OOTDs/Review: Boden Everyday Sweater, Low Heeled Loafer, and Charlotte Top. Plus a Flash Sale Today Only!

Before I start, there is a flash sale going on at Boden today, for one day only.  I put the link in the sidebar and at the bottom of this post for those of you interested.  The Everyday Sweater is in the sale, fwiw.  The Charlotte Top is not part of the sale, but it is listed at 30% off, so it has been reduced to further than my current sidebar coupon is (currently at 15% off).

Okay, onto the outfit of the day/reviews.  OOTD portion first, followed by a review.

Day: Sunday, October 19, 2014.

Where:  Harris Teeter.

Ease of Wear: (4.5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.)  It is a touch cool here today, with highs only in the low 60s.  I knew I would need a sweater (here at Boden, use link below for the flash sale savings), but was hoping this would be warm enough for the temperatures.  It was more than fine, I wasn't cold at all.  The weight of the sweater was more than adequate.

The shoes are a bit wide on me, sigh.  They didn't fall off or anything, but I am so darn picky.  If only these loafers (here at Boden) had come in half sizes, I would have been set. 

Cool Factor: (4.5 of 5 stars--5 being the coolest.)  A bit trendy with the necklace, jeans, and shape of the sweater, but a bit retro with the design on the sweater, so all in all, a great look for me.  Just wish I had someplace more exciting than the grocery store to go to...

Anecdote from the day:  Rex fell down from the illness that took his daddy down yesterday.  He is sick, too, with a temperature.  So now half the house is sick, and the other half is trying to take care of the half that is sick.  ;-)

REVIEW:

Everyday Sweater.  Size 6.  I chose correctly, size-wise.  The width is bit wide, but I know that was the intention, so I would not size down from your normal Boden knitwear size.  I personally think this is such a flattering silhouette, with the gentle curved hem, scoop neck, and long, thin sleeves.  Those are really long sleeves, though, and they have no petite option, so keep that in mind if you are a smaller lady.  The length is also a bit short, so if you have a longer torso this may end up bothering you.

The blue retro rose color is a cotton/wool blend and so soft.  I love it!  The other colors are not that combo, so I can't speak to their relative softness.

If they come out with other colors that tempt me in the future, I will definitely be buying this sweater.  It is truly a lovely item.

I did another review of this item here at this blog post.


Low Heeled Loafer.  Size 41.  I wear a size 9.5 at J. Crew, and their shoes, without fail, always fit me in that size.  Boden's shoe sizing is one place I can never be fully sure what size I wear.  It may be a 40 one time, another a 40.5 (if available), or a 41.  Sigh.  These, as I mentioned above, would be best for me in a 40.5 since the width on the 41 is too loose.  I can fix it by wearing thicker socks, but sometimes I just don't want to wear socks.  Oh, well. 

As it is, these are popular shoes, and nearly sold out in many of the colors (or on backorder), so I will keep the 41.  It isn't like they are falling off, they are just a touch wide, and I am picky.

The color is fab, a muted pewter color that goes with so much.  The heel height is also wonderful, just enough for a lift, but not so high that it becomes hard to manage.

I did a review of this item here at this blog post, way back when.  I wasn't so picky back at that blog post, maybe they felt tighter then?  Who knows.  Maybe I am just cranky.  LOL.

Day: Friday, October 17, 2014.

Where:  Target and School Pickup.

Ease of Wear: (4.5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.)  Well initially, at my house anyway, it was cool enough to justify a scarf with the outfit.  But by the time I got to the school for pickup, it was actually hot, so I had to take it off.  The Charlotte top (here at Boden) was a perfect weight for the mid-70s, so on its own, it was very comfortable.

Cool Factor: (4 of 5 stars--5 being the coolest.)  I dig shorts with a longer-sleeved top, a scarf, and sandals, but based on the look that some old guy gave me at Target, I would guess he wasn't into it.  LOL.  Okay.  That's fair.

