We just got back from a six day stay in Miami Beach and no, we didn't go there for a vacation. Husband and I went to Miami as a starting point of our "Need to move out of NY or die trying" tour. Since I'm a sick perfectionist in everything except housework, I'm sure finding just the right place to move will not be simple, but we decided to start with the warm places and move down the list. Anyhow, I won't bore you with all the particulars of our South Florida research. This post is dedicated solely to the Anthropologie store in Miami Beach. Funny enough, I wasn't even planing on looking for Anthropologie in Miami. It just wasn't on my "to do" list. My husband however was looking up local stores on the web and, bless his soul, looked up Anthropologie of his own accord. Turned out it was a seven minute drive from where we were staying. Naturally I was excited since I've never lived in such close proximity to Anthropologie.
The Anthropologie of Miami Beach had the familiar look, smell and sound, but it was like no Anthropologie I knew before.
There were no herds of frenzied shoppers (off season, I suppose). At any given point there were at most 6 ladies in the store which coming from NY made me feel like I had the whole place to my self. The salesgirls didn't look harassed. They were not running in five different directions with piles of clothes draped over their arms like the salesgirls in NY. They were leisurely folding frilly underwear and chatting amongst themselves (Can I get a job application please?!). I got out out my camera to take a few shots of the decor. Apparently hay is the newest thing in home decorating. Very economical too.
After I took a couple of shot one of the salesgirls approached me. She told me they don't allow picture taking in the store. I found this a bit weird since I've taken pictures in NY stores plenty of times before and no one ever seemed to mind. I asked her if it was an official store policy and she said yes. Why? Because Anthropology doesn't advertise, was her reply.
I could have told her that. What does advertising have to do with gushing? Somehow I've got the notion that Anthropologie doesn't object much to myself and like minded individuals gushing about how great it is, just according to this salesgirl the gushing cannot be supported by visuals (which I believe it absolutely must be). And so there you have it. Don't even think about giving Anthropologie free PR, they will not stand for it!
The first story in the catalog looks like it might have been shot at the Guggenheim of Bilbao, though I'm not sure. On one hand, what kind of a catalog budget would Anthropologie need to have to shoot it in Spain? On the other hand they did shoot the March and April catalogs in Morocco so I wouldn't put it past them . If someone can positively identify this building, I'd really love to know. 
The second story's got some gorgeous clothes, oh and I do love the look of wheat fields. Elegant meets wholesome.
I don't know why this outfit made it into the catalog. She looks like she raided her grandfather's closet.
Ever read about color therapy? There should be a study made about Anthropologie therapy. Women go to Anthropologie for therapeutic reasons and husbands need therapy when they see the credit card bill.
