Our Sale is Sailing Away...

What is about the word SALE that makes women's blood boil?  It's the worst four-letter word I know. 

When I lived in Boston, my favorite day of the year was going to watch the Running of the Brides—a knock-down, drag-out fight to the death of brides-to-be for an entire warehouse full of designer wedding gowns at prices that might make you think you could throw that Vera Wang in the washing machine with your other wash-n-wears. There was hip-checking, hair pulling, name calling, and a flurry of white tulle and lace as far as the eye could see.  Needless to say, it was wildly entertaining for the spectators, but even more thrilling for the brides who made off with a steal of a dress at the end of all the campy showmanship. 

{Image found here} 

I thought my days of crazy-sale-spectating were over when Filene's Basement closed down last year, but I was wrong.  Oh was I wrong.  

You see, in France, merchandise sales are highly regulated, and it is actually illegal  to put things on sale for most of the year.  Can you imagine? No browsing the sale rack of your favorite store on your lunch break?  No quick online steals?  The women of France are completely sale-starved.

It turns out that the month of July is the sacred month of the Soldes, or SALES.  And everything, I mean, everything—from mattresses to Mahnolo Blaniks—goes on sale.  All that pent-up sale-repression bursts forth on the appointed date, with women lining up outside Printemps, Galleries Lafayette, and Le Bon Marché in the wee hours of the morning, getting ready to push through the doors and beeline towards whatever they've been eying for weeks. 

I have a confession to make: I'm a sale-a-holic. Getting a good deal is my drug. (I blame it on being an art dealer?  Maybe?)  Regardless, ninety percent of what is in my closet is the result of obsessive sale-shopping.   So when I found myself in Paris on the day the Soldes were starting, I couldn't resist taking in the spectacle…camera—and Amex—in hand. 

Here's a glimpse of a day in the life of the Soldes:

6:30 am, leave my friend's apartment on a borrowed bike, in slip-on shoes, and jeans and a t-shirt.  I have been warned: don't bother with belts, buttons or anything that will take longer than 30 seconds to take off or put back on.   Grab a pain au chocolate at the blessedly early-opening bakery down the street. Head towards Galleries Lafayette. 

7:15 am, nearly mauled to death in the shoe section of Galleries Lafayette—it turns out that I drew the unlucky 'average' card, and had to fight tooth and nail just to try on a pair of Louboutins in size 38 (the most common shoe size in France, it seems).   Snap some contemplative pictures.  Scolded by security guard.  Hide camera. Give up on finding shoes today. 

8:15 am, gaze longingly at all the Hermes/Prada/Louis Vuitton things that are behind little velvet-roped stanchions that essentially say, "yes, even when it's on sale you are still faaaaar to poor to even be able to touch this beautiful ostrich leather."  Sigh.

8:45 am, wriggle my way onto the escalator and make my way to the lingerie floor. Yes, there is an entire floor for it.  (Can we have a moment for how much I love that in France they understand that what you wear underneath your clothes is equally as important in making you look good as the clothes themselves?  And that they make bras that don't fall apart in a month's wear?  Okay, thank you.)  Blissfully rummage through bins of properly-sized bras.  Find my first purchases of the day. Blush slightly when I realize that every last cashier on the lingerie floor is a good looking french garçon. 

10:30 am, snack break.  Macarons from Ladurée.

11:15 am, Hit Printemps, and cruise the young designers.  Everyone is heaping all thing striped into their piles of to-be-tried-on. Follow suit.  Wonder what kind of math Italian designers are doing—if this is a size 38, who is wearing a 34? A broomstick? Watch a woman surreptitiously knick a dress out of someone else's selections that were waiting for them in their dressing room.  Yes. 

12:10 pm, Run into this stylish gal, and chat her up for a bit.  She tells me that she planned not only her outfit for the day (comfortable, easy-on/off and completely stylish), but had spent hours and hours over the last week trying on everything she was hoping to buy during the soldes, and making a map of where to find each thing, to make the whole trip so much quicker. Genius. 

1:30 pm, bike to the Marais, grab lunch at my favorite café in that part of town.  

2:45 pm, hit the smaller boutiques in the Marais, many of which are packed and—gasp!—already picked over.  The sales last a month!  How can this be? 

3:35 pm, After much searching, find the best autumn coat I could have ever dreamed of.  Do the percentage math in my head.  Do the euro-to-dollar conversion on my ipod. Hem and haw.  Reason with myself: You got your ticket to Alsace on sale last week!  You saved 70 euros on that!  And if you don't go out to dinner this month, and if you take back that skirt you bought, and, and, and—buy the coat. It is 90 degrees.  I have just purchased a thick canvas-and-leather swing coat.  Behold the power of the Soldes. 

