Any guesses?
I think it's the first time I've hit a store on the day a designer collaboration collection's come out (N.B. omitting the time I stayed up most of the night waiting to see Christopher Kane's 2009 Topshop capsule collection go online!;)), but I was keen to see what the atmosphere would be like in my local Spanish H&M for the new Sonia Rykiel collection. I had quite a busy day, so arrived around late afternoon to encounter a much busier H&M than usual. The atmosphere was civilised (no pushing and shoving at all), much to my relief! (I think my preconceptions about exclusive collection launches have been coloured somewhat by the media..)
Anyway, I walked through the men's section, straight towards what appeared to be a treasure-trove of bright colours and glinting rhinestones. As I'd expected, there was quite a range of age groups - from girls around my age (mainly looking at the dresses, jumpers and accessories), to mothers with young daughters (a double breasted blazer in one hand, whilst trying to force a pink beret over a cranky 7 year old's head!) and a few older, very well dressed women (who were looking at the Rykiel knits.)
I was immediately drawn to the Rykiel iconic stripe dress, but looking at the price tag, I was surprised to find it more expensive than I'd expected (See previous blog for the Sonia Rykiel look-book and english prices) At 60 euros, I wondered why a random price inflation had taken place..I'm not sure what the prices are like in England, but everything was more expensive in euros! I tried on a couple of things which were nice, but nothing that particularly said 'wow' to me. The one thing I was tempted to buy, was the "Mon pull Rykiel" jumper, which I talked about in my last blog post. Priced in Spain at 40 euros, I decided that if I did buy it, I'd be paying solely for the brand and not garment quality, as it was very thin material!
I am glad, however, that I took a look at the 'accessories section' of the Rykiel collection, as I picked up a "mon pull" rhinestone brooch and a limited edition Sonia Rykiel UNICEF shopper bag. At a mere €2.95, i figured I couldn't go wrong, and I love that the bag's for charity. The proceeds go to a project called “All for Children”, which is a five year initiative from UNICEF and H&M, which aims to protect and improve children's lives in areas of cotton cultivation in India.
I love French-inspired clothing and accessories, so the "mon sac Rykiel" UNICEF bag and "mon pull" brooch are perfect for me. (The pink carrier bag my purchases were put in is also super cute and good quality!) I'm looking forward to pinning my "mon pull" brooch on all sorts of cute knitwear and jumpers (See picture below right - me with my brooch and shopper bag!)
All in all, it's been a successful day in many respects, so I'm full of 'joie de vivre'..and not just because of my Sonia Rykiel goodies :)
je-suis-style
xox
