Cheryl Shops

Cheryl Shops...the Steven Alan sample sale
So, yes, I was joking earlier in the week about not going to the Steven Alan sample sale. I always try to go to this one, not only because Steven Alan is one of my favorite boutiques in NYC, but the sale is one of the best places to get cool, indie, downtown-type labels at usually quite reasonable prices. Today was the first day, and I headed over after work. The sale is huge, with two floors, but you have to buy stuff on each floor--you can't make one big purchase at the end, which was kind of annoying, but ended up working out pretty well for me in the end. The first floor has a lot of Steven's famous button-down shirts (for guys and girls), as well as some men's stuff and a lot of women's jeans (Rogan, Trovata, Habitual) and sweaters (I found a cute thin-striped cashmere sweater for $35--nearly 90% off!). The lower level had more Steven Alan shirts, plus racks sorted by designer, most of whom I'd never heard of, although I did recognize Alice Roi (lots of gorgeous sweater dresses), Christopher Deane, and Alex Gaines. There were also a few Anna Corinna bags, but since my City Tote is finally en route to me, I managed to refrain. I was tempted to get a gorgeous cropped bouclé wool jacket from Christopher Deane (it was just $50), but I stayed focused on my mission, which was actually to get a birthday present for MW. And I did, but since MW reads this, it's going to have to stay a secret until next week. Anyway, the sale is definitely worth checking out, but be prepared to spend a lot of time (there's a lot of merchandise!) and effort (some digging might be necessary to unearth the best deals). The sale runs through Sunday, at 87 Franklin Street (between Broadway & Church) in Tribeca.