First Week of October Outfits

Last week was the hottest first week of October that I can remember. It has been in the mid 80s almost every day and people around here were actually buying summer clothes! The only sight of merino in a store made me sweat. I tell you, if the temperatures stay like this we have big sales of Fall merchandise ahead of us!
Anyway, I tried to make the best of it and wear clothes that didn't get too much wear in the summer. I hope you enjoy the outfit roundup!

Monday. I really liked this outfit, I think it is one of my best. I am wearing the JCrew striped flower tee from the spring (I bought this one on a whim when it got super marked down in store and it turned out to be one of my favorite tees ever), my J Brand Houlihan skinny cargos in sahara, my Theory double-breasted blazer and my red Kikis (the red in the tee perfectly matches the Kikis):





Of course it got too hot during the day to wear the blazer and I had to take if off:




Tuesday. Another hot day. I wanted to wear a dress but at this point I am tired of my summer ones, so I took out a Calypso suede dress that doesn't get much wear because there isn't a season for it (too hot in the summer to wear a suede dress and the style doesn't lend itself to be layered). Well, I should wear it more often apparently because three people stopped me in the street to ask me who made it. It is true that the suede looks luxurious and it was a very expensive dress but I got it for a song at the outlet (like $70). The problem with suede is that you don't want to sweat in it because it is expensive to dry-clean. I also broke my rule of no open-toe shoes after Labor day and wore Calypso snakeskin sandals so it was a 100% Calypso outfit:




Thursday. I am blanking on what I did or wore on Wednesday, probably nothing to talk about. BUT I remember what I did and wore on Thursday because I had lunch with a girlfriend at Café Boulud, which is a very upscale restaurant on the Upper East Side with one of the nicest terraces in town. Thursday was the breeziest day of the week, so I took advantage of the not too sticky weather to break out my H&M leather pants. If you haven't read my post about these pants the bottom line is that they are the best leather pants around but I don't recommend them to tall girls as they are VERY cropped (I ended up exchanging the size 6 for a size 4 and they fit much better, the 6 was definitely too loose on me). I dressed them up a bit with the JCrew short-sleeve silk tee from last year but I wore sneakers (black leather Converse). I felt very cool in this outfit:




Everything we ate was delicious but the mini-madeleines served warm out of the oven with coffee were out of this world (and I am not even much of a dessert person). I was so impressed that I went out of my way and found the recipe here (what did we do before the Internet?) and baked them on Sunday since my daughter was starting French afternoon class yesterday and she was supposed to bring a French "gouter" for the entire class. They were quite delicious!

Friday. My plans for Friday (ironing and cleaning the house) got shook up by an email sent by Tory Burch that announced the start of their Family and Friends sale. I wasn't expecting the sale to start this early (usually it's over Columbus Day weekend) but I had one thing on my wishlist that I was planning to try during the sale so I went to the store to see if they had it. Unfortunately it didn't work (as in I didn't like it on me and I crossed it from my wishlist) but the Revas were included in the promo so I got a pair of classic black. I practically live in my Revas and as you know I have quite a few but I hadn't bought a pair of black since my first one bit the dust a year and a half ago and I really missed them so I know it's money well spent. I went with the black/silver because I think that they will pair better with this year biker trend and also because my navy suede and camo ones have a gold medallion.
Since I was going to the Tory store I wanted to wear something Tory so I paired my Alexa cropped twill pants with an old JCrew silk shirt that is a bit Tory Burch-esque with its little golden buttons. In reality I like this shirt better in theory than IRL, it drives me crazy because it does not want to stay tucked in AND it gets underarm sweat marks very easily (now I remember why I don't wear it that often).
Anyway, it is a good match for these pants and it looks cute for the five minutes it stays tucked in:





Most of the times it looks more like this:


We did something a bit special on Saturday, I will come back with a dedicated post.

How do you cope with the "Fall heat wave" (if you live around here)? Which one of my outfits do you like the best?

