Ten Years!

Above: Recent OOTDs.  Boden Penny Jersey Dress, Boden Sweater and Mimi Velvet Skirt, and Made by Me Burnout Velvet Dress (with a pair of Boden Julia Heels).

Hi, all!

First photo of me on the blog.  That's CW, aged four months.

Happy January 15, 2019.  For those of you who've been with me a long time, you may remember that I started this blog on January 15, 2009.  And I kept it up for a long time without many pauses.  Until I stopped.  So happy 10 to me?  Or not?  But either way, it's been ten years, and I felt compelled to at least do ONE blog post on my ten year blog birthday.

I'm still doing my same old, same old, just doing most of it away from the blog.

What's the same:

Almost all Boden, of course.

1. I still own, in overabundance, a lot of Boden.  It is definitely been trimmed down, but their tall sizing really suits my frame, and works for my lifestyle, so I stick with it.  It has gone slightly down hill in comparison with my older Boden pieces (from 2004!), but they are not, in any way, shape, or form, as fast fashion as some companies are today (read: they still line items, add buttons and proper zips, and use higher end fabrics).

Outside Middendorf's, in Manchac, LA, in December.

2. I still am very much into my kids, in fact, that may be the #1 contributor to why I don't blog at all anymore.  I have so many things I must do with them that I come home from work and their activities and fall into bed!  Rex is now almost 12 (!!!), CW is 10, and Angus is 6.  Rex is really into Boy Scouts, baseball, and his video games.  CW is into acting (she's in her first ever community theater play as I write this), swimming, singing, her friends, and playing the piano and flute.  Angus loves bowling, soccer, baseball, swimming, and being social.  I remember a few years into my blog that another blog friend would only sporadically blog and she mentioned how tough her four kids made it for her to blog.  I didn't fully get it as mine were so small (and one wasn't born), but I fully appreciate it now.  The fact she blogged at all has me in awe!

Munich, Germany April 2018.

3. I still travel all over the world, and I love it.  I wish I could do that 100% of the time, but for now, I'll take it as I can.

4. I still am a History teacher, teaching the same stuff I used to teach when I started the blog way back when!

5. I may only publish to Instagram sporadically, but I do, so still keep in touch with me there.

6. I also still publish posts at the Fabric Mart Fabricista blog.  They've kept me all these years, and I still enjoy it.  The dress up there on the far right is my latest make, which you can read about here.

What's different:

1. I definitely wear more than Boden, but not just J. Crew.  I branch out way more than I used to, and find myself gravitating towards looser, more casual clothing than ever.  Part of that may have to do with my wearing more formal clothing for work and wanting to let loose when not working.

2. I am a big fan of subscription boxes.  This was not my style initially, but since starting the first one back in December of last year (2017) (Lookfantastic beauty box), I have since gone on to grab a whole bunch, and definitely look forward to my boxes.  It's actually curbed my spending overall, as I find having them come in satisfies my need for "new," and unless I really need something, I hold off.  For the most part these boxes are a set price and the retail value is much higher, and that ends up being satisfying, as well.  I have found lots of cool beauty, homeware, and clothing this way, and while I may pull back some, the desire for surprises keeps me intrigued.   I ended up spending very little on Christmas this year.  A whole bunch of my presents came from the boxes, especially for my female relatives and friends, since there would be things in each that I knew they would love more that I did.  (One of my friends is into essential oils, so I gave her some essential oil items I received.  Another friend really likes makeup, and there were some palettes that were too dark for me, so she received those.)

A cute top from Golden Tote, and a beanie from some subscription box.

I don't do many clothing boxes as I am too picky, but I give it up to Golden Tote for really getting my style and shape.  They personally reach out to me if they have questions, and I have received a few items that don't work (usually because the hips are too small on me), but in general, lots of winners.

3. I teach at a Catholic school, the one I went to.  My kids go there, and that's awesome.  I love seeing them.  They seem to be okay with it.  I give them credit for putting up with my being there all the time.  Rex is the most bothered, but even he is just kind of, "oh, mom, leave me alone."  Chuckle.  I even catch him smiling at me from time to time.

