Follow-up on the "What to Wear with Sweet Guava" Post

Ladies, as I said before I value your opinion very much and you gave me some great feedback on my quest to find a good match for my sweet guava blouse (see post here). Many comments suggested that I should look into something in a brown shade like cocoa or caramel, and honestly I would have never thought of that by my own.

The problem is I have nothing in those shades (only turtlenecks) and Jcrew hasn't offered anything this year besides the Cashmere V-neck long cardigan in heather caramel (by the way, where are the beiges at Jcrew?), which is still FP. What's a girl to do (besides kicking herself for not getting a Michelle in glazed pecan last year in super-final sale)?
At least you inspired me to try my toothpick cords in soft ochre and they look GREAT with the blouse (not only the color but also the skinny style, that allows the blouse to fall nicely):



Someone also suggested cinnamon spice, so I tried my Celosia cardigan on this:



but I have to say that it looks nicer in the pic than IRL (the cinnamon spice and soft ochre look quite the same in the pic but they fight a little bit IRL in my opinion).

The other color that was very popular in your comments was yellow, in a mustardy shade. Here I was luckier because Jcrew has a lot of mustardy cardigans (so much so that I think they are out of names). Now, it would have bothered me to buy a new cardigan only for the sake of wearing it with this blouse (and that's why I couldn't go with a pale pink or even a sweet guava, because I know that I wouldn't wear them enough), but mustard yellow looks good on me and it fits well in my closet so it's something that I can wear again and again.
So during the 20% off sale promo last week I ordered a cashmere crewneck in warm maize (after looking for it in store, where it was cheaper and not finding it) and I got it in the mail two days ago (by the way, I hadn't ordered anything since before Thanksgiving, so I was pretty excited to receive a Jcrew box). Of course I HAD to order some ride-along for the free shipping, but more on that in another post.

I have to say, I LOVE this color (OK, warm maize is not exactly the same as mustard but we all know that Jcrew can have three different shades that look almost the same if it weren't for the color code on the tag) and I like that it looks almost golden under a certain light. Also it was my first crewneck cashmere cardigan, and I'm pleased with the fit (but luckily before ordering I had tried another color in store in XS, otherwise I would have bought a S, my size in the Jackie).
Here it is with the blouse (taken with the natural light coming from two different sources. As you can see the color of the cardigan seems to change, it' not the camera, even if the color in the second pic is more true):




Even if I hadn't bought it for the sweet guava blouse, I would keep it, I know I'm repeating myself but this is a great color. Re. the quality of the cashmere, I didn't have high expectations and as far as I didn't pay FP it's fine if it's a little bit lightweight.

So I can file away this sweet guava dilemma. Now thanks to you I have at least two cardigan options (besides the navy and black ones) to wear with my blouse and spring is going be here sooner than we think.
But I have another fashion dilemma ready for you, stay tuned!

In the meanwhile keep warm and have a nice weekend all!

JCrew New Arrivals: Dressing Room Pics

Today I took advantage of my free morning (my daughter's day at school is longer on Thursdays than on Tuesdays, so I typically plan my shopping trips this day of the week) to visit a bigger Jcrew store (than the Collection one, that has limited merchandise) and checkout the new arrivals of the January catalog. I wasn't really excited about anything in the new catalog, but the stores have always more items than what's in the catalog, so I was curious to see what they got.
Well, I have to say, not a lot of new stuff but at least one item that I really liked (without buying) and one that I bought.

The following is the one that I liked but didn't buy. It's a ruffled cardigan (again, I know) a little bit in the spirit of the Fifi that came out in the Fall and sold-out almost immediately. But it's a cotton cardi (if I'm not wrong) and it's a crewneck. It comes in two colors, shadow and champagne:






Initially I thought that it was the Rosette ruffle cardigan, but then I realized that those are not rosettes but just strips of ruffles (by the way, the ruffles don't go all the way around, they are only in the front). Very cute, especially the shadow one. If you are interested, the price is $98 but I can't read the style number on the pic of the tag that I took (my camera couldn't focus). A warning though: the ruffles "raw" hem was freying very badly on the one that I tried (on purpose, I guess, but a little bit too much).
BTW, the jeans that I'm wearing in these pics are the toothpick in the new "amore" wash, which is more springy than the twilight and midnight washes (the 27 was a little bit loose but I think that sizing down in these is not a good idea).

