Boden: Fall/Winter 2012 Clearance Time! Yay!

Yum. I like the sound of 70% off.

Okay, it's here, so I am not going to jibber-jabber on...but if you were looking at something from Boden, but were hoping to wait until they went to the lowest price, that price is here.  I had actually been looking at two items (plus a tee for my son), and both were dramatically reduced today.  Woo!

Anyhow, if you are on a mobile device, here is a direct link to Boden so you can get your happy (sale) shopping on...



I have many picks from this sale, but I think the metallic lace pencil skirt is a great deal at $44.  I had wanted this skirt all season, but because I would only wear this skirt once or twice a year, I needed to grab it at the lowest price possible for a better cost per wear.  That $44 seems reasonable.  I checked the measurements (and reviews) and it seems the 10 is the best fit for my body.


I also will publish photos of me wearing the Paisley Print dress today (with my picks from what is left of the sale after the crazy Boden fans have their way with the clearance), but just in case you might want that, let me do a quick review.  I bought the size 8 and it fits great through the hips but a bit loose through the torso.  It doesn't look bad, though, in fact, the way the bodice is shaped helps even out my pear shape.  The print also helps to do that, even though I thought a busy print on bottom would enhance my hips. 

I wore control top tights with it for my lumps and bumps and it was very comfortable.  The colors in the thunder paisley are grey, teal blue, orange, brown, and white, so I wore teal colored tights and a pair of dark brown wedge boots.

Do you all have any favorites from what is in the clearance?  Do share in the comments!!! :)

OOTDs: Casual and Recent.

Hi, all!  Happy Sunday!

I am going to be back to publishing my festive outfits soon (have the Christmas Day one coming up), but I wanted to get these recent casual outfits published soon so I wouldn't forget that they existed in my albums.  I do that frequently.  In fact, soon I will get around to publishing a series on outfits I wore to travel into the city with my kids.  I take field trips with them around once a month, and we always travel by metro and do a ton of walking, so I have to wear something super comfortable (but still attempting my brand of SAHM style).

Okay, so here goes!

My brother and I were headed out to go somewhere (this was from a few weeks ago, so I blanking on where) with the kids, so I wore this stretchy Boden tunic from last spring over leggings.  (The tunic is long enough that once it gets warmer I can wear it as a dress.)

CW insisted I wear the Alpine boots from J. Crew (from last winter).  You'll see why in a few photos.

I am not playing with my ear, but the camera's timer was super fast and caught me mid-hair straightening.

The necklace is a piece from J. Crew from a few years back.

There is *just* enough pink in the tunic to wear the double cloth slim trench with it (review of it here, for those of you who might want to grab it on sale).

There's my reason for the Alpine boots.  Even though CW's circo brand boots are just about to die their last faux shearling death, she keeps wearing them and insisting I wear my matching boots.  (I did get her a nice new pair from Totes--JC Penney on sale--for Christmas, but she still pulls out these monstrosities.  Sigh.)

You can tell my bro took this photo.  He isn't really all that tall,  but the angle on this makes it look like he is taking the shot from a ladder.

I wore this to a little gym class.  I think I need stronger makeup when I wear this shade near my face.  I don't know.  It could also be the lighting in the room that day.  Anyhow, if any of you know what I can do to make my skin look more "fresh" when wearing burgundy, I would appreciate it.

I also struggle with belts worn at my hips.  Although I think these cords would have looked better with a belt, almost all belts worn at my hips ride up, even with the belt loops in place.  Agh!  Anyhow, if you have a fix for that, I am all ears!

The top is all sold out over at Lands' End Canvas, but this was one of the very few preppy offerings from them this last fall.  Egyptomaniac published a post PLEADING with Canvas to bring back the more traditional preppy stylings that made them such a standout a few years back.  I tend to agree.  I like a lot of what they offer, but can I see the items on me?  Not really.  I prefer classic with a fitted look and a twist, and LEC used to be that, 100%.  Now maybe 25% of their clothing is that way, with the other 75% looking like it wants to compete with Abercrombie.

Speaking of classic, those pearls were a gift from my dad when I was a teenager.  I think that's a "thing," to buy your daughter a real pearl necklace when they are teenagers.  I guess I will have to have Mr. Dina do the same for CW when she gets older.  (Or I might just give her mine.)

The bag was a present to myself.  I saved and saved and saved for months to buy the Pashli satchel (3.1 Phillip Lim).  I almost bought one from Net-a-Porter, but then saw this aubergine version for sale on ebay (the seller had purchased it from La Garconne) for about $200 less as a buy it now.  I made sure to have the seller e-mail me photos (so I could verify it was "real") and I grabbed it as soon as I opened the message from her.  (It is definitely real!)

