Sunday, August 22, 2010

Old Navy Striped Rosette Cardigan

Kiddies & I are at the River for a few days of R&R before school starts back up...next Monday...one more week before we have to back to real life.  Hubby is even here for a long weekend.  And of course, the pooch.  Lucy always loves it here...plenty of room to roam.  And M&E have a new toy to play with - my parents got a kayak, so that's been a lot of fun. I haven't tried it yet, but plan to tomorrow morning (gotta get my kids out of it first!).  And maybe I'll get closer to caught up on blogging.

Last week, while still in town, I met up with one of my fave bloggie friends, dinagideon, and all our kiddies, to do some lunch and shopping.  We actually started at Old Navy, since I was on the hunt for what appears to be an online only dress. 

I was out of luck with the dress, but while we were there, dina stopped by the table with the cardis...including the Striped Rosette Cardigan (#772013, online $26.50, was in-store special of $19.50).  The cardi comes in charcoal, heather oatmeal, purple or yellow, all with white stripes.  And of course, I was drawn straight to the charcoal - a lot like my JC vintage bateau striped tee - I love that white/dark gray combo.  Dina picked up the yellow as it reminded her very much of a JC cardi from a few seasons ago that she missed out on.

As of right now, while I'm typing this, the cardi has an online rating of 4 1/2 stars, based on 25 reviews.  (oh, I love the online rating!  wish everyone did it...)

I got an M, and I thought the fit was great - not too tight, not too loose.  Interestingly enough, the cardi comes in Tall and Petite online - but I really didn't see any need to size up to the L, or go with a Tall - for how I'm going to wear this cardi, it's plenty long.

I didn't close the lower 2 buttons - I think it works better with the bottom 2 undone, or open...much like the JC Jackie.  Like the Jackie, the sleeves are 3/4.  Nice cotton knit - not too thin, not too heavy, very versatile - especially in transitional seasons.  I've washed it once, and it seemed fine.  We'll see how it does over the long haul, but so far, so good.

After picking up the cardi on Monday, we had a break in the humidity on Wednesday, with lots of rain and some cooler temps, so of course, I had to pull the new cardi out for a spin. The cardi is fitted enough to go with looser bottoms, so I paired it with my J Crew linen cotton seaside pants and a white cardi.  Then some fun red sandals for a pop of color.

The ON cardi was a fun, comfy cardi for the day.  I anticipate wearing it a lot with just a white tee and jeans or Minnies in the fall.  

Gigi also tried on the cardi here.  If I missed anyone else, please let me know.

Polyvore from Wednesday:
8/18/10

8/18/10 by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

The Nail Files - Essie Love

With a blogging absence of more than a month, it's a safe bet that I have some polish pics stored up to share.  So I will start with 2 new polishes that I am loving.  Not new as in a new collection, but new to me.  And shocker...they're both by Essie.  I do tend to prefer OPI polishes over pretty much every other kind - including the OPI Sephora line.  I just find that the regular OPI line has fantastic formulas, dream application with that pro-wide brush, and gorgeous colors.  Essie has often been a problem child for me, especially their light and sheer colors - way streaky - even with 3 coats.  But these two...totally covetable. 

First up - with indoor & outdoor pics - Essie Jazz - "a neutral creamy beige-taupe", which is available in J Crew stores and on the website (#22678, $8).  Finally...a JC Essie shade I can fall in love with, unlike that Russian Roulette red and some of those drippy (IMO) mauves.  To start with, since application is always my issue with Essie, I will tell you that the application on this light polish is great - surprisingly easy for a paler Essie shade.  Virtually no streaking, yay.

And I *love* the color.  Again, another version of classic khaki pants for your finger tips.  A fantastic neutral.  Definitely work-safe, IMO.  I will be wearing this on my tips a lot this fall, a very good alternative to a standard nude polish.  As mentioned, I purchased mine at the JC store.  I haven't seen it in my usual Essie/OPI haunts (i.e. Trade Secret, Pure Beauty, Ulta), so if you really love it - try J Crew (especially if you're trying to get to that free shipping minimum) or one of the polish e-tailers.