The next one is an item that I had high expectations on and disappointed me. It's the popover shirt, in its chambray, striped and white (store-only) versions.
I already have the perfect cotton contrast-stitch shirt from last summer (the fabric is exactly the same) so I wasn't interested in the chambray for myself but because I know that it's pretty popular I tried it on in case any of you is on the fence about it:



And this is the white one:



They also had a striped one, different from the one on the website (the stripes are navy):



I didn't like the fit, as you can see it's too big in the chest area for me (I tried the same XS in the three colors) but I do think that the fabric is really nice. Also, I wouldn't know how to style it. Untucked like this? Belted? It seems a little bit too long for a shirt and a little bit too short for being worn like a tunic. I was bummed because I was hoping to replace and old white Zara one that I have worn to death (of the popover lol), but I guess that I have to keep my eyes open.

I wasn't interested in the very popular Stained glass cardigan, which has been reviewed on several blogs already, but this print also comes in shorts. Now it's a little bit of a shocker to put (very short) shorts on when it's freezing outside, so please pardon the appearance of my white (and under-toned) legs:



Sorry, I totally forgot to look at the price of these shorts. Anyway, I have tried a 0 (I would probably size up to a 2 if I were to buy these), but the interesting thing is that they came in 00 too. Maybe it's an indication that they are going to put on the store shelves more items in the 00 (and possibly petites) size.

Speaking of short lenghts, the following must be the shortest mini-skirt ever. For the new followers, I should mention that I'm 5'2" and I'm a fan of the Jcrew full mini-skirt (like the shirred wool one and last summer Monterey):



Where are we supposed to go with this skirt? I wouldn't even go on the beach with it, I prefer no cover-up! The S was just slighly better:



The price ($39.50) and the fabric (the same lightweight cotton of the Oxford tunic from last summer) were nice but the fit was a total disaster in my opinion (it also comes in an indigo wash).

The Ruffled Carly dress that I really liked on the hanger wasn't particularly flattering on me, maybe because of the pale light amethyst color:



The other color available in store was a slate and not the deep olive that is offered on the website.

Last, the item that I bought. It's a long boatneck merino sweater in a sweatshirt style (like the Jaspe, but merino); it's super-soft but what I really liked is the color:




It retails for $69.50 (much better than the $178 of the double-breasted cashmere cardigan) and I LOVE this warm yellow (it's called HONEY and is more bright IRL than in the pictures, but it's not a citron-y shade). I have to say that I really regretted not getting the painter tee in a similar color last year (unfortunately it hasn't been offered this year). This is perfect with skinny jeans but I also bought it with the idea of taking it with me on vacation at the end of the month in the Caribbean because it's lightweight enough to be worn over a bikini and shorts when if the weather is stormy and windy.

By the way, even if you see me buying more that you would probably have expected after my resolution, I'm sticking to my rules (I haven't purchased anything extra-gift card on the website and I'm allowed to in-store purchases from time to time). Also, I returned a few items (including a big-ticket one) and the money went into the gift card.

What do you think of these new arrivals? Anything that you're interested in? Any question, let me know!

OOTD and a JCrew New Arrival (Let's Call It the Double-Breasted Cashmere Sweater)

I wore my Jcrew cashmere popover boatneck in cinnamon spice last week for the first time (Monday, I think) and again today to meet a friend for breakfast:



To be honest I find it a little bit lightweight for a cashmere sweater, I like to feel all cozy and warm in my cashmeres and I was not while wearing this popover (because of the boatneck and the 3/4 sleeves and also because it's horribly cold here). I really love the fit and color and I would buy it again for the price, but I wouldn't buy multiples, I prefer a turtleneck.
The necklace that I'm wearing with it is a $5 necklace that I bought from a street vendor. Usually I'm not a "charms" person, but I loved the fall colors of this one and I knew that it would look great with a cinnamon spice sweater (that I didn't own when I bought it, but I KNEW I would own one day):



Speaking of cashmere sweaters that are not so warm, I tried a new cashmere cardigan when I was at Jcrew on New Year's Eve. It's a double-breasted cashmere cardigan with a punched trim above the ribbed bottom band. Sorry, I don't know what's the term for that, the pics will speak by themselves:




I was drawn to it mainly because it came in the honey glaze color (pictured) and because I thought that both the style and the color would be a good match for my sweet guava blouse. I think it's very feminine and pretty (even if a little bit retro); however, personally I wouldn't spend $178 in a cashmere cardigan that is so flowy and open (meaning not warm), it feels like a waste. It's a bummer that they didn't make in another blend or even cotton, with a more attractive price tag.

