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THE POST-CRESCENT • Dec. 4, 2011
Amish Home Gallery • Appleton Downtown, Inc. • Appleton Awning • Baker Pool and Fitness • Building For Kids • Computer World • Flanagan’s Stop & Shop • Gruett’s • Jacobs Meat Market • Memorial Florist • New England Financial • Northland Mall • Rejuvenessence mediSpa • Unison Credit Union • Wilmar Chocolates • Too Little For Me
FIRST Fox Cities
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if every reader of t the Post-Crescen th wi 0 spent $5 a Fox Cities d business it woul n io ill m .8 $6 p pum r ou to back in local economy.
Shopping options plentiful without ever leaving Fox Valley By Jamie Popp For The Post-Crescent
these continue arriving monthly at area retailers.
Shop, if you must, among the millions of fashionistas online to get the latest in celebrity, couture and designer brands. But why not try before you buy and browse local?
Are you not into capsule and celebrity fashion lines but follow trends? Fabulous on-trend pieces ranging from faux-fur wraps at Ann Taylor, velvet and sequins at White House Black Market and skinny corduroy jeans in a rainbow of colors at Gap are in the Fox Valley. So is Coach’s launch of the Madison collection, which commemorates the brand’s 70 years of holiday handbags. It suggests style is in demand amid mall retailers. But boutiques are equally on par with popular style.
Whether you are shopping for gifts or simply looking to update your style, your options are plentiful without ever leaving the Fox Valley. If you don’t think you can find what you’re looking for, area retailers dedicated to amassing some of the hottest styles and the latest brands might convince you otherwise. Off-the-page looks without shipping and size worries are really only a few fitting rooms away.
Marc Jacobs a n d Born that are available at stores such as DSW (Appleton). One-of-a-kind holiday dresses for the weekends ahead are also available at area boutiques. Super-stunning blacktie gowns and accessories featured in national magazines can also be found in the Fox Cities. Among the designers available, including Jay Godfrey and Tadashi Shoji (both at Azure, DePere), you can find Black Halo and Rebecca Minkoff, or choose more approachable styles from French Connection (Besselli, Green Bay) and BB Dakota or Raffine (Vintique, Neenah).
Boutique couture and celebrity-endorsed brands also feed local style whims. Top-to-bottom looks are continuously changing according to demand and national style trends, say retailers. While the popularity of feathers might be waning, tribal influence hasn’t lost its luster.
Right now the Kardashians have a presence in the Fox Valley. Jennifer Lopez is in the building. Gwen Stefani is rocking Valley style. Stores are featuring the celebrity-designed lines of fashionable pieces ranging from racy to pint-size. At Kohl’s, you can shop JLo’s evening wear. Kim K’s bustiers hang at Sears. And the No Doubt-singer-turneddesigner’s Harajuku Mini biker jackets for girls are selling at Target. Capsule collections such as
No look is complete without jewels, of course. You can find jewelry such as Belle EToile (Avenue Jewelers, Appleton) and local and regional designer hand-crafted pieces, as well as brands such as House of Harlow 1960 or wristlet favorites including metallic styles from Lodis (Azure, DePere).
Off-mall boutiques are adding to latefall looks with stunning overcoats in transitional weather fabrics. More casual Skunk Funk and Lacoste, as well as Dear Creatures (a.boutique, Appleton) styles of everything from wraps to dresses keep shoppers stocked with the latest daytime looks.
Jamie Popp writes the Crave column for The Post-Crescent. Find it every Sunday and Wednesday. She can be reached at jp.thecrave@ gmail.com.
Boot buyers will find several styles of UGGs and Frye riding boots (both at Joseph’s Shoes, Appleton), as well as Vince Camuto (Azure, DePere), among the many mainstream brands such as Marc by
Tech Treats
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Great gear belongs under the tree Stores have so many amazing electronic gadgets this year that you might want to start buying Christmas e-gifts for yourself. Stay focused! 1 The iPhone 4S and its voice-activated personal assistant Siri provide hours of entertainment. Prices begin at $199 for 16 gigabytes at wireless carrier providers.
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2 The Kindle Fire puts thousands of movies, magazines, books and games at your fingertips.
3 See the 3-D images on the Nintendo 3DS without glasses. $169.99 4 Rent HD movies, TV shows and stream music via the hand-sized Apple TV device. $99 at Apple stores.
5 iHome iD8 iPad speaker and docking station, $119.99 at Kohl’s.
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6 The HP Pavilion dm1-3010nr lets you stream, chat and download
via Verizon Wireless’ 4G network. $599.99 with two-year contract.
7 Microsoft Xbox 360 Kinect Sensor holiday bundle features Kinect for Xbox 360 along with three Kinect games. $149.99 Xbox Live users will also be able to find games and shows using Bing voice search.
Computer World 3015 W Wisconsin Ave Appleton, 920-733-9547 www.computer-world.net 5 Apple iMac, Now with a quadcore processor in every model, up to 3 times faster graphics, Thunderbolt, and a FaceTime HD Camera.
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Apple MacBook Pro, State-of-the-art processors. All-new graphics. Breakthrough high-speed I/O. Three very big leaps forward.
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