Absence Makes the Heart Grow...

Fonder, I hope! I miss all my bloggy buddies, sorry I've been offline for a while. I try to catch up with all of you on Google Reader, just to feel the love.

Since my last post, I've been running around like a crazy lady, but I've got a few photos to post, and I'll try to recall the provenance of the outfits.

I think I'll go in reverse chronological order:

September 18: I wore this to Chelsea's engagement party (WHAT a FUN time!):
Dress: INC; Shoes: Me Too; Sunglasses: Oliver Peoples



And, this is what Chelsea wore to the party (isn't she adorable?):
Dress: H&M,; for other details, you'll have to check out Chelsea's blog



September 17: I wore this blazer / tank with jeans to run around San Francisco with Chelsea:
Blazer/Tank: Akris; Jeans: Joe's Jeans Muse; Shoes: Me Too (again)



September 6: Blazer: Elie Tahari; Tank: H&M; Skirt: Isda; Boots: Nine West



September 1: Blazer: Armani Collection; Tank: H&M; Pants: ??; Shoes: Mephisto



August 30: Suit: Piazza Sempione; Tank: Akris; Shoes: Jimmy Choo



and for another pose that's just fierce (ha ha ha):



Well, I think that's enough for now! More to come. Glad to be back, I hope all is well with all of you!

Welcome Home Jimmy!

Well, they finally arrived - my new Jimmy Choos! (Or, as my daughter says - my new choos.) These shoes are absolutely beautiful, I foresee a lot of wear in my future.

Victoria Beckham says "that extra half inch" adds something super to a look - or in this case "that extra two inches" - these are definitely the highest heels I've worn!

As soon as they arrived I started thinking of where to wear them and what outfit to build them around - they are so neutral they will go with almost anything! Last night I wore them with my Trina Turk dress. Here are a couple of quick snapshots of the shoes - I didn't get an ensemble picture last night but I will post one soon.





Today I will wear flats so my feet can decompress from the altitude! I'm off to the Scholar Shop - we are restocking the store today for the Grand Opening tomorrow. If you're in St Louis, stop by and take a look!

Teaser - New Shoes

While we were in Las Vegas my husband took me to Jimmy Choo at the Palazzo Shops and bought me my first pair of Jimmy Choo shoes! I am SO excited about these shoes. The pair I bought are so brand new they aren't even on their website yet, but here's the closest I can find to them. Mine are a tobacco brown suede that is just amazing.

The teaser is that we had them shipped home, so I won't get the actual shoes for a few days, but I will try to keep it together until they arrive.

BTW, we had a blast on vacation - but it was SO hot that sitting by the pool at 5:00 pm was still scorching hot. We spent a LOT of time in the air conditioned gym and spa - which was just lovely.

Parade of Dresses

I am leaving for a trip - we're going to a wedding in Colorado, then a few days of fun in Las Vegas. While I was thinking over my options, I decided to try on a variety of dresses and take photos, so I'd get a good idea of which ones would work best for the trip.

My first challenge is to dress for a wedding to be held at a Buddhist center outside of Boulder, CO. After the ceremony, we go back to an Inn for the reception. The ceremony will be at 9500 feet, and heels are not recommended. I haven't figured out the shoes yet, but it's likely that I'll wear flat sandals or flip flops to the ceremony; and heels to the reception.

Here's the dress I picked out for the wedding:

Details: Dress - Tommy Bahama; silk and linen blend
Sandals: Charles by Charles David



The collage below is an abundance of summer dresses, a virtual Parade of Dresses (hence the title). I tried on more than are shown here, the discards are the ones that will go back to the Scholar Shop for someone else to treasure. This exercise was helpful, I got an overview of some of the gems in my closet. Since I took photos, I now have an independent eye for the dresses, which helps when I'm deciding what to wear for different occasions.

Can you guess which ones are going to Las Vegas? I tried to organize them in the collage so I could identify them easily, but I ran out of patience, so here's the mishmash.

