Broken Hearted

So I wore my cute ASOS heart sweater to work on Friday.

My friend said I reminder her of Cathy from the comic strip. And wrote a whole blog post about it.

Now I'm traumatized.   Thanks, friend.  : /

As Cathy would say, "Ack!"

Falling for Fair Isle

The other day I mentioned I had been searching for the perfect Fair Isle items to add to my holiday wardrobe.  Well, I've actually been thinking about this since October when I saw the Sally Hansen Nail Effects patterns for the 2011 Holiday collection.

I may have found my perfect items in this tunic and sweater coat from Macy's.

I love Fair Isle in red and white, so that was my first criteria.  When paired with black (and on major sale), this sweater tunic will be great with leggings and boots.

And I'm going to wear it with the Plaid About You decals, plus some saucy red gloves.

And while I wasn't looking for a new cozy cardigan, this Tommy Hilfiger piece was so perfect in pattern and shape, that I couldn't resist.   I mean, what is more holiday-ish than these snowflakes?

And yes, the matchy-matcherson in me is probably going to wear the Snow Bunny decals with it.  Or maybe Peppermint Twist (the candy cane stripe design).

While I have a soft spot for these patterns and pieces on their own, even better is that they combine my two themes for the season.  They fit into the "Clean College Prep" style while using the "Chromatic French" color scheme.

Perfect!

Two Sides of the Coin

I need some opinions here.  I have my company holiday party tomorrow (Saturday) night and I'm trying to decide what to wear.  This is a pretty low-key event - just a cocktail party at a local, nice restaurant with our small group plus spouses.  But since I feel like I never get out of the house, part of me wants to go a bit crazy... at least by North Carolina standards. 

To put it in perspective, I wore fake eyelashes last year and caused quite a stir.  So yeah...

Anyways, I've narrowed it down to two options.  One a bit "crazier" and the other an outfit I picked up today that I really like which also happens to be a bit more elegant.  So here are the choices -

Option 1 - Short dress with added crinoline, cardigan and uber-high heels.

The black and white petticoats I bought a long time ago.  The dress is from Forever 21 about a year ago and the cardigan is Twelve by Twelve also from about a year ago.

I hate going sleeveless so I would add the cardigan no matter what, but the fact that it's chilly means it's going to be necessary.

I love these fabric rosettes and the rhinestone buttons. Gives is just the right amount of shine.

Now, if it wasn't winter I'd be totally wearing my Alexander McQueen rose heels.  They are just too smashing.  But, even though bare legs and these peep-toes look great with the short, short skirt, I think I would look ridiculous as it is 20 degrees out.

So I was thinking of these sheer black tights with the thigh bow detail from Cynthia Rowley (bought from Gilt Group - really loving the tights they get on there).

And pairing them up with my Manolo Blahnik Campari black patent mary janes.

So that's my wacky options. 

Option 2 is a bit more subtle. 

I walked by a New York and Company store today and, which I never do, decided to pop in.  They merchandised well because my eye was caught by this paillette skirt right off the bat. Not surprisingly of course.  I love the muted olive-y green sheen and had to have it.  I wanted to keep it low key but glam so I found a heathered bronze v-neck sweater and, just in case, a taupe cami for layering. It seems a bit loose here but the look is more relaxed and slouchy, contrasting with the fitted gleaming skirt.  I probably wear just a simple necklace and maybe my watch.

To keep the neutral elegance going, I was thinking of my Le Silla Stardust heels. 

They have a beautiful, almost retro shape, handcrafted heel details and a subtle metallic gleam as well.



Of course, the second option would be more comfortable but I kinda want to wear the more silly dress.

What do you think???

Ensemble du Jour

Well, due to the fact that it gets dark at 5 o'clock and it's also cold as heck out, I've found it very difficult to take outfit pictures.

Oh, yeah, and my regular p&s camera stinks.

I'm on the lookout for new equipment, but in the mean time, I forced the hubby to take a week's worth of pictures in the afternoon on Sunday. My neighbors must think I'm crazy because I did four outfit changes and stood in the driveway in the cold taking the shots.



On Monday the 4th, the first day back at work, I wore a cute cardigan and skirt by Pink Tartan that I got on major sale from Saks. The only thing is, they're too big. But luckily, I have new seamstress who is going to help me fix a bunch of clothes that I need to adjust, plus work with me to make some new custom ideas I have.

