Short Sleeve Cardis This Week

Catching up... let's start with 2 outfits this week - both with short sleeve cardis. Here's today's outfit - the new linen short sleeve cardi that I got at the Tysons JCA event and my new (totally on sale) cafe capris in golden hickory. I am very glad I kept these capris, they are such a fun, offbeat color for a neutral. This cardi is going to be such a fantastic transition piece; right now it's perfect for going over all the tissue bf tees that I have...and today it was a white one. Plus the confetti necklace for more white/cream tonal...whatever. Eh, I felt like wearing it. And I have on my JC fleur de lis flip flops from 2007, I think, which happen to match the pants perfectly.

Yes, me, wearing flip flops and my feet miss being strapped in, especially when I walk Lucy. I am recovering from some major blistering on the back of my left heel that I got Tuesday and then exacerbated yesterday...so flip flops for a few days. Of course, most of my JC flip flops are a couple of years old, so not to be found in PV. No worries, I'll just have barefoot PV sets for a few days.

Polyvore for today:

Wearing Today-9/3/09 by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew

Here's the other short sleeve cardigan, from Tuesday. I wore my nave blue one with a white shirt underneath. I liked how it worked. A little something different. I paired this cardi with a long sleeve white tee last spring, but hadn't done it with a shirt.

Add in simple matchstick jeans and Danielle flats, plus fireball necklace.

I *started* the day with my Clarks pink peep toes - they started the blister, which yesterday's pre-flip-flop shoes exacerbated. The things we do to ourselves, ugh. Maybe I just need to start buying expensive shoes.

New nail polish on toes - Give Me Moor. Need to post this one - fun color! perfect for fall.

Polyvore from Tuesday:

Wearing Today-9/1/09 by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew

I only have 2 short sleeve cardis, so that's it for this post. And I promise to get nail color pics up soon.

Bangs Are Back

Oh yeah, the bangs are back. I've gotten pretty good at trimming my own bangs, and I just couldn't take it anymore. I really don't love how my forehead looks with its horizontal wrinkles (from the usual raised-eyebrow "seriously?" look I often sport) and dark smudges of melasma (thanks hormones). It's not THAT bad, but I do really like myself so much better with bangs. So mid-day Thursday, I actually trimmed them. Happy dance!! Most important key to trimming your own bangs - always leave them WAY longer than you think you should.

I loved my outfit on Thursday with the dark slate Frances cami and so I thought I would go with a dark top/light bottom combo again on Saturday. Then again, speaking of dark things on top, maybe I was inspired by seeing this out my back door Saturday morning....

The scary part is how quiet she was about it - we hadn't heard a thing. M noticed, showed me, so I of course grabbed the camera, opened the door, took a pic, and hollered "OFF". Guess we can't "hide" the plastic yard toys up on the patio table anymore... Did I mention Lucy's insane vertical leap? 44 lbs of it.... Go ahead, laugh through my pain.

Anyway, I had another appointment at the chiropractor on Saturday morning. (quick story - you know how I always talk about having neck issues? Well, I'm finally taking it seriously and seeing a doctor, and making changes - so here I sit at my "new" desk in the living room since working/blogging at the kitchen table was doing bad things to my body) And for those appointments, you really do need to wear pants. And it wasn't going to be hot, so I thought "hey, let's pull out the white jeans!"

I do miss the white jeans...although we are supposed to have highs in the low 70's this week, so I will be able to bring them out again. And, like I said, dark things on top on my brain, so I pulled out my navy bf tissue tee. I always love a bf tissues tee - I feel like I've hardly worn them lately since I've been so sundressed out. Hello, old friend!

Fiinish off with pinky accessories - pink peeptoe Clarks (which gouged out the skin on my heel when I walked Lucy), fireball necklace, rope rose-gold bracelet, and the omnipresent Dina hoops. Loving my Suzi Skis polish with the outfit, too.

Polyvore early Saturday:

Earlier-08/29/09 by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew

Speaking of walking Lucy...later in the day, in the early afternoon, I took Lucy on another nice walk. Walked puppy = happy puppy = happy owners. (I did change shoes first though, since I didn't want to lose the skin on the other heel - seriously, it was so uncomfortable that I quit the earlier walk part way through and walked home barefoot.)

