LAND’S END is having a big winter clearance sale. Many MANY items in plus sizes! Francesca’s picks (pictured): cozy cashmere scarf,  fleece half-zip pullover.

IGIGI has new dresses! What say you of them? Francesca’s pick is the (floor length) Secret Muse Dress with the Bolero shrug (pictured).

JUST MY SIZE has a deal on bras through February 24: Buy any two Glamorize or Bali bras (or one of each), get a third free.

EVANS wants to remind you that if you live in the UK or Ireland, you get free return shipping if something does not fit.

COLDWATER CREEK has reduced prices even further on everything in outlet (these prices are online only and may not match the prices in their physical Outlet stores).

BLUEFLY has new handbags and shoes in contemporary styles. Francesca prefers classic styles, but not everyone has the same taste, so perhaps you will love what is there. Francesca’s pick (pictured):Stuart Weitzman croc patent boots.

CHADWICKS will take $20 off your purchase of $60 or more, through January 31, with code CHTAKE$20. Shop plus sizes here.

ASHLEY STEWART has a “buy one, get one half off” deal on select items  (online only) , and has added new items to their virtual sale rack.

Happy shopping! xoxo

…as Francesca does, here is a little reminder to the Single Ladies and to all the Big Girls that there are, indeed, men out there who love us for our bodies AND our minds and hearts. (Not that having men be attracted to us makes us any more or less “valid” as people or as productive members of society, but it is nice to know.)

Warning: the column may have some emotional triggers for many readers.

LANE BRYANT will give you shipping for $4.99 if you order $50 or more online (use code 025003055) or click here for a coupon to use in-store. Francesca’s pick. Both will work through January 29 (next Friday). Cute, colorful lingerie here. (NSFW)

FREDERICKS OF HOLLYWOOD is having a clearance sale. Plus sizes here. (NSFW) Also, through Sunday, if you order $75 or more, they will throw in a free lipgloss.

LA GRANDE DAME has new arrivals. Free shipping and free return shipping, as always, with code FREESHIP.

MONIFC has taken even more markdowns on several items, to make room for new stuff. Francesca thinks the prices are now at a very reasonable level, so if you usually cannot afford Monif C, and there is something you like, the time has come (though, unfortunately, everyone’s favorite robe is not on sale). Francesca doubts the prices will get lower than this. For example, the Angelina trench coat (pictured) is down from $245 to $98.

WOMAN WITHIN: If there is something you want from their site anyhow that is $25 or more, buy it today and throw in code WWLOVEYOU and they will give you a personal organizer with a binder, calendar, calculator, notebook, and address book.

SOMA INTIMATES has taken 25% off all lace bras (online only). Also see their semi-annual sale here.

SILHOUETTES will take The money off your purchase with code SAE3, through Monday: $20 off purchases of $100 or more, or $30 off purchases of $150 or more.

SAKS has new bags and shoes by Gucci. Free shipping on orders of $200 or more with code WINTER.

ONE STOP PLUS has many new arrivals.  Francesca’s pick: A cute cami.

CHADWICKS is having a big sale. Many excellent choices for the office!

AVENUE is having a big clearance sale. Through Sunday, also use code AV101006 for an additional $10 off purchases of $75 or more, or AV101016 for an additional 20% off clearance items. With the code, this one-shoulder dress (pictured) is now about $40.

Happy shopping! xoxo

As you can imagine, Francesca, Plumcake and Twistie receive many, many emails from the PR agencies, peddling various beauty products and personalities. Usually Francesca safeguards you from such matters, but this week she received one which actually might be useful, under the rainy circumstances. It is from the PR firm of the hair and makeup stylists mentioned here:

The stars at last night’s Golden Globe awards managed to look impeccable despite the rain.

