The DC JCAs Go Legal

Saturday night, a group of DC JCAs decided to gather for dinner, even though it was technically a few days before the next JC release. Plus it was Slastena's birthday (see her post here - I feel honored to be a part of the best birthday ever). And we do love to celebrate...

Let me say, first of all, major kudos to Legal Seafood at Tysons Galleria. I love them anyway because they have the best rolls and they are the *only* place around here where I can reliably find steamer clams on a regular basis - and they are probably my fave seafood ever from years of eating them at the Lake in CT when we would visit my grandparents. It was the Friday night standard...steamers out on the big picnic table, overlooking the lake.

But back to Legal...we had originally planned to meet at Coastal Flats at regular Tysons until I called and the hostess told me that they can't accommodate a party of 9 at 1 table. So we pretty much switched to Legal at the 11th hour. When Rosa and I got there at 4:30, they were able to give us a table for 9 at 5:00, our meeting time. Then, when Slastena arrived with 2 more friends in tow, they expanded our table - graciously and smoothly and without complaint.

Summerilla needed to be gluten-free. Not only did they have a gluten-free menu, they had gluten-free rolls, the manager served her food personally just to assure there was no cross-contamination, and she even had gluten-free croutons on her Caesar salad. (See her post for pics.)

Then Cleo had some issues with her fish being overdone, and they were actually, *gasp*, interested and concerned. Speaking of Cleo, she (finally) just started her own blog, which we are all very excited about. Check out Trousseau Adventures here.

And at the end of dinner....the checks...yes, I just said "checks." With an "s" at the end. The waitress, without us asking, gave us all separate checks (except for me & dinagideon, since we split the Dover sole). How easy for us!!!

So again, not to fawn too much over the restaurant, but steamers & rolls aside, that was one of the best customer experiences I've had in a while. Bravo! I'll definitely be back.

Outfit-wise...charcoal cashmere turtleneck, black TALL Minnies (how I adore thee), gray fireball beaded necklace (aka the Ugly Betty necklace), gray beaded bracelet, clementine pearl garden bracelet, and Born Lovely flats. Comfy outfit for the evening. And blah, blah, blah...back to the outing.

And what JCA meal is complete without a little shopping? After dinner, we headed right across the hall to J Crew, natch. Once in, dinagideon spied the Crystal Rock Necklace discussed, I mean dissed, on the mothership last week. (#26074, $128) Well, of course she had to try it on. Not only were the proportions *perfect* on her frame, but the colors were absolutely gorgeous with her outfit. Simply stunning in person, the picture doesn't even do it justice. Granted, if we put this on darling, petite Rosa, she might have tipped over. But don't let me talk you into it...dinagideon is hoping you stay far, far away so that this necklace will go on sale and she can scoop it up for a deal. Now shoo...all of you.

The canvas shopping totes were hot items for purchase this time. Me? I picked up an Anthropologie top on sale that I tried on when Rosa and I popped in there before dinner.

And of course, there's always time for a group picture after shopping...

From left, Cleo, Kelly, Rosa in DC, 3-Penny Princess, dinagideon, me, Summerilla, Drewablank.

Thanks for a great evening, ladies!!

Polyvore from Saturday:

02/20/10 by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew

Borrowing from the Boys - at J Crew

A little springtime for you all...as we sit here with snow all around. I do love tulips.

You know what I don't love? Boots. I am sick and darn tired of boots. Normally, I really like boots - I would even say I love my black flat boots because I feel rockingly awesome in them. But that sentiment loses a bit of its luster when I am forced to wear them day after day by all this snow.

And this is not a diatribe against the snow. And to update my earlier diatribe against politicians in DC (not the natives but those from elsewhere) - Chris Dodd, we love you. If you hadn't heard, he lifted the since-9/11 ban on sledding at the Capitol. Attention Durbin and everybody else: *that's* how you endear yourselves to the metro area.

Maybe I'm just cranky because we've been indoors so long and I get irritated at the jerkie neighbors who don't shovel their sidewalks, even after a week, and I can barely walk Lucy around the block. I'm just sick and tired of being forced into boots. Maybe it's the stubborn streak.

So, I have officially abandoned boots for the time being. Sure, I'll put on my FUggs to go to and from the bus stop(I'm not *that* stubborn...or stupid), but otherwise, it's back to flats for me.