But I was finally forced to cry uncle and submit to the humidity. It was just way too hot and humid to keep wearing jeans, even white jeans. The air was so thick, it was insane. So I kept to the navy/pink theme, and swapped out to the dressy jersey strapless dress with the blush Danielles. Wise decision, my friends, very wise.

I also immediately came in from the walk, turned on the A/C and bumped it down to 75 degrees. And I *never* turn down the A/C - in fact, I try to put off turning it on as long as possible. But I was dying!!! As soon as I changed, I was a happy girl. So happy that I threw a white cable cardi in my bag in case I needed it while we were out at dinner (which I did, since I usually freeze everywhere).

Polyvore later on Saturday:

Afternoon/Evening - 8/29/09 by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew

Bangs are back...happy me.

Harbour Oxford Capris, Some Sewing To Do, and the Ponytail Trick

Let's get right to my outfit for today so I can get on to the other parts. Harbour Oxford Capris (love these - so summery!!), white bf tissue tee, and Danielle sandals. Fireball necklace and rope rose-gold bracelet. I felt very pastel today.

E had a follow up doctors appointment for some warts on her hand, poor thing. But that gave us an excuse to stay home from the pool today, so I got my laundry room cleaned out and organized. Oh, I've been dying to tackle this project and it looks so nice now. All the nicely, neatly organized shelves... Lots of stuff cleaned out. Hubby needs to go through the baseball hats and golf towels, and then we are 100% done. Yay!

That left me a bit of time for some sewing work this afternoon. Specifically the harbour oxford capris from today and my linen-cotton seaside pants. Both of them fit when I first put them on, but after about an hour (or less), they start slipping and give me saggy butt. Solution - sew a couple of darts in the back waistband so they stay up. (Seriously, you didn't think I was actually going to wear a belt, did you??) And since I plan to wear them with tees, shirts, sweaters untucked, it's a good interim solution. But what I really need to do is to stop trying on the size 10 pants...unless something is really TTS or not vanity-sized, I think I actually need to size down at this point. (Yes, I hear you cheering, Dina.) Although, in my defense, I did purchase the seaside pants back in April, pre-most of the weight loss. The harbour oxfords...well, they fit when I first put them on.

And here's the ponytail trick... I read this in one of the August or September magazines over the past 2 weeks. (August mags at the beach, September mags at the river the following week. We need to have a magazing talk, but I'm not there yet.) Anyway, I can't remember which magazine had it, but it was the Chris McMillan column - to get the messy/full ponytail look - put in a low ponytail, divide in half, and pull on 1 half with each hand. This will tighten up the middle & side pieces but leave the top pieces fuller. I've been trying this out (and did today as well, not sure if you can even tell), and it does work pretty well. I've used it to move the ponytail a little higher up to get a bit more fullness at the top. Have at it and have fun!

Polyvore for today:

Wearing Today-8/18/09 by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew

Wearing Today - Inspred by the Start of Pool Season

I think I must have been inspired by the pool opening this weekend. I went with all blue-green today. It's also a pretty close replica of my yellow/navy combo here that seemed to go over well, and that I really liked. Started out with the navy Nicky skirt. Swapped out the yellow ringspun painter tee for one in aqua green (which I got on sale 2 weeks ago for 9.99, yay for in store markdowns). Swapped out the Erickson Beamon bubble necklace for the J Crew fireball. And added sandals instead of flats because it is 80 degrees outside.

I love this Nicky skirt. Even though I had to iron it this morning. which I hate. I hate ironing and try to buy as few needs-ironing clothes as possible, and that would probably explain my tendency toward sweaters and tees. I can use Downy Wrinkle Reducer Spray on those. Have you all ever used it? It works so well, it's just like magic. A friend of mine was laughing at me until I actually showed her. Now she is a convert.

Ironing aside, it's a great outfit for a warm day because it's comfy and easy but not so sloppy. I actually find skirts/dresses to be more comfortable in hot weather than shorts. They may not always be practical, but I try to stretch it when I can.

Polyvore for today:



Wearing Today-5/22/09 by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew


ps - don't forget to help me pick which dress in the post below. Thanks!

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!!

