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 by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew

Old Navy Womens Striped Rosette Cardigans, $27
Women - tanks - Perfect-fit tank - J.Crew, $18
Linen-cotton seaside pant - J.Crew, $20
Bridget Thong Sandal, $44
Tiffany & Co. | Search Results | International, 1,000 GBP
Nordstrom Round 3ct Cubic Zirconia Earrings, $25
Bun Hairstyles | It's All About The Hairstyles

Short Skirts...Long on Style & Value

Today's post will be on a couple of short skirts I have picked up recently.  Both of which are, IMO, very cute, fun for summer, and a great value for the money.

First, >Old Navy Women's Linen Blend Whirly Skirt (#730585, $24.50, curr on promo for $15 in store).  I tried and then purchased after seeing Gigi's post when ON first instituted the dress/skirt promo.  I also used an in-store 15% off coupon to get it for $13.50.  Not too shabby for a summer skirt.  (and how can you not love the name "whirly"???)

I got the flax skirt; it's also available onlin in white, cobalt ink, and honey pot.  The B&M may have had more colors - to be honest, I don't really remember because when it comes to linen, there's nothing better than khaki for me.  (Which is why I was so bummed the JC Playa dress was only in the white & papaya - I still think it would have been perfect in khaki.)

This skirt is short - 16", as mentioned online.  However, because the elastic is only in the back and the rest of the waistband is nice and wide, it's very easy to wear low on the hip.  And in summertime, that's probably comfy, too.  I got an M, which gave me plenty of room for the nudge down on the hips trick. (If you plan to wear at your waist, you will want to size down.) At this length, I think it works fine...as long as I'm wearing flat sandals or sneakers with it.

And that would be in direct contrast to the dreaded JC Nico skirt, which has an extremely wide elastic as its waistband that creates mega-muffintop on anyone trying to nudge it down to get the length to a decent level, if they're short-shinned like me.

I love the pockets - I think they give the skirt some extra style.  But the key is wearing the skirt low enough so that the pockets aren't adding width to the hips.  But you definitely want a streamlined top with this skirt - nothing too blousy.

Next skirt...from Target.  No...not Liberty of London.  Actually, did they even have women's skirts?  Because that would have been way cute.  >Merona Women's Patchwork Madras Skirt (orig $19.99, in store on sale for $14.99, online for $8).  (Tough choice here - do I get a price adjustment from the 19.99, or re-order online?)  I have been semi-coveting this ever since >Sweet Tea in Seattle got a similar one last summer from Target. 

I got it in a 10, figuring that I may want to wear it a bit down on the hips since it's much shorter than the online picture would make you think.  And the 10 works.  I love it with the navy tee here, even though I just grabbed that to throw on with both skirts.  (And yes, if I wear the tee sans cami, I definitely need a dark bra.)

Not much more to say on this skirt - I love the patchwork madras, the fit is just fine, I can't wait to wear it with tanks or tees this summer, and it will be great with sandals, flip flops, or sneakers.

Easy...just like a summer skirt should be...

Amazing ON Find - Best Bathing Suit Cover Up Ever...esp for the Price!

Life has been crazy and I miss all my bloggie friends...and I have so much to share! But I have to do this one right away since it's about the BR/Gap/ON GiveGet promo this weekend. (First of all, did you get your coupon. If not, email me at my contact info and I'll be happy to forward to you - I still have 20 I can forward).

Anyway...while the kiddies were at school today and after my conference call, I had a bunch of returns to do, one of which was at ON. As I was chatting with a friend I ran into, I all of a sudden noticed all these really cute dresses and said "oooh, must go look" so we wandered over there...and then picked out different colors so we wouldn't be twins at the pool this summer.

It is the best (esp for the price!!!) bathing suit cover up I have seen this year. Ok, I haven't been shopping for coverups a lot but I'm always on the lookout.

Old Navy Smocked Tube Dress (#730556, $15).

But wait...there's more...the dresses are currently on promo for $8.

And then I had my 30% off GiveGet promo.

So that means....

I paid $5.60 for each. They could fall apart after a month and I would have no grounds whatsoever to complain.

