JCrew November Catalog New Arrivals Fitting Room Pics (Part 2: Misc)

This is the second part of the November catalog new arrivals post. To see the first part dedicated to the sweaters, clic here.

First up the much talked about in-store-only color of the Sunnie pencil skirt. I forgot to write down the color code but the style is the same as the Sunnie. It's on the short side of their pencil skirts (remember that I am only 5'2"). At first I really liked it but when I think about when/how I could wear it I realize that it gives me a "suburban mom" vibe (nothing against suburban moms but if I try to picture myself wearing it I see afternoon teas and school meetings or church and I don't do any of these). Anyway, it's a beautiful skirt if you have a lifestyle for it. I am trying it with the wooly ribbed turtleneck in bronzed olive but the merino turtleneck in the new light wisteria color is a perfect match for this skirt and brings out the lavender in the skirt:





You have already seen the plaid version of the bell skirt in my previous post. Here I am going to show you the taffeta marveille mini in black. This one caught my eye when it came out in the last rollout and I have to say that I LOVE it. It's a great (and affordable) skirt for the holidays. I saw the purple, the grey and the black IRL and I have a preference for the black one because I am not a fan of the grosgrain waistband and it is less visible in the black color. I yet have to see the navy one but I will probably go with the black. Here I am wearing a size 2 (I sized one up because I don't want it to be too shorts as I am going to wear it with heels):



And here with the Tweed Tatum jacket. I need another tweed jacket like a bullet in my head but I really, really loved this one (especially with this skirt) and if it goes down in price I will probably get it. By the way, it is basically the winter version of the Lollipop but the tweed fabric makes it less boxy than the Lollipop IMO. If you like playing matchy-matchy it's the same tweed of the Moss pencil skirt. I am trying a 0 here:





On the other hand, a jacket that didn't work at all on me is the Boutonniere blazer. I tried a 0 and the fit was off, so I tried a 2 and it was even worst. I think that the problem is that it is too high waisted for me. It looked so cute on the hunger though! This is the 2 in grey:



When I tried these they had the coat promo going on, so I tried the Double-cloth Dollop coat that I was curious about when it came out. Unfortunately, I found it a little bit unflattering (it made me feel like I had a big chest or a "bun in the oven"). This is a 2:



Another item that I was really curious about is the Linley chino. They look more like riding pants than chinos IMO (because of the diagonal stitch detail on the calves and the very slim fit) and they sit a little bit higher on the waist than your regular chinos. Here I am trying a 0, TTS:





I really liked them but will wait for a sale as I don't need another pair of casual pants and I like to wear cords more than cotton pants when it gets colder (these may be the last famous words though because these will work great tucked in boots).

What do you think? Ant must have for you from this selection or the November catalog?

JCrew November Catalog New Arrivals Fitting Room Pics (Part 1: Sweaters)

Good afternoon! I hope that you had a nice weekend (mine was great) and you are up for a "fitting room pics" post. I went to JCrew twice last week and tried a lot of stuff on that I hadn't the time to show you yet. I haven't bought anything from the new collection so far but there are at least a couple of items that are high on my wishlist and I will get on promo or sale.
I am going to break down the post in two parts as I have a lot of pictures and I'm going to dedicate the first part to the sweaters because of the current 20% off online promo that started today.

First up my fave, the Donegal cropped v-neck cardigan. Loooved this one, it's thick and the color is TDF. It's TTS except for the sleeves that are a little bit long. This is a XS but it also comes in XXS (but I think it would be too cropped in a XXS):



The next one is store-only so far. It's a very thick pullover in 100% alpaca and it retails for $168. The XS was a little bit overwhelming on me but it would look great on taller ladies (I have the style number if some of you is interested):



The Waffled cashmere zip sweater is pretty popular as some colors/sizes are already soldout on the website. I love the look of it but I have to say that it's really thin and it didn't feel like cashmere. Too bad because the fit is very slim (this is a XS and I wouldn't size down because it was already a little bit tight on the chest, at the zip's placement):



Another cashmere sweater that I tried on (and loved) is the keyhole one. I hadn't noticed on the website but it's really pretty and the ribbon tie in the back is just adorable. This is an XS (that I found to be a little bit slouchy, so for a more fitted look I would probably go with a XXS):



And detail of the ribbon tie in the back:



The skirt in the pic above is (I guess) a holiday plaid version of the bell mini, in store only so far (I tried a 2). I don't have the style number but I can found out.

