Mamatoga Style Thursdays: Racetrack Fashion

Earlier this week, MamatogaJulie and I took a little stroll down Broadway at the leisurely pace one can only take while walking with four kids aged 5 and under in search of some downtown shops offering great dresses and hats to sport at the track. Our first stop was in Violet's at 494 Broadway, which was packed due to their fantastic buy one get one free sandal sale, but I managed to get in and snap a few pics of a couple of great items. First I saw this great black hat, made by the San Diego Hat Company, which looks like it could go with almost anything. With a very wide, swooping brim it'll give you plenty of portable shade and also will assure you plenty of personal space in the crowds of the Clubhouse! I'm all for big hats though, if you're going to wear a hat at the track, you might as well go all out. This hat is a great deal at $60, and by pairing it with a bunch of different dresses, you can get a lot of use out of it, it would also make a great hat to wear at polo after the track! While I was at Violet's I also saw this fantastic maxi dress by one of my favorite dress designers, French Connection. I have about ten French Connection dresses in my closet right now, all purchased at Violet's (a couple during some of their amazing dress sales!) and I love every one of them. So far though I don't have a maxi dress by them, and I might have to buy this pretty pink one, which I think would also look great with the San Diego Hat Company hat!

Our next stop was Clothes Line of Saratoga, located at 486 Broadway. They also had a number of different dresses to offer in all kinds of styles, long and short, dressy and more casual. What caught my eye was a twist on a little black dress by Ariella, strapless with thin white stripes going down the dress accentuating the A-line cut, which is a flattering cut for just about any shape. The other items that I really loved were these little headband fascinator hats. I've always loved fascinator hats, especially after watching so many on the heads of guests at the Royal Wedding this spring. I'm not saying you need to go as far as some guests, but these little headbands by Scala are just the right size, and the right price ($25-$30) to make a sophisticated statement at the track. You can count on the very friendly staff at Clothes Line to help you find just the right style for you, and stay tuned to our Style Thursday section for an upcoming feature on the shop that will be chock full of pictures of their fantastic swimsuit selection and their great lingerie (including Spanx!) as well.

Our final stop, made before the clouds opened up and poured rain on us, was at Piper Boutique, a relatively new shop located at 441 Broadway. This shop has a very chic and modern feel, and wouldn't seem out of place in downtown Manhattan. The very attentive and stylish young staff was excited to show me a few of the dresses they had to offer from a collection that ranged from casual to dressy with something for everyone. The first dress that I liked was a more casual style, but one that could easily be dressed up with a great pair of heels and some bold jewelry. The colors made it really eye catching, and I liked the idea of having a dress I could wear with flip flops to the Farmer's Market and then out to Siro's after the track with my favorite pair of gold heels and Hermes bracelet. The girls at Piper told me that they really try to keep the price points in an affordable range, and this rainbow striped dress is definitely in the affordable range at $52. I fell in love with another strapless dress they had there which also stood out because of the great colors in it, this one is definitely dressier, and would look great at Turf Terrace picking ponies or or at a charity benefit in town. I fully expected this Ark & Co. dress to be more than $86 and with prices like that you can afford to pick up a couple pieces of jewelry they also offer in the shop. I highly recommend liking their facebook page, as they offer special one day only deals to their facebook fans like %10 off or a deep discount on styles they currently offer, but you have to be a fan and see it that day to get the discount! I'm kicking myself for not liking the page sooner now that I'm looking at some of their past facebook deals. We're also going to be doing a feature on this shop in the future too, as they had a ton of other stuff I fell in love with.

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With all of these selections I'm sure you can find something to look and feel great in while out and about this summer in Saratoga, and keep in mind that these hats and dresses are just a very small slice of what these shops have to offer. As I said, stay tuned for featured posts on these shops and the great finds and deals they have to offer. I'm also going to keep my eyes peeled this summer for stylish women around town for my Saratoga Style on the Street posts so if you're looking fantastic and some stranger comes up to you to ask if they can take a picture of your dress, don't be alarmed, it's only me! It's even better if what you're wearing is from one of the great downtown shops we have to choose from!