National Wear Red Day! Two OOTD Special!

Background to this post:  I was diagnosed with having a PFO (Patent Foramen Ovale) during investigations by my neurologist into my debilitating migraines.  Turns out that the most debilitating were not migraines but mini-strokes, caused by what she believed was a hole in my heart.  You can read more about this in this post.  I have since had that hole repaired, and have been on the mend for well over a year now.

I never even really thought about heart health other than being occasionally worried about high blood pressure (which does run in my family).  Having an actual "OMG, I have to fix my heart" occurrence in my own health history thrust upon me a real desire to put the word out there that women need to pay attention to their hearts more than they might realize.  For years and years, the focus on heart health was on men because they were the ones dying of massive heart attacks and strokes, and while women definitely were passing because of their hearts, supposedly the heart attacks and strokes were just not "massive" enough for anyone to really worry about it.

Yeah, they knew they were wrong, and have since changed course.  EVERYONE needs to worry about their tickers.  Although the chance of any one person having a problem with their heart is small, there is still things you can do to keep your own heart in good health.  Go to the doctor, get exercise, check your blood pressure, relax, eat well, and even if you don't think there is anything wrong with you, if you feel off, GET IT CHECKED OUT.  It actually took one of you (a blog friend) to convince me that a neurologist appointment was necessary.  And for that I am ever ever grateful.  And so is my heart.  ;)

I almost forgot that today was National Wear Red Day until a blog I read, Pumps and Gloss, published a post on it.  Upon realizing it was Wear Red day, I smacked my head because guess what I wore yesterday?  Yep, the new J. Crew Heart Throb Boy Shirt.  Wouldn't that have been utterly perfect for today?  Oh, well, at least it was in February (whole month is devoted to heart health, so I think I will wear red in some form each day).

I made up for it by wearing something red to dinner tonight, as did CW.  You will see those at the end of the post.

But first, let's start with the Heart Throb Boy Shirt outfit:

Went on the preschool run in this outfit.  Very comfortable, exactly what I needed (I have been feeling under the weather, I may have a cold--red nose, does that count towards "wear red?").  It was nice and warm, so no jacket necessary. 

Top: J. Crew Silk Boy Shirt in Heart Throb, Size 4, worn open.  Silk and spandex is a lovely combo, soft and wrinkle free.  Some may not like the texture, but I am a fan.
Tank: Liz Lange for Target.
Leggings: J. Crew Essential Leggings.
Shoes: Cole Haan.
Necklace: Fenton Fallon for J. Crew.

Really like the shirt opened, could show off my necklace that way.  :)

The sunglasses are from Target.

This shows the print nicely, plus the colors are accurate here.

Please do ignore my clutter on my countertops.  I swear on a stack of bibles that some of it is Mr. Dina's "action figure" collection (seriously!) and the other bits are the detritus from simply existing in a household of small children who eat more food than any other people I have ever met.  I ASSURE you that I am not trolling ebay so much that I am unable to clean.  The counters get cleaned, but honestly, if you all are noticing that and not anything else, well, huh...  Yeah, no words.  (FWIW, Ebay trolling is my Saturday morning activity.  I know, kinda lame, but we each have our thing.)

Heart Throb and Heart Health (Wear Red)! by dinagideon featuring vintage shades

The above polyvore shows off the outfit in its pieces.

And tonight's "wear red:"

Jacket: J. Crew Tuxedo Jacket.
Sweater: Liz Lange for Target.
Necklace: Tiffany's Paloma Picasso Open Heart Necklace.  Mr. Dina gave this to me as a wedding present, ten whole years ago. :)  Seemed appropriate to wear the heart necklace tonight.

Leggings: Madewell Convertible.  I have so much love for stretchy pants now.  I have so much pain in my legs and hips that these pants make dressing so much easier.  
Shoes: J. Crew Classic Ballet Flats.

If this outfit looks familiar, it is.  I wore it a few weeks ago.  I was too tired today to really put a whole bunch of thought into my outfit.  The jacket felt like an epiphany, which is kinda sad.  LOL.

