Corduroy Season Begins!

If this were the Midwest, I'd write about how the changing leaves bring an itch for all items warm and comfy. It would be the perfect lead-in to talk about one of your favorite fall staples.

Too bad the Bay isn't cooperating and recently threw some summer weather at us. When the rest of the country revels in how colored cords are the "it" item for everyone this fall, you'll have to stock up for when our real winter begins.

No matter. Just because our weather patterns are different doesn't mean we can't ogle and yearn for beautiful jewel-toned cords*. Buy them once, enjoy them almost year-round! The joke's on the rest of the country.

We're excited to introduce Christopher Blue** cords for women - they're a brand new company for us and we already love their colors. This mid-rise stretchy wonder will see you through the year in comfort. Check out our colors below!

As always, feel free to ring us at  510-526-3212 to check availability.

Navy

Turquoise

Olive

Vermilion

Coming up: a post on the ins and outs of Lycra***. If you love cords or stretchy jeans, you'll want to know how to treat them right.

* Our other companies with cords include Miracle Body, Tribal, Jag, and FDJ. 
** Black is also available, but it didn't like being photographed.
*** a brand name for spandex. The post will really be about spandex and its counter-intuitive nature.

Win a $1200 Shopping Spree!

We're doing it again . . .

Enter to win a $1,200 Shopping Spree at By Hand!

 Winner gets a monthly $100 gift card for a year. 

CONTEST OPENS: Saturday, 9/1/2012 at 10:30am 

CONTEST ENDS:  Saturday, 9/8/2012 at 6:00pm

Stop in By Hand during regular store hours to fill out your entry form!  No purchase required to enter.

M-Sat 10:30am-6pm. Sun 12-5pm.

"It felt like getting a birthday present every month of the year...

Thank you By Hand for all the beautiful gifts that I sometimes shared with my family!"

--Jane H., 2011 shopping spree winner

   

We are closed Labor Day Monday, September 3.  

The By Hand crew intends to enjoy the Stroll festivities this year,  so our store is also closed on Stroll Sunday, September 9. 

  

Good luck and happy strolling!

Designer Spotlight: Nally & Mille

Nally & Millie first appeals to the eye, but it's purpose is greater than allure. The brand's painterly prints act like vibrant flower petals – you’re invited to engage. When you do, you’re rewarded by the softest, silkiest fabric that whispers of an endlessly flattering, wrinkle-free experience.

Started in 1999 by wife and husband team Nally and James Park, the brand benefits from both partners’ years in retail, management, and merchandising that refined Nally’s eye for women’s contemporary design and James’s operations know-how. (Millie is Nally’s sister who offered her namesake but is otherwise uninvolved.) The brand’s history transcends fashion and is one of many rich immigration narratives to take root in LA.

Made exclusively in LA by a “close group of committed people including relatives and close friends,” the brand designs its own prints for their specialty rayon-cotton, poly-cotton, rayon-spandex, and nylon-spandex fabric blends. Nally & Millie’s designs aim for the middle ground between dressy and casual. Frequent travelers take note - many of their skirts are reversible to black and all their items are wrinkle-free and pack well.

Check out select current stock below!

•  Cardigans

• Scoop and v-necks with dolman sleeves

• Tunic length knits (petite folks - left one works as a short dress!)

 

• Cowl neck dolman sleeve poncho

BOTTOMS

• Black and Grey sweater leggings
   
• Reversible skirts

A Place for Every Pen - Baggallini

Pockets are my Achilles’ heel. Show me a bag with hidden zippers and divided compartments and the possibility of order seduces me. There are many ways to interpret this love for nooks and order (therapists, I hear what you’re thinking), but this attraction stems from my travels. When I was three, I had to prevent my crayons from attacking my stuffed bunny. At thirteen, my Harry Potter book and copycat story needed to marinate in my backpack.

Years of travel taught me what I need (snacks; water; book; notebook; iPod; sweater) and what I don’t (4 books; 48 colored pencils; sewing kit) while traveling.

My needs were clear; my bag of choice wasn’t.

Many women get to this point. They’ve figured out their travel needs but can’t find a bag that will organize their credit cards, provide space for sunglasses, and sit comfortably on their shoulders. That’s where Baggallini comes in.

Two flight attendants began the company in 1995 and set out to design bags that appealed to the woman jet-setter. Given our countless customers that have called Baggallini “the perfect travel bag” over the years, I think they’ve succeeded.  

