Just Say No to Old Navy?

Let’s talk about Old Navy today, shall we?

I can still remember when I first had regular access to an Old Navy.  Back then, it was a treat and a thrill to have a new mall store filled with cute clothes that I could afford on my modest paycheck.  I was working in the one-hour photo section at Target during the summer before college.  My mornings were spent at the store, feeding film through that giant machine and retrieving orders for customers.  It was easy work, but damn, it was boring.  Being able to browse Old Navy after work made life happier.

As a teenager, I thought Old Navy was great.  Good quality, good prices, the thrill of spending my own money on stuff for me—what’s not to love?  I even still have a jacket I bought from them, a light blue (and slightly too big for me) windbreaker/raincoat that I wear when it’s raining and I want some protection.  My favorite thing about that coat is that it’s lined with super soft grey fleece.  Looking back, it seems that fleecy apparel was one of Old Navy’s signature categories, and oh, how lovely and warm it was!

{10+ years together!  Quality!}

I shopped at Old Navy on and off through college.  In grad school, I discovered the Gap, which happened to be in downtown Evanston and approximately halfway between the lab and home.  Gap and I quickly became best friends.  I discovered that I love their sweaters, and they make great jeans to fit my curves.  I do get my jeans hemmed by a professional, but at my height (5’1”), that’s to be expected.

Living in the Chicago area for graduate school, I still shopped a bit at Old Navy, especially at the impressive multi-story location in downtown Chicago.  (It seems that since I left Chicago, the State Street Old Navy has moved into the old Borders building…and people are NOT HAPPY.  Yikes.)  Anyways, once Gap became a more convenient shopping destination, my Old Navy habit tapered to a minimum.

Then I moved to Texas, and my shopping options changed dramatically.  No more local Ann Taylor Loft, and my local Gap closed not long after I arrived.  So sad.  So what’s left here?  Old Navy, Target, Kohl’s, and for secondhand options, Plato’s Closet.  There are other stores, of course, but those are my main squeezes.

Here’s my question for you: has Old Navy’s quality really declined since I started shopping there in high school?  Or is this a figment of people’s imagination?  Reading style blogs and people’s commentary on quality has got me wondering (and worrying!) about shopping there.  I was in the store a few weeks ago and found a beautiful coral sundress on sale for $10.99.  When I felt the thin (and snaggable?) fabric, I thought, This isn’t going to last.  And when I tried on three tops from the clearance rack, I couldn’t bring myself to buy any of them because I got paranoid about buying cheap clothing.

And yet… 

I bought this pink top last summer from Old Navy and love it so much.  A short-sleeved pink top is a closet staple for me, and I’d been without one for too long.  Feeling a bit desperate, when I found this one for $6, I decided that if it only lasted the summer, I was okay with that.  It’s lasted me almost a year, and I still love it.

And then there’s my denim pencil skirt.

 {Sorry this photo is kinda fuzzy!  Cameras, how do they work?!}

I bought this one while shopping with my sister in December 2011.  She had given me an Old Navy Groupon for Christmas (yay!), and we went shopping for gifts and for ourselves.  I wear this skirt a lot in the warmer months, and it’s pretty easy to ride my bike while wearing it.  Quality-wise, I’m very happy—I imagine this skirt will last for several years, and it fits really well.

I suppose my shopping method at Old Navy is mixed: I either embrace the “this might not last” mentality (as with the pink shirt), or I can see and feel that the quality is good (as with the denim skirt).  But I wish I could shake the feeling of paranoia that other blogs have instilled in me!  It’s kind of unfair, the way that a negative feeling can dominate your experiences.  I haven’t told you at all about the mistakes I’ve made at Old Navy—buying ill-fitting jeans, for example—but it doesn’t seem fair to blame the store or the brand for that.

This post was a bit of a ramble, but I think that’s how it goes sometimes with thoughtful consumerism.  So now I ask you: what’s been your experience with Old Navy?  Do you like shopping there?  Or do you avoid it at all costs?