OOTDs: School Style September and Early October.

Quick reminder: Boden's big mid-season sale ends tonight. The details about the sale are in the original post here with updated information in the latest BWRR.

The extra 20% off Boden's spring 2015 preview ends on the 15th.  I have plans to do a picks post tomorrow or Wednesday.

Onto the latest teacher outfits.  :-)  Note, unless I have something to mention outside of the teaching arena (after school and with family and friends), there won't be any anecdotes of the day in the teaching ootd posts. 

Day: Thursday, September 3, 2015.

Where:  First Day of Teaching and a baseball game.

Ease of Wear: (4.5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.) I have made this skirt for myself before in a pretty blue and brown and white floral (last time I wore it and the original sewing review), so I expected this version would be a slam dunk fit-wise.  (It was!)  I love the stretch cotton sateen, it's even from Joann's, which if you are a sewer, usually indicates a fabric that may not be up to snuff.  This one is...so pretty and looks like it will last a while.

Outfit Details: Skirt, handmade (Vogue 8916); Top, J. Crew; Shoes, A2 by Aerosoles; Shorts (from last photo), Boden; Necklace, J. Crew; Sunglasses, Anthropologie.

Anecdote of the Day: I was so stinking tired after school that day that I was *this* close to skipping out on the game.  I probably should have, I actually closed my eyes a few times while watching the game, and considering I normally can't sleep anyplace other than a quiet, dark room in my bed, I nearly fell asleep in those hard chairs in the bright baseball lights.  Yow.

INSTAGRAM HERE.

Day: Friday, September 10, 2015.

Where:  Teaching and church.

Ease of Wear: (4.25 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.)  I felt fine, but I was worn out from the day before, so the tiniest bit of irritation felt enhanced.  This time it was the dress being just a skitch too tight on the upper hip.  Since the dress is made of a cotton, it stretched out and was fine an hour after putting it on, but still.  Boo.

Outfit Details:  Dress, Boden; Shoes, J. Crew; Necklace, J. Crew; Sunglasses, Anthropologie.

INSTAGRAM HERE.

Day: Thursday, September 17, 2015.

Where:  Teaching.

Ease of Wear: (4.5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.) Well this *dress* keeps getting shorter, but I am thinking I was more daring with my skirt length before I was teaching at the Catholic school.  You really do need to have the skirts as long as the knee (or right there close to it), unless you are wearing it with leggings.  So leggings it was!  The whole outfit is wonderfully, deliciously comfortable. And it's a pretty print, so yay!

Outfit Details:  Dress, J. Crew Factory; Shoes, J. Crew; Necklace, J. Crew; Sunglasses, Target.

INSTAGRAM HERE.

Day: Friday, September 18, 2015.

Where:  Teaching, Church, and CW's birthday dinner.

Ease of Wear: (4.5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.)

Outfit Details:  Dress, Ideology (from Macy's a gazillion years ago); Shoes, Cole Haan (similar here at amazon.com); Necklace, Tiffany's; Sunglasses, Target.

Anecdote of the Day:  CW's middle name is in honor our great grandmother (many greats added to it, of course) who had an apple variety in Minnesota named after her by my great grandfather (many greats there, too).  CW's favorite color is pink.  It was also her birthday that day, so wearing a pink, apple printed dress seemed especially appropriate.  I also love that I looked like Ms. Frizzle.  (#msfrizzleforever)

INSTAGRAM HERE.

Day: Thursday, October 8, 2015.

Where:  Teaching.

Ease of Wear: (4.25 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.) Lands' End really has something special with this ponte sheath dress. So much so that I plan on going back for another version of it soon.  I wish it was a touch longer, but Lands' End lengthens their torsos on their dresses in the longs, so I can't purchase the long without it being too long in the bodice.  Sigh.  I am fine with it where it ends but would add an inch in an ideal world.

Outfit Details:  Dress, Lands' End; Shoes, Boden; Cardigan, Anthropologie; Sunglasses, Target.

INSTAGRAM HERE.

Day: Friday, October 9, 2015.

Where:  Teaching and church.

Ease of Wear: (4.5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.)  Well I caved on this year's version of the Casual Weekend Dress.  I love last year's so much, and I love this green polka dot print (I have a long dress from Boden in this exact print from 2006!), I knew I would love this dress.  I do!  It is super cute, and the pockets are fab, of course.