Anecdote from the day:  The world's cutest chocolate lab puppy showed up at pickup (he was a rescue) and my son was in HEAVEN.  He spent half of the pickup time playing with the puppy.  The other half of the time he sat enjoying being the center of attention since all the adults there were oohing and aahing over the insane adorableness of cute puppy and cute baby together. By the way, Angus's shirt is from baby Boden and available here.   Hee. 

REVIEW:

Charlotte Top.  Size 6 PETITE.  After taking the measurements into consideration and reading that the top is supposed to hit at the low hip, I *knew* I had to get the petite because that would mean it would be shorter on me, which means it wouldn't hit at my low hip and instead hit at my high hip.  Whenever something straight up and down hits at my low hip, I either size up to fit the hips and have it be too large on top, or get it to fit my bodice and know it will be too tight on bottom.  Yay PETITE sizing!  :-)  It is a touch short in the arms, but I like where the cuff hits, just below my elbow.

The size 6 R and 6 P both have the same body measurements, it is just the length of the top and sleeves that are different.  They don't do what J. Crew does and make the 6 P have the same measurements as the 4 R, just shorter (so weird, don't get that at all), so definitely do not size up if you want to buy the petite version.

I am particular about how the plaid lines up and it doesn't, kind of obviously, if you notice it, but meh, it isn't something most people look for, so I can get over it.  It is a really cute top otherwise.

Okay, that's all for now.  Hope everyone is having a great Sunday.

Sale Info:
Sunday only! 20% off all Women's Knitwear, Hats and Scarves15% Off Everything Else + Free Shipping

OOTE/Made by Me Files: Halloween. Glinda. Witch. Bad Pig. Blue Bird. And a Lone Fox.

Hey, all.  I am feeling mildly uninspired lately.  I 100% know it has to do with pain and feeling like the bottom is going to drop out if I don't get things done *right* now.  Because I am super crazy (obviously), I decided that I would handmake 70% of my gifts this Christmas, all the while knowing full well I would be recovering from wisdom teeth extraction.

So the actual wisdom teeth procedure went fine, as I have told you all already, but unfortunately some "tooth bits" were left in my upper left wisdom tooth cavity (this happens often enough that it isn't a big deal) and they have to. work. themselves. out.  WORK. THEMSELVES. OUT.  Read that as:

"Oh my God, it feels like a dagger is attacking my gumline and my cheek." 

Followed by:

"Why aren't there more painkillers over the counter?"

Followed by:

"Just leave me alone."

Followed by:

"Fine, Mr. Dina, call the doctor."

And of course she did what she needed to and now I feel marginally better, but I am irritated at myself for not calling her two days ago.  Sigh.  Stupid stubborn streak.

Anyhow, because I have zero energy, but figure I should let you all know that...

Onto a secret, and I really hope Boden fans are reading this, 'cause this is good...

Boden has allowed some of us to pre-order from the Boden clearance sale this weekend.  I noticed that the Boden Preview site was down for maintenance yesterday and thought, "hmm, that's odd."  Turns out they have the sale section there, with the great prices ready to go, and you can preorder.  At least I could.  Now, I received an e-mail that stated it was for my eyes only, but it seems that we should all be able to do it, so long as we have a Boden account, right?  Would one of you who did not get the e-mail try it and let me know so we can officially confirm that we can do this? 

UPDATE (10:13 pm): Stephanie has confirmed that only us with the official e-mail are able to access the early sale.  She says:

it wouldn't let me on the preview sale site, i randomly found it earlier today and when i tried to log in it said i wasn't on the list to get it :( very sad.

Thanks for letting us know, Stephanie.  Agreed.  :-(

Anyhow, if you go over there you can see many items that are very greatly reduced as well as many items that are MUCH greater reduced right now.  So basically if you like something that won't be greatly reduced at the clearance time, I definitely encourage you to grab it before the "officially" starts on Sunday.

About the above, I commented this back to Stephanie: 

I certainly can't go over the whole list of items, but I will say that if you like something that is popular, it appears that it is only reduced between 10% to 20% off. If the item is unpopular, there a whole lot of 40% to 60% off items. :)

Maybe this can help you all a little bit?