Don't shoot me, I got the black and the blue (blue chip).

Fit-wise...what do you need fit for? It's a bathing suit cover up. Or at least it is for me. On my 5'10" and short-shinned frame, it's really too short to be a dress. And I'm totally comfortable with this as a single-tasker. Because it was $5.60.

I did take an M. Size down-ish. There's plenty of room.

In store, they had the black, blue, green, orchid, yellow, and coral shown online. They also had a white and a black that had some large-scale flowers printed on (the black had blues/greens; the white had corals/yellows, if I remember correctly).

Dang...now I feel like I should have gotten more than 2.

Got a few fun pieces at Gap, too, that I'll share IRL pics of soon. Here's the PV for now (all purchases on sale, then with additional 30% off):

Gap F&F 30% Off Purchases by HeidiGblog featuring Old Navy dresses

(yes, I finally caved and bought distressed jeans...but they were soooo cute!)

Ms Green Jeans and Some Fun at the Outlets

Let's start with Ms. Green Jeans on Friday...you know, me as Mr. Green Jeans' long lost daughter. How cute are these pants? Old Navy Womens Perfect Khakis (#595183, $29.50). Well, I thought they were perfect for me. I got them in Jalapeno, but to me it looks like muted Starbucks green. Considering how many white, gray, navy tops I have, I thought these would be a perfect bottom to liven up some of them. And it would be great for cheering on the Green Lightning from the sidelines (E's soccer team). And, great for running around with Lucy since they are pretty decent weight fabric.

They do have a low waist, but not too much - and work just fine with the bf tissue tee. I sparkled it up a bit with some layered necklaces, including my fireball, and some gold flats. I am really envisioning these pants with some of my navy tops or the Jaspe sweatshirt as well. And definitely some of the cream sweaters in the fall. Of course, I have to roll them up since the 32" inseam is just not long enough, but I may order a pair in another color in tall if ON has another good shipping deal.

Polyvore set from Friday:

Wearing Today - 5/15/09 by HeidiGblog featuring Old Navy Clothing

And then skip right to today's outfit, with the graphic tee and matchsticks that I got at the J Crew outlet this weekend. Well first, I'll be honest, I didn't take my camera this weekend, so I don't have pics. But, I would like to note that (1) - Saturday AM - you've already seen pics of the dress, (2) I'm sure I'll wear the molten metallic with white jeans again soon and promise to post pics then, and (3) you've seen the Library ad nauseum on me and seriously, I just paired with a white tee & jeans, how much more basic can you get? It was divinely comfy for travel, though!

Quick Recap of weekend: Left Saturday early, got to Lansdowne and did early checkin, headed to spa for a few lazy hours, chilled out in the room for a while, got dolled up for dinner, ate out, back at the bar for a nightcap (mine was chamomile tea, how sad is that?), and then crashed. On to Sunday, which started about 2:30 am when we had to call security to break up the party in the room next door - oh no, we're "those" people I hated when I was younger. Fuddy duddy me. More sleep, then up, breakfast, outlets, lunch and home.

Ok, so the outlets...

First I hit Gap to get sweatshirts for the kids. There I found a pair of shorts that are a dead ringer for the J Crew poplin cargo short (#15018, $49.50). The Gap outlet pair was $29.99, less 20%, so $24. I got them in a British khaki (and nabbed the JC pic for Polyvore when I got home). They are so lightweight, they will be perfect for summer.

Next I went to J Crew. They had a lot of polos (on sale), a lot of Jackies. They had some very cute necklaces, including quite a few colors of the stone bead ribbon necklace look alike. Many of the dresses were 50% off. Skirts were marked down too. I tried on a lot of things, but only ended up with 2 things for myself, both of which I am wearing at left. On top, the yellow (color=CLI, any idea? cool limoncello?) graphic tee with gray fleur de lis and script "C'est la vie". I love the tee - can't wait to wear it with the navy Nicky skirt, my white gauze-y skirt, white jeans, light khakis...ok, I think I just covered most of my summer bottoms wardrobe. And I can't wait to pair it with my gray cardis. Tee was $29.50, less 40% graphic tees, so under $18. I also got, are you ready for it, those of you who are sick and tired of seeing me in the same jeans?, a pair of the matchsticks, ankle length. They were on sale for $39.99 and I figured this was a good way to see if I really would love them and wear them. So far, so good. I think my sister is impressed that I finally got a pair of skinny-ish jeans!

