Miss Frey's Blog

2006-12-04T10:53:00.000-08:00

The holidays are right around the corner. For those of you who are shopping for a special lady in your life whether she's your significant other, sister, or even mom, you should check out Parachute boutique at La Encantada. The clothes that Parachute carries are a bit higher end, but they also have great accessories and gift packages for the holidays that may run a bit cheaper than an entire outfit.

But for those that are looking for clothes, Parachute has the latest and best selection of top brands. Some of the brands they carry for example are Juicy Couture, Ella Moss, Rock and Republic denim, Lacoste, T-Bags, and 2B Free.

Parachute carries a special line of the Rock and Republic denim. A design made by soccer star David Beckham's wife, Victoria Beckham. Since these are considered a little more special than the regular jeans, they run a bit more pricey at around $250 bucks. You can see an example of the jeans you may find at Parachute at eluxury's website.

One example of the gift packages offered at Parachute were a few items from Juicy Couture. There were sets of PJ's, bags, and also boxes in the shape of a heart with a set of 5 panties inside. These little, but cute, gifts run about $60 bucks. To view some gift ideas from Juicy Couture that Parachute might have, you can check at the Juicy website.

Overall, Parachute is a great store with lots of cute gift ideas for the holidays and holiday outfit ideas. The prices are not cheap though, so if you're shopping on a budget, Parachute may not be the best fit for your shopping needs. If you're interested in the brands Parachute has to offer, you can check out a website called ShopBop which carries all the same brands and probably more from their lines. Again, it is not cheap, but it's a great website if you're interested!

2006-11-27T11:50:00.000-08:00

The Hang Up boutique, located at 739 N. Fourth Avenue, is an interesting mix of modern clothes and real vintage pieces. It is the perfect place to find a one of kind outfit or try something a little different from the norm.

Hang Up carries both men and women styles. Some of the stand out pieces for men are their jackets. They usually are a standard black or pin stripe with something a little outrageous on it too for example a large cross on the back of the jacket.

Their women's wear has a lot more to offer. First of all, there are brands sold there that are sold at lots of other stores for example Blue Cult jeans and C&C tank tops and shirts. Along with these brands are also a number of vintage pieces and pieces made by the owners of the store.

The vintage pieces are usually beautiful dresses with a unique look. For example one dress looked almost like an 80's prom dress. It was black and white plaid on the bottom and flared out like a prom dress, but the top looked almost like a bustier and was solid black.

Since the vintage pieces are so unique and literally one of a kind, they tend to come with a hefty price tag. They usually range from a few hundred dollars to even $1,000.

Hang Up also carries vintage or used designer bags. They usually have brands such as a Gucci and Fendi, but the bags especially sell very fast since they are noticeably cheaper than buying the bags new.

The clothes that are made by the owners of Hang Up have a unique look to them, but don't have such a high price. Since they are made by the owners, they are only sold at Hang Up. They usually range between $30 to $250.

Hang Up is a great addition to the Tucson shopping scene. It attracts all types of people from men to women, to people with passions for vintage, or someone just looking for something a little different. Hang Up is definitely a great place to find an outfit that makes a statement.

2006-11-14T11:36:00.000-08:00

University is adding a new store to its lineup. American Apparel, which is famous for their comfy t-shirt, tank tops, and pants, will be opening up sometime this fall. The construction on it has started and there are already some manicans set up in the windows.

American Apparel is a Los Angeles based company. Not only are they located throughout the U.S. but also other countries such as Canada and even Japan. Their clothes give off an 80's type of vibe. With spandex pants and one piece leotards. They are the kind of clothes that make you think of Richard Simmons in his work out videos.

Other than the leotards and jumpsuits, American Apparel offers great basic t-shirts in every color. The tees come in every fit to. They have tank tops, long sleeves, short sleeves and everything in between. They also come in unisex styles so you could potentially buy a shirt for your boyfriend, but you could wear it all the time and it would look great.

Another interesting addition to American Apparel is the fact that they have an organic line. They are %100 cotton t-shirts that are also %100 organic. They aren't that much more expensive either than the regular tees costing about $5 more.

Not only does American Apparel sell woman's clothes, but also men, kids, babies and even clothes for dogs. Besides clothing they offer accessories such as socks, bags, wallets, scarves, and athletic gear.

The prices at American Apparel are also pretty reasonable. They range from about $15 to $50 dollars. With those prices as well as a great location next to the U of A, students should consider it the perfect place to pick up your basica, everyday t-shirts.

For more about American Apparel, check out their website.

2006-11-07T09:58:00.000-08:00

Steals and deals are what you'll find when shopping at Target. Yes I mean shopping for clothes at Target. Target offers the basic clothing lines they always have like Xhilaration and Mossimo which have cute, but basic tops and bottoms. The past two years though, Target has been carrying lower priced lines made by usually expensive designers.

