ByKat Hours Updated
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Wednesday’s TPS Report: “Callandra” Three-Quarter Sleeve Scoopneck Dress

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Our daily TPS reports suggest one piece of work-appropriate attire in a range of prices. Lauren by Ralph Lauren “Callandra” Three-Quarter Sleeve Scoopneck DressThis is the kind of dress that, I think, can make a perfect desk to dinner transition if need be. Love the scoop neckline, the paneled hem, and the “silky, fluid matte jersey.” For the office, I'd wear it with a camisole or slip beneath it (at least the first time), and perhaps a set of pearls or some other statement necklace to raise the focus from the neckline to my face. I might layer a blazer on top, or perhaps just pair it with a simple pair of pumps or even, depending on the mores of the office, some knee-high boots. It's on a pretty good sale right now — was $179, now marked to $125.30 — and if you shop with your Bloomingdale's card you can take another $25 off a purchase of $100-$250. Lauren by Ralph Lauren “Callandra” Three-Quarter Sleeve Scoopneck Dress Seen a great piece you'd like to recommend? Please e-mail editor@corporette.com with “TPS” in the subject line. (L-2)

Sales of note for 3/26/25:

  • Nordstrom – 15% off beauty (ends 3/30) + Nordy Club members earn 3X the points!
  • Ann Taylor – Extra 50% off sale + additional 20% off + 30% off your purchase
  • Banana Republic Factory – Friends & Family Event: 50% off purchase + extra 20% off
  • Eloquii – 50% off select styles + extra 50% off all sale
  • J.Crew – 30% off tops, tees, dresses, accessories, sale styles + warm-weather styles
  • J.Crew Factory – Shorts under $30 + extra 60% off clearance + up to 60% off everything
  • M.M.LaFleur – 25% off travel favorites + use code CORPORETTE15 for 15% off
  • Spanx – Lots of workwear on sale, some up to 70% off
  • Talbots – $64.50 spring cardigans + BOGO 50% off everything else

And some of our latest threadjacks here at Corporette (reader questions and commentary) — see more here!

Some of our latest threadjacks include:

171 Comments

  1. Yes to wearing this dress to dinner, no to wearing it to work beforehand.

    Reason = I don’t think a necklace is going to change the fact that I can see the top of the model’s breasts. Granted I like higher necklines generally, but I still think this one is way, way too low for business attire.

    1. Yeah, that is a whole lot of skin. I think it’s the combination of low plus wide in the neckline — and in a stretch jersey! — that’s a bit over-the-top for work. I would think this was odd in my office unless it was worn with a blazer or cardi in a way that narrowed the neckline a bit.

      1. Agree! I think it would be awkward to just stick a cami under this as it’s so broad. But perhaps I don’t own the right type of cami?

        2. I have a dress like this that I wear to go day to night all the time… BUT it does show cleavage, so I wear a high-necked blazer/jacket over it during the day. Something like this: http://bananarepublic.gap.com/browse/product.do?cid=40924&vid=1&pid=813230&scid=813230022 . I’m not sure this dress on its own is work-appropriate for my fairly formal biglaw office, but it’s a great simple palette that you can spice up to go out straight from work. When I head out to dinner I take off the jacket, leave my ‘work shoes’ under my desk, add a necklace & stilettos, & I’m good to go for the evening.

      2. I was also just thinking that this might be a good base for a really nice scarf, which can be wrapped so that it covers a lot of that skin (something like this: http://tinyurl.com/6b8vhkf). I really love wearing scarves.

        1. Sorry, just to clarify that I’m recommending the wrap of the linked scarf, not the scarf itself (which does not look work appropriate to me). Didn’t want you guys to think I have bad taste in scarves!

    2. I’m not very conservative with necklines and this one is too low to be work appropriate for me.

    3. I totally agree. I wonder if you could stick a turtle neck under and wear with thick tights (for Fall).

  2. There is also a Callandra in plus sizes – yay! It doesn’t look quite as low cut but that could just be how the model is wearing it.

  3. I love wearing dresses with sleeves to work. I like the idea of a complete outfit in one garment and generally lots of accessory/styling options. I do really like this dress, but I would want to try it on before purchasing to see about the cleavage on me. I recently tried on this dress which is similar to the dress pictured, and there is no concern about cleavage:
    http://www.anntaylor.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=30605&N=1200007&pCategoryId=3939&categoryId=180&Ns=CATEGORY_SEQ_180&loc=TN&gridSize=sm&showAll=true&defaultColor=Black&defaultSizeType=Regular

    My problem is that I can only find black dresses that have sleeves. I would like some different colors. I recently purchased this dress, and it is very comfortable and flattering:
    http://www.anntaylor.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=32213&N=1200007&pCategoryId=3939&categoryId=180&Ns=CATEGORY_SEQ_180&loc=TN&gridSize=sm&showAll=true&defaultColor=Petrol&defaultSizeType=Regular

    Any other suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

    1. One note: I love wrap dresses, but I have a large chest and do not like the way they look on me, so they are unfortunately excluded from my personal options.

