I had some HOA duties last week, including meeting with our Collections Attorney. I wanted to look presentable but not overly dressed up so I wore jeans and a silk blouse. The office is casual so it was a good fit for the time I was there.
As the weather transitions from “Winter” to Spring here in Central Texas, we’ll see a range of temperatures from week-to-week and day-to-day. Case in point is this past week. These outfits are from Monday, Wednesday and Friday. You can see I’ve transitioned along with the weather from Winter-ish clothing to late Spring.
Monday I had some personal meetings after work to deal with some HOA things and it was chilly enough that day for layering. I went completely matchy-matchy. I started off with the J Crew Perfect Shirt in Medium Gingham, (Pink, 8, popback here). I think I’ve stated before I’m not a “pink” person. I gravitate more towards the bright pinks like the Bright Dahlia, Neon Pink, Fuchsia but I saw this pink gingham shirt and imagined it immediately with my J Crew Bubble Necklace in Gray (new colors here) that I bought from a fellow JCA. And under my Black Cashmere Tee. And under my Blue Eden Blazer. And under my J Crew Cashmere Shawl Collar Sweater, Bright Dahlia, M (sale colors here). It’s a sign for me if I can immediately see an item with several pieces I already have in my closet. I added my trusty GAP Essential Jeans that I have had for about 5 years. I don’t know what I’ll do when they are so worn I’ll have to throw them out. They don’t make this style any longer and they are the perfect, almost trouser, dark wash, boot-cut, dressy jean. I added my J Crew Bronson Suede Booties (Anchor Gray, 7) that hadn’t seen any action this year.This is my favorite style of bootie. It is not a typical ankle bootie in that the leather/suede material doesn’t come up to your ankle bone. It’s like a scoopneck but for a bootie. I stay away from any booties that come up to the ankle or over it slightly because it cuts off my leg and I look stumpy. But when these came out last year I bought them in multiples – Suede Anchor Gray, Suede Black, Leather Camel. I wish I had bought the Suede Brown but I did find a similar Cole Haan in Brown leather so I’m happy with that. Though these are around 3 inches in heel height there is an interior platform, about a 1/4 inch, that makes these quite comfortable.
Wednesday was The Boy’s soccer game and the weather was quite nice. I had a few errands to run before the game and decided to wear my Kate Spade Suede Kiki Wedges. When I bought these I really didn’t think I would get a lot of use out of them. I had planned on taking them back and then realized I didn’t have anything that would really go with the Anthropologie Stilt Striders Skirt except for a perfect neutral shoe, like the Kiki’s. I did change to my Factory Cece Leather and Tortoise Flats (retail here). The Grenada Palm Cami (8) was also a “unicorn” item that I found on ebay last week at a reasonable price and in new condition. After missing out on this originally I realized I loved the colors and that the bow can be tied in the back or on the side. I don’t have a cardigan that matches the colors in the cami so I paired it with the Jackie Cardigan in Beechwood (M, new colors here). I was able to find my beloved GAP Cropped Boyfriend Jeans on ebay late last year but try not to wear them as much because I know they will eventually meet the same fate as my other ones.
And Friday…I found this amazing Michael Kors jersey dress at Norstrom Rack for $20, retailed for $100. I love the drape neck and it has some mild ruching on the left side. I also like that the sleeve is not quite sleeveless but slightly cap-sleeve. I added a little navy cami and my Kate Spade Kiki’s. This was so comfortable to wear all day long and I still looked pretty chic. To help with the little bulges I added some Assets Mid-Thigh Shaper. I’ve been happily wearing my Assets and Spanx lately as they really do help make clothes look and fit better and now I’m not worried about those little bumps and bulges.
So, as you can see the weather went from one extreme to another with sweater weather at the beginning and a lovely Spring dress by the end of the week. Today is cool so I’ll be wearing a long-sleeve tee and hoodie for The Boy’s soccer game this afternoon.
Hey there! How crazy is it that we are in mid-February already? Mother Nature is being coy with Winter in South Texas. We finally had a teeny little cold spell that allowed me to layer and wear my newest purchase.
I have not been able to get the Schoolboy Blazer in Neon Pink out of my mind. I went to my store a few days later and there were only 3!!!! left. I couldn’t believe it. They’ve since re-stocked but apparently it’s a pretty popular color.
On Friday, I wore it with an older ‘Crew cardigan that doesn’t see much love and my Navy Check Perfect Shirt. (My boots don’t match but I wanted to wear them and not my black ones.)
Here are a few OOTDs from last week. This first outfit I loved! I’ve had this belt for years and love it. It can be reversed so the multi-buckles are at the back. The skirt was so comfortable to wear and the weather was nice enough to be cozy but not too warm. Unfortunately, this skirt had a big issue. After I took it off, I noticed the seam where the waistband meets the skirt had come unraveled. There was at least a 5 inch hole in the skirt! The seam was stitched with the same merino wool it’s made out of and apparently any slight tugging or pulling on it made it come undone. I had to return it. If any of you have this skirt just be aware of the stitching. I don’t need anything falling apart for $128. And it’s too bad because I was eyeing the black skirt as well.
One of my favorite shirts from J Crew. I have it in the Almond color as well. It runs big so I was able to size to a small in this. The purple is gorgeous IRL. And of course, my Cece Ballet Flats don’t know what they’ve gotten themselves into. They will be my work-horse flats for most of the Fall and Winter. I’m glad I have multiples!
I wore this to a wedding shower on Saturday. The Bride-to-Be was gorgeous in a Shoshanna dress. My fashionable NYC prima wore the Nanette Lepore Cafe Sheath Dress (see on Chloe here) (LOVE!!!) for her engagement pictures. The Blouson Dress is a favorite dress style of mine. I have the lace in both colors as well as the stripe in black. The Royal Paisley does not disappoint. I was excited to see I have so many cardigan and sweater options for it, including this Jackie in Buttercup…perfect match!
No OOTDs so far for this week. Husband has been home ruining my daily groove but I’ll give him a pass. He’s been sick for 7!!! weeks and now has shingles. Poor hubby. Luckily I’ve had chicken pox and The Boy has been vaccinated for them. But there is no kissing going on ’round here right now. I’m too busy to be sick. Can you believe Thanksgiving is next week? I’m busy every weekend starting now but I love this time of year.
Have a Great evening! I’ll be back with more reviews this week from that crazy 25% off sale. I am certainly shopped out. Luckily I’m not into all the Black Friday shopping. I go, but only to be my mom’s chauffeur. I can do a curb-side drop-off and then find a parking spot in BFE and not have anyone complain about how far they have to walk. I also run packages back to the car so our hands are not full of bags. And now that I’m old enough and have my “own” money, I can go eat anytime I want. My brother and I would starve for hours begging to go eat while she was in a zone shopping. Of course, I’m exaggerating…only slightly. Those marathon shopping trips my mom took us on is probably why I like to shop alone. Fun times.
Here are some OOTDs from last week. The first is from Wednesday where it was still 80 degrees outside. This was perfect for our outdoor dinner that night at a local pizza restaurant (outdoor seating only). The shoes were a great casual match for this skirt.
By Friday we had received a shift in temps and layering was required. Oh, how I wanted to wear boots and a scarf but even though it was chilly outside the sun was out trying to make you warm. We had a dinner that evening and Husband’s boss’s house so I added my Bella blazer to keep warm that night.
Question for all you “Bella” owners out there…How do you keep your collar to stay up? Mine is sort of in-between and sometimes one side is up and the other is down. Do you steam it or lay something on it with the collar up?
Have a Great day! I’ll have some J Crew in-store reviews posted tomorrow.
