School Cocktail Party Rainy Outfit

Tonight is a big night at my daughter's nursery school: it is the night of the cocktail reception for the book fair that kicks off tomorrow. Traditionally the parlor room is all decked out in Xmas decoration (that I have contributed putting up yesterday afternoon), a famous children's book author will be there to sign copies of his latest book and there will be a raffle of gingerbread houses. And of course there will be plenty of food and drinks. Basically this is the event that you don't want to miss.

I have been fantasizing about the party and the outfit that I was going to wear for more than a month and this was one of the occasions (if not THE occasion) that justified the purchase of the Talbots plaid taffeta skirt, as the length of the skirt is perfect for a conservative environment. In the end I also bought the matching top because trying to pair the skirt with something else that was already in my closet turned out to be an impossible task.
So yesterday I tried the outfit for the last time and I was pretty satisfied with the result:




I found this velvet bolero last weekend at Uniqlo (of all the places) for 29.99. It is a little bit big (it's a S) but I didn't know if I wanted to go downtown and brave the Xmas shoppers crowd again just to check if they had an XS, so I grabbed it.
For 30 it fits the bill.

I was all ready with my outfit planned and guess what? It is raining like hell in NYC today, one of those (rare) days when you get wet even if you are covered from head to toes with a raincover and hold an oversized umbrella.
So I don't know if I want to break out the taffeta skirt in these weather conditions. Granted, I have to walk less than a block as the school is just around the corner but I don't want to look foolish.

So I had to come up with a backup outfit and I traded the skirt with my Theory pants. The cardigan is the bling-button in black pine (I kept the plaid Talbots top of the previous outfit):




I am tempted to wear this fringe cuff instead of a necklace to add some sparkle. This cuff (that was one of my birthday present picks but didn't get) was offered by a secret admirer. I still love it and it adds some edge to the outfit.



If the rain stops I could still go with the first outfit. I will let you all know!