OOTDs: Spain!

Last Day, Barcelona, at Playa de Sant Sebastia

Hi, all!  Hola! 

I am glad to be back from Spain, I did have a lovely time, and I really do want to get back (especially to see the finished Sagrada Familia in 2026), but I was beat by the time we got home.  :-)  I have more travel type photos to share later, but since this is more an "ootd" kind of blog, I know those can wait.  (I know, I know, I haven't really been all that great at the ootd lately.  Ha.  But I am trying to get back! Hand on heart!)

Okay, so though I started with the above image (one of my favorites from the trip), I am going in order from the first day traveling on the plane (from Philadelphia to Madrid), followed by Madrid, then Barcelona (and day trips), and finally the trip from Barcelona to Philadelphia.

I knew I would have to wear super comfortable clothing, but I also didn't want to wear clothing that was shlumpy, so I tried hard to meet my needs for cute and comfy right in the middle.  I did choose to use three main colors, a deep teal/aqua, grey, and black.  I only brought two pairs of shoes, and that turned out to be more than enough.  In fact I brought just enough, and we had room left over to bring back souvenirs (including the "top" from the top photo up there).  I bring more than this to my trips to Mississippi and Louisiana.  I think I am going to try this capsule kind of thing again. It was great!

Day: Monday-Tuesday, March 28-29, 2016.

Where:  Travel to Philadelphia from Alexandria, then the flight from Philadelphia to Madrid, and finally Madrid (with a nap for me at the hotel).

Ease of Wear: (5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.) Made the tunic so I could wear it with the Madewell leggings without showing off my bum.  I did this so I could basically wear pjs in public.  LOL.  I barely slept on the plane, but still felt danged good because I wasn't pinched at all in the outfit.

Outfit Details: Coat, Anthropologie; Tunic, handmade (used New Look 6240); Shoes, Clarks (find them here at amazon.com); Sunglasses, J. Crew (here); Leggings, Madewell.

Anecdote of the Day: I had a sinus infection before leaving town (yep, that's my third illness of 2016, after the Pink Eye of January and the Strep Throat of February), so I had antibiotics and strong cough medicine to take with me on the plane.  I was very tempted to just go when we arrived in Madrid, but I heard the doctor in the back of my head reminding me to not overdo it, since that was likely what landed me with a third illness this year.  (She called it having a suppressed immune system, sigh.)  So while the rest of them went sightseeing, I slept for four hours instead.  I felt much better after waking up.

INSTAGRAM HERE.

Day: Tuesday, March 29, 2016.

Where:  Madrid.  Mainly the Museo del Prado.  This was after I had my nap. 

Ease of Wear: (4.5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.) Again, super comfortable.  Very few of these outfits, btw, are anything but comfortable.  One or two might be described as a bit less comfy, but nothing dramatically uncomfortable.

Outfit Details: Coat, Anthropologie; Top, J. Crew; Shoes, New Balance for J. Crew (they have this cute pair in gold and ivory right now); Pants, J. Crew; Sunglasses, Ray-Ban (I think these are the same from amazon.com); Necklace, Stella and Dot, Bag; Travelon (buy the same one from amazon.com).

Anecdote of the Day: The Museo del Prado had free hours between 5 and 7, if I am remembering correctly, and though I would have preferred to spend more time there, we got quite a bit more of the "must-sees" done in that time, so yay for small things.  I would have thought it would have been more crowded, and though there were a lot of people there, it didn't feel overwhelming. 

INSTAGRAM HERE.

Day: Wednesday, March 30, 2016.

Where: Continued Madrid sightseeing, including the castle and the Museo Reina Sofia.

Ease of Wear: (5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.) I made this dress a while back and I think I forgot to give you all the blog post I wrote on it for Fabric Mart.  Anyhow, the dress is wonderful and fits so well, plus the knit fabric (from Halston Heritage!) moves and drapes beautifully.  It also has pockets.  :-)

Outfit Details:  Dress, handmade (used Ottobre Magazine 05-2015, read more about it here); Shoes, Clarks (find them here at amazon.com); Sunglasses, Ray-Ban (I think these are the same from amazon.com); Tights, probably Spanx, but I can't remember; Necklace, Stella and Dot.

