OOTE: Lucille Goes on a Date in the City.

The day after Mother's Day, Mr. Dina was supposed to take me on a date in the city at a restaurant I have recently fallen in love with, America Eats Tavern (also known as my baby shower restaurant).  I had been bugging him to get me there before it closes for good, and of course, he gets sick the day before we are supposed to go.  Sigh.  So I tell him to cancel it and make a new reservation for later than week.

Good thing he did, btw...the Monday we were supposed to go was rainy, blustery, and kind of cool.  The day we went?  BEAUTIFUL, sunny, gorgeous, lovely, I could go on and on...

Before he showed up to get me and the babies (they went with my dad, though), I got dressed to my springtime nines, dragged out my D70, and did some self portraits of the outfit. 

The Lucille dress served me well.  I not only loved the outfit and its colorful bits, but it was really comfy, too (although the Pia pumps did hurt a bit at the very end of the night).

Coat: Boden Spring Trench.  I reviewed it here.  It is sold out (in this hue) but often pops back.
Necklace: Banana Republic.  I have had this one for a long time and don't wear it a lot, but it does come out at least twice a year.
Dress: J. Crew Lucille Dress in Scalloped Eyelet.  I did a review here. It fit me much better on this evening than on the night of the review.  ;)
Bag: J. Crew Collection.
Shoes: J. Crew Collection Pia Calf Hair Pumps.  Bought them off ebay for 99 dollars, much less than I ever saw them on-line.  These pop back every once in awhile, but I recommend going the ebay route.

I have been digging the look of wearing the coat on the shoulders instead of fully on, but it really isn't very practical, just very pretty for pictures.

Here is the coat on properly, with just a bit of a popped collar for fun.

Close up of the necklace, earrings, and the bodice of the dress.

No trench which was the way I wore it over the course of the evening.  It wasn't until the very end of the night that I needed to wear it for warmth.

Lucille Goes on a Date in the City. by dinagideon featuring a retro polka dot dress

Above is the polyvore of this outfit.

We found a space right on 7th Street, next door to the Hirshorn (this will be important later in the post) and across the street from the Air and Space Museum.  Rarely do I ever take the metro into the city.  I took the metro for SO many years (pretty much all of middle school, high school, college, and with my first job) that I definitely prefer going straight into the city and parking. 

We were able to sit at the BEST people watching table, right at the entrance of the America Eats Tavern.  The night was utterly perfect for al fresco dining (70s and sunny and dry).

This ale drink was amazing and very refreshing, a bit citrusy, a bit hoppy, and a bit sweet.

A lot of the drinks and food items are based on historical recipes, so if you are a foodie AND you like American history, get to this restaurant before it closes at the end of this month.

Okay, so remember how I said that it was important that we parked right next door to the Hirshhorn?  As we approached our car after about a half mile walk, we saw the circular walls of the Hirshhorn were ablaze with random images of people and items.  Then we hear the music, the pretty haunting music.

Turns out we had stumbled upon (in my opinion, anyhow) one of the most inspired modern art installments I have ever seen.  Called "Song One" by Doug Aitken, it was a multimedia presentation of the song "I Only Have Eyes for You," sung by multiple singers in a film that was projected onto the walls of the museum.

It was simply chilling, beautiful, stunning.  I had goose bumps.

This image, btw, is now my background of my computer.  Mr. Dina says that "the man" is watching me.  Yeah, I guess he probably is...

This is my good friend Tilda Swinton and I.  Just hanging out.  ;)

Perfection.  That was that evening.

The trench coat did well for another lady.  In a Star Magazine issue from a month or so back, they pitted three celebrities wearing a Kmart (Kmart!!!) dress against one another, and the winner was Louise Roe because of the Boden Spring Trench.  Yay for Boden!

Okay, that's all.  I am really tired and I am ready for a full day tomorrow (Angus and I are heading to the city so I can take him to his first museum!).  I have been bad about commenting back, but again, I am definitely reading them and appreciating them, so THANK YOU!  \

Have a great, beautiful, utterly perfect night!

J. Crew: A "Fabiola" Mother's Day.

Oh, I feel so very timely publishing my Mother's Day outfit two days before Father's Day.  Yes, that's me, Miss Punctuality.  :P

Anyhow, I had a really nice Mother's Day, from the beginning to the end.

A few things helped bring me to this happy place.

1. We went to church on Saturday afternoon.  My kids were awful (shocker--lol, not) and of course, because I am high strung (shocker--lol, not) I was in a foul mood after church.  But Saturday wasn't Mother's Day, Sunday was, so I was able to sleep off my anxiety that my kids will always be just that terrible in public places (I am so dire in my predictions that I can see them at 46 dropping the kneelers and cackling LOUDLY about it).