        1. thanks! you would not believe my face when i saw not one, but two theory dresses WITH SLEEVES at Bloomingdales. It was like the best day ever.

      1. I second the boden recommendation. However, I also have a proportionally large bust and the rest of their dress shape tends to not “work” for me, so be comfortable with their return process. I’ve never had trouble but some posters have. LURVE the patterns that Boden puts in all their fabrics.

        1. What have been some of the trouble/ things I should look out for with returns to Boden that some have had. I haven’t heard anything bad and just bought a bunch of stuff in different sizes hoping to try them out for the first time.

    4. Try using a personal shopper, maybe at Nordstrom, and tell them what youre looking for.

      Also, I totally agree with you re dresses and wear them all the time. I wrote about this before, but I love, love, love Marlowe. Its really expensive, but if you can afford one or two dresses, its well worth the money (I never thought I would spend this much on one clothing item, but the dresses always make me feel fantastic and put together, with seriously minimal ease)

  4. I don’t think this does much for the model’s figure – which is undoubtedly far better than mine. Skip.

  6. Has anyone ordered scarves or jewelry from the Orijyn company with ads on this site? I’ve clicked through a few times, and it looks really beautiful. Would love to get any insight on the quality of the product. (And make myself feel better about frivolous purchases by telling myself that if I purchase after clicking through on the link, it must help Kat, right?)

    1. Yes I ordered from them one month ago a bracelet and they are even more gorgeous in real, the details are just crazy !
      and the fact that it is fair trade, and handcraft give something more to it .
      I hope that I helped you even if it is a little late

  7. Early threadjack (sorry)!

    I recently decided I wanted to jump on the Clarisonic bandwagon, but I’m having a hard time getting over the price point. I’m thinking of trying the Olay Pro-X instead. Any experience with that or another cheaper version? I would love to finally stop my breakouts (already using various prescription creams, not serious enough to try more extreme methods, but still have a revolving door of 3-5 pimples at a time!).

    1. I’m the one who asked about the Clarisonic last week. All the feedback I got was great and I was ready to buy it, and then someone suggested I compare the Olay Pro-X, which people seem to like. Since I don’t really have an acne problem, just aging skin, I decided to spend the $30 bucks to check out the Olay before taking the Clarisonic plunge. After 3 days, it’s been great. My skin is definitely smoother, and I swear last night I thought my wrinkles looked better. I still think I’ll end up buying the Clarisonic, but the Olay product has been worth the (low) price.

      1. I have been wanting the clarisonic for years! But as a poor law student I can’t justify the high price. Maybe I will go for the Olay one also!

      2. If you get the clarisonic, I’d love to know how you think the two compare.

        I’ve been on the fence about getting one, partly because I can’t decide if it’s worth it or if the olay version is substantially similar. There are enough reviews for both, but I feel like nothing is out there in terms of how they compare. I suppose if you buy the clarisonic, you aren’t going to buy the olay one; and vice versa.

      3. I got the Olay one and have only been using it for two days, but my skin does feel smoother. Obviously it’s too soon to see real results, or know if they’re lasting. I just couldn’t bring myself to shell out the money for the Clarisonic yet and figured it was worth it to spend $26 on the Olay one. If it’s great, then I’ll keep it. If it doesn’t work, then I’ll reconsider getting the Clarisonic or just decide I don’t need a brush to clean my face.

        1. That’s a perfectly reasonable way to think about it, but I doubt the manual face brush will have the same effects for you as the Clarisonic. I used one of those face brushes for years, and now I have a Clarisonic. The two experiences are not even close to the same. YMMV.

        2. I feel like this represents the difference between a regular toothbrush v. a Sonicare toothbrush. Each works, one is just more effective.

    3. The difference between a Clarisonic and the Olay product is the difference between sonic pulses and plain old abrasion. One is not like the other.

      1. I would also like to add (and I am not affiliated with Clarisonic in any way) that the cost, while steep, is worth it if you have skin problems. I used to get facials every other month and spend a ton on acne products to try to help clear up the blackheads on my nose and chin that never went away. I had breakouts monthly that left scars. Once I got my Clarisonic, all that stopped. Now I buy three products about every three months: DDF sulfur mask (I use it once a week), Bliss foaming face wash, and Peter Thomas Roth Beta Hydroxy 2 Acne Wash. That’s it – no more trying every product out there to see if it will do what I want it to. And no more spa facials, unless I do one myself at home. The $250 Clarisonic has saved me about $1,000 on facials and skin-care products since I got it. That being said, I know we have a lot of students and folks looking for work and they are not in the same situation I was, and I realize $250 is a LOT of money. But for me, what the brush has done for my skin has been totally worth the initial outlay, and if someone can afford the brush without putting it on a credit card or skipping rent payments, I think it is totally worth it, and they should not feel guilty about spending the money.

