OOTD/Review: Boden Laid Back Dress.

Hey, everyone.  Guess what you get when a 5-year old's elbow knocks a cup of coffee onto a laptop?  You guessed it...a dead laptop.  (SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOB!)  Anyhow, I have been trying to save it but it looks kaput, so my brother (who works at a computer store, phew) will take the hard drive and put all its contents onto whatever laptop we buy next.  Until  then I have a jangly, many years old desktop computer to work on instead, but I find doing anything on it so slow and tedious that it may be unlikely that I am back completely until the new laptop is ours.

I will still do my best to update as I can, and will for sure keep the Facebook page updated.  But there will probably be lots of information in each post so I don't have to publish a new post with every new bit of info out there.

For instance today I would have had three posts--this one on the ootd/review and two others on two separate Boden related items.  But instead I will put those two items in this post to save me sanity and not get me to the point where I want to throw the jangly old pc out the window.  :-P

So, before the ootd/review starts, here are the two big items from Boden today.

1. They started a 40% off 40 items sale today.  This is a four day event and a lot of the items included are really nice pieces.  I would encourage you all to take a look around as some of the items will not be at 40% off during the clearance time.  Amazingly, all items in the sale are reduced in all the colors, which rarely happens, so even if an item's color is fairly popular, it is at the same price as the less popular colors, which does not normally happen. 

At the end of the post I will go over the items I personally recommend and can link to reviews.

2. Boden rolled out their Winter Preview for 2014!  We saw some of the images for winter during the press days (which I wrote about here) but now we can actually order them.  There are some very pretty items for sale.  I definitely will be doing a picks post on these items. (I will also probably do a formal blog post on the rollout happening tomorrow just in case I have readers who only come here for Boden preview stuff--there are a lot of those, actually!)  Anyhow, use the code X7V8 for 20% off with free ship and returns.  That code expires on my birthday.  ;-)  *That would be July 1.*

Okay, onto the ootd/review.

Day: Wednesday, June 18, 2014.

Where: Rex's Swim Practice and Winesday.

Ease of Wear: (4.5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.)  Thank goodness for a loose linen shift dress on a ridiculously humid, hot, and ugly muggy day.  I don't sweat often, but by the end of walking Rex to swim practice (it's not far, but it does require around a 1/5 mile walk to get to it), I was definitely overheated and feeling the perspiration. 

I wore a linen costume when I was pregnant with CW and working as a volunteer historical interpreter at the Jamestown site.  They said that a full linen costume would be cooler than I expected it to be and they were right.  Since then, and even though it wrinkles like cray cray, I happily keep all the pieces in my wardrobe since DC doesn't know a cool summer.

Cool Factor: (4 of 5 stars--5 being the coolest--for both outfits.) Tropical prints are in, as is a relaxed, chill silhouette, so I did well here.

Anecdote from the Day:  Angus came with us to Winesday and was so frustrated with us that he put his head down on the buggy and pretended to be asleep.  Eventually I coaxed him into sipping the watermelon soup and it was literally like watching a hungry flower bloom after a rain storm.  That's all he needed, it turned out.  The watermelon soup was pretty amazing, and made me feel pretty good too.

Laid Back Dress (here).  Size 8 L.  I was so nervous that the 8 L would be too big in the bodice while fitting my hips that I would be frustrated with it enough to send it back.  Happily Anna (in this post) made me less worried and upon receiving it I found that sizing to the 8 L was the right call.  It fits a bit loose overall, even in the hips, and while the length isn't super long, it is more than fine for summer casual outings.

The fabric is a lighter linen, but is not so lightweight that it required a lining.  The pattern is really great, too, and you had better believe that if I was going to someplace tropical this summer (besides DC, lol), I would be packing this one with me.

Side view.  The shaping you see there at my upper back may be because linen's fibers stretch as need be, and since I am thinnest through my waist, it is possible that the fibers stayed most constricted there.  (You can also see this in the fact that the place where there is the most wrinkling is at my hips, the very place where I am widest.)

Back view.  I like that I don't look too wide here.  I find if something looks good from the back then the garment is pretty decent.  There have been a lot of items I have returned because they look just awful from behind and I would never want to torture anyone with that view of me.  Ha.


Laid Back Dress.  Sold out in a lot of colors and sizes, but the sizes do popback from time to time.  This dress is not part of the 40% off 40 promo, but you can use the sidebar coupon or the one at the bottom of this post to receive the current 25% off everything promotion.


