WeeCap (Weekend Recap)

Saturday, 2/5/11

The Breakdown:

• V-neck, long-sleeve tee - Old Navy
• Sleeveless tunic - New York & Co.
• Vintage fur vest - thrifted
• Flirt skinny jeans - Old Navy
• Cashmere scarf - Nordstrom
• Square hoop earrings - Lil' Gypsy Vintage
• Riding boots - Born Crown - Nordstrom
• Bag - Linea Pelle "Dylan Shoulder Bag" - Ideeli

 The vest?  It's awesome.  Is it slimming?  Not at all.  Is it fabulous?  Most definitely.  And most importantly, it makes me happy.  I know a lot is made about rules for dressing one's self, but I think the most important rule is to wear what makes you happy.  At least that's the most important rule for me.

I wore this to run errands on Saturday.  Which included a trip to my favorite bookstore, The Reader's Guide to Recycled Literature, which is all kinds of awesome because you can trade books in for store credit.  And if you use credit to pay for your books, they are half-off. 

I got the stack of five books below (next to the pig) for less than $18.00:

(From the top: Miles from Nowhere by Nami Mun, Babyji by Abha Dawesar, A Short History of Women by Kate Walbert, Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen and The Family Markowitz by Allegra Goodman)

After the bookstore, I went to lunch, where I had pho.  If you haven't had it, it's Vietnamese beef noodle soup, garnished with basil, jalepenos, bean sprouts and lime.  I also drizzle mine with plum sauce and throw in a few spoonfuls of pepper sauce.  It's delicious and I love it.
 

After pho, I did a little thrifting and actually found a few things that I love.  No photos - they're all in our deep freezer right now - but suffice it to say my findings include wool, sequins, midi skirts (which I am determined to master) and giant florals. 

Sunday, 2/6/11

 The Breakdown:

• White tee - Target
• Open cardigan - Calvin Klein - Ideeli
• Real Straight jeans - Gap
• Angel wing earrings - Alberta street vendor
• Leopard print flats - Nine West

Apparently I'm not as allergic to matching as I thought I was. And that's okay.  I liked this outfit quite a bit, actually.  It's very comfortable and perfect for another day of running a few errands and hanging out with family.  Ordinarily, I would reign in all the extra fabric on this cardigan with a belt, but hey, it's the weekend.  I wanted to be comfortable.  And as much as I love belts, they're not always comfortable.

On my way back from running errands, I noticed these sweet little white flowers.  They are snowdrops, and are the first flowers that I have seen.  I know it's still winter, but these are a lovely reminder that spring is on the way.  I know a lot of you are still snowbound, so I wanted to share them with you.

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend, and if you watched the Super Bowl (I did not), I hope that your team won.

Gracey

Going Red for a Cause

Alternately titled "Some Things are Better in Theory"

Daily Outfit, Friday, 2/4/11

The Breakdown:

• V-neck sweater - a.n.a - JC Penney
• Knit blazer - J Crew Outlet
• Real Straight jeans - Gap
• Woven belt - Fossil - Macys
• Boots - Born Crown - Nordstrom
• Multi-color scarf - gifted

Today was National Wear Red Day, which is part of American Heart Month.  I, and many other bloggers, will be wearing red at least once a week during the month, as part of Andie's campaign, to help raise awareness of heart disease in women.  For more information, and your own button, head on over to What Andie Wears.

The alternate title for this post is "Some Things are Better in Theory."  This is a true statement.  Need an example?  Those glasses that Steven Martin invented in "The Jerk."  It seems brilliant to build a grip on the noseguard to take glasses on and off with, but everyone who wore them went cross-eyed.  See?  Better in theory.   This outfit was also better in theory.  Do you ever have those days were you know where you're going with an outfit, but you just don't quite get there?  That's what happened here.  In my head, this was sort of slouchy and cool.  In reality?  Not so much...  I can't even pinpoint where it went wrong.  Not slouchy enough?  Not cool enough?  Probably the latter.  At my size, I can't go too slouchy or I run the risk of adding bulk.  I don't need any bulk on this frame.  I blame the pants.  No real reason, I just do.