All of which is a really, really long introduction to yesterday's outfit. (Today? hehehe, still in sweats - going to the office later, haven't dressed for that yet.) The previous day, which would have been Hallelujah, The Kids Are Back at School Tuesday, I popped down to JC to do a couple of returns. As I strolled back from the semi-anemic sale section, I saw a gorgeous sweater...laying on the table in the men's section. Why not try it? It couldn't be any worse that some of the boxy sweaters I tried on from the women's section lately. So I meandered off to the dressing room, swapped out my current sweater for this one, and fell in love.

Let's backtrack...I love all of the fab JCAs who are rocking the crewcuts wear, like Dina. Problem is that crewcuts just doesn't cut it (hehe) with my shoulders - and torso length. But, when you are JC and the women's sweaters in store aren't thrilling you, where do you turn? Yep...the only other section is Men's.

Ta da! J Crew Men's Cotton Half-Zip Sweater (#21666, $69.50) I was anticipating that I would love the feel of the sweater, but would have to give a sternly judgmental eye to the fit and potential boxiness. But to my amazement, it was rather form fitting. On the body, it's much leaner & longer than the online picture would indicate. This would be great with leggings because it covers the butt.

And that thick cotton knit - where did you go? I haven't seen you in the women's sweaters in quite a while. They call it a "chunkier full milano stitch." Can we order that in women's, please??? It's warm enough for winter and will be great for spring, too.

I love the zip neck. Zipped up for warmth. Unzipped to show off a cute tee or fab necklace. This is a perfect piece with jeans, obviously. But I will also wear it with cafe capris and white jeans come spring time.

I got the navy, but it's also available in irish moss and heather stone. Bottom line - how often do you buy something and simply have to wear it the next day. I'm sold!!

Rest of outfit - Chico's Ultra Slim Leg jeans, white crewneck perfect fit tee, clementine pearl garden bracelet, and moc croc loafers. And I was happy all day.

Polyvore from yesterday:

02/17/10 by HeidiGblog featuring Naturalizer shoes

Surviving the Snow

First of all, let me get something off my chest that has bothered me for quite some time about the DC area, and I include all my beloved suburban MD & VA brethren under the "DC" umbrella (hee, weather metaphor).

As you probably know, we are smack in the middle of Snowpacolypse 2010. 27" over the weekend. 10"+ today - hard to tell since the wind keeps blowing (blizzard conditions) and moving it all around. UPDATE - Per the news, we got 18" here in the 2nd round. I had shoveled out front walk earlier today, and now when I look out my front door, all I see is a wall of snow across the walk. Ok, that was smart. At least I got some fresh air. (That's the view out my back door and off the back porch from early this afternoon. Snow's actually higher now.)

But here's the thing...I hope this finally shuts up all the smart-aleck carpet bagging politicians who count dissing DC snow response as a favorite sport. It never fails that every 2 years, when we have a crop of new politicos in town, regardless of party, that as soon as it snows and DC freaks out, they all decide to get up on their little platforms and OMG, everyone in DC is an idiot and no one know anything about snow, you all are a bunch of wimps, etc, etc, etc.

I will not argue the fact that people flip a little when we get just a bit of snow. But HELLO, that's because we don't GET a lot of snow (I mean, except for this year, it is historic and record-breaking and the federal government is closing again tomorrow - 4 days in a row because of weather, I believe that's unprecedented). DC with snow is kinda like people who've never had alcohol before, give them a beer and wacky things ensue.

But don't blame us for getting a bit wacky. We don't have the infrastructure that *y'all* do back in Chicago/Massachusetts/New York or any other spot in the Midwest or Northeast you care to pick. Clearly our "snow shovels" aren't as big as yours. If you would like to pull out your check and write the various Metropolitan Departments of Transportation a six-figure check to up the manpower, equipment, and various supplies for dealing with the snowfall, I'm pretty sure we can all get used to the snow real quick. But until then, please, shut up, you don't look cute or clever or cool, you look like an a$$. Please go back to the work you're supposed to be doing.

Thank you, I feel so much better now.