Anecdote of the Day: This was day one of MANY many miles walked in Spain.  Most days we walked 10-12 miles.  Angus was in his buggy or on my back for the most part, but the older two were forced into walking the whole amount.  That said, we ate and drank very well, so though I didn't lose any weight, I definitely didn't gain any (and I ate a lot of very high calorie foods and all my beverages were of the vino category).

Madrid, btw, is where my mom was born.  She is Spanish only by birth (she is German/American), but I know that your birthplace is still important, and it was nice to see the city she knew as a little girl.  I was quite taken with Madrid.  It is apparently a very big city, but it felt small, and that was appealing to me.

INSTAGRAM HERE.

SECOND INSTAGRAM HERE.

Day: Thursday, March 31, 2016.

Where:  Madrid to Barcelona, and then a lot of sightseeing in Barcelona (including a frightening funicular trip--my first of two terrifying rides up mountains while in Spain). 

Ease of Wear: (5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.) These pants were made by me to fit extremely well and do well on travel, so it was a no-brainer I was going to bring them.  I wrote more about the process of making them here at this Fabric Mart post.

Outfit Details: Top, J. Crew; Shoes, New Balance for J. Crew (they have this cute pair in gold and ivory right now); Pants, handmade (used McCall's 6901); Sunglasses, Ray-Ban (I think these are the same from amazon.com); Bag; Travelon (buy the same one from amazon.com).

CW, by the way, is wearing one of my favorite mini Boden dresses ever, the Sweatshirt dress.  It is still available, but it is out of stock in most sizes in this color.

Anecdote of the Day: We walked so much that day, and I LOVE walking, but by 6:30 pm, I was done.  This is the first time in my life where I can remember actually wanting to stop.  We had to keep going, but at least we didn't head to another museum.  I think the kids and I would have revolted had we continued.

We ate dinner at a hole in the wall, and this British couple was sitting near us, and very quickly identified that we were from Virginia, based on our accent.  I was stunned.  People in Wisconsin think I am from the deep deep South, but people in Mississippi think I might as well be from the Bronx.  Turns out they had lived in Harrisonburg, VA, and knew the accent of "us" very well.  Yeah.  Good for them.  They may be the only people who can do it outside of Virginians.  :-) 

INSTAGRAM HERE.

Day: Friday, April 1, 2016.

Where: Figueres, Spain, which is a small city outside of Barcelona fairly close to the French border.

Ease of Wear: (4 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.)  The pants are the same ones from the day before, and so still comfy, but stupid me only brought the rain jacket (not pictured, well except I am holding it in my hand in the courtyard at the Dali museum) and not the Anthropologie knit coat, so I was a touch cold all day.  I drank wine to make up for it.  Ha.

Outfit Details: Top, J. Crew; Shoes, New Balance for J. Crew (they have this cute pair in gold and ivory right now); Pants, handmade (used McCall's 6901); Glasses, Bebe eyewear; Scarf, MoMA (yep, it's Jackson Pollock inspired; apparently you can buy anything on amazon.com, including this).

CW's rainjacket is the Pack-Away Rain Mac from Boden.  It's wonderful, and does truly and easily pack away and was exactly the right layer for her that day and others.

Anecdote of the Day:  To get to Figueres, we ended up on the fast train to Paris.  I was very very tempted to see Paris, so I threatened to stay on the train with CW.  But I did want to see the Dali museum, and it was worth it.  There were hordes of French teenagers everywhere, too, so it kind of felt like I was in Paris, anyhow. 

INSTAGRAM HERE.

Day: Saturday, April 2, 2016.

Where:  Barcelona (mainly Gaudi sites besides the Sagrada Familia) and La Rambla. 

Ease of Wear: (4.5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.) The tunics CW and I are wearing are made by me, and they were super soft rayon knit from Joann's, so they felt wonderful, but mine kept riding up a bit on the jean leggings.  Ding down for that. 

Outfit Details: Tunic, handmade (used Kwik Sew 3463 for mine and Kwik Sew 3958 for hers; I wrote more on my original make of this pattern here); Shoes, New Balance for J. Crew (they have this cute pair in gold and ivory right now); Leggings, the grocery store...seriously; Bag; Travelon (buy the same one from amazon.com); Necklace, Stella and Dot.