4.  I was really sad last year.  Like the entire 2017-2018 school year.  No one knew.  I think I hid it well.  It was a tough year, and I felt like no one liked me.  I had friends, but I fell into some dark, sad places some days.  I questioned it all...was I a good teacher, was I a good mother, why do I even bother, why do none of the people I like email/call/text me back, why does everyone else have friends, etc., etc.  I still don't know many of the answers, but because I decided I needed a thicker skin, I decided the answers didn't matter, and that I should just be all, "who cares, I'll figure it out."  Thankfully this year is 1100% better.

5. I gained ten pounds last year thanks to my sadness.  I am working to lose the weight, but it is really hard being a certain size and not being that size anymore.  Of course it all went to my hips and butt.  LOL.  Thank goodness so many of my clothes are loose skirted dresses.  :-)

Here forward:

Will I blog?  I don't know.  I'm not sure people read fashion/shopping blogs anymore.  I do know they read blogs that deal with subscription boxes and sewing, so I may just transition to that, and only mention what I am wearing in captions, and focus my ootd stuff to instagram.

There is also the possibility I may just move to youtube, as well.  I mean there is no way on planet earth I would ever be popular on that kind of platform, but I have seen women with similar backgrounds and lifestyles do okay there, and I have filmed myself to see if I can do it, and I am not as shrill or offensive sounding as I thought I might be.  I may give it a shot.  Who knows?  The unboxing and beauty videos are fun to watch and some of the ladies on youtube are pretty awesome.  We'll see.

I like this photo.  I shot it while a passenger in the car, lol.  I feel like this shows that I am doing well.  I am not sure I could have taken a photo like this last year, and am so glad I am doing better.  :-)

I hope all of you are well.  I am doing well.  I miss everyone.  Reach out to me if you feel so inclined.  I am still at dinagideon AT aim DOT come.

Let me know how you're doing in the comments, if you'd like.

Five Years. New Items. And a Giveaway.

Well, look at that...five years of blogging.  I am still amazed that I have kept this personal style/OMG I love Boden/J. Crew/SAHM craziness blog up for all this time.  If it were April Fool's Day I would totally tell you all that I was shuttering the doors to My Superfluities, but since it isn't, I will just take this opportunity to thank you all for coming here and reading/commenting/supporting me and mine throughout the years.  It has been a process and I cannot believe how much of a difference putting myself "out there" has made in my life.  I will probably write down the "five things I have learned from five years of blogging" post sometime soon, but for now I think I will focus on the most tangible difference, that of personal confidence.  I may still have days of worry and doubt and insecurity, but for the most part I wake up every morning feeling so much better about myself, my situation, and the future of my family than I would have five years ago.  I may have gotten there on my own, without this blog, since I am in my thirties, and most women gain self-confidence in their thirties, but I cannot deny that this blog helped my evolution.

Anyhow, I will blather on about all of this when I have more time, but for now, I wanted to share with you all two separate things...

1. I received a HUGE package of Boden/mini Boden in the mail today.  I took photos of the Boden items and can give you a very brief overview of the clothing, but do expect more information in the next Boden Weekly Review Roundup which I desperately need to do already.  I must say that receiving the package on the birthday of this blog seemed like perfect timing, so yay for that.  ;-)

2. Because I love celebrating the years of blogging with a giveaway, I will be giving away a $50 gift card to Boden.  To enter you will need to leave a comment below with your name and e-mail, plus one item that you just LOVE from the Boden spring rollout.  I can give this gift card to anyone, so international friends, don't hesitate to enter, either!

In order to enter, I would appreciate you following this blog in some format or another.  Bloglovin' seems to be the favorite, but I know that many of you follow (or can follow) through other formats, so go ahead and mention how you follow, if you wouldn't mind.  I don't need huge numbers of followers, but it is nice to see an uptick as the years go on and on...

The giveaway will be on January 30, so you have fifteen days to enter!  Usually I end them after a week, but feel like this will allow more folks to enter. 

I am paying for this giveaway out of pocket, btw.  Boden knows I love them, but they don't make it a habit of giving me gift cards to giveaway.  I just felt like I should make that clear since in the fall they *did* partner with some (much bigger and more established) bloggers to host giveaways, which did include those bloggers giving away a gift card from them, that Boden did pay for and not the bloggers who hosted the giveaway.  Being clear about this is important, since I am a Boden affiliate, as you all know, which means Boden works with me through an affiliate program.  That means I can offer you all some yummy coupons and codes and in turn Boden pays me a % when purchases are made.  They do all of this through an affiliate program which means I have *very little* interaction with Boden.