Next...what may be my new fall fave polish - Essie Over the Top - "a dramatic metallic midnight silver", originally from their Winter 2007 collection.  It reminds me a lot of YSL's Tuxedo Gray or a metallic version of OPI's Suzy Skis in the Pyrenees from last fall's Espana collection - not quite navy, not quite charcoal, but in between.  Kinda like a fave J Crew shade of mine, Shadow (aka  SHA).  Over the Top almost looks like hematite.  It's less intense than black, but still has that dark moodiness I love. 

And I can't stop staring at it.  After the first OTT mani on my fingers, I used it for the next one- that's love. 


Monday, August 16, 2010

2 Days, 2 Denim Skirts

Back again...I think I just needed the long uninterrupted break.  Good to take a breather from the electronics every once in a while, no?  It's funny...when I didn't have any hours at work, I thought I'd have all sorts of time to blog, but I just wasn't on the computer that much - Polyvore, blogging, blog reading, Facebook, any of that. 

But work has picked back up.  So back to busy, back to being on the computer.  Hubby got me a real chair for my desk after I swiped his while he was in Chicago last week.    So now I can sit here at my little desk in the living room and look out the window while I lean back in my comfy chair.  I just have to keep kicking the kiddies out of it.

While I was breaking, I started to work on some more closet clean out and gave quite a few things the fish-or-cut-bait designation.  You know...this things you always mean to wear but never get around to it.  On this latest round, I realized I had 2 denim skirts hanging in there that had probably not been on my body in almost a year. 

Not usually something I wear in the summer, but we had a semi-cool stretch of days, so it seemed a perfect time to pull them out.  (No idea why I never wore them this past fall or winter, but enjoyed them so much, I'll definitely make that change).

First up...from this past Saturday, the Boden denim mini I got last summer...the one that I planned to wear all fall and winter with a sweater, tights, and boots....and never did.  Maybe I was too into the Minnies & skinnies?  I've always loved skirts, and was so happy when M & E were out of diapers so that I could actually wear them again.  changing diapers on a floor while wearing a skirt take more talent or effort than I've got.

I love the buttons down the front of this skirt...not that I ever tuck anything in so that you can see most of them.  But it's a really fun piece.  Not too heavy.  I paired with a navy JC boyfriend tissue tee & cami, a chunky bracelet, and my old trusty JC sneakers.  No idea how old those sneaks are...they don't date back to my college JC outlet days, but they were purchased early on in motherhood for me.  As always, with a short skirt, I don't like to do heels - at 5'10", and with a long femur (2, actually), I like a flat shoe to ground the look.  And this suited a day that involved a training session at church and hanging out with the family at home.  Grilling out and then s'mores, yum!!  I'm pretty sure I've posted a similar outfit on Polyvore, but it's simple and it works.  And it's navy.  What more do I need?

Polyvore from Saturday:
8/13/10Fashion Trends & Styles - Polyvore


To repeat from above...what more do I need?  Well, stripes for starters.  Oh, I am such a sucker for stripes. Especially the navy and white ones.  The tee is from Gap, and without a doubt, has one of the worst online pics I've ever seen (check out the Polyvore below or the embedded link:  Striped cropped-sleeve henley tee.)  It looks anemic.  I never would have purchased it based on that - in person, it actually is navy and has a really great long length they seem to be trying to hide in the online pic.  Well, you can see the length from the picture at left.  So you know I love it.  The fabric is very similar to the JC painter tees - so you definitely need a cami or tank underneath.

I got the tee (size M) a couple of weeks ago when my sister came up to visit.  She liked mine so much, she went back the next day to get one for herself (of course, we had all 4 kids on the 2nd trip).  I think the striped tee ended up being around $17 or so...one of those chain reactions - on sale, plus % off, plus additional 10% off since I put it on her BR card. 

The outfit, btw, is from Friday, when we had some very cool weather (oh it was lovely).  The denim mini here is from Loft from probably about 3 years ago.  The weight of the denim (heavier than in the Boden skirt above) keeps it from flying up or riding up.  But you can find a denim mini pretty much anywhere.  And then my canvas slip-ons from LLBean, gold hoops and a ponytail.  I felt very young and carefree that day. 

Polyvore from Friday (seriously, isn't the IRL so much better?):

Happy to be back and looking forward to catching up with you all.  Thanks to all the followers and other regular readers who didn't just jump ship!  XOXO