Anecdote of the Day: I loved this day.  I was stoked to take it all in, and though the trip to get to the Park Guell was a bit of a bear, once we got there, it was very lovely, and I dug the mosaics everywhere.  The view was great, too.  We decided to walk (of course!) to the next Gaudi site, and it took us through these darling streets with cute shops and restaurants.  It was hard not to fall in love with Barcelona that day.

We ended up having to go to Zara to get the kids some shoes (they complained theirs were too small), so we found some there in the sale section, and because it is Spain, and it is Zara, of course I had to peek in the women's section, too.  I ended up with dos vestidos (two dresses--more like tunics on me, of course).  They were both on sale, and when I checked the American price, I realized the price I paid in Spain was much better.  Woo hoo!  The cashier was super handsome, too.  (Not that this matters, wink wink.) 

INSTAGRAM HERE.

SECOND INSTAGRAM HERE. 

THIRD INSTAGRAM HERE.

Day: Monday, April 4, 2016.

(There is something and an ootd for Sunday, but the dress is under wraps until late April as it is my April make for the Fabric Mart blog.  You can take a peek at it here at this instagram.)

Where: Barcelona, mainly the harbor/beach, and a very very long walk to the Sagrada Familia.

Ease of Wear: (4.5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.) This is one of the two dresses I bought from Zara.  I decided to wear it under the skirt as a top, but if I hadn't gone to Sagrada Familia that day, I would have been tempted to wear it on its own.  Sure it was short, but I *think* I can get away with it. 

Outfit Details:  Dress, Zara (here, I did buy it for about $23, btw, but it sold out here at the higher price, it is worth it, though the back button is a bit flimsy); Shoes, Clarks (find them here at amazon.com); Sunglasses, Ray-Ban (I think these are the same from amazon.com); Tights, Boden; Necklace, National Trust UK.

Anecdote of the Day: So that beach there that I am posing at?  It has a nudist beach there in the summer (though unofficially).  No nudists there while we were there, but that would have made for an interesting discussion with the kids had we ended up there by accident in the summer.  :-)  Angus is really vocal when he sees bare chests, declaring that those people are "naked, Momma," so I imagine he would have been very loudly exclaiming over the nakedness surrounding him had this been the case.  Instead we ended up nearly getting killed by an errant skateboarder who acted like we were the problem (yeah, no, you were skateboarding DOWN the stairs).  I would much rather see naked people.

The Sagrada Familia is certainly interesting from the exterior, but the interior was so beautiful, I nearly started crying upon entering.  I rarely have moments like those, but I felt the love and passion all the artisans had poured into its creation, and the fact that it was made for Catholics to worship in made it even more special and spiritual.  I just wish we could have gone to mass there.  (We went to Monserrat on Sunday instead, also a very spiritual place.)

INSTAGRAM HERE.

SECOND INSTAGRAM HERE.

Day: Tuesday, April 5, 2016.

Where: Barcelona to Philadelphia, and then the car drive to Alexandria.

Ease of Wear: (5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.) The shorter length of the Gaudi top (purchased on the day we visited all the site) didn't ride up with the leggings the way the tunic did, so it was super comfortable.  And considering I was on a plane with three children for eight hours along with a very surly flight attendant crew (not surly to us, just surly/complainy in general), I was very relaxed and at ease in it.

Outfit Details:  Top, Gaudi inspired, made for the museums that showcase his work; Shoes, Clarks (find them here at amazon.com); Leggings, Harris Teeter.

Anecdote of the Day: I could have stayed a few extra days, but my body thanked me for returning to normal by insisting I sleep non-stop for days upon return.  I was going to bed at 8 every night for a week.  I am still very much hitting the hay as soon as I can.  I do want to try and get more walking in, even more than I already do, since I love the benefit of eating and drinking well in return.  :-)

Okay, that's it for now.  Thanks for reading.  :-)

BTW, Boden has both rolled out a collection for April and the Icons.  The Icons are nearly sold out, but the new stuff for April is still around and I have a code for 15% off below and in my sidebar.  I want to talk more about it, but I really wanted to get this post up instead.  I am sure Boden doesn't care which I do.  LOL.

