Kmart Penn Plaza: Route 66 Dresses

Yes, I'm Route 66 obsessed. It's the section I'm drawn to when I visit Kmart Penn Plaza's first floor. But its adorable, music-fest-meets-grunge-meets-junior styles get me every time. I would even recommend us girls out of our twenties to try on Route 66 dresses for lightweight and cool weekend options.

Love this soft chambray look.

Because you're going to need something to throw on top of that dress when dancing in the desert.

Kmart

Penn Plaza at 34th Street and Seventh Avenue

34th Street Weekend Picks: Best West End Deals

Kmart

BOGO 1/2 off all their full-priced shoes. Which really makes me want to buy the black and white Route 66 studded lace-ups. 250 West 34th Street

Joe Fresh
Check out their newly-renovated store, and take advantage of $5 opening day deals through Sunday. 215 West 34th Street

34th Street Weekend Sale Picks: Board Games, Wedges, and More

#1. Kmart
Nothing says the holidays like board games. Find them on sale at Kmart, along with a lot of other great holiday gift deals like B1G1 50% off Fisher-Price toys.  250 West 34th Street at Seventh Avenue

#2. Aerosoles

Get your holiday footwear now at Aerosoles because they're having the biggest sale of the season with up to 60% off styles like the chic and functional Bella Vita wedge.  36 West 34th Street between Fifth & Sixth Avenues

#3. Levi's

For an extra 50% off already reduced prices, visit the back of the store by the dressing room and browse sweaters, shirts, and jackets. If you're like me, you'll be checking out the men's smalls in jackets and sweaters (below).  45 West 34th Street just east of Sixth Avenue

Updated to add:

#4.  Banana Republic

It's Day of Joy #7 today, and that means 40% off full-priced women's dresses and men's dress shirts! Continue to follow Banana Republic on Facebook for their Days of Joy all weekend, with a different gift every day.

34th Street Weekend Sale Picks: Shoes, Accessories, Dresses & Lingerie

Intern LCogs finds just about everything you could need for summer on sale on 34th Street...


#1. Gap

Because they not only have 30% off colorful summer wedges, they also have 30% off t-shirts and pants. It's only for a limited time so make sure you do some shopping this weekend! 60 W. 34th St.



#2. Forever 21

Because they've got sale racks full of great clothing! Take the escalator up to the second floor and turn right. They have a bunch of these comfortable cowl neck sweaters in gray and purple, as well as an abundance of these tight sparkly gold strapless dresses that are perfect for going out! The last two racks are filled with all different styles of clothing, and is where I found this cozy plaid romper. 50 W. 34th St.

#3. H&M

Because they're having a sale on lingerie, bras, underwear and accessories. It's like a dream! 47 W. 34th Street.

#4. Kmart

Because they're having a sale on Sofia Vergara, Selena Gomez and Glo brand shoes! The pink heels are Sofia Vergara and I absolutely loved them. They were so much fun to walk around in, as were the black Glo wedges. The sandal flats are Selena Gomez and went from $16.99 to $12.99; perfect for summer. 250 W. 34th St.

#.5 Old Navy

Because they're not only having a huge sale on the second floor, but they've also brought down the prices of a ton of really cute, summer-y dresses. The plaid one I tried on was $32.94 and is now only $17! All of the dresses below are now only $17 and the t-shirt dresses are $14. 150 W. 34th St.

Have a fantastic weekend everyone! :)

Getting to Spa Grandma

We're off on a plane today to Spa Grandma! But I'm traveling alone with my 2.5 year old, so I'm a little nervous. I stopped by Kmart for a few things.

The squeeze fruit packs and the organic lollipops are from Duane Reade. Thank you, Duane Reade and Kmart, for helping me bribe my way through a (*fingers crossed*) non-screaming plane trip to Iowa. If you need princess sticker birthday cards (no, it's not her birthday, but that is a princess sticker card. I'm going to get a lot of mileage out of that), Dora stickers, Dora sippy cups, Dora lip gloss bracelets (my total ace up the sleeve), or Dora anything, Kmart is your one-stop shop.

Hopefully, Fashion Herald will be sleeping in and getting massages, mani-pedis, etc. while Grandma and Beloved Grandchild have fun next week, and you won't be hearing from me as regularly. Be back in May!


Kmart 34th Street and Seventh Avenue
Duane Reade Herald Square 35th Street between Broadway and Sixth Avenue 

Cutest Kmart Maxi

I tried on several maxis at Kmart on 34th Street this afternoon, and I can confidently say this was the cutest Route 66 maxi in the store. The cut gives a girl nice cleavage and is not form-fitting, but more of an A-line shape.