Okay, so onto the yummy goodies that I received in the mail!

L to R, clockwise order: Button Back Sweater, Must Have Tee, Sophia Sweater, Penny Loafers, and Bistro Short.

I will discuss the four clothing items below, but I didn't take a separate photo of the loafers and want to give a big huge thumbs up to the folks at Boden for making these in half sizes, since these are a 40.5 and fit my narrow 9.5 feet perfectly.  As many of you know, I have struggled in Boden shoes for years since it would often be that the size 40 would fit well width-wise, but not in length, but the 41 would be too wide and the right length.  The 40.5 is exactly what I needed, and these shoes confirm that. 

Button Back Sweater.  Size 6.  Fits well, just long enough, in a very soft, lightweight cotton/merino wool blend.  But all that aside, look at the pretty pretty print, swoon!

Must Have Tee. Size 6.  Runs ginormous, but because it is viscose (the stretchy knit type), I know that eventually it will shrink, even with careful washing and line drying, so I will keep the larger size with that in mind.  If I only planned to wear it for a year, I would buy the 4 and sell it when it got to short and narrow.

Bistro Short.  Size 10 L.  Perfection in all ways, length, fit, comfort, etc.  As per usual, the waist is a bit big since my waist is technically a 6 or 8 by Boden standards, but the bonus of buying up is I can wear the waist lower, which in turn makes the length a touch longer.  I need that with my height, so I am not complaining.  The print is so gorgeous, too, and made me smile.  I can't wait for warm weather.

Sophia Sweater.  Size 6.  This sweater (or jumper, for you British readers) runs really long.  Like it is "almost a tunic" on me long.  It's not something that looks bad, but I was expecting it to be a bit shorter.  I won't be able to wear it with shorts, but this will look adorable with the J. Crew minnies and a pair of ballet flats.

Okay, so don't forget to look around Boden so you can tell me what you would grab from the Spring rollout when you enter the giveaway.

Boden: 30% Off Sale!

Aw, look at the cute plane flying really low over London!

Good Friday morning.  :-)

Yes, I changed my blog design and header.  I was feeling a bit jealous of all the gorgeously laid out blogs out there, all white space, special modern graphics, etc.  Of course mine is not designed by anyone other than yours truly, which definitely makes it very Suzy homemaker-y, but it's an attempt, at least.  Maybe one day I will be able to afford for someone else to professionally lay out my blog for me...

Okay, back to the business at hand.  Apparently 30% off selected items wasn't enough, so the folks at Boden decided to have a 30% off everything sale, *until* Johnnie returns home from his vacation (which based on what my affiliate manager tells me is Monday, June 24, at 11:59 pm Eastern time).

I doubt I will have the time to do a picks post from this sale since I have my church's 75th Gala dinner to attend on Saturday, but I do want to point you all to my BWRRs, which will at least give a chance to see many of the on sale items on regular people, with average bodies, and not itty-bitty teeny airbrushed model thighs.  (Well, okay, some of my blog friends are teeny weeny, but you get what I mean...)

Do you have any favorites?  Is there anything that is in the sale that you think will sell out before the big end of season clearance in July?  Let us know!

Below is the direct link to the sale. 
Take 30% off everything at BodenUSA.com!


If you need free shipping, the below link will get you that, but the 25% off does not combine with the 30% off.

Giveaway: Shabby Apple!

Shabby Apple Snapdragon Dress

Hey, all!  As many of you saw yesterday, I did an ootd/review post on the Shabby Apple Snapdragon dress.  I definitely have had a positive first experience with Shabby Apple, and because I was fortunate enough to receive this dress for free from them, I thought I would pay it forward by hosting my own Shabby Apple giveaway.

(I had originally thought the company wanted me to review the dress and host a giveaway, but my bad, I misunderstood.  Regardless, I wouldn't have hosted the giveaway without having tried the brand first, so either way, I needed to give a product a try first before wanting to do a giveaway.)

Anyhow, I always do a giveaway around this time of year, so I figured, "hey, I made a promise, let's make this the giveaway for this time of year!"

