Purple and Ruffles

It's barely 50 degrees today - and rainy at that! So of course I wore my Born boots again. I am thinking about buying them in black. I have two pairs of tall black boots, and certainly don't need another pair. But. These are very well made, comfortable, soothing to my feet and back, and are so well finished inside that I can wear them without socks or tights. $90 off plus another 20% at Shoemall? Hmmm.

This is a favorite combo from last summer; floofy skirt, tee and little jacket (cotton or linen). Yesterday's version was a J. Jill jacket (via eBay), Boden skirt, purple Talbot's tee (with vertical ruffles to contrast with the skirt's horizontal ruffle action).

Detail of the skirt's raw edge ruffles.

I also wore my sparkly bracelet, handmade by my friend Carol and her two granddaughters.

Shiny!

And on the other wrist my pink Skagen watch (via eBay).

 

 

A "Good" Color

Whenever I wear my canteloupe linen jacket I get a compliment, usually on the lines of "Great color on you!" Yet orange is one of those colors that people think is hard to wear. I've never had my colors done, and I think maybe I'm a summer or summer/fall? I have blotchy rosy skin and light brown eyes, so winter is out, and most of the spring colors are too pale for me. Except pale pink which I have expounded on before. But orange LOVES me, and this is why I have at least five orange jackets and sweaters.

The weather went from the 90s to the 60s overnight (what a relief, I say), so I started with the Talbot's skirt, which has two layers of cotton and is fairly substantial. This was also my chance to wear my Born boots again, my feet being tired from wearing flimsy sandals all weekend. Then I more or less said eeny meeny miney moe to pick the jacket, hoping it would all work out.

 
The jacket isn't particularly flattering in cut, being kind of boxy, even a little mumsy. CONCLUSION: COLOR TRUMPS ALL.

Underneath I have a white tee with a slather of bugle beads, and a Talbot's bracelet that looks heavy but isn't, as the "stones" are all plastic. 

Talbot's, of course

Should I buy the matching necklace?

I discovered this week that this is my ONLY short-sleeved white top (lots of ivory and beige versions), and that I have NO short-sleeved black tops (lots of sleeveless shells). So I might have to use up that Lord and Taylor gift card in my wallet.


 

 

What I Wore for Graduation

We were so lucky Saturday morning. We had some cloud cover, a breeze, and the threatening storms stayed north of us. I still got a "ring of fire" sunburn following the line of my cardigan. I put on sunblock on my face and neck, but didn't quite go far enough.

In our faces, I see pride, relief, happiness, fatigue and a soupcon of sadness. I've long thought that because Ben chose to go to school near us, I got a four year reprieve from full-time empty nest syndrome.  He came by many weekends to do laundry and hang out, see a movie or go for sushi. His next move will likely be more final, and I'll have to find new friends with whom to eat sushi.

After the ceremony, he had to run back to his house and throw his stuff in boxes - they had to be out by that afternoon. Then we drove up to his Dad's house for an afternoon-long barbecue and reminiscence festival.

I can't even begin to sum up how I feel, except to say it was a BIG DEAL.

He really liked the DKNY suit, though. He said he felt like James Bond (the Daniel Craig version, of course).

 

Big, Big Day

Tomorrow is Ben's graduation. We have our fingers crossed that it won't rain, as the ceremony is outside.  Then we'll gather at his Dad's house to celebrate. Tonight he is packing up and getting ready to move out of his off-campus (by about ten yards) house. I celebrated at Nordstrom, spending hundreds of dollars on the start of a grownup wardrobe for him. A shopping spree is fun whether it's for yourself or not.

Four years went by very quickly for his Dad and me, but I remember all too clearly how college feels like a lifetime. Here's a glimpse into those four years.

A couple of weeks ago we celebrated his senior show.

Last summer he celebrated his birthday trying to make the Millennium Falcon fly with Darren. His dad got in on the act and they finally got it airborne.

He also got to meet the very famous (and very hospitable) Chicago artist Karl Wirsum.

In his third year he took a second bronze casting class.

This is the fifteen pound mask he made in his first bronze class. Everyone else made belt buckles. I'm just saying.

In his second year of college he went as Jesus for Halloween, which I found both high-larious and strangely convincing.

In 2010 we spent spring break in Florida, because Ben won a trip for four to Cocoa Beach and the Kennedy Space Center when we went to the premiere of Star Trek. One of the most fun vacations EVER.

We also sold our house in Skokie that year, and so this is the last picture I have of Ben and the cats on the deck.  *sigh*

But the four year journey began here, on the beautiful campus of Elmhurst College, with Ben entering his freshman year. We were all so excited. Ben kept saying, "It's not YOU going to college, Mom, remember?"

I'm so proud of him. He more than handled the transition to living on his own, organizing his classes and jobs and studying and making it look easy. He learned a lot, and talked to me about plays he was reading and his psych classes and the Fauves. He drew and painted and sculpted and took great photographs. He made some great art and some great friends, from football players to musical theater majors. He worked really hard, at the gallery and filming football games and practices in all weather. He played a lot of Angry Birds. He texted me at two in the morning (I didn't answer). He lived in three different dorms and in a house with a few friends.