Back to the sweaters, count me in the camp of those who have been "meh-ed" by the Alexie sweater. OK, it's not expensive and vaguely cute but it looks like a Gap in my opinion. Interestingly enough I didn't feel any difference at the touch between the solid color version (which is a dream blend) and the marled one (supposed to be 100% merino). This is a XS in the rope color (granted, I could have picked a more flattering color):



If you are not sequined-out yet, the merino sequined crochet cardigan is a great one, especially in this gold color (I haven't seen the black but it looks nice too). Again, this is an xs:



I have also seen (but didn't try on) the Montreaux cardigan (very, very thin), the tipped chalet cardigan (very thick) and the Corvara cable one (very thick too and quite nice).

Do you own or are you tempted by any of these? If you have any questions, let me know. The second part will feature a new in-store only pencil skirt, the Tatum tweed jacket, the taffeta marveille mini and more!

Easy Chic in the Morning, Bumblee Bee in the Afternoon

Yesterday I broke out a Zara skirt that I bought back in July and can be considered my first fall purchase this year (it was on sale thought, it must have been part of their spring collection even if the print is very fallish).

The skirt is a full silk skirt with a Hermes-inspired hound print:




It goes with a lot of colors that I have in my closet (especially gold/yellow/mustard) but yesterday I wore it with a black pair of tights and an old black Zara viscose tee (regretted not wearing a turtleneck because boy, it was cold outside):



The black tights and tee were a strategical choice as I had a very little time in the afternoon to transform into this:



Guess who's going to be a (big) bumble bee for Halloween this year? We had a Halloween party after school and my friend (the mom who was throwing the party) asked the moms to wear a costume too so I decided to be game. I am not a crafty person at all and this was inexpensive and kind of adorable to wear at a kid's party. This costume would have been perfect last year when my daughter was a bumble bee but we didn't have any party to go last year so I didn't wear a costume.
But, look who is here! Is that Minnie Mouse?



The party officially started the Halloween celebrations. Tomorrow we are going to the parade and pumpkin sale in Central Park (where you bring your carved pumpkin and you watch it sail in water the after dusk).

Have a great weekend all!

OOTD Featuring the Bayberry Flouncette Blouse

First, thank you so much for all the comments on my shoes dilemma ladies, I really appreciate you taking the time to give me your unbiased opinion. I almost reached a decision and will let you know soon (those of you who want to chime in but haven't yet, have still the time).

I have ordered the Bayberry Flouncette blouse during the last 30% off sale promo. I always loved the print (so fall-ish!) but because I am not much of a printed blouses kind of girl and I generally don't love collar-less shirts, I decided to wait until the price would get lower (I even resisted buying it with the 25% off card when it was $59 in stores). $27 was a price good enough to me to risk the final sale gamble, so I finally grabbed it and it arrived yesterday.
I love it! I have to say that this blouse is very pretty and feminine and also a perfect match for my toothpick premium twill pants (that I don't have many things to pair with because I don't have a lot of greens or purples in my closet).
The only thing a little bit annoying with the blouse is that the ruffled placket doesn't go all the way down but stops mid-way, leaving a (ugly) rectangle of sheerness between the belly bottom and the pants, as you can see:



So basically you need to wear a cami or something else under it (which I hoped I would get away without). I have a tissue turtleneck in dark slate from a few years ago that fits the bill but I am probably going to pick up one in the dark rosewood color to have another option (the dark rosewood should also look great under my yoga sweater in cobblestone. Hint to mrs.anketell!). Anyway, this morning I wore it with the grey one:



And then I added a necklace because it was a little bit too dark (this is from Fall 09):




Much better! My daughter (who is very much into beads and making necklaces right now) squirted when she saw it and asked me if she could have it when she is a grownup (I said yes). Then, she thought twice and asked if she could have it when she is a little girl (I said no but strangely she respected that and went back to her beads without shredding a tear). So cute, so cute...

I topped everything with my loyal downtown field jacket. Of course with this outfit I can't wear my "uniform" scarf, but did I mention that I have the umbrella in the same print than the blouse (I bought it before the blouse because I really needed an umbrella)?




While I was getting dressed I was thinking that I would like to add some green to my closet this year and once home I read a post that reminded me that I have a pair of green patent penny loefers by Prada that I had bought (or my parents bought for me) years ago and I didn't get to wear much. I am very happy to see that loefers are making a comeback this year and even happier that I have a green pair:



I tried them with my morning outfit but they are slightly brighter than the toothpicks and didn't work out together, so I created another outfit for them with the ochre toothpick cords from last year (I love these so much that I am regretting not buying a backup pair on super-duper sale):




You can belt the blouse with a skinny belt (but in this case I would go without necklace):



Do you have the bayberry flouncette blouse? What do you wear it with?

