I received the polka-dot Blythe last Friday but I hadn't the time to try it on until yesterday, when I was getting dressed for a birthday party that I had to take my daughter to. I was one of the lucky JCA who stumbled upon the uncorrectly priced Blythe last week and eventually got it for $22. I was stalking the striped hoodie that morning so when I saw the price I jumped on it. I originally ordered a 2 because my size, the 0, was the only size showing another price ($89.99, that turned out to be the correct sale price that was meant to be) but then called CS to cancel my order and place another order for the 0 since it was final sale. I knew they had to honor the lowest price because I had an order that showed what I had paid. I also knew that I couldn't do the 2 because I just sold my only other Blythe that was a size 2 and too big for me. If they hadn't honored the price I would have canceled my order and just sucked it up because it would have been wasted money.
All well what ends well, the 0 arrived and fits perfectly. I had never tried this version of the Blythe before so while I knew what to expect from a Blythe, I didn't know what to expect from this particular incarnation. At first it looked very ... cream-y, I was expecting white or ivory but the background is really cream. I really love how this Blythe is paired with the herringbone cafe capris on the website but since those didn't work for me and I don't own any gray pants (still on a quest), I picked my toothpick cords in champagne (which is as close a color as it gets to the color of this Blythe) and added a gray belt to break up the milky ensemble:
Because I am a matchy-matchy person (as you know), I wore my cashmere hoodie in heather dusk (that matches the polka-dots) to keep it casual:
But I also tried it with the gray flannel schoolboy and of course it pairs well with it (but I am ready to ditch this blazer, that I wore barely once, because I don't like how it fits me and I have recently gone back to my first love, Theory, and realized what a difference a well tailored blazer can make):
What do you think of the dotted Blythe? Do you own it? Were you one of the lucky ones who got it for the the low price?
A quick OOTD before we all get busy with the weekend activities. You have already seen a partial version of this outfit in my "new uniform " post but yesterday I wore it for real so I added some finishing touches. Actually, the pants are Minnies and not leggings because after seeing how Pippa Middleton got bashed on the Huffington post for wearing leggings as pants (a year ago, but still), I thought that I wasn't ready (after all she is the best "derriere" alive so if she doesn't get a pass, I don't know who would). The cashmere stripe sweather hits me a little above the hip so if I get rid of the coat it will expose my derriere as well, thus the Minnies. The necklace is old JCrew and is exactly the same colors of the sweater, the rest is Zara (old):
This Zara coat always gets me a lot of compliments. People think that it is a designer coat because of the simple lines and sharp look and I always get a kick out of letting them know that it is Zara. I stopped at Theory yesterday (more on this later but if you are interested in Theory and you have a store nearby, they are giving away a "scratcheable coupon" that will give you a discount of 15%, 20% or 25% off your FP purchase until November 16) and the SA told me that he loved my coat. When I told him that it was Zara he said that he didn't know that Zara made "this kind of coat". Which kind he meant I don't know but I know that Zara can make a good coat. Did I ever tell you I am a Zara big fan?
In case you are wondering where I took these pics, I was at the Loft trying for the hundredth time this peacoat:
I love this peacoat because it is made of boiled wool (I know I am contraddicting myself because I said that I don't like peacoats in general but the stiff fabric that peacoats are generally made or makes for 90% of my disliking them) and it looked so good on Gigi in this post that I had to try it on. But it is the peacoat that wasn't meant to be. The first time that I tried it the store was having a 50% off promo. I was determined to get it for that price but I had a return to make first so I put it on hold. I came back a few hours later but I was with my daughter. The line was very long (which I will never understand because they know that if the have a 50% off promo they will need more staff) and after 10 minutes of "When is it our turn?" we went to get her a smoothie. We came back (with the smoothie) but the line was even longer and when my daughter said disapprovingly "We shouldn't be here" I had no choice but leave (guilty mom).
Yesterday it was 30% off and I was hoping to combine the 30% off with a 20% off coupon that I found in the mail, but at the register they didn't want to combine them so I left it there again. I don't need it that badly, I can wait for a better deal and if sells out tant pis!
