Just Plummy

Hectic here again, but this time it is because my better half has returned from Alaska! But I am such a superwoman I still had time to throw together this DIY necklace yesterday morning,

I really liked the faux-Chanel look of the whole outfit.  I really needed to channel some power for a meeting that night, so I felt compelled to wear a jacket, but wanted to be comfy too.  Thanks to my friend Lin, who gifted this jacket to me, I could get power and coziness too!

Jacket, Simon Chang via Lin; cami, J Crew; pants, Context

Zippadeedodah

Remember back in the summer, when I was just a wee blogger, when I tried a dress at Pink and it was too small and $80 and I loved it and almost ordered it from Nordstrom for $120?  Remember? Let me refresh.

Well.  Change top and waist line, subtract $60 or $100 from the price, make it fit in the bust and sell it to me at TJ Maxx, why don't you?  Same brand.  TWENTY DOLLARS.

Of course, I should have taken pics before sitting all day!

And here's why the top fits.  DARTS.

Made for the double Ds.

And here is the awesome waist detail.

How fun is THAT??

Teamed with an updo and the lovely Traversa cardigan (see pretty much any Crew loving fashion blogger for gushing) and you have a fitted, professional yet fun work outfit.

Traversa Cardigan, J Crew, gift from my mommy; dress, London Times via TJ Maxx, $20; tights, Target, $5; necklace, Pink.

Who I Am

Mom running errands.  That's what I was today and this outfit perfectly reflects that! Nothing fashionable here, but the light was so gorgeous this afternoon that I had to do a couple of pictures.

Jeans. Gap Long and Lean; Sweater, Jones New York, gift from my mom; vest, Burton, gift from my sister-in-law MB; clogs, Dansko; silk long underwear!, gift from my sensible husband upon my move to the Adirondacks.

Adirondack Striptease

Wool sweater jacket thingamabob, Context, gift from my mommy, Christmas 2008 (one week after baby W was born, which may explain the bagginess); Cotton and cashmere sweater, Eddie Bauer, birthday present from my mommy-in-law, sooooo warm and soft and cozy; J Crew Minnie Pants, next time I get the bi-stretch wool  in one size smaller- the twill is so stretched and baggy that they only look good when I  am sitting - good thing my only engagement today was a sit down Chamber of Commerce breakfast. Can I just say that that is not ok for an $80 pair of pants?

Wild at Heart

I bit the bullet today and tried the tights and sandals combo.  I am not so sure about it.  But I loved today's outfit!  I never would have out these things together pre-blog.

I think W. is trying to tell you all that this outfit is fine, and in fact, could also use one more piece:  bright pink crocs.  Either that or he is dissing the tights/sandals combo.

I really was in love with the bottom half of me all day long.

Jacket, Victoria's Secret; Scard, from Paris, gift from my Dad; dress, Target; wedges, Nine West; tights, Hue.

Spirit Day

I am wearing purple today for Spirit Day.

I am honoring the memory of LGBTQ youth bullied and lost too soon to suicide.  And I am wearing it honor of all of those who survive bullying or stand up to bullying of any kind - personal, religious, institutional, governmental...I don't know a single person who has not felt that pain for one reason or another.

Also in honor of Spirit Day, I commit myself to helping make the agency where I work a safe place for LGBTQ patients in search of sexual health care!

In totally unrelated, and shallow, news, I think this sweater DOES go with the skirt.  I took a close up to prove it:

I am really not sure why the skirt seems so blue in pictures again!  Natural light this time, too!

Skirt, Gap Outlet; sweater, French Connection; belt, gift from S.; boots, Madden Girl; Jacket, Old Navy Maternity (Needs to have the button moved to fit a NON-pregnant person, or someone needs to get knocked up so I can pass it on, also, I took it off for the pictures this am and forgot to put it back on!); necklaces, my Grammy!

Perspective

One week and my better half will be home.

We had a great Gala.

I have cute boots.

I don't really have a life size statue in my yard.  (He's actually only waist high.)

Life is pretty good!

Fall is definitely here.  I froze my butt off getting pictures this morning.  In a few weeks I bet it will be both too dark AND too cold to get outside shots.

And these boots will be tromping around in the snow.

Boots, Ariat, gift from my husband a few Christmas' ago; Skirt, Victoria's Secret; Sweater, J Crew (about 10 years' old); blouse (hidden!), Loft.

The Blues

Ever make an impulse buy that you are sure is perfect only to discover it doesn't work at all?

I had a plan for these tights, but when I got them home, I realized the plan would just not work.  So they've been in the drawer.  Waiting.  But I just wanted to wear them!!  And so I did.

Oh look, an admirer.

He's telling me that this light isn't great for the full BLUE effect.

I got the idea to wear the shirt this way from Bill Cunningham's pictures of women in big white shirts in yesterday's New York Times.

Tights, Target; skirt, Victoria's Secret; Jackie Cardigan, J Crew; blouse, thrifted Liz Claiborne.

Crazy Day Number 2

So, why did I think I would have more time to get pictures today??

Actually, I was having a post-event discussion about how calm I am during events and how I never panic.  And then I overdramatically panicked! No one had taken my picture!!!  OH MY GOD!!!

So my friend Ashley took my picture.  Phew.

The event was VERY successful.  I have an amazing team!  But the best part?  Someone told me I don't look like I have two kids.  We could have LOST money and I would still have had a great day!

Dress, TJ Maxx, $20 on clearance; necklace, on loan from my Boss Lady, handcrafted by the amazing Beth Johnson of Beth's Baubles out of Bombay Sapphire Gin bottles (Beth is also one of our Board members and got our Voice for Choice award tonight); fishnets, Target, $7.

