Madewell, the cool little sister clothing brand to J.Crew, will be hosting a series of holiday-related events throughout the month of December in all of its stores. These “Very Merry Saturdays” aim to offer fun and festive activities for shoppers as they browse through the racks of colorful winter sweaters and sparkling party dresses.

This past Saturday, customers enjoyed a holiday hair braiding special, an event that provided free hair braiding by Aveda stylists. Participants were given three choices of braids, all named after Madewell’s signature denim fits. “The Skinny Skinny” was a thin braid, “The Rail Straight” was a wraparound braid and “The Boyjean” was a loose braid. All three styles are cool but simple. The process of braiding was fast so shoppers could get right back to browsing after they were finished.

Customers lined up at the “Braid Bar,” located in a corner niche of the store where three chairs were set up alongside each other so friends can chat while enjoying their complimentary braids.

“It’s nice that they set this up in a way so that I can still talk to my friends while getting my hair done,” Barnard freshmen Elle Stam said. “I like that it’s a social activity. The fact that I can enjoy it with my friend makes it that much better. I’m really bad with braiding so the stylist offered me some tips. Not only did they do a good job, but they are also super nice and helpful.”

To top it off, a festive red hair band was used to tie the whole look together.

This is the kickoff event of the series and two more remain. The second event, which will be held on Dec. 8, will be “The Gift Well Féte.” Shoppers can expect to receive special surprises when they stop by any Madewell stores. The last event will be the “Madewell Manicures.” On Dec. 15, all Madewell stores will be providing free and festive manicures perfect for the holidays. Madewell, which offers a 15 percent student discount with a college ID, is a favorite among those of us who are in school and on a budget. These fun and free holiday events will no doubt draw an even larger crowd.

“NYU students should definitely drop by. Anything free is good,” said associate manager Melissa Haske.

So stop by these festive and free events this month and celebrate the holidays with Madewell.
Marina Zheng is a contributing writer. Email her at [email protected].