Thursday, June 5, 2008

Love it or Leave it: Chessy & Tulip Jackets

Brushstroke-print Chessy jacket
(Item 93407)
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Regular: $148.00
Now: $79.99
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Solid tulip jacket

(Item 93731)
Click here to visit product page
Regular: $148.00
Now: $89.99
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Both of these beautiful jackets are now on sale, which makes them (even) more attractive (to me!) As Franko and "Anonymous at 10:25pm" in the "Summer Sale: New Styles & Reduced Prices" post mentioned, both jackets look super cute but unclear how they would look in person. I too have been "eying" the Chessy and Tulip jackets, but hesitate making any purchase before I know more about the fit of them.

In particular, how does the jacket sit on the top frame: does it nip a bit in at the waist or does it goes straight down? What type of body (athletic, pear shape, etc.) would look best for either of these jackets?

Please share with us your product reviews on the jacket if you have tried it on or own it. Do you think the jackets are worth the sale price? If you have questions about either items, please share those too in hopes that someone can answer them.

44 comments:

  1. ding1238Hi, I just bought the Chessy jacket with a gift card that I had. It is sold out in a 10 and 12 even though online it says they are backordered...not accurate....said the customer service rep...

    I usually go up a size in jackets from an 8 to a 10 but I do own some 8's in JCrew jackets that have a more boxy style to them so....anyway, I had to go with an 8 here! Looking forward to getting it. I like that it looks more like a top than a jacket.

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  2. Jagjag2 please let us know about the jacket once you get it! It does look like a top more than a jacket, but a very pretty top! The fabric looks incredible on the Chessy jacket too!

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  3. Alexis,got the Crewcuts seahorse tote today..it is so cute. It has a section that pull out of the bag and closes with a rope drawstring! I got the flame and am awaiting the yellow....

    Also, got the gray and white stripe rosette cashmere cardigan. LOVE it! I have my sweater shaver ready just in case....but it is so soft.

    Hope you have a good day!

    Also, regarding your post yesterday about having to travel for work and not posting replies! Don't you worry one bit! You are doing a fantastic job and even if you had to go to 2-3 postings a week I wouldn't care. You are doing so much! Way to go:)

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  4. PS Size 2 is also sold out said the customer service rep...ie Chessy jacket......I asked her just to let people know it is going fast......

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  5. Jagjag2, that is awesome the Crewcuts seahorse tote closes with a drawstring. I love it when totes have a way to close them (so you have the option ot leave it open or not).

    Ha! That is great that you are ready with your sweater shaver. Hopefully the sweater won't pill.

    Also, thanks for understanding about my posting deficiency yesterday. :)

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  6. Wow...both of these jackets are beautiful! They look like they have the "babydoll" shape...the Chessy jacket reminds me of the Phoebe blouse, but with a higher collar...I am thinking it would fit about the same. I would love to get the Chessy jacket...perfect for this Summer over a cami! :)

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  7. I just checked the online sale page, and right now they're showing only the 6 left in the Chessy jacket. Which is kind of shame because I was contemplating it. I assume if someone is interested in ordering it, calling in might be a good way to find the size, which I may be doing tomorrow.

    I think of the two, I would wear the Chessy more than the Tulip. The Tulip looks a little more trendy/dated than the Chessy.

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  8. I freaked when I saw that they only had the 6 so I called in to place my order. I normally wear a 4 but they were completely sold out so I got the 6. She gave me the chest measurement as being a 40 inches in the 6 and 39 in the 4. Since it was only a 1 inch difference, I got the 6. I was thinking of going into a 2 but I'm concerned that it may be too tight in the shoulders. If anyone is contemplating on getting a chessy, you'll want to jump on it as they don't have much left.

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  9. Anonymous, I wear a 4 too. I have a seersucker suit jacket that is a 6, and it fits well except in the bust, which is a big issue for me (I'm a 32A). I think that if you're a 4 and larger busted, you might not have any issues. And besides, the jacket isn't meant to be fitted around that area anyway.

    Okay, I'm rationalizing ordering :)

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  10. Ok- I tried on the Tulip jacket this morning (yes I went to J.Crew quickly and bought something!).

    It is not good. The material is linen, which meant the structure was a little weak. It also looked frumpy in places. Even the women working at J.Crew (who happened to be wearing the jacket as well) did not look great in it. I would save my money for something else.

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  11. Oh and one more thing about the tulip jacket: the citrus lime color is not that pretty of a shade. Maybe some people can pull off that kind of color, but it is not a universally flattering color (like black or white).

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  12. Haus_Frau, I wish I was larger chested! Unfortunately, I am only a 34B. I called back to see if they have a 2 or a 4 and they don't. So, I stuck with the 6. I'm sure it'll be fine.

