Fresh Produce Blog

A few months ago we introduced the new Mary Ellen Collection - A happy little exclamation point in the life of Fresh Produce. It’s a hit so far and now we’ve revamped the website so you can buy the fabulous frocks online! The new maryellenclothing.com is ALIVE! You can now purchase the inaugural collection from your laptop. In addition to shopping (which, let’s face it, is most important!), you can also learn more about the line, the distinguished featured models, ME’s clever “bike-test”, sign up for fan emails and find a list of stores where you can try dresses in person! We know you’ll love ME as much as we do. Happy Trails!

Happy Birthday ME! Mary Ellen’s birthday was on Wednesday, so we thought it only appropriate to wear some Fresh Produce or pieces from the Mary Ellen clothing line (in stores now!) Have a looksie…fresh-E

Tony and Wilma Burton opened the doors Citrus Punch Designs for the first time April 30, 2007. Tony who is an Interior Designer, and Wilma an Emmy winner television producer/writer who decided to leave behind their positions in the corporate world, went and opened a boutique dedicated to women in search of comfortable long-lasting clothes they can wear in their everyday colorful lives.

At first their families thought they were going to sell vegetables: “Fresh Produce? You mean vegetables?” “No! We meant a colorful comfortable clothing line named Fresh Produce!”

The name Citrus Punch came from the couple’s love and pride of Riverside, and is in honor of the Citrus Industry that originated in Riverside, CA (it was not Florida, like most people think!)

Citrus Punch Designs is a very colorful place in oranges and yellow tones, “it does feel fresh,” customers say from the moment they walk in. The wall colors give that fresh feeling of nature, and the décor with citrus including limes, lemons and oranges emphasizes that feeling along with the smell of citrus.

Outside the store they display a giant orange welcoming visitors to Riverside. It looks heavy, but in fact is very light in fiber glass allowing us to roll it in and out everyday. So they created a slogan:

“When the Big Orange is Out We Are IN!”

Bringing Fresh Produce to the city of Riverside was very exciting news for those Fresh Produce customers who needed to travel more than an hour to get to the nearest boutique carrying the brand. Now with Fresh Produce in town there is a sense of pride among those customers who appreciate having their own fresh produce boutique in the heart of downtown Riverside. In less than a year the boutique has become an inland destination for all women seeking the line.

Citrus Punch is a Fresh Produce dealer with about 85% of its inventory dedicated to this line (They have been told they have one of the largest selections in the area.) Citrus Punch has become a favorite boutique for many in town, in part, blame their customer service. You will always be welcomed with a smile and provided with the assistance you deserve, for those who rather be on their own, they give customers their space and privacy.

This year the City of Riverside asked Citrus Punch to dress all the candidates for the Miss Riverside Pageant in Fresh Produce. The candidates were very excited about the line great style, colors and amazing selection to choose from. The event was great exposure for the shop and a wonderful experience for us and the candidates.

Tony and Wilma are public service oriented people who devote their time and efforts in making a difference in their community. Citrus Punch Designs has become a vehicle for the couple to help organizations and non-profit groups that serve those in need. Currently, Citrus Punch is raising funds for the new Riverside Humane Society Pet Adoption Center. Their most recent public service campaign: “Lemon Aid” for the Animals was very successful, giving bags of lemons for every donation.

For more information about Citrus Punch Designs you can call the shop at 951-682-2477

Or go ahead and visit the website! CitrusPunchDesigns.com

Find out if you are near Citrus Punch Designs by visiting the Fresh Produce Store Locater

Starting this Friday, Fresh Produce will be having a warehouse sale! This weekend and next, you’ll be able to buy the same FP apparel you know and love, love, love - but at a fraction of what you’d normally pay…interested?

Here are the details…

2 weekends!
May 16 - 18 and May 23 - 26

Friday and Saturday, 10am-9pm
Sunday (and Monday, Memorial Day) 11am-6pm

The Village at FlatIron Crossing Mall
Off Hwy. 36 just west of Superior
One West Flatiron Circle
Broomfield, CO 80021
Located In the Village between Crate and Barrel and AMC Theatres

Hope to see you there!
~freshE

We here at Fresh Produce just love our Extra Fresh gals! Our plus size women know exactly what they want, and look fabulous in all our prints, colors, and styles. That’s why we created Extra Fresh sizes over 5 years ago. Extra Fresh are our regular wonderful Fresh Produce styles with just a smidgen more room, and all the fun, fresh feel that we are known for. You can buy it here, at Extra Fresh Produce clothing.

When it comes to our wonderful Extra Freshies, we know there are challenges when it comes to finding great fashion for all sizes. So we are here to help!

• Elongate those fabulous legs with some vertical striping! We have a beautiful color palette perfect for summer with our Blue Waters Stripe Jersey Short in Orchid, Tahiti, White, and our pink Confetti.

• Or if you’re looking to get very feminine this summer, try out a wonderful frilly skirt, to create a hourglass figure that compliments your top! Our Summer Swirls Jersey Double Flounce Skirt does a perfect job at adding fun frills, shape, and a simple playful flower print!