40% Off 40 Items Promo:
Selina Dress.  Review here (use link in BWRR).  I have since received the size up and while it fits better, it is just not right enough for me to keep.  I have some photos of the new size and will get those up ASAP.  I think if you love this dress and want to try this style, 40% off is good, especially if you buy it in a popular color that will not be at 40% off during clearance.

Flowershow Dress.  Review link to Monica's blog here at this BWRR.  Looked really nice on her.  :-)

Nancy Dress.  Review here.  Also worn here.

Casual Jersey Dress.  Review here.  HIGHLY recommended.  :-) 

Lovely Linen Dress.  Review here.  Also a love on my part, but I could see it being the wrong shape for some women.

Ariette Dress.  The original that came to me was reviewed here (use link in BWRR).  The dress must have been mislabeled a 6L since it was massive on me.  I returned it for a 4L, just in case, but the 4L only fit well in the bust and waist.  The hips were too tight to be comfortable.  I will get photos of that one up at the same time as I get up the Selina dress photos.  I could exchange again for the 6L, but ugh, I don't want to deal with this again. I hope that someone at Boden reads this and sees that only so much tolerance should be expected on our parts regarding their down slide in quality control.  Anyhow, it is a very pretty print and a cool fabric for summer heat, but be aware of the possibility of bad sizing.

Emily Skirt.  Review of it here.  Wore it again here. 

There are other items included in the sale that I am sure are great, but need feedback on to make sure they are great.  :-)  If you have a review that you can share of any of the 40% Off 40 Items, would you mind commenting here at this post?

Okay that's all for now.  Be back soon, wish me luck with the new laptop!

OOTDs/Made by Me Files: Floral Stretch Twill Skirt (Vogue 8916) and Graphic Wrap Maxi (Vogue 8850 c. 1975).

Hey, all!  Happy Monday.

I am sorry if the last post came to you too late to enjoy the 30% off everything at Boden this weekend.  Unfortunately Johnnie and co. didn't feel enough sympathy to extend it into today, but they did start off another round of 30% off items, this time on dresses, shoes/sandals, and accessories.  I am not officially going to be announcing this in its own post, so no picks or anything, but I do recommend that if you really want to grab something from them that is at 30% off to head over to the last few BWRRs that I have published since there are quite a few reviews from those three categories.

Okay, onto the made by me/ootd action!  I will do the ootd portion first followed by a quick look at the sewing details after.

Day: Saturday, June 14, 2014.

Where: To go get drunk.  LOL.  No, we had "won" two school auction tickets (for twenty people total) to go to a BBQ/Mixed Drinks party at one of the school's parents' house. 

Ease of Wear: (3.5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.) Bad Boden shirt.  I actually felt that everything was super comfortable from waist down, but this Boden shirt, while it looks great with the outfit, is just a wrong fit for me.  It is very narrow in the hips, so I can't wear it loose, but tucking it in can be a challenge.  Meh.  Bummer is that I only own one top in this color.  I may just have to alter the hem (probably up a couple of inches so it falls higher on the hips where I am narrower) to get this to fit better.

Cool Factor: (4.5 of 5 stars--5 being the coolest--for both outfits.) This is a rock solid look.  The lines are clean and classic, and the floral looks fresh but not too stuffy.  I fit the skirt to my exact measurements so the pencil skirt could be fitted but not too fitted.

Anecdote from the Day:  So the house where we were set to go to for the party is literally five houses from us...but not down the sidewalk.  No, the house is behind ours and four down, but since we live on the edge of the forest, we had to trek through the forest and into our back neighbor's sideyard to get to their home. Note the wedges I was wearing.  Well Little Miss Confidence was fine on the way there but the way back, well, let's just say...limoncello...whiskey...big branch...cut on leg.  Ah, yeah.  So graceful.  :-)  At least the skirt is okay.

To add to the weirdness, as soon as we step out of our neighbor's sideyard, I hear my "teacher name" and was greeted by one of Rex's friends from his class, out for a walk with her mom and dad, sister, and twin brothers.  And they don't even live on the street, they are about a mile down, they just were walking to enjoy the glorious evening. 