Okay, so here's the deal, I would love to be able to say, "hey, choose whatever you want if you win, and I will make sure you get it," but I do have to have a cap on what amount I can spend, but I am sure you all understand.  ;-)

So, if you win, you can head on over to this link and choose any item that is $100 or less*, and you will send me all of the info I need, and I will place the order for you and have it shipped directly to you, as a way of saying "thank you" for reading my blog.

*Canadian winner will have a cap of $80, and International will have a cap of $70.  See rule #5 for more info on why. 

Here are the rules to enter:

1. Make sure to comment with your e-mail address (you can obviously use AT and DOT if you don't want spam-bots finding you), and your choice if you won the giveaway.  Let me know, as well, how you follow the blog.

2.  Please do follow my blog, either through blogger itself, on facebook, or at bloglovin'.  If you follow me through some other way, that's fine, just make sure you mention how in your comment.

3.  The giveaway ends on Sunday night, June 23, 2013, at 11:59 pm Eastern time.

4.  The winner will be announced next Monday morning, June 24, 2013.

5. If Shabby Apple delivers to you, you can enter.  Canadian and International winners will have a lower cap, though, to compensate for the extra shipping charges.  (I am sure that you all understand that, too, especially since shipping to Canada is nearly $30 and international is $40.)

6.  Good luck!

Alright, be back later today with another post. 

Giveaway: Celebrate. Good Times. Come On!

I recognize that a photo of Johnnie Boden in a bathrobe would probably be more fitting for my blog's fourth "blog-o-versary," but I figured most of you would prefer this gif of DJ Lance Rock doing his thang on Yo Gabba Gabba instead.

Okay.  So this is year number four.  Wow.  This blog baby of mine is as old as my daughter.

I have lots that I want to write about, everything from gratitude and appreciation for those of you who read this little corner of the internet daily to my near daily amazement that this is what I ended up doing (even partially) with my life.  If you had asked me at twenty (the height of my "I don't care how I look, only how smart I am" period of my life) if I would have ever had anything at all to do with fashion, I would have snarkily laughed in your face.  I am glad I found my way out of my know-it-all self and stopped taking it. all. so. seriously.

(I was that stick in the mud girl in college that sneered at people when they dared to be louder than a titmouse in the library.  Yeah, I was not especially pleasant.)

It has been interesting to see where these years have taken me, my blog, and my family.

I feel so happy and chill right now.  I think in the beginning, I didn't allow myself to just enjoy the process of this blog and let the overwhelming, nagging voice in my head that kept saying, "what in the world are *you* doing writing a personal style blog," take over far too often.  Now that I have four years gone, I don't even hear that voice anymore, I just think, "I have a personal style blog."  It's just a bit of fun and fluff that I do nearly every day and for the foreseeable future, anticipate continuing!

(But even with the fluff, thanks to this blog and all you great readers and your suggestions, I found out that my debilitating migraines were in fact mini-strokes caused by a hole in my heart.  So in some truly awesome bit of serendipity, I needed this blog to help me fix me.)

Anyhow, as per usual, I just had to go on and on...

ONTO THE GIVEAWAY!

Since it is four years, I have FOUR gift cards to give away to four followers of this blog (one per follower, lol, let's be clear).

1. Each gift card will be for $25.

2. The gift card can be from these stores: Boden, J. Crew, Madewell, and Anthropologie. 

3. Although I mainly have American readers, I have a definite set of followers from Canada, the UK, and throughout Europe.  You all are welcome to enter, but clearly you will be unable to receive the Madewell gift card.  I can work out the arrangement of getting you a gift card (same value, just in your currency) from the other three somehow.  But please do enter!  I have a strong feeling a lot of my high view numbers on the Boden posts are from non-US people.  :)

4. The giveaway will be closing on January 22, 2013 at 11:59 Eastern Time.  I will announce the winner on January 23, 2013.

5. To enter, make sure you follow this blog either at Facebook, at Bloglovin', or through Blogger.

6. Comment directly below this post with a link to your favorite item at one of these four stores.  (If you can't make the link work, you could also just say the name of the store and the name of the item.)  Also make sure to tell me how you follow this blog.

You all are the best, and I cannot wait to give out these four gift cards to the lucky winners!

THANK YOU AGAIN FOR A GREAT FOUR YEARS!  Here's to a {few} more...

OOTD: Lace and Aubergine.

Day: Wednesday, January 9, 2013.

