Like any self-respecting budget fashionista, Carisa Sirak walked into Kohl's yesterday and didn't so much as glance at the racks of mom's jeans, the less-than-fitted jackets or the buy-one-get-one-free floral tees.

The attractive 29-year-old from Shadyside zeroed in on one thing -- Vera, as in Vera Wang, in the latest high-end designer to court the budget-minded masses.

"Did you see this coat?" she said giddily, referring to an edgy short-sleeved textured black coat with contrasting belt. The graduate student with silver hoop earrings swooped it up for $128, and also bought a plum long-sleeved tee for $34 in the new Simply Vera line.

Toni Petrucci liked the clothes, too, and came to check them out at the South Hills store after seeing them in Vogue magazine and hearing the women at the beauty parlor buzz about them. But she wasn't buying -- yet.

Like any self-respecting Kohl's shopper, the realtor for Coldwell Banker was waiting for the sale sign, a ubiquitous feature throughout the discount department store.

"It's a little high for Kohl's," said Ms. Petrucci. "But if it were in Macy's, it would be OK."

"I'm waiting for them to go on sale. Hey, isn't everybody?"

There were no Vera-inspired riots at Kohl's on the official launch day of her new collection, which included sheets and comforters.

But then again, obviously someone forgot to tell the designer that she might want to debut her lines on some day other than Steeler Sunday. (Technically, the South Hills and other local stores had started putting her out-there bubble skirts and edgy dresses on the racks on Tuesday, but the clothes were unveiled on the Web site yesterday, the official launch date.)

Even so, there was lot of curiosity about the marriage of hoity-toity Vera Wang and middle-brow Kohl's, the latest designer to slum it, following the huge success of Isaac Mizrahi at Target, Nicole Miller at J.C. Penney and Martha Stewart at Kmart.

In fact, people were even speculating about the mind-set of the designer famous for sleek couture wedding gowns.

"I hear she is nervous," said one customer.

"Has she even been in a Kohl's?" asked another.

"Everyone knows Vera Wang is going to be edgy," said Howard Davidowitz, chairman of New York-based Davidowitz & Associates, a national retail consulting business. "The question is 'how edgy?' "

The Simply Vera clothes did not stick out of Kohl's like a Mapplethorpe at a Norman Rockwell exhibit. But the clothes were definitely pushing the fashion envelope, especially the inky-blue and black tulip skirts that billowed widely before tapering in at the knee and the embellished silky tank tops and the patent-leather trimmed handbags and ballet flats. These were a far cry from the Villager jackets and buy-one-get-one-free Sonoma T-shirts, staples of the stores.

"Vera hasn't compromised herself," said David Wolfe, creative director of the Doneger Group, retail consultants based in New York. "Some designers go for the lowest common denominator. They water down their looks. But Vera hasn't done that."

But is it too edgy? No way, said Mr. Davidowitz. Simply Vera is a good way for a chain that sells mostly basic clothing at good prices to upgrade its fashion image.

"Kohl's can talk about fashion, blah, blah, blah, but the reality is that Kohl's is into basics. Vera Wang at Kohl's is a home run."

"Sizing is critical," said Mr. Davidowitz. "If only a toothpick can fit into it, you have a problem. The Kohl's customers are not toothpicks."

America seems to have an insatiable appetite for cheap chic. In fact, the only notable flop in the whole discount designer trend is the Metro7 line by designer Mark Eisen at Wal-Mart.

"That was the big one that fell on its butt," said Mr. Davidowitz. "This stuff is not guaranteed. I think the Wal-Mart customer is in survival mode. I think the Kohl's customer is more aspirational."

But there are many women who read the fashion magazines and are always on the lookout for designer deals, the shopper "with champagne taste and a beer budget," Mr. Wolfe said.

But not everyone was convinced that a cheap chic is really such a great deal.

Scanning the racks of Simply Vera yesterday, Heather Schultz, 28, of Mt. Lebanon, wasn't biting. She liked the coats and sweaters she had seen online, but upon closer inspection wasn't sure the quality was there.

"I would worry about the quality once it was washed," she said. "You get what you pay for."