2. Mr. Dina went to the grocery store first thing and got a few items for me.  Most mommas want brunch...I told him, "nah, just get me some dry champagne, a bottle of orange/mango juice, and a grande breve latte and banana bread from Starbucks instead."  Which he did.  Yum.

3. After that Mr. Dina took the two oldest to DC to allow Angus and me an opportunity to bond.  Angus gave me the most precious gift, though, that of him sleeping for four hours so I could drink my mimosas in peace (pic of mimosa at the bottom).  Okay, I stopped after two mimosas, I still needed to you know, walk straight and all, but ahh...bliss! 

4. That evening we all went out (including with my stepmom and my dad) to my favorite Ethiopian restaurant, Meaza, for a delicious feast.  Mmm, love the food at Meaza.

So that was my recipe for a wonderful Mother's Day.  (Probably my recipe for any awesome day, really, anywhere, any time.  Even if I was traveling I would still view a day like this as pretty darn close to perfect.)  :)

If you open up the pic, you will see the info on the pieces.  :)

I did a review of the Fabiola dress in abstract leopard here, though, if you like it and want to know more on sizing (still is available though sizes are limited).

The rest of the pieces are old, old, old, though, and probably are best acquired through ebay if you like them.

I love that the Fabiola dress has pockets.  I actually use my dress pockets, but only for my hands.  Do any of you all use your pockets for actually holding things?

Hand on hip.  I felt nice in this get-up, and pretty comfortable.  I have to give J. Crew a big thumbs up for this dress design, it is at once sleek and fitted, but the tulip shaped skirt allows for the hips and thighs to have a bit of breathing room (and no spanx needed, holla!).

To top off the perfection of the day, my own personal holy grail was achieved.  My children actually posed for a picture and looked sweet, smiley, and adorable.  (Angus slept again, for the fifth time that day.)  :)

CW and Rex are even in their favorite mini Boden pieces, CW in a frock from last year and Rex in the Rough Appliqué T-shirt from this year.

I wish I could start every day with a mimosa made from extra dry Korbel and orange/mango juice.  I give major props to Mr. Dina, btw.  He doesn't drink alcohol at all (!!!) and yet managed to get the perfect champagne for me, it was exactly the right dry taste with lots of flavor, too.  (I was at the grocery store two days later and the guys who stock the shelves in wine and beer noticed that I was choosing that champagne and complimented me on my choice--I told them my hubby had gotten it for me for Mother's Day and they were all, "that's a good man.")

A "Fabiola" Mother's Day. by dinagideon featuring patent handbags

Above is the polyvore of the outfit.

If you had to define your perfect day, what would your recipe be?  Would you involve champagne, too?  ;)

Have a wonderful Friday!!!

Christmas Eve, the Culmination.

Part Three.  Read the saga's commencement and mid-point to learn more.  :)

By the time I got to my childhood home, I was tired from the sheer energy of trying to find an errant church envelope, swiftly going through all the skirts in my closet to find an appropriate replacement to my seam-split golden bubbles pencil skirt, seething over how late we were going to be for church, wrestling with Rex in the lobby of the same church, and from crying like a little girl to my step-mom when I just. couldn't. take. it. anymore.

So what do I do as soon as I get home?  I take off my Boucle de Souffle jacket, grab a small huge glass of wine, and sit.  That is when my step-mom looks at my outfit and declares that she loves the sequin tee with the tweed skirt and gold shoes.  A part of me was wondering if she was just pandering to my mood, but when she offered to take a picture for my blog (oh, my family is good...), I acquiesced and let her.  She even posed me.  :)  I wish I had her taking pictures of me every day because...

I saw this photo in my camera's preview window and I said, "oh, it is pretty."  I was actually grateful that the darn golden bubbles had ripped because I really liked the combo of the blushed tweed pencil skirt, drapey sequin tee, and the golden Coach heels.  So, yay, for idiot seaming, and yay, for accidental combos that work out beautifully!

And like the teenager that I obviously was emulating that night, this photo was all I needed to feel better.  How freaking narcissistic (well, okay, I do have a blog where I show off my clothing on a regular basis, I get it...lol).  What I mean is that I was being especially vain on Christmas Eve.  Good job, female hormones.

So I had mentioned that I am keeping the golden bubbles pencil skirt instead of returning it to J. Crew...here is why:

I figured I would just use the very nice J. Crew gift card my bro bought me to buy a whole new one.

I kid.  I was very happy to have it, terrible seam issue aside.  :)

Nah.  In the continuing proof that I am Jerry Seinfeld (you remember that episode where he threw a dollar out the window and something like two seconds later her gets a dollar somehow?), I received a SEWING MACHINE from my parents for Christmas.  No wonder my stepmom was all nonplussed by my special situation.  So guess what my very first project will be when I get my bobbin all threaded (ooh!)?