Obviously the bag suits this outfit as it is an exact match for the top and shoes, but the color is a great neutral, so I think I will be using this as my bag exclusively in January and February (like my Andie bag was for December).

Okay, this was from a day when I was running around doing errands (that seems to be every. darn. day.--I live the exotic life here, people).

I love this coat by Elevenses.  I have had it for six or seven years now, and I cannot bring myself to sell it.  It is in great shape, has a beautiful interesting print, and fits well.  I suppose that means I should keep it, but I sometimes wonder if I am deluding myself, that this coat is so hopelessly out of style that people are snickering behind my back when I wear it.  (Well, no, that wouldn't happen here, especially since I usually wear it to Harris Teeter during "eldery people getting half-off groceries" day.  I don't think Edith and Chuck would really be all catty about my outerwear.)  ;)

Oh, these jeans.  I have put them in the giveaway pile.  I never imagined it was possible, but these jeans are somehow loose and uncomfortable at the same time.  I would have been better off wearing one of my bootcut pairs from J. Crew or 7FAM.

The ubiquitous Bubble necklace!  In white!  From Belk (Modern. Southern. Style. LOL.)!  For $25!

Hope you all have a great Sunday!  Talk with all of you soon!

OOTDs: Festive. Four. Five. Six.

Festive. One. Two. Three. is right here if you want to see more festivity in the form of outfits.  :)

Since I am a bit pressed for time, and would like to catch up on a whole bunch of laundry tonight, I am going to throw the photos at you all and be brief (as much as I can be) in my copy.

I wore this creamy/tweedy/sequined ensemble to go to my hubby's work party (but not the "big" work party they have had every year--here is what I wore to last year's).  The 'big" work party has been moved to April, so I will be getting my cocktail frock on then.  This is the more laid back, "let's have some fun at his boss's house" party.

The Glamour Tweed Skirt is a re-do, I initially had bought the size 6 Long, when the 8 Long was really the size I needed.  I am pleased with the 8, it definitely fits better, however, I still wish this skirt was a touch longer, but I am always saying that.

The Sixties Heels have gotten a workout this holiday season, the lower heel plus all leather construction have really been nice for looking good but allowing me to be comfortable, too.

The Silk Flutter Sleeve top is from Madewell in a size small.  I was able to grab this when they were having a 40% off favorites sale.  Worth the sale price, may even be worth full price since the silk is thick and lovely and the lace is intricate and nicely made.

The Ciel Etoile cardigan is from years ago.

Detail of the Silk Flutter Sleeve Top and the Arrowstack necklace.  This necklace was my only nod to my somewhat love affair with being a hipster.

Detail of makeup and hair.  I have been trying the "moisturizer" as hair serum and it seems to be working.  Definitely way less flyaways.  However, I also find that if I don't use conditioner on my bangs, that helps, too.  So thank you to the commenter who suggested moisturizer.  :)

Color is off, but those details make the top and cardigan extra special.

I was not allowed to actually bowl on the day of our holiday bowling party*, but I was allowed to party, so I got the bling on. 

*Thanks, mastitis.

Loft really is great at basics that are pumped up a bit.  I don't expect their clothing to last forever, but if I like a style, but have no desire to spend a lot of money on it, I look for it at Loft and wait until they have one of their (seemingly constant) 50% off sales.  I am a freak about paillettes, since I think they are always on the precipice of falling off my clothing, but since this tee was super cheap, if one or two fall off, it won't bug me at all.  (I bought a petite small--fits my short torso exactly right.)

Rest of the outfit is super old.  :)

Liked my makeup and hair that day, but I can tell that I was tired.  I may be genetically predisposed to eye bags (thanks, mom and dad), but this photo shows that my bags have their own carry-ons.

The necklace is from Boden and received a ton of compliments.  I tend to only wear this necklace in the winter, it really suits the deep rich colors that come out during the colder months.

Big red Andie bag and the wool blazecoat top off this outfit.

Sunday mass right before Christmas.

I had purchased this silk pleat skirt in crimson floral last winter, but since I couldn't wear it then, I carefully stored it, crossing my fingers that it would fit this winter.  :)  It is a close fit, but it fits.

The Loft necklace may be my favorite from them, this whole year.  Purchased at the same time as the evergreen paillette tee above, I was able to buy this amazing statement necklace for around $25.  I think this one is all sold out now.  I can see why.

Hey!  Look.  It's my big red Andie bag.  Again. I promise to put it away at the new year.  ;)

Skirt has pockets.  Thank you, J. Crew.  Now...if you could only make a dress in this print in a better dress for us tall gals, I would love ya forever.