Where: Tyson's Corner Center (the original mall, not the Galleria, darling!).  CW had an American Doll gift card to spend.  She got Caroline (her name!).  :) 

Ease of Wear: (3.5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.) Without the Boden coat, this outfit is a 4.5 of 5, but the coat felt a bit constricted through the shoulders with the J. Crew Lace printed sweatshirt under it.  I had to take the coat off before driving, since I felt a little too "straight-jacketed" with it on...

The Lace Sweatshirt is a size small and definitely worth every penny (on sale, not full price). I had been watching this one all fall, but of course the morning it goes on sale plus 30% off, my size sells out (I sized up from my normal extra small--I thought the xs was too clingy for a sweatshirt).  Fortunately it popped back quickly the next week, so I grabbed it then.

The pleated sweater skirt is a skirt I wasn't sure was going to work since I hadn't seen any reviews on it, and all the written ones were not exactly stellar.  When I received it, though, I knew it was exactly the right silhouette for my frame (it is very similar in feel to this Boden skirt I also own and love).  This is a size small, which is a size down from my normal skirt size (I wear an 8 normally--which would be a medium).  This skirt is so warm and cozy and comfortable.  Perfection and a great price on sale, too.  (It pops back, hand on heart!)

Cool Factor: (4 of 5 stars--5 being the coolest.) The color of the bag and skirt are in (although I shudder at the term "oxblood"--UGH) and with the touch of trompe l'oeil lace, it looks current and yet still appropriate for a mom on the go.  The Frye heeled boots help, too.  :)

Anecdote from the day:  Obviously Angus wants to be part of the action (look at photo three and four above).  I gladly obliged his little "ham-ness."

In addition to getting CW her American Girl, we also met up with HeidiG., yes, as in that Heidi from Head to Toe with Heidi.  She has assured me she is coming back to blogging, so yay!

Also, if you are in this area and regularly travel with three or more people in a car, definitely get the flex pass transponder to use the new HOT lanes on the Beltway.  OMG.  It took me under twenty-two minutes to get to Tyson's from my house, where normally (before the new HOT lanes were built), it could take anywhere from thirty minutes (no traffic) to an hour (with traffic) to get to Tyson's.  Now, it couldn't be any easier, and because we have the requisite three for the HOV (babies count!), we go for free...right to the doorstep of the mall.  (Actually, this may not be such a good thing.  LOL.)

Okay, that's all.  :)

P.S. Today is my blog's FOURTH (!!!) birthday.  I have a really great giveaway planned, with four total winners.  Be on the lookout for the post.  The winners will be chosen from comments made by followers of my blog (whichever way--facebook, bloglovin', or blogger), so if you aren't a follower, go ahead and sign up so you can be part of the giveaway action...

OOTD: 900 Posts, a Pop of Color, and a Giveaway!

Hello!  Happy Labor Day!

Well, look at that.  I am now at 900 posts written here at this blog.  Phew.  I guess I have had a lot to say.  Ha.

(Or outfits worn.  Or a mix of both.  Or Boden was having a sale and I couldn't shut up about it.)

Anyhow, as luck would have it, I published this outfit you see here in this post a week ago on my facebook page (I show off my outfits there first), and then five days later, my facebook friend, Rachel, posted on her Stella and Dot facebook page some photos of celebrities wearing the necklace that I used as a "pop of color" in the outfit.

Because it had been a long time since I had "talked" with her, I left her a note that let her know that I had worn this necklace as part of the outfit and that she could see it over at my facebook page.

She then said, "why don't we do a giveaway at your blog with one of my pieces?"  And I, of course, was game.  I let her know that my 900th post was coming up, and I could, as a way of celebrating, show off this outfit, talk about how the necklace added a bit of color to a very neutral outfit, and then do the giveaway!

So here we are.  I am now able to do all of the above!

Info on the outfit is in the photo.

I had worn the skirt earlier in the day to go and visit Rex's preschool teacher, and you all saw that last week here at this post.  I knew I still wanted to wear the skirt later that night when Mr. Dina and the rest of us were heading off to dinner, but I definitely wanted to change up the pieces, especially since I wanted the Stella and Dot Bahari necklace to be the star of the outfit.

A lot of people thought this outfit was a dress, that is how nicely the Loft top and Talbot's skirt worked together.  I think the studded leather belt by J. Crew ties the pieces together well, helping with the "dress" effect.

