The Shopping Diaries: Charlotte Russe

Hey all! Welcome to my first haul of the month of September. I'm not sure if I'll be having a collective monthly haul this month just because so far I've been buying enough things to make separate posts for each store/brand. This post comes from Charlotte Russe. My step-mom had bought me a dress when she was in Vegas and although I thought the dress was pretty and fit very well, I didn't feel like I'd actually wear it much just because I'm not much of a dress person. So I returned it at my local Charlotte Russe and in exchange, I got these pieces:

Indigo Caged Back Sheer Top: In the past, I've kind of shied away from this color, but I felt like trying it on because I love this kind of detailing and it was on sale for $12.99. The picture shows a more royal blue, but it is darker in real life. The top has a tinge of billowy-ness, but not as much because it was an XS. The size is good, but I think I would've preferred to go up a size just to have a bit more airiness. Nonetheless, I think this is a good top to have in my wardrobe just because I don't have this color yet.

Fringed Crop Top: This was also on sale for $12.99 and at first, I thought it could go either way of loving it or hating it, but I definitely wanted to try it out. I found that it looked really cute on, especially with what I was wearing that day. I had on a pair of low-waisted light-wash destroyed denim and I had a nude bra underneath  that was really close to my skin tone. So when I put it on, the length of the fringe touches the waist of my jeans and you really couldn't see my bra. I would like to wear it like that, but it is showing a lot of skin and I wonder if it's acceptable enough to wear in public... In all honesty, I don't think it looks slutty, but I wonder if it's too much. Obviously I can fix that with some high-waisted shorts and wear something underneath, but I really liked the original coordinate hehe.

Gold Chain/Triangle Double Necklace: I absolutely love this necklace. I think gold chains can really make an outfit look really chic and cool without making it look JB douchey lol. It was only $6 and I've worn this necklace a lot with my collared shirts. The different length adds a really cool dimension to simple outfits.

I hope you all enjoyed my little CR haul! I'm really happy with my finds and I hope to style them soon in my OOTD!

Thanks for reading!
-LAUREN

The Shopping Diaries: Fighting Eel Sample Sale, GUESS (Part 1)

Hello! Today's post will feature purchases from a sample sale that I went to and GUESS.

I follow Fighting Eel on Facebook and Instagram, which is how I found out that they were having a sample sale featuring their lines, Fighting Eel and Ava Sky, and a separate brand called Tiare Hawaii. I'm not sure if they carry that brand in their stores. It's a good possibility that they do! The sample sale took place on Saturday, the 10th of August, in Kaka'ako at a place called A Pinch of Salt. It was in a warehouse-like building.

For those of you who are not familiar with the concept of a sample sale, it's when a store has either too much inventory such as pieces that didn't sell well in-store, has pieces that were manufactured but was never put out on the floor, or has near perfect products that they want to sell. Basically, it's a great way for a store to get their name out to the public and showcase their items. Right now if you go to their offices in Downtown Honolulu, they still have sample sale items available until the end of this week! Check out their Facebook page or Instagram for more info.

The sample sale officially started at 11 a.m and I think I got there just a little past the hour and the warehouse was already bustling with customers going through the many boxes marked with signs such as $10, $20, etc. This was my first time going to a sample sale and I was a bit nervous because I do suffer from minor claustrophobia but I was gamed to do my best and find a deal! I paid my $5 fee at the entrance and made my way through the crowds. I saw some colorful basics, but I ended up with only one item from Tiare Hawaii.

Navy Blue Print Fringe Shift Top: I found this top in the $25 Top box for the Tiare Hawaii brand. I was immediately attracted to it because of the color and the fringe. Lately, I've been a sucker for tops that have a slight fringe detail. This top came in black and a green shade, but I ultimately stuck with this one. It's a one-size and it fit nicely on my frame. It has room for some movement, but doesn't have that ill-fitting-trying-to-be-oversized look lol.

Now the rest of this haul will be pieces that I got from GUESS. I've been a GUESS List Noir member for a couple months now and since it's my birthday month, I get double points and supposedly a $20 award for the month. I tried explaining that to the guy at the register, but I don't think he understood what I was talking about? I was a bit annoyed at that, but the manager, who is always super nice to me, gave me $20 off anyway! It wasn't in relation to the award, but to a pair of jeans that I will go into further detail when I get there. I also used an Ala Moana gift card that my Aunty gave to me for my birthday and I applied that to my total. And lastly, I had forgotten that they were having the promotion where you buy a certain amount, you get a money back total award for later on. Since I bought over $300 worth of clothes, I got a $100 cash back award to apply it to my next purchase starting on September 26th. Plus, add that to my huge point balance and I have a pretty nice award :)

Blue Denim Sunflower Jeans: I noticed that this jean had been on the sale rack for a while, but I had never bothered trying it on until Jason handed it over to me. So I decided to give it a chance and I'm glad that I did! I love the subtle sunflower pattern. It's a good memento to summer. Whenever I wear printed denim, I usually like to wear a basic top because I like to emphasize the print in my coordinate, but I actually wore the top from above with the pant and it created a really sweet boho-chic look! Also, all sale items were an extra 30% off!