This is also one of the happiest, batik-style prints I've seen in any store on 34th Street. I'm already very, very over batik, and it's only just begun. I'm in for a long summer of dreary batik prints. I've been to Indonesia, I visited the touristy arts center of Bali, the town of Ubud, and I don't remember dull, muddy, boring batik prints everywhere. Of course, everything was a lot more colorful when I was having a good time in Bali, so perhaps my memory is a little skewed.


Kmart Penn Plaza 34th Street just west of Seventh Avenue

Strapless & Jumping in 34th Street's Kmart

All I could think of when I tried on these Kmart Attention jumpers was: GENTLE SUMMER BREEZES. These are great, inexpensive, no-brainer summer clothes.

My clogging pose. I don't know why I'm doing this.

Roll up those cuffs and slap on some heels.

I think this one is Route 66, but don't quote me, I lost my notes.

Pull them on and go barbeque, join your girls for evening drinks on a patio, pull them on over your bikini...you get the idea. They are all $24.99 and under.

Kmart 1 Penn Plaza (34th Street just west of 7th Avenue)

Sweet and Tough for Spring

Selena Gomez has a lot of the sweet covered for spring in her Kmart junior's line.

Adorable! And it's on sale, marked down from $16. This blouse says a lot about her Dream Out Loud line: trendy, flirty, but not too racy for juniors.

The tough denim vest (and the shorts in both photos) is by Route 66, marked down from $19.99. I would look no further for a denim vest, although the buttons are a little too decorative for me. But for that price I can live with it, especially as the cut is perfect for this spring.

Kmart 1 Penn Plaza (34th Street just west of 7th Avenue)

Fresh-Squeezed Juice for Your Morning Commute

While Tricia is away, guest blogger Rebecca shares some of her favorite kitchenware finds in the district.

I've recently become more concerned with nutrition. Does my diet, littered with dollar slices, falafel, and diet soda, get me anything close to the RDA of vitamins and nutrients? One morning before getting on a train, I hand-squeezed three grapefruits into a travel bottle to bring for the ride. It was delicious and I realized juice can be incredibly convenient, healthy, and tasty. And you know what accessorizes well with all spring fashions? A trim waistline and a radiant, glowing skin, both of which are benefits of fresh juice in your diet.

 Jack La Lanne Power Juicer (left) and Cuisinart Citrus Juicer (right)

I dove headfirst into the world of “juicing” (it is a world, and a high class one at that), purchasing two books and a high-end masticating juicer within a week. I haven’t looked back.

I scoured 34th Street's department stores for the best juicers in town and found some great options at each of them. Here's the quick-and-dirty juicer roundup:

Macy's

• Sharper Image Super Juicer, $72 on sale (regularly $120)
• Jack La Lanne Power Juicer, $84 on sale (regularly $140)

Kmart

• Proctor Silex Durable "Juice It", $23
• Hamilton Beach Health Smart, $46

JCPenney

• Bella Cucina Juice Extractor, $50
• Cuisinart Citrus Juicer, $30

My picks? The best deals on juicers this week are at Macy’s, where some highly-rated models are on sale for 33% off.

Macy's Herald Square, 151 W. 34th Street btwn Broadway & 7th Avenue

Kmart, 1 Penn Plaza at 7th Avenue

JCPenney, Manhattan Mall, lower levels 1 & 2, 33rd & 6th Avenue  

Trompe l'oeil Diapers on 34th Street

Diapers have gone viral, so I enlisted the help of Baby Herald to try out the new Huggies limited-edition denim diapers. Are they ugly? Would I wear faded denim underpinnings? Or am I again dressing my daughter in things I wouldn't wear (see pink, ruffles, and pink ruffles)?

We're trying to show the faux pockets on the back of the Huggies jeans diapers here, but with little success. It just looks like Baby Herald is doing yoga.
(Click here to see the infamous Huggies commercial if you haven't already. Who designed those sunglasses on the brunette in the opening scene? Love them.)

But first, I have to disagree with today's New York Magazine Huggies jean diaper story: I like clothes and I have no problem figuring out how to dress Baby Herald. She's got drawers overflowing with hand-me-downs. Anyone who isn't dressing their baby in hand-me-downs is insane because A: They grow out of onesies in a month; and B: This is one time in her life she doesn't care about what she's wearing. Sometimes I play on that and come up with really ugly combinations. And still, Baby Herald smiles and kicks her legs like "Mom has the best taste in the world, I look FABULOUS." I'm saving money for that day she comes home from school and is like "Iris has cute leggings. I need those leggings."

