It wasn't a complete fail though.  I like the colors - I think the scarf tied it all together nicely.  And this blazer was super comfortable.  I don't always find blazers comfortable given my broad shoulders and muscular arms.  I have quite a few of them, but rarely wear them because I usually feel constricted in them.  Not in this one though.  I mean, I'm wearing a sweater underneath and was perfectly comfortable all day.  If you're like me and find blazers constricting, you may want to consider a knit blazer.  Mine is fairly slouchy and unstructured, but they do come more structured and blazer-like.

Although my outfit was not what I'd hoped, I had a wonderful surprise waiting for me when I got home.

These babies:

These are the Seychelle "Gypsy" sandals.  I first saw them on one of Lyddie's wishlists on Chic-OnThe-Cheap.  All of her items were lovely, but these shoes.  Oh.  These shoes.  It was love at first sight.  I think it was meant to be.  After all, they were on sale on Endless.  And then I still had part of an Amazon gift card.  And free shipping.  All told, I got them for about $45.00 and I can't wait to wear them.

Before I go, I've been meaning to ask - I generally tie almost all of my scarves in the same manner; would anyone be interested in a tutorial post on how to tie them this way?  Just let me know in the comments.

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!

Gracey

Winter Floral

Daily Outfit, Thursday 2/3/2011

The Breakdown:

• Long-sleeve v-neck tee - Old Navy
• Floral tunic - ??? - Ross Dress for Less
• Bootcut jeans - Gap
• Booties - BC Footwear 'Swear' - Piperlime
• Red scarf - ??? - Macys
• Trench - Kenneth Cole - Ideeli

That's right, minimal black today.  You're welcome.  Not that anyone minded the black yesterday - you were all very supportive actually.  Still, I missed color in my outfit.  So, today's outfit has plenty of color, but in a way that makes sense to me at this time of year.  The tunic has a charcoal grey background so it doesn't read spring to me. 

This is one of my favorite tunics.  It's super comfortable, has a flattering cut and is very easy to layer.  I've worn it layered over camisoles, over long-sleeve tees, and under cardigans.  And it's got color!  Again, you're welcome.

Gracey

Gung Hei Fat Choi!

BURBERRY PRORSUM shearling coat, DANIER leather pants, RALPH LAUREN sweater, FRATELLI ROSETTI boots, PRADA bag, CARTIER scarf, VINTAGE ROLEX watch

Happy Chinese New Year! It's the year of rabbit this year. My mom is quite superstitious and an avid follower of Chinese traditions so her advice would be to stay away from hair washing on this day as it washes away your good luck. I don't see any harm in not following it, so why not.

Anyway, took the above shots in chinatown this past weekend after a dim sum session. I don't know why, but every chinatown in every city always smells the same. Either way, the food always tastes delicious. I swear I could eat Chinese food everyday all day (but I think Mass would have a heart attack).

I am IN LOVE with the leather pants above. Bought on sale from tried and tested leather goods store in Canada: Danier for CAD $99! It was such a good deal I bought two pairs, one in black and another in brown (though above is brown and you can barely tell the difference). In addition, the Rolex was given to me by my mom for Christmas and graduation. She bought it back in the early 80's and I love it; I love everything about it, from the sentiment to the mechanics.

Wishing you a healthy, successful, and prosperous new year.

Back to Black

Daily Outfit, 2.2.2011

The Breakdown:

• Lightweight turtleneck sweater - Hinge - Nordstrom
• Dolman-sleeve tunic sweater - a.n.a - JC Penneys
• Cropped skinny jeans - Bandolino - Macys
• Suede boots - Naughty Monkey "Rounded Up" - Nordstrom
• Vintage squash blossom necklace - Lil Gypsy Boutique

This outfit is me not trying.  It's layered black sweaters with jeans and black boots.  Sure, I made an effort with the necklace, but that's because I felt guilty.  You guys deserve better.  I'm not making excuses, but it was Wednesday, and even though it's sunny, it's freezing and it's the middle of winter.  Some times a girl just has to layer for warmth and creativity be damned.