        1. I would add that I think my clarisonic has helped fade my old acne scars and on the rare occasions I get breakouts now, reduces the length of time you have those annoying red spots (not really scars, but not perfect skin) after the breakouts fade. I don’t know if the Olay one would work just as well, but I agree the clarisonic may end up being worth it (mine was a gift, and I probably would have been reluctant to buy it for myself, but now I think it’s worth it)

        2. agreed. I bought a mia for about $100 on amazon. It has substantially reduced my blackheads and genearlly unclogged my pores. As a result, I’ve given up my picking my face habit b/c there’s nothing to pick. Totally worth it to me.

        3. It’s cleared my acne too. I didn’t believe that it would, just applying a physical effect to my face, but it did. I use cheap ol’ Cetaphil with it (in addition to my prescription Retin-A cream at night, which wasn’t working alone).

      2. “difference between sonic pulses and plain old abrasion”

        this sounds like junk science to me. A “sonic pulse” would mean some sort of pulse of sound. I doubt that’s what is going on here. Are you saying that the Clarisonic pulsates in addition to some other form of movement?

        1. See Emma’s comment above about the Sonicare toothbrush. Clarisonic and Sonicare are made by the same manufacturer and employ the same technology.

    4. Just as a different viewpoint – I purchased a Clarisonic, used it faithfully for 2-3 months, and quite literally did not notice a bit of difference in my skin. Texture was unchanged, blackheads were not reduced, very occasional breakouts continued at the same rate. I was unimpressed, and no longer own one.

      I’m jealous of all of you with fantastic Clarisonic experiences!

    5. Ooph! I was all set to pull the trigger on the Olay, but now I think I might go for the Mia. The recent-“scar” fading properties are very appealing!

      1. The olay may work just as well; I think it has something to do with the exfoliating effect–encourages skin turn over which in turn reduces the scarring.

        1. I bought the clarasonic mia two weeks ago. I has done nothing to reduce my minor but regular breakouts, but it has unclogged my pores around my nose and chin which I think has made the pores appear smaller. I’m still operating under the notion that after 29 days I will assess my skin and see if its actually worth 150$ and then if needed ask for a refund.

    6. Keep in mind that breakouts often have nothing to do with hygiene. Keep seeing your dermatologist.

  8. I like this dress, but I’m not sure if I can see the top of her cleavage?

    This brings up a question I’ve had for a while. I am very small chested (an AA). So, there are some tops that I put on and the top would show cleavage or the top of a woman’s breasts if she had an average to large chest. This dress, for example, would probably not show even a hint of the top of cleavage on me. Does that mean it’s okay to wear it to work?

    1. That’s the theory I work under. I have a couple of dresses that would probably be inappropriate on the more well-endowed, but look perfectly acceptable on small-chested me, so I wear them to work.

      1. If you are comfortable in them, I say go for it. I have a large chest, and wrap dresses generally do not work for me because of it. I love the way they look on women with smaller chests (and quite frankly I am a little jealous when they look great on someone else).

      2. I take the opposite view – I’m smaller up top, so a top would have to be REALLY low for me to flash my girls inadvertently, but I still think revealing too much skin isn’t appropriate for most offices, so I steer clear of anything that would expose a lot of “chest” (whether or not that is boobs or just space between boobs and neck).

    2. I’m totally ok with wearing low cut things that don’t show any breast- I don’t think there is anything too sexy or distracting about my sternum. (given the normal caveats of if I was wearing something low, I wouldn’t also have a short skirt/bare arms etc.)

    3. I’m the same way (I’ve never found a bra that would give me even the slightest bit of cleaveage!), but I do think that there is a limit. It’s lower than what a well-endowed woman can likely get away with, and I can’t really put an objective standard on it, but there’s certainly a point whereI think I could be showing just plain too much skin there for a professional environment.

      1. I find I reach my limit with v-necks. I could probably wear a low cut v and still have no cleavage, but that seems to reach the unprofessional point easier than other neckline shapes for me.

  9. I ordered two full-price suits from Ann Taylor during the buy 3 items or more get 40% off sale. I was incredibly underwhelmed with the quality. The sizing was also wayyy off. Apparently I need to order 1-2 sizes down from what I normally wear elsewhere. Anyone else notice this about AT?

    These are the suit jackets I ordered, with the matching skirts:
    http://www.anntaylor.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=31419&N=1200008&pCategoryId=3939&categoryId=179&Ns=CATEGORY_SEQ_179&loc=TN&defaultColor=Toast&defaultSizeType=Regular
    http://www.anntaylor.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=30381&N=1200008&categoryId=179&pCategoryId=3939&Ns=CATEGORY_SEQ_179&Nty=1&loc=TN&gridSize=sm&showAll=true&defaultColor=Coal&defaultSizeType=Regular

    1. Yeah, I also need to size down two sizes with clothes from Ann Taylor and Ann Taylor Loft. I usually size down (1 size) at JCrew, as well.

  10. This dress screams “cleavage alert” to me. The Lauren brand has several work appropriate jersey stuff but this is not one of them, IMO.

    2. In the past when I’ve gotten into a jam, I’ll send a message to all of the attorneys who gave me assignments explaining what I’ve been asked to do and the deadlines I’m facing, and then asking them to help me prioritize.

        1. My mind jumped ahead and read your response as being about sending a message to all of the attorneys about your stomach pooch!