The other thing is that in store they only had petite sizes left. The pics above are of a 4P (same size that I had tried the first time around) but I would like to try a 2R to compare. I liked the length but it felt a bit roomy in the chest/shoulders area.
Back to my outfit, I received yesterday what I thought would be an alternative to the cashmere sweater, the striped hoodie that I ordered with the recent 30% off promo. I admit to stalking this one because I really liked the colors, which are sort of a negative version of the striped cashmere and I wanted another sweatshirt as I seem to live in them as of late. However, I am disappointed in the fabric and fit of this one. The fabric is very stiff and the fit is boxy:
This was not marked Final Sale but I paid shipping and it was only $27 (down from $78!) so I think I am going to keep it to wear around the house (not sure if I will venture outside, I don't feel good in it and my husband confirmed the feeling).
That's it! What do you think of the Loft peacoat? Do you have the striped hoodie? Do you think Pippa should get a pass?
After all my talk about wearing a uniform to throw on in the morning, this morning I dressed up big time. The reason is I had someone to meet and somewhere to go, I was going to meet a blog friend who was visiting from Upstate NY and we were going to hit up as many stores as we could squeeze in in the few hours that she was in NY. She wanted to go to JCrew, Tory Burch and Hermes, no less, so I thought that deserved some ladylike outfit.
But the main reason why I wore what I wore is that I wanted to show her the Navy tweed jacket IRL, since she had expressed some interest in it but had never seen it.
I bought the suit (jacket and skirt) last week in store during the 25% off and you can get it online with 30% off (both the jacket and the skirt are a bit cheaper in store but not as much as to make you go crazy to find one in store as opposed to buy it online). I tought nothing of the jacket in itself but I LOVED it with the matching Postage stamp mini in navy tweed. I really don't know why the called this one "navy tweed", the main color is not navy but a cobalt blue bordering on purple. It is also much more sparkly IRL than what you can see on the website, the Lurex threads add a lot of shine. I would have been surprised by both the color and by the sparkle had I ordered it online without seeing it first. But of course I had the chance to see both the jacket and the skirts many times in store before buying them so no surprises here.
I am wearing a 0 in the jacket and a 2 in the skirt (the 0 is the smallest of my jacket sizes and I have been buying only 2 as of late, but I felt that I could go one down in this one, I actually like it fitted). It could be too much tweed for some of you, but I love it with the jacket closed. It is almost a "hookup", except that it is a suit:
I am wearing a cashmere shell under the jacket, which is the perfect layer to wear because it can be easily tucked in the skirt:
In my opinion the navy gros-grain ruins the jacket a bit, it looks cheaper when it is unbuttoned so I prefer to wear it closed (if you are very busty it might not work). I also tried the suit with a long sleeve shirt with a ruffled collar and liked it as well (a bit uptight maybe but I like the collar peeking out):
I wore the first outfit this morning (sans jewels) and got a lot of compliments (a lady even stopped me in the street to tell me how much she liked the suit). The only downside is that I was freezing, I didn't check the forecasts this morning (well, I never do) and yesterday it got warm during the day so I was kind of hoping that it would be the case too, but it was very cold. Oh well, one can suffer a little bit in the name of fashion.
Most importantly my friend and I had a great time and she got some great stuff at TB (an awesome pair of sunglasses) and JCrew. She comes to NY very rarely so it was a treat to spend some time with her and go shopping together.
Do you own a piece of the "navy tweed" collection? Do you like the skirt suit or is it too much tweed for your taste?
So now that my daughter wears a school uniform everyday and is settled in her new routine in her new school I feel that I need a new uniform too to ease my mornings. She needs to be at school by 8.10 which means that we have to be out of the door at 7.45. That's early in my book, even when I worked in an office I rarely left home before 8.30. I am not a morning person and on the top of that I am intrinsically disorganized and never learned to prepare my clothes the day before. However, now the hesitation in front of my closet/mirror in the morning (what to wear, what to wear) will cost my daughter a late pass, so I need to take the thinking out of the equation and have something immediately ready every morning that will do. I guess that if I had workout clothes it would be easier to get dressed but my workout clothes are very old or not appropriate.