I decided to throw this info in here because I don't really know if I am allowed to tell you all, and would hate to find out I screwed up.  Heck, I might get in some trouble, but the percocet is making me all sorts of wild and daring.  ;-)

Okay, onto Halloween.  Right, Halloween.  Forgive me, month of December.

I had spent most of that day creating CW's Glinda costume.  I was spent by the time trick or treating came.  I figured the orange sweater, shoes, and pumpkin earrings was definitely festive enough.

I could have gone as Glinda my own self, but eh, maybe next year.  ;-)

So this Glinda costume basically exacted the same amount of time and energy as CW's Rapunzel costume did.  In other words, WAY too long.  And then of course I jumped into the Vogue Paris Original dress right after that, so I guess I should just accept I like a challenge.  My stepmom thinks now that I have made three insane outfits, I should attempt a jacket or coat.  And of course I was all, "yeah, let's do that."  Let me sleep straight for three months first, though.

(The Christmas presents I am making are far easier than any of these dresses, a bunch of pretty infinity scarves, some tote bags, a few stuffed animals, a few *simple* dresses and jackets, and a pillowcase.)

This dress is made from Simplicity 4139 ( here) and is a pretty close replication of what Glinda looks like in the movie.  (The original movie, not the most recent one.)  My daughter isn't an exact Billie Burke, but there is absolutely no mistaking who she is.  So mission accomplished, two ginormous "it looks like it can eat CW's head" puffy sleeves and all.

Most of the dress gave me little challenge.  In fact, this material is a plastic nylon fabric of some sort, probably meant for rain jackets, that I got at G Street fabrics at one of their "$2.97" tables.  It wasn't terrible to sew, it made a funny sucking kind of sound as I sewed it, but I loved that I didn't have to finish off the seams to prevent fraying fabric (plastic doesn't fray, hey!).

What ended up getting to me was the stinking sleeves since although they look fully puffy and definitely "good witch,' they are not evenly placed in the armhole and that irritates me.  No one else probably even notices, but after watching "Breaking the Faith" on TLC and seeing all the FLDS and their perfectly formed puffy sleeves, I just know I could have done better.  I did puff out her sleeves with the help of poly-fill.  That stuff is really great for more than just stuffing stuffed animals. 

I also hated the princess seams (they are covered by the silver rick rack to make up for the horrible job I did on sewing them).  Apparently you are supposed to ease the seam before you sew it (basically cutting it to fit the curve on the other piece).  I didn't know that and desperately wondered how I was supposed to fit them together.  By the back, I had figured it out, but the front was a mess.  So yay silver rick rack, I appreciate your hiding powers.

I did like that I chose to use a very sheer sparkly tulle over the puffy sleeves and collar, and a very light application of silver fabric spray on the skirt.  She literally shined as she moved.  It's pretty darn magical.

I think the back looks way better than the front. 

I also made the crown from posterboard, also sprayed with the silver fabric spray.  The crown is destroyed now, though, sigh.  Kids!  ;-)

My dad and my son's Angry Birds costumes also needed some polyfill.  Good thing I had some, just hanging out, huh?

My stepmom wanted to match CW, so she dressed as the Wicked Witch of the West.  CW was sad to hear that the wicked witch was not supposed to be her friend.  She almost cried, in fact.  We changed the story just a touch to make her feel better.

And there is our lone fox.  I bought that for Tiny at Carters in September, and he has actually worn it as a coat a handful of times since then.  He gets a lot of smiles, and yep, a lot of "what does the fox say?"  Ha.  He says "yip yip yip yip yip yip yip," of course.  (We have a few foxes in our forest behind the house, and I assure you foxes sound weird and deranged.  Turns out that angry zebras do, too.  Yeah, that's right, I have heard an angry zebra!)

Rex saw that and was all, "I want a fox coat, Momma!"  So guess what one of the coats for Christmas will be?  Yep, McCall's 6828 (here).  I am such a freaking pushover.

Okay, that's it for now.  Remember to try the Boden preview site (sign into your account first!) and let me know if you can access the sale.  Also, if you see something that goes UP in price at the clearance time, definitely better to buy now.

