The Budget Babe | Affordable Fashion & Style Blog

In Real Life: Catherine Malandrino for Kohl's Sneak Peek

Catherine Malandrino for Kohl's First Look

The team over at Kohl's sent me two items from the soon-to-be-released Catherine Malandrino for DesigNation collection to peruse: An oversized white and black dolman sleeve striped cardigan ($88), and a black scoopneck sweater dress ($78). These aren't items I'd personally pick out for myself but the quality is nice for the price. Both items are a size small and seem to run a bit big, which I'm actually loving. The cardigan is designed to be oversized (perhaps worn with leggings and ballet flats, or a mini dress) and it actually fits my 5'8" frame well.

The fabrications are a bit itchy for my sensitive skin, which is to be expected from synthetic blends of rayon/nylon for the dress and polyester/acrylic/nylon/wool/spandex for the sweater. But at least they have a nice weight to them. The tags are fancy, featuring QR codes that shoppers can scan with their mobile phones to get more info on the line. Currently the QR codes link to narcisorodriguez.com, the first DesigNation designer's website (scan the images after the jump right from your computer monitor to see for yourself!)

I'm looking forward to seeing the rest of the collection in stores starting September 27th, where I think I'll have ample time to wait for the pieces to go on sale and shop my favorites at my leisure as these designer collabs don't exactly fly off the shelves in my area.

In case you missed it, browse the entire Catherine Malandrino for Kohl's lookbook.

The Look for Less: Coach 'Leoda' Ankle Boots

This look for less request comes to us from a reader named Ellen! These gorgeous Coach 'Leoda' ankle boots in supple leather with buckle-strap detailing are $345 at coach.com. Swoon.


Coach Leoda Boots


Not in the budget? Try these Wanted 'Amarillo' ankle boots instead, $69 in tan, black or maroon at urbanoutfitters.com.



What do you think, would you go for the splurge or save on this one?