I think I'm in love (with Forever 21, of all things)

A Forever 21 recently opened at Horton Plaza. Except it's an XXI store, rather than a normal Forever 21. No, I don't know the difference, but DAMN did this store impress me. For starters, this was the hat that made me wander into the store:

Wool felt floppy hat, $14.80

Cool hat, huh? Over-the-top and ridiculous, yes, but you can't blame me for being roped in. That color scheme is killer.

The store was HUGE, with not a bit of the claustrophobic feeling most Forever 21 stores tend to evoke. The dressing rooms were also huge, and there was no wait! Hallelujah!

The store also had a whole mini-store devoted to the Heritage 1981 line, which I dug because Heritage 1981 = cotton, cotton, cotton, and none of the polyester sweat factories I vigorously avoid.

In addition to an expansive, clean, stylized feel, the store also had TONS of fantastic accessories. To wit:

Concave floral cuff, $5.80

Faceted poly bracelet, $6.80


Blossom ring, $5.80
(I bought this ring. What can I say...it was love at first sight.)

I also bought this hat.

Cotton linen floppy hat, $10.80

I bought it to wear to Burning Man. It definitely falls into the "so absurd it's cool" category. It's....extraordinarily floppy, but the sun protection can't be beat. It also comes into a pretty poppy color, too, and I'm weirdly tempted to buy that one, too. However, Forever 21 has scads of other cute hats on the website, so...I may have a hat-tastic summer. We shall see.

So here's the Heritage 1981 piece I bought:

Ruffle front knit top, $12.80

Let me note that this shirt could EASILY be sold at a place like Anthropologie, and it would go for something like $60-$70 there.

Lastly...yee-haw!

3Q Western plaid shirt, $19.80

Another item I bought to wear to Burning Man. Since the theme this year is the American Dream, I thought a cowboy-esque shirt was appropriate. Also, I look cute in it.

There were scads of other cute things too, but I don't want to keep you too long.

In sum: XXI stores are like Forever 21 stores, because they are Forever 21 stores. But they're somehow better. Or maybe I just got supremely lucky today. I have no idea.