Paris: Day Two Outfits of the (Sick) Day.

So how many of you have ever traveled and ended up being sick in the hotel room one of the days you are on vacation?  With the Paris trip, this will make twice for me.  LOL.  (Not laughing at the time, but I do see the humor now.)

As I described in this post, I may have slightly overdone it the first day of our visit to Paris.  Whoopsy doodle.

So even though I think I am super-woman, I am merely human with a bit of a delusion that I can (and should) do. it. all.  :)

Day two was like this...

Wake up at 2 am with a throbbing head and aching all over my body.  Go to the bathroom and want to keel over.  Take some nyquil (after the first trip where I got sick--London 2003, btw--and discovering that England HAS NO NYQUIL, I have since traveled with it, TSA be damned).  Fall back into bed and only barely sleep.  The next morning I wake and unfortunately have to visit the porcelain king (still porcelain in France, if memory serves). 

Yes, so my hubby wasn't going to torture me, so he got me some breakfast in bed from room service, which had 4 (!!!) pain au chocolats, cereal, milk, juice, coffee, fresh fruit, and yogurt.  Amazingly, that worked to help me feel a bit better.  (I didn't eat it all, but I tried, however there were a few toddlers who helped.)

Then my hubby told me NOT to go walking all over Paris, and insisted that after our visit to the train station for a quick lunch that I should immediately go back and nap the afternoon away.  Which I did.  Happily.

I could have gone out, but I think he was right.  That said I did get dressed to go the train station (can't go in my jammies, after all, no matter how avant garde Paris is).  I also managed enough sleep to get really dressed up to go to dinner out with the fam that night.

So let's name this day what it was...a day of sick, leopard, and a lot of food.

I want to start with my favorite outfit of the day, so I am going to show off the dressy dinner outfit first and then the going to the train station to grab a quick bite to eat food outfit.

I was feeling way more refreshed by this point.  Mr. Dina could have told me we were going to have more room service and I would have still wanted to dress up, I felt that good.  I guess rest did the trick.

Dress: J. Crew Teddie Dress in Red, Size 6.  Did a fairly exhaustive review here.  I am definitely a fan, but it has detractors.  I think if you want a dressy night out dress, this is your gal.
Tights: Who knows?  Maybe Assets, a Target brand.  They were comfy and had a control top (which I insist upon, cannot stand loosey-goosey tights).
Shoes: Clarks.  Found these at Rugged Wearhouse (a TJ Maxx kind of re-seller) for $25.  I guess that is a good deal, as on Nordstroms these go for far more.  They were also super comfy, and I could wear them for a while whilst walking in Paris and was fine.
Necklace: Fiona Paxton Sylvie.  Love this necklace, definitely a statement, but this was the night (and the place) to make one.

Ah, yes, the Leopard Tote.  I had pre-ordered this bag WAY back in June and it finally arrived one week before we left.  I was so concerned that it wouldn't come on time that I actually contacted Boden's customer service.  They assured me that this fab bag would be on my person in the City of Lights.

The bag is a great size, just big enough, but not so big that I was going to dislocate my shoulder.  The bag is calf-hair with a leopard print, and has a dark brown leather trim (on the handles and bottom).  The lining is a very pretty contrast aqua cotton sateen fabric.  I had no problem slipping the handles over my shoulders, either, making it the perfect size for carrying up high (even though I am holding it in the pic above).

See, the lights?  Get it?  City of...

I have shown this pic before, but you all didn't know I was hiding the Teddie Dress underneath.  Let's just pretend it has never been shown.

BTW, CW had on a Boden dress, too.  She loves her Funky Print Dress and has now worn it five times since we got it for her. :)

Paris: Day Two Dinner Out. by dinagideon featuring j crew dresses

Above is the polyvore of the dressy dinner outfit.

This was right before we were to go to Gare de Lyon for our quick lunch.  I was feeling more lively here, but I can tell I was tired (love the darling baggage I was carrying under my eyes--oh dear).