Target's Go International! campaign features different higher end designer debuting lines specifically for Target. The lines are only at Target for a limited time and the designers have been from around the world. For example they have featured British designer Luella Bartley and French designer Sophie Albou for Paul and Joe.

Currently, Target is carrying a line by Iranian born designer Behnaz Sarafpour. Sarafpour's clothes are usually sold at places like Saks Fifth Avenue or Barney's New York. Ranging from one of the cheaper pieces being sold for about $400 to a more expensive skirt for about $1,250.

Sarafpour's Target line on the other hand, ranges from about $14.99 for a top to $45 for a dress. Although the designer is from Iran, her line's inspiration comes from New York City.

Target has easily gone from strictly a place to buy cheaper clothing needs as well as regular grocery's to place to buy trendy pieces without the huge price tag.

To see some of Sarafpour's line for Target, check out their website.

Also, to see some of Sarafpour's designer line, check out her website.

2006-10-23T11:40:00.000-07:00

Anthropologie, located at the La Ecantada shopping center, is a beautiful store where you can find clothing, accessories, and even home decor such as furniture, plates, and picture frames. The store setting in itself is very elegant and has a country sort of feel to it. All the walls are a light wood color or a soft off white. They also play soothing music and have candles lit to make wondering around the big store a little more comfortable.

Their standout clothing items are usually their jackets and pants. Unfortunately, since we're living in Arizona, the jackets are usually only worn about 2 times a year. Nonetheless though they are beautifully made, usually from wool or even velvets for the holiday season.

Even if you do live in Arizona, purchasing a jacket from Anthropologie might not be a bad idea. They are made so well they are pretty much gaurenteed to still be around if you were to move or go on any chilly vacations.

The pants Anthropologie sells are also great because of the fabrics, bold colors, and their different styles. They sell every sort of style from wide leg pants to skinny jeans. The prints are what makes them standout though. They have green trousers, brown cordorouy pants, even black and white plaid pants.

This is the reason I love Anthropologie so much. They sell beautiful clothes but the clothes are also very different from most of the typical trends out there. They are a take on the trends, but in a more classy manner so they're bound to stick around for longer than a season.

Although they just have women's clothing, men could shop there as well in their home decor section. They have bedding, alarm clocks, lamps, and even fancy candlesticks. They also sell some great, entertaining coffee table books such as The Louvre Game Book.

Along with the beautiful things Anthropologie sells comes a not so cheap price tag. Most of the clothing ranges between $40-400 dollars. The home and bedroom decor ranges between $150-1,500.

The La Encantada shopping center is located off Skyline and Campbell.

For more about Anthropologie, check out their web site.

2006-10-16T12:12:00.000-07:00

If you're looking for more elegant clothing and accessories, W Boutique, located in St. Philip's Plaza will have anything you need. The store starts out with almost half a wall full of Trina Turk clothing. Most of the line is made from very fine fabrics like silks and cashmeres. Since the fabrics are top of the line though, the price tags of the clothing start out at at least $200.

There are cheaper items sold at W Boutique though. For example, t-shirts and tank tops made by Michael Stars and James Perse start out at around $68 dollars. W also carries Michael Stars shirts that are made out of cashmere which are more pricey-about $200 dollars.

W also carries a few lines of higher end denim. For example, a few different styles of Sass and Bide jeans like white denim and gray. Sass and Bide jeans run about $230 dollars. They also carry Chip and Pepper jeans and Habitual.

W is definitely the place to go if you need a dress for an event like a wedding. The style of dresses fall around the knee and most were sleeveless or halters. Just in time for fall and winter, the major colors of the dresses are black and off white-very elegant!

Along with the elegant evening wear, W also carries a few styles of panties from Michael Stars and jewelry by Julez Bryant to match the beautiful dresses they carry.

Check out a review of W Boutique by the Lucky Magazine's website.

To view the some of the dresses sold by W and other designs, check out the Trina Turk website.

If you're more of a jeans kind of girl, the Sass and Bide website shows some of the same styles that are sold at W plus tons more.

2006-10-09T12:26:00.000-07:00

Ed Hardy, another new addition to University, is a trendy, higher end boutique. The clothes and the lifestyle Ed Hardy promotes are a little rock and roll, but also very trendy.

Ed Hardy began in the San Francisco area with inspiration from a tattoo artist by the name of Don Ed Hardy. Hardy, who is known as, "the godfather of modern tattoo," is also a painter with work featured in modern art galleries across the United States.

Hardy joined forces with Christian Audigier to create Ed Hardy Vintage Tattoo Wear. Audigier used to work for Von Dutch, which knows a thing or two about trendy clothing.

