP: “…I couldn’t make this stuff up…” on some of the more unbelievable posts.

Continuing with the Jimmy Choo track, Saks has several pair on sale at markdowns that are significant if these are your style. The Elm Water Snake Sandals start us off, with what TP is tempted to describe as “only a 4.5″ heel,” the way things are shaping up. (And up…and up!) These have “…Glamorous water snake metallic wraps at the cut-out ankle.” Indeed. Originally $920, these are now just $367.90.

Additionally Saks offers the Aeon Lizard Sandals, also originally $920, now $551.90.

A few more sale samplings at Saks, including the Burberry Infant’s Stripe Skirted Onesie at $62.90 from $95; it has snaps at the shoulders, tough to see in the photos, we know.

Also available if you’re looking for something a bit subdued for yourself, the Carmen Marc Valvo Polka Dot Dress is light and foofy, originally $330 and now $197.90.

Because we don’t want to show specific items that have limited quantities, here are just a few overview page links to designers at Saks we know you love, so you can just scan all of their sale items rather than seeing one specific item here that has long since sold out.

Their was a fair amount of Lilly Pulitzer left, some Shoshanna bathing suits and cover-ups, a smattering of Tory Burch goodies definitely worth looking at, a good amount of Hugo Boss for him, and a substantial amount of Juicy Couture. There is simply oddles more, this is just after The Princess did a quick graze to satisfy her concerns that these merit your time and attention.

We close with a few image of the plans for what is expected to be the ‘world’s largest fountain,” set to be built in Dubai. Situated next to the Burj Dubai, the world’s tallest structure as of July 4th, with an observation deck slated for the 124th Floor when the building is completed sometime in 2009.

As the company’s news release explains:

The fountain on Burj Dubai Lake is more than a visual spectacle that adds to the aesthetics of Downtown Burj Dubai. It is an engineering marvel and will further contribute to Dubai’s rich array of tourist attractions.

The Tower will have one of the first Giorgio Armani hotels in the world, the “Dubai Armani Hotel.” A visit to the Burj Dubai website is an eyeopener; you can also enter a contest to actually name the enormous fountains.

As TP is truly something of a geek inside, she can’t resist sharing this image of “3 Upcoming Architectural Wonders in the UAE,” courtesy of the Hotel Club Travel Blog.

Preppy Sales at J Crew (Online Only & Limited Time), Ralph Lauren, + Saks Fifth Avenue

It’s that time of year when the online In-bin becomes flooded with Sale notices. Today’s include J. Crew‘s Additional 20% Off, and Ralph Lauren. Decisions, decisions. In some respects J Crew makes it a tad easier because of their “Additional 20% Off” discount, but keep in mind this is online only and it ends on Saturday night at 10pm. BTW, the discount is not applied until you place the merchandise in your online shopping bag. We are starting with shoes, and above we show the J Crew Millie Ballet Flat, absolutely ideal for so many functions, but looking to be in limited supply size-wise. Next we have the Patchwork Ballet Flat in Lemon Papya, very sweet and apparently available in a much broader range of sizes. And just in case it’s still in effect, definitely go for the J Crew free shipping on $100+ orders. The code is SUMMERTIME.

Not to shine the spotlight only on J Crew shoes, let’s find some Ralph Lauren Polo to showcase your tootsies! Above is the Caliana Kidskin Suede Flat, and it comes in a stunning array of colors and sizes! This is simply a ‘must have’ for your shoe wardrobe, as it can meet a myriad of needs. (At only $59.99, you can’t miss! In fact, stop reading now, and gogogo to the Ralph Lauren site to try this one on, in a virtual sort of way.) There is also the fabulous Mona Chambray dress in a lush, rich cotton you’ll love wearing. And as best we can recall, these two Ralph Lauren items are logo free! Talk about a miracle.

Now, not to ‘diss’ Saks up in the title for this post, it’s simply that we don’t really classify them as a particularly “Preppy” brand. They’re simply a haven (and heavenly also since we are thinking about it!) for a plethora of “have to have” basics. But now that we’re here, can we talk about one of TP’s favorites, Natori? Lush, plush and posh. Take their Heavenly Capri PJs, now on sale; they are so wonderful you won’t want to take them off, I promise. ( Dolls, do yourselves a favor and take a peek at the Josie Natori Great Expectations Camisole, another gorgeous garment that is definitely Prepalicious.)Then there is one of the season’s hottest items, the Tory Burch Carly Sheath Dress, which comes in an uber-elegant navy, or the more playful print seen here. This treasure is crafted of another ultra-comfy material, cotton with just a touch of spandex to make it feel wonderful all day or all night long.

If any of the men in your life are in need of a pair of a little something to wear poolside, they’re in luck with these Polo Ralph Lauren Madras Swim Trunks, also on sale. And just to finish up here, how sweet is this Lilly Pulitzer Kids Toddler’s Dora Skirt? Simply precious. Happy savings!