Lulu by Lulu Guinness for JC Penney

Hi my name is Rachel and I'm addicted to collaborations. It started off as a few purchases and then it turned into I have everything, but....!

This video is my Lulu Guinness Haul of the NEW & old collection. My Youtube Page is Kissmycats3093.

If you know me, I love shopping and the "hottest" or even undiscovered trends. Sometimes I even stumble across the winners, which happens to be the case with my latest obsession: Lulu Guinness.

Picture from luluguinness.com

For those of you who don't know...

 "Lulu Guinness is famous for exquisite, witty handbags and accessories, launched her company in 1989 and instantly became a "must" in every fashion aficionado's international address book. All Lulu Guinness stores are designed by Lulu herself and provide the perfect showcase for the entire range of accessories.Despite her success Lulu has never had any formal design training apart from a year's foundation course at art school and a long-standing passion for design and fashion.  In 1989, she left her job in video production to start her own business from the basement of the house in west London.

Lulu's strong personal style and her original ideas have played a large part in her success with her design inspiration springing partly from retro glamour and partly from modern chic." -www.luluguinness.com 

I stumbled across a collection LG had designed for JC Penney stores, back in the end of November 2012. I instantly fell in love with her patterns of lips, polka dots and London themed patterns. I couldn't wait to get to JCP Feb. 22 to pick over the newest collection. I looked online before I went, and picked out my two "must haves" - a scarf and purse - which was the only two things I bought. My store had a great selection of everything.

The layout took over a huge section of purses.

This table had bow bags and different sized wallets.

A table with bigger purses and clutches.

I love this blue clutch, but have so many clutches already. This Arm Candy Frame Clutch retails for  $35.

Now here are the two items I purchased: the Bow-tique Mini Cross Body Bag in Bluebird for $30 and the Viscose Printed Oblong Scarf in the Postcard print for $20.

The bag is a great size and a fabulous color.

A close up of the bow - it says Lulu by Lulu Guinness.

I love this scarf because of the postcards, I collect postcards.

The scarf has "cat stamps" on it, just another wonderful thing about the scarf that I completely adore.

So I was good and only bought two things, though I'm hoping the collection will be around to go on clearance, because there were quite a few bags I loved! I will post them below (and link to the bag on JCP in the caption) -- I hope you enjoy and comment and let me know what you like about the collection & tell me what you got, and why you love it!

The Clear Lip Tote in Pink, $45.

Arm Candy Mega Tote in cream/black dots, $65 (I really love this one)

The Top Handle Tote in Red Quilted Heart, $50.

 ~Rachel Unraveled

Prabal Gurung for Target Part 3

In the never ending Prabal Gurung reviews (post 1 here and post 2 here), I acquired two new finds that I wanted to share! The Flower Post Earrings in multicolor and the Nolita Tote. Both items were online exclusives (no longer in stock online) that I happened to find in stores. They were both in my online basket on launch night, but I passed because I have so many earrings and totes; however, these two pieces have added such great amount of color to my wardrobe that I definitely would not have imagined.

The earrings retail for $14.99 and are nickel free.

The tote retails for $39.99 and is fabulous!

I really enjoyed spicing up my wardrobe with these two pieces, and I love that the Nolita tote has so many different colors, it also inspired my latest manicure.

Short nails are SUPER hard to do manicures on, but I think I nailed the colors of the collection.

Below, is how I styled the tote and earrings this week. The peplum tank I'm wearing is Target, Yoga Pants & jean jacket are Old Navy.

Apparently I'm a selfie in the bathroom kind of girl.

Paired my look with the Kirna Zabete for Target scarf (no longer available).

Blue eyeliner matches my blue earrings!

Did you get the blue earrings or the tote? What do you think -- do you love them as much as I do?

~Rachel Unraveled

Prabal Gurung for Target Part 2

In my post Prabal Gurung for Target Part1, I told you about the items from the PG x t collection I had so far. Well, the rest of my shipment arrived today and I am so excited about what I got!

 The first pair of shoes in the shipment that I tried on, were the Nolita Flats. I was a little worried about how these would fit, because I had tried on the pumps in the same size and they did not fit and the toe part was too tight. Well regardless of that, these puppies fit like a dream! They were silky smooth and super comfortable. I got these in size ten which is my true size (though usually at Target I wear 11s, but most of this collection did not go up to 11). The only thing I don't like about the shoes is the toe cleavage I have, but my friends have the same problem so I don't think it was just me. I love these and for $29.99, the price was right. (These flats were online exclusives are currently unavailable online).