Hardy's clothes are all pretty casual. They sell women and men's clothes which consist of mostly t-shirts, sweatshirt hoodies, and tank tops. They don't run very cheap though. A basic women's tank top is about $50 dollars. Most of the t-shirts and jackets are between $100-$250 dollars.

Hardy also carries a line of shoes, hats, belts, jewelry, bags for your pets, even energy drinks and accessories for your home. Such accessories include: shot glasses, flasks, clocks, coasters, key chains, and regular glasses.

Everything from the clothing to the shot glasses has a tattoo design on it. For example, one clock design has a skull in the middle with a heart on top of it with the words "Love Kills Slowly."

So, if you've always wanted a tattoo, but are a little nervous about it being permanent, picking up a t-shirt from Ed Hardy might be a good substitute.

You can check out more designs online at http://http://www.edhardyshop.com/default.aspx, or stop by the University Ed Hardy location.

2006-10-02T12:25:00.000-07:00

It is the first week in October, so maybe swim wear isn't a top priority for those of us shopping around for fall clothes. But let's face it, it is Arizona, and the temperature is still in the 90's. So we can still get away with sporting our swim suits by the pool on the weekends.

Sigi's Boutique in St. Philip's Plaza is a great place to visit when shopping for a swim suit. Sigi's offers suits with designer names that are hard to find in any other boutiques in Tucson. Along with the great suits, Sigi's offers accessories like towels and jewelry to match.

Sigi's might be known primarily as a place to shop for swim wear. But as it gets colder in the Tucson area, you might want to check out Sigi's for other clothing fixes. Sigi's is not your ordinary clothing store like the Gap. It is more for the girl with a funky side with a desire to wear something that no one else has.

One example is a skirt that is made out of ties. This skirt is also made by a local woman from Nogales. So you can be sure no one else outside of the Tucson area will be wearing it. Another example of local talent is Tommy G. Tommy's makes tank tops and underwear briefs but packages them in a fortune cookie box.

Along with some local talent, Sigi's also carries big names that are hard to find in the Tucson area. For example, Nannette Lepore and Petrozillia. These designer names also come with a price tag around $100-400 dollars.

A cheaper, but just as trendy name that Sigi's carries is Michael Stars. Known for their t-shirts that fit any size, Michael Stars clothing is a bit more reasonable ranging from about $40-150 dollars.

Sigi's is a great place to visit anytime of the year. Whether you're wanting to get ahead with a new swim suit for summer, or looking for a great, original outfit, you will definitely find what you're looking for at Sigi's.

2006-09-26T21:43:00.000-07:00

For those ladies who love the chain store Forever 21, they will certainly enjoy the new addition to University, Pitaya. Pitaya just recently opened on University. They offer a variety of things with a low price.

For example, most jeans these days are a bit pricier than the average college student can afford. Pitaya sells tons of jeans with different styles and prints on them. All of them are under $50 bucks. This is a pretty good deal, considering most jeans run between $60-200 bucks.

Since Pitaya is on the cheaper side, it's great that they have basic styles in all different colors. Allowing any shopper to buy their favorite shirt in bulk.

Pitaya offers trendy but casual styles. Most of the tops and dresses are made out of a jersey material, which is definitely comfortable.

Along with clothes, Pitaya has a small shoe section which also have cheaper prices. They had heels, flats and wedges that were all below $30.

Other accessories they carry are necklaces, earrings, belts, bags, head bands, and even watches. So if you are looking to pick up some trendy items-without the higher prices-Pitaya should definitely be on your list. Don't forget they also carry bags and even shoes with great prices.

If you can't make it over to University, you can always check them out online at:

http://www.pitayaonline.com/index.cfm

2006-09-18T13:57:00.000-07:00

Zoe Boutique, located at 735 North 4th Avenue is genuinely a store that is unique to Tucson. Mostly carrying clothing, they do offer lines that are from outside of Tucson. But those lines are not your typical clothing lines found in department stores. They are also unique, different brands that are not exactly the "trendy" look.

For example, Zoe offers brands like GSUS, which is a company from the Netherlands. There are no GSUS stores in the U.S., only boutiques like Zoe that sell their clothing. As you can imagine, GSUS is not easy to find.

Zoe also offers hard to find brands such as Double Zero, Made, and Oliga Tissew denim. When I was browsing through Zoe, I came across a cute hot pink and black lace dress. I was intrigued by it because it was so different looking. It turned out, the dress was actually made by a Tucson designer.

Zoe gives local designers the chance to debut their lines. Being a one of a kind, the prices of these local pieces were reasonable. The dress I tried on was originally about $56. Although the dress was definately cute and different, for me it was a little too different.