    Alexis, thanks for the update on the Tulip. I had already ordered it but after reading your post, I'm going to call and cancel the Tulip. I didn't realize that it was linen. I didn't care for the Waverly since it had the linen look and wasn't very crisp looking. It looked frumpy and I don't do frumpy well. Thanks again!

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  13. I am a 36A/34B (which is the same size in bras incidently...if one isn't in stock try the other size...learned this from a V.Secret employee and then again at Nordstroms) and I wear an 8 or 10 in a JCrew jacket...but then again I'm 5'10" so maybe I take up room elsewhere...

    Not surprised that the Chessy jacket is going, going, gone...I got that impression from the customer service rep and tried to state that in my comments this morning.

    Maybe more will magically appear in the next day or so when the website is updated.....

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  14. Hi Anonymous 1:02 PM! I really didn't like the jacket (or at least for that price point). Hopefully you can cancel without problems.

    Thanks Jagjag2 about the Chessy jacket update. Hopefully people listened to your advice and ordered when they could! :)

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  15. JagJag2, you and I are essentially the same size in the chest but I'm 5'3" tall. I don't see how our height would make a difference in the size we wear but I wear a size 4 in a jacket.

    Just curious, can someone explain why 2 people who have the same chest size would wear such different sizes in jackets?

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  16. @ anonymous 1:50PM :

    could be shoulder width. a friend of mine has really really broad shoulders, so she always has to buy a size up and get the rest of the garment taken in.

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  17. Anonymous at 1:50PM: I agree with Sue.Bee's answer to you. Sometimes the same measurement in chest comes in different shapes (e.g. one is more rounder, one is broader). :)

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  18. After hearing about J.Crew's with amazing in-store sales, I went to mine today to return some things I'd ordered online that didn't fit right and to hope for a total steal of a bargain! However, my J.Crew matched the online prices, sadly, in everything.

    But I did try on the tulip jacket because of this post. They had a 2, which I tried on, and found to be very loose and big so you should probably go down a size. Also, the collar was big! I am a petite person and I felt that the collar was out of proportion for me. Made it almost clown-collar-esque. :) Just my thoughts.

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  19. Interesting to discuss sizing.....all I know too is the Josie dress is one many people thought was a "JCrew mistake" and it looked fabulous on me...I got my usual 8 in white and blue and love it.....My shoulders are average I would say...I am small boned for being tall...I wear size 6 rings and size 6 3/4 inch bracelets....I wear Mediums in most JCrew tees.

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  20. @ jagjag2:

    i have the Josie dress too! in fact i'm wearing it today :o) the blue one. it's very comfy and perfect for the Texas heat. my favorite detail is the sleeves. i just need to find a chunky necklace that will look good with it. i was thinking maybe red or yellow (since i have red and yellow flats that look cute with the dress).

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  21. Let me add my two cents and say that I don't think the Josie dress was a mistake. I actually thought the dress was quite pretty with its sleeves (just like Sue.Bee).

    I desperately wanted to get it, especially for $10 that my local J.Crew was offering if for. But it just doesn't work for my body shape (which is pear shaped).

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  22. Alexis and Jagjag2, I too bought the Josie dress. But for some reason, it didn't look amazing on it. It looked "just okay". I still have it and am contemplating on whether I should keep it or return it. Maybe it's because I'm short so it does not make me look amazing. Do you wear it with heels or flats?

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  23. @anonymous 4:19

    i'm short (not quite 5'2"), and i'm wearing flats with the josie dress right now :o) it would look better with heels (since my feet are small and my flats make me look like my feet are stunted and disproportionate to the rest of me), but my feet aren't in the mood for them today!

    i think since the dress has a shorter cut, you might even be able to double it as a tunic over jeans and some cute strappies or boots.

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  24. I wear mine with flats. I can't wear heels due to a back injury 6 years ago....but if I was shorter and could I would wear lower heels with this dress.

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  25. Hi Anonymous at 4:19 PM! It sounds like Sue.bee and Jagjag2 gave you some great advice. If you are tall: go with flats. If you are slightly shorter: go with heels.

    I personally think you could get away with either (flats or heels) depending on how the dress actually looks on you (e.g. if it drapes well and your body looks porportioned). :)

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  26. Alexis, I was interested to hear about how the Josie dress didn't work on your pear-shaped body. I am also a pear shape and the dress that I have been having issues with in another post looks just like the Josie dress, just made out of lace. So it's good to know that I probably won't fall in love with it when I get it!

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  27. Back to jackets, are J.Crew linen jackets of poor quality? I've been eyeing the Linen-cotton Casa Rossa jacket, Item # 94140, but if linen jackets aren't that great I'll think differently of the jacket.