You might not know this but I can be a bit superstitious about silly things. So I swore yesterday, as we were getting the blizzard warnings about the high winds that if we had power today and didn't lose it that I would actually get dressed in real clothes instead of the usual yoga pants, cami, sweatshirt that I've been hanging out in all week.

Thus far {knock on wood}, our power has stayed on. And I think getting dressed in real clothes made me feel a bit less lethargic today. This does hold with my usual philosophy of trying to dress up when I feel really crummy because it definitely makes me feel better.

For today...navy J Crew Wellesley cable turtleneck sweater - yes, that's Wellesley - the precursor to Cambridge. Wellesley = HO06, much thicker. Cambridge = now, and thinner, but I think we've all had the quality discussion. Moving on... I may need to replace this next year, though, because I absolutely love to wear it, but after 3 years, it is just too short. In their latest issue, Real Simple had a really great article on stretching out shrunken clothing. Guess I need to try it out with this sweater, huh?

And let me talk about the pants for a moment...Gap real straight cords (on sale for $24.99, $19.99 or $17.99, depending on color). The cords come in regular, petite, and tall. I have the regulars, but I cuff them (or wear with boots). I love the fit of these, very comfy (size 10, btw). They look a little weird if you see them folded on the table, but that's because they are several inches higher in the back than the front. And you know what that means - they actually cover your butt! And don't flash anyone if you bend over.

Now, I'm really not much of a cord girl. I'd usually rather wear jeans or Minnies, but I love winter-white cords for winter. So these are perfect.

Underneath, I have a short sleeve perfect fit tee in light berry (size L - I always size up in the perfect fit tees) - which I got back in December for $4.99 at my B&M. (How could I resist?) I love this navy-white-berry color combo - I think I'll definitely be sporting it with white jeans in the spring.

Other than that - Dina hoops, clementine pearl garden bracelet, and brown croc mocs. (This, of course, was all after I finished shoveling this morning). A pretty decent snow day outfit, I think.

Polyvore for today:

2/10/10 by HeidiGblog featuring GAP pants

Of course, I'm probably going back to sweats tomorrow... Stay warm and safe, everyone! And thanks for listening...

Still Nuts About Navy

Yes, still loving the navy this week. And last week...this post includes last Friday's outfit which did not qualify for the last cardi party post. You know, since it wasn't a cardi and all that... But I think my current navy phase is entirely due to the J Crew classic stripe tissue tee (#20019, $32.50) and the tissue turtleneck tee (#17656, 39.50). They are such great fall pieces - I love the color (navy...duh) and I love the weight - soft but not too-too thin - and they layer up beautifully.

Last Friday, I pulled out my J Crew cashmere femme sweater from last winter. How many of you have this? I love love loved it last year. Love love love it again. I took an M, and if anyone wants to sell an M in another color, let me know. I really should post that on the JCA weekly exchange but well...yeah, I'll get to that. Not much blog reading this week, as it started on a real down note since Lucy was not able to shed the cone of shame. Her stitches came out, but the patch of skin above the incision that had razor burn from them shaving her tummy had gotten infected as well and even though she couldn't get to it by chewing (thanks to the cone of shame), she was able to scratch at it with her back paws - which we realized too late and it started getting worse because she was able to scratch at the (sorry to be so gross) scab to get most of it off, so that infection just continued. At least we did get the stitches out, so we are in 1 more week of cone - and now she needs a tshirt 24/7 to keep her from being able to get at it with her back paws. Funny as it sounds, we both were really down about it on Monday and Tuesday...but we have both adjusted and bounced back. We go back to the vet on Monday and I hope hope hope we will be cone & tshirt free after that. I won't actually ask you to say a prayer for my puppy, but feel free to keep your fingers crossed and say a prayer for my sanity. thanks.

Back to the outfit...honestly, I was looking for another way to show off the JC heirloom floral earrings that the lovely Summerilla passed on to me. I do really like them with the navy. However, just adding the garden pearl bracelet wasn't enough to jazz it up (esp when the bracelet is clasp-forward in the pic). I think the earrings alone were definitely more glittery in person, so I wasn't sure about adding a necklace. But photo-wise, it definitely needed something else. Ah, live & learn...that's one reason I take the pics - I learn from them too.

