All Dressed Up and...

I did have somewhere to go for most of these photos. Sadly, I did have the obvious "all dressed up and nowhere to go" for two of these photos, though. But we'll get to that later. :P

As all of you know by now, I have fully embraced becoming a SAHM who also is an Independent Arbonne Consultant (the shiny, bling-y, double-lower case "A" looking thing there to the right is my button to my website). Now normally most of my work for Arbonne keeps me at home (usually where I like to be most) filling orders for my clients, answering e-mails, checking out specials, researching ingredients, etc. But every once in a while, I do get out and have reason to don the business wear again and show off some of my finery, both J. Crew and Arbonne alike. :)

First up, let's start with the coolest place Arbonne brought me. Little back story, though: In July I was told by my friend Holly that if I were to sign up three preferred clients (who receive a 20% discount on Arbonne for the year by signing up) and if I were to make a sales goal, I would be invited to the beach (!!!) in North Carolina for an Arbonne girls weekend. Umm, what? For basically doing what I should be doing anyway as a consultant, I can get this really awesome incentive? Okay, where do I sign up?

I won't pretend that it wasn't hard work. I was prepared, though...I was there for my clients when they needed me, sent out lots of samples, talked to all sorts of folks about how much I believe in the ingredients that Arbonne uses in their cosmetics, etc. I had parties, and I was (barely) able to make the goal.

But was I ever glad I did. Holly and I went to Wrightsville Beach, just outside of Wilmington. The place we were at was a townhome right at the very southern tip of the beach. The weather as insanely perfect, the ladies were incredibly welcoming, sweet, and positive, and the wine was flowing. I don't think it could have been any better.

May 2010 Catalog Inspired, Not Copied... by dinagideon featuring j crew shoes

Up first, before you see the pics is my inspiration for the first outfit. I had made this polyvore AGES ago but it inspired my whole trip. I went with lilac, grey, and stone as my colors. The color combos in the outfits I brought were perfect with the beauty of the area. Oh, of course it matched my makeup. LOL. :)

Sizes:
Top: Size 6.  So glad I bought this embellished bow top last year.  I was back and forth, but it is one of my most favorite special blouses, hands down.  There is a factory version on the factory site...or there was last weekend.  :)
Cardigan: Size Small.  This is the Metallic Beach Cardigan, and was pretty popular this summer.  Mine has a TINY snag in one of the arms, but I think I could find a way to stitch it closed.  Hmm.
Pants: Size 30.  These are the cropped overdyed denim capris (or something like that) from 2008.  Yummy lavender color.
Shoes: Size 10.  Cole Haan's awesomeness has appeared many times this summer already here at My Superfluities, eh?

Wore this for our dinner out on the Saturday night.  I felt good.  I had fun.  It was worth all that hard work. ;)  I am prepared to work this hard for future incentives, btw.  (So if you want a hard-working Arbonne consultant, come on over, the water's fine.  LOL.)

Sizes:
Top: Size extra-small.  This is the sequin necklace tank.  This is really a great layering piece (although I am clearly not layering it here).  I tried this tank on with this skirt in the store and I loved it together.
Skirt: Size 10.  This is the fleurette pencil skirt that gave many of us so many issues when we tried it on.  This skirt did give a little in the hips by the time I sat down at church as it is a silk/linen blend, but it still bugs that the waistband and hips are nearly identical in measurement.  Last time I checked, most woman's hips and waists are significantly different in their measurements.  Yes, I had a floppy waistband.  You can't tell, so it is fine.
Shoes: See last outfit.  :)

I wore this to church (mentioned it already).  Yes, I realize that traveling does allow you to not go to church, but Holly and I really wanted to go to church on the beach.  It was pretty cool!  Right on the beach.  How freaking lucky for that priest!  :)

BTW, I like how I look mad that the sun was shining in my eyes. Quite the contrary.

How pretty is this view? Yes, this was our view. Scrumptious. :)

My favorite part of being at the beach?  You can have wet, tousled, beach hair, less makeup, and still feel just fine.  LOVE this.  Wish I could look this happy and relaxed in the middle of winter.  C'est la vie.  ;)

Just pulled back the hair, put on a little extra lip gloss, and was ready to go.  There is a group photo to go with this...privacy reasons prevent me from showing it but wowza, those ladies were GOOD looking.  :)  I promise.

All Dressed Up and... by dinagideon featuring a print tote

Above is the polyvore of the outfit I wore to host a party on Sunday. :) I did bring the Arbonne items you see in the polyvore, and I was wearing them (on my face, of course), too.

Sizes:
Dress: Size 8.  This is from Milly.  I fell in love with this dress on Net-A-Porter, but man, was it ever expensive.  When it went on sale in the Fall of 2009 at Saks, I jumped.  It was a touch too small then, and FINALLY...finally, I was able to fit into it.
Top: Size small. This is the J. Crew Tissue turtleneck in vintage forest from last winter.  Love this hue with the olive dress, the grey shoes, and the makeup I was wearing.
Shoes: Size 9.  Umm, yes, those are the HOT Miss Albright Anticipation Heels from Anthropologie.  They WERE WORTH THE MONEY.  I got of the car and Rachel, my party hostess was all, "I need those."  LOL.  SIZE DOWN.  Yes.  The 9s fit.  And I normally wear between a 9.5 and 10 in Anthro shoes.

My Stella and Dot consultant was so kind and gracious and offered to host an Arbonne party (don't worry, she will be well taken care of as an Arbonne hostess--great rewards, btw), so I wanted to bring it for her soiree.  We had a fabulous time, and I felt super-confident in this ensemble. 

