I went to the Vince sample sale today. Yes, I did take a day off work to go to it, since Vince is like my favorite brand lol. But hey, I have a lot of vacation days and I can do whatever I want on my days off! =P By the way, this sample sale is going on for the next 3 days as well. So if you live in the Southern California area, you should go! They said they will be restocking everyday. This
Racked LA article has the location/time, as well as tons of pictures with prices listed! It was a pain in the ass to find parking, but once you get inside, it was the most organized sample sale I've been to. There were workers constantly putting things back to the correct racks and size sections they belong to. There was also a large communal fitting room (one for women, one for men) which had a lot of mirrors. But you do have to change in front of other people which is how these sample sales usually go. I arrived 2 hours after the sale started (ugh!) and it was super crazy when I arrived (around noon). The line to check out was very long. I'm sure I missed out on some good stuff. =(
Here are some pictures I snapped when I first arrived:
I thought they had a pretty good sized space without being overwhelmingly large. They also had a good selection of different kinds of merchandise for both women and men. The shoppers were actually not nearly as aggressive as some other sample sales I've been to! I made some friends in the fitting room and we enabled each other to buy all the things lol. The sample sale prices are not super low. I would say they are comparable to outlets or discount stores like Nordstrom Rack. Just better selections. Unlike other sample sales I've been to, nothing was damaged at the Vince sale. They all had tags on, and they were just marked down. Also, there were no accessories or shoes. Only clothing items.
Cotton tops were generally around $50, blouses were about $80 for short and long sleeves, sweaters, pants and dresses/skirts were around $90 - $120. The best deals were leather items by far. Vince leather jackets or pants/skirts can easily go up to $1000 retail. But they were only $200 at the sample sale. It's hard to buy leather clothing when it is over 80 degrees out and sunny! But I did come home with a couple since I just couldn't pass up on the deals! I spent over $1000 for 9 items at the end. Yikes! Although I think everything is amazeballs so it's all worth it!
Here's a tally of what I got: 1 pair of pants, 1 short sleeve cotton top, 2 skirts, 2 silk blouses, 2 sweater cardigans, and 1 jacket (sleeveless though).
The most expensive thing I got were these
Straight Leg Cropped Leather Leggings! They are also quite awesome though. They are currently on sale for $499 at Nordstrom Rack. They were $199 at the sample sale, but they retail for $1175! So crazy. They also look exactly the same as the
current season ones on Vince's website for $945. I really have no idea what the difference is because they look identical to me.
I've been wanting leather pants for some reason. A few months back, I almost splurged on some but then I talked myself out of it since I live in LA where it's always hot. Now I'm glad I waited because $199 is really as low as it gets for lamb leather leggings, and they are Vince! I am wishing even harder for cooler weather now haha.
They did have another leather pant style that was more like skinny pants rather than leggings. They had seams and pockets, and they were also $199 which seems to be an even better deal. But me and 2 other girls in the fitting room all agreed that they just had some fit issues, particularly in the waist and crotch area. Ideally you want your leather pants to fit tighter initially because they will stretch. Those were already loose in the waist and crotch, so as much as we all liked them, we all hesitated because of it. Then I found these leggings and they fit much better. So leggings it is!
I got them in size S. When I was there, they only had size XXS or L in these. So I couldn't have tried on XS (my normal Vince size). But I think they actually fit pretty perfectly in S. I don't have much experience with Vince bottom sizing, so I had to try on a lot of different items. Here are some close ups of the leggings. The lamb leather is so soft. They are actually not even that hot to wear either.
Ankle length on me. Inseam is 26 inches according to the Nordstrom Rack website.
Ok next thing I bought is the short sleeve top, which was the first thing I picked up after I entered. It's ombre of course lol. It's called
Ombre Cocoon Tee in french blue/gray. I can't find this color available anywhere online, but here's
a different color available in size S and on sale for $87 (from $125). It's not a lot more than what I paid at the sample sale which was $49. I got it in size XS. It's 50% pima cotton and 50% modal. Super soft, I really really love it!
Now, onto the blouses. I first picked up this simple
black sleeveless blouse. It's actually lined with white on the inside, so it doesn't look quite so black in person. It's 100% silk, and it fits loosely in size XS. It retails for $195, and I paid $79 at the sample sale which is the same price as long sleeve blouses. So maybe not as good of a deal lol.