ALSO, I wore the gold knit cardigan over this top because I had to wear this bra that night (playing peek-a-boo there under my tee).  Gotta be appropriate at church.  ;)

Topped the whole outfit with the Lucinda stadium cloth coat in ivory.  Very warm.  Yum.

Detail of the necklace and tee's lace.

There are more festive frocks coming soon...

Have a great Friday night!

OOTDs: Festive. One. Two. Three.

Merry Belated Christmas!  Or if you are one of my Canadian or British readers, Happy Boxing Day!

Anyhow, I hope all of you had a lovely holiday.  We definitely took it easy, just a bunch of merriment with the immediate family.  I made a feast last night that turned out pretty well.  I am always wary of being the sole chef for big family dinners, since I tend to believe that something will taste utterly awful, but it all ended up tasting really yummy.  :)  Yay!  I think the combo of a good free range turkey and a fantastic brine helped make the main part of the meal perfect.  (I bought both the turkey and the brine at Whole Foods, for those of you interested.)

The next few days I will be posting my "festive" outfits.  I basically tried to up the volume on my December outfits as a nod to the holiday season.  Lots of sequins, winter white, red, green, and shiny bits everywhere.

I wore this on December 10.  Rex had a school-wide pageant* that I figured I needed to dress up for, but I probably could have worn jeans and a tee and no one would have batted an eye.  (Such is life in the United States, big ole free for all on clothing.)

Whatever.  We also took our Christmas card photo in these outfits (you'll see it soon), so there was an extra reason to dress up.

*I wrote about being annoyed that night at the top of this post. 

I wore this dress last year while pregnant.  This dress fits a bit looser now.  :)

Christmas Card!  Angus is the perfect present.  LOL.

I wore this on December 18 for Rex's second pageant.  The difference between the two pageants is that this second one was just his class, so it was a far more intimate affair.  Way way way less annoying.  (And I cried.  Yes. Cried.  When Rex did his part, he sang it.  I thought he was just going to read lines, but he sang instead.  And with perfect pitch.  I couldn't believe it.  I would love to post the video of him singing, but I can't for privacy reasons--other kids are around him, but it was amazing.  Love proud Momma moments.)

Since it was a Tuesday morning, I knew that I had the preschool run, but wanted to wear a dress for the pageant, so I brought a change of clothes so I could be more comfortable (read: able to nurse) after the show was done.

This dress is comfortable and very soft and easy to wear, but dreadful for breastfeeding.  :)

I last wore it here, and yes, I was pregnant then, too.  (Although I hadn't announced it at that point.) This dress also fits far better now that Angus is in my arms and not in my belly.

After the show, I changed into this outfit, which made nursing easier.  The top has well-secured sequins and is somewhat loose.  The pants are my go-to "comfy but look kind of cool" Pure Collection pants.

The Sixties Heels are on sale, for those of you in love with them.  ;)

(I bring those pants with me whenever I need to change halfway through the day.  Love them.)

My yummy Boucle de Souffle Jacket opened.  (I like wearing this jacket with sequins--here while pregnant, and here when experiencing a major wardrobe mishap a couple of Christmases ago.)

Close-up of the details of the top (this one is from J. Crew Factory).

Okay, that's it.  More festive wear later...

Have a great day!

Boden, Pure Collection, Lands' End: Some of My Picks...So Much on Sale.

Hi, all.  Thank you for your wonderful thoughts and comments this past week.  I obviously had a good reason for my absence from blogging, but I still felt bad that I couldn't get updates done.  At all.  I even attempted to do this post on Friday from my kindle fire (we spent the day all over Northern Virginia--literally--we were in all the counties, which if you know NOVA, that is a lot of traveling).  But my attempts to successfully write this on my mobile device were thwarted by my general malaise (so. run. down.) and the fact that blogger has a horrible interface for mobile updates.  (But I do like blogspot's mobile site for those blogs that run it--I prefer reading some blogs in the mobile format, cleaner, neater, more user-friendly.)

Anyhow, I am now nearly all better, so I am going to capitalize on my fresh feeling and write this post (and maybe more, we'll see) and update my facebook page.

Okay, so in the world of end of season sales, all three of my affiliates are having some pretty good deals.

The best of the bunch are from Boden, but conversely, Boden also has some of the worst deals out there, too.  It all depends on what you want.  Boden has done their SECOND cuts, which is fab, but as many fans of Boden pointed out on Boden's facebook page, some of the second cuts were for a few dollars, which seemed puzzling to them.  That said, I personally noted a few that were significantly reduced, so I guess it all depends.

