OOTD/Review: Maximizing the Summer.

Yes, that's a new haircut.  Finally!

Day: Tuesday, July 23, 2013.

Where:  Mint Condition (Consignment Shop) run, Cosi, and Anthropologie.

Ease of Wear: (4 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.)  As you are all very aware by now (unless you just discovered my blog), I heart heart heart all my long jersey maxi dresses from Boden.  I love them because they are ridiculously comfortable and very cool on the hottest, most humid days.

Anyhow, as per usual, this dress is very much in the same vein, and I feel fortunate that I was able to grab this one on popback, since it was the original color I had wanted but had been sent another color.  Only drawback was that I had to grab in the size down, a 4 Long.  (Still fit, more on that in the review bit down below.)

The sandals are the versatile Seventies Wedges, and I continue to think their low wedge heel are a great lift without pain.  If you can get a pair of these on popback in your size, I highly recommend them (my original review of them is here, btw.)

Cool Factor: (3.5 of 5 stars--5 being the coolest.)  I think I would give this outfit a half-point more if I had worn flat sandals since the effect of the maxi is a bit marred by the heel of the sandals lifting the hem a bit off the floor.  Since I went down a size, the length ends up being a bit shorter on my frame (probably since it is hugging my curves a bit more than the 6 Long does), which means I should wear these with absolutely flat shoes in the future.  That said, the sidewalks in Old Town are a bit dirty, so I was okay keeping the lovely fabric off the pavement.  :-)

Anecdote from the day:  It was nice spending the day in Old Town with Rex.  I had my dad take the youngest two to CW's Bug Walks and Critter Talks class and my oldest and I just chilled at the various shops and one of his favorite restaurants, Cosi (weird, right, but that's my guy!).

I had a 15% off bday coupon from Anthro, but try as I might, I couldn't bring myself to spend a load of money on items I can sew on my own, so I bought a cute pair of sunglasses, a darling embroidered tea towel, and a knitted short-sleeve cotton sweater.

Mint Condition took nearly all my consigned items from this post, so yay for that! 

Review: I actually thought there would be a slightly bigger difference between the 4 Long and the 6 Long (here is my original review), but this Jersey Maxi Dress is very forgiving in the size 4 Long, which makes it appear to fit nearly the same as the 6 Long.  The only (pretty obvious) difference is the length, since the 6 long is worn with a higher heeled shoe, yet appears much longer.

So if you see a popback in a color you like, and it is one size up or down, go for it.  The jersey works out all the issues because it truly is a miracle fabric.

Mr. Dina lol-ed that the camera was fogging up due to the vast contrast in temps between his sister's house and her front porch.  He really loved the halo effect the camera gave the image.  He insisted I use this one in today's post. 

Day: Wednesday, June 17, 2013.

Where:  Ruby Falls, you all!

Ease of Wear: (4 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.)  Exactly like the above outfit, just substitute the dress for last season's version (original review here) and the sandals for Johnnie b.'s leather clogs (no longer available, apparently due to a fault in the wood used in the sole--they sent me a letter saying I could return, and I was all, "feh, no way!").

Cool Factor: (3 of 5 stars--5 being the coolest.)  Very pretty outfit, but definitely very in your face with all those glorious bright pinks.  I suspect I should tone it down a bit if I wanted to be "cool."

Anecdote from the day:  I was a bit stressed once down in the cave for Ruby Falls since my youngest is a mover and shaker now, but I used my wrap to keep him next to me the whole time, and so long as I was moving, he was fine.  The moment I dared to stop, he would whine and complain, loudly.  Sigh.*

Rex loved it.  He actually exclaimed loudly, upon seeing the falls, "THIS IS AWESOME!"

*I have a flight with Angus at the end of August.  Unlike my past few flights with him, he now wants to be running around almost always.  My hope is that I have had enough sleep and patience to deal with him, and with any grace, maybe I will be blessed with a baby willing to sleep at least part of the flight.  Fortunate for me, he likes blowing kisses at ladies, so maybe a few of the flight attendants will be charmed by him, and will blow him a few kisses back.  Wish me luck on that!

Speaking of moving, I move constantly with him, but the last five pounds of weight is not budging off my body.  I think that I have a reason to hold onto them, but it is a wee bit frustrating to not see the results on my scale.

Alrighty, I hope all of you are having a great day, and maximizing your summer!  ;-)