Backstage and Broken Heels; Day 2 NYFW Recap

Last year I was lucky enough to go backstage with Elizabeth Arden for the Dennis Basso show, so I was super excited when I got a few invites for backstage this year. I was given full access to check out beauty and the fashion - it was amazing! Unfortunately the only backstage that worked into my schedule this year was to go backstage with Aveda for the TOME show.

When arrived I was a little disappointed to be given an Aveda wristband for beauty only instead of a full access pass. I decided to make the best of it until I was told it was too crowded so instead of staying for 2 hours, I could only stay for 20 minutes. Again, I made the best of it by chatting up the stylists and taking lots of pics. I was also treated to a hand massage and a hair styling - but with this super short hair of mine, all they could do was a small braid. I loved that they were doing individual styling for the models who were all shapes, sizes and colors. They did all get a unique brushstroke on their face which was so fresh - totally obsessed!

When my time was up I was told I could go into the other beauty area of Tata Harper who was doing the skincare for the model. She was so sweet and demonstrated several of the products on all of us, bloggers and models alike. Her little girls danced around backstage - they were so darling and totally stole the show. They did have a table of swag but the models totally hoarded the goods before I could get my hands on any. Too bad.

And then my heel fell off. I was shocked. It was the first time I wore these Rebecca Taylor booties and I was a little disappointed. I scooped up the heel and limped out of there.

Then I had my niece meet me outside to shoot my look - sans heel. You do what you gotta do sometimes.

This is one of the dresses I pulled out of the $10 damage bin a while back at the Rebecca Taylor sample sale. It was torn but my seamstress mended it for me. I actually got two of these - a size 2 (they run big) and a 12. I packed on a few pounds so instead of even trying the 2 (which did fit me when I got it) I grabbed the 12 knowing it would be large. It probably bulked me up a bit so I regret not squeezing into the smaller. When you get heavy your first impulse is to wear loose clothing to cover up - but you really need to resist and wear clothing that fits or you can look even larger.

From head to toe:

• Sunglasses: Lumete eyewear, Nordstrom Rack (unsure but had to be cheap - probably $0.01 LOL, RV about $200)
• Necklace: Nanette Lepore, sample sale, $5 (It's actually a belt!)
• Dress: Rebecca Taylor, sample sale, $10 (RV $550)
• Bracelet: Dannijo Lacey cuff, sample sale, $25 (RV approx. $350)
• Bag: Rebecca Minkoff Jumbo Love, sample sale, $50 (RV $355) - may have had a press discount so actually $35 :)
• Boots: Rebecca Taylor, sample sale, $25 (RV $395)

So about $100 for a $1,800+ look. Not bad!

You can shop my look here:

I still owe you my last day of NYFW (you can read my first day here) and I'm super behind on sharing some amazing deals and pieces that have shown up in my mailbox.

Some super exciting news that I shared on an Insta story last week is that Ella has been selected to be a brand ambassador for Justice! A huge box of goodies, including a phone and a $100 gift card came and we've been shopping to put together some super cute looks for her!

My parents have finally closed on their house today so I'm done driving 45 minutes each way to spend all day cleaning and emptying their house...when I should be cleaning mine LOL. Half of their stuff has magically shown up in my house (including my youngest brother) so it's gonna take me a while to get my home settled. At this point I'm going to have to cut back on shopping but I'll be sure to still hit the really good ones.

As for this week's sales you can check out Lazar Shopping for a full list but The Rent the Runway sample sale started tonight at 260 Sample Sale (260 5th Ave.) and is on thru Sunday. I doubt it will be good as the NJ sales they used to have. You can read about those glory days here and here. Lionette is another fave of mine this week but I'm not sure I can make it in - you can read some of my past reports here and here.

Wishing you all a great week!

XO
Shoppinggal

Fashion Week Recap; Part 1

One of my fashion dreams has always been to participate at NYFW. Last season I wrote hundreds of emails to designers and their mothers to let me in. You can read my recaps here, here, here, here, here and here. I went to almost every show I was invited to and it was exhausting. This season I took a less aggressive approach and pretty much relied on whatever came my way. The good news is that little by little I'm getting on PR lists and being including. I also only attended three days of festivities as that's all my schedule allowed.

When I looked at the forecast that morning I saw 90+ degree heat and knew I was in trouble. I have an amazing wardrobe. But most of it is too small right now as I've packed on 20 lbs. So not only did my planned outfits not quite fit, it was just too darn hot to wear them all day. Plus I had just chopped all my hair off the day before and it was not as successfully as I would have liked. So I choked. I totally chickened out and wore the H&M dress I've been wearing all summer. Everyone else was in all black or insanely dressed in winter clothing LOL. 

From head to toe:

• Sunglasses: Jason Wu, Modo sample sale, $20
• Necklace: Nanette Lepore, sample sale, $5*
• Dress: H&M, $16 after 20% mall coupon
• Bag: Balenciaga, Nordstrom Rack
• Shoes: Loeffler Randall Luz tassel sandals, Rebecca Taylor sample sale, $50 (RV $395)* - Thank you to Mushkie for pointing them out to me at the sale!

*This are the first time I'm sharing these on the blog. As I move away from sample sale reports to more personal style and monthly sale recaps, I'll be sharing my behind the scene deals on my Insta stories - be sure to be following so you don't miss a sale! I'm considering posting this info on my Facebook page too so it doesn't disappear after 24 hours. What do you think?

