Eye-4-Style

I like wearing dresses: easy to wear and care for and they elevate your everyday look. Last weekend I ran to the grocery store – slipped on one of my “everyday” or what I call “lounging” dresses and flats. Amazingly 3 compliments while shopping.  Responded “Thank you” while thinking “ this cost me $30.00!” You don’t have to spend a lot to look good!

Shopping the deep discount sales, Macy’s is a sure bet in checking out items for this purpose. Last Fall, I bought 4 dresses that had been $100-$139. With sale discounts and my Star Rewards and newspaper coupons, the most I paid for a dress was $34. Alfani, Rachel Roy, INC, DKNYC were my picks. It took 90 minutes to peruse the racks and try on my armful of choices and I came away more than satisfied.

During my cousin’s recent  visit,  we shopped at Macy’s during one of their big sales. We went our separate ways for a bit and when we met up, she hadn’t purchased anything. Not being one to easily give up, we returned to the racks, narrowed down a brand that works best for her (Jones New York) and found $700 worth of work clothes for $198.00!  She was ecstatic and I was happy: “mission accomplished!”

Keep in mind when shopping, get into your “hunt and gather” mode. With lots of shoppers, not all the items are returned to their proper size racks. Also, if you’re not sure which size you take with a certain brand, don’t be afraid to  “eye it up.” I can take anywhere from a small to large, depending on brand and style of dress. And if I’m buying “out of season,” I look for styles and colors/patterns that are timeless. I can always “trend it up” with accessories.

Macy’s has an on-line sale going on right now. Take a peek!

http://www1.macys.com/shop/womens/sale-clearance/dresses?id=50016&edge=hybrid&cm_mmc=MCOM-_-20110803_MCOM_RTWFashionSale-_-50016-_-MB&cm_em=lisa@lisa-rae.com#!fn=SPECIAL_OCCASIONS%3DCasual%26pageIndex%3D6%26sortBy%3DORIGINAL%26productsPerPage%3D40&!qvp=iqvp

I’ve said time and time again, INC International Concepts is a great brand to spice up your wardrobe without breaking the bank. My recent visit to Old Orchard Mall  had me going through their offerings for the upcoming season. Glitter, glam, classic – you’ll find it all here.

The dress and coat outfit below is a dazzler. Full price was about $260 for the two pieces. Great cardigan with skirt too. 

Karen Kane had nice options.  I liked this display for the “Hostess with the Mostess” for the holiday season. Stylish yet comfortable for your entertaining needs.

I wish I had allowed more time for shopping at Macy’s when there recently. I believe this store has been a work in progress since taking over the closed Lord & Taylor space in Water Tower. This visit was a delightful surprise as I feel the store is getting better and better.

Here’s some pictures of the extensive INC International Concepts line Macy’s has to offer.

As I’ve said before, INC is a fun collection for a wide range of ages and body types at a great price point!

Bloomingdales , 900 N. Michigan Avenue, Chicago, was buzzing with excitement as customers shopped for their fall wardrobes. Military and casual looks are paired with sparkle to bring up the bar on your everyday wear. Change your shoes and jewelry to easily take you from afternoon errands to fun nights on the town. Here’s a cute camouflage dress and outfit from Michael Kors I thought were great!

INC International Concepts is another of my favorite lines to freshen up your wardrobe at great prices. I find their styles fresh, fun and great fitting on many figure types. Here again we see military looks and colors along with glitter that adds fun to your look.

Here’s Karen Kane outfits with leggings. These bring to mind great travel options.  Airplane travelers take note: these pack easily, are comfortable and stylish, will keep you warm with jackets, and look good with flats or boots.  

The Lauren Jeans Company/Ralph Lauren says classic updated for the season. Never can go wrong with Ralph Lauren! 

Saturday afternoon Kathy and I went for a walk to Macy’s, about 7 blocks from the hotel. A street off Grand was blocked off as Justin Timberlake was filming a movie. We saw Justin run down steps and jump into a SUV.  He looked good! We thought we’d be funny and take pictures of the paparazzi!

At Macy’s, I ended up purchasing a few items from INC International Concepts. It is hard to resist this line.  I’ve said it again and again; INC offers fun style for a very reasonable price!  Click on this hyperlink to go to an e-mail I received from Macy’s today regarding INC.

Whew! Fast-paced, exciting weekend in LA! I  left off with cutie Kiefer filming ‘24’ outside our hotel upon arrival.  We dressed for a Friday night on the town, pretty much ready for anything. Dinner and cocktails at Chateau Marmont provided an exciting mixture of people. I wore a paneled form-fitting black number from I-N-C International Concepts. The dress is a combo of rayon, nylon and spandex. The dress is great because it provides enough give to dance but doesn’t stretch out like some cotton-spandex blends do; keeps you smooth (almost like Spanx); doesn’t wrinkle; feels good to wear. Winter-white Stuart Weitzman pointed toe shoes with 2” heel and Anne Klein shawl, bone color jewelry, completed the look. I believe the shoes, shawl and dress cost me less than $200 (always shopping a good sale) ! We proceeded to a party at a dance club hosted by Grammy nominee Malik Yusef. After dancing a couple of hours,we headed back downtown to the Biltmore for a nightcap. Here’s before and after photos of Friday night. (Note end of evening feet up; love to dance!)

Again, the dress  packed well and held up to the evening’s activities. INC rocks! I didn’t have plans to wear the dress again this trip but certainly could have. A pretty print cardigan with flats would have been worked nicely for a casual lunch/evening or afternoon of shopping.

I started on a project today and Grammy fever took over. Two hours later, I have outfits together, but my bedroom and dressing area look like I was hit by a hurricane!

The dress I’m wearing for Grammy night is from alice + olivia. Stacey Bendet started a great line and I find myself purchasing more and more of this NY native’s designs when I’m looking for something fun. I’ll wear this glamorous little black dress with sheer dot stockings by BCBG and Dior high heels.  Accessories: Lori Bonn earrings; bracelets-one being a purple enameled cuff by Kara Ross; eggplant headband with a big rhinestone in the middle of 5” feathers; purple Prada evening bag. Nars makeup and Estee Lauder Black Amethyst nail polish will complete the outfit.

For the flight to LA and a lunch on Saturday, I’m wearing a fuchsia DVF dress with Stuart Weitzman bone heels. I’ll use the same shoes with a black sexy number from INC for Saturday night. Friday night I have a dress from Free People, wearing with patterned tights from Juicy Couture and Michael by Michael Kors Beverly Sandals in genuine snake. Earrings and bracelets by John Hardy.

I’ll be adding to the pile as I think of things the next few days. I’m determined to have one medium size bag. We’ll see!

Meanwhile, it’s stopped raining in Los Angeles.  Let’s hope we have dry weather for the Red Carpet!

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I was excited to receive this e-mail today and will go to Macy’s at The Coastland Center here in Naples, Florida. I’ve talked about INC in the past and this is one of my favorite moderately-priced clothing lines.  I find the designs and colors exciting and this line fits my body well. When I wear an outfit, I feel “with it” but not “trendy.” I also get a lot of compliments so I know it works!  Have to run! INC is calling!