Shop New Spring Arrivals Now With 15% Off Plus Free Shipping! Valid through 4/25 with code 8W5Q

Hola From Espana!

At the Dali Museum in Figueres, Spain.

At Park Guell in Barcelona, Spain.

(Done in the accent of my eldest with just a bit of a slight twang) "Hola, everybody!"

We've been out of the country for a week now, and I didn't even bother to tell anyone on the internet because I have been just that bad with keeping up with the blog writing.  To be fair, I did make a few of the pieces I brought with me to wear to Spain (including the two blue floral tunics CW and I are wearing above), so that took a bit of time.  I do teach, too, but really it's getting kind of ridiculous, this whole "where is Dina?"

I have kept up on Instagram, so check that out if you are interested in some daily shots I compiled from my phone.  

Literally at the same time we were leaving for Spain, Boden announced that they were adding 20% off to the mid-season sale, which I hadn't even had a chance to announce here, much less the 20% off.  I did add the links for the mid-season sale, but the 20% off, feh, yeah, right.  I hope that you all were able to enjoy either the mid-season sale or the 20% off mid-season sale.  I did get the Janie dress before the 20% off happened, and I am glad I did as the size I wanted was all gone by the time the extra % occurred.  Did any of you enjoy either sale?  Honestly, this was the only way I was going to buy anything from them this season (other than the beautiful Martha dress, of course).  The "meh" factor was high at the full price for most of this season's pieces, the "meh" goes down significantly when the prices go down.  ;-)

Anyhow, we've been having a great time here in this beautiful country.  We started in Madrid, took the fast train to Barcelona, and have had day trips to Figuerres and Montserrat.  There has been a ton of walking, so I actually can eat all the amazing food and drink without fearing weight gain.  When I say a lot of walking I mean between ten and twelve miles a day.  So, yeah, a lot.

We'll be back in Virginia in a couple of days.  More than likely if the mid-season happened right now that means Boden is going to drop some rollout or another soon, so be on the lookout.  I hope that the meh factor is gone, I am really missing the Boden of yore now.  (I love some of the Spanish retailers, btw, color/pattern/texture is very high on their list, and boring is out.  It's awesome!)

Talk with you all soon! Hope you all are having a great start to your April!

Below is the link for the sale at Boden, with the additional 20% off.  It lasts for another seven hours or so.  Use the code 8V9T.
Shop an extra 20% off sale AND get 20% off new full price styles with code 8V9T, valid 3/31-4/3

Made by Me Files: The Perfect Pant (McCalls 6930/6711) and a Leftover Jacket (Vogue 8910).

It's been a long while since I wrote up any of my sewing projects!  I have quite a few projects I have sewn up, I just lost my steam to write over the last month, and both of these got left behind. 

First up I will write about my "perfect pant" pattern, which is a mash-up of McCall's 6930 and 6711.  I will then finish up this post with a very *brief* review of a bias cut jacket I made, Vogue 8910.

Evidence of country--horse.

I made these pants up before I left for Mississippi, as I spied this fabric at Joann's, and knew that its color and pattern would work well with this sweater jacket I made specifically for the trip.  I also knew that having a good pair of well-fitting pants in a stretchy cotton sateen is a wonderful idea for any trip (especially ones that involve sitting in cars for hours driving to get to places--Mr. Dina is from the country, you all).
 

Since I had made up some pretty decent fitting pants back when I was in the Fashion Challenge for Fabric Mart using McCall's 6711, and I had read that the block that McCall's uses for all of its pants patterns stay the same, I knew I would probably be okay picking out another McCall's pattern for pants and having it work for my lower half.  (I also had lost some weight from the challenge and the plaid pants I had originally made fit me even better so I figured a new pair would probably be the same.)

I loved the back zip and pockets from McCall's 6711, so I knew I wanted my new pair to have the same thing, but I also knew I wanted a traditional waistband.  Well, the only pattern I saw that had those three things were McCall's 6930, but that pattern is for capris and shorts.  Sigh.

But then, ding!, I realized I could mash-up the top portion of McCall's 6930 with the longer, slimmer leg of McCall's 6711, and have a perfect pair of pants for me.  Yes!

