Boden: Catch of the Day! Skirts, Pants, Accessories, and Shoes.

Hi, all!  Happy Thursday.

Before I start, I wanted to let you all know I received the Eliza Coat yesterday afternoon, and because I had a few spare moments, I was able to write a brief review at the "catch of the day" post.  If you have any interest in that coat, the review may help you make a decision in the future.

Okay, so today's "catch" is skirts, pants, shoes, and accessories.  I *technically* only own one item that is part of today's catch, so I really don't have much to add, review-wise, to this discussion, but I do know that for a lot of women, this is their favorite "catch."

As a reminder, if you are just now joining in on the fun of the "catch of the day," I wrote up more on how this sale works at the very first "catch of the day" post here.


Low Heeled Loafer.  Size 41.  You can see my mini review (with photos) here at this post.


Flat T-Bar Point.  Size 41.  I have not received this one, but like the Eliza coat, I went to both sites (UK and US) to see what the reviews were saying about fit.  All agreed that it was running narrow, and that sizing up was necessary for the foot to properly fit length-wise.  I still am wary of sizing up since my foot is really narrow, especially at the heel, but because this one features a strap, I figure I will be fine with the size 41 instead of the 40.  It won't be here for 6 more weeks, and if it doesn't fit, I may not be able to get the 40, since this one looks like it is super-popular and will sell out fast.  Anyhow, if you like this one, you may want to get it with a higher % off since as we all know, the moment something is super-popular in Boden-land, the price never goes much lower.


Chunky Tights. Size M.  I have been buying these for years and love them so much.  I cannot find good thick cotton tights in the US.  I used to wear them a ton as a kid in Germany (lived there when I was very young), but it is also ridiculously cold there in the winter (we were in Bavaria).  Anyhow, these are well-priced for what they are, and are made well.  All pairs that I own are still in great shape.  Only warning--they do run large.  I have a size 10 bottom in Boden clothing and the L was far too big, even though I have the *lovely* combo of big bottom, large thighs, and longer legs.  I technically fall in the L category, but needed the M so I didn't have tights up to my bra.  (LOL.  Seriously.  My bra!)  Here I am in a pair from two years ago (worn last winter, though).  I wore a pair of burgundy colored ones on my trip to Ireland one and a half years ago.


Opaque Tights.  Size M.  These fit a bit tighter than the chunky tights, but are made from a different fabric that has better recovery, so no surprise there.  These remind me a lot of Hue tights, except you can't buy these with a control top.  I don't need the control top with these, though, they stay up just fine on their own.  The colors are fab.  I really love the teal version I have from last year (can't find photos of me in them, though, hrm).  :-)  Here I am in the red pair (also from last year).

Okay, that's all for now.  I wonder what tomorrow's (and this weekend's) catch will bring?  Probably a hodgepodge of various items, if years past are any indication.

Paris: Day Five Outfit(s) of the Day. Eiffel Inspired. And Gilded.

When did I do the day four outfit of the day?  A month ago?  Come, on.  Well, late is better than never, I suppose.

To remind you all, I am taking on my Paris trip bit by bit, starting with outfit posts, then moving to all around general stuff, and finishing with tips for traveling with toddlers.  Knowing my rate of success, I will get around to the "tips for traveling with toddlers" post on our anniversary of actually traveling to Paris.  LOL.

Okay, to re-cap...here is outfit Day One...outfit Day Two...outfit Day Three...outfit Day Four.

And outfit Day Five.

I actually drew inspiration for this outfit from two J. Crew catalog images, which I will show later on, but the top/vest combo is from one image, and later, my earrings and pose are from another image.

