Anatomy of a Bag and a Clinique Conversation

Well, ok, so I decided to keep the J Crew canvas boardwalk city tote in the tennis-ball-bright neon yellow. In the end, the color made me happy and I was dying to pull it out and use it with many of my neutral ensembles. And the color reminds me of summer because of how much my mom played tennis when I was growing up. I never caught the bug but my sister did.

Now, this is a wide open bag with 1 zip pocket, so the question naturally arises, how do you keep it organized? Rather, how do you find anything and prevent it from becoming a jumbled mess? I know some people swear by those pocket systems that you move from bag to bag, but I like my stuff in the middle where I can see it and get to it.

Here is the inside of my bag. I picked it up Saturday morning and didn't even try to neaten it, I swear. My sunglasses were, I believe, sitting on the counter, so they missed the pic.

How To Make It Work:

Key decision - what to put in the zip pocket. If you put too much in, you won't be able to find a thing. I have my BlackBerry, an all-purpose -works-with-every-look lipstick, blotting papers (seriously, these from Clean & Clear are the greatest!!), and my keys.

Key item #1 - The plastic-Velcro envelope. I use clear for coupons, red for receipts, and purple for prescriptions to fill or other lists. (Get the alliteration? I'm such a geek.) They are easy to get into, thanks to the Velcro. And because they are translucent, you can even see what's inside the red or purple ones. I got mine at Target, who unfortunately doesn't seem to carry them any more, so I'll have to check Staples or Office Depot for a replacement. This saves a lot of miscellaneous pieces of paper floating around. And the receipt envelope saves on weight & width of the wallet.

Key item #2 - Mini-purse catchall. For mints, band-aids, tissues, additional lipstick/balm, brush, lotion, pill bottle (OTC of course), pen, market, head band...basically all the stuff that is usually rolling around loose in your purse. With a bag this size, you can't have all that little stuff just littering the bottom.

Here's the outside. Yep, it's the Trina Turk bag from the current Nordstrom's Clinique bonus. What I really love is that it is a bit bigger than your standard makeup bonus bag. Plus the colors - yummy, they scream summer.

And the products seem pretty good, too. I don't love the lotion, but I always love trying their colors.

Includes:
- Take the Day Off Makeup Remover for Lids, Lashes and Lips (1.7 oz.)
- Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion (1 oz.)
- Blushwear Cream Stick in Rosy
- Colour Surge Eye Shadow Duo in Sun Burst
- Lash Doubling Mascara in Black (0.14 oz.)
- Different Lipstick in Tenderheart
- Superfit Makeup (0.5 oz.)

Just in case you are wondering what to get to qualify for the bonus ($25 purchase), I have a few suggestions:

#1 - Colour Surge Butter Shine Lipstick ($14). I love this lipstick. I am just not a lipgloss girl. Too sticky. This gives me the best of both lipstick and gloss - sheer color, shine, not too sticky. Great colors to boot. I have Ambrosia (great summer orange), Poppy Love (a nude-y pink they don't seem to have any more), and Raspberry Rush (yummy raspberry for summer that I just got). I also tried Fresh Watermelon - another great summer color.

#2 - Lash Power Mascara ($14). I have been a fan of this since last spring. It's my standard summer mascara. I also use (per GingerSnap's excellent recommendation) the L'Oreal Beauty Tubes Double Extend Mascara. But this one is just a little easier, with 1 formula to apply. It's not as volumizing, but just so summer-appropriate for me. (still keep the tubes for the vavavoom lashes, though.) The new Bobbi Brown Perfectly Defined Mascara, which I tried at $23 for a tube was so similar I was amazed, except that the Clinique mascara was better. Bobbi's formula was a little too wet for me and I looked like I had black dots on very weird places around my eye. Big, huge fan of the Lash Power. The tube is nice & skinny, so it packs easily, too.

#3 - SPF 45 Targeted Sun Protection Stick ($17.50). I had the previous version, in SPF 30 from 2 summers ago, so it needed to be replaced. I use this religiously on my lips - and on my eyes, which often sting from sunscreen. It's easy enough to take a quick swipe. This newer version is oil-free, so I will probably start using on my nose since I feel like the sunscreen slides off there first. I love love love this. And if you haven't seen my sun safety rant from a couple weeks ago, you should. Ok, off soapbox.