I did check to make sure that the McCall's 6930 crotch curve matched the McCall's 6711, and without fail, it was a near match, barring a slight style difference to accommodate a waistband and lower rise.  So I proceeded to get my shears out and get to cutting.

Like all cotton sateen I have worked with in the past, this fabric was no exception to the "easy to cut, easy to sew" rule.  I love cotton sateen so much.  And provided the sateen is in a print with some stretch, the fabric shows very few wrinkles making it perfect for anyone who travels or moves about a lot.

It isn't especially thick, but for my purposes it is a good all-weather pant.  I felt fine in these in the 75 degree weather we had the day I wore them in Mississippi (December 1, thankyouverymuch), but I also felt warm enough when I wore them recently in more *typical* winter weather (last photo of this review).

Side view shows that the crotch curve works for my particular lower half well.  I love that it both fits my longer and larger bottom, but also works with my flatter front yet slight front thigh bump.  Woo.  I thought only Burda allowed for us to have proper curves.  LOL.

I cut the size 14, btw, the same size I cut for 6711.  My measurements fit the 16 better, but in my experience McCall's runs about one size big across the board (I should wear a 12 up top but always cut a 10).

I wish I had a darker colored grey invisible zip laying around, but I seem to only buy the REALLY long zippers from G Street, and forget to buy the shorter ones, too.  (I like to have zippers laying around, I cannot tell you how many times I have needed one and was very glad I didn't have to trudge out to the store in the middle of a project to get one.)  G Street, btw, has the *best* notions department, at least the one at Seven Corners here in Northern Virginia.  I feel very lucky to have all the YKK zippers in every color, size, and function at the ready and only a few miles from my house.  The same can be said of their elastics, ribbons, buttons, shoulder pads, snaps, etc.  So much choice!

Anyhow, I never seem to have troubles unzipping from the back, but I guess I probably am alone in this.  I really just don't like front zips, except in jeans.  I always feel like the zip on the front feels weird and it bothers me.  Obviously I get over it as most pants are constructed that way, but for me, as a sewer, I will always prefer to put my zips somewhere else than in the front.

Okay so above is how I wore the pants recently here in Virginia.  The weather wasn't stupid cold, but it was only in the 50s that day, so I knew I would have to wear it with the sweater jacket that I had originally planned to wear with it in Mississippi.  (For all that talk about wearing the jacket on my trip, I only had the chance to wear it once--it was just that warm...THE WHOLE TIME.)

Above is Vogue 8910.  I actually wrote up two reviews of this jacket, one at the Fabric Mart blog (has a ton of photos, too), and the review at Pattern Review. 

Since I have clearly said a lot about it over there, I will just encourage you to check out those reviews instead of recreating the wheel here.  I just know that some of you need to see a photo of what you will be looking at to have a reason to get up and go over there.  ;-)

I know this sounds crazy, especially since it is my first jacket and it is really nice and took ME FLIPPING FOREVER to do, but I haven't even worn it out in real life yet.  I finished this jacket on December 11, took these photos and wrote the Fabric Mart blog post on the afternoon of December 12, and later that night found out that my friend, W., had died.  I feel like this jacket is just such a reminder of his death, and all the pain and confusion I felt thereafter, and I can't bring myself to wear it. 

Thing is, he was a huge fan of my sewing and even joked with me that he would wear one of my creations one day and show off his legs for me in it (I guess I was to make him either shorts or a kilt, lol?).  He supported me during the contest and considering he is a rough around the edges, burly and bearded, LUMBERJACK, the fact that he got into it so much means either he was hiding a secret fashionista side or he really just wanted to be a great friend.  I am guessing the latter.  ;-)

I know he would want me to wear it, and I guess I will, I just need to get past my mental block to do so.  I think I will figure it out, it just seems like such a shame to have this creation of mine sitting on the sidelines since I feel vulnerable wearing it.

Okay, that's all from me for today.  There will be one more creation of mine at the Fabric Mart blog tomorrow, so definitely check it out!  I really like that creation (and their is a mini one in there, too), and unlike the jacket above, I have actually worn that one for real.  

OOTDs: Casual Substitute Teacher.