I have a mom's night out tonight. Stay tuned for the outfit tomorrow!

Nude Shoes Dilemma: Advice Needed!

Way back at the beginning of the summer I impulse-bought on sale a pair of high-end shoes that I almost immediately regretted buying, for two reasons. First (most important) reason: they were not my size but a half size bigger. I wasn't loosing them but you could see a gap of half an inch between the back of the shoe and my foot. The SA talked me into wearing them with pads and I was stupid enough to buy into his sale pitch.
Second reason: they are a beautiful pair of shoes but not something that I needed and they are expensive, even on sale. What I really liked about them (besides the fact that they are nude without being pinkish or tan which is pretty rare to find) is the fact that they are very classic and they have a very low heel, which (to me) makes them the perfect pair to wear with non-black party dresses (as I am pretty incapable of wearing a pair of high-heeled pumps without looking, and feeling, like a foolish woman).
They are by Bally, a Swiss brand that is maybe more well-known in Europe:







I wanted to return them but the problem was the final sale policy of the store. Luckily for me I used my Amex so after getting back from my vacation I filed a claim through my Amex return protection program and I finally received the go-ahead from Amex to send the shoes (that must be unworn and in the original packaging), which is the final step before they can refund my credit card for the amount that I paid (something like $250).

But in the meanwhile I caved and bought the Elena shift dress (which is almost sold out on the website, as I just found out!) I have to tell you that I am still a little bit in shock about the price that I paid (even with the $25% off) but it's the "cool factor" of this dress that I find quite special and very suited to my personality/lifestyle and I thought that if I were ever to buy a lace dress it had to be this one.
So what the Elena dress has to do with my shoes? Well, the shoes happen to be the perfect pair to wear with the dress IMO (when I am not in the mood to wear it with my motorcycle boots, lol) because they are exactly the same champagne shade of the dress lining. And quite magically I tried them today and they fit like a dream (no gap). Don't ask me how's possible that a grown-up woman's feet grow up half a size in a few months but I have noticed recently that many of my old shoes feel quite tight. OK, now if this is a known symptom of incipient menopause, don't tell me!

So as I am ready to put them in the mail and never see them again, I am hesitating and I would appreciate a little help ;-). You maybe see something that I don't see and that can help me taking the right decision.
I am going to show you the shoes with the Elena dress but this is not a post on the dress itself as I didn't have time at all to style it (but I think that less is more with this dress so there isn't much to style). I am perfectly conscious that these are a more springy alternative to black tights/black shoes but I think that that's how I prefer it (without tights or with nude tights) and I don't think that there is a better pair of shoes for it out there, also because the dress is pretty short and a higher heel would create a disproportion. The downside of lower heels is that they don't lengthen the leg as, say, a 4" Laboutin.
But enough words, here are the pics:






What do you think? Should I keep them or you think that I can find better? The only contender would be this pair but it feels silly to return a pair of shoes that I already have and go through the hassle of ordering another pair very similar if it's not to save money (and these are basically the same price). Obviously I don't plan to wear them ONLY with this dress (incidentally I think that they should also look great with pants, even if I haven't tried) but this is the mean reason for me to keep them.

Your advice is greatly appreciated!

OOTD with the Lace Panel Tee and My Fall Uniform

I just wanted to do a quick OOTD post before expiration of the 30% off FS at JCrew.com. The reason is that I am wearing my favorite "fall" tee which happens to be in the FS section for the ridicolous price of $14.99 before 30% off. It's the Lace panel tee in windsor grey and I am wearing it with the ethereal cardigan from last spring in heathered grey:




At first I had put on my Minnies in coal for color scheme consistency but then changed into these Paige bootcut jeans because I had an appointment with the orthopedist for my calf and I thought that it would be easier for him to examine me if I wore non-tight pants (it's very easy to pull them up). That was quite silly as as soon as I arrived I was asked to take my pants off and put on one of those hospital plastic gown. The good news is my calf is going to heal by itself but I have to start a stretching routine because that's why it happened, apparently (because I don't stretch and my muscles are tight).

