I’m not going to lie…I’m a huge fan of Matilda Jane Clothing, on my girly, or on anyone else’s girlyThe ladies at MJC just have a knack for sourcing the awesomest fabrics, trims, and buttons, and mix prints like no one else can and create some of the prettiest and most unique dresses, tops and outfits I’ve ever seen…and trust me when I say that I see a *ton* of little girl clothing

MJC is not just a clothing brand but it’s whole little culture and society all of it’s own…and it can be a little daunting at first since it comes with it’s own language of sorts as well so I thought I’d put together a little primer for everyone

An primer on the Matilda Jane world:

Platinum vs. regular line

There are two separate types of Matilda Jane clothes and each are sold and made in different ways

• Platinum: Highly exclusive items usually made in limited quantities (sometimes only a handful of each style in each size)–Platinum items are available online at http://www.matildajaneplatinum.com/ but most items sell out fast (e.g., within minutes or seconds) of loading…sometimes loads will be a total surprise, other times MJ may drop hints as to when it will load on their facebook page, blog, or on twitter. On occasion you may see a couple items sitting on Platinum…sadly they have been rejected by the MJC communityThe Good Luck Trunk section of Platinum contains old past regular line items so those items will not move fast like regular Platinum items do. Platinum items are made in the USA by a team of sewers near the MJC headquarters
• Regular line: Regular line items can only be purchased through Trunk Keepers (see below for a definition of what a Trunk Keeper is) usually (except for the occasional sale) only at Trunk Shows. Regular line items are usually released in three waves over the Fall and Spring seasons and are produced in greater quantities than Platinum items so they are more readily available. That being said, sellouts of specific items do occur on release days…sometimes in minutes. High risk items (in the past at least–MJ is always tweaking it’s production quantities) include shorties (just ask anyone in the MJC community about the Starlet Shortie fiasco of 2012!), pretty tops, any leggings/ruffles in cool prints, and smaller sized items.  Regular line items are usually produced in China.

Important acronyms/terminology

• MJC/MJ-Matilda Jane Clothing
• SD (Serendipity), HB (Hammond Bay), Y&M (You and Me), HOC (House of Clouds), FT (Field Trip), HR (Homeroom), GB (Gypsy Blue), HL (Hotline)–these are acronyms for some (there are more!) of the regular lines in the past 5 or so years. And of course there’s CC (Character Counts)–the coming release on Aug 15!
• Jane–A Jane is a MJC lover who is hosting a show
• TK (Trunk Keeper)–Trunk keepers are lovely ladies who bring MJC samples to Trunk Shows, order your lovely MJC items, and offer personal shopping assistance (what to pair with which items…how to wear things) as needed! They’re like drug dealers for the boutique clothing addicted
• Trunk show–Trunk shows are social gatherings in which MJC clothing are displayed so you can come and see all their wonderful detailsThe Trunk Keeper for your local area will come and set up a little shop in your house and people can stop by, take a peeksie at the lovely clothes and get the TK’s personal shopping help selecting and coordinating items.
• Plat–short for Platinum
• Catching Plat–catching an upload of Platinum items, which usually sell out in minutes or seconds
• F5′ing–using F5 to refresh the platinum site page in order to catch an upload…sometimes for hours on end
• Ellies, knots, peasants, shorties, ruffles–these are some staples of MJC design–ellies are halter style tops or dresses, knots are jumper style dresses that knot in the front through button holes, peasants are short or long sleeved dresses or tops reminiscent of 70′s designs, shorties are shorts (usually with ruffles at the hem…and usually a HOT item), ruffles generally refers to wider legged pants with wide ruffles at the hem.
• Art Fair–A big party MJC hosts every June at the MJC headquarters in Fort Wayne, IN…MJC lovers from around the country gather for a pre-party, festivities, socialization, and a day of exclusive shopping!
• IRL-In real life–photos of a dress or item worn
• NFS-Not for sale/FS-For sale
• EUC, VGUC, GC, Play-commonly used acronyms for the condition of items being resold (Excellent used condition, very good used condition, good condition, play)
• Shopping accounts-Many mommies will create facebook profiles specifically for shopping, buying and selling clothing in order to keep their shopping lives separate from their personal livesFor this reason you may see some funky profile names.

