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Kicking off this week of big-name sample sales is Marchesa, which opened to the pubic i the far reaches of West Chelsea this morning. We navigated our way through aggressive AM shoppers to check out the stock, where almost everything is a unique option—there's rarely more than one size per dress style. Be prepared to protect your selections from grabby shoppers, and look out for damages like rips, pulls, missing beading, and stains dotting the sales floor (plus a long line for the fitting rooms).
For Marchesa gowns and dresses, prices are denoted by stickers: Yellow stickers are $300, red is $600, blue is $900 and gold is $1,200. Favorites here include a cobalt beaded empire-waist gown for $1,200 (was $4,950), a cream silk pleated cocktail dress for $600, a red lace sheath for $600, and a gold halter gown with a rose print for $900. We didn't spot many yellow stickers left, apart from a nude sequined gown for $300.
The back area of the sale has Marchesa Notte dresses for $100 each, or three for $250. $100 is a huge steal for some of these, particularly since the Notte section has much less wear-and-tear than most of the Marchesa items for wear-and-tear. This section was also where we found sizes 8 and 10—Marchesa's main label gowns were mostly sized 4 or 6.
For Notte, we saw everything from a silver textured cocktail dress to a bright grape strapless chiffon number with a puffed bodice (check out the gallery above for more options). Black-and-white styles are big in both sections. We noted a white gown with black lace detail and beaded waist; a white cocktail silk dress with organza sleeve detail; and a white embroidered caftan across both areas of the sale.
A small rack near the front has Marchesa Voyage tops, skirts, and pants for $35;dresses for $50; and jackets and blazers for $65. We liked a pair of lace-embellished denim pants for $35 and a white blazer with a black collar for $65. There are also a few beaded bags for $600 each, and a box each of Marchesa bags for $100 and Notte bags for $50.
Fitting rooms have a limit of six items per customer, so choose carefully or bring a friend to faithfully hold your items. When we walked out of the sale late this morning, there were a good 40 people waiting to get in‚ it's generally a one-in one-out policy, so it might be best to stop by in the late afternoon. Customers who put in the effort to wait outside for two hours prior to opening were foiled when lines converged getting to the elevators, anyway. Check out the sale's hours in the Dealfeed below—it's running through Wednesday evening.
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