Birthday Suit

Today was a whirlwind, because our biggest fundraiser of the year is tomorrow and our whole department was running from daybreak til....now, actually.  I have a lot of work to finish up before bed!  So, no outfit photos.  Plus, I got soaked in the pouring rain at 9am and then snowed on my noon.

So, instead pictures of me, I give you a picture of the celebrity people most often say I resemble.  In her (almost) birthday suit, of course.

But don't worry!  I will be back with tomorrow's outfit on Sunday!

Texas Sized

Holy crow, do I have some hair, or do I have some hair!!

I think one day I should also tease it and see how big I can REALLY get it.

I actually wonder if I should balance my hair and my outfit.  I do decided on wearing it up or down based on the clothes I am wearing, but honestly that is often more about tangling.  (Turtleneck?  Wooly sweater?  I get INSANE knots at the nape of my neck. Knots that are only really alleviated by tons of conditioner and even more patience.)

I also am more likely to wear it down the day I wash it because if I put it up wet I am stuck putting it up til the next time I wet it all down again.  And I tend to not wear it down when I need to look really professional.

What influences your hairdo on any given day?

And wanna see some hair I covet?  Check out Julie at Orchid Grey.  I have fits of jealousy over her hair daily.

Dress, Hanna Andersson, (yes, the kids' store.  they make adult sizes too.); jacket, Gap Outlet; scarf, gift from my Dad from Paris; boots, Madden Girl.

Playtime

What do you get when you combine a trip to the mechanic that cost 1/10th of what you thought it might, a mandatory 4pm day care pick-up, and a sunny afternoon?

A trip to the playground!

I asked her to back up, but as we know, I can not tell the fashion photographer what to do...

Not my favorite outfit, but definitely my favorite way to spend time we are ordinarily in the car!

Sweater, Victoria's Secret; Cords, Lands' End Canvas; Cami and necklace, J Crew.

Pink and Gray

Pink and gray sounds to me like an 80s combo.  In my minds' eye the pink is baby pink, so when I thought about the sweater and the pants and the belt, I was not so sure.  But when I put together  BRIGHT PINK and DARK GRAY, I didn't think 80s, I thought LOVE.

And I think SASSY.

And so my lesson from this is to go to the closet and look at the clothes instead of just imagining them.  My best outfits come from standing there for a minute or two, just looking.  (this has to be the night before, though, no time to stand still in my mornings!)

Cardi, Lands' End Canvas; Cami, J Crew; Pants, New York and Company; necklace, Pink.

Contrast

I had perk things up after the end of last week, so I went whole hog and CONTRASTED.

Never in a billion pre-blog years would I have paired this cardigan with this skirt, but hey?  Why not?

It was hard to get a picture that accurately reflected both colors...either the skirt was photographing bluer than it is, or the orange wasn't coming out as orangy.

Hrmm.  That is why we only get one photo today!

(And no, not Casper.  My boy!)

Skirt, Gap Outlet; turtleneck,  Victoria's Secret; cardigan, New York and Company.

Stormy Thursday

The weather, the outfit, my mood.

And to make matter worse, tight bunching.  Woe is me.

I actually got a lot of complements today. But not enough to take my day from craptacular to slightly less than spectacular,

Dress, Soprano via TJ Maxx; Sweater and tights, Target; necklace, present from Haiti; belt, the Gap.

Mixing It Up

I am so totally counting this as pattern mixing.  I love these stripes but the shirt is on its last threads.  It has a few worn spots already. (Well it has been almost 4 years.)  But I am on a shopping hiatus at the moment, so I am holding back from the perfect stripes at Loft.  Which I could have gotten with great pants and a necklace for 40% and free shipping, but I resisted because it was a bargain but still $100.

So.

I am wearing this old shirt.  Again.

No bottom half in the shot because it was so totally boring I could not be bothered.

Tee, J Crew; jacket, TJ Maxx, purchased for $30 five or even six years ago; pants, unseen, Gap. Earrings, in my purse.

Last Legs

I am pretty sure I won't be showing bare legs and sandals again til at least LATE April, so I took the gamble today.  Luckily it stayed warm enough, and I didn't get outside all day, so it didn't really matter.

I have totally become convinced of the power of the belt.  This sweater is just a little odd, it is cropped, but not shrunken at all.  It rides up and the buttons unbutton.  But with a belt?  Totally stays put.

I am also really proud of myself for not including ANY black in my ensemble today!

Skirt and sweater, Victoria's Secret; Tee, which has great pattern and texture you can't see, gifted from S., who bought it in France; wedges, Nine West; belt, LLBean; necklace, JCrew.

First Frost

Finally!  Cool enough to wear this sweaterdress.  As you can see we had a nice frost this morning.  I tried to capture seeing my breath in the pictures, but no luck.

Would you wear a skirt this short to work, without leggings?  I used to, and I can't believe I did! I was heavier then, too.  I am sort of horrified.

With leggings, though, I felt totally appropriate for a day in the office. In fact, I LOVED this outfit, and felt polished and secure all day. Plus, my coffee cup totes coordinates.

Dress, Gap, five years ago; Leggings, Target, $9; belt, J Crew; flats, DSW; scarf, gifted from S.!

Falling

What a beautiful Adirondack fall day!  My friend Laura and I took the kids for a fall photoshoot. We took the cameras off the kids for just long enough to snap a few pictures of my outfit.

My hair approaches size 10 in this picture!

And my boy was also quite the fashionable one...

Sweet girl was too busy running around trying to kiss her friends at this moment, so she's not in the picture.

Jeans, Lands' End; Boot, Madden Girl; Sweater, Context