Sweater: J. Crew Leopard Print Tippi Sweater.  So this sold out really fast, and I fortunately grabbed it before it went away.  I bought it in a size small (rather than my usual x-small) and it fits great.  I think this sweater, if it comes back, can easily be bought up a size larger than you normally wear and you will be fine.  Just my two cents.
Pants: Some random pair of black pants I have had forever.  Not leggings, p.s.  :)
Shoes: Clarks (see above for more info).

Hands on hips.

I hope everyone had a great weekend.  :)  BTW, the reason I didn't do a Boden Spring Preview 2012 post is because half of the darn photos have not been (Boden's words, not mine) "picked up at the chemists," or some such nonsense.  LOL.  I will wait till they have filled out their coffers a bit.

Talk to you all tomorrow.

Spring Into Style: Day Four 2011.

Spring Into Style: Day Four 2011. by dinagideon featuring a two button blazer
Totally inspired by Anna Torv today...I love how she combines super professional styles with a sort of casual and polished made up face and hair on the show Fringe.

Since I rarely have a reason to get all dressed up like a business person, when I found out we were to see some VIPs here at this school today, I knew I had to dust off my Super 120s two-button jacket and city-fit bootcut pants. 

The tee I am wearing with it is a "spirit" tee for the school, definitely not optional, but I bought it in a child's size large so it would be more fitted like a regular blouse and it would fit under the jacket.  In the end I enjoyed how it all came together, but I definitely don't look like "normal" me.  LOL.

I bought this suit for $50 total.  It was bought at "Rugged Wearhouse" which carries J. Crew sometimes for some wonderful prices.  It is sort of like Ross or TJ Maxx...  BTW, you know what was wrong with the $230 jacket?  It was missing a button.  Which was in the pocket.  And was sewed on for free by my tailor (no, I wasn't sewing back then).  I bought the jacket, size 4, for $30.  Pants were $20.

FWIW, I turned the professional me into a professional model so the girls could get a fashion lesson in business wear. :) I think they were more impressed by my Rugged Wearhouse story than by why we should all own suits when we get to be adults.

Talk with you all soon.

J. Crew Clearance Center, Arden, NC...It Is as Awesome as it Should Be!!!

I have to be fairly quick in this post, but I definitely want to give you the highlights of my trip to the Arden, NC, J. Crew Clearance Store. There is a closer store to me in Lynchburg, VA, but that is still about a 2.5 hour drive, so I have never been there (but do plan on it someday...hopefully with some of my DC JCA friends). My hubby was down in Asheville, NC, for a conference at the GORGEOUS Grove Park Inn and Spa, and he decided that he needed his family around, so the three of us tagged along. :)

I certainly enjoyed Asheville to its fullest, and even got to go the very yummy Tupelo Honey while I was there...AppGal, you were SO right about its delicious menu, but I knew that at least part of the time I was there I would HAVE to go 20 miles outside of the city to visit the smaller enclave of Arden. I mean, yes, I did visit it mainly for me, but I also knew I would have my JCA blogroll place revoked by Alexis if I didn't go to this clearance center and report back my findings. So you all know, AppGal has been there before and did a very nice write-up of her experience, as well.

Turns out we had kind of different experiences while visiting. (Granted, AppGal visited at a different time of year...so that may be why she found less "deals" and I found less shoes to ogle.)

I found a lot of tempting goodies in my hour or so there. I have created a polyvore for you all to peruse so you can see the details, but let me put it to you this way...if you are ever in western North Carolina for any reason, and you are travelling I-40, stop by. It is worth the 20 extra miles or so off the highway.

Here are some things I want you all to know:

1. Your GPS can find this location (1 Clifford Way, Arden, NC). It is not that far off the beaten path. However, if on the way back to your hotel or location you request "no highways," you may very well end up driving on a mountain on a tiny-a** little road. Yes, this happened to me. Alexandria has very few hills. I was actually told by my realtor to avoid buying a place near a fairly steep hill (what we here in NOVA call hills) because of my fear of hills. It was an interesting drive back to the hotel. I obviously survived, no thanks to Miss "I drive these here mountains all the time" teenage girl willing to tailgate me on the entire drive on the mountain.