I had spied this wonderful fabric in G Street Fabrics last fall, but if I recall correctly, it was almost $30 a yard, and as beautiful as it was, I knew that $90 for three yards (I usually try to have three yards on hand so if I want I can make a full dress, or a skirt/top and girls dress) was too much.  Then I saw it at Gorgeous Fabrics for $15 a yard and they had a coupon, so I happily bought my three yards and moved on...but then Fabric Mart had the same fabric on sale for $2.99 or some ridiculousness like that, and I was like, "umm, okay, well, why not add more to the stash and have pretty fabric for muslins, etc."  Then I was gifted a yard from Fabric Mart in one of their free bundles they send and well, I guess I have a lot of the pretty fabric ready to go.  I  think I can make a full dress, a top, a skirt, a sheath dress, and a couple of things for CW.  Really glad I didn't buy it at G Street originally.

This etsy seller has some available, btw. Not at $3 a yard, but still less than G Street or even Gorgeous Fabrics had theirs at...

So this skirt is made from the Vogue 8916 pattern, which is a wardrobe pattern and includes a top, jacket, skirt, and simple sleeveless dress.  I liked how long the skirt looked, and thought the silhouette was classic (neat tidy waistband added to the skirt and not folded over like some pencil skirt patterns have).  It also included instructions for lining the skirt, which I wanted to do so I could wear it in the winter with tights.

I was tremendously worried that the skirt in the largest size on the package would be too small (this is the smaller set of sizes--up to a 14), but I figured I would at least do some flat measurements.  Well, even after doing the flat measurements I was worried, but figured I could take the seams out a bit to 3/8" if need be.  Then I had the idea to measure this pattern against a stretchy pencil skirt of mine from J. Crew, and get this...the pattern was more than big enough in a 14, in fact a little bigger than the J. Crew skirt, so I knew I would be okay. 

Putting this skirt together took me AGES.  I labored on it for a month.  Now admittedly I was working on other things, including the dress below, but really, people...a MONTH for a pencil skirt.  I may win the slowest sewer on the planet award.  The pattern itself was not confusing, the instructions were fine, and the fabric wasn't especially tricky (other than getting bunched up on the sewing machine since the machine's foot tension was too loose and gathered this super thin fabric easily).  I just took a lot of time getting it done.

I think taking my time made the skirt look nicely finished though and when I grab a few moments, I will photograph the inside of the skirt since I properly finished all the seams and the hem.  It isn't 100% ready to wear, but it is the closest I have come since my Vogue Paris Original dress from last fall.

I would like to make the top from this pattern, but in a different fabric.  The fabric above I will likely use with this New Look pattern since it is a darling peplum and hey, the fabric is exactly the same.  So original.

Day: Thursday, June 5, 2014.

Where:  CW's Kindergarten Graduation.  Then to the city to celebrate with her at Pret-A-Manger and the Natural History Museum.

Ease of Wear: (3.5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.) Although this dress was made for me by me, because I didn't take out extra length in the bodice portion, the overall shape was a bit too blousey for my frame, especially since the extra volume was extra extra in the skirt. 

I will say that running around the city with the breeze in place was very nice...the skirt kind of swirled around me and was very refreshing.  I just wonder how much more awesome it would have felt if the top portion fit a bit better.

Cool Factor: (4 of 5 stars--5 being the coolest--for both outfits.) Very nice summer dress and cute sandals.  My baby was the star, though, and her outfit was the winner that day.  (She received a lot of "OH, SO CUTE!" comments.)  I did make that dress, btw, and you can see more on that one here.

Anecdote from the Day:  The IRS building was being evacuated when we were walking by.  The nice security fella walked with us to the end of the block (instead of making us cross the street with the employees) and he and CW got into a conversation about the stuffed owl she had just bought at the museum store.  We asked him his name and he said Laurence, and we said we would name the owl Laurence. But then CW thought about it and looked at him and said, "no wait, this is a girl owl, so I am going to name her Laura."  ;-)

The dress, based on the vintage Vogue pattern 8850 (from 1975) looks SO good on my form.  I feel like Triple D needs to wear this dress all the time.  Triple D is longer than me from neck to waist, though, so the extra volume is less present on her, and requires no fiddling with the wrap to make her perfect.

I am not going to go into the ins and outs of this sewing project, but I did publish a lot of information on it here at this review at Pattern Review.

Okay, that's it for now.  :-)

If you would like 30% off dresses, shoes/sandals, and accessories, this sale will go until next Sunday night.  For anything else that is on your list that is not one of the above categories, you can use the coupon below or in the sidebar for 25% off.

