The Story of My First Balenciaga

I have along story for you today, I hope you have time :-). It's the story of my first pair of Balenciaga shoes and I want to tell this story with all the details that it takes and that they deserve. Please bear with me ;-).

When we were in LA, we visited the new annex of the MOCA (Museum of Contemporary Art) at the Pacific Design Center. This building is fairly new (I am pretty sure it wasn't there the last time that I was in LA) and, as we learned, only hosts temporary exhibitions. To see the permanent collection you have to go downtown where the main MOCA is located.
The building, basically a cube with no windows, reminded me of the buildings in a painting by De Chirico, probably because we visited in the middle of a sunny Saturday afternoon and the building gives on a Plaza that was quite empty and the particular light and shadow of the building on the plaza at that time of the day gave the whole scenery a dream-like feeling, like the time had stopped (I won't lecture you on De Chirico but his paintings really strike a cord with me, as well as his poet counterpart, Emilio Montale, my favorite Italian poet).
Anyway, they were hosting a exhibit of graphic artist Stefan Sagmeister called "The Happy Show" that is a personal reflection about happiness and how to achieve it and I found to be quite interesting. At some point the artist tackles the eternal subject of passionate love as opposed to other forms of love and comes to the conclusion that (I quote by memory) "A lasting passionate love is biologically impossible". Something to keep in mind when you feel like you need more passion in your love life. If you look for passion you are biologically doomed to change partner every 6 months or so. Just saying. You can read more about the show here (if you are in the area, tomorrow June 7 is the last day).

You might ask what this has to do with Balenciaga shoes. I am getting there and it is related, but I also wanted to take a moment to mention the show because I really liked it ;-). After the show, we wandered a bit in the blue building of the Pacific Design Center which is basically a big design show room. Everything was closed and one of the guards told us that we had no rights to be there (when the other guard at the other entrance let us in. Bah). Anyway we were taking the door out when my fashion antennae spotted on the other side of the street across from the center a sign that read "Balenciaga". Could it be the Balenciaga store? It seemed very incongruous, a two-story building surrounded (and almost swallowed by) a jungle-like vegetation and nothing else around (no street to speak of). The main difference between LA and NY is that you never see anybody in the streets (unless you go to Santa Monica) so the place seemed completely abandoned with no people strolling in front of it. I had vaguely thought about looking for the Balenciaga store while in LA because I had been obsessed with a pair of shoes that were sold out in NYC, but then thought better of it (I couldn't imagine dragging my husband on a quest for a store in LA). Well, I think that if I had noted the address I would still be looking for it, it wouldn't have hit me that THAT was the store. The place is unreal for a New Yorker:

I am going to write another version of Guantanemera and ask to be buried under those cactus trees

This was a case of the mountain that comes to Mohammed so since we had parked the car just in front of it without noticing, my husband couldn't say no when I asked him if I could go in to have a look (but he stayed outside and called my daughter). It was open and I was the only client (maybe the other ones were all lost on their way there). The object of my desire was their glove espadrilles wedge in black:

My plan was to try them on for ebay/online sale sizing purposes. A high-end shoe store very close to my place used to have them at the beginning of the season and because they always send me a "private sale" flyer before Memorial Day that also gives a 10% off any purchase (sale or not) I waited and waited until they soldout at full price ($695). The LA store had them but in a very funky fuchsia color that I couldn't possibly pair with anything, so I had no temptations when I tried them on. I could at least try them and see that they fit TTS to a bit small and that the leather was buttery soft. However, even if an espadrille style, the heel was VERY high, so I began to question if I would actually be able to walk in them and wear them. The last thing that I need is a pair of $700 shoes that I don't wear. They had another style, a slingback sandal with a more walkable heel but again, the color offered wasn't something that I would wear often and the SA told me that my chances of finding them in black in either style were close to 0 because they had requested more pairs from other stores and they were soldout everywhere. "We did very well with this style this season" she said with a bit of a pitiful tone. I walked out of the store a bit relieved that I didn't have to make any decision on the spot on a $700 pair of shoes (imagine if they had the last black pair in my size). Well, actually my husband would have made the decision for me because I didn't even have my credit card with me and you know what that decision would have been!