And as I was standing near the checkout, my eyes strayed over to the mens section and there I saw it... a dark olive-brown tee with the word "BEER" in white. Immediately thought of hubby and went over to check it out. He looks so good in that color! I picked it up and saw the entire graphic which included "Southport" at the bottom - and that's where his parents live now, so I was sold! Hubby now has his first piece of J Crew wear. I don't think he's quite as excited about it as I am.

And that was basically it for the outlet shopping. I got 3 things that I can really use that will incorporate quite nicely into my wardrobe. And put back many more things that I just didn't need.

Polyvore set for today with outlet finds:

Wearing Today by HeidiGblog featuring Geox Shoes

Wearing Today - plus some hair tips and updated Lucy pics - what more could you ask for?

Crazy spring weather here - started sunny, poured, sunny again, poured, then sunny/cloudy. But plenty of time to take Lucy for some walks, and oh my plants are so happy! Of course we've had an issue or two with plants in the backyard because apparently, to a puppy (or at least *my* puppy), this:

looks a lot like this:

Who would have thought? Fortunately, the clematis buds are just about to burst and hopefully there will be too many for Lucy to get all at once. At least my peonies are safe...for now.

So a note about today's outfit...the not-so-great hair. I had an appointment for a cut and toner (not full color, thank you very much, not there, it's just like a little watercolor on my head) on my hair this afternoon and - you all know this, right? - (hair tip #1) color takes much much much better on dirty hair. The accompanying rule (hair tip #2) is that you are supposed to wait 72 hours to wash your hair to complete the bonding of the color to your hair shaft. Of course, we have the DC JCA tea on Saturday - so my stylist suggested, and is permitting me to, just using a teensy drop of shampoo that day, and start at the ends and work my way to my scalp so that it's really diluted by the time it gets to the color at the roots (hair tip #3). Same with conditioner. My hair gets oily very quickly. My mom & sister can go a few days without washing their hair - I am very jealous of that. I have to do mine every day. But usually to do the shampoo, I put massage a bit into my scalp and then let the rinsing take the shampoo all the way down the hair shaft. That's enough to get it clean, and leaves the ends in better condition. (hair tip #4) I read that somewhere a while ago, one of my magazines probably, and it seems to work really well for me. So, since I couldn't wash my hair this morning, I just tried to smooth it and tie it up. Works for me...a little more often than it probably should.

Back to the outfit...I have on a new ON striped tank. Sparrowsandsparkles gave me the inspiration to get this tank since I saw her sets with one. It's very fun with the J Crew navy short sleeve sweater. And I did pull out the new Target pewter peep toe flats that I posted a week ago. They are very comfy. And I still have OPI You Don't Know Jacques on my toes, so they match the polish quite well. comfy outfit. Would translate well to other pants, such as white pants/jeans, or some khakis. Maybe the linen-cotton seaside pants, speaking of which, I really need to iron those!

Polyvore set for today:

To Wear Today - 5/7/09 by HeidiGblog featuring Old Navy jackets

And to complete...some updated Lucy pics. I love the outside ones because you can see so much more detail on her coat - which got a bath today, so it's nice and shiny.

J Crew Silk-Linen Vneck Sweater and Linen-Cotton Seaside Pants

Presenting 2 of my "updated" DC JCA Private Shopping Purchases. The Silk-Linen Vneck Sweater (#12961, orig $59.50, curr $49.50) and the Linen-Cotton Seaside Pants (#13053, $69.50) And again, thank you, Mickey, for the 25% red card!

