Splurge or Save: Linen for Spring
Happy Tuesday, ladies. I thought it would be fun to do a price comparison post today with some casual outfits that would fit beautifully into my wardrobe and perhaps a few of yours. I often say great style needn’t be price dependent, and these looks illustrate it.
Many of you live in very hot climates, so you rely on and often reach for lightweight linen, as I do. I know others just can’t get used to the inevitable wrinkles that linen gets and don’t wear it. The wrinkles used to bother me, but it gets so hot where we live that I’ve had to make peace with them.
NEUTRAL SANDALS – HOOP EARRINGS – LINK BRACELET
This look starts with some neutral linen crops, a lightweight crewneck tank top, and a pale aqua linen shirt you could button, or wear open. The hoop earrings and link bracelet add some nice texture. Simple tan sandals and a woven crossbody finish the looks.
NEUTRAL SANDALS – HOOP EARRINGS – LINK BRACELET
The save outfit comes in at $353.00, and the splurge outfit is around $4,168.00. Can you spot the “save” outfit just by looking at the pictures? Was there one piece that tipped you off?
Recreating looks from your own wardrobe is the most cost-effective way to dress, and I hope these inspire you to experiment.
Thanks for reading, and be sure to wear what makes you feel confident, whether it wrinkles or not.
I tend to buy on the high end but Iāll take a JJill linen shirt any day over EF. I know Iām in the minority but Iām not a fan of EF. Plus as a tall woman JJill makes clothes that fit a 5ā11ā and above female
I know tall ladies struggle a lot. Iāll keep my eyes out more for you.
I love the outfits and yes the jewelry was a give away. I like the JJill shirt because it is longer and can have duster effect and I picked up linen white pants at Talbots yesterday for 40% off. But will head to JJill for shirt but Eileen fisher for tank top. Thank you for the ideas.
The hem on the less expensive pants was the giveaway for me as I used to sew. I donāt know jewelry as I find it hot during the summer months. I do go for the comfortable shoes. My feet demand comfort! This is fun!
Your daughter is lovely and the picture of the two of you is a keeper. I only have four wonderful sons but love their wives like daughters.
You are so blessed!!
Love this blog; so many ideas that I’d never come up with on my own! And wow, your commenters have sharp eyes! I haven’t read your blog for long enough to know if you already do this, but would love to see outfits put together from places like Kohl’s, Penney’s, Target, Costco, or at least incorporating elements from retailers such as those, since in my experience a lot of women do a lot of shopping there.
I’ve heard people say for years that you get used to the wrinkles in linen, but somehow catalogs and photo shoots show the linen in pristine condition. So I’d also love to see an outfit styled in wrinkled linen, to see if it still looks reasonably put-togehter. I’m afraid all those horizontal wrinkles will not be flattering, and I know I don’t want to iron, so I’ve always been reluctant to make the plunge. Thanks for all your wonderful content.
Welcome. My readers are fabulous. I havenāt shared Target for a while so thanks for the reminder. I often share Kohls. Youāll see many candid shots of me in wrinkles.
Nice comparisons, I try to buy a few quality pieces whenever possible, especially when I can divide the payments up, but I do like being able to find budget pieces that are pretty good quality too! Thanks for all you do in helping us find both!
When I spied the Bottega Veneta purse, that was the hint for me! (not that I can afford one!) Both outfits were great – love the colors and the linen for summer.
The choices you made are very attractiveā¦cream pants, pale green shirt, silver jewelry, etcā¦but the quality of David Yurman jewelry is always a giveaway! Iāve grown frustrated with the quality of some other brands linen shirts and have recently switched to splurging for them from Eileen Fisher. I love the āhandkerchiefā linen and even the inevitable wrinklesā¦they just seem so much āsofterā to me.
Handkerchief linen feels the softest to me too. I love it.
Re the splurge; the rectangle links in the bracelet and the sandals is what influenced me whereas I prefer the pants in the save version due to their wider hem which I might be tempted to let down to acquire a longer length. (i.e.: Remove the stitching. To prevent raveling, apply a machine running stitch or serge close to unfished/raw edge. Wash gentle cycle/or in launder bag. Air dry to eliminate the re-set of fold line. Then press out the latter blending in any needle/pin holes, then re-hem. Press again. ) -Brenda-
Note: Linen and/or its blend is one of the most forgiving when it comes to such an alteration.
Great advice about how to let that hem down. Thank you Brenda!
You are welcome Jennifer as added it because; I personally prefer my wide leg pants to hit at the bridge of my foot as feel I have more options in footwear but included it in event others might also wish to do it for another reason. -Brenda-
It’s the bag that usually gives it away for me. This one was tough.
I love a good dupe. One way to elevate an outfit is with quality accessories. These don’t need to be designer name brands. If people see a decent quality bag and shoes, they think everything else you wear is the same quality. One good pair of sandals and one good bag (“good” doesn’t mean expensive) carry you through many outfits.
I agree. Quality accessories elevate everything else you wear.
The link bracelet and the handbag tipped me off! Honestly, pure 100% linen is worth the cost, and you can get cheaper. I bought a white linen shirt over twenty years ago at Petite Sophisticate which I still wear!
I’ve been wanting a Bottega Veneta purse for years. I just love and appreciate the quality of the workmanship. I just turned sixty three weeks ago, and I still owe myself a present!
I have linen shirts that are over 20 years old! Quality lasts.