OOTDs: Five Handmade Floral.

Before I start, I wanted you all to know that if you use the code W4U4 to receive 30% off everything full-priced at Boden until midnight tonight.  I saw this yesterday in my email, but since yesterday was spent doing everything except being on the computer, I couldn't let you all know until today.  :-)  I apologize if you see this on Monday morning and missed the promotion, but Boden called it a weekend only special.

So, Happy Father's Day!  We don't have a ton of plans, but I am planning on sewing up my hubby a Hawaiian shirt made from this Michael Miller Fabric soon.  I will definitely post those photos when I get a chance. 

Because it is Father's Day and I am working with borrowed time, I am going to show off the outfits but only use the date, where worn, and the anecdote of the day to describe the outfits, and not include the "ease of wear" or "coolness" ratings.  I will also include a link to the post on the handmade item for reference's sake.

Day: Tuesday, June 3, 2014.

Where: Rex's last baseball practice.

Anecdote from the Day:  Instead of hosting a regular baseball practice with kids doing regular exercises and drills, the coaches decided to have a parents/kids scrimmage game.  My hubby is not known for his athleticism, so he made me play while he took Angus and CW to the Little Gym.  Ha.  I was only as great as I could be at my age, but at least I enjoy playing the sport, I suppose.  ;-)

Shorts were blogged about at this post. 

Day: Monday, June 9, 2014.

Where: Substitute Teaching.

Anecdote from the Day:  I realized partway through the day that the dress hem was not completely staying up.  The stitches at the hem were fine, but I hadn't stitched far enough up on the hem to keep the part not stitched from falling over the rest of the hem.  Sigh.  Newbie mistake.  Definitely will be correcting that, and soon.

I was told by one of the teachers there at the school, who also is a seamstress, that my darts looked spot on and perfect, so that made me smile.  :-)

Dress was blogged about at this post.

Day: Wednesday, June 11, 2014.

Where: Bowling with the kids.

Anecdote from the Day:  After ages and ages of begging me to let him bowl, Angus got his chance to try it out for himself.  Above you will see his first ever push of the bowling ball.  He didn't take to well to waiting for his turn, so in the end, we just let him have his own lane where I pretty much stayed by his side assisting him in getting the ball on the ramp.  (And also to prevent him from pushing it before the pins had "fixed" themselves at the end of the lane.)  He did REALLY well, considering his age, but sadly, I couldn't bowl, and I could barely hang out with the friends who came to the alley with me.  At lunch we were able to catch up, but Angus would look back at the lanes and sort of get a "why am I here eating when I could be bowling" look on his face.  Oh, dear.  I think I know what my future holds.

Pants were blogged about at this post. 

Day: Friday, June 13, 2014.

Where: Little Gym, School Pickup (LAST DAY, WOO!) and Pollo place for lunch.

Anecdote from the Day:  Since there is no extended day at the school on the last day of school, every single parent who has to get their children that normally don't were there.  Sigh.  It was a freaking madhouse in the parking lot, out onto the side street, and even threatening to force its way onto one of the MAIN streets.  Not good.  I mean I get it, and I have zero problem with the parents getting their kids, but seriously, there has to be a better solution.  It would truly suck to have one of the parents get hit on the main road because they are caught in a horrible traffic situation.  Yuck.  Hopefully next year they fix that issue.

Skirt was blogged about at this post.

And now for a little sneak peek, the skirt that I made recently and wore last night.  Isn't it a pretty pencil skirt?  I fell madly in love with this fabric at G Street Fabrics, but found the price at the time to be too steep to buy it, but later saw the very same fabric for FAR LESS at one of the online shops, so I bought quite a few yards of it, since I knew I would want to try it in different garments.  The pencil skirt, based off this Vogue pattern, fit the bill for a relatively easy first pattern to try with it.  Anyhow, I will blog about this creation and another one in the next few days.

Alright, that's it for today.  You all have a very Happy Father's Day!

Remember W4U4 to receive 30% off all full-priced merchandise at Boden (put the code in the shopping bag page to override the 25% off below):

Boden Weekly Review Roundup: Keeping it Casual. But Not Really.

Hey, all!  Happy Friday.  :-)  Hope everyone had a great work week. 