2. If you have kids, the clearance store has toys. Oh, yes they do. Thank you, very very kind people of this center for thinking of all of us mommies whose toddlers may recognize J. Crew (and shout "ooh, J. Crew momma" from the back of the car) but really don't enjoying shopping at said J. Crew. :)

3. Speaking of kids, they have crewcuts. Not very recent crewcuts, but crewcuts nonetheless. I bought three items. Two from spring 2009 and one from fall 2007.

4. They are NOT an outlet. Everything they sell is from the actual "J. Crew" retail store. There are no double diamonds, etc.

5. If you ever see a really good price for something on ebay, and it has a mysterious designation of "tag marked with a black line to prevent returns," the person selling it has bought it either from the J. Crew Clearance Center (Paisley Petunia, an Ebay store I adore, does sell these things, and if you look, they are from Virginia, so they probably buy their items from the Lynchburg clearance center) or from TJ Maxx or Rugged Wearhouse.

6. It is probably worth buying these items with the tagged marked to prevent returns, because the clearance stores do NOT do charge-sends, as one of my blog friends tried when she saw the great deal I got on the stadium-cloth Winnie Jacket. The two Winnies that I purchased (one for me and one for HeidiG.) had nary a thing wrong with them (and the other items--nothing wrong there, either). Turns out that sometimes the retail stores get returns and instead of going to the warehouse, some of them get sent to the clearance store. Why current items go there is beyond me, but, hey, it worked out for us in the end! I am sure some of the items have issues, but I didn't see anything on the items I looked at (and I am a very careful observer...I have to be frugal with my money now as a SAHM/sometimes substitute teacher).

7. One place you will see the "black line through tag to prevent store returns" means that the item may potentially have an issue is at places like TJMaxx or Rugged Wearhouse. I have seen items at these stores that are from J. Crew that have missing buttons or a seam that is wonky, etc. But that said, I bought a Super 120s Black two-button jacket in a size 4 at Rugged Wearhouse that had a button missing. That was all. And it cost $25. Down from $235.

8. The hours at the clearance store seem super-friendly, like 10 am to 8 pm on M-Sat., and 12-6 on Sundays (maybe...didn't check Sunday hours as closely).

9. The staff were very sweet and helpful. I think they liked my kids. :)


Here I am outside the store. I had to take the pic myself, so don't laugh too hard. It wasn't like I could get CW to take it for me. :) I am wearing the Liberty print button-down from last spring, the pewter one with the big florals on it. I saw NO liberty print items that day...sadly.

Untitled by dinagideon featuring J Crew

Items in this set:
J Crew jacket, $245
J Crew jacket, $178
J Crew hoodie, $70
J Crew top, $158
J Crew tote bag, $298

Here is the polyvore of what I did get. Note--the cashmere cardi is actually a paler, heathered silver color that is just divine with my skin tone (I normally can't wear greys very well, so I was pleased to find this). Another thing, that navy schoolboy blazer? I bought it in an 8, and the 8 is BACKORDERED until sometime next year. Crazy. And the sherpa hoodie? I had bought it in the same color and same size just last week, and knew it would be on my doorstep, but for $30, I knew this was a great price, so I just chanced it. Turns out it is THE SAME exact hoodie, just 40 dollars cheaper. Yes. That is all. I am returning the new one this weekend. The one with the black mark through the tag--it's the keeper for me.

I wish I could get to a Clearance Center every weekend and help more people out (HeidiG. seemed pretty happy to hear I scored her a Winnie for well under retail), but not in my cards...however, I will make sure that anytime I am on I-40, I take a tiny little detour to the west to Arden. :)

Questions? I should be able to answer sometime tomorrow (along with commenting back on my last two posts).

Boden Love...In the Form of Their Fun Skirt...

So yesterday when I said that I was going to upload photos and polyvores of ALL the Boden outfits I have worn recently, I forgot to look in my OTHER camera's photo folder on my computer. (This is what happens when half of your photos are on your fancy DSLR and the others are on your sub-compact "it's okay if the kids drop it because it is indestructable" camera.)

This outfit is my last Boden outfit for a little while, the rest in the queue to be posted are all J. Crew or Target...

Boden Fun Skirt and a J. Crew Tank! by dinagideon featuring Forever21

Here is the polyvore for this outfit.