6:15 pm, stop for dinner—a falafel sandwich, because I am now carrying a month's worth of dinners around in my shopping bag.  Run into this Canadian-turned-Berliner, who told me that she plans her summer vacation to Paris each summer in July just for the shopping, and saves a certain number of euros a month in a shoebox to be spent only on the Soldes. Wonder why I didn't think of this. 

8 pm, get sucked into browsing sexy melon ballers, macaron mats and copper pans at a high-end kitchen supply store.  Slightly regret purchasing my coat when I realize that for the price of the coat I could have acquired a Le Crusset dutch oven and a perfectly honed chef's knife—seasonless essentials.  Start doing the hemming and hawing in my head again.  Cannot actually find any way to justify more big purchases.  

9:30 pm, bike back across the river, meet up with friends, and collapse into a wicker chair at the neighborhood café, exhausted but triumphant. 

And that was just day one…

In case you didn't know, this is the LAST week of Shabby Apple's summer sale—the ultimate time to stock up on all those things you've been meaning to buy but were too busy to when the weather was nice enough that you didn't want to stay locked up in a dark air-conditioned room in front of your computer while the heatwave raged outside.   So get to it!   

Neck In Neck

I am in the midst of a little wardrobe renovation, and I think we can all agree that one of the easiest ways to spice up your tried and trues without forking over too much cash, all while maximizing versatility, is to invest in some new accessories.

I think we can probably also all agree that Shabby Apple's hand-strung stone necklace, Dagny, is a fabulous place to start, if sprucing is your goal.

If you happen to be a little bit on the fence about this hypothesis, I invite you to take my word for it. Because, you see, I know. I ordered the Dagny necklace, and then I used it to spruce up my green lace shift, Love Me Do.

It looked a little something like this.

And now I am sure we are all in agreement. Fabulous, no?

What are your go-to accessories to spruce and spice things up a bit? 

Dressing For Date Night

Happy weekend, my lovelies! I hope you have some big and exciting plans. Maybe some hot dates? I know I have a hot date with my yoga pants and the last season of "Friday Night Lights," but if you have something a little, well, less pathetic planned, here are celebrity-tested date night outfit ideas! 

I especially like this movie night outfit. It's comfy without being slouchy, and magenta pants are my big summer wish list item. I love the pop of color!

Similar pants here or on sale at Ann Taylor. Similar cardigan here.

Or, you could get the same pop of color in skirt form with Shabby Apple's magenta pleated maxi skirt or this knee-length cherry red skirt.

Also on my wish list is to go to a baseball game (the Washington Nationals are actually good this year!) and I wouldn't mind looking like Diane Kruger while I do it.

Similar dress here. Similar hat here.

Or, you might try this black-and-white color blocked dress, or this crisp collared white voile dress.

It's almost enough to make me want to get out of my pajamas! (Almost.)

What is your favorite date night? How abut your favorite date night outfit?

You Are What You Wear

The other day at work, I was wearing this ruffled skirted dress.

With a seersucker blazer over it.

And one of my co-workers said to me, "I wish I was young enough to pull off clothes like that, still."

And I said, "Well, I am actually not *that* young."

And I dropped the bomb.

I'm 30.

And she was incredulous.

"I thought you were just 23! Twenty-four at the most!" she said.

And then I didn't know whether to be flattered (who doesn't want to look younger?) or offended, because I always wonder if people assuming that I am younger than I am in a professional setting means that I somehow behave unprofessionally.

I know you can't really offer me any insight on this, seeing as we don't work together (though wouldn't that be fun?!?) but I think we can all agree that our clothes do send a message. And maybe the message my clothes send is, "I'm a recently graduated college student." But I'm not giving up that dress, so I guess I'll just have to embrace it.

If you are interested in what your favorite clothes say about you, check this out. Most of it rings pretty true to me.

Stripes = practical? Makes sense.

Maxi skirt = easygoing. I'll buy that.

Bright colors = energetic. Sure!

But what do you think? Do you dress for your mood or persionality? Which look, or combination of looks, is your favorite? And what do you think it says about you?

Green Wedding Bells Are Ringing!

Name: Emily B.
Dress: Green With Envy (Maternity Line)

Height: 5'6"

Body Type: Hourglass

My husband and I were getting married on St. Patrick's Day, so I knew I wanted a green dress. At 22 weeks pregnant, my options felt a little limited, until I checked out the Green with Envy dress at Shabby Apple! I was thrilled with the cut and color, and that it was a sturdy (washable) cotton blend. And I loved the retro vibe - it was exactly what I was looking for! I made it my own by sewing some vintage lace trim along the bottom and adding a lighter green slip underneath. The truly amazing thing was that I found shoes that matched exactly - Miz Mooz Emma slingbacks in Green - and got them here the day before our wedding! I loved the whole look and, the best thing is, the dress is so flattering that I can wear it again and again, even after the baby is born!

{Wedding photo taken by Judge Susan Steeg, Austin, TX.}

Thank you Emily for sharing your special day with us. I love seeing a bride that is bold enough to wear color on her wedding day!