On the positive side I don't need to go work after dropping her off (at least not yet). In fact I have literally nowhere to go but come back home and attend to domestic chores or write this blog and organize the rest of our day. So I just need clothes to walk her down to school and back. Easy, right?
Well, not as easy as you would think. First, drop-off is quite the scene. A lot of "It" bags and car services and moms in designer clothes. Not everybody but enough to make me not want to be the mom who looks like she has just be thrown out of bed (which I am).
Second, you never know who you'll bump into on Madison Avenue. A couple of weeks ago, when I hadn't thought through this new uniform thing yet and I was wearing my old workout pants, my old sneakers and my hair not brushed and vaguely up in a ponytail, my daughter had a pee-pee emergency while we were walking to school. Knowing her I knew that we didn't have much time before a catastrophe and that she wouldn't make it to school, so we raced to the restrooms of the Italian cafe on Madison where I usually have a cappuccino later in the morning. Once mission accomplished we were getting out and I literally bumped into Andrew McCarthy who was also racing his kid (in private school uniform) to the restrooms. That was quite the encounter. By the way, his inquisitive glance? He is not faking it, he looked at my daughter like she was coming from Mars and that's because she was speaking in French. Then he looked alarmed at me like I was coming from Mars too. OK, I am exaggerating, the whole thing lasted a few seconds but my point is that one should always look at her best in this neighborhood because exciting things can happen, no matter the time of the day.
So back to my new uniform, the first thing that would make my life easier in the morning is a pair of leggings. The advantage of leggings over other jeans or other pants is that I can easily wear them with rainboots if it's raining (or regular boots for that matter). I don't want to struggle with shoes in the morning and have to change clothes at the last-minute to accommodate boots.
I have only one pair of leggings and they are very thin, more suited for the transitional end of summer weather than fall. I hate to shop for leggings as they are usually too long on me and not flattering and I hate that shine that the thicker ones generally have and I never found a pair that I really liked. Also, it is one of those things I don't want to spend a lot of money on, you know the kind of basic that you end up deleting from your cart because even if you need them there is always something more appealing to buy and if you have to save money somewhere you are going to pass on them because it is easy to do so.
Well, I have finally found a pair that I like, the Loft Ponte leggings. As their name tells, they are in a thicker ponte fabric than your regular leggings but unlike the JCrew pixie pants they don't have any seams or exposed zippers in the back (the back seam of the Pixie has always been a dealbreaker for me as it tends to accentuate my muscular calves), they are just like regular leggings. Not to mention that they are much less expensive and you can always get a deal at the Loft. In fact I bought these last week when they were having a "flash" sale in store where everything was 50% off.
As far as sizes go, I went with a small and they fit perfectly and they are just the right length on me. I will probably buy another pair with the next promo, too bad they don't come in navy because I would buy thoe too.
So this is half a uniform already, now I only have to throw on a top and that's going to be easier especially now that the weather has cooled down and I don't need something as long as a tunic to cover my butt since I am going to wear a coat. So far I wore mostly sweatshirts (and we know that JCrew excels in the "sweatshirts that don't look like you are going to hit the gym" category) but soon it will be cold enough to wear a cashmere sweater, like the Collection cashmere bateau in stripes</>:
I also ordered my first Isabel cashmere sweatshirt in tawny brown and it just shipped, so I hope that it will be slouchy enough for the leggings look but not too much (in any case it is returnable).
I am not saying that I am going to wear this uniform everyday but it is my backup for the days when I am too late to think and I just have to run out of the door. It is reassuring in some way to know that you have at least one outfit that you can put on almost while doing other things, without thinking about it.
