I Can't Complain

What I'm Wearing: Second-to-Last Second Grade Reading

I haven't been doing reading fashion updates lately, mostly because the second graders have pretty much stopped commenting on my clothes and shoes.   I guess my rock star status has come to end.  I always knew it would, but I thought it would last a little longer. Who knew seven and eight year olds could be so jaded?

My shoes did attract a little interest today, though, and since I have been reduced to grasping at crumbs of attention from small children, I took that as a sign that I should blog today's outfit.  So here's what I wore:

The dress is the Sweetly Scalloped Dress in Mint, from ModCloth. It's really stretchy and comfortable and I love wearing it. The shrug is from Old Navy two years ago, in white - I could only find a picture of the orange one, which I also own.  I bought the bracelet for a dollar from a vendor at Broadway at the Beach, and it makes me think of summer whenever I wear it.  The necklace is one of those Scrabble tile necklaces (letter L, only one point) and it was a gift. 

But the shoes... the shoes are the absolute best part of this outfit.  I am not at all surprised that my second grade admirer liked them. She clearly has excellent taste, and obviously appreciated the tactile quality of them as well as the style - she copped a few feels of the toes and heels while I was reading. They're In My Dreams from Irregular Choice.  Here's a better picture:

I love the little kitten heels, and even the soles are adorable!

The best part about these shoes is that I got them for $10 during a ModCloth Stylish Surprise (you pay $10 for something they choose).  These are by far the best thing I've ever gotten from a Stylish Surprise, and I never would have picked them out for myself.

Here's how I look in it all:

Next Thursday is my last ever second grade reading time.  I honestly can't believe how quickly the year has flown by.  In less than two weeks, the Bomber will be a rising THIRD GRADER. But I'm just going to gaze adoringly at my shoes and try not to think about that for now. 

 

What I'm Wearing Wednesday - March 26, 2014

Unbelievably, I am doing a What I'm Wearing on a WEDNESDAY! And less than two weeks from my last blog post!  I don't know what's gotten into me - it must be spring fever! 

The weather certainly hasn't clued in that it's spring, though - a quick check tells me it's 50 degrees out.  This is NOT what I call spring in South Carolina.  The unseasonable cold makes it hard for me to dress - I don't want to wear my winter clothes (it's almost April for goodness sake!), but I HATE HATE HATE to be cold.  I think I'm straddling the line nicely today - a cute dress that's not too heavy, light tights and a (hopefully) last hurrah for my boots.  As an added plus, my dress is from an awesome local designer, Allie Mac, and was purchased with a gift certificate from a dear, sweet friend.

Here's what I've got:

The dress is the Sally, from Allie Mac.  It's so, so comfortable to wear and she makes it in so many great colors and combinations! Check her out - she ships (or I'll pick it up for you).  The boots are Nine West Padilla, in an English belting leather color - I picked them up awhile back because I needed brown, but not chocolate brown, boots. The tights are just your basic ribbed tights from Target, the necklace is from Etsy, via a gift from my husband, and the earrings are little citrine studs I've had forever.

Here's how I look:

Why is this picture so fuzzy?  Because cameras hate me. It's okay, I'm used to it.

Happy Wednesday everyone!

What I'm Wearing - It's Almost Spring Edition

Okay, it's not Wednesday, but I haven't done one of these in a really long time, and I have a happy, springy outfit on today, so I'm doing it anyway. You're welcome to wait until tomorrow to read this.

Here's what I've got on today:

I just got the top in the mail the other day - it's the Market My Words peplum top from ModCloth.  I paired it with a stretchy pencil skirt from New York & Company which is a great basic skirt to have around - it's comfortable, flattering and goes with just about anything.  The shoes are S' Marvelous heels, also from ModCloth, and the sweet little flower earrings were a gift.  I also have on off-white stockings, because it's too warm for tights, too early for my pale, pale legs, and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge wears them. So suck it, stocking haters.

Here's a really super bad picture of how I look in all that:

My photography has really not gotten any better.  Sorry about that...

The Fix Is In: Stitch Fix #1

A few weeks ago, I discovered Stitch Fix, a self-described "personal shopping service".  How it works is this: you fill out a pretty extensive style profile that includes your size, your basic style and a bunch of questions about specifics, like do you prefer your back to be covered or do you show it sometimes, do you prefer silver or gold, and how fitted do you like your pants. You can also specify a price range for items. Then you schedule a "fix" and a stylist picks out five items s/he thinks you would like.  Once you receive the fix, you have three days to try everything on, decide what you want to keep, and return the rest in a postage-paid envelope.  For each shipment there's a $20 styling fee, which you can apply to the cost of any items you want to keep. If you decide to keep all five items, you get a 25% discount. You can either schedule shipments when you want them, or you can sign up for a monthly shipment.

