GTG's Fabulous Shopping Destinations

All fashionistas know exactly where to go when we need to find the perfect, but sometimes we just want to shop with no particular agenda. So where do we go when we just want to shop?

Here's my list of fabulous shopping malls and districts. These places have been handpicked by yours truly based on location, variety of stores and most importantly "fashion fun," meaning you will enjoy your overall shopping experience.

There are a few honorable mentions too that while they're worth checking out they lack a component from the criteria.

Friends, get your plastic ready because you will definitely want to go shopping until you drop after you're done reading this list!

Collins Avenue:

Whenever I crave for a unique shopping experience I head on over to Collins Avenue. I love to park my car and enjoy the scenery on each block. There are many stores on and around Collins Avenue that range from your everyday mall stores like Mac (cosmetics not the Apple,) Levi's and Armani Exchange to small, yet equally impressive boutiques with one-of-a-kind merchandise.

And when you get hungry, which you will you can stop by any of the fabulous restaurants for a quick or leisure bite and a few mojitos.

Take it from me you cannot go shopping anywhere on the beach without making some time to sip on a nice cocktail.

GTG Tip: Make sure you visit Mango the clothing store, since I'm not too sure there are any other locations in Miami.



Dadeland Mall:

You want a premier shopping destination in Miami?

Dadeland Mall is that place. With close to 200 different department stores, specialty stores and restaurants, you are always sure to walk out with an empty wallet and a fabulous new wardrobe.

GTG Tip: Don't skip visiting the Express or Macy's because every mall has these stores. Dadeland Mall houses the largest Express store in the country and the largest Macy's in Florida, so make sure you check 'em out, since they're impressive in size.

Did you know that there's a CVS located inside Dadeland? It's true.



Aventura Mall:

I don't like to play favorites with my shopping spots, but I can't lie. Aventura Mall is my go to place. I  consider it the mecca of malls in North Miami. Aventura has a great mix of uber luxurious and contemporary stores alike.

GTG Tip: When you're there make sure to stop by the Anastasia counter at Nordstrom and make an appointment to get your eyebrows waxed by Laura or her girls. Once you see what they can do to your eyebrows, you'll never trust anyone but them.



Bal Harbour Shops:

When Stanley Whitman built Bal Harbour Shops in 1965, he had one thing in mind: upscale opulence. Fronted by Neiman Marcus, soon other luxury retailers followed suit, and what you see today when you walk into Bal Harbour is a multitude of high end cars such as Bentleys and Lambos, while celebrities shop at Gucci.

While it's a beautiful place and is probably the most successful shopping destination of its kind, Bal Harbour Shops is a window shopping playground to the rest of us, but a stop there once is a must for any local or tourist.

GTG Tip: If you're looking for a good Italian restaurant at a decent price, then you have to try out Carpaccio.



Lincoln Road:

Want to shop in a fun environment?

The Lincoln Road Mall has you covered. In fact this is the only place where you can shop, wine and dine and party the night away all within a short distance. Oh, there are art galleries there too!

Keep your eye out for Miami's first H&M store to open later this year.

GTG Tip: Check out Serendipity 3! You'll thank me later.



Miracle Mile:

Miracle Mile is considered the downtown of the Coral Gables community. It might have something to do with all the fabulous stores, restaurants and art galleries.

GTG Tip: If you're engaged and looking to say "I do" to a dress this is where you have to go to find your perfect gown.



Village of Merrick Park:

Very similar to the Bal Harbour Shops in upscale retailers and scenic gardens is the Village of Merrick Park also located in Coral Gables.

I love Merrick Park because it's constantly expanding. Every time I go there I see new retailers. Also make sure you stop for a drink at the Yardhouse.

GTG Tip: You can come here during Fashion's Night Out and find spectacular shopping while local celebrities host parties at participating stores. It's one of the best places in Miami to come out for this event.



Design District:

Eighteen blocks of fashion, art and furnishings-- that's what you get when you visit the Miami Design District. I truly love this place. It's diverse, it's fun and it's so appealing to so many different crowds of people.

GTG Tip: Make sure you visit the Inglot Penthouse for amazing makeup and of course you can't visit this district and not check out the Christian Louboutin store. Sidenote: I have spent many nights gazing at its window.


Honorable Mentions:

• The Shops at Sunset Place: a nice place for families looking to shop, dine and engage in entertainment. It has houses an Imax theater.
• The Falls: An iconic shopping mall. Look for Miami's first American Girl store to open later this year.
• The Shops at Midtown- Great location with restaurants and stores nearby. Keep an eye out for this spot as it will continue to grow and become hot hotter.

Until next time!

xo GTG

"I always say shopping is cheaper than a psychiatrist."- Tammy F. Bakker

Bloomingdale's: The Outlet Store Review

My love for Bloomies is second to none, in fact this was the store that got me into a lot of financial trouble, but hello can you blame a girl. Bloomingdale's has a great selection of everything that I love!

So when I found out last November that the department giant had opened its first 2 of 4 Bloomingdale's The Outlet Stores in South Florida, I was excited.