Back to NY, I vaguely looked for them on the Internet (I had seen them on several websites, besides the Balenciaga store) and I couldn't find any size left in any wearable color in either style so I kind of resigned myself to wait until a pair would show up on ebay.
But last week I happened to be at Barney's on the first day of the designer sale, that I didn't know about until walking into Barney's. Now, I haven't stepped into Barney's in at least two years. I used to go all the time when I was working and especially during the shoe sale but the prices of designer shoes these days have skyrocketed and I stopped looking at them altogether. I mean, we are talking $500-$800 ON SALE for heels. When did that happen?
Anyway since I was there for another reason (I went to look for a present for my husband) I couldn't help visiting the shoe floor. I wasn't expecting to find the Balenciaga on sale (even if I knew that Barneys used to carry them) and in fact when I landed on the 5th floor I saw a small table of Balenciaga shoes none of which on sale. While I was there I started to look at the sale racks but, as I said before, everything was $500 and more, and that included the 40% off. I tried a very sexy pair of evening suede sandal by a designer I had never heard about (and I know a lot of designers) that retailed for $600 (again, on sale, and I don't even count the tax). The Lanvins with their "L'ete Lanvin 2013" printed on the insole would have tempted me in the old days but I kept thinking about the Balenciaga. Then when I was almost ready to leave I saw one lonely pair of the fuchsia glove espadrille (in my size) on the rack and that sight gave me some hope that there were maybe more hiding. I was sitting on a couch with three young girls barely in their 20s who kept adding $600 shoes to their "Yes" pile and at some point one of them came back showing a black glove sandal to one of her friends, who apparently wasn't interested (I want the wedges, she said to me like she could read on my face that I thought she was crazy. I wanted them too, I said like it was a thing that happened to me a long time ago and that didn't affect me anymore). With the queue of my eye I saw it was a size 6 and without much hope I asked the SA if they had a 7 or 7 1/2. She said "I don't think so" but then looked into a handheld device that all the clerks were sporting and said "Uhm, it says we have one even if I doubt it". She disappeared for a long time and I thought she had forgot about me but when she came back with a Balenciaga box saying (not the box, the SA, even if at that point I was probably hearing voices) "You are a very lucky lady" my heart almost stopped. There was still an interrogation mark though because as a matter of fact I had never tried this style on and I didn't know if they would fit or I would find them more wearable than the espadrilles (they were also slightly more expensive but the 40% off made up for it). The "glove" part of the sandal was the same buttery soft leather than the espadrille and the heel seemed very easy to walk in. They "just" fit but I chose to believe the SA that they were going to stretch out a bit. So I walked out of Barneys with my first Balenciaga (and no present for my husband). The absurd thing is that at $430 they were the cheapest of all the shoes of known and unknown designers that I tried that day.

You are probably tired of me talking now and you probably want to see the shoes. I happened to wear them yesterday night to a restaurant downtown. It was a girl's night out and I wanted to show them to my friend who can appreciate a pair of Balenciaga shoe probably more than my husband. I sort of dressed down but I would lie if I said that it was effortless: it took a lot of effort to look this cool (the skirt is by Phillip Lim, more about it in another post):







These shoes fit like a glove (pun intended) in my evening wardrobe and they look great with both pants and skirts, giving every outfit a touch of glam-rock, which seems to be my go-to going out look. These are a few pics from the other day, pre-pedi and with my LA "going out" outfit:







Another skirt outfit that I plan to wear soon (the skirt is Zara winter bought on sale, top is the Carrie cami):





Are you lusting over any designer shoe these days?

I hope you enjoyed the story!

