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Bargain Friday’s TPS Report: Ann Taylor Loft’s Bow Tie Scoopneck Tee

Fashion· The Personal Shopper (TPS)

Our daily TPS reports suggest one piece of work-appropriate attire in a range of prices. Untitled pictureThere are some great sales going on at Ann Taylor Loft right now. For example, take this slightly embellished tee which is final sale (not everything is, though — be careful as they have not clearly delineated which is which.). This baby was $34, now marked to $12.99, and with the automatic 25% off it comes down to around $9.75. We found another 15% off coupon online (104002172) that brought the final price down to about $8.25. Not bad for a top that we’ll wear with trousers, skirts, and possibly even with a slim turtleneck beneath. It’s available in fuschia, mauve, blue (pictured), gray, black, and white, in regular and petites. Bow Tie Scoopneck Tee If you’ve recently seen a great work piece you’d like to recommend to the readers, please e-mail editor@corporette.com with “TPS” in the subject line. Unless you ask otherwise, we’ll refer to you by your first initial.

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Workwear sales of note for 9.20.23:

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Comments

  1. RZS

    I’ve tried this top on, and it’s very cute. Just, FYI, though, it’s a very thin knit, and if you have a large bust relative to your ribcage, when you get ther right size to fit the ribcage, it ends up being see-through across the chest. If you were planning to layer it over something, I don’t think it would be a problem, but on its own it was noticeable enough that I didn’t even feel comfortable leaving the dressing room.

    • meg

      question on the bust-fit – I have a large-ish chest (36D), and struggle with whether embellishment up top like this is a bad idea? thoughts?

      • RZS

        Meg-

        I don’t necessarily think the shoulder embellishment is bad — in fact, I found that it drew my eye up, and away from my chest. With just a plain scoopneck, the focus is on the chest; same with any mid-chest embellishment. But if this top fits well, I would think the shoulder detail would be fine.

        • KJ

          I agree with RZS – sometimes I’m uncomfortable in unembellished tees because they provide too exact an outline of my shape.

          And I can’t tell you what it is about the styling (but I think a high and round neck is part of the problem) but some tees leave me with a shape too suggestive of Eleanor Roosevelt. Not that I don’t love Ellie, but….

        • AH

          I agree, I think a shoulder detail off on one side (especially a detail in 3d) can balance a chest and distract the eye just a bit from boobage. If the detail were centered or over the chest rather than the shoulder – bad idea – but as it is, I think it would be good.

  2. s

    Wow, now that is a DEEP discount. Guess retail’s hurting even worse than I had gathered. . .

  3. Lawgirl

    Thanks RZS, was about to to checkout with 4 of these tops, but now I’ll keep my $50 in my pocket. An $8 shirt is not a bargain if the quality is so poor you don’t feel good walking out of the dressing room. …

  4. LPC

    As long as the issues of fit and quality are solved, I do believe that the best work strategy for tops is to buy hordes of tshirts and then throw them away as they age. One or two button downs for the sticklers, maybe a silk blouse for work dinners. Otherwise? I’ve worn nothing but tshirts since 2000.

  5. RZS

    Lawgirl — I don’t want to discourage people who have more regular or model-like proportions from buying the top — they are very cute, the knit i s very soft, and the colors are nice. But for people with more up to (if it helps, I am a 34dd), the knit is thin enough that it stretches, and any light from above shows, depending on the angle, the shadows in the bust and the outline of the bra under the shirt, which is why I didn’t feel comfortable walking out of the dressing room. It was pretty clear to me that if the light hit my chest in the right way, I might as well have a bikini on. That said, I’ve seen these on other people, where the proportion between rib and bust is not as large, and they looked very nice.

    In short, it’s just a body-type thing.