The funny thing about my encounter with Andrew McCarthy is that a few days later I stumbled upon this awesome (but very chaste) teaser for the theatrical version of "50 Shades of Grey" and now I can't think of any other actor for the role of Jack:
Just to be clear, the video is fake and has been made by a fan with footage from other movies or TV shows involving these actors. I think that the actors in the secondary roles are especially well chosen. As for Mr. Grey, I am not very familiar with Matt Bomer since I don't watch "White Collar" but I am warming up to the idea of him being Mr. Grey in the future movie (that has no cast so far). While reading the books, I wasn't really picturing him with the looks of any particular actor (except for a vague resemblance with Armie Hammer, but in more tormented) but I can see why many think he would be the perfect Grey (on the other side I would be very disappointed if Ian Somerhalder got the role, I don't think he has the intensity of a Grey, and as much as I love Ryan Gosling I don't think he has the all-american classic beauty required for the role, even if he surely has the intensity). I am less interested in the choice of Miss Steele but I have to say that I pictured her from the start of the book as Anna Kendrick, who is not too beautiful and always looks intimidated.
Any other "Grey" fan out there? I can't be the only one here who has succombed to the spell of Mr. Grey. Don't be shy, I want to know who read it and if you enjoyed it. If you aren't interested in the books and you didn't read them I totally respect it but pleeeease don't judge those who admit it here to reading it.
I wore a few outfits last week that I liked and I want to share. The weather has been very humid but warm until yesterday, today it is the first day of a real Fall weather with temps in the high 50s.
This one is for Gigi. She asked me where the snake print blouse that I was wearing in the Gap fitting room post comes from. It is from Equipment and I got it during the recent Bloomingdale's F&F. It is my first Equipment and definitively a splurge. I always wanted one but always found that I could find something cheaper somewhere else in the solid colors. I didn't particularly liked their prints so far (in particular the popular stars print) but was immediately drawn to this one, I kept going back and look at it online (and I don't even like snakeskin prints) so when I found one at Bloomi in my size with the 20% off I took the plunge. I love the drape and yes, the black piping at the chest pocket and cuffs. It looks great untucked with skinny jeans:
That day I was wearing my Icon trench as a topper. I decided to keep it for the price and I have to say that I am wearing more than I expected, I thought it would be fussy to wear but it is easy to throw on and I like the proportions on me (wearing a size 2):
In case you are wondering about the boots, they are the Enzo Angiolini Zeric riding boots. I would never have ordered them if I hadn't tried them at Bloomingdales, since I generally go more high-end for shoes but these are amazing for the price. I had just received them from Amazon and was trying them on. They are a jodhpur style and have an elastic in the back:
They look great with pants tucked in but as other noted the shaft is very high and hits at a very weird spot right on the knee. It is more evident in my next outfit, where I was trying them with a skirt (in this case the cavalry skirt from last year);
I am undecided about the boots, I think there is nothing like them for the price but the fact that I can't wear them with skirts is a bummer. In any case this outfit was reading a bit too Mary Poppins for me so I swapped the skirt for skinny cargos and the boots for my old Pradas pumps, added a leopard scarf and an old belt matching the color of the jacket and I was ready to go. Much more like me:
Last outfit of the week that I want to show you is another cowgirl-meets-downtown-chick outfit. I bought the Perfect shirt in buffalo check almost immediately after it rolled out, I loved it that much. I know it got negative reviews because the checks are not black but grey but I loved it for that. However this is another challenging shirt because if worn too casually you are going to look like you are headed for the woods. I was inspired by my own "cowgirl outfit" post so I looked for some accessories to take it up a notch. First I added a vintage necklace (more on this in another post) and a sparkly bracelet that had some western feeling to them, then I decided to wear a black blazer (Mango) and I changed my belt (this is Comptoir des Cotonniers, bought in Paris):
This would have looked better with a pair of booties but it was too hot to wear boots so my Sam Edelman Frankies studded flats had to do.
What do you think? What's your favorite outfit? Do you own an Equipment blouse? What do you think of the Enzo Angiolini Zaric boots?
I wanted to post these pics before the outwear promo at JCrew ends tonight. I didn't try a ton of outwear because I am pretty much set in that department, as I bought two coats last year. So with the exception of the excursion vest I tried these only for the readers who might be interested in taking advantage of the promo. I am writing up this post on my phone and I have no idea how to link, so I apologize for that. If I get to get my hands on the computer later (my husband is working on it) I will try to update.