Pure Collection isn't stupid and realizes that its cashmere is the best of the bunch (besides higher end cashmere offerings from design houses and Brora), so you are only going to see a slight reduction in their cashmere.  However, any discount on their items is worth it, since all of their clothing is well made, beautiful, and made from the best fabrics possible.  There are a few items that are on redonk sale and are not selling.  I can't figure out why, but it may be that the items were styled poorly or they are of limited life in one's closet (meaning the cost per wear isn't worth the purchase).

Lands' End always has great sales through the season, so I am barely aware of their current sale because it isn't like I am all, "ooh, I can get X for so much less than I did when I got it for 40% off and free shipping."  However, if you have had your eye on an item from them and it is at a good price right now, it may be worth it to buy since most consumers hear or read "End of Season" and buy the place out.

From Boden:

Embellished Cardigan.  I have and love this cardigan.  I have already worn it a handful of times, so clearly I thought the 20% off I paid was good enough.  Now that it is at 50% off, it is a really good deal in my mind.  Of course this one may be of limited use in your closet, which may be the reason it is just sitting there, well rated, yet not purchased.  I last wore it here, with one of my favorite outfits of late.


Sarah Dress.  I have the color that is all sold out, but if you like the general look of the dress, its $40 price is decent for what you receive.  It is very wearable, definitely can be dressed up, but is a dress that would be fine in mid-summer with a pair of sandals and a ponytail.


Paisley Print Dress.  I do not have this yet, but have decided to give it a try (with full knowledge that I may need to return if it doesn't work out).  I took the reviews to heart and ordered a size 8 in the thunder paisley (the grey one).  The dress is 70% off and beautiful, so if it does work out, I will consider my buy a score.  And since I still wear dresses from ten years ago (without apology--if I love the design and shape--I hold onto pieces forever), I will happily add this to my bursting dress wardrobe.  :)


Millie Spot Top.  If you love sweatshirts that you can just throw on and go, but still want to look like you are trying, this is a good possibility...with a caveat.  I sized down to the 4 (normally wear a 6) and could have gone all the way down to a 2.  So if you are especially small on top, this may be far too big.  Slouchy is good, and the 4 gives me some slouch, but there is slouchy, and then there is sloppy.  If you wear a size 00P in J. Crew, you should be wary of this one.  At $29 it is a great buy if you will wear it often.  I don't often wear my sweatshirts on the blog, but most days, before I head out for the day, or after I get home, I will be in my lounge wear, which includes many sweatshirts and many leggings and pj pants.

From Pure Collection:

Wool Crepe Woven T-Shirt.  I absolutely adore the model in this top.  The mallard color looks divine on her, and the loose look suits her frame.  So color me puzzled on why this top is not selling well.  It looks like it is the perfect example of a staple, especially if you work in a conservative office.   The cherry color is also lovely, a perfect red, with no hints of blue or yellow.  Anyhow, at $43, this is a very good deal.  I don't have a need for this in my wardrobe, but can see that this may work well for many of you.  :)


Cashmere Rib Snood.  Does anyone else salivate over the cashmere snoods they have at J. Crew, but can't stomach the prices (even on sale, they seem really really expensive)?  I saw this one at Pure a few weeks ago and had a ten dollar gift certificate (plus 25% off), so I bit on the heather biscuit color (now sold out, but watch for popbacks).  I don't have a winter scarf like this in a great neutral shade, so it seemed like a no-brainer.  The scarf arrived on Friday and since it was really cold in the house, I wore my "lounge" outfit with this scarf and my Cashmere Wrap from Boden.  I was toasty and happy in mere minutes.  It was exactly what I needed after the long day we had running around town.  The $55 this snood costs is a good buy, especially when comparison shopping against other companies offerings.

From Lands' End:

Ellery Wedge Shoes.  There are no reviews on this versatile leather shoe in really pretty colors, but I think, based on my one pair of shoes from them (Blakely Riding boots, reviewed here), you probably won't go wrong in purchasing them in your usual size and width.  They are 55% off (if I am doing the math correctly). 


French Terry Crew.  I can't believe they still have this sweatshirt.  I have and have worn this sweatshirt multiple times since buying it in May.  I even wore it out of the house (halfway down in that post), so it is can work as something other than "dinagideon wants to be lazy" wear.


Two Tone Sweater Dress.  At 50% off, this all merino wool offering looks like it would be the perfect foil for accessories, and I personally would add a elastic belt with sparkles (like this one from Loft), a fun scarf (the Westminster Silk Scarf is a good one, and goes with so much), colorful tights (maybe a gold or red to play off the colors of the silk scarf), and riding boots (the darker version of the Blakely Riding Boots would work--too bad those ones aren't on sale).  This dress, btw, reminds me of the Alexa dress from Boden, so if you like that one but don't think the shape works for you, this may be a better bet.

Okay, that's it!  Do any of you have any favorites from these three companies that you would like to share?