I tried on a bunch of stuff at J.Crew

A visit to the store has me wondering why I don't go in person more often. Plus, some small tips for not buying clothes you don't need.

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In today’s post:

• A quick round-up of stuff I tried on at J.Crew — including the surprising piece that made me beam with delight and the thing I thought I’d love for sure that was “meh” in person

• A small tip to avoid buying something you don’t need

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The usefulness of shopping IRL: A quick J.Crew try-on

I had some time to pop into J.Crew this past week to take a look at their new arrivals. The brand has had a bit of a renaissance recently since being under the direction of a new head of womenswear, Olympia Gayot. But while the pieces in the new collections certainly feel fresh and more modernized (their cropped-length button-ups come to mind), I’ve found that the quality can still be hit or miss.

Here’s what I tried on and what made the cut and didn’t for me. (They’re having a 30% off everything sale right now, and it ends tomorrow. And 40% off dresses!)

The beach sweater (I’m wearing size XS) and striped linen pants (size XS).

These two pieces were last-minute grabs, but I’m so glad I did because I ended up buying both. The beach sweater is cropped — and as a petite gal, a cropped-length top is key. The sweater is lightweight, and the off-white color will make it easy to pair with dark or light bottoms. I regret not trying on all the other colors! It’s 70% cotton and the rest poly - my only gripe. But with the sale, it’s less than $70.

I had purchased a sky blue version of the above linen pants but ended up returning them because they were too bright and summery to work into my everyday wardrobe. This striped version, however, is perfect. They’re going to make a great jeans alternative for me during the upcoming warmer days, and they feel like pajamas.

This dress! (I’m wearing size XS)

Ok this is the piece that made me gasp when I tried it on! I recommended this dress in a past newsletter as one that looks like it will be perfect for wearing on a vacation to Italy and decided hey, why not try it on even though I don’t have such a trip planned? And heyo, it impressed me so much for an under $150 dress.

The skirt is substantial and poofy. The description says it’s a bubble skirt, but you can’t really tell? It’s just a poofy, crisp, voluminous skirt that has great movement while feeling lightweight (it’s poplin). My only gripe is that I think the straps on top should be thicker, so you can wear it with any old bra. But I solved that here by wearing it with the aforementioned beach sweater on my shoulders.

Here’s a look at the dress sans sweater - pretend the sweater is a raffia clutch (I have this one):

Pls excuse the bare feet. Remind me not to do try-ons while wearing sneakers.

I ended up personally not purchasing this dress because I have a lot of other summery black dresses that can do the same job (my takeaway: always ask before purchasing something whether you already own a piece that will more or less accomplish the same thing for you). But if you’re vacationing in Europe or elsewhere this summer…this is such a good one-and-done piece.

Striped linen cotton shirt (size XS)

Okay, now THIS SHIRT (that I’m wearing as a dress - I’m 5’ tall!) made me smile so wide as soon as I saw it…and even wider when I tried it on! This color and style is not something I typically spring for — but the pink color in person was *absolutely* stunningly vibrant and gorgeous. Not too baby pink, not too annoyingly florescent pink. Just the right shade, and with the stripes? Perfection. The camera wasn’t able to pick up the color quite as well — just trust me on this one.

Again, with the fake clutch, ha!

Omg so fun. I ended up buying this one because my closet is pretty much all neutrals and lacks that summer vibrancy and fun. I could see myself wearing this around the house, out to brunch, out running errands, doing a quick daycare pickup, hanging out in the garden, on top of my swimsuit. You can wear it with sandals, sneakers, mules. So many possibilities. It’s a yes for me. (Don’t miss the swimsuit or the other dress in the same colorway.)

Now for my maybe’s:

I can’t find this exact tee online, but here’s a similar one. I love the cropped length, longer sleeves, and boat neck. This is a “maybe” for me since it’s not a need for my closet. But I am lacking in long sleeves for the warmer days… we’ll see.

This cropped-fit, lightweight cashmere sweater felt incredible, and I was immediately drawn to it. I personally don’t need it in my closet so I did not purchase it (it will get too hot in D.C. soon for this top), but it’s such a great quality. I can’t find this colorway online, but here’s the same cut.

I’m also unsure of how I would style this. This feels very meh. Another reason I did not purchase. (size S)

The cream color is really lovely, but again not sure how I’d style it in a versatile way.

And now for my definite no:

This linen shift dress was nice in theory, but the material was way too thin. The length was too long on me, so it was veering into potato-sack territory, but it could work for someone taller….

Linen shift dress — petites should shop the Petite length - this is the Regular on me

I’m so glad I went in person to check out the pieces. I'm stating the obvious here, but it helped me see how the clothes fit me; I could better determine the quality and weight of fabrics, and the best part: I didn't have to pack up and ship out boxes to return (arguably the worst part of online shopping).

This floral swimsuit is GORGEOUS IRL - the colors are perfect. J.Crew’s ruched swimwear is always *chef’s kiss*

Btw, I put all my J.Crew picks in one place here, if that’s helpful.

Thanks for reading!

Was this helpful? Are there any try-ons you’d like to see next? I’m sorry it was a bit of a brain and photo dump, and I apologize for any typos. This was written half while holding a baby in one arm!

Do you ever shop in person? What does your shopping habit look like?

Up next in this column: How to make the “question mark” pieces in your closet work by showing you the journey of one very tricky pair of overalls in my closet.

x Alisha