If you aren't interested in female fashion in any way, please look away now: this review is going to get super girlie/ style geeky.
As much as I love cute fashion (hint: it's a lot), I am also a lazy, lazy person and love shopping for fashion whilst in my pj's in bed even more. The inevitable result is that I actually physically visit fewer and fewer boutiques and stores in real life.
The Birdcage is one of the few boutiques I will actually get out of bed for. And here's why (oooh, I feel a list coming on...)
1. It's around the corner from where I live. So while I *do* have to change out my pyjamas, I don't have to put in too much effort to get there.
2. The act of browsing there is enjoyable. The smallish space has personality, with vintage trinkets and boudoir styling to offset the racks and racks of fashion, as well as spacious change rooms. The visual merchandising works really well - they even organise product by hue which I really dig.
3. The sale rack is ever present out the front. What girl doesn't love a bargain?
4. The prices. Falling somewhere in between fast fashion prices and higher end boutiques, you can easily walk in with $50 and walk out with a gorgeous little summer top, or spend $450 on a splurge piece. I'd say median prices are around the $150 mark and the quality in my experience has been really good (but of course that will depend on label).
5. The labels. It's a well curated selection of both local and national labels, from SA locals to Australoid bigwigs, it's an aesthetically cohesive range that fits somewhere between out and out girlie and on trend. Cameo, Finders Keepers, Keepsake are all stocked here, to name a few. Lots of whimsy going on with short skater skirts and shades that gently meander from cream to pale blue, with the occasional party piece thrown in.
6. Lover. This cult Aussie label is A BIG DEAL to stock. While Lover pieces stocked at the Birdcage are few and far between, it is one of the only places in Adelaide (I think Whistles also stock select pieces but I could be wrong...) to nab yourself a piece or simply ogle it in real life. As a HUGE Lover fan this is a massive selling point for me. read more