Outfit Details:  Dress, Boden (here on clearance); Shoes, J. Crew; Necklace, Stella and Dot; Cardigan, J. Crew; Sunglasses, Target.

INSTAGRAM HERE.

I hope you have a great night!  :-) Thanks for reading!  I am glad I am back with something other than Boden sales alerts for once.  LOL.

OOTDs: Dressy Casual Teacher.

Last week, the day after I arrived in Mississippi, I wrote up a post on what I wear when I substitute the younger grades at my school.  (Overall pretty casual looks and very easy to wear shoes!)

Today, as I leave Mississippi (it's been ten days!), I figured I should finish off this round of subbing ootds with what I wear when I am teaching the older grades.  Although I like to dress up, the colder weather of late has necessitated the wearing of pants, so the only real dressy look you will see here is the day I needed to best represent the school, the last look, which is also the one look that is not technically from me subbing.  (I was there as a guide for the school, so I wanted to look really put together for the prospective parents.)

Next week and the week after, I will be subbing in my son's second grade classroom.  Hee!  I am looking forward to it for many reasons, of course.  Although I do tend to go more casual with the younger grades, because it is Christmas week festivity time then, I guarantee there will be at least a few dressier outfits to celebrate the occasion.

Okay, onto the outfits.

Day: Friday, November 14, 2014.

Where:  Subbing Fifth Grade.

Ease of Wear: (4 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.)  I bought these pants when Angus was young, maybe six months old, and while they fit okay then, they fit exactly as they should now, so the little bit of extra pounds off has made a huge difference in comfort.  The handmade sweater is always warm and never fails me, so I am glad I made that one last year.  I need to make that pattern again, I think another sweater should be on my sewing table.

Though the coat didn't exactly match, I needed its' warmth that day, so not really worried about color matching.

Cool Factor: (4 of 5 stars--5 being the coolest.)  Decent look, though with a better choice in outerwear, this look would have fared better on the "cool" chart.

Day: Thursday, November 6, 2014.

Where:  I was in for the older grades' Spanish teacher (there are two Spanish teachers--one for the youngins and one for the older kids)..

Ease of Wear: (4.5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.)  No complaints, at all.  Very comfortable, easy to wear outfit. 

Cool Factor: (3.75 of 5 stars--5 being the coolest.)  Poor Talbots.  Though a purveyor of some fine looking items, it will never be cool.  ;-)  Therefore, though darling and pretty, the top dings the overall coolness.  Though if it read Zara, would you all be fooled into believing it was cooler?  Hmm...

Day: Wednesday, November 19, 2014.

Where:  Leading the prospective parents on a tour of the school, going to a moms' group, and attending my daughter's Thanksgiving Feast activity in the afternoon.  So not busy at all there that day.  ;-)

Ease of Wear: (3.75 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.)  A very very slight ding for the tights not fully staying up.  I had to tug them up a few times throughout the day.  I wish these were control top, that would help keep them up on my frame a bit better. 

The Amy Dress (here on sale) was a champ, though, very easy to wear, and it surprised me at how well it wore in winter temperatures.  I did a second, more in-depth review of it at this Boden Weekly Review roundup.

Cool Factor: (3.5 of 5 stars--5 being the coolest.)  I love it, but it is pretty darn prissy, lol.  The shoes make it a bit cooler since the shape is a bit unusual, but really, this is very traditional and conservative, which was what I needed that day.

Okay, that's all for today.  I hope everyone has a great Thursday, and we'll talk soon!

J. Crew: Collection Cashmere Polka-Dot Sweater and OOTD.

Hello, and Good Evening!

We were spared loss of power, loss of trees, and all the other ills that typically come from severe weather, so I am very thankful for that, however, I do want to express my deepest sympathies for all who did not fare so well during Hurricane Sandy.  I am saying prayers for all of you affected, and my greatest wish for you all is that life returns to normal as quickly as possible.

We are headed back home tomorrow, just in time for trick-or-treating, but since I have a spare moment I thought I would review a sweater I recently received during the last 30% off promo that J. Crew had, the Collection Cashmere Polka-Dot Sweater.  This will also from now on be referred to as the Zooey sweater, as the whole reason I purchased it was because of her (Ms. Deschanel, that is).

We were watching New Girl about two weeks ago, and Zooey's character on the show (who we all know is just her playing herself--SO kooky!) was wearing this sweater. 

Mr. Dina (he of the white tennis shoes brigade) announced, "ooh, I love her sweater, so cute!"

