Wash and Wear

I won't say why or how, except I didn't cause it, but this icon trench was filthy. At first, I thought I'd relegate it for dire circumstances ... like if I knew I had to be packed onto a bus with a football team

that for some reason could not shower after a sweaty game.

But the coat was grungy enough I doubt I'd wear it even then.

Oh, I thought about taking it to the cleaners.

But I don't love the idea of spending a zillion dollars on something that may not come clean and I don't love the idea of dry cleaning chemicals. And since the football team scenario was unlikely, made one of those "what do I have to lose" decisions and threw it in the wash. Delicate cycle, cold water. Tumble dry low.
Surprise, suprise. It came out just fine.

And while it's not as crisp as before and should be lightly pressed,

I now happily wear it for the best situations.

I wore the washed trench over the above outfit when I went to:

With some good friends and we had pre-theater dinner here:

I ate every bit of:

British Columbia King Salmon

eggplant purée, soy bean, tamago, Thai curry and jasmine rice

Carried this:

Kate Spade book clutch.

And was not disappointed in any way. 

The evening far exceeded every expectation.

 

Many have wondered, some have asked and I said I'd try it so

I washed the minnie pant in bi-stretch wool.

Same way: delicate cycle, cold water, tumble dry low.

I measured before and after, the width shrunk by about 3/16".

Like jeans after they're washed and dried, they felt tightened up. 

Still quite wearable but more legging-like.

The bigger difference was the length, they're shorter by about 1/2".

 

 If you study the above carefully, you'll notice the more snug and bunched up washed minnie pant on the right. Slightly shorter.

For reference, I'm 5'2"-ish and wearing the regular length size 00.

Not sure if I prefer them before or after the wash and dry but I sure wish there was a way to shrink the waistband by about 2".

Then they'd be perfect. Like my recent evening out.

 

So have you had wash and wear dastardly disasters or surprise successes?

Lotsa Luck

I thought the toothpick cord in ribbon bow print the perfect

St. Patrick's Day pants and couldn't wait for March 17 to wear them.

I thought these the perfect St. Patrick's Day shoes.

And this the perfect St. Patrick's Day pin.

 

But gosh darn it, I didn't get my act together in time for a timely post.

Days late and not Irish at all, can I give an Irish blessing? 

 

May you always have ...
Walls for the winds
A roof for the rain
Tea beside the fire
Laughter to cheer you
Those you love near you
And all your heart might desire.

Buy the Book

As a child, I was an insatiable reader.
Before I was 10, I had my own set of hard-bound classics and my face was often buried in one. I could scarcely put it down at the dinner table.

This continued in my teens and twenties. On the weekends, it was not unusual for me to read 10 more pages, another chapter and since it's 4:17 with only 23 pages left so why not just finish the book before 5 a.m.

In my thirties, my weekly treat was a pot of fresh coffee with heavy
cream on hand and being left alone to savor the Sunday Los Angeles Times.
Saving the Parade magazine for last of course.

I had a giant -- it must have been a good 3" thick and 15" x 17" --
dictionary purchased for $5 from a garage sale.
It sat on my living room floor and I'd flip to random pages
fascinated by whatever entries were found. 

That's why I had to have (and did you spot it in the bookshelf above?) ...
 Dani and Gigi and WMM already know it's not a book.
Unlike the nearly useless Travel Magazine Clutch,
the Wordsmith Dictionary Clutch is a real working clutch.

It's a decent size, measuring approx. 9.2" x 6.4" x 1.8". Instead of tyvek or laminated fabric,
it is well constructed with rich looking thick leather.

The details are astonishingly realistic.
(You can click on the photos for a closer look.)

Look at the beautiful book spine
and foil stamped leather.

You can just about imagine
turning the book cover.

Even the metal frame looks like the

gold leaf gilded edges of a fine quality book.

 

I haven't carried it yet but I like this combination:

The hat and the dictionary clutch remind me of Tabitha's icon.

And the backdrop is a peek of the KS metallic gold faux fur jacket

that is my consolation for not finding the KS faux fur pullover.

 

I know. Metallic gold faux fur is a scary thought.



Sequin Trails

A year ago today, I inadvertently started my blog.

I had reserved a blog name, thinking it and the premise were kinda cute

and that maybe someday I'd have time to keep up a blog.