• One of the most flattering shapes and silhouettes you can create is an elongated line with a wonderful pretty dress. Our Extra Fresh dresses are so versatile, they are beautiful enough to wear with a cardigan or shawl to dinner, or even use as a cover-up on those beautiful days near a pool or beach! Try our playful Island Hopper print on the Island Hopper V-Neck Beach Dress for a warm casual night out, or our classic screenprinted Short Sleeve Dress for a colorful cover-up. Or even vice versa!

Don’t forget your coral colored Bright Stripe Tote beach bag, for your towel and Popsicles!

If you’re interested in learning more fashion tips (for any size), or about the Plus Size community, here are some fabulous blogs we love to read and check out!

The Pretty Pear

Diana Rajchel’s Fat Chic

About: Plus Size Fashion

The Budget Fashionista

Beauty Plus Power

Fashion Beyond Sample Sizes! - TFF

Hope to see you at Extra Fresh Produce clothing soon!

- fpHoneyB

Yesterday fresh-E and I participated in a Macerich Centers-sponsored nationwide Step Out, Step Up volunteer event to support the Step Up Women’s Network. The event gathered volunteers from local communities across the country to stuff more than 30,000 wellness bags for women cancer patients. Retailers from Twenty Ninth Street and Flatiron Crossing (the home of this year’s big FP Warehouse Sale) donated goods and services to be included in the gift bags. Fresh Produce donated 600 deliciously soft Cozy Robe bath robes, complete with FP employee hand-written notes. There were so many nice women gathered to stuff bags that we finished in record time, which meant all the more opportunity to enjoy the other fun stuff provided by participating retailers, like makeovers from MAC and yoga demonstrations by Lululemon!

All in all it was a successful event and a great way to spend just 2 hours of our time making a difference in the community. We feel good about working with companies like Macerich that go the extra mile to help out in the communities where they do business (we have stores in 2 Macerich centers - FP Gilbert and FP Scottsdale). The wellness bags will be distributed through a partnership with local affiliates of Susan G. Komen for the Cure and the American Cancer Society just in time for Mother’s Day this weekend. We surely hope the goodies and well wishes bring some smiles to their recipients. Be well.

…and sometimes when you leap, you soar. Meet the ME Collection. A happy little exclamation point in the life of Fresh Produce.

Each ME piece is a little beach, a little chic - with the rosy outlook of designer and FP founder Mary Ellen Vernon stitched right in. It’s a handful of fabulous fabrics, delicious colors and prints, and cuts ranging from flirty to fashion-forward; yet each piece is bike-tested for blissful cruising. Happy trails!

Now available in these premium Fresh Produce locations.
Boulder / 1218 Pearl Street / 303.442.7507
Charleston / The Shops at Charleston Place / 843.724.5144
Coconut Point / 23161 Fashion Drive / 239.390.9696
Ft. Lauderdale / 912 E Las Olas / 954.463.8131
Gilbert / SanTan Village / 480.855.1035
La Jolla / 1147 Prospect / 858.456.8134
Naples / 691 Fifth Avenue South / 239.434.5654
Norcross / The Forum on Peachtree Parkway / 678.966.0056
Palm Desert / The Gardens on El Paseo / 760.568.5250
Sanibel Island / 2075 Periwinkle Way / 239.395.1839
West Palm Beach / The Palladium at City Place / 561.655.3944

Available to purchase online in May.
Patience is a virtue, right?

www.maryellenclothing.com

Have a peek at the launch party held in our Boulder store this week.
Enjoy fresh-E

Introducing the ME Collection!

A little happy exclamation point in the
life of Fresh Produce!

Mary Ellen, giving us the preview!

More great stuff…love those colors!!!

Some of the design crew.

Boulder FP girls…Jen and Gail wearing ME.

Mike and Shyla, sporting her new ME tie dress…so cute!

Fresh Produce Sportswear is pleased to announce their participation in Boulder Shares, a humanitarian aid relief trip to El Salvador under the guidance of Airline Ambassadors, a non-profit organization affiliated with the United Nations that provides a way for individuals to participate and contribute to humanitarian relief and development projects.  The Boulder Shares event brings together a group of Boulder area companies including Fresh Produce, Croc’s, Wallaroo Hats, OneWorld Running Company, Page Two and Instant Imprints to deliver goods to individuals and families in need.  Under the leadership of William Dise, regional director for Airline Ambassadors, the 3-day relief mission will visit two villages and orphanages in two days, supplying men, women and children with new clothes, toys and other vital necessities for health, nutrition and hygiene. At the invitation of El Salvador’s First Lady, Ana Ligia Mixco de Saca, the Boulder Shares mission trip will take place February 27^th – March 1^st.  Donations made by Boulder Shares participants will be shipped to El Salvador by American Airlines.   Mission participants, including representatives from some of the participating businesses, will distribute donated goods from Boulder including clothes, shoes, hats, toys, powdered milk, hygiene and newborn kits, strollers and more.