I had back to back shows for most of the day, and of course none of them were in the same location. If you're Anna Wintour or a high level influencer you get shuttled around town by Lexus or Uber on the house. I purchased an unlimited 7-day subway card for about $30. Nothing is faster thru rush hour traffic. Nothing. And you can't beat the price. 

My schedule was too tightly packed so I had some decisions to make. I was going to skip my 12:30 show to do a 10:30 show then a 11:30 backstage (both at different venues of course) until I heard The Double Take Girls were going to be at the 12:30 and I wanted to finally meet them in person. So I skipped my backstage and went directly to my 10:30 and then on to my 12:30.

My 10:30 show was Jeans for Refugees and I ended up in second row. Problem is, it's impossible to get a good picture in second row. I did get a goodie bag but only took out a hair band and a hair product. This year I did not want to tote around giant gift bags all day so I selectively took goods out of them and put them in my Balenciaga. 

After the show I bumped into a photographer I had met the previous fashion week (she was the one who took my pic above). We took the subway to the next venue together the the Supima Design Competition show and I finally met the twins. I dragged them to better seats but we were too late to get a front row seat. It's a pity because I came home with a tee shirt and a Brooks Brothers leather card holder - front row got a full set of plush towels. 

Personally I was a fan of the gold leaf designs by Duston Jasso but it was Jeffrey Taylor who took the $10,000 prize. Olivia Culpo hosted the event. 

Then I headed back to 33rd street for the Michael Costello show. This time I was determined to sit front row...so I did. I sat right near the celebs - right next to some of the WAGS (I watch a lot of reality TV LOL) and across from Paris Hilton who pretty much ran out right after the show. 

It was a great show, chock full of red carpet looks. 

Everyone cheered and pulled out their phones when Tyson came out :)

After the show I had some time to walk around and explore. Tresemme once again had their free hair salon set up but I have no hair left to style so I went inside and scored a few samples. The lounge was sponsored by Jimmy Choo but this year I wasn't able to find any connections to let me in the lounge. 

Aquafina and Papyrus sponsored the snack area and handed out free waters, candy and cards. 

An airline sponsored free leather luggage tags that were stamped with your initials. I asked nicely and got two :) I'll have to take a pic of all my swag for my next roundup post. 

I didn't have another show until evening so I went across the street to the hotel lobby to sit, upload a few pics and charge my phone. I decided to head to the Style Watch party downtown solo. I got there super early but they let me in anyway. I got my hair braided (not much to braid) and met a luckily bunch of friendly bloggers. I was so beat that I didn't even bother to put my heels on - I wore my Crocs the whole time and then went home after (skipping 2 other parties and a show).

I figured that three shows, a party, freebies, and several new friends was a successful day and I was more than happy to call it a night. 

It was a LONG day! Stay tuned for more of my NYFW adventures! If you attended, what was your favorite show?

XO

Shoppinggal

Day 8 NYFW; Adrienne Landau & Fur Pom Poms.

On my last day of Fashion Week I attended the Adrienne Landau Fall/Winter 2016 presentation. When I got to the door they asked for my name and affiliation. I gave them my name and they asked "From where?" so I said LeHoarder and they said "Oh, yes!" and let me in. I still find it shocking when people recognize my name or blog.

Inside the models lined up - and after the initial crush I walked around and starting taking pictures. They were showing lots of sheer clothing layered with fur - and random fun accessories like fanny packs and caps.

Note that Adrienne makes an appearance in the video below, stepping off the platform in the white coat :)

And there's the bomber again - make sure you get one for next season because they are everywhere!

This tan fur was probably my favorite piece. I'd love to get my hands on something like this.

Pardon my hair. That morning I washed and styled it in 15 minutes before heading out the door. Here I am with my new friend Rebecca - our girls are in the same class. Fun fact - she auditioned/filmed for the Real Housewives of NY but they opted to go with another business woman instead. She told me the producers made up a lot of the drama for storylines - and so much of it isn't real.

As for shoes, lots of platforms and over the knee boots. Totally into those flatforms.

And here's what I was hoping for - goodie bags! We peeked inside and spotted the fur pom poms and got very excited. We started rifling through them because I wanted pink or blue. They got a little annoyed but I was on a mission. I regret not going back and trying to take a second swag bag because my girls are currently fighting over mine LOL.

After the show I dragged Rebecca down 33rd street so we could walk by the Paparazzi LOL and then hopped in a cab and headed downtown to her salon, Besu. I took a quick pic of my new fur key chain and my body cream (that I thought was perfume when I peeked inside).

After hanging out for a bit I called my friend A and met him by Nordstrom Rack so he could quickly shoot my OOTD. I think it's so funny that he's studying engineering at Cooper Union, but he too loves bags and shoes.

My look from head to toe:

• Sunglasses: Jimmy Choo, Nordstrom Rack, $10
• Earrings: A.V. Max, gifted - thanks guys!
• Coat: Alice and Olivia, sample sale, $99
• Dress: Elizabeth and James, sample sale, $50
• Gloves: Century 21, $10 (75% off!)
• Bracelet: Tory Burch, sample sale, $30
• Bag: Marc Jacobs Antonia, Nordstrom Rack, $25 after Clear the Rack and Notes (retail $1,095!)
• Boots: Sergio Rossi, Nordstrom Rack, $199

Shop my look:

And that wraps up my Fashion Week. If you missed a day you can catch up here:

Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
Day 6
Day 7

Thanks for following along! Every day was totally different but equally exciting :)

XO
Shoppinggal