Tory Burch Riding Boots, J.Crew Gallery Tees, Lace Peplum Top and Sparkly Things

Happy New Year!  I've been very, very behind with blogging and pictures.

Here are some of the favorite things I'm wearing now and/or recent holiday gifts.

I am obsessed with Tory Burch boots lately.  In November, I got a pair of Bristol Riding boots in coconut.  They look great with jeans, leggings, pencil skirts - you name it.  I wanted a pair of black boots as well.  I tried the Tory Burch Kiernan Riding Boot in Black (see side by side below with my Bristol).  I didn't think I should get two pair so soon, but really wanted them.


Luckily, I got the the for Christmas!   Now my Bristol boots have a new friend!

I love the gift boxes and bags from Tory Burch:

I love them both so much.  I can't decide which ones I love more.  I think it depends on the day and outfit!

Tory Burch Kiernan Riding Boot

Tory Burch Bristol Riding Boot

The Bristol Riding boots look great with the J.Crew Schoolboy Blazer Beaded Tweed.  This is my favorite blazer.  I love at the tweed and collar.

Speaking of J.Crew, I got the Lace Peplum Top and love it.  I copied this look for New Year's Eve at the Space Needle with the top, black minnies (substituted the flates with my Black Tory Burch Kiernan Riding boots):

I'm also a fan of the new gallery tees from J.Crew.

I got the Hugo Guinness for J.Crew "Blah Blah Blah" Linen Tee.  I wore mine like Nicky Hilton did below.  I paired it with j.crew black minnies and flats.

I love this tee. I paired it with a a cashmere cardigan and J.Crew cerise bouquet-dot wool scarf.

I also got the J.Crew Hello Tee.  I haven't wore it yet and need to come up with some ideas for it.

J.Crew Hello Tee

Did you take advantage of any of the after Christmas sales?  I did and got the Darby glitter loafers.  I got them 40% off at $39.99.  I love some good sparkle.  Plus, these are super comfy.  I love these shoes.  I try to find any excuse to wear them, including less practical ones like walking the dog.

J.Crew Glitter Darby Loafers 

Speaking of sparkly things, I got the J.Crew Pear Bracelet on sale for $24.99.  I love this bracelet.

J.Crew Pear Bracelet

This bracelet is so much fun.  I have it on with the OPI color Honk if You Love OPI, which is more dark purple, but darker than I normally wear.

What are some of your favorite things?

J.Crew 2012 Black Friday Holiday Shopping

Happy Thanksgiving!  I did some pre-Black Friday shopping yesterday.  I went to J.Crew at Pacific Place on Wednesday and took advantage of the in store 30% off for cardholders. Score!

I got the polka-dot sequin top on sale for $70 with the additional 30% off:

I love, love, love it.  Did you know it's black and not navy?  That was a surprise from the catalog and online.  This will be great for the holidays.  The sequins are placed well and the polka dots are not obnoxious.  It fits true to size, perhaps a bit short with low-waisted jeans.  This will be fun layered or on it's own with jeans, cafe capri, pencil skirts - lots of options.

Here it is in real life:

Here it is with a chambray shirt, bright dahlia capri pants and Tory Burch Wedges in an awkward pose:

J.Crew Keeper Chambray

Here's how I will style it with items I own:

Polka-dot Sequin Top by handbagaficionado featuring skinny jeans

I must have been on a polka-dot kick, because I also got the Gabby Top in Dot for $62.99 after the Black Friday 30% discount:

In real life (my 13 year old daughter took this - we were being silly and posing.  She told me to "work it" and this is my sad attempt).  I paired it with an old chartreuse Halogen cardigan from Nordstrom (this is a great quality cardigan that was quite a bargain for under $10.  I've got plenty of use out of it in the last 2-3 years):

J.Crew Gabby Top in Dot - silly pose

I also got Colorblocked Infinity Snood in store item only (#ED2014).   After the 30% Black Friday discount, I got it for $24.49 (it was $55)!  This scarf is gorgeous.  I had to have this scarf.  It will go with so many things I own.