True Black Distressed Denim: Another pick from Jason! At first I wasn't sure if I would get this pair just because I didn't know if I wanted another pair of distressed denim. But when I tried it on, the jeans fit so well and were really comfortable that I overlooked that hehe. Also, it really is a true black denim without any fades or bleaching. Jason had made a point that most distressed black denim show bits of white in the patchy areas, if that makes sense. But if you look at these, everything is black and it makes for a classy pair of distressed jeans; an oxymoron in itself!

Zipper White Pants: Okay, so these were the jeans that the manager had given me an extra $20 off. GUESS was having another promotion where if you tried on a pair of jeans that were regularly priced, you got an automatic $20 off at the register. This pair and two other pairs of white denim were already marked down at 40% off, but one of the guys who I always see had thought the promo applied to these as well, despite being 40% off. So after the mix up of the $20 award that comes with being a Noir upgraded member, I asked the guy (not the same guy who I always see) about whether he applied the extra $20 off on the jeans. He said it didn't apply to these because they were on sale and I told him that the other guy told me they did. So he asked the manager, and being the sweet lady that she is, gave me the extra discount because I'm a regular :P.

Things that I like about this jean is obviously the zippers. What you can't see in the photo is that there are more zipper details on the cuff that run vertical up the ankle-calf area on both sides. It definitely had that moto feel. I was already in the market for a good pair of white denim since my only pair happened to be a basic denim from Wet Seal that I got 4-5 years ago? This pair is way more comfortable fabric-wise and fit-wise :)

Not Your Typical Black and White Striped Denim: I literally gasped when I saw these on the sale rack. I had first encountered them when I got my black and white paneled denim and this was when they were still quite regularly priced. I tried these on and I ended up not getting them, thinking that they would have my size when it went on extra sale. So when that time came, they didn't have my size! I was wholly regretting not getting this pair because I absolutely love how the stripes and spacing aren't uniformed. It stands out against all the other striped pairs of monochromatic pants that you see at other stores. There were many times where I just thought of purchasing something that was second-rate, but I could never do it lol. Then these appeared on the sale rack in my size and I was like "this is destiny." Someone must have bought them and returned them or they found it in the backroom or something, I don't know. All I know is that I'm superbly happy for waiting and now life is complete for now :P

Terribly sorry for the rambling and over-explanation in this post. I really like to tell the stories behind my purchases despite how boring or bland it may seem. Talking about my thought process and feelings show my love for fashion and design rather than the physical act of shopping. Yes, shopping is fun but for me, it has become an activity where I try to find something that is unique and stands out. I love trends and finding pieces that suit me and trying to make it me!

I have about 4 more pieces that I got from GUESS, but due to the over-emotional speak in this post, I decided to break it up into two parts. Be on the lookout for part two!

Thanks for reading!
-LAUREN

TSD San Francisco Edition: UNIQLO, H&M, Snidel, GUESS, Forever XXI

Finally another shopping haul and this one comes especially from San Francisco! Now, I usually go crazy when I go shopping but because I was with my mom, I had to exercise great restraint as she does frown upon crazy shopping habits like the ones that I possess lol. But despite that, I was able to get away with some great finds!

Basic Tanks and Seamless Underwear: This first batch was from UNIQLO, a Japanese brand which I liken to the Gap here in the U.S. I really like this brand for their basics, especially their seamless underwear, which are TRULY seamless and goes great with leggings. Of course, I had to snatch up two pairs of seamless undies ($7.95 each I think) and I decided to go for some basic tanks that were $9.95 each. I didn't get a chance to try on the tanks since there was a special event going on that was going to close the store super early. The white and black tank fits really nicely and the fabric is great. The more beigey-tone one on the far right is a little more loose fitted but still a great layering piece.

Black Leggings: I was super tempted to buy a whole bunch of things from H&M since it is such a great store, but once again, I was with my mom and had to exercise severe restraint. Instead I picked up two pairs of their black leggings since I fell in love with them when I got pair in Vegas a month before. They're only $9.95 and I think that's great for the quality of the fabirc.

Logo Print Tank: I actually got this as a furoku (付録) from the most recent issue of ViVi magazine from Kinokuniya in Japantown. It was ViVi's 30th anniversary and so they teamed up with Snidel to create this collab item! I've been a fan of Snidel, but never got anything because it was quite expensive. I was surprised at the good quality of the fabric for being a furoku. This tank encompasses one of the trends happening in Japan, which is block print logos with random English words.