Well, It's Better Than Sweats

You know those days that you get up and are still just wiped out because, say for example, your puppy is having intestinal issues and she needed to go out twice last night, which is still better than the alternative, and you just didn't get enough sleep and it certainly wasn't continuous good REM sleep, and your daughter who stayed up way too late on Saturday night is still being a total crankpot and refusing to finish her homework that she *should* have done yesterday but was too tired to? Yeah...that was my morning. And it has inspired me to create a new category, which will now be known as "It's Better Than Sweats". Some people can rock the yoga pants or the Juicy sweats and be cute, adorable, well put together. Usually when I have them on for the whole day, I am sick as a dog or just bone-tired, so I don't have that bright sparkle in my eyes. Therefore, it turns shlubby. Oh seriously, what's up with the dog imagery? I must be tired.

Today...(read above story and just laugh at me... go ahead, you might as well, someone should enjoy it) It was gray and chilly this morning. But I was also going to volunteer at school like I do every Monday, so I felt like a sloppy sweatshirt and grubby sweatpants was not the way to go. For warmth? Beechwood Michelle cardi, cozy but thin enough for May. Tired? Keep everything else simple - white tissue BF vneck tee, jeans, loafers (yeah, totally ditched the Joleys before we went to the bus stop), but amp it up a little with the Dina hoops and the fireball necklace. Maybe if I had more energy, I would have layered another necklace or something, but this was good enough. I do like the crispness of the white tee with the beechwood cardi. Although I will note for the record that I have not yet resorted to my usual lazy-day trick of the ponytail - most likely because I just got it cut last week.

So Polyvore set for today: (again, as I am discovering, the library cardi could very easily swap out for the beechwood Michelle)

Wearing Today - 5/11/09 by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew t shirts

No time to nap before bus. Must go make more tea... The Awake tea this time, I think.

Weekend Review

First of all, Happy Mother's Day to all Mothers and to all of you who may not be a Mother in name, but mother others to make their lives better. I wish I could be as eloquent as Lissa of Humble Pie, but I'm not, so I will send you over to her blog to read her post in honor of Mother's Day, I Love Being Your Mama. It is truly beautiful, inspirational, and, of course, tear-inducing. So to my wonderful children (the 2 2-legged kids, and 1 4-legged kid), I'll just say "Ditto."

Let's catch up, shall we? I really took an online break this weekend. On Saturday, 3-Penny Princess hosted a tea for the DC J Crew Aficionadas. It truly lived up to all expectations. It was absolutely lovely. A gorgeous day. Beautiful setting. Fantastic company. These ladies are so amazing. It was so great to see old friends and to meet some new ones. The tea and goodies were just divine. The garden was so beautiful. I am a total loser and did *not* bring my camera, so head over to see 3-Penny Princess' or Slastena's blog to see pics. Maybe next time. Hey, the big fat SLR just did not fit into the cutie-pie J Crew rattan clutch! (although just about everything else does)

Update - Summerilla and Cloggsy have both posted their pics. They were both just lovely and I'm so glad I got to meet them!!

I ditched my planned outfit last minute as it was so humid, so I went with an AT Loft black shift dress (soon to be replaced by its fresher, woven twin at J Crew so that it will last longer) but mostly J Crew accessories - twisted crystal + fireball necklaces, rattan clutch, Joley flats, and the bouquet cardi. I did not, in fact, wear the hat as I just wasn't feeling it that afternoon. But oh, I should have when we were outside as my nose was a little pink that evening. (And I am such a sunscreen Nazi that I really am appalled at myself.)

Polyvore set for Tea:


What I Really Wore to Tea today - 5/9/09 by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew dresses

I wish I could have stayed longer at tea but my parents came up for the weekend so I needed to head back home and meet up with them. Hubby cooked filet on the grill. We just chilled out on the patio. And I got to road test the J Crew Dressy Strapless Dress I was posting about a week and a half ago. Final verdict? It was way comfy. A perfect piece to slip into for hanging out. For me, an excellent buy, but I need to alter the removable strap because it's just too long for me. In other words, there isn't that much there for it to hold up. And yes, I was barefoot the entire rest of the day...and it was good. It was my goal and goals are important, right?

Polyvore for later on Saturday:



What I *Really* Wore After the DC JCA Tea by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew dresses

Mother's Day started out with breakfast in bed (chocolate donut - yum, I love the ones that are yellow with the plastic-chocolate coating - but only if they have been chilled). Later in the morning, shrimp & grits, asparagus, and strawberries for Brunch, cooked by Hubby, of course. Hubby & kiddies surprised me with Wii Fit for Mother's Day (no, it wasn't a veiled insult; I had asked for it for Xmas). Speaking of veiled insults, when I was pregnant with E, I got a new digital scale for Mother's Day. Totally by request. I was like "after I have this baby and start trying to lose weight, I want to know if I've even lost 1 pound because that will motivate me." I'm such a numbers girl. But I always love telling people about the Mother's Day scale because they usually look so shocked and appalled. hehehehe.

