Capsule shopping in New York

March 27, 2024 1:59 PM

Between Covid, getting older, and getting fatter, my wardrobe is no longer sufficient and I need to go shopping for some decent capsule pieces. I want more brick and morter stores in New York that are like Madewell, Everlane, Sezane, COS, Uniqlo, Muji and carry plus sizes in the store (so many Uniqlos make you order anything over a 10 these days, killing me!).

I just really need to up my clothing game bc any new pieces I've bought in the last five or so years are just crappy filler wardrobe from Old Navy or Target and I just feel dumpy all the time.

I'm early 40s, but no kids and don't need to dress up for my profession, so really just looking for comfortable but intentional/put together looks that don't require me squeezing myself into shapewear, but that are also still youthful and won't make me look like a midwestern suburban mom in the city. I'm hovering around a 12/14 these days, so needs to be stores that will actually carry my sizes. My general style is Madewell/Everlane/Sezane/COS/Uniqlo/Muji (understated but put together), so looking for similar stores at similar pricepoints (ie I'll pay $200-250 for the perfect capsule piece, but would like to keep most items under that).

I live in Brooklyn and will be happy to shop all over Brooklyn and Manhattan. Probably going to make an excursion out of it. Please do not recommend online shops unless they have a physical location near me. I'm very particular about fit and texture and receiving/returning packages is difficult for me. Thank you!

posted by greta simone to Shopping (17 answers total)

Would an appointment work, or do you need walk-in flexibility? Universal Standard has a showroom in Soho that's open by appointment.
posted by EvaDestruction at 2:16 PM on March 27 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: I probably should have mentioned that the reason I like the brands I shared is because they have a lot of natural, light, structured but unstretchy fabrics. I have tried Universal Standard before and it seems like the majority of their stuff has stretchy poly-blend fabrics which I really don't like.

I would prefer walk-in over appointment.
posted by greta simone at 2:31 PM on March 27 [3 favorites]

Perhaps Wray? Some of the clothes are eg neon green but others are much more understated. Definitely worth going and trying stuff on if you think you might like some of it, the clothes sit really nicely and the fabric feels great and some of it you can even stuff in suitcases without it wrinkling, which in my experience is very unusual for quite structured clothes!
posted by severalbees at 2:34 PM on March 27

It feels like you might like Eileen Fisher but I have no idea if they carry plus sizes in store. They do have New York locations.

They are better the top end if your piece range, I think but I had linen baseball jersey style top that I wore for literally a decade and only stopped wearing when it no longer fit and I imagine someone else might still be wearing it because I donated it.
posted by jacquilynne at 2:55 PM on March 27 [3 favorites]

I'm more of a 10 than a 12 so I can tell you that these brands are ones where you should be able to wear an XL and the sizing is comparable to brands you listed, but cannot personally vouch for what they do and don't stock in store.

Marine Layer - slighty more California relaxed style, but they have extremely soft tshirts that are good basics, pricing closer to Madewell than Sezane

Cuyana - I have a sweater from here that wouldn't be out of place at Sezane, though they're better for bags/leather goods than for clothing

ba&sh - never shopped here, but lots of people suggest it as kind of like Sezane but a little bit pricier, personally I found it a little bit to fussy for my tastes

Vince - higher end, but nice minimalist workwear. might run slightly too small for your needs

Sezane, Everlane, Cuyana, ba&sh, Marine Layer, and Vince are all in the same 2 blocks in SoHo where you can also find Rothy's (shoes) and Gorjana (minimalist jewelry) so I would suggest visiting that oddly specific Millenial bat signal corner of SoHo. There's a Madewell within walking distance and also Catbird if you need some minimalist jewelry.
posted by A Blue Moon at 3:27 PM on March 27 [1 favorite]

Honestly scheduling a personal shopping appointment at Nordstrom on 57th or at Bloomingdales will get you exactly what you need. Personal shopping is for regular folks and clothes too: you give the shopper price ranges and roughly what you need, they pull all of it for you to try on. For people outside straight sizes it can be a godsend (I've done it at various times)