    • AH

      I have an AT sweater that does the same thing. It doesn’t really appear to be a quality issue (although I know AT is having quality issues in general) – the shirt I have is well-made, the knit is lovely and hangs really well – it just seems like sometimes the light hits it just so…

      Anyway, I wear a black cami underneath it and it looks fine – I think it even makes the color look a little more rich than it does on the hanger. I don’t mind it at all…

  6. Sharon

    The idea of a turtleneck, even a slim silk one, underneath strikes me as “casualling it down” and making it look more like weekend wear. On the other hand, a cardigan over a tee like this can be nice for a business casual office, with just a little of the detail showing. Talbot’s had nice cardigans with three-quarter length sleeves over the summer, and they were my go-to cardigans — bought them in yellow, pumpkin and brown, and wish I’d bought more of them.

    What do people think of Michael Starz t-shirts? Like LPC, I have bought a ton of them and use them underneath cardigans and jackets. I have a local boutique that puts them on sale and I stock up.

  7. Kerri

    I have a similar top from ATL, except it has petals on it instead of bows (but it’s the same material). The fabric is very soft and can be a little sheer, but I just wear an assets (spanx) tank under it and I have no problem wearing it to work. The tank underneath just helps add a layer, but you wouldn’t know I’m wearing anything underneath. And I’m a 40D up top.

  8. dr

    lurve the colors that AT is showing for fall, this peacock and the pretty purples and pinks. BESIDES black, what’s the styling ideas for color blocking? It’s easier for me to put a solid with a patterned skirt or a patterned jacket…but with all the solid cardis, jackets, pencil skirts out there…I wonder what’s the best way to do the color blocking and which combos. Do you just use the same colors you already combine in your wardrobe? Don’t want to look like London Mod of the 60s or the 80s dance teams…thanks. Happy fall weekend gals.

    • KLo

      I personally almost never wear pattern and I always have at least two colors and a neutral on. My necklace or shoes tie it all into one outfit. Use a color wheel or interior decorating that you like. Copy those color schemes. It works well (and you should never look like a sofa!)

  9. RoadWarriorette

    I really like this top, and will probably get one. However I am really trying to get out of my “solids” rut. I look at my closet and everything is one color! Any advice for affordable, professional-looking prints? Things that pack well a bonus :)

  10. Lawgirl

    Thanks, RZS for clarifying. I’m a 36B/C (just a 7lb difference between the two). I don’t have a huge boob-age concern, but I worry that such a thin
    t-shirt will look cheap under nice suits. For the money, I think I’ll stick to silk/cotton/spandex tanks or shells (love the square neck ones) that I can get on sale for $25. Another option under is to wear a nice cami with some sheen and spandex (I like the ones at White House-Black Market)… On weekends, I like to wear something prettier and warmer than this too. Just my 2 cents… Shop on Corporette sisters!

  12. Emily

    Emilie: gotta shop early and often, girl! They had some bigger sizes left when I ordered mine this afternoon. Guess the corporette readers are buying.

  14. FrugalShopper

    I took a look at this tee in the store. The pics on the website (and on this corporette page) make it look really pretty, but the actual tee is made of very thin, sheer material. The material is thin and soft enough to be really comfy in for sleepwear. I have a couple of extra-washed soft, thin $5 t shirts from Old Navy that I wear to sleep and this one feels exactly like those except for the embellishments.
    As for the embellishments, the edges of the leaves or bowties looked a bit frazzled to me (if you know what I mean- not cut/stitched/hemmed neatly but the edges were sorta fraying) and so the look was more like bits of jagged chiffon attached rather than an actual pattern. The leaf pattern embellishment 3-quarter sleeve top was better in that the ‘leaves’ stuck on were more uniformly shaped.
    Of all the colors, I felt the black was the most solid (not as sheer) and would somewhat pass for work wear. My workplace isnt even that formal but I would not wear it except for weekend wear with jeans.

  15. Delta Sierra

    Not liking this thin knit stuff. Doesn’t hold up when washed. Cheap fabrics are filled with size, sort of a starch, to make them look better on the hanger, but the size washes out after a couple of launderings and the fabric goes totally limp, doesn’t hang at all the same. I think they’re looking for ways to make clothes less expensive to manufacture, and simply cutting down on the amount of fiber used to manufacture the yarns saves them $. This would be fine at home, but not for work.

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