UPDATE - I just got an email that says the promotion runs through June 6.

Wearing Today and I Am Golden

Yes, I am golden today. Or at least, I'm wearing OPI She's Golden polish, so I can only assume OPI is talking about me (duh). Part of OPI's Beyond Chic collection (Summer 2008), it is described as a white frost with a golden gleam. So it's not stark white, it's a little softer. There were quite a few white nails on the spring runways, most notably the Chanel couture show. This is my take on it - softer and a bit more sparkly. (Remember? Any glitter will help the polish adhere better to the nail.) I got it this past weekend, and am really loving it. This may be a standard in my summer nail arsenal.

On to the outfit...continuing with the white theme - white tank & jeans with long black cardi (BR, Winter 2008). Black sandals, some J Crew necklaces, Dina hoops, and top it off with the tennis ball bag (yep, my new name for it, I am embracing it). Thanks again to everyone for weighing in on the J Crew canvas boardwalk city tote. I really appreciate the time and thought you all put into your comments and I did mull them over quite a bit. As I mentioned in my last reply, I have been dying to pull it out and use it, but was mainly doubting myself. This will work with just about everything I wear in the summer - it may end up being a "neutral" for me after all.

I loved the bag with the black & white outfit; for me, I think it complemented it well. And no, it's not in the IRL pics because I usually do those upstairs and my current bag is usually downstairs. One of these days, I'll remember it for a pic. And I just realized - this is my 2nd day in a row with white jeans. It must be dry outside. And my puppy is growing up. I really need to post some new Lucy pics.

Polyvore set for today:

Wearing Today-5/21/09 by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew

We are having gorgeous spring weather here today. I took the kiddies to the dentist this morning, ran some errands, and then came home to work, etc on the computer. I finally figured out getting my pics from my BlackBerry, since they weren't emailing and I'm on an enterprise server for work and therefore I never installed the Desktop Manager, so I have some dress and other reviews to post.

And a word of warning to all...beware the crew-lateral damage your J Crew online order can cause...especially if you are trying to break down the box and get it in the recycling so your SO doesn't realize exactly how big the box was...yeah, this is what you get when you are so graceful that you manage to pinch the inside of your arm in the fold of the box. It's a wonder I manage to make it out the door in 1 piece most days. Man, that sucker hurts!

Cherry Tunic Goodness and... Too Bright or Just Right?

First up, today's outfit. Tunic is from Chico's last spring. I love the pink and red together - much like the J Crew constellation dress. And, bonus, last spring, I had to leave the bottom button undone. This year, buttoned all the way down, thank you very much. It's a great spring/summer piece. And I paired it with my new outlet matchsticks. (Still need to compare to the real thing - Jemma Ruby raised an excellent question when she commented on my previous post, so I am curious to check it out.)

Going with my semi-boho flair (or as boho as I ever get), I topped it off with the Dina hoops, fireball necklace, and BR crystally necklace that I always pair with the fireball or the twisted crystal. (really need to get a better, or shorter name for that necklace)

When M (my almost-9-year-old) came into the kitchen after I was dressed, he said "You look really nice. Are you going to a dance?" Needless to say, it made my day and almost made my cry. So sweet, that boy.

Polyvore for today (usng the JC cherry blossom blouse as a substitute for the Chicos tunic):

Wearing Today-5/20/09 by HeidiGblog featuring Old Navy


Too Bright or Just Right?

I need an opinion here, ladies (& gentlemen). I got the J Crew canvas boardwalk city tote as part of my sale+20% off order from last week, in the neon yellow. Aptly named, let me tell you. It is the exact color of a tennis ball. So here's the question...is it too bright and just totally obnoxious? Or is it just right for brightening up my mostly neutral wardrobe? (Keep in mind, $39.99, less 20%, so not full price.) I would love your opinions, asap, since I'm headed to the mall tomorrow to do returns at the Crew and pick up the Trina Turk Clinique bonus at Nordstrom. Thanks for your input!!