The Bahari necklace is a bright, vivid blue with gold accents (you can see it more closely here).  It really did "pop" against the white.  I love the summery feel of white, gold, and blue together.  It can look very nautical, and normally whenever I wear those colors together, that is the preppy feel I get.  This time, though, I felt like the outfit looked less preppy and more pretty.

The necklace was given to me by a friend, not Rachel, btw, even though she is the one hosting the giveaway.  My friend had two Stella and Dot boxes sitting out at her house when I stopped by to visit.  I said, "ooh, Stella and Dot, I love their pieces!"  My friend laughed and said, "I pulled these out for you."  So I open them up and was all, "ooh, I love these, I can't wait to see you in these!"

She laughed even more and said, "no, I want you to take one, they seem to be much more you than me."  So I picked out this necklace and she said, "good, that was the one I hoped you would like!"

I said, "you know I like a statement necklace, don't you?"  ;)

900 Posts, a Pop of Color, and a Giveaway! by dinagideon featuring silver jewelry

Above is the polyvore of the outfit.

Okay, so what about this giveaway?

Rules for entry:

1. Please "like" Rachel's Stella and Dot's facebook page.  (You don't have to follow my blog or like my facebook page, but if you feel like it, go for it!)

2. Please let me know you "liked" her page in the comments along with: a) your e-mail address, and b) how you would style the Bahari necklace in an outfit you would wear.

This contest will end one week from today, Monday, September 10, 2012 at 11:59 pm Eastern time.  I will announce the winner the next day.

I will be writing one additional post mid-week about how I would style this necklace with some of Boden's sale pieces (there is a 20% off sale going on right now), so if you forget to enter right now, I will definitely be reminding you.

Alrighty, that's it!

P.S. Boden's 20% off sale (I mentioned that I had received early word on this in my last BWRR and on facebook) has started.  I will be back later today with more info and my picks from this sale, but until then, here is a link for you all.
Get 20% off + free shipping & returns on select items at BodenUSA.com! Shop dresses, tops, pants, tees, skirts, accessories and more!

Boden: Riviera Shirt Dress, Fall 2012 Styled in Summer.

Happy Wednesday! 

Normally today's post would be a Boden Weekly Review Roundup, but I will be honest and tell you all...I am totally not ready.  :)  The only reason I even have a review today is because Boden sent me this dress last week and I wore it the next day.

I have quite a few reviews ready to go from myself and all of my blog friends (either e-mailed to me or published on their blogs), so there is a Review Roundup in the works, just not today, friends.

Dress: Boden Riviera Shirt Dress, Size 6.  I did a pretty in-depth review of this dress here at this post, so go ahead and check that one out first as I don't have much to add to it. 

That said, there is one thing of note...I have not lost a tremendous amount of weight since wearing the spring version and in my opinion, the fall version is more loose throughout the shoulders and bodice.  It could just be this colorway, but it is also just as likely that the designers put in new instructions to give an extra little bit of room throughout the top half.  It wasn't anything ridiculous so I have no need to get a size 4, but do keep that in mind if you have the spring version and felt it was too big, in that case I would get a size down.

Bag: Gifted from my mother-in-law.  She found it somewhere in New Orleans.

Shoes: Bandolino.

Earrings: Anthropologie.

My new header (obvioulsy!).  I was torn.  As much as I loved the "avant-garde" Dina in the last header, I also know that changing things up every once in a while is not a bad idea.  I will be placing the old header image in my sidebar (like I have done with past ones), if you have any desire to see it still.

From the side.  I was heading out to see my dad playing a professor in the Legally Blonde musical that was playing at a local theater.  He was so excited to have my brother and I come out, but I only got to see act one because of dear tiny little Angus.  He was asleep for act one, but woke up during the intermission, so that took away my ability to see act two.  Ah, well, such is my life.

And the back.  From here you can see how the bodice has a bit of extra fabric through the lower shoulder area, which doesn't bother me, but may be excessive if you are especially tiny in your torso.

And the close-up of the fabric, earrings, makeup, and hair.  I adore the vintage look to the print, but just like the one from the spring, it is a LARGE scale floral and may be too large if you are small.  Fortunately it comes in many colorways, so it is likely that you can find one to work for you if you like the look of this dress.