If you don't want to make the appointment, Nordstoms is still a good place to visit.
posted by larthegreat at 4:12 PM on March 27 [10 favorites]

Eillen Fisher does not have plus sizes in stores, and are pretty shitty to ender varient peope ime
posted by PinkMoose at 5:30 PM on March 27

I could have written this question. I've had good luck recently at Vince and MM LaFleur's locations on Columbus on the UWS. Both are size-inclusive brands and everything I wanted to try on in 12/14/16 was available in store. 7115 by Szeki in Williamsburg (on Grand St) had some beautiful stuff in my sizes on my last stop in, too. Price point for all of these is at the high end of your range and above, though, so you might want to watch for sales.
posted by minervous at 6:21 PM on March 27 [4 favorites]

Eileen Fisher's cut is deliberately so loose that a 12/14 in normal sizes will probably just be an L in theirs.
posted by praemunire at 6:28 PM on March 27 [2 favorites]

Marina Rinaldi is a plus-size brand and definitely have items in that size in-store. The store is on the upper east side.
posted by miscbuff at 6:53 PM on March 27

I have seen Eileen Fisher plus sizes in department stores, but I’m in LA so YMMV.
posted by BlahLaLa at 9:43 PM on March 27

If you're a 12/14, you will easily fit into a size large in Eileen Fisher. Some of her mediums will fit you as well. Her stuff is sold at Nordstrom, Nordstrom Rack, Bloomingdales, her independent stores (obviously) and her outlets. There is a great one in Secaucus if you can get access to a car (no sales tax!). There is another at Woodbury Commons, which is an adventure in and of itself. Once you figure out what size you wear with her stuff, check out Poshmark!
posted by dancinglamb at 1:32 AM on March 28

Response by poster: Eileen Fisher is not for me. I asked for youthful and structured. These are flowy, shapeless, and what I think of as clothes for significantly older women.
posted by greta simone at 5:15 AM on March 28 [1 favorite]

I would 2nd the Nordstrom's/Bloomingdales personal shopper. You could bring in some pictures of clothes/outfits that exemplify the kind of look you want. And then give them a budget.

Both those stores have a nice range that include more youthful look.
posted by litera scripta manet at 5:27 AM on March 28

My apologies, your comments seemed focused on fabric, so I read structured as referring to fabrics that run to wovens over knits and don't contain a lot of spandex, which is why I suggested Eileen Fisher. I wore their stuff in my 20s, so while I sort of know in the back of my mind it is viewed as old crone clothing, it's never had that association for me.
posted by jacquilynne at 7:03 AM on March 28 [7 favorites]

I'm about your size and Eileen Fisher is generally too flowy for me, but since their quality is decent and they fit my strong preference for natural fibers I keep an eye on their stuff and occasionally pick a piece up (the website lets you filter for "slim fit" to identify what might work in person). If you are down with the 'ester, you may find MM Lafleur more workable than I do; I just can't bring myself to spend $300+ for a polyester dress. But they do tend to run more structured.

(As someone in more or less your position and with somewhat congruent preferences, I might suggest considering what the difficulty of finding what you want tells you about how society values middle-aged and older women, especially if they are not very rich or very thin, and whether you really want to be adopting those values yourself vis-a-vis other women, hoping to somehow stay "not like the other girls." But...regardless of that, you still have to get dressed for work in a way that makes you feel confident, I do get it.)
posted by praemunire at 7:36 AM on March 28 [2 favorites]

So, t's possible I could respond to this in a more IRL kind of way (hi, gretasimone), but I have a couple of Vince pieces that I love, though they are definitely on the upper end of what you're proposing. Vince also carries extended sizes, by the way (through 24), and though it's sometimes hard to find the larger sizes in stores, Nordstrom* does better than most stocking them. Also, as a 14/16/XL/XXL, I will also note that Vince (in my experience) runs large.

*Note: I am not in NYC.
posted by thivaia at 11:18 AM on April 1