First up is the Stadium-cloth Mod coat. My store only had the yellow, so that's what I tried. I tried my regular coat size, which is a 2, and I was swimming in it. Granted, I was wearing something thin under it but it did feel too big, especially in the shoulders, which is where I usually need the 2. The sleeves were also on the long side:
I also didn't like the plain brass buttons but then I would have probably complained if they were too shiny. On the positive side the stadium-cloth felt very plush. The lining is poly tipped in black (yes, I remembered to take a pic of the fabric tag!):
Bottom-line it is a nice coat if you like the style. I liked the color, it is a warm yellow, not mustard-y nor neon-y or too bright, but I felt like a bumble-bee in it, probably because it was too big. I would order the smaller of your JCrew jacket sizes or even size one down but do not size up as we tend to do with coats to allow for layering.
The next one is the tipped peacoat. I liked the look of this one online but I didn't like it on. However, I must say am not a peacoat type of girl, whatever that means. I don't own any peacoat even if I owned a Zara when I lived in Paris that I wore a lot (very similar to this one except for the tipping). I probably associate peacoats with a part of my life that is buried and I don't want to unbury. That's only to say that I am negatively biased.
Again, this is the 2. I found the fabric too stiff around the arms and shoulders but this seems to be the trademark of peacoats (I forgot to take a pic of the fabric content and now I regret since the description on the website says something like "special fabric" without providing any detail. Can a retailer be any more cryptic than JCrew when it comes to product specs? Come on, it's not Coca Cola!)
Anyway, biased or not, I don't think it was particularly flattering, it added bulk to my frame:
Sleeve-length was good on this one and the length too if you like short coats. I personally prefer longer coats and if I had to buy a peacot I would probably go with the Majesty one.
Last, I wanted to try the Excursion vest in herringbone. I wasn't interested in this vest until everybody started to talk about it. Drinking Crewlade in full force here. I asked for a XS and a XXS to compare since I had read that it runs big but my store only had the XS, so that's what I tried:
The SA was trying to convince me that it was my size but I would have preferred it to be slimmer around the waist. Again, I was wearing a thin shirtdress in the fitting room but I think there was room to spare and I would have liked to compare with a XXS. By the way the (male) SA was the same who got me out of the double-serge mini skirt back in the summer (you know, the one who cut the zipper in the back and had a glimpse of my underwear) and we both had a laugh about it (but I still hope he's gay).
I took this one to the register thinking that I would get it and maybe order the XXS online but then went to peruse the sale section and spent all the allotted budget on something else that I will share in another post. I had a return with me that covered the sale purchase and I didn't want to cash out more money so I left the vest. I might order the XXS online but I am more of an impulsive store buyer than an online buyer so I think I will resist. We don't have a long vest season here in NYC but it is also true that I don't have a vest that I am excited to wear and this one seems to pair well with what I have. Will see!
Are you taking advantage of the outwear promo? Have you ordered or are you interested in any of these picks? Please share!
I stopped at the Gap the other day to make a long due return and since I am a sucker for cafe capris I tried their Slimmed cropped pants that come in several colors (there is a camel in store that I don't see online) and finishes. They are 30% off until Monday with code GAPCOLOR and 40% off in store, so they come down to around $30.
I took to the fitting room the french pink color and the herringbone. The pink is a very cheerful, lollipop pink (think Kate Spade or Milly) and I thought it will look great around the holidays.
This is the size 2 (I am usually a 2/26 in Gap pants):
They felt a bit big, so I tried the 0. The 0 fits perfectly in this color:
However the 0 didn't fit so well in the herringbone and the 2 was too big around the thighs, as you can see in this pic:
I tried different pairs in both the pink and the herringbone and it was the same so I would say that the fit changes a bit depending on the color. Go with your regular size in the pink or size down. I was between sizes in the herringbone and I don't need pants that don't fit me well. Too bad because I really liked them and I need a pair of gray pants. They are unlined but have no wool in the fabric components (it's viscose/poly and something else) and VERY soft to the touch (they are a bit lightweight for the really cold days so they are more Fall pants).
In case you are wondering how you can wear the pink pants, I am going to share how I plan to wear them soon.
Happy shopping!