By the way I wanted to thank you for all the suggestions that you have left on my sweet guava post. I haven't commented back but I plan to have a follow-up post soon (I'm waiting for something that I have ordered with the 20% off to try with it. Not sure that it will work but it wasn't final sale).

Do you like this new cardigan?

Some New Arrivals: IRL Pics

I went into Jcrew yesterday to sort out my bubble necklace mess (I'm double bummed because I had to place another order and today is 20% off. GRRR) and I tried some of the new arrivals on. Not many because my daughter was hysterical, but I wanted to share the pics anyway.

First, the much talked about Dream Tori ruffle cardigan. To be honest with you, I didn't recognized it (I mean I thought that I had tried another cardigan but when I came home and looked for it on the website I realized that it was the Tori), it looks completely different IRL, as many JCAs already said on the JCA post about the new arrivals.
Maybe it's the color, I tried the black in XS:



As you can see the taffeta trim is not that ruffled, but personally I liked it more this way, I think it's going to better stand the test of time. Size-wise I would say that it's TTS. I think that it's a really nice cardigan and is going to be a holiday favorite.

Another evening cardigan that I really wanted to try on when I saw it earlier this week, is this tuxedo-like merino cardigan:




This one is retail-only and the price is $118. I have to say that I liked it better on the hanger than on, I found it a little bit somber (there isn't enough contrast between the sateen around the collar and the merino IMO), but maybe with a nice sparkling top and/or bottom is going to look different. The fit is TTS (I have tried a XS) but the sleeves were a little bit long as you can see in the second pic.

The third item wasn't part of the new rollout but I hadn't seen it before and I REALLY liked it. It's the Wool ribbon ravine dress. I wasn't interested in it (I have tried by request of a reader) until I tried it on. This is the rosebud color (more salmon than pinkish IMO) in a 0:



And detail of the neckline:



As the website description says, the edges of the ribbon trim are raw but it doesn't look as they are fraying. The 0 was a little bit loose in the bodice and a little bit longer than on the model but this dress comes in petite (BTW, the crewless SA told me that it didn't), so keep that in mind if you want to order it. I think that the rosebud is a beautiful color for the holidays and I'm definitively going to get this at some point.

The last item that I tried on is another in-store-only cardigan. Ruffles again but quite nice. It's a little bit this year (=ruffled) version of the Lea IMO. I'm sorry for the "ruffles over ribbon" pic but my daughter was throwing stuff in the mirror and I was in a hurry to get out of the fitting room before a SA would come in and ask what was all that noise:



This one came in a plethora of colors (I saw a light berry and a mustard) and the price was $89.50 if I'm not wrong.
I also saw the new Merino watercolor leopard cardigan and if you want to order this one beware of the fact that there is a bright blue component much more pronounced than it shows in the website pics (it's quite beautiful though).

That's it for now. If you have any questions let me know. I have to go back later today or tomorrow for my bubble necklace (they couldn't process the return, triple bummer), so if you are interested in any of the retail-only cardigans I will take note of the style number.

Have a great weekend!

The Cashmere Croquet Cardigan

I had planned to write a post on the Crystal Symphony Necklace today to wrap up the jewelry subject, as I ordered it last week to wear with my b-day party dress this coming Saturday, but when the UPS package arrived yesterday I had another (bad) surprise: there was no trace of my necklace in the envelope and I received a white Jackie cardigan instead! I was beyond upset: it's the second time this week that something goes wrong with my order (first the defective palm-leaf necklace and now this) and to be honest with you I ordered the Crystal Symphony necklace only to wear it on Saturday night (actually I bought the dress AFTER seeing the necklace IRL, kind of to showcase it) but I'm not sure that I'm going to keep it, unless I damage it in any way (and I don't think that I'm going to sweat on it as it is a seated dinner and we have simply no room to dance). At least, this is the plan because when I tried it on in the store I really "loved" it (I just don't "need" it as I have a very similar one from many years ago but the color is a little bit off compared the color of the dress).
I called Jcrew CS this morning and the SA offered to send me another one by overnight shipping (at no extra charge, of course) but when she was about to place the order she noticed that at the shipping departement they had already found out about the mistake and they had already shipped another one, scheduled to arrive today. So, in the end it will be here in time, but the post will have to wait.