The coupon link below says it's expired, even though the affiliate program says it is good until tonight.  The link barely matters since the prices are all around 25% off, and lolcatgirl has let us know that you can use the code Z2H4 for free shipping.  If I get a new promo, I will update this post and my sidebar!

Boden: Autumn 2013 Preview 20% Off Ends in One Week...Plus mini Boden picks.

Hey, all!  Happy Sunday.

I arrived safely in North Carolina for part one of my two state trip with the family, but since I have a few (very brief) moments, I thought I would remind you all that the Boden Autumn 2013 Preview ends its 20% off next Sunday, July 21, 2013.  As you all are aware of by now, this is the very first time (at least in my memory) of Boden being so generous with the 20% off during the preview period.  Usually you only receive a few weeks to make your selections to get the 20% off with free ship and returns.  This time they decided that all of us would benefit from receiving the 20% off from the start until the very end of the preview.  I am grateful for this extra time, as I was still weighing which pieces I would like to purchase for our family.  I suspect many of you Boden fans are also super-appreciative, too.  :-)

To receive the 20% off, make sure to put the code PRV3 in the shopping bag page.

I have two more picks posts planned for this week, and I think I will do the rest of the women's choices (including Johnnie b.) either tomorrow or Tuesday.  Today (in this post, below), I will go ahead and do my picks from mini Boden and baby Boden.

I did a few picks way back in early June, you can see that post here.

mini Boden:

Printed Tea Dress.  It is a viscose dress, with a acetate liner, which I am not normally a huge fan of, but gah, this print is beyond adorable, and if you have a little lady in your life who loves conversational prints, this will likely be right up her alley.  The model is wearing this dress, which means it is possible that it will sell out first.  (That is not always the case, though.)

Button Pinafore Dress.  Oh, the Scandinavian floral on this darling cord dress is adorable, and layered with the right tights and tee, will keep your little one warm in the fall and winter, but can also be worn without layers and a pair of sandals for the summer.

Woodland Knitted Dress.  My girl wears her version (from two years ago) all the time, and as she has aged it is becoming a tunic, so it is also very versatile for our growing kids.  This particular style of dress always sells out at Boden, so take note.  It may make sense to get it in preview, just in case, if you want to ensure you receive one at a little bit more off (regular in season % off is between 10 and 15% off).

Fair Isle Cardigan.  This reminds me of the "mom" version in my original Fall picks, so if you would like to matchy-match with your daughter, you could get her this one.  ;-)  Otherwise, it is a wonderful choice for the finicky days of fall, when it is too cool in the morning not to wear something over the outfit, but you don't want something too heavy to carry easily when it warms up by later afternoon.  (The scenario I am describing is definitely an American south situation, this may not be true for where you live, obviously...but who can go wrong choosing a darling knitted cardigan for their little girl?)

Twill Slim Fit Jeans.  I love this print, the darling little stars look like dots from far away.  The grey is a great shade that works with so much, exceedingly perfect with both bright-colored/patterned tops and sweaters.

Ballet Flats.  Oh, oh, oh!  Speaking of stars, aren't these shoes just so cute and twee?  I should get them for CW, she will no doubt exclaim her excitement loudly enough that all the neighbors will know how happy she is...

BTW, if you have smaller feet, these go up to size 37, which is basically a women's size 7.  I have found they run big, too, and back when they sold size 39, I was able to fit in a few pairs of mini Boden shoes (I wear a size 40 or 41 depending on the style in regular Boden).

Decorative Skirt.  Anglophiles everywhere, here is your way to show your love for the UK on your daughter's clothing.  An umbrella, a double decker bus, a cuppa tea, and a black cab, it's all there to show your adoration of all things British.  Well, your little girl will be showing it off, but you can live vicariously through her...

Big Bloom Applique T-Shirt.  Ooh, so girly, right?  A darling Breton done in a pale pink and ivory colorway, plus pretty little floral appliques placed in the middle in a heart shape.  Swoon!

