Styling Without A Budget

"Fashions fade, Style is eternal."

- Yves Saint Laurent

The online fashion website, Polyvore allows anyone to become their very own fantasy stylist. Providing users with the ability to start an account that enables them to browse the online libraries of thousands of products, from Gucci handbags, to Forever 21 tops, and every must have beauty product, hideously unflattering pair of shorts, and outrageously expensive ball gown in between, Polyvore is an entirely new shopping experience. Novice stylists have the ability to add backgrounds, text, and effects to their creations in order to depict their dream scene, and imagine the a world where Alexander McQueen blazers are as free as Prada shoes. 

Contests:

Polyvore not only allows for the fashion obsessed to have a Photoshop-like place to express their style, share images with friends, and try out outfit combinations, but they also host contests almost constantly. For the contests, Polyvore posts a page with rules and regulations, as well as a topic for the Polyvore Set that contestants will create, and (obvi) the most exciting detail, the prize!

For Polyvore's "Your Very Best of Versace for H&M" Contest, contestants created Polyvore sets using images of clothing, accessories, and advertisements from H&M's exclusive collection from fashion house Versace. Ten winners were chosen every day throughout the contest, for the chance to win Versace for H&M printed scarves, and a grand prize was awarded to Donatella Versace's personal favorite set.

Here is an example of some of the finalists in the "Your Very Best of Versace for H&M" competition:

The Grand Prize Winner:

Clipping:

Another feature of Polyvore that nearly amazes me every time I use it is the "Clipper" feature. Polyvore users have the ability to download the "Clipper" to their Bookmarks Toolbar on their Internet browser. Then, any time they are on a website that features an image or product that they want to add to their "Images" on Polyvore, they simply click on the link on the Bookmarks Toolbar, and then click on the photo and save the image directly to their Polyvore account. The coolest part, in my opinion, is that Polyvore has the ability to save the name of the products on retail websites, their prices, and a click through link, so that other Polyvore users can click on the products in a set, and go directly to the source.

Polyvore, a sort of Social Networking site, that plays into the digital age seamlessly, is growing rapidly in popularity.

Here's an article from The New Yorker on the way that Polyvore has the ability to make any girl and every girl into the Anna Wintour she's always wanted to be.

Here are a few of my own personal creations:

As the perfect procrastination tool, Polyvore allows you to see if that new coat will match with that trusty black dress you've had forever, as well as the brand new boots you bought last week, by serving as almost a virtual closet. Also a way to shop by item, users can search the site for products ("black skirt", "beaded dress") or shop by designer/brand (Michael Kors, Zac Posen, Abercrombie & Fitch), and find hundreds of results instantly.

Polyvore is a fashion lover's site like no other, allowing for shopaholics everywhere to express their creative side through design & style!

LHR