Polyvore from last Friday:


10/23/09 by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew

Then again on Monday, more navy in the form of the tissue turtleneck tee, which I love with jeans and the cami peeking out at the hem. This time I added the confetti necklace, which I really liked with the turtle. I asm so glad I got that necklace. I believe those are the Chicos boyfriend jeans - way comfy for a day where I spent a good chunk of time at the computer working adn the rest of it moping around about the fact that my puppy & I were sentenced to 1 more week of cone-dom.

Polyvore from Monday:



10/26/09 by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew

And on Wednesday...


Striped tee again. Have I worn this once a week since I got it? I'm definitely dropping its CPW (cost per wear) fast. I really could wear this about every other day. Since it was warm on Wednesday, I layered it with my navy short sleeve cardi and then added some necklaces to chunk up the neckline a bit. And I even wore my hair up (just for you FFM), which interestingly enough, works better since I got 2+ inches chopped off the ends.

Polyvore from Wednesday:



10/28/09 by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew

Where's the navy train headed? I don't know...but much as I love these pieces, black may be taking a more predominant spot for a little while. Why?

Reason #1 - (hello, Halloween on Saturday)

Reason #2 - 212-Sephora polish - funky, but love it - mani'ed it tonight - pics soon, I promise.


And Reason #3, for those of you who haven't seen my Polyvores today/yesterday - this little lovely arrived at my doorstep on Wednesday....


J Crew Selby satchel in black (#18260, $orig $275, black on sale for $149.99) Can you believe I actually didn't have a black purse in my closet? I mean, I'm certainly not a bag hoarder - just a nail polish and mascara hoarder, but I actually didn't have one in black. More on the bag later - it's lovely, must post pics. I will say this - perfect!

Why am I up this early? That crazy puppy is running around the backyard with, I believe, a green tomato in her mouth. At some point, she realized that "balls" grow on the tomato plants by the side of the garage. How convenient for her. (Detached garage in back - no, I don't have tomatoes growing in my front yard. Seriously....) I'd just like to go back to bed since we have kiddie Halloween parties at school tomorrow.

J Crew Frances cami and more gray nails

The J Crew Silk Frances Cami (#17428, $88)...this year's Victoria. Honestly, I do not own a Victoria (gasp... I know...). I tried it on once and it just wasn't great on me, but I may have had my sizing off. Anyway...tried on the Frances last Sunday in the dark slate and love love loved it...and brought it home. And I realized that I really don't have anything like this in my closet - since I almost never have to be in full professional dress, and in dressy occasions like to go with an actual dress or a sweater, I just don't have much in the way of dressier blouses. Ok, I'm sure a large part of it is that hate to iron.

Many other bloggers have reviewed the top and most seem to be fans. I love the dark slate - this color works really well with my complexion in summer or winter. But it comes in other fab colors, too - ivory, deep rose, light sage, autumn sun, misty lavender. The other reason I love the dark slate is that it is not sheer at all - not sure if I could say that about the other colors.

I sized down to a 6 because there is plenty of room - and with it being sleeveless, I don't need the extra room for my shoulders. There is just enough room at the hem to be able to wear it untucked without grabbing. I love the ruffles - so soft, so pretty.
I wore this on Thursday with my khaki cafe capris. And then added black sandals, Dina hoops, and garden pearl bracelet. I put up my hair to show off the hoops and the collar on the Frances - I think it works better on me with hair up. And this is the last picture of my bad old-lady forehead. I couldn't wait until my next hair cut/color, so I went ahead and re-trimmed my bangs on Thursday afternoon to bring them up to regular bang length. So much better!!

Exciting day on Thursday - Open House at school so the kiddies got to see their classroom, meet their teacher, see all their friends...total craziness there! Later in the evening, I had book club at a friend's house, so I just added a black cashmere Jackie for warmth (you know, A/C effect). I anticipate wearing this exact outfit - Frances, Jackie, cafe capris with my black patent heels when the weather cools off a bit.

And in more dark gray news...on our Tysons outing on Wednesday, I picked up a bottle of Suzi Skis in the Pyrenees - also from the Coleccion de Espana. What a gorgeous deep blue-gray. And out come the fall nails, because I've got it on tips and toes. Yes, my fingernails are officially ready for fall! I anticipate wearing this a lot this fall, and can't wait to pair a Skis pedi with Essie Chinchilly on fingers - should be a good mix.

