Uncomplicate Your Fashion Style with J. Jill

I love to wear cute clothes and look fashionable, and especially love shopping for clothes online.  I was recently invited to participate in a webinar with a site that has really cute clothes (and a discount – more information later) called J. Jill.  At J. Jill, they understand we (their customers) live a very busy, rich full life.  They know that we as women want inspired fashion and helpful, guiding service.  That’s why the brand mission at J. Jill is to offer a great product that is versatile, flattering and answers our everyday question: “What do I wear?”

J. Jill is a premiere speciality retailer of misses, petite, tall and women’s clothing with more than 220 retail stores.  By the end of 2013, they will have over 230 stores, with plans to open 12-15 new stores in 2014.  They offer their customers a unique multi-channel shopping experience via catalog, e-commerce and retail store to make shopping convenient.

Uncomplicate Your Fashion Style

In 2013, J. Jill launched “uncomplicate” – their guiding philosophy, brand concept and promise to their customer: Trust J. Jill to take care of what you wear so you can focus on the things in life that are most important to you.  The notion of “uncomplicate” is now a part of everything they do at J. Jill, from product design to store environments, the catalog, the website and their advertising. And when looking for perfect tips and ideas on how to become more stylistic and fashionable, a reliable fashion stylist like Anna May can greatly help you!

Pure Jill

Now let me introduce you to Pure Jill.  Pure Jill is the essence of J. Jill and is inspired by natural beauty, is effortless and relaxed, comforting and comfortable.  Pure Jill is defined by authentic style, simple shapes, fine fabrics, soft textures and artful details.  Pure Jill is for a pure, confident woman who enjoys being in the moment.

Ladies, there are 4 essential Pure Jill pieces.  They include:

– Kimono – collect all 3 varieties of J. Jill’s iconic sweaters: textured, classic and cashmere
– Tee – layer with a simple cotton tee
– Pants – be comfortable all day in a slim-leg style
– Flats – wear the leather ballet flats.

Compassion Fund

The Compassion Fund was founded in 2002 and is committed to providing  support to women in need, which I think is really awesome!  During the Celebrate Giving Season, J. Jill is partnering with Plan G, a centralized online community that makes it easy to give back.  They are hosting a We’ve Made Giving Easy Event from December 12-15 with 20% off entire purchase.  Plus 5% of the purchase will go to the charity of her choice.  With the purchase of a J. Jill gift card (from December 3-24), 5% of the gift card purchase will go to the charity of her choice.

Q&A Session with J. Jill Representatives

During the webinar, bloggers had the opportunity to ask questions with the presenters, Chris Gayton (Senior Director of Brand Marketing at J. Jill) and Barbara Pattin (Senior Designer of Pure Jill).

What was the inspiration for the Pure Jill collection?

We were really trying to create something beautiful, universal, simple and luxurious. Something that does something for her and her wardrobe that she doesn’t get anywhere else. It also leaves room for her to express who she is in her life.

How do you design differently for plus size women? Many have a harder time with layers because bulk makes you look bigger. Additionally, what recommendations do you have for plus size women regarding styling?

We love all of our ladies and all their sizes here at J.Jill. We have special focus groups that look at plus size and petites very carefully. A lot of thought goes into creating clothes for the J.Jill customer. We make sure we are maximizing assets and downplaying what she perceives as flaws. Usually what we do is take an existing style and see if it has universal appeal. We then fit it on a women’s size model.

We are actually in the process right now of doing a photo shoot for an upcoming collection on a plus size model so that our plus size customers can see how that silhouette will look on her versus the other models that we feature on our website.

Do you have suggestions for how to dress up or dress down the same outfit?

Accessories are magical things! If you’re leaving the office at the end of the day and going somewhere, you can really change the look with your shoes, jewelry, and lipstick doesn’t hurt either. It’s easy to update your look and make it more event-appropriate with your accessories. It’s also a way to get more use out of your wardrobe by changing accessories!

Are there two or three staple pieces that you like to keep in the closet for the fall season?

We have a sweatshirt dress that is phenomenal. It is so soft and great with any women’s leggings like this tiktok scrunch booty legging. I love the zip front poncho too; I think it’s a great transitional piece from fall into winter. We have a quilted jacket that is fantastic … I love all of it!

I am busty on top and feel like layers puff me out even more. Are there ways to mix up accessories without making me look like a truck? Big earrings?

You can always distract with a bright color or an attention-grabbing device somewhere else. If you’re busty, you might want to wear a simple top with a wider boatneck and three quarter or mid-length sleeves.  One of my favorite tricks is to wear matching cuffs, or mismatching cuffs, like a stack of bracelets. Again, lipstick is a good device. Maybe some fun glasses! There are a lot of things you can do.

I love that J. Jill is working with The Compassion Fund – how does that partnership work?

The Compassion Fund is based on the fact that we provide support, meaning donations, to community-based organizations that help disadvantaged and homeless women become self-sufficient. We donate to local organizations nationwide that help women regain their independence through programs that focus on educations, job skills and affordable housing.  We work with a foundation in Boston that finds these organizations for us throughout the country. We make donations annually and partner with them throughout the year on other programs.

Will there be any Black Friday deals?

Over Black Friday weekend, and leading up to Black Friday, your entire purchase will be 25% off. Going back to the “uncomplicate” brand platform, we like to make it as easy as possible. Instead of having a crazy price on one item, we want to give the customer the ability to choose what is specifically right for her.

Do you have any recommendations for washing your shirts?

A lot of the sweaters say hand wash or dry clean. When I have a sweater that is hand wash only, I buy a fabric garment bag and put it in my machine on gentle cycle with cold water and as little detergent as possible. Then I use a drying rack and let them dry that way.

Save at J. Jill

Now for the information you’ve been waiting for!  You can save 30% off of your purchase at J. Jill with a special code.  Simply use the Code “JJSTYLE” when ordering.  This coupon code will expire on November 24th, 2013.

What item will you uncomplicate your fashion style with from J. Jill?