Sarah Vain and Tall

Hi everyone,

Well, this is a difficult post to write, and I’ve been putting it off for far too long.

You’ve all been immensely supportive of Sarah Vain and Tall in the first year.  Can I just say that first?  OK, good.

The first year is always the most risky time for a business.  Unfortunately for me, SVT launched in a time of massive economic upheaval.  I was trying to make ethically sewn, great quality, locally sourced garments.  Then the Aussie dollar soared, putting costs up and making all Australian garments more expensive overseas.  In addition, lots of people got very careful about their spending.

That’s cool — these things happen.  But the numbers aren’t working out.

I’m so sorry that this didn’t work.  I can’t tell you how much it’s meant to me to have had the support of so many amazing people.  You guys rock.

Rather than close outright, I’m going to put the items we already have on sale, and then put SVT on hiatus.  It may be possible to try again, I don’t know: basically, if I bring SVT back it will need to be at a cheaper price point and there’s a lot of logistics and a lot more fundraising to do before that’s possible.

If you would still like to buy any of the pieces in the first collection, you can grab an incredible and certainly not to be repeated bargain over in the store.  I have priced them all at 50% or less of retail.  That’s a massive discount on the Betty dress in particular, originally $240 and now $100, which would be perfect for summer.

My love and thanks to you all.  It’s been a wild ride, I hope we can do it again some time.

xxxx

Anne Shea

Owner, manager, Facebook wrangler and chief dogsbody

Sarah Vain and Tall.

Hey everyone, I have some good news for you all.

As you can see with that great big ‘under construction’ notice in the FAQ, it’s taking a little time to figure out exactly how I can be the best I possibly can for all you fabulous tall girls.  Such is life with an entirely new business.

One of the biggest sticking point has been shipping. It costs a lot.  It’s hard to estimate. And worst of all, since new customs regs came in, some countries now have a new $9 fee that I, and therefore you, have to pay on top of basic shipping.  (US citizens, this is a good reason to care about your new airport security regs!!)

So in December I’m going to try out something a bit crazy and just see if it works. Shipping for free.  Why not.  It’s my Christmas present to you.  Buy yourself a cute Christmas party dress and I’ll send it to you, wherever you are, free.  If this works (that is, if the balance stays on the side of real buyers and not just nuisance purchases), I’ll extend it and we will forever remain a fabulous, free shipper.  Wouldn’t that be great?

As always, if it doesn’t fit, send it back and I’ll post a replacement out free of charge.

Follow this link to the store and find yourself something fabulous for the holidays — items posted now will reach most international destinations by around the 12th Dec.  Aussie purchases will be sent Express Post.

xxx  and happy shopping!

no, not THAT Vain.  I don’t even own that much hair product.

Usually the emails and comments I get are lovely, positive things.  They say,  ‘I like what you’re doing!’! or  ‘Good on you for this, we need it!’

I’m not mentioning this because I think everybody loves me: most people who don’t like what they see, quickly move on without engaging.  It’s only those who like Sarah Vain and Tall that leave any comments.

That’s why I am grateful and surprised that someone who disagrees with what I’m doing, went to the effort of telling me why.

I think the name is a bit unfortunate. The word “vain” conjures up a whole lot of negativity. We tall girls need all the positivity we can get…

You know what?  My Mum doesn’t like the name, either!  She’s not a particularly religious woman, nevertheless, Mum wishes I’d chosen something else.

Here’s where it gets interesting though: I don’t think it’s good to be vain.   I hope I’m not and I don’t suffer people who are.

Why, then, the name?

First up: my competitors’ names are mostly pretty much the same.  Height this, tall that, something about legs.   I wanted to stand out — if you think my name sucks, you’ll probably still remember it!!

Second, and more important: all those weird misconceptions about tall girls.  We’re undateable.  We think we’re prettier than other girls.  We’re unfeminine.  We’re genetically gifted and look down on other people.  We’re awkward.  We’re models.  We’re huge.  We’re stick figures … hang on, is this making ANY sense?  It’s all a load of … you get the idea.  And it bugs me because we can’t even dress like the ‘vain’ catwalk models we’re supposed to be.

(By the way — most of the models I’ve met have been far from stuck up.  If you want to feel superior to the rest of the world, becoming a human pin cushion, squeezing into shoes two sizes too small, and changing in front of a room full of people wondering out loud if your body shape “can be made to work” is probably not your best move).

My husband and I were playing around with puns and he came up with a fun take on the book title, Sarah Plain and Tall.  It’s an ode to all the crazy hypocrisy, and tells you what I’m about: awesome and interesting clothing — something you could feel vain in, if you wanted to.

So ‘Vain’ seemed, and seems to me, to be absolutely perfect for this shop.

But what do you think?  Am I nuts?  Do you cringe every time you see my logo?  Now I’m interested!

Hey, look up.  See that tab?  The one that says ‘Store’?

You can click on that tab, and buy a fabulous, long sleeve, tall-as-they-come wrap dress.  It’s called the Kenya Wrap: congratulations to the winner of our contest, Melissa.  Melissa, send me your snail mail address and your size!

Praise must also go to Webmaster Evan, who has worked all weekend to get the store and payment channels working and looking slick.  I think he did an amazing job, don’t you?

There’s even an extra bonus — a pre-order of the next dress — but I’m not going to show you, you’ll have to visit the store!

OK, ladies, it’s business time!  Final shots from last Saturday’s shoot are in and I am SO, SO proud to show you the first image.  This is the beautiful 6’0″ Ebony, wearing the first ever Sarah Vain and Tall dress.  I love it so much — and so does Ebony, who spent the whole shoot playing with those extra long, super soft sleeves!    But it needs a name.

So here’s my plan — name this dress for the chance to win it.  All you have to do is  either become a Facebook fan of Sarah Vain and Tall, OR sign up to our monthly newsletter (there’s a box at the top of this page, in the right hand corner).  If you’re already signed up, no need to do so again.

Then, leave your name idea in the comments section below.  We’ll choose the top 5 entries and then everyone can vote — the winner will receive this dress in their choice of size when it’s released in early November.  Does that sound like something you might be interested in?  Then get your animal on and name this dress!

Competition closes (and voting opens) Friday, 29 October. Competition is now closed — vote for your favorite by following this link.

wOOt!  Sarah has her very own Facebook fan page!  Join the (very small as yet) legions of fans here for progress updates and (eventually) advance notice of new stock.  I’ll also use it to share cool stuff from elsewhere on the tall-web.  Because I care ^_^