Here it is, in real life, on me.

First, info on sizing...the skirt is a 14 LONG in UK sizing. I can wear a 12 LONG but these sit right at the waist and I have discovered that British woman must not mind things being a bit tight when it comes to skirts. I get that sentiment for pencil skirts, but a beautiful, breezy A-Line summer skirt? Nah...would rather it be one size too large and know that even if I eat McDonald's I will still feel comfortable in it. I know for a fact this skirt is sold-out on-line. I think the fun skirts may be among the first things to go on the Boden website. I actually own the Brown fun skirt from this fall (the ones with the hotchpotch bird print) and am planning on adding the teal fun skirt (with the honey glaze paisley looking print) when I get a Boden coupon.

The tank is a J. Crew tank I bought at Rugged Wearhouse for a song, in a medium (for the length), and the flip-flops are J. Crew from the Summer of 2007.

Second, doesn't my brother look nice? He was interviewing at MicroCenter for a job. Right now, things are looking tenuous at best for him in regards to that job possibility, but at least he looked the part!!! Wish him luck!

Also, isn't the double stroller awesome? It is ridiculously heavy and cumbersome, but it does allow me to go places with them both and not have to worry about Rex or CW getting loose or lost or running out into traffic (is it just me or does every mother have this insane worry)...

Georgia on My Mind (with a Dash of North Carolina Thrown in...)

So remember way back in late July when I went to Georgia and Indiana? Remember when I posted about the portal to hell that was the hotel room that we stayed at in Winston-Salem, NC? Well, I FINALLY have put together a big polyvore of all the things I wore on the trip, two mini-polyvores for some of the outfits, and I have uploaded all of the images, edited said images for publication...phew. This took me a better part of three hours today. Yikes. Blogging is fun but very time-consuming!

(Oh, and so you know, I have many, many outfits to post from late July and August...eventually, my friends, eventually!)

By the way, I did comment back on all the latest posts...not individually this time (unless you had a question or such)...but I did it! YAY!

Oh, and also...I loved my last week (August 23-30, 2009). I did not stop moving. Between three separate DC JCA get-togethers (Tysons for shopping, Tysons for a playdate with HeidiG. and Summerilla, and the White House/Occidental Grille with Cleo26, Slastena, 3PP, Kelly, and Rosa), working out with my brother, and jetting to the pool with the kids, I have been a bit busy...but that really good busy that makes life worth living, you know? BTW, I would be back to school preparing my classroom if I was still teaching full-time. :) I am so excited to only substitute this year...WAY less pressure!



Untitled by dinagideon featuring J Crew

First Polyvore is of all the items I brought with me to both Georgia and Indiana. You will see this in this post and the next one on Indiana.



North Carolina by dinagideon featuring J Crew

This second Polyvore is of my first and second day's outfits. The first outfit (on the left) I wore to a yum-tastic Mexican restaurant in Winston-Salem. We specifically request a journey there every single time we visit. Man, it's good. The second outfit (on the right) I wore the next day (Sunday) to Biscuitville (umm, biscuits, gravy, and grits...mmm...) and on the ride to Georgia...


Here is the first outfit. This is the lovely Liberty print fabric jacket that you all have seen before, but this time I scrunched up the sleeves. I LOVE it this way...very pretty and very (dare I say it), chic. The rolling ruffles tank is the champagne color, a lovely light yellow.


Here is a close-up of the jacket and well, the real reason I put the pic up, CW. On three...1, 2, 3...Ahhh!


This is a tee I bought from Boden for a song. I also purchased it in a navy blue/grey stripe. Why this was not more popular is beyond me...it is pretty and comfortable. Of course it is citron hued, so that may be why! ;)

I know this is going to sound odd, but I got my color inspiration for the trip from CW's onesie that she is wearing in this pic...it has many colors but they all worked so nicely together, I chose those colors as my theme.


OMG--Ignore my face...I look like I just smelled CW's diaper (which is entirely possible)...
This third outfit is from Georgia, and I wore it on Monday. It is the boyfriend tee in aqua (yes, HeidiG., just for you) in size extra-small (that's right, XS); some Ann Taylor Loft shorts I got from Rugged Wearhouse for next to nothing (and it's a short inseam...look out!); and the starfish capri sandals that I hearted so much I bought for full price (minus 15% educator discount).