To go back to the lace panel tee, it is very delicate and feminine and very flattering IMO, so if you need something to reach the free shipping minimum I would give it a try. I especially love it with the felted bistro mini (that I am very excited to wear as it was a popback that I bought during the summer):




I also wanted to post what has been my typical uniform for the past two weeks: a pair of jeans or skinny pants and my downtown field jacket accessorized with the Printed wool wrap in the dahlia multi color. You have already seen it in one of the fitting room pics post but now that it is available on the website too I wanted to advertise it as the perfect scarf to wear with the downtown field jacket in the fall. The color of the scarf just blends into the color of the jacket (mine is the black one, which isn't a true black but more of a faded color between black and forest green) and the pops of yellow and red scream "it's fall". I know that JCrew scarves are expensive but this is my favorite scarf ever and I would recommend it to anyone (especially if you have the field jacket or a similar one):



Have a nice week! I am alone until Friday, so you can expect a lot of posts to come...

PS
So I enjoyed the last episode of Mad Men (did you see it coming?) but I thought it wasn't nearly as poignant as the previous season finales, especially Season 2 which is a television masterpiece in my modest opinion!

The Victoria Shirt Goes to a Concert (Saturday Outfit)

My husband just left (again!) for a business trip and I have an hour and a half to kill before the season finale of Mad Men (so excited but also sad that another season is coming to an end), so I thought I would post a few pics of the outfits that I wore on Saturday and that feature the Victoria long-sleeved shirt.

I haven't worn it in a while (more than a year, I think) but I still love it and I tend to wear it especially in the fall. I am very fond of this shirt because it was the first thing that I bought at the Collection store on Madison Avenue when they opened exactly two years ago. I still remember that the first time that I saw it in the store I thought that it was the most beautiful white shirt that I had ever seen and, as Caroline Herrera will tell you, a good white shirt can take you everywhere. We have seen a lot of similar ruffled shirts since then and we tend to forget how unexpected and unusual this shirt was when it first came out. I think that it really is an iconic piece.

Because it is a little bit dramatic with all those pleats and ruffles around the collar, I have always associated it with theater and I love to wear it to a theatrical performance, especially a concert or a opera (where sadly I don't get to go as often as I would like to). In this case I was taking my daughter to a "Lollipop Concert" (a classical music concert geared towards 3-5 years old) organized by the nursery school (that was fun and instructive, even if my daughter was a little bit too young).
I paired it with matchstick cords from 2008 (I tend to wear something casual as a bottom with this shirt to play it down), a BR merino open cardigan from the same year and my Glanbrae boots (now that I think about it the entire outfit is from 2008):



It was FREEZING cold on Saturday morning so I topped everything with a Zara coat that I bought while I was in Italy. This coat is everything that I wanted a coat to be this season. First, it is camel (if you have to buy a coat this season, make it camel); second it is very minimalist and it looks like a Celine (swoon) and third it's inexpensive (because who knows what I will like next year). I would say that it is the perfect coat if it weren't for the fact that is open, like in "you can't button it because it has no buttons." My mom (who was a tailor) solved momentarily the problem by sewing a hook on the inside but it is kind of visible (it's intended for fur coats so a little bit massive) and I will need to replace it at some point. Anyway at least I can wear it without freezing (even if admittedly I wouldn't wear it during the coldest months when I typically switch to my puffer coats anyway):






In the afternoon the weather warmed up a little bit and I swapped the merino cardigan for the cashmere zip cardigan (and I went out without a coat). I just wanted to show you that you can easily wear a shirt under this cardigan (I am wearing a XS). I love the cuffs of the Victoria peeking out:



We had invited friends for dinner. I have to say that I rarely cook when we have friends coming over as I don't like to cook (only bake) and my husband is a very good cook but every year at this time of the year I love to prepare a pumpkin soup (a cream, actually) as an appetizer and I love to serve it in the emptied pumpkin itself. It is very easy (cutting the pulp of the pumpkin is the hardest part) and scenographic and the guests always appreciate the effort (plus the day after you can have fun with the kids and carve a Jack-o-Lantern for Halloween). I wished I had taken a picture of the soup but because I poured it into the pumpkin just before serving it I couldn't do it. Instead, I took a very rare pic of myself wearing an apron (this is a silly one and describes the recipe for a "elephant stew"):



Because I had basically spent the day in my Victoria and even cooked in it I wanted to change myself before our friends arrived but my husband asked me not to because he thought that the shirt was very pretty. I always like a spontaneous compliment from my husband so my Victoria stayed for dinner too.

Do you still wear it your Victoria shirt, if you own one?

Enjoy the last episode of Mad Men, those who watch the show!