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Pier 1’s Big on Clothes, Accessories

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TIMES STAFF WRITERS

DEAR HOT SHOPPERS: We breezed into Pier 1 Imports the other day to pick up a basket but got completely sidetracked by the store’s amazingly affordable collection of clothes and accessories.

Pier 1 has been expanding its clothing line for some time, and our recent trip turned up great buys, like the beaded belt adorned with tiny carved wooden animals ($14.99, pictured) and a bright-red straw handbag ($9.99, also pictured). A friend pointed out that the handbag could easily double as a tortilla warmer.

There are also straw hats ($11.99), ornamental buttons ($14.99) and fabric-covered headbands ($4.99) that we’ve found for far more at department stores.

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We never did get the basket.

DEAR HOT: I read your item about Loehmann’s recently, and it reminded me that I really despise those “open” dressing rooms. Every time I try something on, someone invariably makes a comment, and it’s not always a nice one. Is there some way I can tell a fellow shopper to mind her own business?

MISS STEIN SUGGESTS: I’m not a big fan of open dressing rooms either, and it’s not just because I have to expose my cellulite to the world under fluorescent lights. Some women just can’t stop themselves from saying something about what you’re trying on. And although at times the comments are unsolicited and unwelcome, I have to admit that on occasion the advice has been valuable, especially when I’ve been indecisive about, say, a lime-green mini sarong skirt. But if you want to discourage communication, just smile and say a quick “thanks” when a comment is offered. Don’t engage in conversation, but don’t be rude. Just because you’re in your skivvies doesn’t mean you can’t be civil.

MISS KRIER ADDS: In all my shopping days, I have never experienced unsolicited advice pouring forth from community dressing rooms. I suspect it’s because their general ambience is so dismal that upon entering, I immediately become an ultra-focused Ninja shopper. I get in, try stuff on fast and get out--attempting to not even glance in the direction of my own or anybody else’s cellulite. No one mistakes me for a customer remotely interested in a second opinion.

DEAR HOT: I know this is a sacrilege in the non-plastic ‘90s, but I want to find a good-looking vinyl handbag. Do you know if anybody makes them?

DEAR HOT SHOPPER: Vinyl or plasticized canvas has actually become quite acceptable in the world of upscale designer handbags in recent years. The material is usually discreetly referred to as “treated canvas” or some other euphemism. But some manufacturers use the word vinyl. We particularly like the looks of the vinyl bags in the America by Perry Ellis line, priced from about $30 to $65, carried at The Broadway and Robinson’s.

The vinyl in these bags feels and looks remarkably like leather but, unlike leather, you can really bang these suckers around without instantly wrecking them. And if you get caught in the rain (something Californians suddenly have to be concerned about), your petrochemical purse won’t necessarily be ruined for life.

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Sick of all the psychedelic nostalgia? Ready to dump even that original Pucci nightie you hung onto for 20 years? Hot to Shop is based on conversations and reader mail. Write to Krier and Stein, Hot to Shop, The Times, Los Angeles, Calif. 90053. Questions may also be faxed to (213) 237-4712.

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