Hi, all!  Before I start, I want to let you know that I heard from the Boden affiliate regarding Boden's Black Friday sale.  It's decent, but not as amazing as I have seen in the past.  This definitely means Boden is doing well this year, which *yay* for them, but for sale shoppers, *boo*.  Anyhow, it is still better than we have seen for the most part this season, so worth it if you have items you would like to purchase. 

Because of this, I would love to publish a long overdue Boden Weekly Review Roundup tomorrow morning.  I have most of the regulars' blog posts saved, but if you have reviewed something and you are afraid I will miss it, do send me an email at dinagideon AT aim DOT com or go ahead and drop the link in a comment over at the Boden Reviews tab.  If you don't have a blog, you are always welcome to leave a review at the Boden Reviews tab.  If you get the the review to me by tomorrow, I will make sure to include it in the BWRR.

Alrighty, onto some casual substitute teacher looks.

I normally go for more dressy when subbing, but the past few weeks of subbing have included working with active little ones (think second grade and younger--and chaperoning one field trip), so I knew I wanted to be ready for anything they could throw my way, which means going for sneakers, tunics, leggings, and the like.  I have had dressier substitute looks, but those were when I was with older students, so I am saving those looks for another post.

I am going to dispense with the anecdote of the day as there really isn't much I can tell about my days subbing, plus it makes writing these posts a touch easier.  Yay for ease, right?

Day: Thursday, November 20, 2014.

Where:  Chaperoning Rex's class's field trip to the Air and Space Museum.

Ease of Wear: (3.5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.)  I think the potential for comfort was there, but because the jeans rise was a touch low and the shirt's tails were a bit high (read: short), the outfit was not as comfy as it is pictured here.  In reality I had to untuck the shirt and kind of hide it behind the vest to maintain this look.  And since I am a fussmonster, this bugged me all day.  I probably should have just given up the vest and worn it as a shirt/jeans/cute shoes combo instead.  Oh, well.

At least the new balance 620 sneakers (did my initial review of them here) were insanely comfortable for running around after my son and his kind of crazy second grade friends (said as a devoted mom of a wild and crazy second grader herself).  ;-)

Cool Factor: (3.5 of 5 stars--5 being the coolest.)  The shoes are the coolest part of this outfit.  The shirt will always be my favorite Liberty print shirt, ever, and will be cool to me until the day I die.  Mr. Dina loved this outfit.  But he also wears white tennis shoes unironically, so take that into consideration.  It really is just a nice "mom chaperoning a field trip" outfit.

Day: Friday, November 21, 2014.

Where:  Subbing Computer for PK-1st Grade.

Ease of Wear: (4 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.)  This outfit kept me warm, which was most important since it was STUPID cold that day, and as long as that happened, I could have been wearing a burlap sack and been comfortable.

The rest of the outfit allowed me to properly keep up with the youngins I was teaching that day, and at no point did I feel like the shoes were too high (had purchased those last year from Boden), the pants too tight, or the cardigan too short.  I definitely will be wearing this combo again to substitute.

Cool Factor: (4.25 of 5 stars--5 being the coolest.)  I love the stained glass cardigan with a mid-century modern art look to it.  Feel like that element really makes the outfit.  I think the scarf was tied improperly for the look, though, but really, I needed it tied as close as possible to my neck to keep me warm.

Day: Monday, November 3, 2014.

Where:  Subbing for Kindergarten.

Ease of Wear: (5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.)  Seriously so comfortable.  Perfect for working with the 5-years olds I had all day.  They were exhausting.  I tip my hat to every kindergarten teacher out there, especially those of you without aides (they don't have aides in K at the school, only Pre-K).

The dress is part jersey so easy to wear, and when have leggings not been very comfortable?  The ancient tennis shoes are clearly fun, but kept my feet feeling great all day.

The long merino wool cardigan coat is one I bought from J. Crew in 2005.  I thought the silhouette was nice for our Virginia falls (not too warm, but just right for the cool temperatures we normally receive), but the real reason I bought it was because it was called the "Arlington" coat, I believe, and since I am from Arlington, I couldn't resist.  Still a great choice since it has held up for nine years and still looks brand new.  Ahhh, old school J. Crew quality.

Cool Factor: (3 of 5 stars--5 being the coolest.)  Well, I'll be honest with myself...it isn't especially cool.  It is very fun, and there is no doubt I enjoyed wearing it all day, but yeah, it is very kooky.  LOL.