I felt so good by the end of the evening, I was willing to be a bit goofy and take Rapunzel's hair piece and put in my hair and pretend to be Rapunzel's long lost sister (true fact...I once had hair down to my bottom--I kid you not).

By the next evening, that would be Christmas, I chose to be a bit more casual and wear my gorgeous goldenrod Brocade top with a pair of khakis and wait for it...SHEARLING slippers.  Yes, I did.  By the way, this brocade top in a size 2 is perfectly seamed, no issues with it.  At all.  :)

So you think the gift card and sewing machine were the best gifts ever?  Nope.  Not even close (although they were amazingly great).  Turns out the tears were still flowing on Christmas morning.  I open the very last gift under our tree (Christmas Eve is opening gifts with my dad, stepmom, and Uncle Peter whereas Christmas morning is for the four of us pictured above) and see a specially made print by the incredibly talented Dave Perillo of our family, including our HOUSE.  Turns out that Mr. Dina had been working on this with the artist since August when he met him at the Baltimore Comic Con. 

I saw it and immediately burst into tears.  I was blown away by it.  Made the debacle I had gone through from 5-7 pm on Christmas Eve pretty darn inconsequential.

So that's it. 

And with that I bid 2010 adieu. 

And with glee I eagerly anticipate all the joy 2011 will bring.

Happy New Year, you all!

Babies, Babies, and the Beach...

Unless you have not paid any attention to the way my blog used to look, you will have realized there have been big changes over here at My Superfluities. No, not that content...I still talk a lot about J. Crew, Boden, and my kids...but I FINALLY found a photo of my kids that would be PERFECT for the header. The daffodils I had before were really pretty (and also one of my photos), but I just felt that with the 250th post, I wanted to switch things up. So you know, I took the header photo, and unless I am in one the photos in this post, I took all these photos, too!

I am doing this post mainly for the people who just think my kids are TOOOOO cute...grandma, grandpa, nanny, pops, Roxie, etc. :) Enjoy, all.

I have superimposed my username on these photos to protect my copyright...if you really love them, please, please ask for permission if you want to use them...I do try to do photography on the side as a (very non-lucrative) business, so you would be taking my (not so lucrative) livelihood away from me if you took the images without asking!!! Thanks in advance... :)


Baby CW, asleep, all precious and pretty in her Jacadi Liberty Print onesie. I DID NOT pay retail for the Jacadi outfit. You mothers out there can stop having your heart attacks. ;) Jacadi is Ridiculous, with a Capital "R." I think I bought it for half-off, and then an additional 20% off...basically equal to a normal crewcuts skirt or something...


Did you know that babies teach themselves to suck from a straw? Yeah, me, neither...but both of my kids just FIGURED it out. This just makes me smile, I love that little ones learn stuff on their own. BTW, CW reminds me of a baby model in this shot. It could be because she is wearing Jacadi... ;)


The three of us at the beach in North Carolina. In a SWING. At sunset. Yes, I felt lucky. BTW, if you think Rexie is happy here, just wait!!!


My arty shot of a surfer. I punched up the contrast and amped up the sky with a polarizing filter...but the surfer himself makes the shot. Pretty cool. (And, ladies, open this shot up, he looks pretty darn good, too...)

She's going, going, going... (Go to next shot...)

Gone. Yes, she fell from daddy's shoulders onto the sand and this was the face she made. :) Wow. To be a one-year old again...

Told you to wait. I LOVE this shot...may be one of my best shots EVER. And though it was accidental, come on, the Mr. Happy shirt with that smile? God was watching us take this shot and just let it happen...

Another arty shot of the sea grass and the dunes. I softened the shot, and then increased the saturation. It was sunset, which gave the clouds in the distance a neat color and feel...

Going up the stairs with such precise movements? This is what makes parenting so wonderful. I need to see this photo when Rex tries my patience. So darn precious...

And with the sunset over the Outer Banks, NC, I bid you all farewell.

I will most likely be unable to update this blog, either in post form, or in commenting form, for a few days. Please forgive me, but know that if I can come on by, I certainly will!!! :) Enjoy your weekend, and please take care...

If You Ever Substitute in a Library, Pull Out the Library Print Doll Dress!!!

I would be the worst J. Crew blogger if I had the chance to substitute in a School library and not wear the Library Print Doll Dress. This amazing dress has so many fans...created in Fall 2007 and featured all over the September 2007 Paris Catalog (you know, my FAVE)...this dress is a J. Crew Collection piece, 100% silk (the very special, heavy-weight silk that flows well) with an intricate print showing various scenes from a library.

