Greetings, fashion lovers. It’s your host, the venerable self-proclaimed fashionista of the CW, and today I’ll be taking you on a little tour of a place where I, for one, spend entirely too much of my time. But hey, at least I can admit it, right?

What is this magical place, you ask? The Internet. Insert pause for effect. Okay, maybe that’s not all that exciting. But it is if you want to shop for good clothes, shoes and accessories and get it all for a modicum of otherwise “designer” prices. What does “designer” even mean, anyway? Everything had to be designed by someone.

Anyway, today’s journey will take a trip through the style ether and we’ll be double-clicking on three of my favorite virtual haunts. Sorry boys, I’m not sure I’ll have much for you today, so if you don’t want to stick around for our tour, I understand.

First stop – Modcloth.com. You might have been here before, especially if your Facebook bombards you with advertisements for fashion-related things over on the right side of your screen. I think that’s how I ended up there. Anyway, this site is great, especially for cute dresses and adorable accessories. They also have a vintage section, but the things uploaded there sell out like hotcakes, and I’ve never seen anything I wanted that wasn’t already out of stock. Talk about a virtual tease.

But for sure, Modcloth has dresses for almost any occasion, and they’re all pretty fabulous. So next time you’re desperately searching around town for something to wear to that event coming up, check it out. They name all their dresses and products with witty or punny titles that never fail to make me giggle.

And to our right-click, you’ll see Shoedazzle.com. Because you’ll need some rockin’ kicks after you buy that dress from Modcloth, right? Now, I don’t normally keep up with the Kardashians, but I’d say sister Kim, founder of this website, has a hit on her hands. I was referred to it by a friend and was pretty excited when I signed up. Some of the shoes are duds, and some of them look a little cheap, but for $39.95 a pair, there are also some great ones that might find their way into your closet.

Here’s how it works: You sign up and take a style quiz, which the Shoedazzle gods then analyze. Then every month, they select up to 15 pairs of shoes they believe fit your taste, and put them into your virtual “showroom” for your viewing pleasure. You can request alternates if you don’t like any of them. You can also skip any month when you don’t find that perfect pair or it’s not in your college budget to buy something. One thing to be wary of, though, is skipping the month within the first seven days, or you will be charged the 40 bucks anyway, and it will go into your account as one credit, to be used anytime.

I love every pair I’ve gotten so far; my favorite are a pair of gold gladiator-type sandals. Or maybe the python heels with the zipper. Or the purple booties. Oh well. Check it out and see for yourself.

And finally, we have SenseofFashion.com. The name is pretty straightforward, but what I love about this recently found online mecca of style is that it lists the name of the designer for every piece and their website, so you can essentially spend hours in the spider-web of virtual boutiques.

Their pieces are trendy, but from what I’ve seen so far, also pretty timeless. They also have accessories, shoes, home goods… pretty similar to Modcloth, but I’ve found I like the clothes better here. They also have a vintage section that wasn’t completely sold out the last time I admired it. There was a great sequined houndstooth dress (no doubt from the 80s, if the shoulder pads were any indication) that I kind of want to go back and snatch up.

So, don’t be intimidated by online shopping. It can be fun, or at least it is for me. Even when I don’t buy anything, simply looking at great styles is often enough to get my fashion fix of the day.

Great Fashion Websites

Modcloth.com

Shoedazzle.com

SenseofFashion.com

Screencaps of one or two of the sites for art?