The Anthropologie clothing reviews are piling up on my hard drive. Time to get them out there on the interwebs!
Billed as a sweater, the Floral Still Life Pullover ($148) is more like a top than a sweater. It’s very lightweight and while not quite sheer light layers underneath may be diffused through in certain spots on the top. The cashmere mixed in makes the top soft and also pushes the price up into triple digits. I’m willing to make that tradeoff but I wish the material were thicker.
I found my usual size medium to fit well. I adore the longer length of this top and the way the print is stretched vertically to make me feel even leaner. The arms are nice and tight — lately I’ve felt like sweaters have had too loose saggy arms so this is a nice change of pace. I do not like how loose this top is at the bottom. It almost flares out like a skirt and I’m not a fan.
Although pretty, the thinness and loose bottom keep me from loving this top. Waiting for sale.
Essentially a remake of the Constant Salutation Top (jog your memory here) in a different pattern, the Wrapped Watermark Top ($68) is another bold and eye-catching pattern. But my experience with the Constant Salutation Top has left me somewhat bitter. The small I’d originally tried on in that top was the perfect pattern placement but too tight on me. I was never able to find a version of the pattern in a medium that looked right across my chest so I ended up returning it a few times over. Would this new version fare any better?
Like its predecessor the Wrapped Watermark Top ($68) is a rayon-based mix of polys. A faux wrap neckline creates an asymmetric v while a tulip hemline adds additional interest. In the back the center is ruched to help the body-skimming fit. There’s a lot going on with this top but it all comes together nicely.
I tried on my usual size medium and I can’t decide if it’s the right size or not. It’s very body-hugging and I wonder if a large would be better. Then again I do appreciate the way it hugs my curves. The pattern of the top I tried on wasn’t bad. I like the square detail approaching my shoulder and the diagonal line cutting down my torso. But I don’t like the splash of yellow across my tummy.
On a positive note, I see that this version of the top is $10 less than the previous version. That makes me happy. I’m probably still waiting for sale…this top is wishlisted for now! Hopefully I’ll be able to find a flattering pattern layout once a cut comes.
Occasionally community members will send me photos of an Anthropologie item, hoping I can tell them the product name or style number. I’m happy to hunt the information down when time allows though I’m not always successful. A recent mission had me digging through catalogues from 2010. I came across the photo above from the October 2010 Anthropologie catalogue featuring the Relaxed Petina Top ($128) and Hortulan Pencil Skirt ($128) — both are long sold out online.
At the time this outfit didn’t interest me a bit but now I think it’s just fantastic! So much so that I began hunting down both items. I’ve since purchased the skirt from a community member, though I could only find a 12 and truly need a 10 so if anyone out there has a 10 they’d like to part with please let me know. The top seems to be a figment of imagination only though. Unable to locate it I started looking around for something similar that’s currently available.
That hunt led me to Anthropologie’s website. I instantly thought of Bordeaux, what with its drapey tops and relaxed knits. And that led me to hit a few of the NYC Anthropologies hunting down a few of Bordeaux’s latest options, hoping for a suitable similarly-shaped success.
The closest option I could find to the Relaxed Patina Top is Bordeaux’s Ridged Ribs Boatneck ($68), a long-sleeved shirt so simple Anthropologie apparently decided it didn’t deserve a cute online description. So here’s mine: Hidden under the boxy shape is a top that’s waiting in earnest. A purposely wandering seam cuts across the front up near the neckline and another one across the upper left arm. I adore the slight batwing style of the sleeve, which gathers nicely under the arm when you stretch without looking like too much extra material. Down at the bottom a banded hem seems to bring everything together.
Unfortunately I had some fit issues with this top. It runs very large — I’m in a small above and that was still pretty roomy. I normally wear a medium but would probably need an extra small in this. Meanwhile the loose fit caused the boatneck to sag into a plain ol’ scoopneck which is such a bummer! The boatneck was my favorite part but no amount of fidgeting could make it stay. The rest of the top is really boxy and made me feel like a rectangle. That’s a pretty impressive feat on such a curvy gal.
While I love the idea of this top the execution fell short. My closest option went back to the rack and my hunt continued.
My hunt for tops was temporarily suspended by the undeniable temptation of brocade. These are J Brand’s Brocade Maria ($242), which remind me a bit of the waiting room in a seedy Lower East Side club but are the first patterned pants to truly tempt me into making a purchase. One of my favorite holiday dresses is a black and gold brocade and I couldn’t help but think that come winter a similar pattern on my jeans would cheer me up.
J Brands hardly ever fit me. They’re cut for someone with a straighter shape and less of a tush. Still, the “high rise” of this jean gave me hope that they’d somehow fit. (J Brand’s definition of a high rise is 8.75 inches, which I’d place firmly in midrise territory.) At only 30 inches long I’d have to sit these on my hips anyway to have any hope of making it down to my ankles.
I sized up to a 32 which is one waist size above my usual 31. This allowed me to wear the jeans on my hips instead of at my waist, thus making them long enough. The jeans have a bit of stretch in them which also helped. I liked the look of this black motif version alright…
…but the yellow version really captured my heart. It kind of looks like gold dusted onto the jeans. These pants are crazy but I think I love them.
Here’s a full length shot of the yellow Brocade Marias. I know that it’s crazy to pay almost $250 for a pair of jeans. And I know it’s even crazier to pay that amount on a trendy pair of jeans. I am seriously tempted though. For now, wishlisted!
I’d tried the Diamondback Raglan ($58) on with the yellow Brocade Marias and realized it might be a great top to pair with my Hortulan Pencil Skirt. The v-neck on this top is deeper than it looks online. I love the long banded hem which creates a sleek, lean shape and don’t even mind the elbow-length sleeves. This top gets its name due to the back which has a diamond-like seaming pattern. Materialwise this top feels very soft but seems like it will pill and fuzz over time.
I tried on my usual size medium. It didn’t give quite the drapey feeling I was hoping for. The shoulders felt a little squeezed and I felt like there was some unnecessary pulling. Mostly it felt just a little too short to place the hem where I wanted it on my 5’8″ frame. So I sized up to a large to purchase this shirt. At $60 it was worth full price for me. It looks great over skinny jeans (or leggings if you’re into that) and yes it also looked great with my pencil skirt. The hunt continues for a long-sleeve top to pair with the skirt.
I was ready to head to Anthropologie’s in-store cashwrap to buy the Diamondback Raglan when this top, the Duo Colorblocked Top ($48), caught my eye. Have I mentioned that I heart colorblocking? Normally tops have dark colorblocking up top and lighter on the bottom. But this light-on-top-dark-on-the-bottom version is much more flattering to my shape. I knew I had to try it on.
This top is so incredibly soft. I worried about the placement of the large pocket but I think it’s fine even over my 34D chest. My usual size medium worked perfectly with sleeves just a little long and length skimming over the widest part of my thigh. I can’t give this top five stars though because the heathered upper part is a drop sheer so you’ll need to layer a cami underneath. Boo. Still, I couldn’t resist buying this right away! You can see my OOTD in the latest Reader Outfits (scroll all the way down to see my look). I’m also tempted by the red version (which is really orange), especially after the way the Rockefeller Center Anthropologie styled it in their window — check out the last photo in my recent Eye Candy post.
Such a versatile top and I’m thrilled that it isn’t a tent like the recent options have been! It’s a step in the right direction to be sure.
What do you think of these tops (and ahem, the brocade jeans)? Have you purchased any of these items? If so how are you styling them? Got a review request — let me know in the comments!!
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