OOTD: Style Guide Cover Inspired (The Allie Gladiator Metallic Sandals)

First, thank you Joanna and Gigi for finding the solution of the riddle in my last post (I was starting to doubt that maybe I am the only one to watch crappy TV. No offense Gigi!) The mysterious guy in the picture at the end of my LA post was Peter from Sur, a restaurant in West Hollywood. The staff of Sur is the cast of a Bravo TV show called "Vanderpump Rules", which is a spinoff of the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills (Lisa Vanderpump, one of the housewives is the owner/manager of two restaurants in LA and in this show we see her with her restaurant manager hat on and not in her relationship with the other housewives). The show could have "Sex lives of bartenders in LA" as a subtitle and honestly I would never have thought I would be hooked on the show but as Gigi said it is like watching a train wreck. Anyway, I thought it would be fun to have dinner there since I watch the show and I was in LA and it actually was, since almost all the cast was there. It was even more fun because they were filming that night (even if they didn't film our table, so I will have to wait for my five minutes of celebrity). Granted, Peter is not one of the main characters of the show and he is actually the "serious" guy, maybe more people would have better recognized Jax, the "star" of the show and his on/off girlfriend Stassi (he was at the bar and my friend kept calling him by his name, which I found a bit weird. I mean even if we know who he is, it isn't like we are friends or we have been introduced. But maybe I am just an uptight New Yorker!)
To wrap the LA topic, I want to thank all of you for the comments to my post, I enjoyed reading them. Now let's move on!

I had a very busy weekend and I actually wanted to post pics of my weekend outfits but I thought I would post my OOTD first because some of you might be interested in the Allie metallic gladiator sandals. I liked these sandals instantly but because I don't need any more flat sandals I didn't purchase them during the previous promo. However, I have been staring very intently at designer shoes as of late and after a day of two of browsing $600-800 shoes (on sale!), a pair of shoes that you actually like as much as the ones that cost $800 and actually cost almost a tenth of the price become the all more appealing all of a sudden (this is not to say that JCrew shoes are cheap in general, but this particular style is stylish and quite affordable, especially with the current 30%). I thought that it wasn't worth it to wait for a markdown and miss on them (in fact there are very few size left today), so I decided to go to my store to try them on (admitted that they still had my number) as sizing in JCrew shoes has been very inconsistent as of late, at least in my case.
In this case I took my regular size (a 7), so I would say they are TTS. I wasn't sure I really liked the contrasting heel (which is golden) but it doesn't bother me much because I cannot see it once the shoes are on my feet (I find it more bothering in the black, I would have preferred a more versatile black or natural heel on those). They were very comfortable right off the box but the real test was today, when I wore them out to pay a visit to a friend who had an operation and is at the hospital. I walked miles in these (I kid you not) and they didn't bother me at all. Do not size down though because the front could become too tight.
What I really liked is that they look great with both skirts/dresses and pants. That they looked great with pants I knew because they are swoon-worthy on the cover of the lastest style guide. But it is difficult to find gladiaror sandals that look good with dresses because they tend to run up high on the ankle and cut the leg. Well, not these.

I tried them on for you with my Gap shirtdress from last year (best shirtdress ever) that I wore non stop this past Saturday to a birthday party and then to a movie with husband (we saw "The Iceman" that was actually better than I thought - it is almost like a classic Scorsese - and I recommend if you can stomach some very cold-blooded scenes. The wardrobe that Wynona Ryder wears in the movie is worth it in itself):





Close-up:



I was actually going to head out like this but my MIL (who had dropped off my daughter earlier at school) came back with reports of colder temperatures so I decided that I would try my version of the June cover of the style guide. I have a pair of old Scout chinos (first edition) that aren't splattered with paint but distressed (they will do!) and an old Zara short-leaved linen shirt that has "shrunk" (an euphemism to say that I am wider on top than I was ten years ago) but looks great with these pants. I do have a safari inspired jacket but the color is much warmer than the pants and they clash together so I wore the striped schoolboy blazer instead. So TA-DA:






Bottom line: I really recommend these, they are stylish and comfortable after road test.