I say surprise because we had just spent $1400 getting a new A/C for my car the day before so I thought that was my Mother's Day present. And like Dina said yesterday, "I've been in a car without A/C with kids in 90-degree heat. It's worth every penny!" Plus I got a lovely poem that M wrote in his class, and E made one of those plates with flower petals stapled/glued on that list different things she'll do for me. I opted for "wash your car" today, so she, M & hubby did a total clean out of the inside. You should have seen the bag full of stuff that hubby brought it - every nook & cranny was emptied, including the glove box & console. Outside of car was already clean...which for $1400 at the dealership, I would bloody well hope!

It's too bad there wasn't a "I will change my attitude and stop being grumpy" petal because I would have totally cashed that one in. What can I say - kiddies spent the night in the basement with Hubby as a special treat, and so they could do the breakfast in bed thing for me & my mom this morning...but they stayed up way too late, so I had 2 tired grumpy kids this evening. They went to bed early, so here's hoping tomorrow morning is not a total disaster. Nothing's better than having the health room tech call you and say "E told me that you said she should come to school and if she's not feeling well, she can come to the Health room" and me replying "I tell her that 3 days out of 5." I will note that since she started using the alarm on her clock, she has been better. But I'm not counting my chickens for tomorrow morning until they hatch themselves out of bed.

So I wore what I had originally planned for yesterday, since it was cooler today. I finally am wearing the henna tee that I obtained in the JCA weekly exchange. Love love love it! Note the accessories in the PV set differ from IRL (gold vs. silver/pewter). But I was too lazy to do a new set because hey, it's Mother's Day! I'm sure I will wear this as pictured at some point.

Polyvore set for Mother's Day:

Wearing Later Today - 5/9/09 by HeidiGblog featuring Old Navy tops

All in all, it was a wonderful day, a wonderful weekend. And now I'm off to bed...promise to catch up on blog reading tomorrow!!

Weekend Wears

Saturday - Soccer Game and Assorted Errands. Crazy morning with the rain and the bright glare. How can you not feel like a total idiot wearing sunglasses while sitting under an umbrella? I mean, clearly it's not a parasol...

Wearing Today - 05/02/09 by HeidiGblog featuring Lilly Pulitzer jeans

The earrings are actually these at right, which were made from my grandfather's cuff links (those are his initials, ENH). My dad had it done after he passed away, 1 pair of earrings for me, and 1 pair for my sister. (And now that they are online, I can clip them for Polyvore, yay.) They are truly unique and bring back memories when I wear them. I thought it was such a creative idea.
No IRL pic since, I just never got to it, and oh yeah, you've seen the outfit, but it did look fantastic with the fireball necklace doesn't everything?...which I wore all day on Sunday, too, but more on that below.

Remember this Polyvore set? Well, that's what I actually wore on Saturday night when we had friends over for dinner.

To Be Worn - 05/01/09 by HeidiGblog featuring Old Navy tank tops

I definitely needed to change before guests since my jeans knee was still muddy from the spill on the wet grassy hill at soccer and it was getting warmer, so I shed the sweater and wait, I had the perfect outfit that I hadn't even worn yet. Yay!! The tags are officially off the J Crew beaded shore tunic and it is in rotation. I like it with the jeans, but I also really want to try with some light khaki pants.

The rain ended up stopping (a pleasant surprise) and it cleared up enough to hang out in the backyard and roast marshmallows. Of course, it was a little less fun after E got second degree burns on her lips for a rogue roasted marshmallow, but several cold wet compresses, 2 calls to the nurses line, and some ibuprofen, and she was ok. Because she is doing ok, it's kind of a funny story. (Although not nearly as hilarious at KatyO's face plant on the bathroom floor story here. If you don't read her blog, you should because she's really funny and so lovely.) The doctor called to check in on E again this morning. (Thank you, Dr. Granger!) You should have seen the email I sent to her teacher this morning. Best Mom Ever Award, here I come. Maybe I'll get an invitation from that Long Island Moms groups that gave Dina Lohan an award.

