Back.. again. Birthday Bargain Shopping, and THE Dress!

Alright, so I might have lied a little bit in my last post by saying that I was going to be more active, but I’m almost done with my finals which means that it’s going to become a reality very soon!

I will be having a very refreshing break from my finals though, as it’s my birthday on Saturday! The only reason I am mentioning this is because… I obviously went shopping for the occasion!

Before I went shopping, I sat down and thought about what exactly it was that I was looking for. I ended up deciding that I want a simple dress that looked a little different from what I would usually wear. Additionally, as this birthday is my 21^st, I knew for a fact that something would either be spilled on or burn my dress in the celebration process (I’m very clumsy), and therefore I did not want to spend hundreds of dollars on a birthday dress. What does that mean? That’s right, another ‘bargain shopping’ post for Beirut!

I found my dress on Hamra, in a store called Duroc (I’m guessing because that’s what the bag says, but I’ll update it if I’m mistaken), it’s next to Starbucks. The funny thing is, it was the store with the worst display I have ever seen. I normally would not have gone in, but after looking at so many horrible stores with sad excuses for dresses (I tried on a white dress in one store, and it was completely see through!!) I was desperate enough to give it a chance. The front of the shop slightly depressed me, until I got to the back where the dresses were. I actually pulled out 6 great dresses to try on out of that little hole-in-the-wall. The prices are very reasonable, my dress was only LL 92,000, and my goal was to find a dress under $100 so that if anything were to happen to it, it wouldn’t be that much of a loss. I am very much considering going back for another dress that I really liked. So, I have a message to send: don’t judge a store by its window display; it is very possible that the old woman who owns it just has really bad taste.

On to the shoes! Another hole in the wall, or rather hole in the ground. This store is slightly more eye-catching on Hamra, it’s called Rubi and it is a store which sells bags, shoes, and faux bijoux. I saw a pair of shoes in the window and thought they looked amazing, and so I went inside. I have to admit, there are a whole bunch of “hooker shoes”, as I’ve heard them being called, but there is an equal balance of shoes that people would actually wear. I tried the shoes on and loved them. Now came the moment of truth, finding out how much it cost. I definitely wasn’t going to spend more money on shoes than I did on the dress, because I was more than certain that by the end of the night, knowing me, something would go terribly wrong with the shoes on my feet. Imagine my excitement when I was told that the shoes were only $50! Obviously, I bought them immediately.

Moving away from bargain shopping, I finally picked up the dress that I bought for my cousin’s wedding. (This is my proof that I have been very busy, as I bought the dress in April, and only picked it up last week). It is perfect. They tailored it to fit me exactly, and I love it even more that I did when I first bought it, so here it is!

Dress: 5th Avenue, Le Mall

Gaza: investigate the raid, end the blockage. Sign the petition

Dressing is a way of life - Yves Saint Laurent

Shoes - Never Enough

I decided to focus on shoes today, and this will somehow add to the Beirut shopping guide, as I am going to be telling you the place which I refer to as "shoe heaven".

It's gotten a bit to warm for boots now, and yet still a little too chilly for sandals, so what do we wear? The oh-so-cute "ballerina shoes" come in handy during this time of the year. Of course, one would want to stock up on them, and have them in just about every colour possible, right? Well, at Sport et Loisir in Verdun, I managed to get myself 3 very cute shoes for only LL 49,000 each (not on sale!). I also found a few cute ones next door in Bershka going for the same price. So if you need a pair, get down there as soon as possible! LL 49,000 as a starting price is definitely a great find. Here are some of the ones that I bought:

(Sport et Loisir)

(Bershka)

Now for news that will excite those who, like me, enjoy reading fashion blogs. I am currently following 20+ fashion blogs, thanks to Bloglovin (seriously, a savior in the blogging world!), and have been marking down the number of times each blog has posted something that caught my interest. So, tomorrow I will be posting a list of my "Top Blogs", and I do recommend that everyone interested should check out the blogs that I am going to put up.