Are you considering the Allie metallic gladiator sandals? Any other JCrew shoe is striking your fancy?

LA Outfits And What Packing Can Tell You About What You Need In Your Closet Right Now

My packing for LA was almost a catastrophe. First of all, I always overestimate the weather there at this time of the year. I had vaguely checked the forecasts before leaving and the excitement for "0% chances of precipitations" (when in NY was pouring) made me forget that 70 degrees during the day is not THAT warm, especially if followed by 58 in the night, which is definitely chilly. I also forgot that LA has different microclimates depending on where you are: if you are on the hills it starts cloudy in the morning until around 11 or noon, and then it gets sunny and it warms up. Since we were staying at the Standard, which is on Sunset boulevard in West Hollywood, and that we were around the pool mostly in the early morning and that I didn't have any long-sleeved sweater/sweatshirt except for the one I had travelled in and that I was "saving" for the night (I know, I know) I was basically freezing at the pool (until Memorial Day when it got very hot all of a sudden). So that was the first mistake, I overpacked warm weather clothes and I had zero in cases (luckily I didn't forget my Nolita jacket).
My evening line-up wasn't much better. I packed only one dress (pretty casual) that I knew in advance my husband didn't like (I was hoping that he would change his mind as he sometimes does but it didn't happen this time), so when he categorically asked me not to wear it I was left with the choice between my Zara faux-leather shorts (that would have been cute if it weren't for the fact that they weren't weather appropriate) and my two pairs of jeans. Moreover, I didn't take any heels because that only dress didn't need the hassle of wearing heels to look good, in my opinion. Smart. So I was in glamorous LA, without daughter in tow, ready to take over the city nightlife in jeans and flats. I had to admit that my husband's appalled "with all the money that you spend in clothes you come to LA like this?" wasn't completely out of line, but I had to make the most of it because the only thing I am certain in life is that my husband will never go shopping while on vacation (and I can't drive in the US).

Soooooo, the first night (which was actually the coldest in our stay) we were going to meet friends who live in OC at a restaurant nearby and I was sure that we wouldn't go anywhere after because I was tired and jetlagged, having gotten up at 3.30 am that morning to catch my flight (I can't sleep while I fly). After my husband defended me from wearing the dress that I had planned to wear, I had no choice but wearing the Zara shorts (because the place was dressy and I couldn't show up in jeans) that I paired with the red Carrie cami (as a side note, this cami is the best going out thing that JCrew has ever put out IMO. If you don't mind the cleavage exposure and you can wear that kind of spaghetti strap cami, I highly recommend it). It was okay because we had dinner on the heated patio and I had my Rebecca Taylor vest that goes with everything and was really a lifesaver during this vacation (one of the servers complimented me on my vest in front of my husband and she made my day). As I said I didn't have any heel with me but I had a pair of evening flat sandals by Vince Camuto that I had bought the day before leaving and I can't recommend enough. They are the most comfortable sandals ever and they are showstoppers. If it is of any indication, a drunken lady in her 70s (think old movie star a la Stardust Boulevard) stopped in her tracks and (in a drunken voice) said (pointing at my shoes and sort of barking orders to the man that was lifting her by her underarm) "What are those shoes? I want them!". It was a funny LA moment. By the way, apparently there is no Vince Camuto store in LA, so it a brand that people there do not easily recognize, probably.
The reason why I bought these is that they were having a promo for Memorial Day and all the sandals were 25%, which makes them really inexpensive. They are the Emera gladiator sandals and they are very sparkly IRL. They run AT LEAST one size big, I went down to a 6 and they were perfect and I am never a 6 (however if you plan to wear them during the day and walk a lot in them I would go down only half a size):