    3. i have it in the dusty teal. high quality, nice fit, but for some reason i NEVER wear it. i can’t seem to decide what it looks nice under – cardigan, blazer, i have no idea. would love some advice, haha

  12. Any tips on handling projects with multiple partners or supervisors? I’m slammed at work, but no one seems to know it because I’m being assigned work by 6+ different partners at the moment. How do I make them aware of my other obligations without sounding like (1) I’m complaining or (2) I’m trying to avoid the assignment? Any thoughts on how to subtly let people know their project isn’t my top priority right this second without it sounding like I don’t want to work with them?

    1. I deal with this a lot. When partner 2 comes in and says “do this for the Jones matter.” I say, “I’d be happy to. Just to let you know I am doing Y, for Partner Dan on the Smith matter. I anticipate finishing that on Thursday. How urgently do you need the Jones project complete?” If he says today then I’ll say, let me check with Partner Dan to see if the Smith matter can wait. Usually he will say, I’ll talk with him now. Then one of them calls to say which to do first.

      1. You work with good partners – I have found that I have to say, “Partner X asked me to finish this by this afternoon. If you’d like your work prioritized, you’re welcome to discuss with Partner X.” Otherwise it’s just assumed by Partner Y that I didn’t do a good enough job of explaining to Partner X why his project was less important than Partner Y’s, and then I end up in the doghouse.

        1. I do this too. Something along the lines of “Partner Y, I’m happy to do anything and everything asked of me, but I’m currently working on a brief for Partner X, which she expects to receive today. If you’d like me to prioritize your work over the brief, I’m happy to help, but I need to make sure that timing is ok with Partner X. Let’s go talk to her.” JJ’s strategy also works.

          If it gets really bad, get your mentor involved.

      2. Sounds like a good idea. Then you’re not complaining, but at the same time letting them know you’ve got something on your plate already.

      3. Wow, your firm sounds incredibly functional! When I say something smiilar to your first statement, the response I tend to get is “and…?”

    2. I would love to hear a response to this as well! I struggle with this on a regular basis!

    3. I have regularly had two partners insist their projects are the most important and that both should be first priority. Happens every few months. In such a case, I first carefully assess whether all the work can be done (by getting a colleague to take a piece and/or pulling long nights for a while). If not, I’ll just be clear to whomever I speak to second that both tasks cannot be completed on deadline and suggest that partner speak with the first about how to handle the conflict. It was awkward the first few times, but I’ve gotten used to it now. What generally happens is the more senior partner (or importance of client) pulls rank, and I’m taken off the junior partner’s (lower billing client’s) project. I’ve never been in trouble for this or had it viewed as complaining. If there were ever a situation where the partners refused to communicate with each other and work it out, I would then go to the head of my group for mediation. If the situation were at all touchy due to personalities, I would phrase it in terms of client, not you: “The client’s project deserves x number of hours to be completed, which are not available in my schedule. I want to ensure that client gets the best work product possible.”

      1. Agree. Also, if an assignment comes over email from Partner 2 (or 3, or 4, or 5….) and I’m slammed with Partner 1’s work, I’ll reply to Parter 2 and cc: Partner 1, saying “I’m currently working on X with Y deadline that is coming up shortly, how soon do you need me to jump on this?”

        That way it doesn’t look like I’m just avoiding work and more often than not, Partner 1 can either vouch for you or step in to help.

        Caveat: I work in a great lawfirm with great partners. This would not have flown at my old place. Just like anon at 11:03 said, then the Partner’s response would have been “and…..?”

    1. I’ve tried a ton of different brands of these and I find that they are only hidden when you are wearing ones that cut off your foot’s circulation. I just don’t care anymore, I hate going barefoot in heels and only a tiny bit ever shows.

    2. Not hidden in the least, but if you get black and wear with black shoes, it’s not terribly noticeable, and even less so in flats/low heels than in pumps (may have to do with the angle of your foot?)

      Certainly, it’s a less terrible look than the “hidden open toe” liners I bought that make it look like you’re wearing arthopedic toe slings.

    3. I live in them. They don’t stay 100% hidden and do require adjustment throughout the day. But since I can’t wear most shoes barefoot since my feet are super-sweaty and prone to swelling, they are a lifesaver.

    4. Don’t have these, but I have the “cool contour” style liners and they barely show around the edges of my work shoes.

  15. I am sad to report that the purple Halogen skirt recently featured on TPS is as one of the Corporettes warned – a lavender color, not a nice regal purple as it looked online. Back it goes. I do agree with recommendations to size down from your usual size. Le sigh.

    1. Brooks Brothers had a gorgeous wool skirt last year in a fantastic, rich, dark eggplant. I am still mad at myself for not getting it! I was hoping the Halogen skirt was darker, too, but didn’t order because of the comments. It’s too bad!

    2. I agree. Sadly the Lavender will go back. Will keep the black as you can’t have enough black pencil skirts!

    3. I ordered the purple despite that review because a commenter prior in that same week said that she found the purple surprisingly versatile. Anyone have suggestions for creative ways to wear lavender, in case it fits and I decide I like it?

