It's Superfine !

First, apologies to those irritated by belt loops without a belt.

This was the morning of the first full day of my most recent business trip

and I had not yet finished dressing (the belt and jacket went on later).

I was at a conference where business attire meant

closed toe shoes and matching pieces to a suit.

One of two suits I purchased this year made its debut, along

with my favorite blouse of late and shoes put to the true test.

 

Since those horrible wool-eating moths got to one of my pant suits,

I had decided to give the superfine cotton a try.

Though cotton isn't top of mind for suit material, I went for it

thinking it might not be the first choice of those buggers.

 

I like the fabric. Very much.

It's weighty and has a nice hand and drape.

It's of 100% cotton and true to the words from the copywriter (from space),

there's a hint of stretch to it.

 

But! As can be expected from 100% cotton, it wrinkles.

Here's what the trousers looked like after

a very full day of conference activities.

I don't mind when natural material behaves like natural material.

Such as when I noticed quite a bit of wear on the leather soles

of these wonderful shoes. I'm certain 100% soft and delicious

leather is a big part of why they are tradeshow-tested comfortable. 

 

I will always prefer natural fibers to manmade.

So imagine my disappointment when I stalked and finally found

my size in another version of my beloved top

and learned the solid colored ones are of rayon, not silk.

 

With a pout, I deleted two of those from my cart.



Chie Cha-Ching

So these are actually the first pair of Chies I own,

though I told you about those first.

I can't believe I actually have two pairs since I thought Chie Mihara
shoes are priced way beyond what I'm willing to pay.

But! I found shoescribe.com and these babies were mine.
Hint: I'm a straight to the sale section kind of shopper.

Here's what's shocking: The heels are 3.25" but I thought

"tradeshow shoes" the first time I put them on.

My wide forefoot had plenty of room, my toes were happy.

 

After wearing them an entire workday to be certain,

I wore them to work a conference.

If you have ever staffed a tradeshow (as opposed to attending a conference),

you know that's the true test for whether shoes are comfortable.

 

I was on my feet for probably 12 of 14 hours one day.

Walking up and down stairs, going from one end of the show floor to the

next exhibit hall to the next, coordinating with TV crews and reporters,

attending a meeting and a reception and ...

 

At the end of the evening, I did not want to rip the shoes off.

Oh I was tired and my feet were just a touch sore, but I did not feel like

cutting my feet off as I have thought with other shoes.

I love these and they lived up to my initial expectation.

 

As for the outfit ... I know some of you are thinking 

attire for when the leaves turn and the temps are cooler.

Well, our leaves fell; big clumps of pine needles rained down my office windows yesterday. But it wasn't due to a chill in the air.

It was HOT. Likely the hottest day of the year. And still scorching today;

it is 5:45 p.m. and 97 degrees outside.

 

How goes your summer?



Top Dot Top

Bottom line: I love this top.

My mom had a silk tie-neck blouse that I still remember vividly.

She always wore it with a little suit, looking very Jackie O.

Though it's a completely different blue,

the tie-neck top in dot reminds me of my mom's blouse.

 

It made me feel stylish, classy and ladylike all day.

The fabric is a 100% silk crepe de chine. A medium heavy weight that doesn't quite qualify as "sumptuous" in my mind. But still a very nice weight silk.

The cuffed short sleeves made it more modern and chic.

The polka dots added lightheartedness, the navy color made it a classic.

 

It does not button or zip and I thought I'd struggle to put on the top but I did not and only had a tiny bit of trouble pulling the top off.

 

The only annoying detail is the "sweet keyhole hook-and-eye closure" because it's a hand-and-eye coordination challenge that will make

dressing in a hurry impossible. But still, it's my favorite of all the polka dotted blouses, sweaters or tees I've tried or seen.

I wore it with a jacket (the Verona from a past season), but only

inside the office when the AC got too cool.

And pants that looked like I slept in them (the Paley from a past season).

Yes, I'm still wearing linen; it was horribly sticky hot today.

 

The other bottom line? The shoes aka kid gloves for your feet:

the Kate Spade Sienna pump. I'm in love with them too.



I Will Always Love You

Love this dance.

Happy Labor Day

On this Labor Day, I'm not working very hard at this post.

Why belabor the point? ;)