A "Dream" Vacation and Resort Wear for Cheap

OK, time to update you on the situation here. I have mentioned before that I would leave for a "warm weather" vacation at the end of the month. In fact we are scheduled to leave for Bahamas on Saturday morning. But as you know my daughter is sick, and I'm not talking abut a cold. She has actually contracted pneumonia (probably from a friend) as I learned yesterday when I finally took her to the pediatrician. She had been coughing for two days, then arrived a very high fever (pretty scary when you are home alone and nobody is around to help). Now she is under antibiotics and she is definitively doing better (her temperature is almost back to normal and the cough is receding). Tomorrow I am going to take her to the pediatrician again and she will let me know if she can travel. Still, I don't know if I want to put her on a plane in two days and go on some island in the middle of the ocean with the risk of complications. My husband has been in denial and was pushing to go anyway because he really needs a vacation but he's starting to accept the fact we might be forced to stay home.
So it could very likely be that this vacation will be a dream one, literally (did I mention that this is the one time that we didn't buy a cancellation insurance? So we can't even postpone or reschedule).

In the meanwhile I have started to pack "as if". You know if you follow my blog that I love summer clothes and a winter vacation is a good excuse to jump-start my summer clothes shopping. Resort clothes are a special subset of summer clothes that can be expensive and get very little wear (unless you live near a beach or go on vacation for at least a month), so my little pleasure over the past two months has been to find great deals on resort clothes from my favorite retailers, namely JCrew and Calypso. The dread of winter (before all the retailers start to put out the spring new arrivals) is generally a very good time of the year to stock up on the leftovers from the season past. Of course you need a little bit of patience and you have to be ready to accept some compromise (like maybe not exactly the color that you wanted).
So here is my resort lineup from FS (both Calypso and JCrew).

First, the caprese tunic from JCrew. I always secretly liked this top but it is not my usual style of fitted clothes and I was afraid that I would wear it very little in NYC. However, I totally like it as resort wear and with the current 40% off this came down to a mere $8.99. Yes, $8.99! It miraculously shipped and even if I plan to wear it mainly as a cover-up because of its sheerness, I could also wear it with cropped pants and a cami in the summer (note that the pants create some bulk; it is prettier worn on its own):



Next, one of my favorite summer dresses from JCrew, the Piazza dress from summer 09 (the ancestor of the Playa dress from summer 10 that is still sold on the website) popped up on ebay in the black colorway and I snagged it for a song (I have the aqua version that you have seen ad nauseam last summer). This is such an easy dress to pack and I can also wear it in the summer (it is short though):



The next finds are from Calypso St. Barth. If you aren't familiar with Calypso, FFM recently run some posts on her blog about this retailer that is growing from a boutique specialised in resort wear to a global retailer that could be a potential competitor for JCrew (which could happen after their collaboration with Target, starting May 1st, will take the brand to the malls). Clothes at Calypso can be horribly expensive but if you wait long enough you can snag very good deals.
So during their 50% off sale promo I snagged a few items that I had been watching and/or tried in store.
This gingham top is such a breezy summer top and it's yours for $24.50 (you have to add $7.50 of shipping unless you spend $250 but it is still a good deal):




Also for $24.50 I bought the dress version of their classic Dale shirt. I can't show it to you because it is very sheer but it is made of a wonderful gauze cotton. Granted, it is a little bit overwhelming on me (even if it came with a rope belt which helps to give it some shape) and I was planning on taking it to the tailor to have it shortened, but I will give it a try as is first.

Last Calypso find is this top that lingered in the sale section for a very long time. I saw it in store and I could try it on, otherwise I think I wouldn't have bought it from the pics on the website. Calypso styling tends to be a little too much on the bo-ho side and sometimes it is very difficult to figure out how a dress or top will fit (so it helps that I can see things in a store).
I simply love this shade of blue, so flattering and summery:



I also like to buy a new swimsuit each year and one of my rules is that it has to be cheap (because as fun as it is to collect swimming suits, they are not a necessity and they only get to be worn two or maximum three weeks per year). My choice this year fell on the JCrew Palermo paisley bikini (total cost $22). After a couple of cancellations I was able to get my hands on the bottom AND the top (because unless you are sunbathing on the French riviera or in Sardinia, the top is also important, right?). The print is very fetching and I was so excited when the top finally shipped in my size:



However, when I tried it on, it kept falling off, it is just too big around the torso. This was the first time of my buying a bikini sized like a bra and I thought that it would be a pretty safe bet because a Victoria Secret specialist had just confirmed my bra size a few days before. But apparently 34C at Jcrew is not the same as 34C at Victoria Secret. Or Calvin Klein. Or any other bra manufacturer.
I could have returned it but I love the print so much that I had decided to take it to a tailor and have it tailored (after all it looks like an easy alteration to make). But then my daughter got sick and no trips to the tailor for me (have I mentioned that both me and the apartment are a total wreck?)
So, as a last resort (pun intended), this morning I ordered the lovely Regatta tank (because I have more bikinis than tanks after all) and I had it overnight shipped to me so that if we decide to go at least I will have a new swimsuit.
And as a ride-along I also ordered the new Maritime dress. I was just too curious to see it and I can't wait until after my vacation (what if it sells out while I am not cheking the website for an entire week?)

And while we are talking of summer clothes, a nod to the summer, in lieu of OOTD. When I bought the Stripe button-back tee in Engisg Saddle Ivory (that's what EPI stands for, as I just learned), I knew in the back of my mind that I would also buy the lace Dobby skirt at some point. I have to be careful to buy stuff too much ahead of the season now that the store return policy doesn't allow for store credits after 30 days, but I decided that I really love this skirt and when my ps last week offered me a little discount I caved and bought it (in a size 2).
So here is officially my first oufit from the spring new arrivals lineup:



Before you ask, the Espadrille that I am wearing here are my beloved Kelly from Stubbs and Wooton. I plan on buying another pair this year, probably in navy or orange.
They are an investment but totally worth it as they go with everything and they elongate the leg in a very flattering way.

So if you don't hear from me at the beginning of next week, it means that we went. Wish me luck!