However, most women don’t have a team of professional hairdressers, makeup artists and stylists to maintain their look during rainy conditions like celebrities (Francesca says: or assistants to hold the umbrellas on one’s behalf). Celebrity makeup artist Christopher Drummond and hairstylist Philip Pelusi offer tips on weathering the storm during a special event:

Makeup tips from Christopher Drummond

• If it is raining the day of a special event, stay away from liquid foundation, which has a tendency to “melt” and not last as long
• Add a little more makeup than you normally would for all products to prepare for the fact that some makeup will come off due to bad weather. Be sure to add layers to your foundation.
• Use water resistant products, such as Christopher Drummond Beauty products (Veludo Velvet Foundation and Finale Finishing Powder) (Francesca says: natch)

Hair Tips from Philip Pelusi:

• Check the weather report a few days in advance so you can plan to wear your hair up or down. If rain is in the forecast, plan ahead to wear your hair either all up or half up and half down.
• Pulling hair into an updo or half upsweep is the best strategy to stay looking good in rainy conditions because hair is already curled, pinned and sprayed in place. If it gets rained on a bit, hair can simply air dry in place, and it is also easier to keep an updo dry under an umbrella.
• If you wear your hair down and are caught by surprise, make sure to bring a small emergency kit in your purse to a special event with a few hair pins, a ponytail holder and a small purse size hair spray. If hair gets wet, go for a quick style change. Pull hair back into the ponytail and wrap hair around the ponytail holder and secure into place with the hair pins. Mist with spray.

It is like this. Francesca finished high school many a long year ago, and she does not wish to engage, actively or passively, in idle chatter about who looked sooooo good and who should NOT BE WEARING THAT, who was a “hit” and who was a “miss.” It is so boring.

Francesca loves looking at the pretty dresses, and she enjoys –yes, with her own little bit of unfortunate shadenfreude — seeing rich celebrities tank on their fashion risks. But to spend time and energy dissecting, to the minutest of details, why  so-and-so looks like a vampire in her paleness or how ridiculously like a 1980′s Barbie so-and-so looked is just a waste. Especially since the first so-and-so might simply be a victim of red-carpet lighting, and the other so-and-so might actually look fun and feminine in a daringly Barbie-like way — and anyhow, does it really matter THAT much? –so why don’t we just enjoy the prettiness when it is there, take what we like to inspire our own fashion choices if we wish, and move on?

Fashion is great fun and tells us something about ourselves and society — hence, this blog — but it is not worth throwing away one’s manners for.

Seriously, all the talk about who looked washed out and who looked fat and who looked too frilly is, frankly, anti-woman. You do not see the Big Bad Media wondering why the MEN at the Globes look boring, who designed their cuff links, or whether wearing black versus dark grey works for their complexions. Let us focus on the talent and artistry, and just be happy for what prettiness there is — because Hollywood stars do, after all, clean up real nice –  and allow female stars to dress up as glamourously as they can to win their awards without worrying whether they will be caught in a bad lighting situation and forevermore dissed for it.  Francesca does not mind oohing and aahing over how beautiful someone looks, within reason, but if someone “misses,” we do not speak of it. We focus on the positive and build each other up. We are not in high school any more.

As Francesca noted this morning, Torrid  has the following deals “for a limited time”:  1) Online and in-store, an additional 50% off clearance items(already included in listed price).   2) Free shipping online for orders of $75 or more – no code necessary.   3) Online: vote for your favorite jeans, and receive a code for $15 off purchases of $75 or more.  4) In stores: Try on any pair of jeans, get $15 off any purchase of $75 or more – see cashier for details.

Now, Francesca sees torrid primarily as a fun source of plus-size clothing for the teenage girl. This is partly because Torrid is heavily into t-shirts with all sorts of words and pictures on their fronts, and though Francesca does not think anyone, of any age, should ever, ever wear shapeless cotton t-shirts with words or loud prints in public – except, she will allow, to the gym class – she recognizes that 16-year-olds can get away with a certain level of forced grunginess which does not wear well on anyone over the age of 18.