Okay, that's it for today.  I look forward to publishing the Boden Weekly Review Roundup tomorrow morning!

OOTDs: Three Celebrations.

Before I start, two things to let you all know about.

1. I have completed my first blog post for the Fabric Mart blog.  Eventually you will see all the pieces I made for that blog post dissected here in separate "made by me" files and in a special packing post, but for now head on over to see the pieces I slaved over the past week.  :-)  I love the end result, and am very excited that I have these for my trip to Mississippi in a couple weeks.

2. Boden's 25% off sale ends tomorrow.  For more information on that one, please do check out this post.

Onto celebrating!

Mr. Dina didn't intend to make this look like a catalog shot, but it turned out that way.  He probably thinks he is a "photographer" now.

Day: Saturday, November 8, 2014.

Where:  Rex's baseball team's championship win celebration.

Ease of Wear: (4 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.)  The party was at 3 at a local Italian restaurant and even though I ate well (although that time--weird, right--hard to decide, late lunch or early dinner), I didn't feel like I was being pinched or pulled, so I would give this one a thumbs up for comfort. 

The New Balance 620 shoes are a recent purchase.  I have to say even though J. Crew has been falling down style-wise for me of late (too blah and not enough color), their shoe collaborations are awesome.  I took these in a 9.5 and they fit perfectly true to size.

Cool Factor: (4.5 of 5 stars--5 being the coolest.)  This one is pretty cool.  For me.  :-)

Anecdote from the day:  Since I spent all of last weekend celebrating, any moment I had free at the house was sewing.  It was a weird situation to be in, I far prefer to do all my sewing at home for an extended time (cocoon-like and hiding away), but this put me in a different frame of mind.  I didn't dislike it, but my hyper-focus had to be shut down, which was a little unnerving.  It was probably good for me. 

Day: Sunday, November 9, 2014.

Where:  Mass and El Paso for my dad's birthday dinner.

Ease of Wear: (4 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.)  This dress was made by me, so it fits perfectly, so that made it very easy to wear.  That said, the Naturalizer booties were not my best choice of footwear for that night, though (see the anecdote for more on that).

Cool Factor: (3.5 of 5 stars--5 being the coolest.)  Nice, but very buttoned up.  The scarf is fun and the boots put a fresh spin on an outfit with a tailored sheath, but it is still very conservative.

Anecdote from the day:  I suffer from weird hip pain in my left hip, and it flares up once a year without fail.  I have had this since the very end of my pregnancy with CW and it makes walking very difficult when it comes around.  It usually is around for a week and then disappears.  This is why choosing booties was probably not smart.  This was the first night I experienced it, btw, and have been in a bit of pain since then (though it gets worse at night than during the day).

I haven't seen my brother in ages he has been working so hard.  It was good to just be able to sit and chill with him.  He is starting a new job, so we are very excited for him.

And how cool is it that the Berlin Wall has been down for 25 years?  I remember when it came down in 1989.  Since I had been there many times as a girl (my dad's dad lived in Berlin and that is where my mom's mom is from), the idea that the horrible barrier was gone was truly uplifting.  (One more cool fact--my mom's mom and my mom's dad met during the Berlin Airlift!)

Day: Friday, November 7, 2014.

Where:  Dinner out with my besties from high school.

Ease of Wear: (4.5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.)  This one was very easy to wear, the only bummer was the scarf which I needed to keep warm.  I think it looks fine and definitely helped keep the biting cold winds from my neck, but blah for style in this particular outfit.

Cool Factor: (3 of 5 stars--5 being the coolest.)  Necessity is the downfall here.  I just don't love the scarf with it and can't see beyond it.  Really glad I still have this Boden dress in my wardrobe from all those years ago, I still love it as much as when I first bought it.

Anecdote from the day:  I love that I can still hang out with my friends from high school.  They are some amazing women.  I can't get over how much more I laugh and let loose around them than I do with other adults I have met since then.  I don't know what it is, but it is just easy to be fully me around them.  Maybe I feel less judged by them?  I also let my hair down around my kids and my brother, so maybe the "no judgment" thing is a huge part of it.

Okay, that's all for now!  I hope you all are having a great Wednesday!