Mommy Style Monday #22--Turn It Into Something Else...

Hi, all. It has been about a billion months (give or take a couple million months) since I last did a Mommy Style Monday.

Technically, I could open this to all fashionistas, but I feel like us mommas have a ton of tunics/beach covers in our closets, and this specific column will be great for giving our wardrobe a non-summer fix up. (Is it just me or is the tunic really a mom's best friend?  It may just be me.  LOL.)

And to be completely fair, I have definitely tried this with other tunics/cover-ups, but when I saw this particular silk tunic on sale at J. Crew in the spring, I knew it wouldn't really get used as a tunic in my closet, or a beach cover-up.  From the beginning, I knew I would wear it as a blouse, because it just seemed better to me as a blouse (and I really think J. crew missed the boat by not making this print into a blouse).

Last night I mentioned that I went to the gluttonous capital of the free world, aka Texas de Brazil, and part of my plan was to wear a fitted, fixed waistband outfit so as to not overeat.  It worked, I have to say...so keep that in mind if your family brings you to a buffet (even if it is a really good buffet like America's favorite Brazilian steakhouse).

Skirt: J. Crew No 2 Pencil Skirt, Viridian Green, Size 8.  Prefer this size for the fit through the hips, the 6 would fit, as I mentioned in this review of the flame color, but the fit was too vavavoom for me.

Cardigan: J. Crew Short Sleeved Cardigan in Bright Citron, Size Medium.  I have had this FOR YEARS.  What a cute little topper.  :)

Bracelet: J. Crew Crystal Starfish Cuff Bracelet.

Shoes: Boden Upbeat Kitten Heels in Tweed, Size 40 (one size smaller than my true size at Boden).  Will do a longer review of these on Wednesday in the Boden Weekly Review Roundup.

And there's my top.  I bought the Calais Silk Tunic in a size small figuring that if the hips didn't fit I could alter it and make it shorter, but I did find that it fit, so this is exactly as I wore it on my night of gorging.  :)

Basically I removed the belt (which was used, btw), safety-pinned the notch neck up a bit for modesty, and tucked the entire tunic into the skirt.  I found that because the silk was so thin, you couldn't even see it through the skirt, which is a bonus, as I didn't have to tuck the tunic into a pair of spanx to keep the line of the outfit clean.

Then I bloused the "top" out a bit and through the epaulets (on the shoulders--hard to see on the model shot, but look closely), I threaded the belt through one side, up the back part of the collar, and then down through the other side, leaving one end on either side of notch neck opening.  Then I tied the ends into a loose bow, making the blouse look like it is supposed to have a silk tie (the best photo of this is at the bottom of this post).

From the side.  I have a couple of other skirts that could work with this top, including some summer pencil skirts I bought from the Crew a few years ago.

I have not tried this "top" with pants, but I assume that as long as the pants are lined and of a heavier fabric, then you could hide the bottom portion of the tunic easily enough.  And of course there is always spanx.  ;)

Top Half.  My hubby quite liked the entire outfit, but I suspect it was because it is uber-feminine and I wore my hair down, and not because of my ability to be a magician with clothing.

Close up of the bow.  I kept the bow tied like this until I wash it, I want to see if I can keep it in this shape as I find it hard to tie the perfect bow.  

I love this cuff bracelet, and though it technically isn't important to the post, I really wanted to show off how pretty the beading and crystals all look together.  Why can't J. Crew bring back the beautifully embellished cuff bracelet???

Alrighty, now it's your turn...what was your biggest magic trick with a piece of clothing?  I would love to try this with other garments in my closet.  :)

Viridian Pencil Skirt plus Brights, Yum! by dinagideon featuring a long pencil skirt

BTW, polyvore ladies, above is the polyvore of the outfit.

Silly Little Natalie Studded Sweater...

First things first, I had such a BLAST announcing the Boden Catch of the Day every day for the whole of last week.  Sadly, all good things must come to an end, and all we have left is the 15% off coupon.  I checked this morning, but there are no other coupons.  The best I could find *is* the maternity 15% off coupon.  LOL.  So you all be preggers now, okay?  {Wink, wink.} ;)

A few weeks back, I wore the Natalie Studded Sweater out in public.  I know.  My mind wondered, "would the public be able to handle it?"  Well, yes, as it turns out...with a comment here and there.

