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