Jewelry, sunglasses, shoes and bags are slo sold at Zoe. The sunglasses are a great buy because they are very cute, but also fairly cheap with a price around $7. Zoe carries Janice flip flops in pretty much every color. As well as jewelry like Tarina Tarantino earrings, necklaces, rings, and bracelets.

Being primarily a retail store, it is very unique that Zoe also sells art. Most of the art they sell are hanging on their walls in the store. The art ranges between $175-400. Zoe often holds events like fashion shows and art exhibits. For example, in August Zoe held an art opening reception which displayed paintings by local artists. Zoe is having another art opening reception in early November.

You can shop for Zoe products online at:

http://http://www.zoestyle.com/

2006-09-11T11:32:00.000-07:00

Face Me is a different type of boutique. Instead of clothes, they offer higher end skin care and makeup products. Some of their products cannot be found anywhere else in Tucson. Normally, they are found in department stores like Nordstrom or Neiman Marcus. Face Me also offers hair care products like Bumble and Bumble that can only be found in salons.

Some skin care products offered are Sonya Dakar (one preferred by multiple celebrities-with a hefty price tag along with it), SkinCeuticals, and my personal favorite Mario Badescu.

The face wash I picked up from Face Me by Badescu has actual chunks of seaweed mixed in it. The chunks helped exfoliate my skin, but it also left it feeling very soft. This wash, compared with some of the others, is reasonably priced at $12.

The makeup products Face Me offers are not only higher end, but also sometimes hard to find brands. One example is an eye enhancer kit by a company called Kitten Vixen. For $38, it is an eyeliner and mascara in one, and also comes with a brush to blend.

Another harder to find brand is Rosie Jane, a cosmetics line from Australia. They sell an all around gloss for $24 that can be used on the lips or cheecks. It gives a "just went surfing" kind of glow. There are only two stores in Arizona that carry the line, including Face Me.

Along with selling products, Face me offers services including facials, waxings and even a body bronze. The services range from $15 for a lip wax to $350 for an eyelash extensions. They also give makeup application lessons for between $65-110.

http://http://www.shopfaceme.com/

http://http://www.mariobadescu.com/

http://http://www.rosiejanecosmetics.com/

2006-08-31T13:29:00.000-07:00

Cover your Butz! Butz jean and Clothing Company is much more than just a catchy name. Located in St. Philip's Plaza, Butz is a jean girl's heaven. Living in Tucson, Arizona, it can be tough to find the latest trends coming out of Los Angeles. While I strolled through Butz, I came across plenty of designer names that I had never heard of. So i asked the young lady who was working where these designers came from. The majority had come from Los Angeles.

Designers like 575 denim, Gold Sign, Citizens of Humanity, and Fresh are all Los Angeles based clothing designers. So there is no need for us Tucsonans to travel to L.A., just travel over to Campbell and River!

Not only does Butz offer a vareity of denim, but also t-shirts, sweat shirts and pants, bags, and yoga gear. Beyond Yoga is a yoga clothing line that Butz carries which has celebrities like Reese Witherspoon and Cindy Crawford endorsing it.

The bottom line about Butz is if you love the hottest trends that the coolest people rock from L.A., Butz is the place to go to pick up the newest 2Lux bag or Yvette Mandell shirt. The prices at Butz range from $50-$250.

https://iambeyond.com/iambeyond.php

http://www.tucsonstyle.com/shopping/07252005.aspx

2006-08-28T12:19:00.000-07:00

Pour Moi boutique ("for me" in french) really caters to the individual customer. I had never been to this boutique before and did not know what kind of clothes, accessories, etc. to expect. The first piece of clothing I picked up was a "Just Cavalli" number which ran for about $400. Immediately, I had a feeling this boutique might not be within my starving student budget. Overally, I found the clothes ranged between $150-$600 dollars. Other designers this boutique carries are Nicole Miller, Theory, Dolce and Gabbana, and Susana Monaco. Pour Moi not only offers everyday wear and nice evening clothes, but also accessories and even wedding dresses. They had a selection of vintage Gucci and Fendi bags and wallets from either the 1970's or 1980's. I thought that was very unique considering vintage bags are hard to find, usually people's best bet is to shop online. Of course with shopping online, you can't physically touch the bag. So, if some Tucsonians are looking for vintage bags, they can now shop locally! The stereotype of the people that normally work with designer clothing like Roberto Cavalli is that they may be stuck up or rude, and would definately not bother with someone as young and poor as me. I was pleasantly surprised though when the young lady working offered me water and offered to help with anything I wanted to look at. Pour Moi is a unique boutique with beautifully clothes and accessories, but considering the price range it would be a great place for the more affluent to shop, maybe not the typical college student.