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  28. Hi Melanie! Since I am a pear shape (for those who don't know what that means, it is smaller on top [e.g. chest], heavier on the bottom [e.g. hips & butt], hence the pear-like shape) I found that none of the Josie dress sizes accomodated my body shape.

    Let me state that I am a typical size 0/2 for tops and a size 6 for bottoms. The size 8 Josie dress was actually the best size to accomodate my hips, but it looked like there was too much fabric floating around the chest area. (It looked like a potato sack on me- not cute like the model wearing hers.) The size 2 was actually the best size to accomodate my chest area (but naturally, super tight around my hips- which I don't want to "feature").

    Ultimately, this dress is better suited for someone with a more balanced body frame, not for pear shapes. We should stick to dresses like the Swiss-dot Fontana dress (which I own and love) that features our best feature: small waistband.

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  29. Hi Stephanie: Linen jackets at J.Crew are not of poor quality-- The fabric itself, besides the stitching is actually quite good... for linen. I own a beautiful pair of Linen pants that I absolutely adore.

    The issue (for me anyways) lies in that Linen is a fabric that is loose/ floppy to begin with. It is also very difficult to keep care of in terms of keeping it wrinkle-free (again for me anyways). So when it comes to a jacket, I tend to avoid Linen as a fabric because I favor more structured material/fabric which I think is more flattering (again for me).

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  30. my husband said that the chessy looked like a clown suit. The collar is really round and large

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  31. I never listen to my husband when it comes to fashion; otherwise, I wouldn't have the cute clothes in my closet...don't get me wrong...he has bought me some of the cutest outfits...from JCrew and Banana but always with the help of a clerk. One time i bought the cutest suede black shoes. He thought they were really ugly. Women at work just loved them and we all ended up with a pair or two in various colors! Men....love them to death but very few have fashion sense like us women:) Unless you are Carrie's friend Stanford on Sex and the City!!!

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  32. Anonymous at 12:29PM- have to agree with Jagjag2 on this one. :)

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  33. WHat does the model wear under this? Is it the cami or ribbed tank?? Any thoughts?

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  34. Hi Anonymous at 8:53 AM! It looks like she is wearing just a regular white t-shirt (for both jackets).

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  35. Hi Stephanie,
    I own 2 JCrew linen jackets from last season and they are very good quality...haven't had any problems with them...see to hold their shape really well for linen. (I will say had to send one of them back and get another b/c of a defect in sewing but the fabric and jacket structure are fine...don't know about this years linen though...)

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  36. About Josie dress- I have it in size 4 in blue, bought for $19 and am very happy with it. Agree that it needs to be tried on, but do not agree that it was a "mistake". Poplin itself is very nice and puff sleeves are adorable. Not sure how it would look after washing though.:)Can see already that I would have difficulties with ironing . I only turn thing to dry clean if absolutely must. What is everybody's take on J crew items care? Dry clean or hand/machine wash and home ironing ?

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  37. I love the Josie dress and don't think it is a mistake either....I have all 3 colors...I just read on another post where someone was really bashing the dress and the blog owner agreed.....I was all alone in the cold with liking it....Glad so many of you out there like it too!

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  38. To jagjag2- glad, we share tastes!:) Are there any other interesting Jcrew blogs to read?

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  39. Slastena: to answer your question... there used to be another blog but not any more.... This is the only one that gets updated regularly or that is current with spring/summer clothing comments. Keep up the good work Alexis and everyone who comments:)

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  40. So....has anyone got their Chessy jacket yet?? How do you like it? Mine gets delivered this week!!

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  41. I won't get mine until I visit the US in July.

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  42. Not sure if anyone will read this as this is on an older post, but just wanted to comment on the Tulip jacket - I actually LOVE it!

    Just happened into the store the other day and they were having an additional 25% off sale items. There were lots of the Citrus Lime color but I actually got the jacket in a reddish color (I couldn't find it on the website - maybe someone can help?)

    In any case, I tried it on and really liked it! I love the ruffle on the sleeves and while it doesn't nip in at the waist, I still found it flattering enough to buy (especially at 25% off $89.99!)

    I do agree with Alexis' prior post that the Citrus Lime color is not the greatest...

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  43. Franko: Congrats on the tulip jacket at that price (it sounds like a great bargain from its original price!)

    The reddish color was actually very pretty in person. I am happy you like it. Your post/purchase is a good reminder for me that although an item doesn't look good on me, it still looks great on someone else! :)

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  44. Got my Chessy in a size 8.Love it...it is more like a top/jacket than anything.....hope others are enjoying theirs as well.

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