Having someone else pick out clothes and accessories sounded like fun to me, so I signed up, filled out my profile, and yesterday I received my box.  I realize now that I should've taken a picture of the box or something, but I didn't, so you'll have to use your imagination - it was a standard brown cardboard shipping box, about yay high and so wide, with the words "Stitch Fix" on the side.  Inside were four pieces of clothing and one necklace, plus an envelope that contained a notecard with instructions and a list of items with a note from the stylist.

Here's what I got in Stitch Fix #1:

Pink Martini NIle Bird Print Belted Dress

Sweet Rain Alan Cowl Neck Asymmetrical Jacket

Collective Concepts Benzian Triangle Print Cap Sleeve Blouse

Chris & Carol Eden Front Button Top

41Hawthorn Basket Weave Circles Long Necklace

The first thing I pulled out was the Pink Martini dress:

I'm not sure what I answered to get this dress, but I need to go change that answer immediately.  I hated the print, I hated the color combination, I hated the buttons and the piping. Just...no. The cut of the dress was okay, but overall it was not something I could see myself wearing. Ever. On top of that, I obviously picked the wrong size range, because three out of the four pieces were way too big, including this one. Oh vanity sizing, so nice to see you. 

This one?  Going back, no question.

Next out of the box was the Collective Concepts Benzian Triangle Print blouse.

I had high hopes for this one - I liked the color and style, and I immediately thought of a pair of pants I could pair it with. Unfortunately, it was also WAY too big, and it hung on me like a sack. 

Sadly, this one is also going back.

Next up was the Chris & Carol Eden top. 

I didn't realize that the only picture I'd taken of this was SO blurry.  When I Googled this looking for a better picture of it, I discovered that this is a pretty common Stitch Fix item, and also apparently comes in red. Unfortunately, it was also way too big and didn't look like it would be terribly flattering on me even in the right size. And honestly, I need another black top like I need another hole in my head.

This one's going back, too.

The last clothing item was the Sweet Rain Alan Cowl Neck jacket.

This one may seem familiar to a few of you reading this - it's known as the Airport Greeting Cardigan at ModCloth. (The Pink Martini dress is also available at ModCloth, by the way.)  I've always liked the style of this sweater and this was the single item of clothing that fit, but the oatmeal color was terrible on me, and I'm not really up for buying woolly-feeling cardigans in the dead of a South Carolina summer.  On top of that, I bought a similar asymmetrical cardigan from ModCloth this spring (the Busy Day Chic cardigan)and really, how many asymmetrical cardigans does one wardrobe need?

So this one? Also going back.

The last item was the 41Hawthorn basket weave necklace.

This one, I really liked.  It's silver, which I love, and has a nice little sparkle on each of the basket weave pieces.  I don't have much in this length and lately I've been thinking I could use some longer pieces.  This one is very adjustable, too. It would hit me right at the waist at its longest, and right across the chest at its shortest. Here it is with what I wore to work yesterday. 

I'm actually wearing this today with this outfit, so I'd say it's keeper.

Overall, I really enjoyed the experience.  It was every bit as fun as I suspected it might be to have someone randomly pick clothes out for me.  I liked that each piece came with a little card attached that had a description of the item on one side, and styling suggestions on the other.

I thought it was funny that two of the pieces are also available at one of my favorite shopping sites. I guess that means their stylists are on the right track for me. I didn't like that I only have three days to try everything on, think about whether I like it and decide whether I want to keep it.  I also didn't like that you forfeit your $20 styling fee if you don't buy anything from the shipment.  I felt like there was pressure to find something I liked, just so I hadn't wasted the $20, although in this case I'd probably have bought the necklace regardless.

I will definitely be trying this again, probably in September or October.  I can't imagine doing it on a monthly subscription basis, though - even if you only bought one piece a month, at an average of $50 a piece that's $600 a year on random single pieces of clothes. It's a fun idea, but I worry that I'd end up with all these cute things I like but don't have anything to wear with them.

And I promise, next time I do this I'll remember to close the blind in the bathroom before I starting taking photos.

What I'm Wearing Wednesday: Midsummer Edition

It's July 10.  Independence Day has come and gone, the All-Star break is right around the corner, and my crepe myrtles are finally starting to bloom. Together this could mean only one thing - summer is already half over.  Unfortunately, there hasn't been much opportunity to enjoy the summer thanks to the rain that WILL. NOT. END.  In fact, I should really be modeling rain coats and umbrellas instead of capri pants and sandals. 

