Lane Bryant Blogger Conference, Part I

We had a full day planned for the Lane Bryant blogger conference, so we started really early. First stop: the Lane Bryant store at Easton. This was such a beautiful store! While we were there, each of us got to check out the latest collection: jungle safari. Plus, we selected outfits for our afternoon makeover photo shoot. It was fascinating to see how all the different bloggers approached shopping and what everyone picked out for themselves.

While we were in the store, I spent some time with Robert Rutkauskas (Sr. Designer - Trend, Color, Fabric & CAD) and he explained all the influences that come together in creating a collection. Lane Bryant start collections more than a year in advance and bring out a new collection each season with "mini collections" each month. They work hard to create a cohesive collection that will transition from season to season and allow the customers to transition their current pieces with new pieces. I had no idea!


(Sarah of Bombshell Beauty, Kimberly of Fab Finds Under $50, me, Aimee of Madison Plus, Alissa of Stylish Curves & the Budget Fashionista, Michelle of Venus Vision, Di of Fat Chic, Allison of Curvy Girl Chic, Marie Denee of the Curvy Fashionista)

After the shopping, we headed to Lane Bryant HQ were we had a series of round table discussions with the VPs, the merchants, and the designers. This was easily the most fascinating part of the day. We got to hear about how & why the clothing in the store is the way it is. And I mean everything from what influences their color and style choice each season (upcoming influence from Madonna, Grace Kelly, and Audry Hepburn) to why their pants are fitting differently (they are working hard to get back to their core fit that everyone loves so much). Plus we got to ask them all your questions and give them all your requests and feedback. And let me tell you this - they were taking notes! So hopefully we'll get shirts that don't require camis underneath, swimsuits with better support, and maybe even sexy lingerie based on real bra sizes.

Next up: a tour of the the design facilities and a preview of the collections for Fall and the Holidays. I could not bring my camera along for that part, but there are some beautiful things coming out. I am particularly excited by the french influence that is coming out in some of their lingerie and some super chic houndstooth jackets. I can't wait!

Check out this video that Lane Bryant put together with footage from the day (yes, everything we did was filmed. I'm totally a star now. ha!)

Coming up in Part II...makeover and photo shoot.

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Lane Bryant provided my travel and accomodations, as well as a complimentary outfit as part of my participation in this conference. Lane Bryant and T Minus, T Plus (me!!) are committed to complying with FTC regulations regarding disclosure of material connections and endoresements. As I have previously stated, I am a loyal Lane Bryant customer (since the mid 1990s) and my participation in this conference and any comments I make about Lane Bryant are 100% my own thoughts and opinions and are not influenced by Lane Bryant. If you have any comments or questions about this, please leave a comment. I read and reply to all comments.