If you remember, I originally got the sweater in sweet cantaloupe, which just wasn't the color for me. Although if I ever get called in somewhere for a photo shoot, I'll remember it because the color was so much better in photos than I felt like it was IRL. I really loved this sweater with the gateau skirt, so I definitely wanted to exchange it and get another color. And I successfully resisted the urge to get it in the slate which I did like. So - sun yellow it is. And what a great sweater for a day like today - it was sunny, rainy, cloudy, thundering on and off all day long. Happy Spring Break!

If you are looking for a summer sweater, I highly recommend this one. The fit is great. I got a M and it fits close to the body without being skintight or bulgy. Definitely needs a cami or tank underneath as it does run a bit sheer. I like the length on this one - it's not as long as a lot of their sweaters and other tops. While I do love long, as you have no doubt noticed from past postings, it is nice to have a not-quite-as-long length, which is why it works so well with the skirt (probably my Easter Sunday outfit). It says Dry Clean, but I will plan to hand wash this one, as I do with just about everything else.

Let me tell you about the Linen-Cotton Seaside pants. I tried these on that Sunday but did not get because I was too into the cocktail capris. But when I tried the cocktail capris on again at home, I just didn't love them. The waist felt a bit big, and I was concerned about how they would work if I lost a little more weight. So I decided to return them. I may try them again another time, who knows...

But when I returned the capris, I tried on the Seaside pants again, in Stone. These are such a me-in-the-spring-summer pant. Bad news first, they have a 32" inseam - so I just rolled the cuffs up twice and I really like them like that. In fact, after I wash them the first time, I am going to tack the cuff into place. Makes it feel beachier, more casual - more like my daily lifestyle. They definitely require a fitted top, or a fitted underlayer tucked in. But they will be so fab for the rest of spring and through the summer. I am already envisioning them with my Bon Voyage tee and the short sleeve cardi in navy on the next warm day...

Nice, light linen/cotton blend, so they aren't too insane with the wrinkles. Machine washable - love that! Fit wise, I would suggest your normal size or sizing down. They loosened up a bit during the day. But a belt would take care of that - and I never felt like they were sliding down - they were just way comfy.




Spring Break, Day 1 - 04/06/09 by HeidiGblog featuring Forever21 necklaces
The accessories are all subs, I need to take an IRL pic of the green bag.

And as far as other activities on Saturday's "Adjustment" Day:

I returned the ON sweater jacket of Sadness.
At JC, I returned the

-Ruffled Tank (just wouldn't lay right under my personal stash of sweaters)
-Cocktail Capris (see reasons above, plus ice cream cone effect in original pics with metallic shirt)
-Sweet Cantaloupe Silk-Linen Vneck Sweater (exchanged for less vomitous-on-me color)
-Gray Bangle (hadn't worn it yet, which was a bad sign, so bye-bye)

And it (mostly) balanced out at JC with:

-Nicky skirt ($15 after red card!! plus it looked good as opposed to when I tried it on 10 lbs ago)
-Jackie cardi in Misty Lavender (need one of these, esp since returning the ON sweater jacket)
-Linen-Cotton Seaside Pants
-Silk-Linen Sweater in Sun Yellow

The other big news was that I finally saw the Cricket Cardigan that I have been coveting in person! There was one on hold behind that counter that had been a return. And you know what? I didn't totally love it. It was the navy, and I think I would actually like the natural/golden olive one more - but I already have a natural sweater jacket from BR last year, so that would be too similar. So I am actually happy that I never got it. (yay!)

So here's the final tally from the DC JCA Private Shopping Event (with next Saturday's adjustments)

-Cotton Atelier Jacket in Navy
-Molten Metallic Perfect Shirt in Metallic Khaki
-Silk-Linen Vneck Sweater in Sun Yellow
-Jackie Cardigan in Misty Lavender
-Cotton Scoopneck Ruffle Tee in Navy
-Cotton Sateen Gateau Skirt in Light Pewter
-Linen-Cotton Seaside Pants in Stone
-Nicky Skirt in Navy

Final Purchases Out of the DC JCA Private Shopping Event by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew jackets

Lots of great basics that I need, plus some fun pieces to spice it up. Thoughts?

Have you tried the silk-linen vneck sweater or the seaside pants?