I side-eyed him in disbelief.

"You do know that is a J. Crew sweater, right?"

"Yeah, it's so nice.  I love it!"

"Ohhhh-kay."

And because I had my computer open, I sought it out, discovering it had been on sale, but of course, because it was SO CUTE, all the JCAs of the world had already snapped it up.

But two days later, the sale had a replenishment, and lo and behold, I saw the sweater, in my size, in the SO CUTE color, that it had an additional 30% off, and it was sort of no-brainer...I could at least try it for my hubby.  ;)

Size extra small.  I was nervous about the size.  Even though most of my cashmere of the past two years has been extra-small, I had read that J. Crew was stepping away from vanity sizing, so I feverishly checked all the JCA reviews of this sweater (there are many), and then I decided I should be okay (but definitely aware I may need to do a return).

It turned out that it fit great, length, through the shoulders, in the waist, and through the bust.

It is also very soft, and nicely made.  I wore it all day today and have not seen any pilling, so that's a bonus in the world of J. Crew cashmere (collection or not).

The dots are actually sewn into the green cashmere, you can't feel it, but when the garment is turned inside out you can see the construction.  I suspect this is part of why it was a bit pricier than other cashmere garments.  However, the full price was very high, so I was happy that I was able to pay around half that, which works far better for my budget.

I had started my day out with the idea that I would need the down vest, but it became very clear that with the wind, the scarf would need to be on as well, so as to cut down on the chill a bit (when the wind wasn't blowing, it was 55 degrees and sunny, but with the wind, it felt like 45).

Anyhow, this Zooey sweater is currently in the sale section with the wine/pink colored version, and the grey/black version is still full-priced.

Hope this helped someone out!  :)

Boden Spring 2013 Pick:

(I explained why I am doing one preview pick of the day in each post when I wrote this post--under #3.  Of course I totally forgot to do a pick yesterday, so I will just do two now.  Sigh.  Mommy brain.)

Adelaide Dress.  This dress is very different, and in a good way.  It has Boden's typical print frenzy, but in a very nice, easygoing shape that works for many body types.  And unlike a lot of Boden frocks, this one has a waist that sits at where most ladies waists are.  Since only a few women can pull off the empire waist, it is nice that Boden is offering options that work for more people.

Draycott Coat.  Since this is a J. Crew centered post, I thought I would pull out a coat that very much reminds me of "Old School J. Crew."  Help me, ladies, which coat is it that is similar to this one?  I think it was yellow and had a bow closure at the neckline?  Am I just crazy?  Anyhow, this is one stunning coat, and the tabbed waist detail is very slimming and lady-like.

That's it!  Talk with you tomorrow!

Have a great night!

OOTDs: Weekend at Skippy's.

So last weekend we were in North Carolina.  It was thrilling.  :)

No, really, it was a lovely time with our very best friends and their three daughters (yes, all three of mine were beyond happy--CW had girls to play with, Angus had girls to flirt with, and Rex had girls to torment).

Anyhow, it was a very brief weekend away, just a nice little journey to get out of dodge and out of our routine.

We happened to celebrate our 11th anniversary there, but beyond that, there wasn't anything over the top special, so I was able to bring the very bare minimum as far as packing goes, and with all the extra kids I pack nowadays, the less I can bring means the easier it is on me.  Blah.  One day I can go back to packing amazing clothes and shoes and accessories in multiple suitcases, but for now and the next eighteen years of my life, the less the best.

(Oh, who am I kidding, I never had amazing clothes and shoes and accessories in multiple suitcases...but one day, it will be the way I travel, oh, yeah.)

Here they are!

Wore this on the anniversary evening, which was last Saturday (10/13).  We came down from VA that day, but the traveling outfit on the way to NC was kind of boring, so you will only get a very brief glimpse of it later in this post.  And the only reason you are getting a glimpse of the outfit from the way home is because it has two J. Crew reviews.  :)

This outfit looks so professional, but underneath that amazing Robert Noble wool jacket (J. Crew--2006) is a very inexpensive Target nursing dress and Macy's necklaces.

The heels are from Boden last year, which I love having around, they are literally the perfect little heels for most occasions.

And there it is, the world's most lovely, cheap, comfortable nursing dress.  (Technically it is maternity, but because it is made from jersey it doesn't read maternity if you don't have a pregnant belly.)