      1. I saw the purple and the pink (along with the black, gray, and cadet blue) in Nordstrom’s this weekend. I purchased the gray because I thought there were more options, though I loved the purple and pink. For the purple and the pink, the only things I could think of were to wear white and black. They are both springy colors in my opinion and would be the center of attention of the outfit because they are fairly unique.

      2. I like lavender with gray, mid- or deep-blue, especially if there’s a white shirt or accent in there somewhere.

      3. Lavender looks great with grey or navy. A former coworker used to wear a lavender shirt with olive green or khaki/beige and it looked quite pretty, too.

  16. Reporting back on the Tahari Foldover Collar Crepe Sheath Dress. I will be returning it, which is a shame because it was such a good price. The flare for the hips starts way too high up for me- if you are a short-waisted pear shape, this is the dress for you. I ordered an 8 and it’s a little too big, which is consistent with previous comments that Tahari is a larger than BR/JCrew sizing. The dress hit me at the mid-knee (I’m 5’6″).

    I thought the button looked a little cheap. If I was keeping the dress, I think I would replace it with a brooch. The fabric was substantial and the ribbing was more pronounced than in the photo. It looks great for covering any lumps or bumps. The upper lining was surprisingly a leopard print! I’m not an animal print fan, but it’s a cute touch on an otherwise conservative work dress.

    1. Hmm…I also bought this and really like it!

      It is very flattering through the hips and I didn’t mind the button (and I LOVE the ribbing, very cute).

      My biggest concern with it is that the cowl neck really doesn’t work under a suit jacket, but I liked how it looked with a black cardigan.

      1. I’m glad it worked out for you- such a steal!

        I have a mandarin collar jacket from Anthropologie that would have gone well with it :( Otherwise, I was going to style it with a shrug or cardigan

        The button is totally a personal taste thing- I tend to like smaller details, jewelry, solid colors, etc. I’m working on breaking out of my conservative shell.

  17. My BarBri payment is coming due and I’m feeling the financial pinch. I have an opportunity to do some legal research on an independent contractor basis for the general counsel of a small internet company. Any idea of the going market rate for this kind of work?

    1. No advice, except to say I saved about $1200 (and got a free Kindle) by going with Kaplan online. They credit your Barbri downpayment towards the Kaplan course.

    2. I don’t know the market rate but maybe something around $20/hr sounds fair?

      PS: I know it sucks to make that payment but I really think BarBri helps — if for nothing else, than giving you the structure and discipline to get through the bar.

    3. Based on the ads I see from my career services department, most folks seem to pay about $20/hour. I am in the South — I imagine these things are very regional.

      Good luck!

      1. These rates make me sad and I want to hug you all. I knew people who made more than $20/hour babysitting in Manhattan . . . in 2002.

          1. Seriously? I was a public high school teacher and was paid this rate. Depressing.

    4. I’m doing a small project for a non-profit and I’m paid $25/hour. This is in New York and involved a fair amount of research and will involve some court filings.

    5. No advice re the going rate, but wanted to support/encourage/remind you: the money you spend on BarBri is worth it–the sooner you pass the bar, the sooner you can practice and pay back BarBri! :) (Or whatever bar method you so choose –I had barbri so that’s all I know…)

      Keep going, you’re almost there!

    6. For other 3Ls reading this: Consider doing bar self-study. Really. Barbri is overpriced. You can purchase used Barbri materials from former bar-takers, and I promise you, that’s all you need. If you want to ensure your state literature is current, go to the state bar website. It’ll highlight for you all the test-able topics.

      1. This is true, but unfortunately, the current BarBri affects the results of each year’s bar exam. If BarBri teaches something in a way that everyone tends to miss the question, the examiners will probably throw it out. In other words, BarBri only matters to the extent that it sets the curve of what everyone knows, so it’s good to follow the current program. Still, maybe BarBri doesn’t change much from year to year – this is probably more of a concern with any competitor programs.

        1. Is this true? I’ve heard this before from Barbri takers, but I’ve never seen evidence of it. Seems like another attempt by Barbri to scare everyone into paying thousands of dollars, but I could be wrong. Even if it is true, I would imagine it would have only a marginal impact on people’s scores.

          1. Yes, this happened to my CA Bar (July 2008) – the second essay question was about executive powers, which BarBri (Chemerinsky, no less) told all specifically of us had never been tested by the Bar, so we weren’t going to spend any time on it. The topic wasn’t even in the smaller outline book that you were supposed to study from – you’d have to go to the giant 11 x 14 book to find any information on it, which of course no one did. And then it was the second essay on the first day. What saved me from freaking out was the old man BarBri lecturer who said “Nobody! If you don’t know it, nobody knows it!” because it was true.

            Almost everyone failed essay question 2 because everyone had taken BarBri, which would have resulted in one of the worst CA Bar passage rates in years. That would have looked really bad, so the Bar basically threw out the question as “experimental” or something.

          3. @Yep, ah okay, that’s state bar practice, not MBE. Good point though… you have to figure out what the scoring procedure is state-by-state.