The following evening was more challenging. It was the "no plan" evening out with a vague idea of going to a club. Since my husband's best friend (who lives in LA) wasn't in LA that weekend and without him we didn't know how to navigate the LA club scene, we went for a safe choice and decided to have dinner at Pink Taco on Sunset (walking distance from the hotel!) because we had no reservations, then to go to a movie (to kill time until midnight) and then come back to the hotel and go to the Chateau Marmont (walking distance again!) or the club of our hotel or both. So I had to dress for dinner and a movie, followed by a bar/club without possibly getting bounced (it didn't occurred to me that I could have changed mid-evening since we were coming back to the hotel after the movie). So I went casual on bottom (no choice here) and upscale up, so to speak. We didn't take pictures that night but I re-created the exact outfit for you, minus the shoes (the Vince Camuto above):




And with the RT vest:




What worked really well in this outfit was the necklace. It is a necklace that gets you into places, so to speak, as both the bouncer at the Chateau and at the club of the Standard made a comment on it. Usually it is my husband who gets us into clubs (the rare times when we go out) but this time it was me and my necklace!
Pink Taco (a casual Mexican joint on Sunset with a beautiful patio) was just OK, I had read so much about it that I was a bit disappointed, the ambience was a mix between sports bar and prom night and the food was average (maybe because of the holiday weekend). But I wanted to try it and it was the perfect night to do it. Going to a movie right after (The Hangover 3, that was opening that weekend) was also a good idea because it kept us busy/awake until it was time for the clubs. I enjoyed my drink at the bar of the Chateau but the club at the Standard was a throwback to the 80s and while the music and people were fun, I hadn't been to a club where people were freaking SMOKING since the 90s and I couldn't stand it for more than 10 minutes (my husband neither). When we got out, the bouncer was surprised that we were already done, he seemed disappointed and maybe he regretted to let us in!

Sunday night we were celebrating my husband's birthday and since I was in charge of the reservations for the weekend I had chosen a low-key restaurant with a beautiful patio, called Laurel Hardware. When we were driving back from Malibu earlier that day we considered briefly the new Nobu locatio which is right on the Pacific Highway (the new building is astonishing) but we decided to stick to the initial plan because it was still early and it wouldn't be fun for the birthday boy to refrain from drinking, since he was the one driving.
Laurel Hardware is an amazing place. The front of the restaurant looks like a pretty bare-boned coffee shop but behind the high concrete wall there is a restaurant room with an amazing décor/bar and behind that a patio that immediately transports you somewhere in Greece or South of Italy, with two giant olive trees in the middle. The atmosphere in the patio is priceless but the food could be better (it puzzles me that a restaurant with such beautiful premises can't find a better chef). My husband was very happy (for him the vibe of a place is more important that the actual food) and we could drink a bottle of wine because we were very close to the hotel, even if I had no idea before getting there.
By then he had probably gotten used to the idea that my LA wardrobe was very casual (or maybe he had gotten used to the casual vibe in LA) so when I showed up in glorified trackpants (the JCrew silk colorblock pants) he said (to my surprise) "Yes, that's very LA". I didn't want to upset him on his birthday but in reality I was expecting the opposite reaction and my plan was that after seeing me in the trackpants he would find my jeans very dressy (I know, I have to play Machiavelli with him). BTW, in case you are interested in these pants (they are very cool IMO), the key is sizing down so that there is no extra fabric in the crotch area and at the bottom. I had first ordered the green version in a XS and they looked AWEFUL, so when the black went on sale (before Xmas?) I ordered a size down and they fit perfectly. I don't have pics of the exact outfit that I wore in LA (I wore it with the orange Joe Fresh tank that you have seen in the packing post and the Juicy palms clutch) but I had planned a post on them a while ago, so I can share a pic where you can see how they fit (by the way, the side band is not white, nor ivory but a very dark beige that was a bit disappointing at first):



