fashion's night out

I have never been to Fashion's Night Out before but have always wanted to go. It's one night a year when stores are open late for shopping and often have deals and parties (it's spread all across the country so check your city for 2012!). It started after the economic crunch to encourage consumers to get back out there and shop. I absolutely don't need to do any shopping but am always up for a fun event, so I was thrilled when Jenn suggested we check out a few places after the book launch Kurt wanted to see. We were already going to be close to SoHo, so Jenn and and I both mapped out a few stores that sounded interesting (i.e. ones offering free drinks and raffles). I was having a Type A day and wasn't too busy at work, so I threw together this map of places we wanted to hit:

I'm so proud of us for reaching most of them by the end of the night!

We began at Vilebrequin. Turns out you can make a successful business out of selling men's and boy's swim trunks in a range of crazy patterns. Who knew!? Regardless, the teeny store was mainly packed with ladies, a dj, and a couple shirtless employees.

Sadly, getting Jenn and I a glass of bubbly was not the champagne lady's first priority, but we did enjoy some yummy shot glasses full of man n cheese. Random but delicious.

Next we went in Missoni (which we all know I love). I was a little intimidated at first but the nice thing about FNO is that everyone is pouring in and out of all the fancy boutiques they would normally never shop in.

Jenn and I were repeatedly asked if we needed help finding anything as we sipped our champagne and thumbed through the racks of beautiful clothes, but I never felt too rushed by the sales ladies. We took our time gossiping and getting excited about the Missoni for Target Collection coming this week!

Next was Emporio Armani.

We were getting the hang of this free drinks thing. Plus, they had chocolates :) We didn't even feign interest in shopping anymore.

Stops at Eileen Fisher (I can't believe I didn't document the chocolate cover bacon!) and 7 For All Mankind

Karaoke at Kate Spade. These ladies were belting out "It's Raining Men" and it was hilarious. While I do love some Kate Spade, the store is quite an overload for the senses. We couldn't even get to the bar and what seemed like some yummy cocktails. Instead we grabbed a few petite baked potatoes and entered a raffle for a shopping spree (keep your fingers crossed...it's for me and 20 of my closest friends!).

One of my favorite stops along our route was Frye. As I recall from my excessive blog reading, this is their first ever flagship store and is LEED certified.

Plus, they were handing out free PBR. What's not to love?!

There are some really fun details around the store.

And who hasn't dreamt about a pair of Frye's? Oh, just me? Well, luckily we signed up for a raffle to win a pair of boots! Cross your (other set of) fingers for me!

Next we ended up at Marni even though I thought we were going into Marc Jacobs.

I guess I got distracted by balloons and petal shaped stools :)

Unfortunately, it was getting late and we started striking out at stores that had closed their doors or run out of drinks already. We made a pit stop and recharged with a rice krispy treat at the Little Cupcake Bakeshop before making one final rally. We were lucky enough to slip into Poppy for a final beer and fun crowd in their tiny boutique.

I had so much fun at Fashion's Night Out! Thanks for being my partner in crime, Jenn! Next year we will be even more prepared and maybe I won't look so grubby :)