More Old Navy Sadness (Are you people kidding me???)

Ok, so after all the hoo-ha about the 2 Old Navy striped sweater jackets, I was able to order the medium tall, thinking that would be my Goldilocks solution to fits-but-too-short (M) and long-enough-but-huge (L). Thanks again to FFM for her suggestion on calling customer service - it was helpful and painless. FFM - you are a doll!

But then the package arrived... Oh, I was so excited. And then I tried it on. I dearly wish I had not already returned the M & L because I would like to hold up the M-Tall to the L and see if, in fact, they really are THE EXACT SAME SIZE. See picture below. Left is the L, Right is the M-Tall. What do you think? Don't they look the same?

I really love this cardi. I really, really want it to work. But the process of cleaning out my closet and going through the Lenten shopping ban has made me thing much more about my purchases and whether or not they truly work for me. So I think the sweater jacket is going back. It may only be $17, but it's still not good enough.

Old Navy Sweater Coat Sadness and Today's Outfit (yes, they're related)

Well, this was a big screw up. The Old Navy Sweater Coat (that I mentioned earlier this week). Yep, my F&F package arrived. Camis good. Sweater bad. Should have paid more attention because it is offered in a TALL, hello????? And it's the same shipping no matter how many items you order? And it actually says "hits at the waist"? Yeah, I messed up.

The medium (here on left) looks like it belongs to my 6-year-old daughter in terms of length, and the large (here on right) is really too big. I took pics and was trying to convince myself that I could maybe go ahead and keep the large, after putting it to a vote here, but as I look at it, it really is a bit too big. I think the Tall Medium would be perfect. Unfortunately, no more F&F, and I don't want to pay the shipping just for the 1 sweater. It's $24, shipping & tax puts it over $30, when I paid $20 for the other two. And I am planning to return in store, so they won't have the tall for me to exchange. Dang.

And I really made the definite decision to return after I saw the pics from today's outfit - my BR sweater jacket from last year (plus trusty Chicos jeans and Payless flats - are you tired of seeing them yet?). I love this sweater jacket, it always evokes a Chanel-esque feel in me, and I always feel great in it. But it's a little on the bigger side also, like the ON one. So I don't want 2 sweater jackets that are on the large side. Although the BR one doesn't usually look this wide, maybe it's the way I'm standing (whereas I think the ON one actually looks wider IRL). Anyway... What do I do? Should I go ahead and pay 50% more the M Tall sweater coat that seems like it would probably be perfect? Should I wait until after the DC JCA outing this weekend, because I've had my eye on the cricket cardigan and they may be too similar? What do you think?

Side note about today's outfit: This was my first piece of J Crew jewelry - the dog charm bracelet from Fall 2007. Love it!! Lucy thinks it's the most marvelous toy, so I am taking it off when we play. Luckily, it is sturdy.

Shopping Ban Update and True Confessions (I'm Smitten, finally)

How was the Lenten shopping ban been going? Really, really well. I have to thank this amazing online community. It has been so wonderful to have this level of support, while knowing that I would make myself accountable. It has been 3 1/2 weeks. And it has truly been illuminating. I think for me, shopping was equating to gluttony at times.

So this Lenten ban has extended that to a look at gluttony and its place in my life. I can tell you that I have actually lost 8 pounds over the last few weeks because I have finally put my relationship with food in its proper place. I inherited half of a kick-ass metabolism so my weight usual habits. I am one of those people who are much less in shape than they appear to be and I am trying to change that.

I have started exercising regularly. More free time when you aren't shopping or plotting how you are going to shop. And I feel so much better about myself. Not much exercise this week with the new puppy, except for PT, but considering the mostly self-inflicted lack of sleep at the beginning of the week, I am proud that I lost 2 pounds this week, got my puppy walking, and didn't descend into a vortex of bad eating.

Have I been perfect? Heck no! So here are my confessions, but I thing my indiscretions have been small and offset by additional clothes-related in-flow.