Did the women come up to me and say, "ooh, cool sweater?"  No...I don't think they even noticed.  It was the men who stood up and commented on my (admittedly) avant garde sweater choice.

I heard:

1. Mr. Dina said..."Ooh, you are like a superhero...a se*y superhero."  Really, Mr. Dina, a superhero.  That's what you see when you see a cotton striped, studded sweater???  Okay, then.

2. Nice manager at Indian place..."Oh, you look like a GLADIATOR.  That's awesome."  Umm, okay.  Well, then.  LOL.

I felt:

1. Rex touching all the studs.

2. Nice manager at the Indian place caressing one of the studs.

Haha, so if I ever lack for attention, I must remember to pull this sweater out.

From the front.  Remember, I have done a review of this sweater before.

The sweater held up well.  :)  No issues with the studs coming undone.  AND THEY BETTER NOT COME UNDONE at the price J. Crew wanted for this.

I am wearing a pair of INC. black pants I forgot I had.  I love the stretchy material and length.  To add a bit of fun, I put my hair in pigtails and pulled out a pair of satin bow aqua flats that J. Crew made a few years ago. 

You know they re-thought this sweater and created a less expensive non-studded version.  It is sequined and called the spangled stripe sweater (it is pretty, but the loosey-goosey sequins would have me in OCD overdrive plus the model is VERY VERY THIN).

Okay, all, have a great night. 

P.S. I have a few Arbonne-centered posts coming up.  I have been looking at my webstats and a lot of folks are coming over to my blog after entering keywords like "Arbonne RE9 Advanced" or "Arbonne blog reviews."  I would be cah-ray-zee if I didn't do reviews or tutorials, etc. with my Arbonne background as people are actively seeking out this information.  Even if it is other Arbonne consultants, I am 100% cool with helping out my peeps, ya know???  So if you are not really a skin care or cosmetics kind of person, I am okay with you all skipping over it, I get it.  LOL.  My first series will be on Arbonne cosmetics from a fresh face to all done up and ready to go, step by step.  It is meant to complement my next Arbonne giveaway with purchase over at my Arbonne web page, so that when people get the free sheer glow highlighter, they have an idea of what to do with it.  ;)

Raveneli Blouse Styled by Yours Truly...

I was DESTINED to own this blouse. Here is why. First, I spied its loveliness in the Anthropologie catalog a few months back. Second, one of my favorite blogs, What Would Emma Pillsbury Wear? highlighted it in a post on whether or not Emma Pillsbury would in fact wear it. (Decidedly yes!) Third, on the VERY day I bought it on sale, Dea of The Dea Diaries goes and shows how she wore it. Yep, three times a charm.

And here is a fourth.


Sizes:
Top: Size 6. Could have gone with a four as there is plenty of room throughout, but I kind of like it a little loose. It can still be yours...a few sizes are left on the Anthropologie website. I will go into the details of the top after the next photo (which shows the blouse on its own).
Jacket: Size 8. Love how the schoolboy blazer is structured enough to balance the ruffles and bows of the blouse. Very nice contrast.
Pants: Size 10. Another example of WHY. YOU. SHOULD. NEVER. BUY. CLOTHING. POSTPARTUM. Yes. It is now too big and when I bought them they were too tight. Sigh. Oh, well, at least I think I can dry them in the dryer to take in some inches. You can't really tell how big they are, but trust me, I was doing the ole "hitching up" dance all night. Don't pretend you don't know what that dance is... :)
Boots: Size 9. Yes, I love you, Naturalizer! Best $25 I have spent in a long time. I wear these all the time!

We were going to IHOP and then bowling. Both were fun. Did you know that if you have a kid at a bowling alley, they let the kid "cheat" by giving them this cool metal ramp to give their ball a good ole head start down to the pins? Rex did way better than me and Mr. Dina...and we used to be on a bowling league (no joke--we own shoes and everything!).