 

But while playing with a mock post to check the degree of difficulty,

I clicked the Publish button and well ... the blog was on.

 

In that honor and keeping with the theme,

I'm completely sequined in the zigzag sequin dress.

 

With the dress hitting this length on the legs of many who are taller,

I was hoping it would be knee length on me but alas, it is not.

 

Husby even gave encouragement for keeping it,

but I said I am no spring chicken, I'm not dressing like I'm in my 20s.

 

I may wear sequins I may wear crazy pants

I may wear goofy graphics on a tee

but I'm not doing a mini anymore.

(And don't you love the bruise on my knee where I banged into the corner of my desk?)

 

Besides, it's another for wardrobe fantasies and

I'm trying to grow up about this, with another year behind me. 



Credit Where Credit's Due

Polka dots gone wild.

Faux fur trim gone wild.

(Umm ... don't think I want a big strip of furriness to add to my hipline.)

Metallic trend gone wild.

(I've met my match in crazy pants; I'm sure others can rock these but it won't be me.)

 

I try not to and I know it's not nice.

But I did here and here.

And I want to say please JC, watch how you place the pattern:

So to be fair, I think KS can miss too (see first 3 pics above).

And I'll jump in here with this:

All I can think of is: psychedelic shack, that's where it's at.

Psychedelic shack. That's where it's at.



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.



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.



Coulda Shoulda

Remember the J.Crew chiffon rose tee craze a few years back?

It was nutty what people were willing to pay to own one after they sold out. Gosh, you could've made a bunch of money buying multiples at the eventual sale price of $19.99 and selling them for $100+ at that online auction site. Crazy!

So fast forward to a couple months ago when I first heard about

the Kate Spade Journal Newspaper Clutch.

Since I work with reporters, my first thought was,

"how cute would it be to carry this to a media event!"

(My ready imagination for fantasy occasions gets me into shopping obsessions too too often.)

It's made to look like a rolled-up newspaper (look at the edges that look so real!).

And come on, how fun are the headlines ("Silver Lining Spotted Mid-rainstorm,”
“Traders Pick Gold Lamé As Solid Investment -- Stock Prices Soar” and
“Cocktail Hour Is To Be Formally Observed -- City Planner Says 'Cheers' to Ground-breaking Legislation”).

 

Little did I know it had sold out. Though it was originally priced at $125,

people were willing to pay way more than $300 at that online auction place,

if you could even find one up for bid.

With a heavy sigh ... after much hunting,

I decided to give up.

The journal clutch, evidently, was the previous edition (pun intended, har har).

Enter the KS Travel Magazine Clutch, inspired by vintage magazines.

I kept running across it during my search for the journal clutch.

And repeatedly dismissed it, not wanting to settle for close but not it.

It was only after I concluded the journal clutch was not going to be found for anything close to reasonable price did I reluctantly get it (at the time, the magazine clutch was less than half its original $298 price and I also had a good extra discount to apply).

The clutch is the most impractical "handbag" ever.

It's made of Tyvek and will not hold up to wear and tear;

it would likely sustain noticeable damage if dropped or wet.

It holds almost nothing: I struggle to get it closed with just my BlackBerry,

a tube of lipstick, a very small and flat wallet and a couple keys in it.

Total frivolity.

However ... just how cute is it?

To look like you're holding a magazine when it's your bag.

I've also decided, in some ways, the more colorful cousin

of the journal clutch is a better execution, especially when opened:

Instead of red lining under the flap, it looks like a page or back cover.

At some point during the past week or so, it sold out too.

I just watched one sell for $300 plus $9 shipping, another one is at $220

with eight bids and 20 more hours before the auction closes.

I could've purchased at least five when I bought mine, I had

wondered if the "value" would go the way of the journal clutch.

Tell me, what would you have done?

Was it worth throwing money at this (virtually) throwaway purse?

Did you miss this clutch or is it a miss?

Sale on Sale

Kate Spade is having a special sale ending July 8:

an extra 25% off selected sale items.

I love the quirk and wit of KS.

How funny would it be to carry this to a Grand Slam event?

And pull out this coin purse.

These shoes are striking. Wish my size was available.

Pretty silk dress.

Some things are going fast. I missed out on a really cute short coat.

Very Audrey, and in a beautiful shade of blue. :(

What do you think, are you going to check out the sale?

Do tell!