Small keyhole detail at the back:
Then I also picked up this
Colorblock Popover Blouse in husk/black which I found on Nordstrom Rack for $129 right now. This was $79 at the sample sale and retail price was $265. It's 100% silk, and it feels and fits really nicely. However, it is hard to take off! I first tried on a size 2 which fit loosely in the body, but I needed one of the sales girls help to take it off... lol! It was like stuck on my arms and I just could not get it off. So I bought it in size 4 instead, and while it's still tough to take off, it's not impossible anymore. But beware! It's super cute though.
I think Vince items are just meant to be worn together. I love it with the leggings!
It also looks nice with the next item I got which is a
contrast texture leather skirt. It's got leather on the front and back, and suede on the sides. This skirt fits so well! I think it's a super deal since it was $129 at the sample sale, and $1050 retail! Although I see Nordstrom Rack (linked above) marked it down to $79! That's such a crazy margin! Vince has an
all leather version right now for full price of $695.
The skirt I got fits superb. I would say it runs on the small side. It was the only one they had that I could find, and it was size 4. But it fits well! So I got lucky with it there.
I love how smoothly the sides fit, you can tell the quality by looking at whether the sides scrunch up or not.
One of my favorite items from the sale is the
Crepe Vest in off white. Here it is on
Vince's website for only $98 now! It's kind of random but I was just searching for this exact item last week and wishing it wasn't already sold out everywhere! I love how you can play with this top by wearing it sleeveless or with a long sleeve top/jacket under it. You can also either wear it closed like a skirt on its own or open like a jacket. It was considered a "jacket" at the sample sale, so it was $149 (retail $325). Nordstrom Rack actually priced it lower at $129 but not a huge difference.
This is size S. It doesn't come in any smaller sizes. But since it's a wrap and tie style, it fits a variety of body types.
The waist tie is lamb leather:
There are belt loops for the tie to go through:
There are also pockets on each side:
I was experimenting wearing different items under it, here it is with the Colorblock Popover Blouse above. The colors are slightly different, but I think they look good together!
You can even wear a thick jacket underneath if it's really cold! Here I am wearing the black
Vince Leather Scuba jacket under it - I pulled the jacket collars out for contrast! This is super overkill for my climate though lol. But I can do it if I go visit a colder place!
Nordstrom has a
leather version of this vest. It's now on sale from $795 to $318. I am kind of tempted even though I have this one already!
Ok, a couple more items to go! I got 2 cardigans which can both be worn casually or to work. First one is the
Lightweight Draped Cardigan. The fabric is mostly wool and cashmere. It's pretty thin and drapey. It's very soft and feels great on! I got it in size XS. It was $99 vs. retail of $275.
So this is a pretty simple design. It has no front closure. It just drapes. But it is ribbed material on the shoulders and sides of the body so it's not completely the same material all around.
The next cardigan I got is the
Rib-Trim Linen Circle Cardigan in coastal blue. I picked it up at the last minute. Since it's made of linen, it will be good to wear around LA. I can definitely wear it to work. This one was $119 since the original retail price was $345. I also got it in XS.
So it has no closure mechanism on the front either. It just drapes open.
Covers the butt on the back:
Nordstrom Rack has the
wool version of this cardi in sand on sale for $189 (that version retails $395). It's pretty cute as well. Looks very cozy!
Ok, last item! I got the Foldover Wrap Skirt. It's
on sale at Saks as well as
Nordstrom Rack for the same price of $90. That's not too much more than what I paid at the sample sale which was $69. It is also made of mostly linen and the retail price was $225. I think it's a cute casual style, and it fits well in size 2.
This skirt actually has a foldover waist, in addition to waist tie and buttons on the side. It's not super convenient to get in/out since you have to untie, and then unbutton at least 2 side buttons to get out of it. But it's cute! I also like the cypress green color - it's "in" this fall lol.
Linen wrinkles though - that's the only downside. I didn't try to get the wrinkles out before taking these pictures:
There's pockets too. I love pockets on skirts and dresses!
So this is the sequence you have to perform to un-do this skirt:
Hidden buttons all the way down the skirt like this:
So, that concludes my purchases from the sample sale today! Wow crazy! I think this post wins for having the most pictures ever lol. Even though I spent a small fortune, I am very happy with everything I got. I think every piece is versatile enough to get a lot of wear, which will decrease the "per-wear" amount spent on it. =)
I am tempted to go back to the sale at least once in the next 3 days! I really wanted another Scuba Leather jacket, but I only saw 2 colors in my size today which I didn't want. But I would love to find another one in a beautiful color. So if they put out more merchandise in the next few days, it might be worth it to go back and see if I can get lucky! If not, the sale is in Santa Monica which is pretty local to me and I won't have wasted much time or effort. My wallet might not be happy with me though!
