Location - 49 Prince Street (between Mulberry & Lafayette)

Despite Nolita having a number of boutiques, rarely do you find two sharing the same wall, so when this happens on Prince Street between Mulberry and Lafayette, a comparison competition is bound to happen.

 

Lollipop by Namja

Lollipop has a soft, cozy feel with brick walls and a quiet interior. All their staple brands came with them when they moved this past February to their new location, with a large selection of Renee C pieces, Poppy Garden and a small selection of vintage-inspired Piko 1988.

The clothes are trendy, friendly, and flowy in airy pastels. Tops, dresses, tunics, and bottoms range from $50-175, with most dresses hovering around $115. A rack of soft graphic tees greets you at the entrance, with dresses and tops hanging along the brick wall drawing you deeper into the store. The clothes are fun and light, but lack much creativity depth, with pretty basic cuts and patterns. Some of the pieces are reminiscent of something you may find at Forever 21, but in a much nicer environment with friendlier staff.

Lollipop has a very comfortable setting, but lack creative excitement, and that's where Pinkyotto steps in.

 

Pinkyotto

With its cramped space and stark white walls, Pinkyotto has the exact opposite environment when compared to Lollipop. With racks of dresses and tops hanging on the walls and accessories cramped on inner tables, Pinkyotto makes use of their space and shows as much of their merchandise as possible.

Filled with dresses and tops ranging from $75-200, everything is bouncy, light and mostly patterned in bright colors. The dresses are mainly around $150 and are pleated and cut in such a way they make you feel you want to twirl once you try them on. With a limiting one-size only policy for all their pieces, only specific body types can shop here, however most dresses come with belts and ties to help conform to your body.

Accessories range from jewel-tone clutches and bags (around $80) and long necklaces with funky pendants ($30-60). To assist in the efforts to have one-size fit as many as possible, Pinkyotto has a wide array of belts, with the best being colorful leather bow tie belts for $50.

The fun staff make light of the small space and are quick to suggest their personal favorites and ooh and aah once you try it on.  Beware, on a warm Saturday afternoon be willing to wait for the dressing room and be prepared to be bumped by fellow shoppers' purses.

Winner:
So if you can only visit one side of the shared wall, make it Pinkyotto.  Yes, Lollipop has a more welcoming atmosphere, but Pinkyotto has funkiness and flirtatiousness in their clothes that makes fighting the cramped space feel like you're digging through the closet of a stylish, size-4 fashionista.

Location - 266 Elizabeth Street (near Houston)

 

Elizabeth Street is known for its charm - the beautiful pre-war buildings housing not only artists and cafes, but shops that can interest any personality.  The hard part is not the viewing, it's the choosing.

Blue Bag is one of those stores that makes it easy to enter.  With huge windows showcasing the entire store, the vibrancy of colors and openness of floor plan invite any passerby in.  The brick walls and wood floors create a cozy, lived-in feel, which contrasts pleasingly with the vivid colors of the bags.  Handbags, shoulder bags, clutches, wallets, and totes lure you to touch and leave you wishing you were bold enough to wear a purple-sequined cross-body.  No color of the rainbow is left unclaimed and are visualized in all textures.  Rich, go-to leather neutrals share a wall with bright, lemon-yellow extravagance.  

Clutches and wallets range from $75-200, whereas bags can be found from $125-500, with more on the less expensive end.  The prices were shocking (in a good way) to say the least, based on the prime Nolita location, and a spot that has neighbors such as Hayden-Harnett and Tory Burch, Blue Bag's range in both quality of merchandise and price make you feel like you've found a gem.

As Blue Bag boasts, they change out their entire stock every month to open up the ability for everyone to "have an addiction here," leaving room for both days of needed essentials and daring sequins.