      2. If you have friends taking bar bri, just get a used version of the books on ebay and ask them what was said about the topics on this year, copy their notes. I would never pay for barbri if my firm didnt pay for it.

      3. Technically, those people shouldn’t be selling it – BarBri only “licenses” you the material and you are supposed ot mail it back. I have heard anecdotal stories of Barbri sending cease and desist type letters to some of the people who post Barbri on ebay.

      4. I’m not going to say don’t skip Bar-Bri, but just to give another perspective: I decided that Bar-Bri was a racket, overpriced, and I didn’t want to give up my evenings (my town only did evening classes) and sit in a classroom, so I did a self-guided system called “Micromash”, which was about a thousand dollars less.

        I regretted every second of it. The system was poorly designed and gave almost no guidance about what you should be doing, there were a LOT of mistakes (I started keeping track after a while, as I was planning a lawsuit in my head if I failed!), and the pass guarantee was a complete joke (you had to show that you had completed a completely impossible amount of work to get it, which I didn’t realize at the time (my fault for not being more careful checking it out, but still)). Anyway, towards the last four weeks, when my friends were all confidentally chugging along because Bar-Bri tells you exactly what to do and how to do it, I was studying 10-12 hours a day and constantly in tears because I had no idea what I was doing.

        I did pass (the examiners refused to release scores, so I have no idea of by how much), but I was absolutely terrified that I wouldn’t because I had used such a bad system. To have avoided that stress and anxiety (and the shear amount of time I wound up spending on it) would definitely have been worth the extra grand. I imagine that going without any system would have been even worse.

        1. I feel like the thread gunner, but I guess this is just a topic that is very important to me right now (soon to graduate 3L).

          I have some friends who took the bar last summer, and the ones who did self study were freaking out way more than the ones who did Barbri and actually kept up with the work. All of them said that the $2500 probably would have been well spent to relieve the anxiety. That is one of the major reasons I decided to go ahead and sign up. It’s a lot of money now, but a small amount in the long run to pay for a little less stress during a very stressful time.

          1. this may be true, but Kaplan’s online program is every bit as structured as class and $1200 cheaper. Instead of going to the classroom, I’ll go to the library but otherwise, minute for minute will be the same. Same schedule, same checklists, same professors even (they tape the lectures in April for the online people.)

          2. Oh yeah, I wasn’t meaning that in the Barbri vs. Kaplan decision, just in the calculus of deciding to take a bar review course, generally.

            I decided on BarBri because, frankly, my firm pays for whatever I choose and because BarBri had a much higher pass rate at my school last year, so the higher price did not really matter to me. If I’d had to pay for it on my own, I would have looked much harder at Kaplan.

          3. AnonInfinity, I made exactly the same decision, and don’t regret it a bit. It’s terribly expensive, and a soulless racket, that I can’t deny. But the peace of mind is priceless, and in the long run, it’s not worth more than passing the bar is.

        2. I used Themis to prepare for the CA bar last summer and passed. Themis is an online course and was significantly cheaper than either Barbri or Kaplan last year (not sure about this year). Some of the lecturers were fantastic and I found the tutor who graded essays and answered questions helpful.

    7. Thanks everyone, it looks like around $20 is the going rate.

      A tip for others in the same situation: if you have around 3500 Westlaw points, you can redeem them for a $50 BarBri rebate (I think the limit is two). Every little bit helps.

      I seriously thought about Kaplan or self-study(!), but I’m going to be cautious and spend the money this time around. ElevenElle, let us know how Kaplan goes.

      1. Also think about the ipod barbri – cheaper and IMO better much better! I didn’t do it but wish I had. I tend to tune out druing class so being able to relisten whenever you want would have been great. A friend went to a remote Mexico village with his ipod to stuyd for the bar – I’m still jealous (he passed of course). IMO it’s all the benefits of the class without the negatives.

        1. When I did Barbri the ipod cost $1000 ON TOP OF the regular course. Has it gone down now? If my firm hadn’t paid I would’ve never been able to do that.

          1. I am under the impression that we can download the iPod version of the lectures at no additional cost now. I can admit that I didn’t ask to many questions about that aspect, so I could be wrong. I know that folks taking it this summer can rewatch the lectures online at any time.

          2. Oops. Just checked. The downloadable lectures cost an additional $295. That is lame! :(

            I feel like it’s such a racket, but if I didn’t take a prep course and then failed the bar, I would absolutely kick myself for feeling like I didn’t do everything possible to pass it.

            I won’t be signing up for the downloadable lectures, though!

          3. I think the bottomline in all this is you have to be brutal honest in yoru self-assessment. If you have discipline for self study, you will probably pass without BarBri, etc.

            I knew that I would be tempted enough by summer, so I went to a BarBri class every single morning. Didn’t have a laptop to not have distractions, and hand wrote like mad. Could I have passed without that? Most likely. But it made it easier! Also, BarBri (and PMBR) do a full day simulated exam. That was most helpful of all! So I always say, if you can afford it, do it. You’ll feel better going in, and that is invaluable.