Yeah!



Yeah, the sweater is much too bug but it's cute and cozy and I can layer it open like a jacket.



The plaid skirt is a tulip shape which can be a bit tricky but I like it.




I paired the two with a black camisole, tights and patent mary janes, all from Target.

It was a cozy start to another year!

Sale Alert: Kate Spade

Kate Spade is having a sale and I wish, even with the reduced prices, I could get some of the stuff... but I can't right now.

Darn it!

I want this sweater!

Ensemble du Jour

This is how far I'm willing to go to fulfill my pledge to show more of my daily outfits. I'm willing to take a picture at the end of a very long day with a growth of antlers coming out of my head.

Nice, huh?



These are the eyes of someone who just spent a full day at work and then had to go to a government meeting.

The top and skirt are both from Anthropologie a while back. I just love the collar and cuff details on the sweater and the buttons on the skirt.

Then white tights and patent mary janes to bring it back to what the hubby calls my "1950s Sundy School teacher look."

These Facade shoes may be one of the best purchases I've made in recent times. I wear them all the time but they are especially cute with tights.

Now... get back to buying something so I clear this house out!

Ensemble du Jour

The Outfit

I was so excited. I had the day off and I was finally going to get some errands done, including getting my car's oil change. I was going to go to the dealer to drop off the car then walk across the street and have a breakfast at Panera while I waited.

I was thinking I wanted to be all comfy and snuggly and warm. But since I wasn't going to work, I could wear my really bright yellow tights and no one would bug me. My top is this dark green shawl collar sweater jacket from Athropologie. I love the giant golden yellow velvet pin that came with the sweater. My denim skirt to ground it and a pashmina in the same dark olive green for additional warmth.


10-30-08 by Princess Poochie

The Focal Point

Well, yeah... it's the tights. I mean these are BRIGHT! But I love them. And I did get a nice compliment from a lovely older lady at the restaurant. I wore my black flats from Target to further ground the crazy color.



Sadly for me I ended up being at the frigging Panera through lunch because the dealer said I needed my back brakes done too.

Great.

I thought I was doing a quick inexpensive oil change and it ends up being this huge cost. Now I'm broke!

Wonderful.

So that was my Halloween "trick", I guess.

Happy frickin' Halloween.


(Just kidding, folks!)

Ensemble du Jour

The Outfit

I was so excited when my new Barbie-pink Louboutins arrived that I had to wear them right away! And since it was cool out I got to finally break into a pair of my new Bebaroque tights. I was crazy and colorful all over!

I love grey and pink together. It such a great combination. Less harsh than pink and black. And this cable-knit sweater dress from Target is a perfect transitional item. It's short sleeved and shortish but warm, snuggly and very very soft. To pull in the pink, I added a bright pink wrap and pink.



These Betty tights from Bebaroque are also very soft and easy to wear. I can't wait to wear the other pairs to see if they are just as comfortable.



The Focal Point

The obvious focal point were my adorned legs... you couldn't get away from that! How great do the graphic tights look with those super shiny bright pink heels???



These heels are very comfortable too. I've never tried a pair of Louboutins in this shape before and I really like them. Plus... killer heel!



More tights action.



I adore red and pink together!



I have other pink shoes, I know, but these are just sooooo very PINK! Swoon! I Y them!

Ensemble du Jour

The Outfit
I've decided that I don't care if it's technically still summer. I want to wear some argyle and tights! It's cold enough in my office to wear this very comfortably and they're bright colors so they're still sort of in keeping with the season, right?

Argyle v-neck and skirt from Target. Orchid Pink tights from WeLoveColors.com and black Louboutin slingbacks! My favorite comfy heels. Seriously!



The Focal Point
I had just bought four pairs of tights from the We Love Colors site because I was thinking about how I wanted to wear those brown linen Manolos with lavender tights. They have a huge range of colors and I just thought these were all lovely. They are - light grey, orchid pink, lilac and lavender.



Since the tights are sort of match-y with the sweater, I wanted to keep from a dark blue shoe - which would be way to match-y since the skirt is a dark denim color. So I went with the black Louboutins - high, comfortable, shiny and the dark color grounds the tights.







And I thought the glimpse of red might be a fun nod to the pink. This is such an odd color pink but I love it paired with the black. And I can't wait to wear more and more tights. When will Fall get here?!?