All Over Albany

Truly Rhe: can you truly shop there with your mother?

You might have seen those Truly Rhe television commercials that have been running recently -- you know, where the woman and her mother both came out of the dressing room, delighted that they could shop somewhere together. (They were running during Project Runway on Time Warner Cable.)

So I was wondering, is Truly Rhe really the kind place I could shop with my fifty-mumble-aged mother?

In a word, yes.

While there are dozens of places where women and their mothers might happily shop together, the question really stuck with me while I shopped here because the television commercial made such a point of saying it. (And the people in the commerical looked so happy about it.) And it turns out the inventory does make the place shoppable for mothers and daughters. There's a wide variety of colors, cuts, and styles here, but it's all fairly middle of the road. There's nothing too tight, too trashy or too loud; in other words, very little for your mother to embarrass you with, and vice versa.

Truly Rhe is a cozy Troy storefront full (really full!) of one-of-a-kind items with a definite slant toward trendy. The styles range from casual basics to professional and dressy, with most items running size 12 and smaller. Truly Rhe also has a wide selection of beaded and evening handbags, scarves, hats, and coats.

You'll really need to plan to spend some time here because there is a lot to browse. The clothing racks each include a selection of tops, pants, skirts, and shirts, organized more by designer and color scheme than say, all tops together, all pants together, etc.

There is an unbelievable array of colors, textures, and fabrics, balanced out by a lot of black, from boutique labels like Lapis and Petit Pois. My favorite is the super-soft Kersh wrap sweater, a cotton and cashmere blend in a soft gray ($69) and matching palazzo-style pants ($60).

The back corner of the store is devoted to Rhepeats Boutique, a collection of previously owned -- new and gently used -- items organized strictly by size. I found suits, skirts, tops, and pants. Plus, you'll find some shoes, knick knacks, handbags, etc. If you're looking for a bargain, this is where you'll find it.

The jewelry selection is extensive and tends toward the vintage/costume look, skewing toward older women, in my opinion. There are also original Rhe Designs made from vintage pieces.

Truly Rhe is open until 6 o'clock Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday, and until 7 o'clock on Thursdays, plus, it's open weekends (11-4 on Saturday and 12-4 on Sunday). It's all on-street parking, which was pretty plentiful last weekend. Be aware, on the Truly Rhe website, it does say that the store will close for "snow storms, snow/sleet, snow flurries, smell of snow" so if the weather is iffy, you might want to call first.