Isn't fall nail polish fun? It's my favorite season - for clothes and makeup. And I still have a couple more fall nail polishes to share.

Polyvore for today:

Wearing Today-8/27/09 by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew

Recent Finds at Target

I have been trying to get back to blog-land, but it's been crazy this week with trying to get things done before heading to the beach tomorrow for a week with hubby's family. (Lots of) Work to finish up. Errands to run. Laundry to do. Not that I'm complaining...ok, I am complaining, but I'm just bummed that I haven't been able to spend more time in the blogosphere this week.

I have had a couple good finds at Target lately that I wanted to share. The first is activewear - which is great as activewear...but also works well as casual wear. I could not find this item online, unfortunately, so you'll just have to rely on the pic at right. It's a tank with a shelf bra attached. And since it's "activewear", it's a pretty decently supportive shelf bra - not the dinky thin lining some camis & tanks have. I got it in gray and a light blue. I think it also came in a pink and maybe white.

Obviously, this is great for walking/jogging with Lucy. And it's fantastic for lounging around. But also with jeans, shorts, skirts; under a sweater, sweatshirt, cardi...you get the idea. Instant outfit examples from my closet to get started - (1) with white jeans and spring daisy Jackie cardi, (2) with regular jeans and black jacket, (3) with khaki cafe capris and white ATL cardi, (4) with new ATL tiered skirt in navy or brown and sandals, (5) outfit at right with flip flops. Perfect in summer when you want to wear a tank and don't feel like wearing a bra.

I like the thinner straps on this, too - a little prettier than my standard tank. I would recommend sizing down-ish on this. I got the M and it has plenty of room.

Next up...the knit skirt of my dreams...I think. The JC Esplanade didn't do it. The ATL tiered skirt was ok, but I have found it's not great with some of the bf tees because there's too much fabric past the waistband and it gives me more of a pooch than I have (maybe I should have sized down more, but I have 2 of them in M, so I have to make it work). I stumbled upon this skirt the other day and actually tried it on this week. Love! (again, couldn't find online) It is available in this olive color as well as black. To be honest, the black ones didn't look as good - the color saturation was a bit off. I love the length, just above the knee, I love the fit. It has waist tabs as it comes with a belt, but they are flat and don't poke out so much with a tee (you know, the bf tissue tee, of course). And the belt was pretty cute with it - for those of you who tuck in, it would be very cute either with this belt or with a different belt.

So I wore the skirt yesterday with the bf tissue tee in navy. And the garden pearl bracelet in clementine. Here's a closeup of the waist detail, in case you are interested in checking it out yourself. And it's a nice closeup of the garden pearl bracelet, to boot. (you're welcome, Patina)


And here's my Polyvore attempt with this outfit, using J Crew safari skirt as sub.

7/30/09 by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew

Great skirt - I do believe this will be my travel skirt tomorrow for the trip to the beach. With a gray bf tissue tee and Havaianas. Comfy!!

J Crew Pearl Garden Bracelet

Finally…the promised pics of the Pearl Garden Bracelet...which aren't really in great detail. I promise to try better next time. Patina always gets great accessory pics, but usually I'm like "yay! I don't look insane or exhausted in this pic, let's go with it!" Clearly I need to work on my details. I got this little lovely 2 weeks ago when the store was having the 20% FS. After falling in love with it on A Bigger Closet’s blog, I almost ordered, but then decided I was more into the Confetti necklace (which I happen to be wearing right now). But since the store actually had the bracelet during the 20% FS, well, that was a sign. So $39.99 + plus 20% off = mine for $32!! (With apologies to the totally Fab Post-Fab Princess, that's my version of J Crew Math.) And the crazy thing is that the bracelet is back up to full price ($75) on the website. I don’t get it but, but I’m glad I got it when I did.

It was the perfect bracelet to pair with my dressy jersey strapless dress in dark charcoal, especially when I was headed over to dinagideon’s for a lovely little wine party with the JCA girls. Such a fun, jingly bracelet for a party! I don't really advise it for work, particularly if you spend *any* time typing on well, anything. But I suppose there are appropriate work locations for this bracelet. Maybe a flamenco or belly dancer?