First of all, I finally caved and purchased Rescue Beauty Lounge's Smitten. By the way, their packaging is fantastic. I have been wanting the perfect pink. Medium pink, not to coral/orange, not too brown, with just a touch of lavender (since that works on my weird yellow-y skin tone), and this is it. Per RBL's description:

Angora, princess phones, Molly Ringwald movies. This is the light lilac pink that would have won Andrew McCarthy's heart.

Ok, I was always more a Judd Nelson girl, but whatever. Coming of age with the Brat Pack, how can I resist? So that was more than I usually spend, unless I buying Chanel, but it is worth it. (about $25, including S&H) But don't you love it? It screams spring to me, and I can't wait to wear it in the summer, too.

Old Navy purchases on F&F sale - 30% off, plus tax and S&H allocated to each item.

• The Old Navy Sweater Coat (#632592, orig. $39.50, curr $23.99 online), Gigi and Sparrow& Sparkle both did great reviews, check them out if you haven't already. I have wanted this since before my shopping ban and looked for it on my Mardi Gras shopping outing, but my ON did not have it. I ordered both the M and L just to be sure of fit (same shipping anyway, did you hear that J Crew?). Will return at least 1 of them. Allocated out, $20.18 each.


• 3 camis. I live in ON's shelf bra camis (because they are long enough in regular - you can see in the online pic next to the "basic camis" - shelf bra ones are longer). These are one of my year-round staples, along with their tanks. I need a fresh stock of white ones every 3-6 months. In the summer, they usually replace bras (ok, so there are some advantages to a lack of curves). I ordered 2 in white, and 1 in pink pony (as opposed to a pink goat, I suppose). I always need white and I don't have a pink right now. Allocated out, $7.57 for each. These I can actually excuse as necessities.

To balance this out, I got a $35 check from the consignment shop for stuff from last summer. I have $20 of returns at Nordstrom Rack (some ill-advised tights). Let's do the math (I was a math major, you know)

($20 for the sweater) + ($25 for the polish) < ($55 in clothing income)

Ok, I'm good. Plus I did purchase on a Sunday. So well within my rules.

So what did I resist? And where did I almost fail?

1. Latest J Crew 20% off, especially when I realized the navy chiffon ruffle cardi was there in my size, waiting. Still have designs on this one at some future point in time, possibly.


2. Bobbi Brown 20% sale this week. Oh, I was close, so close. I had a cart and everything filled Thursday night. Then I remembered that I had just come back from puppy class ($160), had a vet visit the previous day ($200-ish, thanks to all the shots), spent about $150 at the store on dog stuff. So a lot in 1 week. That made me stop. I don't need that much right now. What I have can get me through - at least until they release their new blush sticks, at which point I will take a look. But cautiously.
   
3. But what really, really, really almost did me in - Chanel's email announcing their Deja Vu collection - "you loved it then, now love it again". Discontinued favorites can be found again. I thought, oh that's nice, no way they actually have their Rouge Noir Le Vernis Nail Colour. (For you polish neophytes, this is actually the original shade of Chanel's Vamp - as in Pulp Fiction, Uma Thurman, total fabulosity. The Vamp sold today is a different shade. And I am a huge fan of dark polish, ever since a tragic accident with my big toe and E's plastic high heel dress up shoes 4 1/2 years ago. And I love how it offsets my usual classic, preppy clothes with a teeny bit of edge.) Oh yes, they did. For $23, plus S&H of course, Rouge Noir could be all mine. And I was like, arghhhh, I just bought a new polish, and it wasn't cheap. So here I sit coveting the Rouge Noir polish. Knowing I shouldn't buy it. But it's still there, tempting me. This actually could be my undoing.

Right now the only thing keeping me honest is the DC JCA gathering next Sunday, 3/29. I said in the beginning, if I'm really good, then I can shop. If not, no way. So I am trying, trying so hard. But that Rouge Noir and its luscious vampiness is calling me. (this is my call for reinforcement, ladies) Fortunately, that puppy is keeping me pretty busy. Plus I still have 2 tops from Pre-Lent shopping that I haven't worn - yes, both are summer tops, 1 sleeveless, 1 tunic, but still...

Ok, staying strong, staying strong. See you all at DC JCA nest Sunday!