reward night

Yesterday evening I had the pleasure of taking one of my favorite clients to the Nordstrom Fashion Rewards event at Bellevue Square. True, there is something sublime about test-driving Jimmy Choos while sipping champagne and munching shrimp cocktail, but the atmosphere at these things is anything but relaxed. Hundreds of shoppers flooded the store to enjoy generous reward point bonuses and exclusive Designer clearance deals. There was actually a line at the fitting rooms. Fortunately, we came prepared for the madness and finished all our shopping before the first champagne cork popped. I don't actually promote SUI, shopping under the influence (this includes DayQuil, people. How do you think I ended up with that green and orange poncho?). Always bring a designated cardholder.

cyber monday

Yesterday officially marked the start of the online holiday shopping season. In celebration of Cyber Monday, many of my favorite Internet stores offered major discounts and deals like free shipping to get people excited about shopping online. 

But if you missed your chance to cash in on the Cyber Monday hoopla, fear not. Online deals are plentiful. Here are some of my favorites:

• Apple Store (applestore.com): get free engraving on ipods when you order online through Apple Store. The new, very sleek nano can take up 58 characters.  Lucky for me, the inscription "Darcy loves Justin Timberlake 4EVER" is only 35 characters. 
  
• Circuit City (circuitcity.com): Cyber Monday 3-day sale continues through Wednesday, Nov 28. Save an EXTRA 10% and the cost of shipping if you order online and have your items shipped to your local Circuit City location. It's a sneaky trick; they're betting when you come in to pick up your purchase you'll probably impulse-buy the new Alicia Keys CD (which is FAB, btw!), and maybe a new 50" plasma. 
• eLuxury (eluxury.com): offers free shipping on ALL ground orders between now and Christmas. If you can peel yourself away from the amazing Louis Vuitton boutique, check out the "under $100" gift ideas, including--among other things--an adorable Diptyque candle set ($85), an Emilio Pucci moire print cotton scarf ($60) and other steals from Harajuku Lovers (Gwen Stefani's LAMB spinoff), Juicy Couture and Marc by Marc Jacobs. Order by midnight on Dec. 13 for guaranteed delivery by Christmas Eve.

Did anyone catch Northwest Afternoon yesterday? I did a quickie segment: "Hot Holiday Looks Under $200." Ladies, it's not hard to find reasonably priced pretty things: you just have to know where to look! I always start at JC Penney. You can check out the great selection of LBDs at jcpenney.com, but I personally recommend stepping foot into your nearest store to take advantage of the ever-changing daily sales, like "Buy One, Get One for One Cent." 

True, by the time a trend hits JC Penney it is on the way O-U-T (hello, sequin mini dresses!). But, heck. If it's only $40, then who cares? Happy (cyber) shopping.

pleased to meet you

Greetings fellow shoppers,

This is my inaugural post to mark an exciting time of new beginnings in my life. I am proud to share this diary of my experiences with you. But first, let me introduce myself:

I'm a shopper.

I always loved shopping, so when shopping forced its way into my career path I didn't protest. But when people ask, "what do you do?" I don't have any easy answer. I do not have a business card that says Marketing Director/Small Business Owner/Fashion Stylist/TV contributer/Blogger/Shopaholic...but that's the best description I have for my profession.

I started Styled.Seattle, my personal shopping business after I became the resident stylist on KOMO-TVs Northwest Afternoon. Styled.Seattle began as a passion project, and (as passions tend to do) took on a life of it's own. I now devote as much time as possible to this venture, and I'm always accepting new clients.

But I have a day job, too. After 3 years as the Director of Marketing and PR at John Robert Powers Acting/Modeling, I was offered the opportunity (dare I say, of a lifetime) to head up marketing for ClayValet, a free online personal shopping service. If you haven't heard of it yet, you will. The concept of ClayValet is so brilliant, it may put all personal shoppers (including myself) out of business. And you know, I believe in it so much that I don't even care. Much.

ClayValet launched on Black Friday, Nov. 23rd. The biggest shopping day of the year for most people (very fitting, no?). Check it out at clayvalet.com, and let us know what you think!

That's me in a nutshell. I will use this blog to share shopping and styling tips, advice and stories from my professional and personal life. Thanks for reading!

Enjoy!

D