The next thing I tried on was the Wedge Sandal with Ankle strap in black/grey in size 10 (it's really white, not gray).  I wanted these to work so badly, but the part across my toes was just too tight. My little piggy toe protested and said no way, you can't keep these. So these will go back to Target, they are $29.99. (These wedges were online exclusives and currently not available online).

The last order in my collection was the Meet the Parents Cardigan in XL. I completely love this floral print, it's just the right cardigan for me. I didn't have time to style it, but I wanted to try it on to make sure it fit correctly. (This cardigan was an online exclusive and is currently available on Target.com in ALL sizes XS-XL).

So right now, I own 4 pieces from the collection (Blue cardigan, tassel earrings, MtP cardigan & nolita flats) and am holding strong there. My original wishlist was 9 items! There are still a few things on it that I hope to find, but I guess we will see! And of course, if I do purchase anything else, I will post a review!

Until next time...
~Rachel Unraveled

Prabal Gurung for Target Review Part 1

The Prabal Gurung for Target collection  came out February 10, 2013. 

I wish I could live at Target, that's how much I love that store. Ever since last year, I became fascinated and obsessed with designer collaborations at Target. I thought the first collection I owned was the Jason Wu for Target (Feb. 5, 2012), but it turns out I had some Target collabs in my closet I didn't realize were collabs! I will definitely do a post about those items in the future. 

But since I found out about the Prabal Gurung for Target collection, I had my eyes on quite a few items. Despite only being able to sleep for two hours the day the collection came out, I headed to Target at 7:50 am to get on line. It was a nice surprise that there were only a few people waiting in cars before 8 am. At 7:59 I dashed out of my car, and was the first person in Target. I ran straight over to the racks were the PG was, and to my surprise there was less than I imagined. I had looked at the lookbook (you can see it here). While the whole collection launched online, not everything was available in every store. There were also quite a few online only exclusives.

Please keep in mind when reading my review, that this is a limited time collection and not all pieces my be available. 

The first thing I tried on!

The first item from the collection that I tried on, was the Colorblock Long-Sleeve Cardigan in Dresden Blue in an XL. I really loved the softness of the sweater and especially the hue of blue as most of my wardrobe is blue. For $32.99, this sweater came home with me.

What I styled the cardigan with: A tank from  old navy and a blue watch from American Eagle.

The next piece I tried on was the Colorblock long-sleeve sweater in Atlantis Green. I was so tired when I was trying on the clothes that I decided I liked the other cardigan better and that this one would stay behind at Target (and it did). It was very sheer and tight in the arms.

I hadn't looked at the jewelry in the first Target, because I hadn't seen anything that really called to me. But after a friend posted a pair of earrings on her, I decided I needed to give these a try. So I got the Tassel Earrings with Stones in silver (currently unavailable online, but may be in stores). I really love the look of the earrings and they are elegant. I do warn you, that if you have sensitive ear lobes, these puppies are heavy and probably will not be able to be worn for long periods of times. I can't wait to wear mine! Are they formal or day-to-day in your opinion?

 I have two more items coming from online, so those will be a part two post coming soon.

Now for what I loved, but didn't work for me.

I tried the Flat Sandal in black in a size eleven (my normal size at Target). I have to say I was really disappointed in these shoes for a few reasons. The part that my foot went through was tight around my ankle; the part across the width of my foot was squeezing it and the toe separator was not close enough to my toes. The kicker was that the zipper was very hard to work and I was not able to get the shoes off until I sat down! So these did not work for me.

Next I tried the Wedge Sandal with Ankle Strap in Apple Red. I tried these shoes in a size 10, because this shoe did not go up to a size 11. The band around my toes was tight and my foot felt like it was not secure. The strap wouldn't close for me, and not having an easy closure is a deal breaker. So unfortunately, my PG shoe fantasy was not fulfilled.

Summary: I absolutely am in love with the bright colors of the collection! Overall it was a great collection and I am satisfied with my purchases. I'm hoping that the two items I ordered will work, and even if they don't, the review will be up soon! 

~Rachel Unraveled