Details (left to right, beginning at the top left row):
Orange Dress: Laundry by Shelli Segal; Patterned Sleeveless Dress: Trina Turk; Yellow/White Dress: Nanette Lepore; Silver/Blue Dress: Tommy Bahama; Red/Cream Flowered Dress: Nanette Lepore; Gold Spaghetti Strap Dress: Velvet; Black Halter Dress: Calvin Klein; Black/White Printed 2 piece Dress: Trina Turk; Tropical Print Dress: Muse; White/Black Printed Dress: Carmen Marc Valvo; Blue Tropical Print Silk Dress: Lilly Pulitzer; (a couple of repeats...) and a white top with blue skirt that I wore today. Whew, I'm tired just reading about it.

Seersucker

My husband and I decided to go downtown and check out Taste of Springfield - and it was blazing hot - so I decided to wear this sundress. This is an Isaac Mizrahi for Target and was just the right weight for wandering around outdoors in the summertime heat. The sandals are Cole Haan, which I wore because they give a little more support than basic flip flops - besides who doesn't love jeweled feet?

(Note to self:Now that I've seen the photos, I think I need to adjust the straps so that the dress sits a little lower, but overall I like the look.)

Details: Dress: Isaac Mizrahi for Target, via The Scholar Shop
Sandals: Cole Haan, via the Scholar Shop



I've included this out of focus (sorry - I have no idea what setting I had on my camera) shot so that you can see how the sundress becomes work appropriate when you add the matching blazer.



This is just a quick post, as I take a small break from work. Ta ta for now!

Hot in Springfield

By Hot in Springfield - I mean literally HOT! The temps have stayed in the 90s, with the heat index reaching in the 100s. I continue to reach for cool dresses, with a wrap or jacket for the air conditioning.

This was an outfit I wore to a lunch meeting. As I said, it was scorching hot, so I chose this silk jersey Trina Turk dress, and a light denim jacket to pull on when I'm inside. I like the sandals, they have a slight platform which makes them fairly comfortable. However, the slingback shoe is always a problem for me, they just won't stay on my heels.

I love Trina Turk's designs. Tory Burch is more popular, but I like the individuality of the Trina Turk look. She uses beautiful fabrics and the cut of her clothes tends to be very flattering to my figure.

Details: Dress: Trina Turk via The Scholar Shop
Jacket: White Denim Marc Jacobs via The Scholar Shop
Shoes: Charles by Charles David via DSW (I think)





I hope you're enjoying your summer!

Summer Lovin'

I am lovin' summer! When the temps hover in the high 90s with a heat index in the 100s, I reach back to my southern roots for fashion inspiration. This hot day (a couple of weeks ago) I decided on a cool summer dress, with a softly structured jacket for the air conditioned indoors.

I really like the shape of this dress, and because it's made of some kind of jersey, it packs beautifully. The self belt hits at a flattering spot and the skirt is swingy instead of clingy; which is kinder to my hips. Oh, and bonus round - the shape of the bodice gives me the look of cleavage - which is hard to achieve with my figure!

Details: Dress: Laundry; Jacket: Marc Jacobs; Shoes: Charles by Charles David

I know I look kind of cranky in the photo - but it is solely due to taking photos in the noon time sun - the angle of the sun in my eyes makes me squint!



Here is a view of the dress with my new favorite jacket of all time - a cream colored denim Marc Jacobs that Ruth found for me at The Scholar Shop (I know you're probably sick of hearing about that store, but I have an addiction, I can't help myself).

I look even crankier in this picture!



On a side note, my dermatologist recommended a product called Renova - and gave me a couple of tiny sample tubes to try. I think it's doing an amazing job (it's a Vitamin A product), and I'll post some complexion pictures soon. It is pricey, and not covered by insurance, but you use just a tiny bit mixed into your moisturizer at night. (This is not a paid endorsement or review, I've just tried the product personally and so far I like it.) Has anyone else tried this - or something like it?

What I am looking for is something that gives me back some of that youthful glow without invasive procedures. I tried some microdermabrasion facials last year and ended up with scabs - NOT the look I was going for.

I hope you all are getting ready to enjoy a long, holiday weekend!