The only kind of outfit that I really got right was my "pool" outfit. I have been at the Standard many times so I kind of know what to expect from the guests, even if this time I found a bit more gay than hipster. I had bought an inexpensive Zara tee that was perfect with my cutoff shorts. On Memorial Day we had champagne brunch just before checking out:



And this is the view on Sunset from our balcony (always ask for a room on the back at the Standard, they are much quieter):



So I survived my pitiful packing (did I mention that I forgot my flip-flops?) but this got me thinking. Even if I had wanted to bring heels and a "going out" dress, I wouldn't have known what to bring, my closet is lacking in these two categories: going out shoes that I can walk in and going out dresses that aren't too casual or too dressy. I tend to buy more of what I already have (I guess this is quite common), in particular tee shirts, jeans and cover-ups. When I splurge I tend to splurge on things that are too occasion-y and that then I don't wear because I lack the occasion.
So I am on a quest for the perfect going-out shoes and the going out equivalent of a LBD, a dress that you can wear to go out in several occasions. I found the shoes and I have a post coming up, stay tuned.

To end this lengthy post (I hope I haven't bored you to death) a little riddle. Can you recognize the guy in the pic below?



OK, so if you have recognized him, you probably count among your guilty pleasures a certain TV show (don't tell me I am the only one who watches this crap). This was taken at the restaurant where we went the first night (hint). He was our server that night and I was mortified when my friend asked him to pose for a pic with me but I kind of deserved it because I had booked the restaurant. It was fun to see all the cast thought and I was surprised at their professionalism (I mean they acted like professional servers, even if the TV show probably pay them much better)!


Have a great weekend!!!

Vacationland

I must compliment writer from space on this one or whoever came up with this name at JCrew, even if there have been prints more vacation-y than this one IMO. Still, it is a name that conjures up fantasies about farniente at the beach, strolling in little villages, sailing or travelling around the globe, depending on your idea of a vacation. I know it is supposed to depict Floridian favorite pastimes but having just come back from a short vacay in LA, I am a bit biased to say that South California perfectly embodies my idea of "Vacationland": it can't get any better than sunny skies punctuated by palm trees. I haven't downloaded all the vacation pictures yet but I think this perfectly sums it up:

This pic was taken at El Matador beach in Malibu. We drove up there on Sunday afternoon (my husband's birthday), after a lunch and stroll in Venice. I love driving to Malibu (or, I should say, being driven to Malibu) but once there we never know what to do or where to go. I am not a day-tripper at heart but since it was already 4 pm we knew we didn't have to kill a lot of time before sunset and we drove up to this beach were we had never been before (it is quite a trek). This is one beautiful beach and the scenery with the big cliffs reminded me a lot of Portugal. In any case we had a little "aperitivo" there (that we had brought) and it was a beautiful moment.
Can you spot the Hawaiian sunset shorts in the pic? I love these shorts and they were perfect for Malibu. The funny thing is that I dug up a picture of my first trip to California in 2002 and I was wearing a sunset print tank by H&M that I have since thrown away (I regretted it this season but it is the reason why I preferred the shorts to the tank, I guess):

Yes, I have been a brunette...



What can I say, I love palm trees...

Anyway, back to "Vacationland", I had promised pictures of the blouse. The ones with the shorts that I had taken in the store fitting room are still stuck in my phone and at this point I think I am going to give up on them. However, I have the blouse at home (wearing it today) so I took pics for you.
I tried both a 00 and a 0 and went with my regular 0 (the 00 fit too but it was considerably shorter and even if this is not a shirt to tuck in I preferred the longer length). The good news is that it doesn't gape at the chest, it fits perfectly (sorry for the wrinkles, I didn't have time to steam it):