          4. Part of the benefit of barbri is the structure. As intimidating as it was to study for the bar exam, I got into a rhythm with barbri. I went to class in the morning, and spent the afternoon doing the assigned homework. I didn’t freak out about the volume of information because I knew that barbri had it covered and we’d get to it down the road.

      2. how much cheaper is Kaplan? I did Barbri last summer, which was when they started putting all the videos up the same day (I think it was the first time) and we figured out how to watch them at a faster speed. I stopped going to the actual class. It wasn’t worth my time to trek to a physical location when I could watch the videos at home. If Kaplan is all online (and has lectures) and you’re good about actually studying on your own, you might consider it if it’s significantly cheaper. I kind of wish I had looked into other options (I didn’t have a firm paying for it, and it’s a pretty much absurd how much you pay to learn to pass the bar, after paying for law school for 3 years).

        Also, I know at my school there were always a number of Barbri gift certificates auctioned off at the Public Interest auction each year. If your school has something similar, you might try to snag one of those. I got one and saved about $100.

        1. I think that the Kaplan online only course at my school was about $400 cheaper than BarBri. It seems like Kaplan is always running some sort of special though (get $x amount off if you sign up with a buddy, take off the cost of your BarBri deposit, etc.), so some people got it even cheaper by signing up at the right time.

          At my school, the bar pass rate for people who took BarBri vs. Kaplan was drastically higher last summer.

          1. After all discounts, mine cost a total of $1800, $250 of which is refundable. I also got a free kindle, so I guess I’ll pay $1420 out of pocket. Barbir said my balance was $2800 and I had already paid $250 (which Kaplan credited against my balance.)

    8. I always thought that your firm pays for Barbri. Is this not true? Don’t most firms give something like $10,000 for bar-related expenses? Would appreciate clarification for a clueless 2L.

      1. If you are lucky enough to have a job, many do pay for BarBri. Not all, and A LOT of people don’t have jobs lined up. It’s definitely something to find out up front.

        1. This. A lot also pay for your MPRE, too, I think. And all the costs associated with your bar admission. I don’t have a firm job, and I’ve realized I spent something like $4,000 or $5,000 more than my firm-employed significant other.

      2. Biglaw might give $10k. I got a $3k “start bonus” on my first day of work at a medium sized firm in Fall 2007 when the economy was still good. It was supposed to be used to repay Barbri, buy new suits, etc., whatever your particular need was.

        If you’re clerking or not working for a firm or working for a smaller firm, I wouldn’t expect them to pay for bar expenses.

          1. I got money for the bar and know many people who did. The caveats: I had accepted an offer with my firm and my Judge knew about it and was fine with it. I did not get a stipend of any kind for the summer though, no one at my firm did (but non-clerks were offered a no-interest loan from their future paychecks).

          2. @ Boston atty: I heard from a 5th year associate at my summer firm that he got money for the bar even though he was clerking, but that was also in more lush economic times. However, I understand that sometimes judges won’t let you accept the firm offer.

            But this is assuming I get a clerkship :-).

      3. Mine didn’t. In fact, mine didn’t give me a solid offer until the 11th hour, and I had to pay the late late fee for both the bar exam and the barbri class in my state (since my second option was in another state). I had to get another loan to get me through that summer. :-(

    9. Last year at several NYC schools there was a head-to-head battle between Kaplan and Barbri, which resulted in ridiculously slashed prices on both ends. If you haven’t already committed to one, I would wait until the very end. Also, if you are with Barbri and want to stay, you could try calling and saying, I’m thinking of switching to Kaplan because it’s cheaper, I want to take Barbri but I’m poor. They might lower their price just to keep you.

      I got $50 an hour for contract work in NYC, but I was a year out of school and had already passed the bar exam. Plus, I had worked at a big firm for a few months (and subsequently got laid off).

    10. I did research on a contract basis 15 years ago for $50 per hour. I was an attorney with 4 years experience at that time. $20 sounds awfully low.

    11. I took BarBri in one state, taking a class for the test in another state. If a location doesn’t have live lectures, one of the students is “hired” to put in the DVD every day, and collect practice tests. You can get 50% off by doing these two things.

    12. Please be absolutely certain that this independent contractor job won’t constitute practicing law without a license – I’d call the state bar ethics hotline and ask about it before you accept the job.

        1. Doing legal research for a general counsel on an independent contractor basis sounds like a very fine line. Interns and clerks are supervised and that’s why they can do legal work; independent contractors by definition are not supervised in the same way. It depends on the state bar’s or licensing body’s rules, of course, but I’d definitely look into it if I were in the OP’s situation.

  18. I need a new spring/summer purse. Any suggestions out there? I don’t want to spend a bunch of time looking for one. I’m thinking orange, pink, yellow…just not brown or black or white. I typically don’t spend more than $50 on my purses, but I think I’m ready to spend a bit more this time. However, anything pushing $100 would still be too much.

    2. No specific suggestions, but go to a site like Endless or PiperLime and search for purses in your selected colors and price ranges – the search takes like 30 seconds, and the results can be easily flipped through.

