The Look for Less? Shopping With a J. Crew Personal Shopper

Like I said in the previous post, there just is no substitute for bonafide J. Crew. And when you gotta have it, you gotta have it. Well, what better way to feed your need than with a discount and some free style advice? Since early this month, J. Crew has been running a promotion where you can get 20% off all of your full-priced purchases when you make an appointment with a personal shopper and spend at least $100. Done and done.

To be perfectly honest, I wasn't so sure about the personal shopper thing at first. I'm pretty particular about what I wear, and I didn't want the added pressure of having to spend a lot of money because I have someone helping me out. But after hearing other J. Crew aficionadas rave about their experiences with their personal shoppers, I decided to take the plunge and set up an appointment. My growing wishlist of new fall items also helped nudge me in the right direction.

When I first got there, the personal shopper, Lana, had already pulled several items in my sizes and put them in a dressing room. We then talked about what my (fashion) goals were and walked around the store and pulled some more stuff that I liked and that she suggested for me based on what I said I wanted, or what would go with pieces that I already recently purchased.

I thought I went in with a fairly open mind and with the intention of trying everything the personal shopper suggested. However, I soon realized that my already negative opinion of certain items didn't miraculously change once I put them on. The Donegal Tweed Ecole Jacket? Eh. It looked okay undone, but I don't really see myself as a blazer person. Glass-Button Featherweight Merino Cardigan? This is one of those long, v-neck cardigan shapes that is becoming popular. I didn't like it at all. Even in an extra-small, this thing swallowed me and just looked shapeless and sloppy. This is definitely one trend I am not going to adopt. The Dream Taffeta-Sash Cardigan was very plush and soft, and slightly better than I expected, left untied and over a graphic tee, but not something I'm going to spend $150 on at this point. Maybe it if goes on super-sale in the future...

So what DID the personal shopper help me accomplish anyway (besides allowing me to get 20% off)?? She was able to tell me what styles worked for me and what didn't. She was able to come up with suggestions on how to pair certain pieces together. Who would have thought to put a purple Jackie Cardigan over the Serengeti Tank? I know I wouldn't have thought of it, but now it's an option that I have, and it's awesome!  And girlfriend squeezed me into a size zero dress that I never would have even considered trying on, because I never thought my hips would allow it!

Oh yeah, and she also enabled me to spend much more than I wanted to, but damn, I am all the more happier for it! I mean, I actually SAVED over $300, so really, it was a no-brainer.

Bottom line: Lana rocks! And did I mention that she has the most adorable eastern European accent? She sounds just like my friend Miriana, who is from Bulgaria. I can't promise that your local J. Crew will have an eastern European Lana, but they probably will have a personal shopper there who can give you some good style advice, as well as 20% off some fabulous fall clothes if you get in there by August 29th.

What was that you say? What did I buy? Oh yeah. Now the fun stuff. I won't show you EVERYTHING I bought, because that would just incriminate me.