Okay, all, that's it.  

Just a quick reminder for those of you who may have missed it...I have started a facebook page for this blog, so if you would like to, you can "like" this blog over there.  I see 23 of you have (well, 22 if you don't count my mom, lol), which is wonderful, so thank you!

Folks on a mobile device, below is a link for 10% off and free shipping and returns, just in case you need a coupon. I love this image, pretty shiny patent shoes, yum!

OOTO: Pleated Blouson Dress Does Double Duty.

First things first...I finally joined the 21st century and made a Facebook page for My Superfluities.  I would adore it if some of you decided that you wanted to "like" that page.  :)  My plan is to do preview outfits that will eventually appear on the blog (I get so behind, this would be a great way to show off each outfit as I wear it) and to tell folks when Boden has sales and I have received news and/or coupons that I can share with you here.  There will likely be more, but since it is in its infancy, that is the plan for now.

So you all have seen the Pleated Blouson Dress in action already when I wrote about my experience wearing it on my birthday weekend (also known as the weekend when derecho Dina hit the east coast).  I only gave the dress a passing review, with one photo, as I was beyond tired from all the festivity and craziness of the unplanned sojourn from electricity...

I have worn the dress twice now (ooto--outfits of the "occasions"), the first time being when I wore it for the birthday/Baptism (which was mentioned in that post I linked to in the paragraph above), and the second time for a wedding of some close family friends (the groom was a boy I used to nanny for--agh--I AM SO OLD).

This is the way I wore it for the wedding.  I felt like I could loosen it up a bit since I wasn't going to be at a church (the groom is a Unitarian and decided to have it outside, my wedding had to be at a Catholic Church)...it felt good to totally change up the look from conservative to a bit more flashy.

Dress: J. Crew Pleated Blouson, Size 6 (fit for my waist, hips/bust free-ish).
Shoes: Via Spiga Mystique, Size 9.5.  These are seriously sexy shoes.  I don't own a lot of sexy shoes.  I bought them on a whim when I saw them at DSW for a ridiculously good price (one of the clearance items plus 40% off).
Bag: J. Crew Candy Stripe Jute Clutch.
Earrings: J. Crew.

I went with no belt this time as I felt like the dress could do well on its own.  I was right.  I far prefer this styling to my original styling.

I kind of like this photo, plus it gives you good look at those amazing shoes.  I kind of feel like these shoes belong in the Eagles song, Those Shoes (that link has the song and some silly dragon avatar--huh?).

This was from the first outing.  Mr. Dina caught this angle, and I ended up liking the image.  You can see the belt here.  I really don't mind the belt, but prefer the styling as worn to the wedding.

Original styling.  It is fun, it is colorful, and it is "current," but I definitely won't be replicating it.  I am having issues with those yellow Lena wedges, too.  I have now worn them three times and while I love them on their own, I have not liked them with the skirts and dresses I have paired with them.  (I think I may need to wear them with shorts and capri pants instead.)


Onto photos from the occasions that the dress was worn to:

It was Angus's baptism, the one day where he will ever wear a bonnet.  We loved this photo.  Every time he smiles now he sticks out his tongue.  :P

He was only awake for a few brief moments during the actual Baptism, when the water hit his head.  He didn't even scream or cry.  He kind of just looked up, looked about a bit, and went back to sleep.  That's my boy. 

Taken right after the actual baptizing.

Mr. Dina is not Catholic, but the Father still blessed him.  :)

After the ceremony, all the family photo taking commenced.  Man, so many photos.  And only two or three managed to turn out.  My favorite was the twenty or so taken of all of us with Mr. Dina's family...they all looked silly.  Especially CW, who did a different funny face in all of the images.  (Maybe one day I will just publish those...)

The wedding (the next Saturday) took place at an historic home in Maryland.  It was so pretty there...but get this...it was also the hottest day yet in the DC area in some unimaginable years.  We didn't break the record of 106 (seriously, ONE OH FREAKING SIX), instead petering out at 105.  Viva la difference.

Pleated Blouson Dress Does Double Duty. by dinagideon featuring j. crew dresses

The polyvore of my preferred styling for this dress is above.

Alrighty, then, we'll talk soon.  Hope you all have a great night, and maybe I'll see you over at Facebook.  :)