Finally, yesterday's outfit, let me know what you think!

Top: Zara

Shorts: New Look

Necklace: Henry's Handmade

Shoes: Sport et Loisir

Bracelet: Diva at Miss Selfridge

"Fashion is very important.

It is life enhancing and, like everything that gives pleasure,

it is worth doing well." - Vivienne Westwood

Day 3: Saifi Village... and a little extra.

I went to Saifi Village yesterday, for some reason every time I go there I can't help but smile. I think it's all the colours in the stores that I go into! My first stop was Cream, I absolutely love that store. Unfortunately I had put myself on a budget before I went there, because I really shouldn't be buying any more things at the moment, but I did buy 2 small items. If you love bright colours, weird designs, and things that will make you stand out, then Cream is where you should be shopping. It's very funky and up to date with the latest trends. It's technically a high-street fashion store, so the prices are a little but over the average, but the pieces are worth the buy. Along with all the wearables, they sell books and magazines that they feel appeal to their customers. It's a great place to go and check out.
I bought a bracelet from there. I also bought a book, despite all the negative comments among a sea of a 50-50 "yes/no" divide, I wanted to decide for myself whether or not I like the book "Why Men Marry Bitches".

My next stop was a store called Sun Flowers. It's technically the same idea as Cream, very bright colours and unique pieces. There was one thing that stood out for me there though, clutches in bright colours with metal plates of Arabic calligraphy on them. They are beautiful!! I will be going back for one when I've had a long enough break from shopping, haha. I think everyone should go and see these clutches, they're really great.

Now for some news. Due to an overflow of exams, presentations, and projects, I may not be able to check out stores on a daily basis. So, my shopping guide will be spread out rather than come one after the other. Because of this, I'm adding something new that will ensure a daily post from me. A new mission along with this one, except this mission is called:  Mission Dress to Impress. This mission consists of me taking a picture of my every day outfits and sharing them with all of you. The two reasons I am doing this is as follows:

1. I do not want to slack off when it comes to this blog!
2. I feel like my style is getting too plain and boring, and this will motivate me to spice it up!

So, I will leave you with yesterday's outfit, and come back for more tomorrow!

Thursday, 22nd April, 2010.

Blazer: Zara

Tank top: New Look

Harem pants: Topshop

Shoes: New Look

Necklace: Freedom at Topshop

"When a person is in 

fashion, all they do is right."

- Lord Chesterfield

(No more "tweet your comment" link... because I fixed my comment box!)

Day 2: Hamra

Alright., so I went back to look for those unnoticed stores I was raving about in my post yesterday.

The first one was the dress shop. I personally bought a dress from there in Christmas, and it was beautiful. The quality isn't bad at all, of course it isn't the best, but it isn't bad for a dress that will probably be worn while clubbing, and is therefore prone to getting cigarette burns and vodka stains on it. I got it for only LL 50,000 which was a really good deal for the dress. This place is right next to Nando's on Hamra, and it's called Vittoria.

The next shop was the one that blew my mind. I went back yesterday and was slightly disappointed. Half of the store was filled with fake Louis Vuitton and Chanel purses, which means that you can't really ensure that the quality of the pieces they have will be any good. However, the fluorescent purses that I mentioned yesterday were going for $100 whereas the "better quality" ones (I guess) were going for about $200-$300. So if you don't mind carrying it around for only one season, it's worth buying it from this store. They also have a lot of cute bracelets with leather straps. I think that everyone should at least check it out once, because if you look hard enough you'll definitely find something you like. This store is located across the street from Marrouch, but a little further down from it, it's called Lolita Bijoux.

And that is Hamra street covered. Tomorrow there will be a special post concerning an entire new wardrobe which I will be receiving today (FINALLY!!!) and after that I will continue my shopping guide, next target: Saifi Village.