Now, the world is his oyster. And he owns a DKNY suit.

 

Green and Blue, Ole!

The weather has been so grand, sunny and clear, cool enough for a cardigan but warm enough to skip tights. Like living in San Diego.

Tuesday I wore my cloverleaf green Talbot's cardigan, cadet blue Talbot's knit skirt, Ann Taylor Loft scarf, and Born boots. I am constantly on the hunt for a dress in this color green. Talbot's has a couple of sleeveless versions, but then I'd have to wear something over it in the office, which defeats the purpose of wearing that lovely bright green. The Vivienne Files showed a pretty green Dorothy Perkins dress today, but it appears to be a little short for me. A side note, I'm very fond of this particular blog because she mixes high/low pricing consistently, and introduces me to new brands all the time. Dorothy Perkins is British, reasonably priced, like Boden, and has a U. S. site here. It is wonderfully easy to navigate. Not as CUTE as Boden, though.


I experimented with the scarf at my waist:

But I felt a little bit too flamenco:

  

The Great Wardrobe Switch

This weekend it reached 90 degrees, so I felt motivated to put (almost) all of my boots, cashmere sweaters (proud owner of four!), gloves and scarves, long-sleeved t-shirts, and about forty pairs of Smartwool socks away for the summer. I also brought a dozen pairs of sandals out of their boxes, a Rubbermaid container of tees and shorts, and a couple of summer weight scarves. 

I am always surprised at how much WORK this is. After about three hours of bending, lifting, wrapping, bagging, and going up and down to the storage unit, I have to take two Ibuprofen and call it a morning. This mid-year review also points out the items I didn't wear, not once, or the things I did wear but should not have, and those get put aside for Goodwill. Three pairs of shoes bit the dust. One pair I actually put in the trash with the tea leaves to ensure I did not fish them out again. More folding and lifting and bagging. There is also the vacuuming and dusting as I stir up dust rhinos and endless cat fur. Buffy hides underneath the couch, convinced we are moving.

Last year I switched closets, too, but this year I realized that was INSANE since they are both in my bedroom. That's an old habit from when I had to move clothes to another room (and another floor) in my Skokie house. There are very few items I wear year round.

But, look! I had forgotten I bought these sunny creatures last year in October on Amazon for a pittance. Still for sale there!

Kenneth Cole Shine Through Sandals

And THESE beauties, oh, my feet love these Arturo Chiang sandals. I should be so lucky to find another pair this year. I've only seen them at Lord and Taylor. They give me some height, are super stable, and go with everything.

Now, of course, it is 65 degrees again, but I don't care, because it gave me the chance to wear The Sundance Jacket! Yes, I bought it, and it is fabulous. It's also wool, and will be put carefully away in my closet for this fall. But NOT YET.

I felt like wearing orange on Monday, and was muttering to myself about having packed away the matching orange sweater on Saturday.  Then, because the Sundance jacket was just hanging there, I put the two together and saw how the bitty plaid actually was burnt orange and teal blue! Tres fantastique! The sleeves are long and intended to be rolled up. Here's a closeup of the jacket ruching and the blue thread in the buttons.

It was a bit too warm to wear the jacket all day, so mostly I looked like this.

Riley looks perfectly square. I could wrap him in Kraft paper and mail him. The pants are Talbot's cords, with that slightly annoying Signature rise, which hits me at a podgy spot. I much prefer the Heritage cut.

Yes, I got a haircut for my birthday too. I was feeling like I needed a visible CHANGE in my hair, and Ivana said, "Pixie?" "Yes, please!" I had a pixie like this a few years ago.

Me and Veronica at the Dewey - 2010?

It was also my birthday on Sunday, so Ben came out to visit. He took me to Home Depot to get some plants and a new chair for my balcony (pictures to come). There's nothing Ben enjoys more than languishing with the cart while I mull over little pots. Thank God for the iPhone. In previous years he would have nothing to entertain himself with while I compared the virtues of pansies to impatiens. That young man can be pretty saintly.

Then we had The Eating of the Chinese Food and The Cake, and watched Sherlock. A perfect day.

On "Uniforms"

Sally over at Already Pretty posted a brief post on the idea of fashion uniforms - not scrubs, but rather, "tunic with leggings and boots" or "dress and a cardigan and cute shoes". I gave it some thought myself. I tend to dress in the style of particular women (fictional and otherwise).

Joan Holloway Harris at the Office: Pencil skirt, fitted sweater or blouse, pumps and stockings. I know this flatters my figure, but I can't wear heels every day, and sometimes the narrow skirt feels like a hobble. I like to take long strides.

Heather: And not from the movie. My awesome colleague Heather, who wears big interesting accessories, floaty and drapy tunics, leggings or narrow pants, and cool boots. I don't do her justice. Whenever I put on a belt I'm thinking of you, babe.

Heidi: My OTHER fabulous colleague has a fantastic eye for texture and layering. She specifically inspired the Deadwood look. We own a lot of the same pieces from Talbots and Boden and J. Jill, but she puts those same items together in really interesting ways. I always try to remember color, texture, pattern and shine, or What Would Heidi Do? I miss being inspired by her every day.

Who do you emulate?