Friday Shopping: Sweatshirts Edition

Embellished sweatshirts are a big thing this Fall, but I prefer the simplicity of a "message" one. Of course you have to be careful with the message, especially if you have kids. Retailers are also banking on the bewitchment for everything French so there are more and more tee shirts and sweatshirts out there with a message in French, from the neutral "Bonjour" and "Bon voyage" (you can't go wrong with that), to the more compromising "Amour, Amoureuse etc." to the profane (but oh! so chicer than its English equivalent) "Merde!" (I didn't make it up, it's by Wildfox. See for yourself here).

My absolute favorite is the Zoe Karssen "Crème de la crème" sweatshirt that some of you have probably seen on the Atlantic-Pacific blog. I love everything in that sweatshirt: the color (heather grey), the font used for the graphic and also the message, because while a bit snobbish it is a very old French expression that you don't hear that often even in France. For the longest time I tried to get my hands on it but it never popped back anywhere (it is available in black at Shopbop.com but I wanted it in grey).
So I recently ordered the Madewell "Bien Fait" sweatshirt just because it reminded me a bit of it and because I could use that $25 no minimum coupon that was around a few weeks ago. Granted, it is black and not grey but I decided to give it a try. It was backordered in my size so I had to wait a bit but it shipped at the beginning of this week.
Last week I had a quick errand to run in Soho where I saw on a billboard an ad that advertised the Old Navy sweatshirts and there was one in particular that reminded me of the Zoe Karssen one even more than the Madewell. I will go as far as to say that it's a knock-off because the font is exactly the same, even if the sweatshirt says "Heart and Soul" in plain English ;-). You can see it here (it is even less expensive now). When I got home I received a coupon for 25% so I took it as a sign and I ordered the sweatshirt in a few colors/sizes (to get to the free shipping minimum). They were priced at $10 and with the coupon they came down to $7.50 each so I had to order many!

I just received them today. I don't order at ON very often so I have to trust the reviews, which in this case said that the sweatshirt was short and that ordering a Tall size would take care of the problem. So I ordered my regular XS and a XS Tall in two colors, the "Heart and Soul" (which is a graphite grey) and the "Marshmallow white" (because I liked the friendly "Hello there").

I must have a short torso because I didn't find it short/boxy at all in the regular XS. This is the grey and I really like it:




The white one fits a bit looser in the same size and it is whiter than I though. However for $7.50 I think I am going to keep it as I see many styling possibilities:




I also ordered the "silver lurex" one and again listened to the reviewers who said to size up. I only ordered a S in this one as it wasn't my first choice but I was curious.
This one is the best of the bunch in terms of fabric content (it is almost 100% cotton, while the other colors have a high poly content that some of you may not like, even if they feel like cotton) and it is as soft as my most beloved JCrew ones. However, it is definitely too big in a S and I don't know where I would wear a sweatshirt with lurex, even if very subtle:



On the other side the Madewell one was a bit disappointing, for $75. I find it very plain. It is the same weight than the ON ones even if it is 100% cotton. I was expecting a different weight but it is a "summer" sweatshirt. The fit is spot-on and is cut slimmer than the ON:







I don't think I am going to keep it, especially after seeing what you can get for $7 at ON.

Did you try the Madewell or ON sweatshirts? In other news, the Zoe Karssen one has been re-issued and it is available at Bloomingdales with 20% off to boot. I am going to wait and see if a XS becomes available in the next few days just to get it out of my system.

Phillip Lim 3.1 for Target: My Picks, Styled

If a policeman rang my doorbell and asked me what I was doing on the night between September 14th and September 15th, I wouldn't have to think more than five seconds to answer. I was on my computer, waiting for the Phillip Lim 3.1 for Target collection to be released on the Target website. See, Phillip Lim is probably my favorite designer and I have a skirt from the summer collection that I paid a small fortune for but is one of the favorite things in my closet. So, even if I have been disappointed by the designer collaborations at Target in the past (especially by the Calypso one) I could NOT not partake in the Phillip Lim craziness. I was up until 2 am ET and the Collection was released only a few hours later which means that when I woke up on Sunday all the bags were gone. Luckily for me I was one of the few not interested in the bags but in the clothes. I had previewed the collection online and made my choice already and I was actually surprised that none of my picks had sold out. I ordered all the "animal" print items, ie the skirt, the dress and the sweater. I also "almost" ordered the "Boom" dress but only a size S was still available and it sold-out during checkout. I learned after that the dress fit pretty big/long so I saved myself a return on this one probably. A few days after my order I received an email from Target that my shipment had been delayed (usually bad news), only to receive shipping confirmation a few hours later. Go figure!

