Last week, I was flipping through the Garnet Hill catalog and came across this really cute outfit: lovely thin-wale corduroy pants with a slimming black cashmere turtleneck. It was just what I was looking for – comfy, yet pulled together – but, I balked at the price!
The mom in me just couldn't part with $264 right before the Holidays, so I decided to price shop a similar look instead. I'm happy I did because I found a very similar outfit from…are you ready? Victoria's Secret! Gasp!
I must admit, shopping from the Vicky's catalog for anything other than pjs and undergarments was a little weird for me, but I'm glad I did. The quality of the clothes exceeded my expectations – and surprisingly, nothing was skin tight! The cashmere-blend turtleneck sweater is really nice and the gray cords are super-duper comfy – seriously, I'd sleep in them.
THE RUN DOWN:
The original outfit breaks out this way:
|
Expensive Garnet Hill Version |
Prices |
|
GH, Stretch-Cord Bootcut Pants |
78.00 |
|
GH, Classic Cashmere Turtleneck |
148.00 |
|
Total Outfit Cost w/o S&H, or tax: |
226.00 |
Whereas, my comparable frugal version breaks down to:
|
Bargain Hunting Version |
Prices |
|
VS, The Hipster Stretch Corduroy Pant* |
37.13 |
|
VS, Silk & Cashmere Turtleneck Sweater |
39.00 |
|
LL Bean Signature, Skinny Leather Belt |
25.00 |
|
Zappos, Naturalizer Shoes ‘Referee’ |
69.95 |
|
Total Outfit Cost w/o S&H, or tax: |
171.08 |
Plus, I saved so much money that I splurged on a new pair of shoes from Zappos and picked up a skinny leather belt from LLBean Signature. Even with my splurges, I still have $54.92 left over!
SIZING COMMENTS:
I found that the Hipster line of pants fit pretty dead on and prevent any embarrassing muffin top situations from popping over (hee, hee). The cashmere-blend sweaters run a teensy bit big, so I kept the small and returned the medium. (FYI – these sweaters are banded at the bottom so they poof out a bit which hides any, ahem, smooshy parts that the jeans can't correct.)
Oh, I’m so happy to help! The cords are soooo comfy! They’re thin-wale so they won’t keep you warm on the coldest of days, but they have nice stretch to them that helps when you’re bending over and picking up toys all day long!
You just made my day and my price range! I love how you look in the outfit. I just went to the Victoria Secret website and was so excited to see that they carry the pants in long lenghts- a true find for me. I will pass this on to Santa and hope that he will bring me a styling outfit this year!
I love how honest you are about hiding the smooshy parts! I was cracking up reading this. Maybe I will have you find me my holiday outfits! Great job!
Dani