In an effort to counteract the effects of the never-ending gray skies and wet days, today I wore a pair of fun, brightly floral crops and the coolest shoes EVER. (At least until I find the next pair of coolest shoes ever.) 

Crops and tunic are both from New York & Company, purchased during their 80% off sale a few weeks ago.  The shoes are by Wild Rose, purchased from ModCloth.  With such vivid bottoms and amazing shoes, I went with minimal jewelry - my cartouche that allegedly spells my name, which I received as a gift from a globe-trotting friend, and plain silver hoops. 

Here's how I look:

Another rainy day, another terrible selfie.  Some things just never change.

 

 

What I'm Wearing Wednesday: No Need to Adjust Your Sets

There's nothing wrong with your color settings - my outfit is in black & white.

So without the first (now SECOND!) grade weekly reading session to remind me, my blogging has really fallen by the wayside.  Yesterday when someone mentioned my brilliant (HAH!) self-portraits I post on this blog, I realized I hadn't done a WIW in a really long time.  So this morning I decided I'd do one today, and dressed accordingly. Then I promptly forgot to put any accessories on, so this outfit turned out kind of on the boring side.  (Way to sell it, I know....)

Anyway, here's all the pieces (all three of them):

The top is Cheap Monday, purchased via Amazon.

The pants are Old Navy, from the Old Navy outlet at Concord Mills, purchased during a shopping expedition with my friend llyfra.

The shoes, which I get a hilarious number of compliments on, are from Target and cost me under $20.

In fact, I think the top cost as much as the pants and the shoes together.  (Cheap Monday is definitely a misnomer...) I went with all black & white today, although I've also worn these pants with red shoes, and I think a similar top in some other bright color (I'm thinking lime green) would be awesome too.

And since no WIW would be complete without a laughably bad photograph of me, here's how I look:

Happy Wednesday, everyone!

 

What I'm Wearing Thursday

Okay, so it's not What I'm Wearing Wednesday, and it's not First Grade Fashionista Friday, but I haven't done one of these in awhile, and I specifically wore a cute outfit today because I was having lunch with a friend.  Since my lunch date had to cancel, I didn't want to look cute for nothing, so here I am. 

Today's outfit is mostly from ModCloth - I swear they should start paying me an advertising fee or something.  Here's the individual pieces:

 The dress is the Harvest Moon Dress, the sweater is the Charter School Cardigan in rust and the tights are Tights for Every Occasion, all from ModCloth.  The boots are favorites - the brand is Naya and the style is Juniper.  I especially love the bow detailing on them. Plain silver hoops and a brown stone necklace that I can't find a picture of.  

Here's how I look in it:

 Cute, right? The dress is pretty short - short enough that if it was a cold morning, and you were to sit down on your cold car seat, you might get quite the morning adrenalin burst, via your uncovered posterior.  Ask me how I know that...

Also, as a bonus, now that I have an iPhone and a camera timer app, you get to see ALL of me, all the way down to my feet.  That doesn't make the pictures any better, but at least you can see my whole outfit in its blurry awfulness.  Sadly no cat box in this one. 

 

First Friday 1st Grade Fashion Report: Birthday Edition

Today is my *cough* twenty-ninth *cough* birthday!! (Again.) And what better way to spend your birthday than at a continuing legal education course describing all the many ways lawyers can screw up the lives of themselves and others!  Okay, I bet some of you could think of maybe a few better ways, although that's how I spent my birthday morning. It was almost as much fun as oral surgery.

Luckily, though, the CLE was only a half-day, so I got to go read to my first graders, which IS an awesome way to spend your birthday! We had a great time reading about how the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (or, as my mother and apparently most of the rest of the country call it, the Macy's Day Parade) got started.  The parade is one of my very favorite things about the holiday season, and I was thrilled that the kids were excited about it too!

I didn't get a SINGLE comment about my clothes or shoes today, which was surprising because my shoes, my jacket and my skirt were all pretty tactile, which tends to invite both comment and investigation. I like to think they were just distracted by the awesome books. It can't have been that they didn't like my outfit, right?

Here's what I had on:

The skirt is velvet, from Boden from two seasons ago.  I bought it thinking it would be good with a black sweater or jacket but the "black" on it isn't, really - more like a very dark midnight blue, and it looked odd with black.  I wore it with a black sweater once and was dissatisfied with how it looked, so I stuck it in my closet and promptly forgot about it. 