It is also because Torrid sells adorable items with Hello Kitty on them. There are three kinds of people who can wear Hello Kitty: 1) Earnest little girls 2)  Teenage girls of goth irony and 3) women over the age of 50 who have a certain artistic flair, colorful glasses, and boundless energy.

And here we come to the crux of Francesca’s post today: With the right attitude and a good eye, women of many ages can create outfits out of Torrid offerings. If you are out of the high school, you simply must be able to overlook the Twilight tshirts and fallen-Catholic-schoolgirl plaid miniskirts with black mesh trimmings. For example:

YES

This Cherry Cropped Cardigan is perfect for the spring office outfit, with black dress pants or a red or white skirt. Soften the sweet factor with bold accessories like an oversize red purse, or maximize the spring atmosphere with pearl earrings and white sandals.

This Tweed Cropped Jacket with ribbon trim(and a removable pin),  is a good choice for the office. Francesca could do without the ribbon trim, but it is not bad, and with this jacket on double-clearance for under $20, it is a good choice for the young woman who is building up her work-appropriate wardrobe.

This Black Poplin Laser-Cut Eyelet Skirt can be made more conservative for work with black stockings and pumps and a matte black blouse, or given a bit of sex-kitten appeal with a pink cashmere cardigan. Or wear bare-legged with sandals and a sleeveless top for Sunday brunch with the girlfriends. It is on double-clearance right now for under $12.

NO

There are times and places for cleavage, and perhaps — if one stretches the imagination — a time and place for a red cotton t-shirt with blue roses painted on it. But Francesca cannot think of any time or place where both those things are appropriate.

MAYBE

Here we have the Faux Leopard Swing Coat(on double clearance) which is not for the timid. Who should NOT wear this: teenage girls; women who think this will make them look classy. Who SHOULD wear this: tall women with enormous confidence and flair, who are fierce and fun, who love attracting attention but are not b*tchy to others. (If you are not nice to others, Francesca does not care how you dress; you have bigger problems.)

So, browse carefully and have fun. xoxo

SILHOUETTES will take an additional 25% off clearance items today only, with code SCP25 at checkout. Also, for an unspecified time, you get Shop Silhouettes and get Free Shipping on orders of $100 or more with code SAH1. Francesca doubts that you can use both codes at the same time, FYI. What say you about the “Fluid Print Skirt,” which is now $15 with the code? Francesca cannot decide whether it is odd to have a print in the middle of the skirt, or whether it is pretty and feminine in a mildly exotic, Hungarian sort of way.

ASHLEY STEWART will take 25% off your purchase of regular-priced items, with code DIVA10, “for a limited time.”

TORRID has the following deals “for a limited time”: 1) Online and in-store, an additional 50% off clearance items(already included in listed price).  2) Free shipping online for orders of $75 or more – no code necessary.  3) Online: vote for your favorite jeans, and receive a code for $15 off purchases of $75 or more. 4) In stores: Try on any pair of jeans, get $15 off any purchase of $75 or more – see cashier for details.

Francesca is putting together a “Yes, No, Maybe” for Torrid for later today. Stay tuned.

AVENUE  has the following two deals: 1) Online, use code AV101006 for $10 off purchases of $75 or more.  Francesca’s pick (pictured): Faux Two-Piece Dress.  2) In stores, buy any top or bottom at the listed price, and you can buy any other top or bottom (for equal or lesser value) for just $10.

NORM THOMPSON has 300 new items on the sale rack.

SEALED WITH A KISS advertised a sale on winter coats, which is misleading (albeit technically correct) because, as far as Francesca can see, the sale includes 4 coats. However, one of them is this plaid wool number (pictured) which Francesca likes.

JC PENNEY is giving free shipping on orders of $75 or more, today only, with code STOCK75. Plus sizes are here. Hard-to-find NOT SHABBY plus-size maternity wear is here (nary a muu muu in sight).

Happy shopping! xoxo