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    Gracious Home White Sale

    At dinner, a friend mentioned that Gracious Home is having an incredible sale. Turns out that bed and table linens and towels are all 50% off. 

    Gracious Home carries the gold standard of housewares brands like Yves Delorme, Sferra and Matouk. We are told that there’s still a large selection. So now would be a great time to do over your bedroom, bath AND table linens.

    Contact:
    1992 Broadway @ 67th St. 212-231-7800
    1217 3rd Ave. @ 70th St. 212-517-6300

    A Sample Sale Come-On

    Our friends were all buzzing about this super-duper-designer sample sale. When asked us about it we said that we were suspicious.

    What made us suspicious? The sale description reads a lot like a too-good-to-be-true apartment listing on Craigs List:

    Sample & stock sale. Sample Sale Productions has the largest selection of Chanel assembled outside of Chanel. Find hundreds of new and mint vintage designer handbags up to 70% off as well as designer sunglasses, jewelry, coats and furs. For three days only, shop Chanel and other favorite designers including Fendi, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Hermes, Prada, Dior and more at up to 70% off. Also ready-to-wear from high end designers at up to 80% off: Chanel, Escada, John Galliano, D & G, Fendi and more.

    It was the “new and mint vintage” line that set us off. We had a vague hunch it was a collaboration of resale vendors but without the facts we couldn’t announce our doubt. That’s why we were so glad when Racked posted a buyer beware item. Basically our instincts were right:

    “I just wanted to let you know that the designer handbag sale is actually a group sale of re-sellers who will be selling bags for their clients and then getting a commission off the sales…A buyer will not be able to guarantee that they will be purchasing an authentic bag unless they know what to look for in terms of authenticity…My inside tipster told me that no Gucci group brands are going to be sold because at one point a fake Gucci bag was sold at this event and the organizers got into legal trouble and are not allowed to sell any more Gucci brands.”

    We have nothing against a Chinatown Special, if that’s what you want. Duping shoppers, however, is not cool. So remember, if the sale listing sounds too good to be true chances are that it’s not much better than a crack den with rear facing view.

    Photo Credit: Tendance High-Tech

    Intermix Pavilion Warehouse Sale

    We are finding Intermix to be very confusing. At the beginning of the month, the store announced a warehouse sale but at their Madison Avenue Location. Now they are hosting another warehouse sale, but this time it’s at Metropolitan Pavilion.

    If the in-house sale was any indication, this should be a good sale. Prices should range from 65% to 85% off. If they aren’t, save your money for spring

    Pottery Barn Cuts “Threads”

    The Pottery Barn Kids spin-off, Threads, is closing after just 15 months. The store specialized in baby clothing and gifts and also offered in-store monogramming. After a successful run on Second Avenue, Williams-Sonoma– the parent company of Pottery Barn and Threads– planned to expand the concept store

    Unfortunately, Williams-Sonoma has been hit with the rest of our economy. The stock is down about 65% since the start of they year and down more than 73% from its 52-week high. In January, the company announced actions to reduce its overhead costs by $75 million. This translated in 1,400 employees losing their jobs and Threads getting cut.

    The store is slated to close next week and everything is now reduced an additional 30% off. The merchandise is going fast and employees don’t even know if the store will last that long. For now, there is a gorgeous baby bassinette for about $370 and a heavily discounted barn jacket embroidered with the name Bianca.

    Contact: 212-737-0104
    1451 2nd Avenue (75th & 76th)

    Bloomingdales Discount and Fundraiser

    All day on Wednesday, Feb. 25th Bloomingales will take 15% off almost everything in the store and online. Even better, you can save 20% if you spend more than $300 on your Bloomingales card. Print this post to receive the in store discount. The online discount will automatically be taken on that day.

    As part of the promotion, Bloomingdale’s and Bloomingdales.com has pledged to make a $75,000.00 donation to Mentoring USA, an organization with the mission to pair at-risk youths across the country with inspirational adult mentors who can guide them in developing better self-esteem, creating healthy relationships, and making positive life choices.

    Cosmetics and “certain designers” are not included in the promotion. We imagine that this means Chanel and most everything else on the 4th floor.

    Fashion Week: Project Runway

    Project Runway designs took to the runway today but without the designers. A network scuttlebutt has thrown a bend into the finale of Season 6 where none of the designers were introduced or even mentioned.

    Three anonymous design collections were presented to friends and some fashion press. (We hear that the big fashion names opted for the more traditional offsite Ralph Lauren show.)

    Now for some fashion talk: Three collections, each different, but no designers attached. So from here on we will refer to the three designers as Sleepy, Playful and Edgy.

    Sleepy: This collection was the most casual of the three and the least interesting. Sleepy made several sweater looks that reminded us of a sleepy Sunday at home. Sleepy’s suits were nice but not memorable and the final design was an unmemorable fitted sweater dress with a train.
    Score: 6

    Playful: Playful had a much more diverse collection, which included an array of tulle numbers, stunningly draped colorful silk dresses and shapely coats. We especially liked this collection for its playful use of color and materials. One tulle dress looked like it was more fitting as a cake topper but we give snaps for taking risks.
    Score: 8.5

    Edgy: This may have been our favorite collection for design, concept and tailoring. Edgy’s collection mainly consisted of black and gray. The overall look was a cross between Herve Leger and Plain Sud. There were lots of very fitted bondage looking outfits with tulip-like layers. The collection was very wearable however there was no diversity. Every piece was similar, even if it was a sweater, coat or dress. For that we must take away a full point.
    Score: 8

    Bottom line: We think if given the choice we would want an outfit made by Edgy. However, if we were handed the collection as an entire wardrobe we would easily tire in about a week. Playful takes the cake!

    Photo Credit: Getty Images

    Fashion Week: Ports 1961

    Ports 1961 designer, Tia Cibani, had a vision: the Indian Mughai Dynasty. Translated into fashion, the designs were reminiscent of an Indian princess set free in London. Sometimes the designs were exquisite and restrained, like the piped wool coats. Other times the designs were much too ornate, like the gold lame dresses.

    On either side of the spectrum, however, Tina was able to fashion a rich and detailed collection that was enhanced by the live Indian colonial marching band. You know, Red Baratt Festival is the only of its kind in the US!

    In attendance was a full on fashion crowd, which included Anna Wintour (only three rows ahead), Grace Coddington and Hal Rubinstein.

    Photo Credit: WWD