Sure it  took me 7 months to make my first visit, but I'm not a fan of either malls, where the stores were opened (Dolphin Mall and Sawgrass Mall--eek!)

Last weekend I was finally able to check out the store in Dolphin Mall and decided that I had to report my findings to my girls.

I was immediately drawn in by the display of L.A.M.B. shoes at the entrance (and no there was no sign that indicated that the pairs on display were L.A.M.B., but I know my shoes.)

Main entrance of Bloomingdale's The Outlet Store located in Dolphin Mall

For the most part, I have a love/hate relationship with outlet stores, but it's mostly hate because I feel these stores promise you the world, and they never deliver (such as Saks Fifth Avenue's Off the 5th, Nordstrom Rack and Neiman Marcus' Last Call.) But this was Bloomies, so I went in with a positive attitude because after all I'm a Bloomies aficionada.

I don't know if I've metioned it or not, but I suffer from chronic OCD and I can't handle messy or dirty places, especially if I'm trying to get my shop on, but my first impression of this outlet store was: "Wow this store is amazingly neat and organized, especially for being such a huge place.

After being talked out of buying the L.A.M.B. shoes that I had already fallen in love, I made my way down the shoe department, which was also surprisingly neat and spacious, but not very interesting.

Snapshot of the women's shoe department

BTW: This store does not want the consumer to forget that it is an outlet store, so they have signs posted everywhere like the one below:

You can also receive a $20 certificate off a $100 purchase just for signing up to their newsletter. 

After shoes, naturally I headed to their accessories department, which was very sad. You won't find a huge array of brands or purses or jewelry  (it was so sad, that I couldn't even bring myself to taking pictures of it.)

My girlfriend who was on a mission to find a sexy top for her outting that night, also left empty handed as there was not a huge selection of sexy.

I, on the other hand fell in love with the dress pictured below. Bloomingdale's The Outlet Store claims that everything is 35-70% off retail prices.

Hands down this was the best thing I found, aside from the pretty pair of L.A.M.B. shoes. Still, I couldn't bring myself to pay more than $100 for a brand I had never even heard of.

The front of the bright clam colored dress. This color looks great on both fair skinned and darker toned 
people.

The back of the fabulous clam colored dress that would go great with a pair of gold strappy sandals and a bold cocktail ring. What would you wear it with?

As you all know, I'm a creature of habit and visuals, if you want my attention put something pretty in front of me and I'm like a moth to a flame. The store's display tables did not disappoint. See for yourself:

Cute and appropriate for the summer season, not like some other outlet stores that highlight their winter looks in the middle of summer. 

By this time, my girlfriend and I had split up and I was doing my best to take in as much of the store as possible, but I sort of got lost in the denim section. I love denim, especially if it's premium denim.

Denim Shop

They have a lot of jeans and brands to select from at reasonable prices, and don't forget the $20 off your $100 purchase, you can walk out with a pair of cute JBrand jeans for $80--now that's what I call a good deal.

Are you planning on taking a trip to find thrifty things? Here are a few things you should remember when hitting up Bloomingdale's The Outlet Store:

Pros:

• It's a huge store with the possibility of finding a lot of great items, but make sure you give yourself a good 2-3 hours minimum to go through the merchandise in the various departments.
• The store has a good layout and virtually has signs all over the store to help you navigate through it.
• Again, I can't stress the importance of a neat and organized store, which makes for a happy shopping experience. 
•  Don't forget to take advantage of the $20 off any $100 purchase

Cons:

• Not a huge or great selection on shoes, handbags or jewelry
• There's only one fitting room section for each sex and they are sort of hidden, so you might have to ask a sales associate for direction.
• Speaking of sales associates, they weren't much of help or welcoming. The members on the floor in this particular store were too caught up in their conversations with one another to even take a minute to greet you or ask if you need help.

Now that you're in the know you are all ready for your trip to the Bloomingdale's The Outlet Store and you are armed with a plan of attack.

As for me, once again I walked away empty handed from an outlet store, but that never stops me from checking out the next one.

I'm on to the next one.

xoxo-- Your GTG

"Buying something on sale is a very special feeling.  In fact, the less I pay for something, the more it is worth to me." Rita Rudner

After Thanksgiving dinner...

Hi guys & dOlls,

Thanksgiving is only 2 days away!!!! And this is my absolute favorite holiday: food, family and more food! Can you say yum? There's really nothing that can top this holiday for me.

But after your third Thanksgiving dinner, you realize that you have eaten way too much and need to do more than just sit on the couch watching TV. So, I, your Go-to-Gal have assigned myself the difficult task of finding things for you to do for after your Thanksgiving dinner(s.)