But girlfriend really brought it.  CW is wearing a Muno dress, tiger stripe leggings, pink socks, and a pair of Circo (Target) shoes.

That's it.  Keep those hearts beating.  :)

I Implore You All to Wear Red Today!!! (2011 National Wear Red Day!)

As you all are aware, in December I had a procedure to repair a hole in my heart that my doctors believed caused me to suffer from debilitating migraines with aura and mini-strokes (also known as a TIA-transient ischemic attack). If you had asked me last February about "National Wear Red Day," I would have only had a minor understanding of what that is...and only because Stacy and Clinton had done an episode of What Not to Wear with a lady who was a national Wear Red spokeswoman.

It is now a whole year later and I have a much stronger understanding of what "National Wear Red Day" means. It is a way of showing the world that you understand what it is like to be affected by any heart issue, from heart disease to congenital heart defects to strokes. And that it isn't *just* men who suffer from heart-related illnesses.  Women can, and DO, suffer and/or die because of their heart problems.  Read a story, eerily similar to mine, here.

When my sorority decided that they would work to raise awareness for heart disease/strokes by having us "wear red" today, February 4, 2011, I knew I would not just stop there...I would have to use my blog as a way to also raise awareness. After all, I am a fashion blogger who also has had real life experience with heart problems.

So up first I will show you today's outfit, in which I wear red (well, it is more like an orange/red, but I don't own a whole lot of true red--yes, I am trying to get more items that are more of a true red), and an outfit from a month ago that also incorporates red.

Then I will show you some items from Boden's current spring line that are red if you feel like you need more red in your wardrobe (I am personally interested in one of the dresses), and a lipstick from Arbonne that is all red for those of you that would prefer to wear your red on your face. ;)

Enjoy, and please do remember to wear red today!!! And bonus points for those of you who let other know *why* you are wearing red.

Smile!  I am wearing J. Crew's Jackie shell in Cerise, which although not a true red is a nice orange-y red that works beautifully with the Liberty Print Laura Femme Fit button-down that I own.  The liberty print is a dandelion print and has bits of all colors of the rainbow, so for any color-related needs, I can definitely pull this out.  :)

Here I have the orange kerrington leather ballet flats.  With these shoes on you can see how the cerise does have a lot of orange in it.

These are the Saturday pants from a few years ago and I find them super-comfortable for the days I am just hanging at the house doing everyday normal SAHM things (but now with no migraines--holla!).

No hand on the hip...wanted to show the jackie shell again, though, sad face about how thin the material is!  It doesn't look terrible, but with a real saturated color like this I don't think you should be able to see the shirt below the fabric!!!

I wore this back in December.  This outfit clearly has a lot in common with the outfit I am wearing today, lol.  This is the jackie shell in dark pewter over the Tartan tuxedo shirt.  The tartan tuxedo boy shirt is perfection if you want a red top with classic styling that is also not uber-bright.

I am wearing it with some everyday chinos, cute little bow ballet flats, and the galaxy necklace from a few years back.

From the side.  :)  I kept the bow theme going with the headband.

Onto some red goodies I found while searching for "true red" items for myself:

Beachcomber Scarf
For those of you that want to keep your red to one accessory, this is a nice light red option for you!

Casual Moccasins
I love brightly colored shoes (see today's outfit!), and these cute little moccasins definitely fit the "wear red" bill nicely. 

Leather Trim Tote
For those of you that prefer a nice, punchy red with a little shine, this Leather Trim Tote is right up your alley.

Piazza Dress
As we have recently seen in gorgeous emerald green on Tabitha, this is the fiery "look at me" red version of the same dress.

Rainyday Duffle
This is one way of staying cheery and "cherry" when the skies are grey.  :)

Riviera Dress
I love my Amalfi dress in green, and I am absolutely swooning over this red daisy dress in a similar shape.  It is retro and red, in other words perfection for this day!

Uplifting Mac
It says "uplifting," and in red, even more so!

Arbonne Lipstick, Runway Rouge.
This is a lovely option for wearing red when you just can't make it work in your outfit.  :)

I appreciate all of you who can make "red" work for you today.  Thank you!