Just a few days ago, Target released its hotly anticipated Lilly Pulitzer for Target lookbook. This type of country club aesthetic is a big departure from Target’s recent attempt at a design comeback with the impressive, slinky Altuzarra collection — which I covered here. While my enthusiasm is wan at best, that may be because I’m not the […]
Catalog Police
J. Crew Attempts to Claw Back Market Share
Two days ago, J. Crew CEO Mickey Drexler admitted the obvious — that the company’s women’s fashions from the last year have “failed.” If you’ve been regularly reading Catalog Police, my weekly review of mail order catalogs, this will come as zero surprise. Just a few years ago, the company had morphed from a boring […]
Clothes for the Dirty Hippie in You
Happy Friday, and welcome back to Catalog Police! This week, we’ll be analyzing Wildfox’s latest summer lookbook. The lookbook’s theme is Coachella-inspired, which I suppose means you should be buying these clothes for the music festival of your choice. Personally, I find the bedraggled festival look a little tired — not to mention redundant. (I’m pretty sure […]
A Review of the March 2015 J. Crew Style Guide
Something is happening with J. Crew. The company’s offerings have slowly started ringing the death knell, and everything is boring, drab and so 90s-centric, it borders of parody. In the recent March 2015 style guide, the outfits are awash in shades of ecru, olive and blue — a watercolor morass of boring, drab clothes. Let’s […]
H&M is Going Totally 80s
Happy Friday! Welcome back to Catalog Police, my weekly review of the latest catalogs and the horrors they contain. Today, we’re looking at H&M’s Spring/Summer 2015 lookbook. It was fairly sparse — just a few looks — but the few outfits displayed were heavy-handed on kitsch and 80s references, as well as kooky prints like sequined palm […]
What’s Up With J.Crew Lately?
Uh, oh. J. Crew is back in the hot seat — and not just here at Catalog Police. The fashion world was abuzz with the news that J. Crew is actually recommending $450 “wedding shorts.” Normally, I’d fear that such a desperately out-of-touch design meant that J. Crew was on the fast-track to the land of Cache. But […]
The Most Ridiculous Camping Outfits Ever
Happy Friday! Today, we have another installation of Catalog Police, where I critique lookbooks and catalogs currently hitting both our mailboxes and inboxes. My goal? To take a cold, hard look at fashion marketing in all its glorious ridiculousness. This week’s victim is Wildfox Couture, which recently dropped its Spring 2015 lookbook. As the New […]
Catalog Police: Zara’s Latest Lookbook
Zara has been on a hot streak lately. After several uninspiring years churning out polyester blouses in varying shades of neon, the Spanish fast fashion giant has pared down its designs and embraced the sleek minimalism currently ruling the runway. Zara has never showcased its manufacturing prowess when trends veer toward loud designs, like lace or too-elaborate patterns. […]
The 5 Weirdest Things You Can Get at Harrods
When I last visited Harrods in London, my husband and I spotted a ludicrous gold-plated serving tray in the shape of a sheep. It didn’t have a price tag, so we started playing a version of The Price is Right, trying to guess how much the tray cost. By the time I wagered $10,000, a sales associate interrupted […]
Catalog Police: Free People, January 2015
Happy Friday! In honor of the much-earned weekend, Catalog Police is back with a vengeance. In this feature, I critique the ridiculous pictures, poses and prices in mail-order catalogs. This week, we’re covering Free People — a retailer I’ve discussed several times. However, the latest Free People catalog showed remarkable improvement. Gone were the head-scratching sequined […]