I am sorry if I've disappointed anyone.  If it helps matters any, I finally went to Jazzercise tonight, so I'm not completely lazy.  This is a big deal because it's the first time I've gone in a couple of weeks.  As my outfit shows, I'm not a very motivated girl in the winter.  And that lack of motivation sadly extends to my exercise regime.  It's funny because when we're bouncing around I can feel my heinie bounce and I hate it and want to stop going, but I know it's bouncing because I haven't been going.  It's a vicious circle, I tell you what.

Also, that second photo looks like a cheesy senior picture, which is why I included it, because I think it's hilarious. And maybe you will too and you'll find it in your hearts to ignore the lack of effort I made today.  And we can all pretend together that I included it to show the detail on my boots (and my man hands - just sayin').

Ugh.  Winter.  I am SO over it right now.  Do you guys get this way too? 

Gracey

My Edit for Giants

This is not me:

This is Jentine from My Edit.  She is tall, and funny and just all around rather fantastic.  If you don't already read her blog, you should.  She has a very unique approach to fashion, and although the above picture was taken by her visting brother and sister-in-law, her husband also takes fabulous pictures!
As you all know, I love animal print and color, and I find Jentine's outfit to be absolutely wonderful.  I thought, then, that I would give creating this outfit for giants a shot. 

For fun, I'm going to provide two options this time around.  The first is a fairly literal translation of Jentine's outfit.

Option A:

Red stretch cords - Alloy - they come with an inseam up to 37' and up to size 25

Cream chiffon tunic blouse - Alloy - up to size 25

Leopard Faux-Fur Jacket - Pacific Plex- Amazon - up to size 3X

Steve Madden Madden Girl "Partial" boots - Amazon - up to size 10

Long black gloves - Ralph Lauren

If you're not comfortable wearing skinny red cords (perhaps your thighs are attempting world domination), I'd like to present another option.

Option B:

Animal print shirt dress - Merona - Target (regular and plus sizes)

Red "Mai Tai" Cardigan - Long Tall Sally - up to size 20

Brown braided belt - Sonoma Life and Style - Kohls

Leather boots - Report "Tule" - Piperlime - up to size 10

I would suggest removing the self-belt from the dress, and belting it with the braided belt from Kohls.  Then pair the dress and cardigan with some cream or red tights from We Love Colors, and you're all set!

What do you think?  Do you love Jentine's outfit as much as I do?  What do you think about the options I've provided? 

Gracey

Muumuu-rific

Yes, this is a muumuu and I think it's terrific - hence muumuu-rific.

Daily Outfit, Tuesday, 2/1/11

The Breakdown:

• Black turtleneck - Old Navy
• Vintage muumuu - thrifted (label says Punahou Apparel)
• Studded belt - Michael Michael Kors - Nordstrom
• Black leggings - INC - Macys
• Riding boots - Born Crown - Nordstrom
• Scarf - gifted (thanks, Kathy!)
• Trench - Kenneth Cole - Ideeli

I don't know why I love this muumuu so much, but I really do.  I like that the length, the pattern and the colors are all atypical.  It is very voluminous, so not belting it was not an option if I wanted to have any sort of waist.  As it is, with this much volume, I still only have sort of a waist but I still really liked this outfit.

Last time I wore this I wore it with black tights and my double strap brown shoes (seen here) and it was just too short.  If it were less full, I think it would be okay with just tights, but this much volume and this little length, I am far more comfortable with leggings instead of tights.  Especially riding into work.

Speaking of which, the ride in was freezing today!  I forgot to cover my ears and regretted it immensely when I got to work.  At least we're not getting the snow storms much of the nation is getting.  As you can see from the pictures (blurry though they are - I'm working on that, I swear), it was very sunny today.  Very sunny and very cold.

How is the weather where you are at?  Are you getting tons of snow?

Gracey