Fresh Produce Sportswear is pleased to provide vibrant, colorful Fresh Produce clothing for women and children. The company aspires to spread color, comfort and hope to those in need, something that Fresh Produce owners Thom and Mary Ellen Vernon have made an integral part of their company culture.  Explains Mary Ellen: “We have seen firsthand what a positive impact something a simple as receiving a new shirt or dress can make on a women or child who has so little to call their own.  As an apparel company, this is something that just makes sense for us to do and we are delighted to work with Airline Ambassadors, and the other participating businesses in Boulder to make it happen.”  Donated goods also include colorful footwear from Crocs and protective sunhats from Wallaroo.

Additionally, Boulder Country Day School has coordinated a drive for toy cars, Beanie Babies and gently used Umbrella Strollers. Broomfield High School has donated sneakers and athletic shoes collected in a recent shoe drive, and a Longmont family has generously purchased new umbrella strollers and helped procure other items. 

About Airline Ambassadors

Airline Ambassadors International is a non-profit organization affiliated with the United Nations and recognized by the US Congress. It began as a network of airline employees using their pass privileges to help others and has expanded into a network of students, medical professionals, families and retirees who volunteer as “Ambassadors of Goodwill” in their home communities and abroad.   AAI provides humanitarian aid to children and families in need as well as relief and development to under-privileged communities worldwide. Airline Ambassadors provides travel escorts for children in need, hand-delivers humanitarian aid to orphanages, clinics, and remote communities, raises public awareness and involves youth in humanitarian efforts around the world. Inspired by the UN Millennium Development Goals, AAI provides a way for individual travelers to participate and contribute to humanitarian relief and development projects worldwide. By partnering with non-governmental organizations (NGO’s), schools, churches and civil society, AAI works with governments and leverages contacts with the travel industry to match world resource to world need. Thousands of our members volunteer their skills, time, finances and effort to become a direct link, providing humanitarian aid, tangible care and goodwill services, spanning countries and cultures throughout the globe.

 
FP beach party with Airline Ambassador Founder
and President Nancy Rivard

FP Beach hat

So excited, she’s wearing 2 dresses!

Brand new FP clothing!

It may still be a little chilly outside, but if you’re like me, you love to hit your favorite stores the moment the new collections drop! This Spring 2008 season is no different here at Fresh Produce. I’ve taken a look around, and top designers are using refreshing trends to spike up their collections… and our wardrobes.

Flowers Start to Shower!

According to Style.com and Fashion Wire Daily, Spring 2008 is the season for floral adornment! Seems Ralph Lauren, Gucci, Carolina Herrera, Diane von Furstenberg, Dolce & Gabbana and even Missoni  are using hydrangeas, daisies, lilacs, and roses for their colorful pieces. Every style is represented from soft flowing watercolor petals to large brightly saturated blooms.

Here at Fresh Produce clothing, you know that we are always incorporating our favorite little inspirations of nature into our prints and clothing. We especially enjoyed placing all the lovely flowers of the season into our Spring 2008 collection.

South Seas Tunic (ALSBBTU) in Caterpillar   |  Island Hopper Sail Away Tunic (ALSCMIH) in Semi Sweet

Spinning Blossoms Dress (ASDSHSB) in White (also available in Bloom)

Bright Bold Color

The same designers above, and adding Marchesa, Versace, have decided to spice things up by saturating classic pieces in bold spicy tones, neon yellows, pastel mints, and liquid but vibrant blues. Seems color is taking the spotlight on styles this Spring 2008, and if you know Fresh Produce, you know that we are no strangers to color either!

Maybe Marchesa’s ruffled masterpiecein dark vibrant red is a little too much head to toe (or maybe not for you!), but if you want to try out a fun trend pick up a small piece in the latest style. You can always pick up your classic favorite Logo Fem T in our lush and beautiful Calypso color. Or if you’r like a little frill, try the Baby Rib Island Top. Maybe yellow is more your bright of choice, then pick out a V-neck in Sunny! We have pastels, brights, and deep neutrals, all to fit your latest Spring fix.

Visit or call one of our Company Stores to place an order, or sign up to receive the Spring 2008 catalog directly from Fresh Produce!

See you soon! love,fpHoneyB

About a month ago, a team of us went to NYC for the Gift Show. A few of us are major fans of the hit Bravo TV show, Project Runway. (By the way, the season finale is tonight!…yes, I’m excited.) Anyhoo, I digress. Here’s the dish. We’re all standing out in front of our hotel, waiting for a cab, when lo and behold, Ricky walked into our hotel, carrying a large garment bag - and it most certainly was filled with the finest couture, I just know it. At that point in the show, he was still in…and by the way, Fashion Week is going on at this time as well. So, you can just imagine what’s going through my head, “Holy Hannah, he won and we most certainly have insider information!” Oh, but this was not the case. As I stood there, starstruck, Maggie said, “Hey Ricky, I love your designs!” And of course he was super sweet and gracious…therefore, I snapped a pic of Sarah and her new BFF, Ricky. Later on that evening, Maggie had a celebrity sighting of Chris, also staying at our hotel. It seems that all of the finalists were there - and their rooms were all on our floor! Can you stand it?! ~freshE

Sarah with Ricky from Project Runway

The FP team (plus Sarah’s nephew Matt) in NYC

Fashion Week in Bryant Park