J Crew Urbanite Shift

J Crew Urbanite Shift Dress (338605, $118 or $94.40 with Mickey card; spiced olive & muslin currently $95 online) 

Since I had to pop in to my local B&M to do a couple returns on some ill-advised sale purchases, I sent a note to my PS to ask her to hold the dress for me.  I've been lusting over it in the catalog.  Love the retro orange color.  I know I'm all about the neutrals, but that is definitely a me color.  I'm very selectiveabout my colors, so I love it when J Crew does have some of my colors.  And have you seen the Fall 2011 looks?  Gorgeous colors, and finally a "real" red for winter!!  But back to the dress....

First of all, this dress is running HUGE.  I ended up with a 4.  I asked Jill to grab a 6 but she nabbed the 4 saying she had several 10's go down to a 4 in it.  And the retro orange wasn't even there in a 6, so I shrugged and said sure.  Thanks to my sister and dear dinagideon, I'm really trying to try on the smaller sizes first.  Hard to move the brain there.  But I remembered how big the Shelby dress ran, so I figured it was worth a try. 

Um, oh yeah, I took a 4.  A 4!!!!  I even tried on the 6 just to see (in the muslin) and it was like wearing a massive paper grocery bag.  So size down in this...way down.  Maybe that's what they mean when they say "easy fit" in the online description.  Pre-weight loss, I think I still would have taken a 6.

Other than the sizing issue, it's just a good old straight shift.  Lay it flat and you'll see the slight trapezoidal shape.  Remember, I am more angular (i.e., shaped like a brick) than curvy.  The dress hangs well from my broad shoulders.  If you are curvier or more pear-shaped, I don't know how it will work.  I'm happy I got to look in the mirror and go "oh yay, a dress that's not totally vacant on top".  If you actually have curves and have tried this, please pipe up!  I'd love to hear.

It does run on the short side, but the simple & straight silhouette offsets the length.  And it's not like I ever wear heels unless decorum dictates it, anyway.  The dress has an exposed back zip which is a nice feature as well as pockets.  Oh, I love pockets.  And it has my 2 favorite words "Machine Wash."  Thank you!

Let's talk color.  I'm glad I tried on the retro orange.  I admit I was sorely tempted by the muslin (oooh, pretty neutral), but I figure a tan dress is easier to find than one with this color.  Did not see the spiced olive in store.  The Retro Orange looks, to my untrained and upaid eye, like a pretty close dupe for Modern Red.  I held up the dress to a modern red perfect fit tee I got earlier in the spring and yep, they were an exact match.  So if you're trying to figure out exactly how orange it is, it's basically the same as the Dorrie skirt or the tees.

How am I going to wear it?  Let's see...With the navy atelier jacket and navy flats (possible Easter outfit), but I'd love some other flats...will have to play in the closet.  With sandals and sunnies, duh.  Maybe even with a long sleeve tee layered underneath.  I definitely had some fun playing with this on Polyvore yesterday.  Probably/possibly would work with tights underneath - I wonder if black tights would be too Halloween-y.  Any cardigan will work over it since it's sleeveless (must be why I love sleeveless in the summer, I always need the cardi anyway inside with all the AC, so it's just easier). 

J Crew Dress Review - Basket Weave Portico Dress

My much-anticipated (well, for me at least) J Crew package arrived on Wednesday afternoon. So I was thrilled to get the long beach cardi, the tall minnies, the pearl Jackie, and the crystal fireworks earrings all at 20% off. Like I said before, the savings more than offset the shipping, and I have returned the full price items.

And it was a great time to try some dresses that were catalog/jcrew.com only...20% off, so yay if they worked. And no worries if they didn't since the shipping was already taken care of. Sorry for the delay in getting the pictures up - Thursday was cleaning lady here, then meeting at office, followed by team happy hour. Friday was Valentine's parties at school, reimbursements to dole out, and sleepovers here. We are currently in the lull between 1 basketball game and 1 soccer game.

The J Crew Basket-weave Portico Dress (#22888, $118). This did not work on me at all. Well - you can see that from the picture at left. I ordered this in a 10, based on the model picture (but more about that below).

First of all, the pros:

1 - The color, brilliant orange, is gorgeous!! Love love love this color - I hope J Crew has more in it this spring. The dress is also available in dark slate. (dina - are you so proud of me for bypassing my fave J Crew gray for orange?)

2 - The fabric is beautiful. It's a cotton-silk blend and feels divine. Nice and lightweight for the summer.

3 - The neckline is fantastic with the basket-weave. Interestingly enough, the packaging outside the dress said "Tutenkamen dress", so maybe this is yet another example of an item that will have a different name in-store than online. The dress does not say online only, but I haven't seen it in stores yet. Maybe it will be part of the new release next week.

4 - It has pockets. (need I say more?)