A reader (hello Wendy!) asked me if it felt like wearing a pajama and I have to say that before her asking the question the thought didn't even cross my mind. Yes, it is silk charmeuse (but as the description says, it is printed on the matte side, so that she shiny side is actually on the inside of the blouse) and the print could totally be on a pajama but thankfully they didn't ruin it by 1) making the collar rounded and 2) making a contrasting piping. After noticing this, I understood what bothered me in the dress (strangely called "suncation"):



The dress has the pajam-y collar and piping and looks more like a nightshirt IMO. I think that the collar on the shirt is perfect and it has a timeless feeling to it. I have a friend who has a Lanvin blouse in a whimsical print like this one that I always admired and this "Vacationland" shirt comes closer to it. I think the price on this is right too, especially compared to the uber-expensive (and very pajam-y) Bermuda shorts. I also love that it is a everyday short-sleeve shirt (very rare in Crewland). As a side note, I ended up returning the punk floral swoop top because I had many occasions to wear it and each time I decided to wear something else, it was a bit too delicate to wear during the day and not an evening top so I was trying to force myself to wear it but it didn't fit quite in.
The only reserve could be the color, which is a bit salmon-y. I don't think that it's a color that could wash you out but for some of you it could come too close to the color of your skin if you have a pink complexion. It works well for me because my skin complexion is not pink but beige and I am always a bit tan in the spring and summer so it makes a nice and "healthy" contrast with the my coloring.

OK, I will be back with some anecdotes from my LA vacation and some reflection on what packing for a short stay in another city can teach you about what you miss and what works in your closet.

What's your idea of "Vacationland"?

Packing for LA

So as you know I am going to LA this weekend. I was supposed to leave with my husband but he went two days earlier for "work". Had I known I wouldn't have booked a 7 am flight but whatever. I just hope that I am not going to fall asleep at 6 pm on Friday and sleep through my first evening there (it happened before).
We are staying at the Standard Hollywood; honestly I was ready for something more grown-up but my husband thinks he is 25 (especially when he is in LA) and it's his birthday so at the Standard we stay (not to self: remember to pack earplugs to keep out of ear noisy neighbors who ARE 25 and less).
I have been to LA many times but I have my own pre-conceived idea of LA as a place where everybody wears cutoff shorts and a tank. So I am going to take cutoff shorts and a lot of tanks lol. No, really I love LA because of its casual vibe. We have planned this weekend a long time ago so I bought a few things along the way with this trip in mind including the above mentioned cutoff shorts.
One would think that it isn't worth it to spend a lot on shorts, especially cutoffs but I actually never found a pair that fit really well before. These are the Current/Elliott "boyfriend" and the only white shorts that don't make me feel like I have passed the age for cutoff shorts (they fit VERY big, this is a 25 and I could actually wear a 24):





The top is a cheap H&M. And when I say cheap I mean REALLY cheap. I was looking for something fun that wouldn't necessarily stay in my closet forever and when I saw this for $4.95 (no, it isn't a typo) I thought it was perfect (it also fits better than other more expensive things I tried).
I also like the idea of "going out shorts"; in fact I bought the JCrew pleated cotton in black at the beginning of spring to wear them out in the evening but they weren't what I was looking for. JCrew "going out" stuff has always a dressy side that screams "occasion" to me (in this case the fabric). I found what I was looking for at Zara, in a pair of high-waisted, faux-leather black shorts (here with my cheap top):



With the exception of the Hawaiian print shorts, my whole suitcase is going to be black/white/ivory with some pop of color. You might remember my Zoe Karssen tee fiasco; I ended up ordering another tee that is still oversized but I like a lot, also because I am not ashamed of the message, which is the problem with most of the message tees, especially if you have kids around. I can't really buy a tee that says "Girls like boys who don't like girls" or, even worst "Live fast because it won't last" and the likes. Although I was tempted to buy the Wildfox "I'd rather be shopping" sweatshirt to wear to a boring event). This one simply says "Madame" (which is true and I can be proud of) in a "varsity" font and I like the simplicity of the design and the message. It is understated and cool but looooooooooooong (wearing a size S) so that on me it looks better tucked in:





For the pop of color I am bringing this silk top by Joe Fresh. I couldn't resist this color, also because it pairs perfectly with my Juice Couture "palm trees" clutch that has a piping and inside in the exact same color:





I am also taking my Rebecca Taylor orange dress in case not everybody is wearing track pants and cutoff jeans ;-). Plus, stuff to lounge around the pool.