Wore my makeup fairly bare, but definitely made the lips as rosy as possible without being too done up.

The next day we had church, so I wore this ensemble of navy and chartreuse.  ;)  (I didn't blind the folks at mass, I wore the jacket from the last ouftit during the service.)

The top is the Roll sleeve silk t-shirt from Pure Collection, the same one I reviewed here.  I tucked it into some spank shorts as I hate it when silk is so silky that it comes out of the skirt it is tucked into, but other than that, it was the perfect blouse for the longer baby cord midi from Boden.

That skirt, btw, is my very first purchase ever from Boden, way back in 2003 or 2004 (can't remember).  It is so old that the tag only has the British sizing (12 L, thank you very much).

Close up of the shirt, makeup, hair, and jewelry.  The jewelry is by Premier Designs, and my gal Rachel is the lady to go to if you are interested in any of these pieces.

With the jacket on so as to not disable the vision of reverent Catholics in the greater Greensboro area.

Next day we were headed home, and while I planned to be comfortable for the ride, the addition of the shrunken anorak by J. Crew turned out to be a good choice (last photo of this set of outfit photos) as it was definitely needed in the lovely drizzly rains we had that morning.

Anyhow, the outfit under the rain jacket was functional enough.  I really do love the Peter Pan Collar Tee (J. Crew) and was glad to have grabbed it before it sold out in my size (extra-small).  It does pop back on occasion, and if you like the look of this top and have a short enough torso to wear it (definitely runs short, even on me, it barely hits my high hip), this could be a winner for you.

It is super soft and the neckline and collar fabric is silk, so big thumbs up.  I know that J. Crew could have used a poly fabric (and am frankly surprised they didn't), so to pay near full price for it seemed reasonable enough (I think I had one of those 20% off coupons when I ordered it).

The Desert Bloom bracelet was an "on a whim" buy from the Greensboro J. Crew, where it was marked down to $29.99 and further reduced by 30%, making it a whopping $20.  I have now worn it twice since I bought it, so I would gather I made a good choice.

I just like the way this photo turned out.  :) 

The Leather Loafers are still available from Boden, btw, but on deep backorder.  I did a review of them here.  I actually purchased them for traveling, I find that I wear loafers on long trips, especially ones involving airplanes, as I can get them on and off easily through security.

The lighting was off in this photo, but you can get the gist of the jacket from what you see. 

It really is a "shrunken" anorak.  Much like the Peter Pan Tee, it is shorter through the body than most anoraks.  HOWEVER, I prefer that as my hips are wider than my bust and waist, and for an anorak to normally fit me, the bust and waist has to be huge to accommodate my hips.  But this one doesn't even hit my hips, just lays there on the top of my hips.  Awesome.  :)  I am possibly the only person this one worked for, which is why it is on super sale now (yay for super sales, I even got mine for a good price a month ago--that is how unpopular it is).

It is not the best at keeping water out (is canvas, not nylon), but for mild drizzle and wind, it will do the job.

OH, and for those of you wondering, I did happen to have a version of this back in 1992, the one that inspired this current version.  I also had a rain jacket from 1995 *still have it, in fact* that bears a passing resemblance to this one (but is red).

You can't see it from this pose, but it has side pockets where I could stick my hands in for protection.  And all those zipped compartments?  I totally used those, 'cause I'm a nerd, and see no reason not to...so the big one there in front?  Held my cell phone.  And the next time I wear it, I wouldn't be surprised if I stuck a size 3 diaper in the pocket, too.

Okay this one and the next three photos are just some fun shots from the trip.

I told you my "going to NC outfit" was boring.  I only put the info in the photo because who knows, maybe one of you is all, "ooh, where are *those sunglasses* from--must. know. right. now."

Okay, so why in the world am I posing with the Hamburglar and Birdie from McDonald's?  Well...it turns out that the South Hill, VA location was having a GRAND OPENING spectacular the very day we decided to eat there for lunch.  Oh, yeah.  My kids were in heaven...and omg, if you ever want amazing service from a McDonald's, you must go to McDonald's on an opening day celebration.

And, yeah, the folks at McDonald's totally loved Angus.  I think it was because he matched Grimace.

Speaking of Angus, look!  He is literally one big dimple.  I can't stand the cuteness!

(There were other photos of my kids from the trip, but to keep my friends' privacy in mind, I won't be publishing any of them here.  I know you all are cool with that.)

