Ann Taylor

Pros:  convenience; web sales; more inventory

Cons:  None, other than an inflated Visa bill

The Bottom Line:  I would definitely recommend shopping there, but watch out - you might end up spending more than you want!

Full review
Ann Taylor is one of those stores that either fits your body type very well, or not at all. I happen to be someone who fits into Ann Taylor clothes very well, and therefore, I know what exactly what size I wear in their clothes, and I love shopping there.

Since I know what size I wear, I have no problem shopping at their online site. I know what I am going for when I surf their site.

Why online is so great
I'm on the Ann Taylor mailing list, which I love. They don't spam me too often, but every few weeks I get online coupons and emails alerting me to website sales. And the sales on their site are great.

They have a clearance page which has some amazing deals. Each time I visit the site, I immediately proceed to the clearance page. (Kind of like going straight to the sales rack when I am in the store!)

What's so great about the sale section online too is that there is a much larger inventory than you would find in a store. Now things aren't always available in every given size, but I have found AT to be better about this than other clothes websites.

I hate when you see a sale item on a website, go to put it in your shopping cart, only to be told that the item is sold out in all colors and sizes. (Gee, thanks, then why don't you guys remove it from your inventory list??!?!) This does not happen as often with Ann Taylor, in my experience.

What's the site like
The site has a nice simple design that is easy to navigate. They have a drop-down menu titled Shop by Item where you can select that type of clothing or style you are looking for. (Tip: this is where the sale section is! Check it out!)

They have a drop-down menu to Shop by Occasion. (This involves work clothes versus casual.) They even have a Wardrobe Advisor that will actually give you advice on what clothes look good together!

Shipping and getting your clothes
I placed a fairly large order with Ann Taylor about three weeks ago. (Their summer sale is amazing! It's still going on. I highly recommend staying away if you don't want to do some serious damage to your credit card bills.)

I must have ordered 8-9 items. They had the order together and out the door the next day, and I had the box on my doorstep three days later.

Once they ship you your order, they will send you a tracking number. I love this. I will track my order and watch as it slowly gets to me.

Downside and Returning items
The only downside for me in purchasing clothes from AT online is that I can't feel the clothes before I buy them. It might sound crazy, but although I am comfortable that I know my size with Ann Taylor, I am not always comfortable with the materials. And they don't always provide a description of what items are made out of.

A good example of this is from my recent order. One pair of pants that I ordered came and they were silk pants. I had been under the impression that they were some other material. I can't stand silk pants.

But I returned them -- and returning them was very easy. They provide a returns center shipping label which you just stick back on the outside of the box, and it's then ready to go back.