Baggallini recently expanded beyond its travel-friendly Classic lines to include the high-function, high-style Quilt, Leather Trim, International, and Travel Accessories Collections. Our current stock includes a great selection of Classic bags (see below for specifics!), but we’re most excited about the new Audrey Satchel and Maria Crossbody from the Leather Trim Collection. 

 Made of lightweight, water-resistant, durable satin nylon fabric and trimmed in leather, both styles come in Garnet, Amber, Emerald, and Onyx. These styles will appeal to the non-traveler, but the focus remains the same: functional beauty.

Countless customers come through our doors with their own Baggallini story. For me, the ability to organize one small piece of my universe gives me peace of mind.

After all, isn’t life about the stories we tell? 

SOME CURRENT SELECTIONS

Classic Collection

-- Wallet Bag

-- Criss-Cross Bag

-- Teenee Baggallini

International Collection

-- Dublin

-- Sicily

Quilt Collection

-- Geneva

-- Wanderer

-- Explorer Backpack

Leather Trim Collection  

-- Audrey Satchel

-- Maria Crossbody

Designer Spotlight: Loco Lindo

Now that it’s the 21^st century, 50’s styles are back in fashion. Loco Lindo, one of By Hand’s mainstay brands for almost 15 years, is one designer that captures the retro spirit with a modern flair.

A far cry from “vintage” of the faded sort, Loco Lindo’s founder Linda Marrone built the brand on an aesthetic that is “easy western style + California casual chic.”  Designed and sewn in L.A. since 1992, Loco Lindo has a core group of signature styles with ever-changing exclusive prints each season. Their eco-friendly, pre-washed rayon viscose crepes are great for travel and breathe easily when soaking up sun or swing dancing.

For fall, the shaped shirt or mandarin top will look great with a circle skirt you have, and the Enchanted Forest, Birds Nest, or Graphite Saffron fabrics will be a hit at any party. Of course, check out the Petals and Vines, Tippi Birds, Spruce Dots, and Flutter prints while you’re at it! When spring 2013 rolls around, make a mental note to stop in By Hand for camp shirts and teatime tops to greet the new season.

Fall Loco Lindo styles will start arriving in late August! 

Are You Vacation-Ready? Summer Sale Starting July 14!

Independence Day is usually the beginning of summer vacation galore. You look around for breathable fabrics to take to the sweltering Southeast (or, really, any part of the country outside the Bay), a hat that’s SPF 50, and comfy pants that won’t wrinkle as you destination hop. Maybe you come up empty-handed. Maybe you don’t even know what fabrics you should bring, only that your favorite cotton t-shirt has lost so much shape the crew neck is now a revealing number.

If this feels like you (and even if it doesn’t!), stop in By Hand starting Saturday, July 14 to make our Annual Summer Sale work for your vacation needs.

In search of good travel fabrics? Be on the lookout for natural fiber fabrics like linen, rayon, cotton, and sometimes silk – they breathe easier than synthetics and will be a boon in weather that begs for sweet iced tea. Spritz linen with a spray bottle and shake – the wrinkles will fall out easily. Hang rayon fabrics (such as Tencel) in a steamy bathroom as you shower to make your clothes look fresh again. Anything with a bit of spandex or Lycra will be comfortable to wear and will release wrinkles with ease.

Knitted fabrics will be your best friend as you travel. You can always tell a knit with three tests: first, the fabric will look like tiny rows of braids (as if someone actually knit it!); second, the fabric will easily stretch width-wise and a little lengthwise; and third, after balling up a knit fabric, it will spring back to its original shape with few wrinkles. (The only woven fabric that travels well is linen – it breathes like a dream and de-wrinkles with water.)

We have all the above fabrics in an abundance of tops and bottoms, and we’re more than happy to help you meet your travel-wear needs. After you find your perfect rayon pants, linen shirt, and floppy hat, you can buy a reusable EnviroSak for your haul. When you get home, roll up the EnviroSak, button it, and toss it in your suitcase.

Happy vacationing!

Summer Sale: Starts July 14.   Lasts until …

Closed on 4th of July....Spring & Summer Clearance Sale Starting Soon

We will be closed on Wednesday, July 4th

Hope your Independence Day is filled with fun, friends, family, food and fireworks

See you on Saturday July 14th for the beginning of our

Spring & Summer Clearance Sale

25% off spring and summer clothing

(sorry, no price adjustments)