Guess where I am?  Steak and Shake.  Mmm...Steak and Shake.  Mmm. 

Okay so the rains are definitely a bother when driving, however, when you get to see this for nearly a half-hour of your drive (don't worry, Mr. Dina was driving, I took the photo from a non-driving position), it is totally worth getting wet. 

And that's it!!! :)

BTW, if you are interested in getting any last minute "Catch of the Day" sale items from Boden, the sale ends in less than two hours.  ;)  Thought some of you may want to know...

OOTDs: Posting to Prove I Am Alive.

Ha.  I am still alive.  :)  I took a couple days off of facebook, e-mail, and blogging because I couldn't do it.  Ya know?  I think we all have those moments, mine was actually caused by a whole lot of scheduled events taking the place of the time I would have normally had for my virtual self...but even if I hadn't had a whole slew of child- and bowling-centered activities, I may have still taken the time off so I could rejuvenate.

Anyhow, it has been a bit chilly here, especially at the beginning of this week, so most of the outfits below are my attempt at staying warm without having to pull out the parka and hats (seriously saw that on Monday, it wasn't *that* cold, people!)...

How have you all been?  Life taking you away, too?  Keeping the chill at bay with warm cozy sweaters?  ;)

Wore this for a preschool run on Tuesday. :)  The outfit held up insanely well for what I put it through.

The pants (Boden's Zip Ankle Skimmer) I will discuss further in the Boden Weekly Review Roundup (later today, I hope), but if you want a sneak peek, I did a quickie review here at the Facebook page.

The French Hen sweater is delightful, and I really enjoyed wearing it.  It is a size small, which is one size up from my normal extra-small.  I wore a layering tee under it, but the sweater turned out to be less itchy than I anticipated, so I didn't need it...

However, I ended up getting hot, so I took the sweater off at midday and just wore the tee, so I am glad I wore that layer.

Very simple makeup that day.

BTW, those Anthro earrings are heading for my hall of fame, I wear them at least once a week.  At $15, that is a great cost per wear and they are less than a year old.

I went to TJ Maxx during the preschool run (had to grab a play mat for Angus) and I tried on some shoes and a jacket...you know, because I could...and I fell in deep love with these heels.  They are Kate Spade Jocelyn heels and so swoon-worthy.  However, I left them at the store because I didn't have enough in my account to pay for them, and I figured if they were there when I did get money in the account, it was meant to be...

The jacket is Tory Burch and while very lovely, at $200 (originally $400), I couldn't justify it...this jacket would need to be a-freaking-mazing for me to buy it at that amount.

I look like I smell something bad.

I wore this on Wednesday to take Angus to his Little Gym class.  Oops.  They decided to do tumbling that day, and yeah, even though the jeans are wonderful, they weren't exactly the best pair for tumbling.  Wearing yoga pants the next class.

Now I clearly smell roses.

No bag here in this photo.

So the Kate Spade heels in the photo two up?  I ended up buying them after Angus's class...they were still there...and I had money to cover them.  (There's a moral of the story there, but I am not going to bother mentioning it.)  :)

I wore this yesterday to do yet another preschool run and bowling (mis)adventure.

Dottie is still kicking my butt in bowling, btw, for those of you keeping track.

I blame my bad score on the pants, though.  Turns out I bought last season's Roma trousers too large (but in my usual size 8 Long) and they kept. falling. down.  Agh!  Not good for bowling.  Will delegate these pants as travel pants exclusively as they were insanely comfortable.

Next week, I am going to kick Dottie's bottom and I will wear well-fitting pants to ensure my success.  ;)

I hadn't worn this Liberty of London for Target tunic top in a while, so I was glad to give it another day in the sunshine.

So this one is from Monday and not anything special, but I will tell you that this cowlneck sweatshirt from the J. Crew Factory is awesome.  Unfortunately it was cool enough that even this didn't keep me 100% warm (had to use a blanket when just sitting in my chair). 

I ended up going to the grocery store that night and this kept me warm enough then, but this was where I saw all the crazy people in their parkas.  It was maybe 50 degrees, but no colder.  In parts of Canada people would be in shorts and a tee if it was that warm (admittedly, we are talking about Labrador here, but still!).

CW had chosen these earrings for me, and though I would have normally not chosen them for myself, she ended up picking up a perfect pair.  Love them.  I am definitely going to have her help me style outfits in the future.  ;)

You all have a great day, will be back later!