Now let's get to the bad...it's all about fit. First of all, check out the dual images below of the dress, both from jcrew.com:

At left we have the thumbnail that appears when the dresses are all listed, with this dress on a dress form. At right, the model picture that appears when you select the dress and go to the product page. Guess which one is more accurate...the left pic that shows an a-line dress or the right pic which shows a dress that appears a bit tight on even the model's hips? Yep, the right one. All I can say is that I'd love to see the back view of the left pic, because I'm guessing the back of the bodice on that dress is pinned within an inch of its life. Plus, the way they pinned it makes it appear to have a much higher waistline, giving the illusion of an overall length below mid-thigh on me.

When a dress looks like that on the model, it really should be a warning sign. It fit me pretty much like the model, only it didn't look as good. It was tight around the butt/hips. And it was short. And because of that, plus the fact that the fabric is so lightweight, it would bunch up around my waist when I walked or raised my arm, and then stay up. Not too attractive.

And as tight as it was around the lower half, it was so loose - I don't even know that a belt would help. Again...fit like the model pic.

But is it a bad dress? No, not at all...on the right person it would work. I have a fairly straight figure (you know, a brick and all that) but for someone who is really, really straight and not too tall, this would be a great dress.

Here was my initial Polyvore if the dress had worked...not gonna need that now. But I do love the orange/pink combo.

Basket-weave Portico Dress by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew

Today's Outfit and the First Set of JCA Outing Purchase Reviews

What a pretty day we had here. Sunny and 60 degrees. Ok, I spent part of the morning in sweats after taking Lucy for a seriously long walk after the bus stop and then had to get some work done. But when I finally did get officially dressed for the day, she passed out on the bathroom floor (for any new readers - this is my 3-month-old Labradoodle puppy, so it's ok), so I had a little time to do some quick try-ons of my DC JCA Shopping event purchases.

First of all - the outfit for the day. I was dying to try out my new Canvas Atelier Jacket (#13105, orig $148, curr $89.99). Remember I had my 25% crewpon (thank you, Gigi for the terminology), plus I got a J Crew card, so I got an additional 10% off - which together worked out to be about 33% off. End price $$60.76. Yippeeee! I really needed a nice spring/summer jacket. I anticipate wearing this one a lot. I added some turquoise beads for color (they were my grandmother's) along with my basic white tee and jeans. But the beauty of the outfit is how quickly I was able to swap jacket & shoes for hoodie and crocs for E's soccer practice - bringing Lucy and tramping about in the woods next to the park.

Here is my Polyvore: (Fun stuff! Love Polyvore.)

3/31/09-Out and At Soccer by HeidiGblog featuring Crocs flat shoes


And on to the other items...

Don't have a heart attack. This might be a little too exciting for you... Ok, I know, so boring, but so basic, and necessary. (basically awesome, I say) I went ahead and got a Boyfriend Tissue V-neck Tee in white (#11657, $29.50 online, but $19.50 in store). I know it's sheer, but I'll be wearing a cami or tank underneath anyway. Have I mentioned in the last 5 posts how soft these are? Well, I'll say it again. Love.... Anyway, I will probably wear this as much as anything else. And promise I'll accessorize it to within an inch of its life. Is that ok? And see, left on the turquoise beads that I wore today. So there's a little color.... Yeah, I know, lame. But me likey.


Next up - the ruffle favorite tank (not online anymore) in navy. I think this will be a really great layering piece. I like the ruffle - it adds detail, but not too much so that it misbehaves under other tops (bunching, etc.). End price $13.16. What do you think? Worth it? I think I will regret taking this one back. 3-Penny Princess had one on in putty at Sunday's event and it was way cute. It will definitely add a little something instead of the usual tank or cami. So I am thinking I will probably keep it. Will try on with some other tops to make a final decision.


The last item in this batch... we have the silk-linen v-neck sweater (#12961, orig $59.50, curr $49.50 online FS). End price was $40.16 on this sweater. I was and am still very iffy on this one. I love the fit. It's nice to have a not-long sweater for a change. I really loved the fit - in M. What don't I like? 2 things - (1) dry clean only (machine washable is the main reason I tried the gateau skirt - to be reviewed later this week) even though I know I could hand wash, and (2) the color. I'll be honest, I love orange. But this sweet cantaloupe just isn't it. The color is too faded/muted. My IRL picture actually makes it look more vibrant than it is. Here is a better pic of what it really looks like. And um, I hate to say it, but I have thrown up and had it be this color, and unfortunately, that's what it makes me think of, which is a pity. Plus, hello - more on sale now than 2 days ago. I wonder if it is also marked down in store. I am thinking I will take it back and see if I can get another color, especially on sale. (Sorry, Dina, but I promise I'll get a bright.)

More pics to come over the week. I'm cooking up a fun outfit for Girls' Night tomorrow.

What do you think so far? I am totally open to feedback, except negative feedback on the Atelier jacket since I already cut the tags and wore it. If you hate it, be honest, but realize I can't do anything.