This season, I saw the jacket at Coldwater Creek (which is billed as "faux suede" but is really more like a moleskin than an actual faux suede) and thought it might work with my oddly-colored velvet skirt.  The shirt is from New York & Co. and has adorable rhinestone-y buttons down the front.  The boots are by Naya, via Zappos, and I absolutely love them. They're super-comfortable and really unique - I get comments on them all the time (though not from the first graders!!). 

The Movado museum watch and hearts on fire earrings were both gifts from my beloved husband. The watch I've had forever, but just recently got a strap and battery for it and started wearing it again.  The earrings are a more recent addition.

Here's how I looked in it:

Honestly, I'm a little disappointed (okay, CRUSHED) that first grade fashionistas had no comment. I thought at the very  least the boots would be exciting - they're fuzzy! and they have bows! But alas, they appear to have become jaded.  I guess I'll just have to work a little harder for next week. I wonder if those fish shoes are still available...

Friday 1st Grade Fashion Report: October 12, 2012

Want to know how to attract the undivided attention and adoration of a group of six year-olds? 

Wear this:

Then show one (just one, though!) of the kids that it's actually a pocket watch, and let him open it up. Wait approximately 4 nanoseconds for the other kids to realize someone got to do something that they didn't get to do. Before you know it, you'll have all 15 six-year-olds clambering for a turn.

So, I wore this watch today, never dreaming that it would cause such excitement amongst the short people.  It's cute, but it's kind of impractical - every time I lean over my desk, it clunks against the edge, and I think I actually clocked (hah, get it? clocked?) one of the 1st graders in the head when I leaned over to hug him.  He didn't seem to mind, though.

Also popular with the six-year- old set were these boots:

They're ancient Nine West boots - super-comfortable but nothing special - or so I thought. The whole front row was quite taken with them. One little boy even said I looked like a firefighter in them. (I feel certain that he meant this as the highest possible compliment - firefighters are COOL, people.)

The rest of the outfit was pretty simple.  This dress,

over black leggings. 

No picture of me in it, though - all the pictures I took were so horrifically bad, I'm embarrassed to post one. And you've seen my pictures, people - imagine how bad these must've been. 

Anyway, I hope you've enjoyed this timely post. (Hah, get it? Timely? You know...the pocket watch?  I crack myself up!)

 

First Friday 1st Grade Fashion Report

(Try saying THAT ten times fast!)

So it isn't my first 1st grade Friday - this is actually the third week I've gone over to the Bomber's school to read to his class. The first week was so great - they actually cheered when I came in, one little boy noticed that I'd gotten my hair more "goldened" and I was so excited to see them and see how much they all grew and changed over the summer.   Last week was fun, too - I made a joke to the teacher about being 29 and those dear sweet children actually believed me. They also told me how old each of their mothers is, though I'm pretty sure the kid with the 16 year old sister isn't right about his mother being 24. And after I was finished reading, there was a big hug pile-on. 

This week, I got there a little early and got to see the end of their Spanish lesson, which was interesting.  I also got a bunch of compliments about my dress before I even made it into the classroom, and a bunch more from my usual fashionistas. They even had a little competition - "Bomber's mom, I like your dress!"  "Oh, Bomber's mom, I like your dress EVEN more!"

Anyway, here's what I wore:

The dress is the Marble Collection dress from ModCloth.  When I got it, I wasn't entirely sure I was going to keep it, because it's a little short and waistband it hits me in strange-ish place on my ribcage, but when I put it with leggings (which are just basic brown leggings from Boden that I wore pulled up about 3" above the ankle) and ballet flats, I decided it looked just right.  It must look okay, because the kids loved it, especially the flower detail at the neckline, and I got compliments from multiple grown-ups, too.  The necklace is one of those ancient Greek glass pendants which Larry brought me back from Chicago a few years ago.  The shoes are Pierre Dumas ballet flats. I love the little flat-toed suede detail on them - it really adds to the ballet shoe styling.

Here's how I looked.  This is another pervy bathroom picture, so I look all washed out in the fluorescent lights, but at least I didn't get busted by a co-worker this time.

Naturally, you can't see my shoes - I swear I actually do have feet. Honest.

Anyway, I had a great time reading to the Bomber's class - they've been really engaged in the books this year, which is super-fun, and they're so happy that I'm there.  Today they actually formed a line to hug me when I was leaving, and then they all yelled "Bye Mommy!" when I left.  It truly is one of the highlights of every week.