Hotchpotch T-Shirt.  Even though I am shying away from Hotchpotch lately (I used to love wearing this style), I kind of dig this one and wish they had in an adult size.  So pretty and different. 

Pretty Pointelle T-Shirt.  Boden issues some version of this every season, and every season it sells well, but this may be my fave so far.  I love the pretty cap sleeves, with the pretty shirring and gathering detail, plus the color is divine and will work well with so many of the offerings from this fall collection.

Patterned Sweater.  This has me lol-ing, so I included it.  Both my boys could help others understand them better if they wore this out in public. 

Cord Baggies.  If your boys are like mine, you are probably buying pants/shorts/sweats every month or so since they don't ever. stop. growing.  This year I am buying these pants in two colors, and I look forward to having Angus enjoy them in five years time, too.  The drawstring waist is especially beneficial if your boys have narrower torsos compared to their leg length.  (They won't fall down, yay!)

Leather High Tops.  Rex has this pair (they've reissued this color, yay!) and wears them all the time.  They still look brand new, which is wonderful.  It is rare to find leather shoes for kids, and I especially appreciate Boden keeping the price relatively low compared to other retailers who offer leather shoes (cough, cough, J. Crew).

Big Animal Applique T-Shirt.  I actually have friends who wouldn't be able to go near Rex if he wore this t-shirt in their presence.  (Not CW, though, she actually likes snakes.)  I think this shirt is definitely only for the brave, as that snake looks sinister, but if you have a mud/bugs/critters kind of little man in your life, I think you will make their day if you get it for him.

Scribble Print T-Shirt.  Of course Rex is getting this, since I love being corny!  It also has "roarrr" written on it, which will act as a warning for his presence.  ;-)

Big Print T-Shirt.  I will always sing the praises of Boden for little guys, since they are one of the best retailers of their clothing.  Proof is in this particular t-shirt, with its bright orange shade, and retro car print with the Union Jack grill.  Awesome. 

baby Boden:

Applique Apron Pinnie.  Oh, how I wish some of the baby Boden pieces carried over to the mini line.  How darling is this dress with its woodland scene border?  For those of you will teeny little girls, enjoy, and know that CW and me are living vicariously through you all!

Novelty Hat and Mittens Set.  Angus takes off any hat that has no button or tie at the chin.  Boden has heard my plea, and continues to make hats that are winter-proof and baby-proof.  Thank you.  :-)  There is also a darling bunny version, too!

Knitted Jacket.  My husband's co-worker saw Angus wearing a striped minky fabric version of this jacket (bought in 2012) and exclaimed that he would love it if he could get away wearing a jacket that had bear ears.  Well, Boden hasn't yet issued an adult male version, but they have another version for our favorite minis this fall.  (It also comes in girly colors, too.)

Twin Pack Rompers.  I have purchased these for Angus since he has been born, and he wears them multiple times in a month, and after multiple washings and runs through the drier, they still look brand-spanking new.  Plus the cotton is pretty stretchy, so even if your little one is getting a bit bigger, the cotton will stretch just enough to make them still wearable. 

The girl version has adorable elephants holding balloons.  So cute!

Zip-Up All-in-One.  My hubby's coworker may want to wear bear ears, but I wish I could have the adult version of this outfit.  I would happily pad around the house in this, especially since the darling little elephants would put a smile on my face every time.  But alas, I cannot, but the darling little babies wearing it will still be sufficient to upturn any frown.

When I Grow Up T-Shirt.  Let's end here, with a rock star.  I mean, come on, look at this t-shirt.  Amazing, really.  The minds of the Boden designers, they never cease to amuse me.  ;-)

Okay, that's it from my mini and baby Boden picks.  Do you have any to add?  There is quite a lot to choose from!

Also, those of you watching the current clearance sale (it had its second cuts on Friday, btw), I have seen that there have been near daily updates of stock.  I nearly grabbed the one item I had been watching for, but by the time I had inserted my credit card info, it was gone.  Ah, well.  Popbacks, so tempting, and so elusive.  ;-)