If you would love your own vibrant green maternity dress you should claim it now before all the sizes run out!

And, you should also email us photos of you in your Shabby Apple outfit for a chance to be featured on our blog and receive a special shopping discount for you and your friends!

Send photos to Kristen at kristen{at}shabbyapple{dot}com.


We can't wait to see you up here next! 

A Stitch In Time

I don't know what the weather is like where you are, but it's a triple-digit scorcher here with the forecast saying it's only going to get worse. And that means just one thing. I am not going outside.

If you happen to be in the same boat, and you're looking for a little project to fill your time in the air conditioned glory of your home, might I suggest a cross-stitch family portrait? 

I found this idea via Nicole over at Elsa Bags though, of course, we have Martha Stewart to thank for it. It's a pretty simple project made even more simple by the fact that Martha even has templates you can use to graph out different types and sizes of people. You'll definitely want to map out a basic idea before you get started, though I didn't use one of Martha's templates and I was just fine. You can also do some modification as you stitch, which I definitely did.

All the embroidery floss and aida cloth you need should be at any normal craft store (I got mine at Michael's) and don't be fooled into getting more than you need. I thought I would need a ton, but the people actually come out pretty small (unless you graph them to be larger, of course) and you'll want to separate your floss so you're just working with two strands at a time, so one spool of each color you're planning to use should be MORE than enough, even if you are stitching a pretty big family.

Once you've got all your supplies, just put needle to cloth and stitch away! I definitely do not have any kind of skill or substantial experience with cross-stitching and mine came out just fine (or so I think).

Is this a project you'd try? What are your favorite ways to capture your family?

Shabby On The Go: Yipes, Stripes!

 Ready for another installment from our traveling blogger? Take it away, Erin!

For the last three weeks I have been staying in Brittany—the north-western part of France—which I delightedly discovered is birthplace of the sailor stripe.  Are you as stripe crazy as I am?  Because I love them.  In fact, I realized the other afternoon, when I popped into a shop that sells all sorts of maritime-inspired attire, that i was, in fact, wearing a sailor-stripped shirt whilst looking at other sailor striped shirts.  Hmmm….that's a bit meta. 

Since arriving in Europe, I have been seeing stripes just about everywhere. Here are four looks at how gals on this side of the pond are rocking everyone's favorite pattern…

This adorable gal was selling marshmallows in Portobello Road market, and I couldn't get over the great combination of bold chevron stripes balanced out by her soft chambray shirt tied up at the waist. It felt put together but still a little playful.

The black and white stripped look is great when paired with a punchy accent color, like this gal's bright mustard shoes.  You can also create the illusion of a slimmer waist by adding a blazer or cardigan over vertical stripes, or belting it at the waist.

I couldn't help myself: when I saw this Marc Jacobs dress on the racks at Galleries Lafayette I just had to try it on. I loved the boat neck and the dark band accenting the waist, plus the subtle hints of color with the classic navy and white stripe.  If only it had a price tag less than a whole paycheck, it would have been mine!

Stripes don't always have to be bold, either. When I saw this young lady in London, I instantly fell in love with her soft sage striped dress and wonderful wool scarf (it is STILL chilly here!). It was subtle and a bit romantic, and made an impression without being punchy.

Love stripes? Shabby Apple's got some great ones… have you seen the new navy blue and white striped dress, Racquet Club,  or the geometric striped skirt, Crosswalk,  from the Block collection? 

And tell us, what is your favorite way to rock a stripe?

Too Cool for School

We had a little (enormous) storm around these parts over the weekend, and our power has been out since Friday night. So, we've spent a lot of time driving around so we can enjoy air conditioning and charge our phones. And we've gone into a lot of stores so we can enjoy air conditioning. And we've gone to some movies so, you guessed it!, we can enjoy air conditioning!

It's also got me thinking about cold food. So, whether you are suffering from a lack of power or not, here is one of my favorites.

Spanish Gazpacho

I actually hate tomatoes, but I adore this cold tomato soup. Weird? Pretty much. But I also like to think of it was a really convincing endorsement. The key to good gazpacho is good, vine-ripened, non-mealy tomatoes. A farmers market is probably your best bet, if you have one nearby.

You'll need:

5-6 plump, ripe tomatoes
1-2 green peppers
1 cucumber
1 medium sized yellow onion
olive oil, salt, pepper and garlic to taste

Cut up all your vegetables and put half of them in a blender. And blend that sucker up, adding olive oil, salt, pepper and garlic as you go. Some people might tell you this is an exact science. I am not one of those people.

Pour it through a strainer into a bowl (if your blender is powerful enough you won't need to strain it) and then repeat with the second half of your vegetables. Chill for a little bit. And enjoy!

We like to put chopped up cucumbers, peppers, green onions and croutons on top of ours as a garnish, and I don't think you'll be sorry if you try it.

Aah, I am feeling cooled off already. You?