You all kind of ready for the kind of sad story of "all dressed up and nowhere to go?"  Well, here it is. I wore this gorgeous, tailored outfit for a party at my house last Saturday.  Unfortunately, the party I was hosting didn't happen.  Agh!  The lady that was meant to host sort of didn't show up (yikes), so there I was all ready to go, foot tubs, salt scrubs, yummy conconctions, wine, etc. all sitting out.  Well, I like to make lemons into lemonade and I decided to stay dressed up, go to the desk, sit down, research more on ingredients, study other consultants' great ideas, and the like.  In the end, I did get a lot accomplished.  So, there you go.  I was dressed up and ready to go to my desk.  Ha. 

 And here I am close-up. I definitely kept this makeup on.  


Check out what I used to create this look:
RE9 Advanced Regenerating Toner
RE9 Advanced Corrective Eye Creme
RE9 Advanced Intensive Renewal Serum
Everything from the Beautiful You, Beautiful Glow Set, which includes Primer, Sheer Glow Highlighter, Blossom Blush, and Translucent Loose Setting Powder
Sheer Finish Tinted Moisturizer, Medium
Lip Polish, Posh
Eye Liner, Olive
Eye Shadow, Snow
Triple Action Mascara

Well, there you are. A long post, but hopefully still enjoyable. And remember, just because you are dressed up with no place to go doesn't mean squat if you figure something out. :) Talk soon!

Stadium Cloth Winnie Coat (in Yellow) plus the Beaded Ribbon Front Top Equals Casual Confidence!!!

I promise I will get to the review of the ruched-waist dress from Boden, but I want that to be a stand-alone review, so I will either write it tonight or tomorrow morning. It appears it isn't close to selling out in the patterns (solids have been sold out for awhile).

Winnie Love + Bow Top=Perfect for a Saturday!!! by dinagideon featuring J Crew

Yay...I am on this whole "let's blog about my daily outfit thing" with startling regularity lately. Wooh! Above is the polyvore of the outfit I wore for our monthly visit to Bethesda, MD. We always head up there to go shopping, hair cuts, eating awesome food (either Indian at Haandi or Cajun at Louisiana Kitchen) and various sundried other things.

I will highlight the top and the Winnie Coat today, because it seems to me you all might need a review on those more than on the Jackie Cardi (my first!!!) and the boyfriend chinos. :)


Cardigan: J. Crew, Jackie Cardigan, Dried Orchid, Size Small, Winter 2009.
Top: J. Crew Collection, Beaded Ribbon Front Top, Antique Stone, Size 6, Fall 2009. Totally sold-out, but may be worth a check for a pop-back. Great sale price for what it is, so I would jump on it if it pops back in your size. I bought it full price (but with some sort of discount).
Pants: J. Crew, Broken-in Boyfriend Chinos, Khaki, Size 8, Fall 2009.
Shoes: J. Crew, Montebello Driving Mocs, Toffee, Size 9, Fall 2009.
Earrings: (Ann Taylor) Loft, Sparkly Earrings, Sparkly Color, Summer 2009.

The whole outfit was so comfortable...the only time I worried or fretted at all was when we were eating Indian food. I went ahead and buttoned-up the cardigan and then layered a napkin on top of it to make sure that no yummy food ended up on that gorgeous top. But when I was getting my pedicure, I was able to show off its loveliness. (I want this top to be a piece I wear a lot, even if it is "special.")

The silk in the top is very similar to my Cecelia dress, so it is substantial...and the beading is very tight and well-done. It is a collection item, so that might be why, but who knows?

I am wearing my regular cami size in this top. Check out Ema and gigiofca in theirs.

I don't know that I can wear this top by itself because the antique stone is a bit pale on me, but I think it looks so pretty layered with the Jackie cardigan in dried orchid.

I had never purchased a Jackie Cardigan before because the times I tried it on in the store, I would try on a medium, and the shoulders were a bit wide on me, so I just assumed the Jackie wasn't my girl. But on a whim, and at a wonderful price of $37.50, I decided to take the plunge with this color and a smaller size. Yay! (Normally, I wear a medium in cardigans.)

If you have thin feet, and would like to wear the montebello driving mocs, please try a whole size smaller. I am now getting to the point where I won't buy a size 10 in J. Crew shoes because they fall off way too often...so I get a size smaller and then it fits fine width-wise, and the fabric then stretches a bit to accommodate me in length. Anyone else noticing a change in J. Crew sizing in shoes???


Coat: J. Crew, Stadium-Cloth Winnie Coat, Bumblebee Yellow (maybe???), but is actually Butternet Yellow...I prefer my Bumblebee version more, Size 4, Fall 2009. This was my favorite purchase made at the Arden Clearance Center, NC. Yay!!! There are no more coats in this color on-line, but there are a couple in navy still available.

The warmth factor is high in this coat, what with it being stadium-cloth, but I like that its shorter length is perfect for days when you don't need to be SUPER-covered up. The color is just that bright in person, and honestly, you could see me coming for miles amongst the sea of black and navy at the Post Office, but well, there you go! :) The sizing doesn't surprise me much. My hips are what make me a 6 or an 8 in tops. If the top is short enough, I wear a 4. This coat grazes my hips, so the 4 worked very well. The other thing I love? The sleeve length is REALLY long, and it is RARE for me to find a top that fits my short torso AND my sleeve length. So yippee, J. Crew...

HeidiG. loves her Winnie. Check her out in it here.

Have a great night (for those of you reading tonight); otherwise, Happy Sunday! :)