Anyway, of the three items I ordered the skirt was the one I was the most excited about. I don't shop at Target enough to know for sure which size I should order but I went with the smallest available, a size 2. It just fits but I think going up a size would have added too much volume as it is pretty full already. It is a mini but of a decent length and would be called a "skirt" at JCrew. I had a precise outfit in mind when I ordered it, with my Milly leather collar top from last year (the pumps are from Zara, I got them in Italy for 22 EU). This top is very fitted so it can be easily tucked in without creating bulk but it also looks good left out covering the skirt waistband which is blue:








I think that for the price it looks quite fetching. However, you should know that it has a horrible exposed industrial zipper in the back (that I forgot to take a picture of). I guess you can't have everything.
I also tried it with the matching sweater, which is the way it was styled on the website. I love the sweater but it can look very pajam-y and needs to be dressed up a little bit (also, this runs a bit small IMO, especially at the neckline). I think the sweater with the skirt it is too much IRL, what do you think?





I have already worn it several times, mostly like this:



The dress was a bit of a (positive) surprise. In my opinion out of the three pieces (if not of the entire collection) it is the most Phillip Lim-esque. I mean that I wouldn't be surprised to see this dress sold on net-a-porter or Shopbop for a much higher price (in another fabric). The print is on a smaller scale, which makes it a bit more sophisticated that its blown-up version. The fabric is a very thin jersey though and because of the body-con cut most will feel very exposed in this one or like they need to wear Spandex. Basically it doesn't hold anything in. On the other side the subtle shirring can help camouflaging some extra pounds in the belly area (but just a little bit).

So this is very simply styled:



Even if I can pull it off I know myself and I know I would never wear it like this in real life, it is simply not a match for my lifestyle. So I tried other ways to style it and bring it down to momland.
I switched my pumps to booties first and then added a belt but it didn't really work:




Then I tried to add a layer for more "coverage". My Rebecca Taylor tweed vest looks good on pretty much everything and also on this dress. However, I have a shoes problem in this case since you MUST wear some kind of heels with the dress and I have no heeled shoes that go with this outfit (ideally, I would need a pair of cream-ish or blue pumps):



I liked it with my military jacket and a neutral belt (I was lazy and didn't change my shoes but this would look much better with a pair of booties in the same color than the belt, that I have somewhere):





I liked it even more with a black open cardigan, belted:





In fact I felt so comfortable in this that I kept this outfit on all the morning around the house.

I hope those of you who have ordered one of these enjoyed the styling session.

What do you think of these items and what's your favorite outfit? I am debating if to keep the three of them or return one. What do you think? Should I return the skirt or the dress?
Please let me know in the comments!

Weekend OOTDs: Army Green, Cream and (RED)

We had a busy, busy Saturday that started early with me taking my daughter to school for community service (where she got to make craft projects for various associations) followed by a birthday party. I wasn't sure what to wear as I was getting dressed, I wanted something casual but also cute because I was going to see a lot of friends from preschool (I know, I talk like I was the one going to preschool) that I haven't seen in a while. Also, I wasn't sure about the temperature but I took a chance and dressed for warm weather and it was a good call because it got superhot by lunchtime. Like, HOT!