For those of you new to my site, I have some pictures from the September 2007 Paris catalog up, and the library doll dress on Vanessa is one of the pages I uploaded. Remember, if you want to see them all, click on one of my labels that says either "Vanessa the model," or "Paris catalog" and you should be able to see all my posts on that catalog.

Library Print Doll Dress In Real Life by dinagideon featuring J Crew

Here is the polyvore for this outfit.


And here it is on me, without the cardigan. I would have loved to have worn it without the cardigan, but I was in a middle school and not a party, so I did the right thing and covered up. BTW, is CW's backside PRECIOUS? Love it!!! :)


And here I am, all conservative and ready for my stint in the library. BTW, only a handful of people "got" the dress. I am very disappointed in today's youth. :) Kidding...

Have a lovely Thursday...

P.S. HeidiG., is this one of those polyvores that you want me to put myself into? For you, anything...maybe when I get a moment, I will.

See, This Is What Happens When You Don't Sleep!

My darling daughter kept me up really, really late last night...late enough that I actually witnessed the J. Crew site updating their fall arrivals. Huh...less sleep? Well, okay...it just means that I spent a full hour clipping items for polyvore. Yeah, I know. This "grown-up paper dolls" obsession is a bit ridiculous.

But before I went to bed...at 1:20 am...I created this polyvore. I think I may have dreamed about Barney last night because of this...

Untitled by dinagideon on Polyvore.com

Then, this morning, my brother assured me he would be here at 7 am for a workout. Which he wasn't. Ugh. We have been spending a lot of time at the gym lately (X-Sport Fitness--the location nearest us ROCKS--OMG, wow, there is always something there to keep you moving), so I fully anticipated him coming on time. You know the punch-line, right? Yeah, he isn't coming till later. ERGH and DOUBLE ERGH.

I can't waste time (well, in the sense that I always want to be DOING something while awake), so I created this polyvore just fifteen minutes ago. The colors are spectacular. You pick the shoes. :)

Untitled by dinagideon on Polyvore.com

Oh, and my favorite piece from the roll-out? (Besides the tiered cami shown in both of my sets and the gorgeous necklaces from my sets?)

Well, the Liberty Ruffle Front Shirt that I pre-ordered way back in early July, of course. The question is...when will they send it?


Have a great morning, you all. Don't worry, I will take a nap today at some point...

My Review of the Jakarta Halter Dress...Hint, It's a Winner!

I will keep this short and sweet, but I know some of you have been eyeing this dress, so I really wanted to get this post up. Hopefully, even if you are on vacation this week you are still able to read this, even if it is a bit late. :) This dress is NOT on sale, as our dear friend Summerilla mentioned yesterday.

I bit the bullet with a 20% let's open a J. Crew Credit Card savings, which helped...and that was over a month ago. I have no clue when this will go on sale. I know that I may be the only person to review it, so it can't be THAT wildly popular (like the "headache" tee or the Frances cami or the Eden blazer). If it isn't that popular of a dress (and it could be, who knows, right?), then why is it not on sale?

So, onto details. Purchase it here, if you want. ;) No, I am not enabling. Okay, yes, I am.

Jakarta Dress and a Night of Grocery Shopping! by dinagideon featuring J Crew

Here is the polyvore of the outfit I created to wear to (and this is not a joke)...Whole Foods. Yes, I get dressed up to go to the supermarket. Whatever--in my book, leaving the house always is an occasion for dress-up.


Here it is on me...size 6. It is made for us pears...it is fitted on top, with a vee to show off what little assets we have, and is fairly voluminous on bottom to hide our other more substantial assets. Heehee.

I also love that it is an empire waist, which means it shows off the ittiest-bittiest part of my body.

And...it has...pockets. I love pockets in dresses and skirts, so long as they are the type like on this dress...hidden until all of a sudden, oh, my hand wants to go somewhere...hey, I KNOW, my pockets! I feel very retro when I can do this. Yes, I know I am a dork.


Here is the view of the back. Normally, I would never ever subject you all to this view, but look at the bow of the halter...so precious...but not overtly twee. Swoon!

Oh, and look at the smocking (elastic, to boot) on the upper body...does this say "fat day dress" to you all, too? Here's the thing, though...it may be a fat day dress but it sure looks real pretty for a fat day dress. Perfection.


And because I love the BOW so much...here is another view. And once again, SWOON.

Have I enabled you yet? Have a great weekend. :)

I. Just. Can't. Resist.

yes...matching outfits...ten months difference in age...priceless!

BTW, my photo, so NO stealing, random Eastern European countries. ;)