Untitled by dinagideon featuring J Crew

This third polyvore is from my last day in Georgia. I knew his family would like to see a tee celebrating New Orleans, so I wore it just for them...


Not much to say about this except that the sandals are ancient, but have lasted forever. Hmmm...if Mickey and co. read this, keep these sandals in mind the next time you make something...they are beautiful and built to last...J. Crew, I know you all have it in you to make awesome products again (of course, they still do, but even I, Miss "Rah-Rah" J. Crew has noticed a decline in many of the products' ability to last a long time).

Have a beautiful Monday (no, seriously, try to...)!

One Saturday...Two "Hot" Outfits...(5/23/09)!!!

Yes, folks, it is two-fer time again...I wore BOTH of these outfits on that sweltering hot Saturday we had here in the Mid-Atlantic on May 23, 2009. The first outfit I wore during the day when we went to my dad's house to go visit my Aunt and Uncle in from California. The second outfit is from when we went to my cousin-in-law's (Mr. Dina's first cousin on his dad's side) house to visit his Aunt and Uncle in from Florida. Two sunny states' residents visiting two separate neices/nephews in Northern Virginia on the same day. :) Good times. No, seriously...it really was good times. Love hanging with the fam. My family and his family are the best!!!

Fresco Cardigan with Summer Casual!!! by dinagideon featuring J Crew

Here is the Polyvore.


Here is the polyvore in full-length. Hair is wet. Yep. Feels good to let it AIR-DRY on a HOT day!

So why did I wear the cardi if it was SO hot? Because I am super-pale and SPF only does so much. So out came the lovely cotton cardi that I have been the proud owner of since February! It did actually get to be too warm to wear it (we had BBQ outside) but when that happened, I subtly encouraged everyone to hightail it into the house. It worked...

The top is different in the polyvore. The top you see here is a MATERNITY top from Pea in the Pod by Splendid. Yeah, whatever. Fits perfect on my non-pregnant body. I think the person they made it for is not really pregnant or pregnant in a way that I have NEVER seen. Wow.

The flip-flops are actually from J. Crew (last summer 2008) and I LOVE that color. You might need sunglasses to look at them (see two pics from now for more on that).


Here is more of that top. Please excuse my bit of cami showing through. oops...

To make the fireball necklace that short, I had to clip the clasp on the necklace itself (and I ended up with a fair bit of the necklace chain down my back...).


Oh, dear reader who wanted to see the Boden sunglasses in green and for the other reader who wanted to see the Boden sunglasses case, here you go!!! I (heart) them both. The green sunglasses are meant for sunnier days more than the light brown because of the darker tint...this is why these beauties came out to play instead of the light brown ones...I love having this option! The case is REALLY big but since I have to carry a mom-bag everywhere it doesn't matter to me! I now own two of these cases (they come with every sunglasses purchase). They also have a cloth inside to wipe the lenses. I also think the print is so much fun!


There is no polyvore for outfit #2, but 'tis okay. I get tired sometimes writing my blog and the less work--the better!!!

I wore this in the evening to visit Florida family and I LOVE this outfit SO much. I will definitely do this again. SO CUTE!

Can I tell you that Rugged Wearhouse (kind of like TJ Maxx or Ross) is awesome? The tank is old J. Crew and 10 dollars. The skirt is Ann Taylor Loft and was 9 dollars. Yes, I bought two. This skirt is a 12 and fits nicely now (I can wear it lower so it isn't too mini) and a 10 for when I get to the fighting weight (8 pounds as of today...probably 10 pounds away in this pic). The shoes are the same from outfit #1. The short-sleeve cardigan is J. Crew, cotton, in lime green (Spring 2009).


Here is the outfit with no cardi. YAY! I love this color. This was a great outfit for seeing the fam on a very warm and muggy night!

Oh, you know, this is for Polyvore. And yes, I see the cami. Whatever. I can just smush that right out when I create sets in the future. It's cool...

You all have a nice afternoon. :)