So here is the top sans jacket. It is fluffy and bow-tastic, but not enough to make Mr. Jim crack up at my expense or anything, so in my mind, this makes this top a winner! ;) Go, go, Girls From Savoy (they made the top).

What is Rex doing back there?

Have a great night, all!

Blushed Tweed Pencil Skirt and a Frances on a Friday!!!

First, before I go into my tale of debauchery (not really, but it felt like that to me), I want to remind you that I have a list of links on my sidebar to "Help Haiti." I have received extra links to add, so keep looking, and if you can help in any way possible, I thank you!

Second, I have one of my Polyvore sets in a contest over at the very fab blog "What Would Emma Pillsbury Wear?" Emma Pillsbury is the guidance counselor over at the show Glee who is very likely to show up for work in pencil skirts and frilly blouses, i.e. the very epitome of lady-like. Since Emma is a character who reminds me a bit of my alter-ego (very much neglected of late...sigh) Mid-Century Mom, it was obvious that I needed to send a few of my polyvores over to this other blog to be in the game of "What Would Emma Pillsbury Wear?" Well, sadly for my polyvore set, it is against a set with a skirt that has a bow. And if you know Emma Pillsbury you know she loves herself a good bow!!! So head on over and vote in this fun contest, better yet, become a follower of that blog so you can join in future frivolity (including the time in the future when my set won't go down in flames...it's actually okay, I think the other set is REALLY EMMA)!!!

Blushed Tweed and a Frances on a Friday! by dinagideon featuring J Crew

Onto my outfit (and debauchery) from last night. In this post I said I would wear the blushed tweed pencil skirt for Chanel Fashionista and the Frances Cami for Debye on Friday. And that is exactly what I did. I had a ladies night out, so I wanted to splash out, even though all I would be doing is chilling with some of Mr. Dina's co-workers and wives of Mr. Dina's co-workers (who are all amazing ladies, and when told of this blog, and of all the other awesome JCA/Boden centered blogs, were very,very intrigued). Regardless, I was insanely excited to go out in this outfit. And what made this outfit even more fun? Wearing it while drinking really great red wine. Thank you, Megan, awesome tasting South African wine. (And thank you, Miss Leigh, for providing us a perfect place to drink said wine!) (And by now you have guessed why I didn't post this last night, right??? I was definitely a bit "drunk" Dina. Mr. Dina was kind enough to drive me there and back...)

The polyvore is accurate. I even will do a tiny, itsy-bitsy review of the tangled treasure bracelet (which is in final sale and is the reason I bought it).


Sizes:
Cardigan: Size Medium.
Top: Size Petite 8.
Skirt: Size 6.
Belt: Size Small-Medium.
Shoes: Size 10.

I like the play on proportion...with the tight pencil skirt, the shorter ruffly cami, and the l-o-n-g forever cardigan. It feels feminine, but not too over the top. I think heels would have been too much, as well. The flats feel better for a ladies night out at a house. :)


Here is my little lady. She did not have a ladies night out, but her shoes are very cute, no?

The tangled treasure bracelet is not nearly as scary in real life as you would imagine it would be. Based on the photos on jcrew.com (which I can't find because it appears sold-out; if the pics come back, I will update this post). I was a bit nervous, but figured I could work it somehow. The dangly bits are definitely "dangly," but I love the beads and mix of chains and pearls. I have also ordered the tangled treasure necklace (hello 30% off final sale--awesome), and have a feeling I will love it, but I imagine that will be a harder sell than the bracelet. I love a great statement necklace, but the tangled treasure necklace may be too much for 98% of JCAs out there.


My action shot. HeidiG. mentioned to me that it is hard to pose with an open cardigan, and she is right, so I looked on-line and saw that in all the photos of models wearing an open cardigan, they had one hand on their hip holding back part of the placket on one side of the cardigan. I think this flatters a woman's shape nicely. I may have to do more of these "action shots" in the future.

Ta-Ta, all. Tomorrow is the Campo dress (equals success--black looked GREAT under it) and maybe some Boden try-ons??? We'll see!!!