Twenty years or so, I used to shop J Jill because so much of their line reminded me of an Eileen Fisher dupe. This worked for many years, but J Jill kind of went off the rails for me a few years ago and it’s been hard to shop there.
If I were shopping this though, I’d probably go with the J Jill linen; it looks reasonably like the EF pieces, IMO. However, cheap shoes and jewelry – hard no. In other words, if you went with the better shoes and jewelry, you could wear the J Jill and no one would be the wiser. In my opinion anyway.
Great job as usual, Jennifer. I always look forward to your emails.
I think J.Jill is starting to come around. I see much more wearable things lately. I agree about the accessories!
I really like this post. I would have to go with the more reasonably priced items……..thanks for your blog. I enjoy reading it.
This was a tough one. You did great! Just by looking I could tell by the jewelry. I liked both so much.
The shoes tipped me off.
Subtract the competing purses, buy the Eileen Fisher on eBay, and find a pair of leather sandals for less than $100 — you’re set!
Seriously, the less expensive outfit is cheaper partially because of quality issues. The cropped pants are half rayon, rather than 100% linen. The jewelry is base metal. The purse is faux leather. The sandals are a synthetic material. (The linen blouse is beautiful.) All of these factors provide an outfit that might last and look good for a season. I believe the EF pieces will last for years.
One of my current pet peeves is online catalogs that do not show what a shirt or pants actually look like — because every photo shows the top tucked in or obscures the waist of the pants. The Gap tank and the J Jill pants are great examples of this.
Great selections. I could tell the difference by the quality of the earrings, the bag and the hem on the pants (smaller hem on the splurge). But overall I’d rather save my money on the save outfit! I love these posts with splurge or save.
WOW! These two were hard to know the difference. I wasn’t able to find one particular item that set it apart. Thank you, Jennifer! That was a good oneš I really like the J.Jill linen shirt.
This was a fun one
I can spot that Bottega Veneta bag anywhere! Thank you for the outfit contrasts, Iād go with the less expensive one myself. Maybe except for the purse..š
Iāve had my eye on that gorgeous bag. Itās so timeless.
It really is hard to tell. The pants look nicer on the first one (crops), but the tank top looks better on the second one. Nice job putting this together.
Your Splurge/Save articles are always some of my favorites. This one fooled me. I think I like the “save” outfit more than the “splurge”. I would save money on this outfit and spend it on the shoes.
I always go for the more comfy shoes.
Good Morning! This is a beautiful outfit! I live in a very, VERY hot location and linen is on constant rotation nine months out of the year. The “save” outfit is the first one…the giveaway is the earring back. It’s the type one sees on costume jewelry, not the real deal. Also the handbag! The “splurge” version seems a little more polished and the weave detail is more crisp, a sign of genuine leather.
I’d also like to say Thank You for the recommendation a few weeks ago for the linen shirtdress from Chico’s – it’s perfect!! I did indulge in the aqua one, and my local store had a brilliant orange & white paisley version that also come home with me.
I hadn’t noticed the earring back! Clever. I’m so glad you loved that dress. It’s so perfect for hot summer weather.
This time, you really tried to fool us! I don’t see that much difference in the clothing pieces. I would probably opt for the more expensive shoes because they look better for my troubled feet. And I tried to order the EF pants earlier this spring but they were out of stock. But spend over $2,000 on a purse? I would much rather buy a used purse at a thrift shop or buy a purse from a local artist at a fraction of that price.
I really couldnāt tell the difference. Perhaps if I saw the items in person amd felt the quality of fabric, I might, (big emphasis on the might) Thanks Jennifer, for putting together an outfit which shows that looking stylish doesnāt mean mortgaging the house.
Good.morning,
At first glance I couldn’t tell the difference. I preferred the Eileen Fisher pants. The large hem on the cheaper pants put me off. It looks like something I would do, and I can’t sew. Lol.
When you compared the prices, I thought you made an error on the 4168.00.
I can’t imagine paying 2700 dollars for a bag, even if I had the budget.
One of the shirts comes in the Citron color you debuted last week. I’d go with that combination if I could get past the wrinkles.
Why is linen so pricey? Is it difficult to manufacture?
Thank you for doing the price comparison, I really enjoy them.
That’s a great question. Being organic would make it more costly and it could be more expensive to grow and produce.
Wow! This certainly proves your point that style doesn’t have to cost a fortune. I really could not tell which one was the splurge and typically the handbag is a tip-off. And yes, you would look good in either outfit. Thanks for all the work you put in to make your site interesting, instructive and fun.
I’m so glad you like these!
Hi Jennifer, my guess, outfit #2 is more expensive!
I was glad to see that the outfit I favored was the one that featured jjill! Although I consider jjill a splurge and here it was a ‘save’, everything is relative! There is something about the style at jjill that I really like. It’s ‘coastal’ and ‘boho’ without being over the top. (in my opinion!)
I believe the second outfit is the splurge. Even before looking at the prices I saw the Yerman earrings and knew that was the more expensive outfit.
Both outfits are appealing to me. Like the idea of mixing āspend or splurgeā items in one outfit.
Sorry that I missed commenting on your post yesterday. Wanted to say that you and your daughter are both lovely. Glad you are enjoying her visit.
Thank you. It was a short but very sweet visit and she’s headed back home now.
The sandals give it away for me! The first outfit inspo is the “save” one. Those sandals look uncomfortable and inexpensive. The sandals in the “splurge” outfit look much more luxurious to me.