I was very happy about how this outfit turned out, I really liked it. I wanted to wear the Embroidered flower top from the summer but didn't want to wear jeans (this top looks a bit sloppy with jeans, probably because I ordered a S instead of my usual XS and it is a bit big). I have a pair of chinos (can't remember the name, they are from early spring and I paid $11 for them) in the exact same color so I just added a belt in a contrasting shade of burgundy to break the all-creamy outfit. The belt matches a pair of crocheted earrings that I got in Italy and give any outfit a little "western" accent (these are not by Cruciani but by made by a local store at the beach town):





The belt also matched my pedicure but I ended up "covering" it with my camo Revas. I am not sure I showed you these already but I got them on ebay in late spring and they are one of my favorite pair of shoes. I highly recommend them if you are into camo prints and can find a pair on ebay (I had to stalk ebay for quite long but I am so happy I got them and for a decent price to boot):



They look especially nice with my military jacket. I can't get enough of this jacket. As you may remember I got it in the spring at Bloomingdales but you can still find it at Calypso.
Anyway, this is the outfit:




The outfit was very comfortable to wear except when I tried to teach my daughter how to do a cartwheel in the park. I was very good at cartwheels when I was young but it was 25 years since the last time I did one. I am proud to report that I didn't break anything and I am actually still quite good at it. But the next time I will wear gym clothes!

Yesterday my husband left for a 5-day business trip in the morning. I HATE being all by myself on a Sunday but in this case it turned out to be not so bad because my daughter went off to the neighbors (who have two girls aged 8 that my daughter loves to play with) all the afternoon and I could catch the Season 2 Homeland marathon on Showtime (they were airing the last 6 episodes of season 2 that I still had to watch, as my husband and I were catching up on season 2 on DVD and had just watched up to episode 6) before the premiere of Season 3 yesterday night (BTW, I have a big crush on Damian Lewis-Nicholas Brody). So despite the nice weather I just went out briefly in the morning when I took my daughter to Barnes and Noble (where we bought some books for her taking advantage of a double member discount). I threw on a very old Gap tee that I still love after all these years (it was from the RED campaign and quite popular at that time, I remember seeing SJP in this same tee) and my combo of military jacket and camo Revas again:



I felt very Carrie (Mathison, not Bradshaw) in this outfit ;-).

Anyone watched the Homeland Season 3 premiere?

JCrew Merino Zippered Sweater-Jacket And Collection Bonded Merino Sweater

Hello! A few more hours left to take advantage of 25% off and free shipping at JCrew. What a great promo! Apparently it is working well because a LOT of things are sold out or waitlisted or available in fewer sizes/colors.
I purchased two items during this promo and both were kind of a surprise love. I will review only one of them tonight since the other one is a more expensive Collection item that is excluded anyway. I will also post pics of the Collection bonded merino sweater (that I didn't purchase) even if sold-out as some of you might me curious about it regardless.

The first love is the merino zippered sweater-jacket. Only the navy is left on the website but it was also offered in a ballet pink color that you can probably still find in store. I think the pink is a bit more special than the navy in this classic style and flattering on my skin tone so I got the pink even if I am a navy person. The merino is a thick and compact waive that stops the wind and makes it feel more like a jacket. I like the detail of the golden press-button on the collar and hem, it looks classy. In fact this is a classy sweater IMO.
I tried a S first as the store where I first went and didn't have a XS. I thought the fit was good in the S and not excessively big:




I put it on hold and then found a XS in another store. The fit of the XS is slimmer but the sleeves are a bit tight (you can see my long tee sleeves bunching up in the pics below. I have to hold my sleeves' hems while putting it on). The XS fits more like a sweater and the S fits more like a jacket so if you want to layer another sweater under it go up a size (note: the S that I tried on in the second store fit considerably bigger in the body than the one above so the XS looked much better but the one that I had put on hold fit like something between the two). I know I will only wear it with tee shirts so I preferred the slimmer fit of the XS. I wore it non-stop since I bought it as it is the perfect topper for our mornings (it gets a bit hot in the afternoon) and everyone made a comment on the color:





In reality I really wanted to love the Collection bonded merino sweater (currently sold-out in both colors) but it didn't work on me. I found it horrible the first time that I tried it on (with black Minnies) but I wanted to try it again with jeans (as I am not in love with my Minnies these days). It looked a bit better but not as good as I though. I don't know, maybe I am not tall enough to counterbalance the slouchiness but I didn't have a WOW moment and I don't need anything that doesn't give me the WOW (the pink sweater-jacket surprisingly did). This is, well, the only size it comes in:




What do you think of these two sweaters?