Outfit finished off with Dina hoops (it was *her* party) and the beloved Isaac Mizrahi for Target Liz gladiator sandals. Sigh...the sandals are almost done...they are in such sad shape...and they were actually comfortable! They had padding! And since the stores are now stocked with fall and summer clothes are at rock-bottom prices but usually in sad disarray, I will most definitely be looking for bronze sandals *next* summer because they literally go with everything.

Back to the wine party... Check out Summerilla’s blog for group pics. (I know, I know, once I again I “forgot” my camera. Actually this time, I thought about it, realized I was lugging a bathing suit and towel with me for the hot tub, and then decided against the big ole camera with potentially wet bag-mates.)

Polyvore for Sunday's Wine Party:

Wearing Yesterday-7/19/09 by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew

Pop Quiz – what is the perfect polish to pair with the garden pearl bracelet in clementine? Why, it’s Chanel Delice. I think this is the exact same color as the bracelet. Great summer color. I think I lived in it last summer. Although mid-spring when my skin is still winter-pale, it looks awful. The color works now, though. And like all polishes with glitter, those little gritty bits increase the staying power, so it lasts better. Of course, this was over a week ago, so I am on to the next polish, but it was fun while it lasted.

Update from Yesterday and J Crew Sale Purchases

My parents were in town Wed night through Thurs night/Fri morning, so we, of course, hit the mall on Thursday for the day. (not so much shopping at the river - but that means we shop when they visit, yay!)

Of course, I had to stop in at J Crew to take a little peek around and do a couple of returns. The ripstop utility pants were just awful on me, so they went back. They looked so fab on dinagideon earlier this week. I am wondering if they were just too big, but ah well...back they went. Instead, I snagged a pair of cafe capris. They are just a basic black but I am ridiculously excited by them because I tried these on in way early spring and the 10 just looked awful on me. But yesterday, I tried an 8 and they were perfect. Yay!! And my current black cropped pants are really on their way to the dustbin, so it was a good buy. But I have to say I was rather disappointed in my B&M as there really wasn't much sale merchandise or new merchandise either. Here's my PV set of my JC 20% off purchases.


Final Choices from Latest 20% Off by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew

So you can see that I did re-purchase the confetti necklace in champagne quartz. For $45, it's worth it. I love that they a solid color and not iridescent, like pearls - just a fun change. I love the longer length of this necklace too - it will work with so many tops. And it won't snag my sweaters like the beautiful but evil twisted crystal necklace. And I love that it's the necklace shown with the tissue bf vneck tee, since I am such a fan of that tee. And I did branch out...to the tissue bf *crewneck* tee. BTW, love the neckline on this as it has a bit of a scoop, so it's not strangling you. I may see what other colors I can turn up.

And I did get the pearl garden bracelet in clementine, which I have been coveting ever since A Bigger Closet posted it - love this color! I had it in my cart last week before checking out, but took it out since I figured 1 pair pants, 1 necklace & 1 tee was enough. But it was actually in the store, so it was a sign.

And this is what I wore for the shopping outing. New confetti necklace - yay! And tissue bf vneck tee. And my linen-cotton seaside pants. But I have to say, the pants are making me sad. I think they are too big for me now (ok, I have lost about 10 lbs since I got them). And the linen does stretch out a bit. And you know I practically refuse to wear belts. But they are so loose, flowy, comfy. I think I need to take a couple darts in the waist so they actually stay up and don't fall & give me saggy-bottom. And I really should be wearing it with more fitted tops, actually. Ok, lecture to self on pants over - anyone got anything else?

Polyvore from Thursday:


Wearing Today-7/16/09 by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew

And here's the Polyvore from Thursday night when we went to the Nationals game with my parents. We had a fantastic time and had great seats! Fun evening out. (Kiddies had a fun evening with their beloved babysitter.) Mom left from the game to head back to the river, Dad spent the night (don't ask, long story involving schedule/calendar mixups). And oops, not enough time for IRL pics. I will get one sometime when I wear the harbour Oxford capris - but I will say they were perfect for the ball game.


Baseball Game-7/16/09 by HeidiGblog featuring J Crew

My other fun purchases from Thursday were makeup, so I'll save those for another post as this is long enough. Good night!