Top: J. Crew Suzannah Liberty Print Blouse, Size medium.  This was a sample from 2007, although it is similar to the blouse that they sold in the fall of that same year, this one has slight differences in construction from the retail version.  I am glad I went with the medium as this was cut a bit closer, and as timing had it, I needed the extra room in the waist.  :)  Go, baby belly!
Vest: J. Crew Jackie top, size small.  Do you all buy the Jackie tops only to use as vests?  I never wear mine on their own, I far prefer them with button-downs.
Skirt: Gap Maternity, size 8.  This is way too big and by the end of the day, it looked like I was wearing a skirt four sizes too big for me.  (This puppy stretches.  To say the least.)
Tights: Walmart George Brand.  I wear my George Brand control top tights constantly and they have not ever let me down, I have had the above pair for over three years.  Get thee to a Walmart for some $5.50 tights if you need some good ones.  Whilst in Mississippi, I bought the local store out of their Size Cs...I bought them in brown marl, black knit herringbone, grey marl, and a couple of opaque pairs.
Shoes: J. Crew Collection Lula Snakeskin Ballet Flats.  The love.  These aren't awesome for walking but they are certainly good enough if you don't go all crazy and wear them for a six mile trek.  I only did about four that day, so my tootsies survived.

CW is in a mix of Boden, Target, and some boutique-y brand.

From the front before the skirt became a size 16.

I wore my Thierry Lasry sunglasses that day along with my J. Crew Collection double faced cashmere popover.   For those of you dying for more info on the popover, I did a more in-depth review of it at True Crew Love.

The background is the Eiffel Tower.  We have more shots from that day, but I will publish those in the general "look at how awesome Paris can be" photos post.

I remembered that the beautiful Vanessa Lorenzo was wearing a pair of Eiffel Tower earrings in one of the Paris catalog images, so of course I bought a pair from the Eiffel Tower gift shop.  They were only $10 and adorable.  They seem to be decently made, too.

Both of my kids LOVED the Eiffel Tower and now, whenever they see a photo or film of it, shout really loudly, "look MOMMA...the Eiffel Tower!!!"

Not exactly the same shot, etc., but look!  The Eiffel Tower earrings!  (Too bad I didn't have roller skates and a more agreeable husband, lol.)

Again, not exactly the same...I searched and searched for this sweater dress all over ebay but never found it (but still interested, lovely ladies, size small or medium, please!!!)...so I came up with my version instead.

That night my hubby and son went to a French soccer game, so I took CW out to a nice little restaurant for a night out.  We got all dressed up and it was sort of special...really sweet, in fact.

Top: J. Crew Tissue Turtleneck, Size Medium.  From a while ago and I still wear it, all the time.  Great versatile basic.
Skirt: J. Crew Collection Floral Long Swing Skirt, Size 8.  It's my header skirt!  :)  Cannot even think about wearing this one now...waist is way too tiny to fit over my baby belly now.  It barely did up that night for that matter.
Shoes: Clarks Artisan aka "most comfortable black heels ever," size 9.5.  Bought them for nada at the local Rugged Wearhouse.
Necklace: J. Crew Double Strand Frog Necklace.  Also a perennial favorite from the Paris Catalog.  I double looped it for a different look...I quite like it like that...

With CW...she is a cardigan by some French brand (I forgot which, and she is napping right now), a Tea dress, random tights, and a pair of Target shoes.

Paris: Outfit of the Day Five. Girls Night Out. by dinagideon featuring tote handbags

Above is the polyvore of the outfit for our Parisian Girls Night Out.

Well I guess that's it for now.  Hope your Friday is great.  :)

Reminder, if you are a Boden fan, the affiliate folks sent me a direct link to their most recent promo, 30% off and free shipping:
Save 30% at Bodenusa.com with Free Shipping

A Tank Two Ways!

You all! I am so busy...and truly sorry for taking so long to publish. It has been a LONG time since I have taken such a break. :P At least I have a cool, stylish reason for this break, but still, I have missed you!!! :)

Spring Into Style is going well...the kids are fab and all very sweet. I even have one little boy in my class, and he is very passionate about creating looks for both men and women alike. To see such creativity and expression at 8, 9, and 10 years old is amazing!

A Tank Two Ways! by dinagideon featuring Seven For All Mankind jeans

Above is the polyvore from an outfit I wore on a Saturday a few weeks ago. It was still a bit cold out and I knew that no matter what, I would need a coat and tights. :) I love this tank, and found it the perfect pick-me-up on that day. Plus, it looks fab with grey and denim, so the overall look was very lovely.