"Anyone can get dressed up and glamorous, but it is how people dress on their days off that are the most intriguing." 

- Alexander Wang

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Day 1: Hamra

Yesterday I took a walk down Hamra street, looking at all the different stores that were there. I did see a few that I liked, some were the cliche stores that everyone enjoys going to, and others were not as noticed.

A store that I feel all girls should go to is Pieces. It's an accessory shop that everybody in Lebanon should know, since it's the jewelry that is usually found in Vero Moda, except now they have an entire section for themselves. They have a lot of cute things for very affordable prices. I bought myself a waist belt with a little ribbon in the middle for only LL 25,000... so worth it!

Of course, then comes H&M. I worked at H&M for around 2 months in the summer of 2007 (outside of Lebanon), and when I had gone to H&M here during its first month of being open, I noticed that a lot of the items were old season pieces that they were trying to get rid of. Now, though, it is finally in-sync with the branches abroad and are up to date with the latest collections. Again, they have very affordable prices for pieces that are practical to have for every day wear.

Further down Hamra, I saw a few unknown stores that caught my eye. These stores are the kind that you have to go to with a bucket of patience, because you might go through an entire rack of dresses that you would never think of wearing, and finally come across an absolutely beautiful piece. Today, I am going to take yet another stroll down Hamra street and devote my attention to those places, what they're called, and where they're exactly located.

Another store I enjoy going into is towards the end of Hamra street and onto Sadat Street. If you walk up that street, slightly forward from Mashrou7a, there's a little boutique called Catwalk. They frequently change their window display, and every time I walk by there's always a dress that I'm interested in. The price range is reasonable, with dresses averaging at the price of $100. So if you're looking for a dress to wear at night for a dinner or party, Catwalk would be a great place to look.

Finally, the store that blew my mind. I had done my shopping and was walking around, not paying attention to the stores, until I saw THE store. The only problem is this: I cannot remember the name of the store! I do remember where it is though, so I am taking the responsibility of going back today, getting the name of the store and taking my time looking around in there. It is a little hole in the wall in from of Marroush, and I did not expect to see the pieces that were available there. Everything was so bright and so fresh. They had the bright fluorescent coloured shoulder bags that you can just sling on across your chest (going for $100 each). From the window I also saw a lot of interesting jewelry and clutch purses. Seeing as this has been my longest description of a store in this post, it is obvious how excited I got when I found it. I am dragging myself back down there today for a more detailed post about it (along with all the other unknown stores that I mentioned earlier) tomorrow.

In conclusion, it doesn't really seem like it from the outside, but dig deep within Hamra and you will find stores you had never noticed existed. Check back tomorrow for a post on unnoticed stores in Hamra.

"Every day is a fashion show 

and the world is your runway."

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Mission: Where to Shop

I had become accustomed to leaving all of my shopping for when I go back home. I usually travel back from Beirut, do all my shopping for the upcoming season, and come back. This year came as a shock to me, as I was not able to fly back home to do my spring shopping. Because of this, I am going on another mission.

One of the advantages of shopping back home is that I can shop with my mother, and therefore I did not really limit my purchases to essential pieces that can be worn more than once in different ways. So, when I tried shopping here on my own, it was a complete disaster. Over the next two days, I am going on Mission: Where to Shop. I am going to cover Hamra street and Saifi Village, in search of shops with items that university students like myself can make use of.

I will be looking for single affordable pieces that can be worn multiple times and can be manipulated into a number of different looks, along with looking for pieces that I feel are "must-haves". In short, my next two blog posts will be shopping guides for university students in Lebanon, suffering from the "shopping confusion" disease. I feel like somebody should take on this responsibility, and since I have gone through this disease and know how heartbreaking it can be for shopaholics, I am going to carry this responsibility.

Stay tuned for shopping updates, and a special blog post on Wednesday (details about this later).

"I don't do fashion, I am fashion."

- Coco Chanel

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