Clothing
Natural Chic
Am I the only one who is wasting time on Polyvore? I decided to create this cute outfit, but am still not satisfied with it. I really like the look, but the necklace alone is more than the rest of the outfit! I like the idea of putting together clothing sets but a lot of clothes and accessories are completely out of my price range. I am not looking for Dollar Store cheap, just Target or Old Navy cheap. Even Macy’s is sounding cheap.
I understand the concept of this site – they want you to put together an outfit and then BUY it. I wish I could buy this stone necklace, but I probably won’t. I don’t even look good in yellow. So the experiments are fun, especially when you come up with a look and then start reworking it to meet your budgetary constraints. Today it was the $600+ necklace, tomorrow it will be shoes for $900 that I just can’t swing. Fortunately the internet has not shortage of options. I am going to continue my search for a cheaper necklace. It know it is out there somewhere.
Jane Norman neon dress
$61 – janenorman.co.uk
$61 – janenorman.co.uk
Chambray jacket
lorisshoes.com
lorisshoes.com
GUESS gladiator shoes
guess.com
guess.com
Giorgio Vigna necklace
yoox.com
yoox.com
Gag Lou silver charm jewelry
boticca.com
boticca.com
ferm Living – Wall Sticker Branches
$110 – connox.com
$110 – connox.com
Sweating Buying a Sweater
More than a year ago I cleaned out my closet and discovered that I desperately needed a white cardigan sweater to wear over all the sleeveless dresses I own. Sleeveless is great in summer (except when you are sitting inside with an air conditioner blowing 50 degree air on you!). Also, I wanted to expand my wardrobe beyond summer. I wanted more bang for my clothing buck, but for some reason I didn’t find any bucks to spend on a simple sweater. Or was it the sweater I couldn’t find?
Over the last year I purchased 2 gray sweaters and 2 black sweaters, but never bought a white one. Was I fearful of the spaghetti sauce, pen, crayon and smoothie stains that would appear on a new white sweater? The answer is yes. For some reason when I wear white it is a magnet for food that results in stubborn stains. Foods like chocolate and wine are just drawn to my white clothes . (Not that I ever consume either of those foods.)
About a week ago I was flipping through the Prana catalog and stumbled upon this cute white sweater. Since all the other Prana clothes I have purchased I have loved, I decided it was time to buy my white sweater. My Prana clothes typically spend more time out of the closet than in it (hiking, around the house, and trips to Italy) so I figured it was a low risk purchase.
Now that I have placed my order, I am very excited to receive and wear my new sweater. I am still a bit nervous about the white color, but I feel confident that my fear can be overcome by Oxiclean or Fels Napthia. My summer dresses will emerge from the closet early this spring! I am counting down the minutes to my shipment arrival and still wondering why I was sweating buying a white sweater!
What clothing or accessory have you put off buying when you know you really need it?
Clothing for middle age, not the middle ages!
I am just learning to accept that I am getting older, but do I have to accept dressing old too? Why do clothes for middle age seem to resemble what my great-grandma would wear around the house? I may be 44, but I am not ready for this! I have style, but the clothes in the store do not. Jennifer Lopez can have nice clothes, why not me? So many times I have walked through the Junior’s section of various department stores and wondered, “Why don’t they have that in my size?” I am not talking about tight-fitting shorts or cropped tops. I am taking about cute and trendy clothes that would look good on anyone under 70.
Why can’t manufacturers make clothes for people who are young at heart? Do most 40 somethings wear baggy printed dresses resembling a grandmother’s night-gown? I think not. When I walk through Macy’s the clothing styles look old. Boxy. Then I walk through a trendy place like H&M and I become a bit frustrated because the clothes are made to fit a 90 lb girl who is 5’4″ tall. The clothes are trendy but not made to fit someone who has a woman’s body. I am far from voluptuous at 140 lbs and 5’7″ tall. I feel on the border (age and body style) of being able to carry off these young styles. What is a woman to do?
In H&M I bought a dress off the rack without trying it on (because I was in a rush). It was a T-shirt dress and it looked comfortable and cute. How bad could it be? When I got it home, I discovered a problem. It was short. Very short. I was afraid to bend over. Or sit down. (Clearly the new trend is to show off your underwear.) I resorted to putting on my SPANX in an effort to make the dress hang a bit longer. I have worn it a few times so far, but I am still not sure about it. My boyfriend loves the dress (it shows a lot of leg). It must look better than it feels.
I was just thinking that if this dress was a bit longer, I would wear it a lot more. A dress like this I could wear every day in the summer. I would have it in every color! I guess I want to make a plea to designers and manufacturers to make some clothes that are trendy for women like me who want to dress our age. Not young. Not old. Something in the middle. Something trendy, stylish, and practical (So I can bend over to pick up a can of tomatoes at Albertson’s without mooning the guys stocking the shelves.)
Another area of challenge is jeans. I used to buy jeans at the GAP. This year the styles just don’t seem to be keeping up with the times. My answer? Victoria Secret. Yes, they sell something that is not lacy or an undergarment. I found jeans that are trendy AND fit. Hallelujah! They probably fit better than any other jeans I have ever worn. I even bought two knit shirts from the same catalog. It seems crazy that I am spending more on clothes at Victoria Secret than bras and underwear.
How do you feel about middle-aged clothes? Where do you buy age appropriate but trendy clothes?
Insane Outfits Continue Into Kindergarten
As my 4-year-old entered kindergarten this week, I thought that she might start choosing more sensible outfits. I somehow managed to get her to wear a ‘matching’ outfit on the first day, but that was only because her sparkly silver shoes matched her equally sparkly silver dress. Did I mention that she wore the dress and shoes around the house the whole weekend before the first day of school?
My win for the first day ‘matching’ outfit was not a change, it was merely a blip in the crazy land of clothes she calls ‘outfits’. Today she put on a pink dress. Actually, it used to be a dress, but it shrunk and she grew, so now it is a shirt. She added a skirt underneath the shirt and pink leggings with lace on the bottom. To cap off the ensemble she paired green and yellow, tinker bell socks with her silvery sparkly shoes. I don’t know why I didn’t take a picture. Maybe it was because I didn’t really want to remember it. At least picking her up after school is easy since she sticks out in the crowd.
In contrast, her older brother is wearing last year’s T-shirts that are slightly faded but have not yet sprouted holes. I am very happy that I have one girl and one boy when it comes to clothes because:
1) I couldn’t handle 2 girls fighting over the silvery sparkly shoes
2) I have the opportunity to see the real differences between boys and girls when it comes to clothes (I also see why men in general have a difficult time dressing themselves.)
3) I get to grin or giggle every morning as I see my daughter emerge from her room before heading to school
Quirky Contemplation 