Today is Rex's last day of school (CW's was last Thursday), so after today I have the luxury of no school runs.  Of course I now have three children under 8 to keep happy, content, and chill, but hey, no NOVA driving during rush hour.  LOL. 

Alrighty, no big news this week, but a quick reminder that as of right now you have three more days to enjoy the 30% off knitwear, tops, and coats sale happening at Boden.  On Monday there will be a new set of reductions, if the past three weeks are any indication.  Obviously whatever happens I will let you know about either here or over at my Facebook page.

One thing of interest to those of you that sew and wear Boden...a lady named HRigg over at Sewing Pattern Review sewed up a version of the Everyday Tunic Dress (there was a linked review of it in last week's BWRR, btw).  I am stunned by the craftsmanship.  She really did make an honest-to-goodness dupe.  Maybe one day I can try to do something similar.  Anyhow, bravo!

Regular Womenswear:

Casual Jersey Dress Size 8 Long. Thanks to Shopwithm's beautiful polyvore set featuring this dress, I decided I needed to try this dress even though it hadn't been on my radar, AT ALL.  I normally do gravitate towards these sort of styles and prints, but I totally had not even noticed this one.  So thank you, M, since this is easily one of my favorites from this season.  (In fact, I am going to grab the navy one, too, but on deeper discount since that one is fully stocked in all sizes right now.)

The long is quite long.  It ends at an inch and a half below my knees, but since I have a longer calf in comparison with my thigh length, apparently this length works for my frame.  I don't think the regular would have been too short, but it is really nice to have a dress this length for occasions where a more modest length is appropriate.  (And for you ladies who have to have a sleeve, this cap sleeve, while not long, should be more than modest enough for your needs.)

The 6 Long was not an option for me when I was purchasing this one, and I am not displeased with the fit of the 8 Long.  It *is* probably a bit too big in the bodice, especially by the end of the day when fabric gets a bit stretched out, but in this lighter shade, having something that skims the body is probably a better look for me, so I think this size is the right choice for this color.  I do think I will try the 6 Long in the navy and possibly hem the skirt up a bit, so I have a dress that is a bit less modest (though still conservative).

Some reviewers are put off by its silhouette, and I think if you do choose a size that is too large and long, it could veer to frumpy very fast.  Just a warning.  I also want to mention that the waist does hit right below my bustline, so if an empire style doesn't work for you, bear that in mind.

The jersey fabric is amazing, though.  It is a lovely mix of cotton and elastane, which makes it breathable and very comfortable.

The back view shoes that the jersey is exactly fitted to my shape, and there is very little above the hipline wrinkling that I normally I get with tops and dresses.  Yes!

Close up of the details.  A lot of the reviewers were put off by the edging since it was unfinished.  I am less put off by that since I know that knit fabric doesn't ravel the way other fabrics like silk and cotton would.  It is not a finished look, but this particular treatment doesn't bother me.  But it will bother some of you, so I had to put it out there.  ;-)


Casual Jersey Dress. Selling like hotcakes, except in the navy floral and pink fern colors. 


Emily Skirt.  Worn by me recently out with the family.  It was nice to wear it for summer.  :-)  First time I wore it I had to pair it with tights and a cardigan.


Bistro Short.  Worn twice but not blogged, so I threw them both together in one post (along with the Emily skirt above).




Skinny Jeans, Pretty Pendant, and Soft Leather Bowling Bag.  Lizzy puts together a pretty combo featuring three pieces from the current Boden collection.  :-) (The link to the skinny jeans gets you to the clearance skinny jeans, the link to the current skinny jeans for the spring season is here.)

Clearance Boden:

Riviera Shirt Dress.  Monica is wearing this in navy blue for Norway's 200th Birthday.  Since the Norwegian flag is red, white, and blue, her choice for celebrating it was to wear this dress with darling red shoes.  Good choice, and you looked beautiful for your country's independence day!  I have a feeling a few American ladies may decide to dress in a similar way on our country's birthday.  Thank you for the inspiration!

Okay, so that's it for today.  Not a ton here, but lots of pretty garments, for sure.  I will be back with more regularity now that this season is coming to an end, want to make sure I get all the reviews up and ready to go before the big sales/clearance time happens in a few weeks.  If you have any reviews for me, do either post them at the Boden reviews tab, or email me at dinagideon AT aim DOT com.  If you are one of my "regular" blog reads, I should catch your review, but it never hurts to give me a poke and prod, lol.

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