      1. Love this one! Doesn’t look like it can be carried on the shoulder does it? :(

          1. Love it! I would like to see the yellow color in person. Looks a little limey, which I don’t know what I think of. Would the honey look springy/summery?

  19. This dress is sort of boring, but that is what I like about it! It’s a basic that you can change up with jewelry, tights, cardigan, blazer, etc. I would buy it for work and probably get a lot of wear out of.

      1. It also spells her name wrong at least once. I have family in Tampa – will be forwarding this to them.

    3. And it was apparently sent out by a Democrat:

      “Given our current political alignments, we might legitimately assume this mailer was created by a very far right, possibly religious-based group, presumably on the conservative side of the spectrum.

      But the story turns out to be weirder than that. Ferlita is a Republican, though Tampa’s mayoral races are non-partisan. The mailer, as you can see in the return address, is from Less Government Now, a 527 political action group (that is, one that can take unlimited donations as long as they do not directly advocate voting for a specific candidate). And it’s tied to a man named Scott Maddox, a Democrat who ran (unsuccessfully) for office last year. In that race, he had a friend enter the campaign as a fake Tea Party candidate in hopes of splitting the Republican vote.”

      http://community.thenest.com/cs/ks/forums/thread/50445356.aspx

    4. It’s actually not uncommon for a candidate’s supporters to put this kind of ad out against the candidate they support. It’s a pretty effective way of angering your base into voting for you. File under: dirty tricks you learn about in poli sci classes…

  22. Sorry, romantic threadjack (but note I’m not a romantic in any way): has anyone broken up with their first love and wanted to get back with their first love years later? We’ve remained friends throughout this whole time but I was always afraid of asking him to take me back. I feel like I should but I don’t know how. Any thoughts on how to do this: in person (we’re in different states but we visit each other occassionally), over the phone, via text (we text a lot so could just be really chill about it and ease in to the convo) or email? Do I need to do some ultimate grand gesture or can I just say “hey would you ever take me back?”

    1. I would say no grand gesture, just try to be as natural as possible. You’re opening yourself up for rejection regardless of how you do it, so there’s no added harm in just being yourself (which I consider makes one more vulnerable than following a script).

      Are you sure you want to say, “take me back”? What about, “give ‘us’ another shot”?

      1. I would not say take me back or give us another shot or anything along those lines.

        You broke up. If you start something up again, it will still be a “try and see” process. I would be a bit put off by being asked to make a commitment up front like this. Esp. to someone who is not even in the same state. I think you just pick a moment when you’re kinda connecting, look at the person and say something like, “I really miss you.” This is better/easier to do over a nice conversation and some wine (in person, if poss.) Definitely not via text! Then see what happens. You have to basically seduce your old bf a bit, but I would avoid any terribly grand gestures.

      2. I did this via honest email. He replied that he had just become engaged to someone else and was getting married in a few months. Thus followed a mourning period involving some alcohol, and then I moved on.

        Happily married to someone else now, with a beautiful baby. I guess it was the closure I needed. YMMV.

    2. As someone who has been through a version of this (though in my case we didn’t so much break up as were unable to be together for geographical reasons….before e-mail became widespread), I would say go for it, and I like AIMS’ suggestions. My value add to this conversation is simply that in my case, I never did this and my first love subsequently got married and has a lovely daughter. I am very happy for him but I do always kick myself a bit for not getting over my fears and just going for it when I still could. So do it!

    3. I think it depends on why you broke up. I would try to get the idea into his head and read the signs. I would say something like, I can’t believe we didn’t work out. I think we would have been great together if we started dating when we were older, we had so much fun together, etc. See how he reacts to subtle suggestions to determine his interest. I would do that rather than just come out and say we should get back together.

      1. I think you have to recognize that you broke up for a reason, too. You need to figure out what that reason was, whether it was a good or bad one, and how it can be different this time (you’ve learned to deal with that reason, he’s learned to deal with that reason, or something has changed). Otherwise it’s just going to be second verse, same as the first, a little bit louder, a little bit worse.

    4. This depends so much on your ex that any advice given has to be taken with a lot of salt.

      For example, some of the suggestions of being subtle about it would (if I were your ex) just piss me off. I prefer straightforward and honest/blunt and would be annoyed by coyness, would interpret it as a lack of courage and strenght of your convictions. But that’s me – other people have different preferences. You know yourself and him better than we do.

      But I do think that if you want to get together you should do something about it. And I would agree that text message is just not ideal.

      1. Hi ladies, thanks for advice. Sorry for not replying sooner but everyone’s various suggestions made me think more about how to do this. I do think I can’t be too subtle since he has a hard time picking up clues. I think direct approach is best but as I’ve mentioned before I’m too scared. And Nonny, thanks for mentioning your story—I thought I could wait this out but now I feel like I need to do something soon… NOW. I’m going to suggest a visit over the phone…if he seems iffy about it then I’ll know. If happy about a visit, then I’ll say something during my visit. Now, it’s a matter of when I’ll say something b/c if he isn’t for trying something again, it’s going to be an awkward stay….

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