Even if every other movie is shot in LA and has LA and Hollywood as a backdrop (think of "Shortcuts", "Crash", "Pulp Fiction", "Get Shorty" etc.), I watched "Somewhere" by Sophia Coppola yesterday to put myself into the mood (even if I am not staying at the Chateau). But my favorite "LA vibe" movie is probably "Laurel Canyon" with Christian Bale, Kate Backinsale and Francis McDormand (I don't think it is a very well-known movie so I recommend it if you haven't seen it). I am ready!

Have a great Memorial Day weekend, talk to you next week.

JCrew June Rollout: Fitting Room Pics (1)

In the last three days I saw and tried in stores a few of the new arrivals that rolled out today on the website. I don't have much time but I wanted to share a few pics before the long Memorial day weekend. I mostly tried tops because that's what I am interested in these days (I have too many dresses and bottoms and definitely do not need another pair of café capris). I will be quick but if you have any question before tomorrow night let me know and I will try to respond (I don't guarantee though). Also, I saw these before having a chance of browsing the new Style Guide, so I wasn't influenced in my judgment by the styling or beautiful Lyla.

First, the Baja embroidered top. I liked this one a lot. The peri color isn't very flattering on me, so I tried the ivory/black colorway. This top fits beautifully but it isn't a top to tuck in, it is to leave untucked (personally I love the shorter length). It is a bit sheer in the body in the ivory (the embroidery covers the chest area) but it's a summer top so I don't think it is too much exposure. It reminds me a bit of my Marrakesh top from a few years ago.
This is the 0. It was slightly small in the shoulders but the neckline fits so well without exposing too much cleavage that I didn't size up. The peri is even more summery if you can do that color:





Another top that I liked quite a bit is the Collection pom-pom top. This top is linen and more sparkly IRL (because of the mirrored embellishments) than what it looks like on the website. However it seemed a bit high maintenance between the linen fabric and the mirrors, given that it will be a mess after one wear (I could tell by only trying it on) and it is "professional dry-clean only" so I preferred to pass, especially at fp. They only had a 00 and it was slightly pulling at the chest but was fine (actually good) everywhere else. I am afraid that the 0 would be a bit boxy in the body:





It looks like they put out a lot of boho tops in this rollout. the next one is the Chambray dot peasant top. This one fits a bit like the Liberty peasant tops of early spring and as those I didn't like it. Note that the ivory color is very creamy and seems a strange choice for summer. This is the XXS:



Last of the bohemian tops is the Embroidered gauze top. I don't do very well with this kind of tops, they make me look bustier than I am, but it is a pretty top. This is the 0 in the white (I saw all the other colors and the vintage burgundy is really very burgundy, not a springy color):



I liked the Ikat popover when I saw it on the racks, it felt fresh and new. It is a great top, I am just not sure about those colors on me (plus, I do not need at all). The pink is darker IRL than on the website pic. I tried a 2 because there wasn't a 0 on the floor and I would say it fits TTS (aka, I would buy a 0):



I was tempted by the Cluster sequin tee that has been on the website for a while but just hit the stores. The fit in the XS was GREAT and I loved the multicolored sequins but in the end I decided that I don't need more sequins in my life:



I have a few more pics, including my favorite of all the new arrivals, the Vacationland blouse but I am having trouble downloading them. In case I can't post them before leaving the blouse is just gorgeous (the color is a very pretty blush steering towards salmon) and it fits TTS (I tried both the 0 and 00 and went with the 0).

What do you think of these new arrivals?