White Fringe Sleeveless: Before leaving for SF, Guess had notified me by email saying that they were going to have an extra 50% off of their reduced prices for the Memorial Day weekend. I was worried I wouldn't find a nearby Guess but there was one conveniently at the Westfield Mall down the street. Everything I picked out was on extra 50% off, so I got a great deal. Also, I applied my $15 credit for being a Guess List member to my purchases! This first piece was from their music festival collection. I got it because I love the fringe detail cascading down the chest into a V-shape. Not too crazy about the actual material, but I figured it's a great piece for the the price.

Sheer Black Shirt w/ Royal Blue Trim: I absolutely love this because of how sheer the fabric is. I do have a lot of sheer black shirts, but this is even more sheer and I think you can tell by the picture. What sealed the deal was the royal blue trim on the collar and inside the sleeve cuffs. Yeah you cannot really see it when I'm wearing it, but I may roll up the sleeve cuff to show the underside. Also, the triangular studs for buttons is a cute edgy detail.

Blue Plaid w/ Studs: Except for one plaid shirt that doesn't really fit me well, I didn't have anything like this in my closet. To be honest, when I tried it on, I was on the fence with this, but decided to buy it because it was in my size and it was on extra sale. Plus, if I truly wanted to return it, I could do so at my local store. I think this ended up being one of my favorite pieces from this trip because it did fit pretty well for a plaid flannel shirt. They usually don't look right on me because of the fit, but this was about 90% perfect. Also, I love using this as an accessory piece by tying it around my waist! Then when it gets a little cool during the evenings, I can easily slip this on.

Star Patterned Knit: Now this was in the Forever 21 store; it was in the Forever XXI store. Now for someone like me, I would be like what is the difference? It's the same name but one is in roman numerals. According to my cousin who goes to USF over there, XXI is supposed to be better quality and more classier. I definitely got the better quality part. I saw this knit and knew I had to have it. While I'm not a big fan of star-patterned prints as I believe they look kind of juvenile on me, which is ironic as I got all star-patterned print items for XXI, this seemed to suit me well. I think that F21 knits are, for the most part, good quality and this did not disappoint.

High-Waisted Star Patterned Denim Shorts: This is my other favorite purchase of the entire trip. This is what got me into the store. Actually, the mannequin was wearing a slightly different star-patterned denim short than this one, but I ended up liking this one much better when I found it. I think the trend of high-waisted shorts and pants is super cool and chic, but when it comes to shorts, all the ones that I've tried had been too cheeky for my taste. When I tried this pair on, it was on the verge of being too cheeky, but I found it to be acceptable enough. The fit and quality is superb and I plan on wearing this for 4th of July!

Thanks for sticking around for this ep of the Shopping Diaries. I have a few more to post, so look forward to that!

Thanks for reading!

-LAUREN

TSD Vegas Edition: Urban Outfitters

Hello all! This is my first Urban Outfitters haul! My first impression of Urban Outfitters was "I really wish we had this store in Hawaii." It's like Brandy Melville and Pacsun mixed into one with more variety and more edge. The price range depends but I must say they have an excellent sale section.

I went to two UOs located at the Miracle Mile Mall in Planet Hollywood and the Mandalay Shoppes at Mandalay Bay. The first two pieces are from MMM and the latter are from Mandalay. So let's get started!

Light Blue Ribcage Tank: I don't know how many times I've expressed that I like the color blue, so we can obviously see why I was so attracted to this top. This was originally $29, but it was on sale for $19. The thing is that I didn't realize it until later on that they charged me $29 instead of $19 ugh. It was only $10 difference so it wasn't too bad. Actually I should've kept my receipt in hand since I went to the Mandalay location, but I had totally forgotten that they had an UO over there. The brand is called Ecote.

Grungy Muscle Tee: This is from the brand Truly Madly Deeply. What attracted me was the print. It gives off a grungy vibe and the white streaks almost look like some sort of skeletal piece. It's cool in a macabre kind of way! Also, it's a muscle tee (my first muscle tee that isn't from Brandy lol) so I was totally digging that as well. This was $35. Kinda pricey but hey why not?

Tokyo A Go-Go: This top was in the sale section for $9.99, regularly priced at $29.99. The t-shirt says it all as to why I got it hehe. I also love the name of the brand, which is called Lords of Liverpool.

Back Fringed Tee: This was also found in the sale section for $9.99, regularly priced at $46.99. The front of the shirt is just plain with a crew neck cut, but on the back as you can see in the picture, it dips low and has a cascading crochet fringe detail. The fabric of the shirt is super soft. I just love the simplicity of it! This is from the brand Neon Moon.

So that was all my purchases from Urban Outfitters. I can't wait to go back soon, or they can just bring one to Hawaii >_>

Thanks for reading!

-LAUREN