fave store

A long time web shopper, I have always been frustrated with Bloomingdales online. I never thought their site emulated the upscale look and selection Bloomies carries. To my surprise, the retailer has made an effort to refresh their face on the web. The new Bloomies has a black background, appears better organized than before, and has a more upscale allure. Check out the homepage:

They have joined other savvy retailers like Fab favorites Neiman Marcus and Net-a-Porter by drawing you in with a beautiful home page. New features include a Designer Spotlight (currently Tory Burch), The Trend Shop, and Spotlight On: Prom (where there are some great frocks!). You can then shop by Designers, Women, Shoes & Handbags, Beauty, Men, Home, Jewelry & Accessories, Kids, Sales & Values, Shop Catalogs, Bridal Registry and Gifts. The photography has improved too; it's not as catalogy and more high fashion.

Big improvements for Bloomingdale's if you ask me, let's hope they keep it coming! In the meantime, to see some of my picks, read more

Attenzione! Bargain hunters check out the sale section at Pinkstore.com where there are markdowns on Fall merchandise, but some items that can work for Spring too. Peruse the markdowns of merch by Sunner, Mint, Theory, Tracy Reese - need I go on? I'm debating this Marc by Marc Jacobs camille color block dress-teal, on sale for $139 (originally $198). It's so hard for me to resist Marc on sale! The only drawback is limited sizes so I wish you luck on your search.

Meet Kate. The trim blonde owner of the online store rightfully named Kate Boutique. Kate likes her clothes luxe and modern, featuring designers like Jill Stuart, Kooba, Lyell, Tocca, Velvet, TSE and many more. There were even a couple of designers I'd never heard of that caught my eye. This site shines in the organization department as well as the Sale section! For those of you still in cold weather there is lots of cashmere on sale here.

This store also offers free personal shopping assistance for customers who want one-on-one expert attention in making creative and appropriate styling decisions. Taking the customer service even further, you can subscribe to their eNewsletter and get Kate's personal styling tips, advice on how to dress beautifully and confidently, and learn how to make the most out of your wardrobe. Thanks Kate!

To boot: a percentage of all sales go to the local nonprofit Heal the Ocean. An eco-friendly fashionista? Say it isn't so.

To see my picks from this Fab site, read more

Shop Rapunzels is the ultimate shopping destination for the OCD web shopper. This is one of the most organized sites I have ever seen. They have tabs along the top to sort by, and then there are drop downs that describe every imaginable sub-category from there. E.g. tops: collared shirts, dressy tops, hoodies & pullovers, kid's tees, maternity, tank tops, you get the point. They have inviting pictures of the most popular items on the front page and then right below (not pictured here) you can shop by brand.

Based in Palm Beach, there are many comfy chic brands to choose from, ones like Juicy, Splendid, Primp, Rachel Pally and oodles of hot denim brands. Speaking of, there is a handy denim guide, which is always a plus. Did I mention they have 'Rapunzel' standing by to answer any shopping inquiries? Nice.

To see a few of my picks from this fab site, read more

Here is an online-only store that carries some of the freshest talent right now. Blaec, pronounced 'Black,' is meant to look like a brick-and-morter store with mannequins wearing outfits on the homepage - as if looking through storefront windows. This store carries designers such as Grey Ant, Catherine Malandrino, 3.1 Phillip Lim, and Kenneth Jay Lane.

The site is very simple and quick to navigate with the list of designers along the left hand side, as well as the 'sale rack.' When you click on a designer, the clothing items appear as well as a little bio - which I thought was interesting. There is also a new designer contest called Collection 1.0 where eight finalists will have their designs featured on the site and Blaec shoppers will pick the winner.

To see some of my picks from the Sale Rack, read more

In a couple of weeks I will be going to a VIP preview of a Vivienne Westwood exhibit at the de Young museum in San Francisco. It's on a Saturday night and I'm going to get my makeup done at Sephora beforehand. Sounds like fun huh? But with fun comes the outfit dilemma. Because it's a Saturday night, and one of Britain's most daring designers, I want to wear something bold - but it is at a museum, so not too bold. I was perusing the awesome sale section at shopbop and found three candidate dresses. Help me choose the ONE!

(L-R)

Diane von Furstenberg Baby Jane Dress, on sale for $192.50 (originally $275).

Karen Zambos Vintage Couture Lindsay Dress, on sale for $284.90 (originally $407).

KAROO Mark Eisen Halter Dress, on sale for $176 (originally $352).

Please tell me your thoughts below. Thanks ladies!

One of my favorite cheap and so cute brands is having an up to 75% off winter clearance sale. Ok, ok we've all checked out dELiAs super saucy Spring merch but what about some lingering winter garb? And now that we've seen the New York collections for Fall, we know what current trends will prevail. Here is a tweed dress, that will be appropriate for at least the next couple seasons - creative tweeds were abundant and I feel you can do a lot with this little number.

Regan Tweed Dress, on sale for $19.99 (originally $48.50).

Inspired by founder Jade Lai and her globetrotting fashion adventures, Creatures of Comfort is a fab site that focuses on young international labels. A friend of mine was just visiting LA and told me about how much she enjoyed the flagship store and said I should check out the online store. Hard-to-find designers such as Emma Cook, Peter Jensen and Alexandre Herchcovitch can be found here. Also, Lai is debuting her own line this Spring.

While the site is very minimalistic it actually makes perusing very easy. You can search for items by keywords, by category (including sale), or by designer. Here are some of my picks:

Form Sheer Red Bamboo Jersey Top, $140.

A couple more, read more

Here is an online newcomer I'm sure will be around a while. Live Natty caters to women, men, and gift givers. This site offers some of my favorite contemporary designers like Ella Moss, J Brand, Sanctuary and Splendid. This is the place to buy cozy casuals, fun tops, and cute clothes for the beau. The site is super easy to navigate and has handy buttons along the top taking you to 'fresh' (new items), 'sale,' 'heads up' (coming soon), 'hot' (trends), and a super helpful 'denim' (fit guide), which compares all the sizings of the featured denim brands. Shop now and you can save 15% and get free ground shipping when you enter the code: livenatty at checkout. Here is my wish list:

Lucky Brand Butterfly Long Sleeve Printed Thermal, $58.

A couple more, so read more

Here is what I would call a gift online shop with an interesting selection of smartly designed items for home and kids. Rose and Radish call themselves "a home for design" and this site definitely feels homey. Or rather, a minimal Scandinavian style home - which is exactly the look and feel of the site. Minimal, nature inspired designs reign the unique goods here and be sure to check out their Be My Valentine section for original gift ideas. Here is one piece of (cheap!) art I think is adorable for a Valentine who is a BFF.

Camilla Engman My Friends Print, $36.

A couple more, read more