Instead, I'm going to write a quick review of the Cashmere Croquet cardigan that, if you have read my previous post, I bought last week with the $25 off $125 card.
This cardigan has been sitting in my cart for a long time, waiting to go on sale. When it came out I thought that it was terribly cute but 1) the price ($188) was way too high for 2) a winter-heavy 12-gauge cashmere cardigan in summery, sorbet colors that I wasn't sure when (I mean, what time of the year) to wear exactly.
Actually I was eyeing the melon color, as I think that the melon is more for warm and the lavender is more for cold skin-eyes-hair tones.
When it finally went on sale for $129, I couldn't pull the trigger as it was marked as final sale and I wasn't going to spend that much on something that I had never tried on. Plus, I would have paid the sale tax on it (which in the NY state applies only to clothes and shoes that have a selling price above $110) and I HATE that, even if it's only 4.37% (while it's 8.7% on all jewelry and bags, with no minimum below). So I decided to wait, at least for a % off promo.

When I was looking for the jewelry at the Fifth Avenue store last Friday I spotted one on a table and it was a XS, but in the ametysth color. I tried it on and it fitted me very nicely, so when I found out about the "new" price of two necklaces I decided to buy it with the $25 off card (take that, sale tax!), even if I wasn't sure about the color.
(At the register I faced a crewless manager who just couldn't understand the sale tax thing. I wanted to buy the necklaces and the cardigan separately in two transactions, so the $25 would be taken off the cardigan price only and the new price would be below $110. I mean, you live/work in NY, you MUST KNOW THAT. Anyway, he couldn't believe it until he saw it on the ticket but he didn't give me the satisfaction of admitting that I was right and he was wrong. He just shrugged and went on to take care of another customer.)

I just couldn't pull myself to try it on this weekend as it was so hot, but when the 20% off promo started on the website I made an effort to try it on properly to make sure that I liked color, as the melon was still available on the website and I could have ordered it instead.
I styled it with the navy mica mini and the glass and pearl necklace (sorry, I was wearing my slippers, so I tried to hide my feet):




As you can see the XS fits me perfectly. I like that it has a jacket feeling and I also like that I'm wearing a short-sleeve tee (Petit Bateau) underneath but it doesn't show in the sleeves. I'm totally won over this color, I think it's uber-chic and will make a better transition to fall than the melon. Just to be sure that I have enough options to wear it with, I ordered a perfect tee in the amethyst and the corsage tee in lavender with the $20 off (will see if I can wear it unbottoned with it, depending on where the flowers are positioned).
This will be perfect for my upcoming trip to Europe to visit the family (at the end of August, we just booked the flights). We'll stay a week in Paris and I'm sure that I will have the occasion to wear it while I'm there (hopefully it will still be too warm in Milan where I will be next).

Is this cardigan on your wish list? Do you own it? When do you plan to wear it if you own it?

My Outfit of The Week

I hope that the rest of the summer is not going to be like the past week: rainy, foggy, totally depressing. It reminds me of the first summer that I spent in NY: we used to live in a high-rise rental building near Grand Central and our apartment was on 38th floor. We were constantly surrounded by fog or living in a cloud (you couldn't see anything out of the window) and it would pour every day. And I mean every single day. I lost at least 4 pairs of shoes to the rain (I wasn't equipped with wellies, nobody used to go around in wellies in Europe). And one day, out of desperation when it started to rain after I had adventured outside in a pair of brand new flats that I was dying to wear, I fastened two plastic bags around my ankles (shoes and feet inside the bags) and I walked home like that (I had some funny reactions along the way, but I saved my shoes).
That was 6 years ago and I haven't seen another summer like that one since. So I really hope that this week's weather is not going to be a taste of the upcoming summer.

Anyway, this week I wore this outfit non-stop:



Basically my terry cardigan and jeans. I already owned one of these in white that I paid almost full price (totally worth it IMO) and I scored this one last week for $19.99 (when it went on sale I looked for another one but my size sold out very quickly everywhere). I don't remember how this color is called, but it goes with everything. The fabric feels softer than my white one, not sure if it's a different wash or what.
So, I would just change the tee and change my flats for wellies in case of heavy rain. I also wore an "evening" version of the outfit for my movie night with a girlfriend on Monday, with the luxe pleated top from this fall:



If you still don't have this cardi, I really reccomend to get one while there are still some in the stores, I promise you'll get a lot of wear out of it, especially for the current price.

Happy weekend everyone!