So here's today's Polyvore set:

Wearing Today - 5/3/09 by HeidiGblog featuring Forzieri earrings

It was positively pouring this morning before church. Lots of motivation to sit at home in sweats. But 1st Sunday of the month, and my turn to be a Lector, so off we went. And surprisingly, Emma was good to go and happy, so the kiddies came too! Later, sitting in church and looking out the window, I decided that the rain was a blessing. Everything is so green outside and it was 60 degrees and raining, not 40 degrees and raining. Big, large, huge difference. So I'll take that.

But it was definitely a good day to pull out the spring-colored cashmere. Navy cashmere femme sweater with white jeans - which i have been dying to pair it with since I got that sweater. And the fireball necklace, of course, with the Dina hoops. I wanted to wear the Joley flats with this, and they would have been so fab, but it was just too wet and I'm too wimpy. So brushed gold Target flats it was. But I did pull out the fab J Crew umbrella, of course.

After church, swapping tops/bottoms for a little more warmth, because I believe we have established that I am a wimp and always cold. Bad combination. So swapped out the navy sweater for the green cashmere long sleeve tee (Polyvore doesn't have the right color) and then dark jeans because it was so rainy and muddy and I'm not always that stupid....and then a big comfy pair of gray fleece socks. But of course, fireball necklace & Dina hoops stayed on so I had a little sparkle. It's not the most fabulous outfit, but it beats crummy old sweats.

Did I mention my 2 hour nap on Sunday afternoon? That may have been the best part of the day. Thank you, hubby! It's 9:00 pm, all the homework is done, kids are asleep, life is good. Ok, I think I am ready to face the week. Hope you all have a good start on your week tomorrow!!

Wearing Today with New J Crew Fireball Charm Necklace

My third day of lunches with friends in a row. Not sure how I managed this, but it has certainly been a nice treat, and it's been so fun to catch up with everyone. Lucy was thrilled with Day 1 since that involved a puppy playdate, but not so excited about yesterday or today, since that involved crate time - but she got a nice nap in both times.

My friend, Laura (of the leopard patent Dansko clogs fame), and I try to go to Wine Harvest for a nice little lunch with a glass of wine every so often - most notably on the 1st day of school each year and right around the last day of school.

Here's the Polyvore of what I was planning (hoping) to wear today:

To Be Worn - 05/01/09 by HeidiGblog featuring Old Navy tank tops

But when I woke up, it was gray and rainy. And even though it wasn't that cold outside, it felt chilly inside (and it's always chilly inside Wine Harvest because of the wine, duh, and you know I'm always cold anyway). So my J Crew Beaded Shore Tunic just wouldn't cut it, which is too bad, since I haven't had a chance to wear it yet and it, yikes, still has tags. But I definitely have this outfit in reserve.

Since I wasn't going with the cute breezy tunic, I decided I really should wear a new JC purchase...but wanted to be warm, so I opted for the Fireball Charm Necklace (#14649 ,$55, $41 with the crew-pon). My oh my, it is sparkly. And, unlike my beloved Twisted Crystal Necklace, this isn't going to snag anything.

And check out the jeans...Not Chicos! These are my pair of Lilly Pulitzer jeans that I haven't worn in a year and a half...practically since I bought them because they didn't fit. Nice to change it up. Funny store about these - I was doing my annual Tysons outing with my mom & sister and my sister was trying on a slew of high end designer jeans at Bloomingdales, since their 25% F&F worked on jeans. Their jeans specialist was really trying to help me as well as my sister. So I tried on a ton of them, and finally found 1 pair that was "just ok". The others were horrid. So I decided $200 was too much money to spend on just ok, and went browsing around. Spotted the Lilly jeans in the LP section, tried on, and they fit a million times better than any of the high end jeans. And were on a 50% sale rack with 25% off, so they were about $50. The fact that I haven't worn them in 18 months is stinky, but I am happy to have them back in the rotation.

And then, long sleeve white tee, navy short sleeve cardi (yes, a repeat, but it works), and then a pink scarf for warmth/color. And check out the umbrella. Apparently I not only drank the Crew-lade, I fell right in and swam around for a while, because I did buy an umbrella with my crewpon, on sale for $19.99, so final price = $15. But seriously, I love these colors! A good way to brighten up a cloudy rainy day, for sure. Pink, navy, white, yellow, cerise. All yummy!!

Here's the Polyvore of what I actually wore today:

Wearing Today - 05/01/09 by HeidiGblog featuring Lilly Pulitzer clothing