Where to sell

• MJ Addicts is generally the best place to buy/sell/trade your items. It’s a secret and closed group so you will need to ask a friend who is already in the group to add you to it (if you’re a client, you’re always welcome to be my friend!)…once an admin reviews the request, you’ll see the group listed on the left hand bar of your Facebook home bar. Once accepted into the inner sanctum of the MJ worldjust post a photo to the group and people will comment on it or message you for more details. If you’d like another outlet for your selling you can also try Matilda Jane Mania (this is a closed group…but not a secret group, so you should be able to request to join the group up at the top right hand corner and once an admin reviews your request, you’ll see the group listed on the left hand bar of your Facebook home bar)–most people on Addicts also frequent the Mania group, but often people have one preferred group that they visit more frequently.  The Addicts group moves *super* fast (I wouldn’t be surprised if they average several hundred posts on their board a day) so be prepared to be overwhelmed!
• You could also try ebay or creating a public For Sale album on your Facebook page.

Where to buy

• New regular line items must be purchased through a Trunk Keeper/Trunk show except during the rare sale. New Platinum items are purchased online at http://www.matildajaneplatinum.com/
• Used items can be bought or traded on resale boards such as Addicts.

Where to identify items

• MJC lookbooks is your go to source! Lookbooks has many, many albums documenting both regular line and Platinum items. The MJC website may also help with identifying regular line items.

Approximate resale values (depending on condition, of course)

• Platinum: 50-300% (or more!) In general a good piece of  Plat will resell for about 75% of its retail value after being worn as long as it is in good condition…it is not unusual for HOT platinum items (and many Art Fair items) that are highly sought after to retail for double or triple (or more!) the retail price even after being worn.
• Regular line: 50-125% In general, most regular line pieces with resell for about 50-75% of their retail value after being worn as long as they are in good condition. Harder to find items (items that sold out quickly or were exclusive to Jane’s

An Invite!

I love to share things I love…so it is only natural for me to share my love of MJC with you all! Thus, I’m hosting a Matilda Jane Trunk show Saturday August 18, 2012 at 10:30 am (send me an email at whimsyandstyle@gmail.com if you’d like more details!)…those purchasing an outfit at the show will receive an invite to my exclusive We Love Our MJC mini sessions (see details below)….just take a peek at some of the awesomeness to come from Spring’s Serendipity We Love Our MJC minis:

 

A few of my favorites!

 

How the Trunk Show works:

If you happen to be in the Bryan College Station area, come check out the amazing clothes, sip on some mimosas and snack on some goodies August 18th…we’ll be here from 10:30am to about 12:30pm but shows are come and go style so you can come, shop, eat, and go as you please–no need to stay for the full duration of the show. Feel free to bring the children and kiddos…or leave them at home so you can shop in peace Our Trunk Keeper will be on hand to help you with sizing, selections, and purchasing and offer her expert personal shopping helpThe specialness of MJC clothing really needs to be felt, touched, and experienced if you’re a first time shopper, so dropping by the trunk show is highly encouraged if you’re in the Bryan College Station area!

Orders generally take about 2-3 weeks to arrive at my Bryan College Station doorstep and once they do I’ll drop them off for you/mail them out to you in the Bryan College Station area/you can pick them up as needed.

Shoot me an email at whimsyandstyle@gmail.com if you’d like more details!

THIS SHOW IS ON TAX-FREE WEEKEND SO YOUR PRETTY CLOTHES WILL BE TAX FREE!!!!

Can’t make the show?

Don’t cryThough we’d love to see you and love for you to see the wonder of MJC in person, you can still order even if you aren’t able to make the show. Just hop onto the Matilda Jane anytime after the first release of the Character Counts collection on August 15 and take a looksie at what’s available. Add items to your wishlist as needed and email your wishlist to kristis@matildajaneclothing.com and whimsyandstyle@gmail.com Be sure to provide your phone number–our Trunk Keeper will give you a ring a ding ding sometime during the show hours to help you tweak your list, make sizing selections, and finalize your order.

How the We Love Our MJC minis work:

• Shortly after the show I’ll send out emails with the when and where of the mini sessions along with several possible time slots and booking. They will be in early September, probably the second and third weekends.  Time slots will be available on a first come, first serve basis
• About one to two weeks after our session I will post a gallery of your lightly edited images to a password protected page blog–you will have your choice of two complimentary images for each girl outfitted in a MJC outfit purchased at my Aug 18 show (e.g., 2 girls in MJC from my show = 4 complimentary images). If you’d like to purchase additional images, you will have the option to do so. Once you make your selections or upgrade I’ll complete final edits on your photos and send them off to you!
• If you are a fellow photographer, we can do some Mommy & Me photos rather than photos of just the kiddos–’cause I know from experience that’s probably what you need!

A few of my other favorites that scream to be photographed:

• Anthropologie (for the mommies!)
• The Measure
• Persnickety
• Joyfolie
• Livie and Luca
• Tickled Pink Girls
• Edens Bouquet
• A.Bird
• Isadora
• Little Wellies
• Oh Fiddlesticks
• Faith Works 4U
• Pipsqueak Couture