Here is the tank with the jeans, constellation cardigan, and the animal print flats. Very comfy, but with that bit of bling on the cardi, a little special, too!

Sizes:
Tank: Size small.
Cardigan: Size small.
Denim: Size 30.
Shoes: Size 40. (These were the shoes that ran REALLY big by Boden.)

And I had to make sure CW matched!!! ;)


Too cold to wear the outfit on its own, so I paired it with one of my favorite spring coats, EVER. This is an Anthropologie find, brand Elevenses, that I bought 5 (???) years ago. LOVE this color, print, fabric, cut, etc. Unfortunately, I had to put it DEEP in the closet until I lost all the way...this coat is cut very close, and has only recently fit again. I am wearing a 6 here.

Does anyone remember what catalog or season this coat is from? Or even better, know the name of it? I would love to find an image of it...


And here is the other way I wore this tank, paired with the short, full indigo skirt by J. Crew, and the tie-front cashmere cardigan in black. The tights are grey, and make the skirt seem less revealing.

Sizes:
Cardigan: Size small.
Skirt: Size 8.
Tights: Size Medium/Tall.

Have a great day, all. Hope to get back and publish soon...there is A LOT ready to go! :)

Watercolor Leopard Cardigan Brings Out My Wild Side...

Ladylike with an Edge! by dinagideon featuring J Crew

The night I went to Pentagon City to look at all of the new goodies at J. Crew, I wore this outfit (pictured above in the polyvore). If you know me, you know that dark, edgy-looking outfits are not normally my thing. I wanted to try something new...ladylike with an edge. I loved the outfit, it made me feel exactly like I wanted to feel, confident, pretty, and ready to try new things (you all saw that I tried on not one, but two, very short, very full mini-skirts, right?).

If you like the boots, they are still for sale, but you have to go directly to Naturalizer, and not through the polyvore. For some reason Polyvore seems to think they are sold-out. Sadly, the GORGEOUS tweed mini-bag is sold out, but I was lucky enough to buy mine from a fantastic JCA in NYC who was going to return hers to her local store, so I swooped in and begged her to let me buy it straight from her. (It was an awesome transaction.) :)

Here is what the outfit looked like in total.

Sizes:
Cardigan: Size Small. I had bought the watercolor leopard pencil skirt, but even in a size 8, that sucker was T-I-G-H-T. It fit, but wow, super-uncomfortable. And no 10s available for sale. But serendipity stepped in, and the cardigan was at Tysons when I went, and on sale for 40 dollars, maybe? I ended up getting money back from the transaction!
Top: Size Medium. This Target Xhiliration tank has sequins all over the front, but they are sewn onto a piece of fabric to keep the sequins NICE and SECURE. No Sequin OCD from me on this top--smile. I loved it and its price so much, I also bought it in a turquoise color (supposedly 2010's IT color). :)
Skirt: Size 8. From the outlet and very comfy!
Tights: Size Medium/Tall. These are the glitter version J. Crew made for the holidays. The glitter is subtle. Only beef I have is that the tights don't have a control top, and I LOVE feeling "sucked in."
Boots: Size 9.

I am also wearing the Tangled Treasure necklace. I think it is the PERFECT match for this outfit...

CW has now taken to placing herself in all of my photos. If she sees me taking my pic of the day, she comes up, holds my hand, and poses. Cracks us up still! :) Come on, J. Crew, don't you see her potential as a crewcuts darling???


This is with the cardi off. It wasn't warm enough for me to do this, though. That cardi stayed on for a good portion of the night.


Here is the sparkle tweed mini-bag on me. I love it as much as I love her sister, the shimmerveil mini-bag. (Don't tell her sister, but I *think* the sparkle tweed may come out and play more because she is less high maintenance.)

By the way, so you all know, I kept the Contessa dress, the Sultana jacket, the denim full mini, and the scalloped zipper cardigan. I definitely bought the bag. I may, when it goes on sale, buy the froo-frah tee.

You all have a nice night. (Oh, and prepare for a new mid-century mom post...I finally got the chance to do another chore in a very prim and proper outfit.)