Back to the Huggies. I was expecting to hate these but I fell for them the minute I fastened those tabs. I love these freaking diapers. Why limited edition? Because it's summer and when it's really hot babies can get away with just a diaper (you won't see that look on a fashionable NYC playground but that's not the real world). For Baby Herald, these jean diapers will come in handy when she wears a hand-me-down dress that doesn't have a matching diaper cover, like the one in the photo above where she looks like Farm Baby. And the trompe l'oeil pockets are ridiculous in a good way. Ok, now someone can please warn Baby Herald that Mom's gone so wack-a-doodle she's actually using "trompe l'oeil" when speaking about diapers.


Huggies Limited Edition Jean Diapers available at Kmart, 34th Street & 7th Avenue

Attention Kmart Shoppers et al.: Chickdowntown Giveaway

It's Friday, so there's a lot going on. First, our friends at chickdowntown.com contacted me again with another irresistible offer: post this contest and I get a $50 gift card from chickdowntown.com. Which means one of you gets a $50 gift card from chickdowntown.com! It's like a play within a play, but the contest version:

1. Win a Tibi mini green dress by leaving a comment on the chickdowntown giveaway blog post.

2. Then leave a comment on this Fashion Herald post, and I'll put your name in a hat and Kati will draw the lucky winner next Friday, April 24th. Everyone qualifies (brilliant news, they ship international now), except our last gorgeous chickdowntown.com winner/rocker of the boyfriend jeans, Sister Wolf! Next time, Ms. Wolf. Here she is in her fab boyf jeans.

3. Hurry, go to the Tibi mini green dress giveaway blog soon and comment, as the chickdowntown.com giveaway ends over tomorrow! (My bad, lost giveaway email in massive inbox....)

Update: Winner announced! Congrats to The Preppy Princess!

Now back to 34th Street. Remember the Give and Get campaign? Gap raised 1.5 million, with proceeds going to such charities as the Leukemia & Lymphona Society, Feeding America, and the World Wildlife Fund. Well done, shoppers!

And last, some Attention jackets from Kmart on 34th Street, $34.99 (left) and $39.99. Very cute and practical spring items, because I doubt April showers are finished with us yet.






















Gap, 60 W. 34th Street between 5th & 6th
Kmart, 250 W. 34th between 7th & 8th

Piper & Blue Sale at Kmart

Piper & Blue caught my eye at Kmart on 34th Street yesterday. Most is 30% off in Juniors, where you can find a really cute blouse on sale for $13.99:

Blue! White! Long!
















^^ I don't condone wearing tights as pants. I'd like to make my position clear: ugh. But Kmart has a tough dressing room policy: only 4 items and you have to bring them all back to get 4 more. Yes, annoyingly inflexible (although I'm always highly entertained by my Kmart dressing room attendants, never a dull moment back there). Anyway, I was wearing a dress that day and was not going to change back into my clothes to grab a pair of pants. Thus those cute grey tights, $6.99 on sale in Juniors, also come in other colors including basic black.

Cute dresses, all Piper & Blue, & all 30% off $19.99. I'm thinking perfect poolside.
















I really wanted to buy this star dress (on sale, $17.49), but can't get over feeling/ looking like a constellation powder puff.














2nd favorite item, striped summer sweater on sale for $13.99, also comes in yellow & grey stripes. No buttons, hangs cute. And I really want a cheap little romper, aka jumpshorts, for summer days, this one's on sale for $11.89.
















Kmart, 250 W. 34th between 7th & 8th

Hit the Beach at Kmart

My man's spring break is next week, so I'm fantasy vacationing on Kayak.com and CheapCarribean.com. In between getting lots of work done, of course. All the tropical daydreaming reminded me of the cute beach totes I saw at Kmart a few weeks ago:

All Joe Boxer, $16.99 and $19.99.













There were also lots of cute straw hats:

The basic floppy, the trampy cowboy, and a more refined cowgirl.










Cute belted fedoras, men's fedora (of course my favorite), classy cloche.










All are $9.99 except for the men's fedora which is $14.99. A perfect price for a hat that can get blown into the ocean and sat on in the sand with few regrets. And regrets from my Kmart trip? Not sticking around to see if I won the drawing for the free gold necklace. I still have the coupon. Do they do this every hour? This totally appeals to my church/ice cream social raffle/bingo roots. And now I'm pretty sure I know how I'm going to be spending my dotage.

Kmart, 1 Penn Plaza (250 W. 34th) btwn 7th & 8th Aves.