As you know, dear readers, Levi’s is currently conducting a denim drive in select markets. Drop off your pants, get a discount at the Levi’s Store, and Goodwill is the recipient of all donated denim. Love it! And in D.C. there are two locations: Georgetown and Tyson’s Corner, the former of which hosted some Goodwill staff as part of a special event for they were holding a couple of weeks ago. While there yours truly was allowed to select two outfits to be this week’s Goodwill Good Buy of the Week. Like the cowgirl painted on the store wall to the right says, “Yee-Ha!”
It was a tough choice, I have to tell you, to decide upon the pieces. Usually I’m going for a unique item or two among a store comprised almost entirely of one-offs, a task for which I find myself well suited. This time I had a wide range of sizes, colors, and styles laid out before me. The selection was huge. My choices were piling up before me. And then I hit upon these…
Levi’s new Curvy Boot Eco Jeans. Um, perfection? Maybe. Let me explain. The Curvy Boot Jeans are a new fit that Levi’s is introducing and it’s specifically designed to flatter girls with a smaller waist and – ahem – a bit of a rear end. Think J-Lo. But, like, Selena-era J-Lo. You won’t find these jeans in any store, however. Oh no, dear readers. The pair I have is one of only 51 styled as part of a Limited Edition Collection of Levi’s “Designer for a Day” auction. Catherine Pino won the opportunity to design that pocket you see to the left (along with the rest of the jeans, of course), and these are the only pair left anywhere that you can buy with that signature pattern!
They’re a size 12R (the inseam’s about 32″) and let me tell you, I saw women from a size 0 to a size 20 wearing them and it was like Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants or something. The jeans magically fit every body, and pair them with something fancy like Dior sunglasses, wow, let me tell you! They’re in a medium dark rinse and have a wide hem at the bottom of the leg, which I think makes them both flattering and just a bit dressier than your average pair of denim. But wait, there’s more! It’s not like I totally slacked off on the rest of the outfits. The men’s jeans are also Eco, the Eco Vintage Straight 539 Jeans, to be exact. What does that mean? Well, like the women’s jeans, that means they’re made out of 98% organic cotton and 2% Lycra. And yes, they use a lower case “e” for Eco, but it just looks weird to me. So there.
Both pairs of jeans are complemented by great summery shirts: a white cotton spaghetti-strap camisole with macramé detail on the front for the gals; and a blue plaid short-sleeved cotton snap-front (pearlized snaps, no less!) short for the guys. Both are in a size large and all of the clothing items in todays Good Buy are brand new with tags.
The bag, however, is classic Goodwill: a vintage woven leather satchel from Banana Republic Safari & Travel Company. What? Huh? Yes, dear readers, this bag pre-dates the buyout by the Gap in 1983 of the original Banana Republic. It’s a vestige of another era – probably the late 70s – when Banana Republic’s shopper were headed to the plains of Africa or the outback of Australia. Who knows where this bag has been? It’s in great shape, though. Very chic.