• You can get an early start on Black Friday by hitting  Sawgrass Mills Mall or Dolphin Mall, at 12:01 A.M. midnight on Friday, November 26th. Make sure you check out the super new Bloomingdale's outlet stores at both malls. I'm a Bloomies lover, so I cannot wait to check out their outlet stores! There are only 4 of these stores nationwide and if they do well, more will be opening in 2011, so how lucky are we that two of them are right in our cities. (Shopping just gets me too excited!)
• You can also catch the loveable musical, Oliver! at the Actor's Playhouse in Coral Gales. Tickets are on sale now and are very affordable starting at only $15 and go up to $48.
• There's always the tradition that some carry to go watch holiday movies with their families, as Thanksgiving Day is the beginning of the holiday movies seasons.

Last week, I asked the question: What do you guys do after Thanksgiving dinner and here's what you guys had to say:

• Geraldine said:  My family sits in the living room & sing songs, reflect on the past year, & plan for Christmas.
• Joanna said: Look up which stores are having sales and plan the attack. :)
• Javier said: FOOTBALL!!! LOL!
• Ashley said: We do a gift exchange for xmas- so that night, we all pick who we are gonna get gifts for :)
• Jessica said: We always go to the movies n watch whatever Christmas flick that's out, then go back home n eat leftovers! :)

Regardless of what you guys do, I wish you and your family a wonderful Thanksgiving.

"Thanksgiving, after all, is a word of action."  W.J. Cameron

Before You Go Shopping this Holiday Season...

Read my blog! Just kidding. Well let's face it you really should!

Welcome back to our little corner of the Web.

So, who is excited about shopping for the holidays? I am I am and so should you because I'm going to do my best to make it easier for you. If you've been to your local mall just after Halloween, chances are you've already been bombarded with all the holiday decorations, along with Santa posters and wish lists that go on and on.

With all the money you spend on gifts, holiday flights and parties, it's no reason this is the time of jolliness for retailers. But before you go out and spend all you're savings, here are a few things you should know that are sure to help you save money, time and keep your credit in tact, all in time for the new year.

The first rule of thumb for holiday shopping:  pay in cash for as many things as you possibly can. Paying with money, frees you from credit card interests, increasing your debt, but most importantly it keeps you in the know of how much you're spending right at the moment. Say you have $300 worth of merchandise before you check out, you might be inclined to take out a few unnecessary items, while waiting in line if you are paying with money instead of with a charge card. It's quite simple folks, letting go of actual money from your hand is harder than handing over plastic.

Guess what's back? Layaway plans are! These things are making a comeback just like the Republicans did during this past mid-term election. Now I'm not saying there are layaway plans available at Bloomies or Nordstrom, but you sure can find them at Kmart, Toys "R" Us and Burlington Coat Factory, which are great places to pick up toys and electronics. Before you layaway, make sure you clearly understand the terms of each stores' policy, as it does differ. And be sure that you can afford what you are putting away. Layaway isn't a shortcut to getting everything you want, but can't afford.

The second most important thing you should do is review all the interest rates on your cards, before you hit the streets. Winning half the battle against debt is knowing what you're best options are.

The next two tips go hand in hand, well sorta. As you're going over your list of who's been naughty or nice, try to do all your shopping in one store and if you can apply for a charge card that allows you to save up to 20 % like Macy's does, go for it. Don't get charge happy though, use credit cards responsibly and pay it off as soon as possible. That can even be one of your New Year's resolutions.

If you feel like you can't condense the majority of your shopping to one store, then pick out the credit card with the lowest interest rate and try to keep all your holiday spending on that one card. This helps you track  how much money you've spent and if the card has a low interest it will help you from paying those crazy interest charges later on. Pretty simple, huh. I'm not professing rocket science here, all these things are very simple and plain, but a lot of the time are forgotten.

Holidays and parties are like the white on rice. They just go together. Just don't charge your card, while you're partying. Do not, I repeat do not use your credit card to pay for anything after midnight. Creditors have completed extensive research that indicates most charges made by Americans after midnight are made by people who are under the influence.  As a night of celebration progresses, you begin to lose your good judgment and are more prone to making poor decisions, such as buying a round of drinks for everyone at the bar. Public service announcement # 2: don't drink and drive this holiday season or ever. Thanks!

Additional money and time saving tips:

• Be sure to make a list of people you need to buy gifts for, as well as a  couple ideas of what you'd like to get for each individual and finish the list by including a budget of what you'd like to spend (by budgeting your money you are really saving your precious time, which should be spent with your loved ones and not in the jungles that are shopping malls.)
• Always ask stores, if they offer gift boxes or free wrapping services in order to save you some money on these items because wrapping your gifts gets pricey. If you're a creative individual make your own gift wrapping paper by drawing your own designs on recycled brown paper.
• Start your shopping now! Don't wait until the last minute when items are out of stock and stores are in a frenzy.
•  Black Friday isn't your only option for the biggest sale of the year. Go viral on Cyber Monday  and save just as much money from the comfort of your home or office.

I hope that all of you have a pleasant shopping experience. And as always, if there is anything that you do every holiday shopping season, please let me know, it can make it onto next year's list.

Stay tuned for more things to come these upcoming months and keep your peepers open for the debut of my next blog coming very soon!

"Once again, we come to the Holiday Season, a deeply religious time that each of us observes, in his own way, by going to the mall of his choice."