(My boatneck tee and my J.Crew Crystal necklace under)

Beautiful shades of orange, red, pink and purple

Underneath I had one one of my Painter Boatneck Tee with Gold Snap - they are in store for $17.49.  I now have navy, modern red, grape and neon pink.  They are great for layering or on their own.  I saw black in store but not in my size.  I will be on the lookout.

Here it is with the J.Crew Excursion Quilted Vest in candied cherry.  I love this vest and wear it a lot.  I want one in pink and navy now:

Do you plan to take advantage of the Black Friday sales?

Rocker Chic and Crazy Pants

On Saturday, my husband and I went to see Motley Crue and KISS.  I was so excited. I  may wear pearls, cardigans and pencil skirts now, but I love 80's rock, and used to rock big hair and leopard prints back in the day (I still love leopard prints).

As for concert swag, I ended up with 2 concert tees.  Who knows when I will actually wear them. I got this rhinestone KISS shirt below and  a Motley Crue Vintage Red tee.

The concert was awesome:

Vince and Nikki kick starting my heart

Gene!

KISS!!!!!

It gave me an excuse to wear my abstract leopard capri pants that I reviewed here, inspired by Vince Neil.  I went all out with leopard, sequins, ruffles, lots of eye liner, as decadent as the 80's.  Although I am a super fan, I think I ran into some serious fans, including this one:

KISS Army

I know, it's only rock and roll, but I like it.  After rock and rolling all night, I went back to the real world in corporate America.  I must have still been a bit rock and roll crazy (the ringing in my ears?) because the theme this week was crazy pants:

Outfits of the day (Naomi Top and Cafe Capri pants reviewed in my last post):

J.Crew Cardigan (similar here)
J.Crew Naomi Top in Neon Pink
J.Crew Cafe Capri in Pop Art Polka Dot
Italian Shoemaker Shoes (similar found here)
DKNY Ceramic Watch
J.Crew Golden Cabochon Bracelet

J.Crew Painter Boatneck Tee
J.Crew Capri Pants in Kaleidoscope Dot
J.Crew Tillary Purse
J.Crew Valentina Pumps

How did you rock this week?

J.Crew Keeper Chambray Shirt Review

Last week I got the J.Crew Keeper Chambray Shirt.  I'm not quite sure what took me so long.  Perhaps the $78  price, or that J.Crew, Madewell and others paired it with everything on the planet.  I saw this paired with for every season, so I finally decided to get one.  The shirt is cotton, long sleeves that can roll up, buttons on cuff and machine washable.  The color is called afternoon sky and it works with just about anything.  The fit is true to size.  In my last post, there was a comment asking how to wear it.  I thought about that question, since there are so many ways, I thought I would devote an entire blog post.  Here are the many ways to style it:  

Chambray, white tee and shorts, easy style

Paired with dark jeans, easy style

Preppy with the Tippi Sweater in Linen

This also works paired with a simple tee shirt, sundress or maxi dress.  Great for summer nights, picnics or concerts.

Paired with the T-Shirt Dress in Dizzy Anchors

I love how J.Crew pairs it with anything and it works.  Sequins?  You bet!   (I'm drooling over the jacket below).

Chambray Shirt + Sequins + Red = Pop and Sparkle

Style with The Sequin Jacket (love this!)

For extra polish, this shirt also looks good with blazers and skirts.

Paired with white pants and  Schoolboy Blazer in navy

Paired with Maritime Blazer and cut offs

You can always suit it up or pair it with a pencil skirt.

Paired with Bureau Jacket in Linen Canvas

Added with a black pencil skirt and any color of cardigan for different looks

Now here it is on me in real life.  I paired in with my No. 2 Pencil Skirt in Garden Floral (seen here) and Mona pumps in Poppy (seen here and here) for work.

J.Crew Keeper Chambray Shirt
J.Crew No. 2 Pencil Skirt in Garden Floral
J.Crew Mona Pumps in Poppy
DKNY Watch
J.Crew Pearls

This shirt would look good paired with pink, leopard, black, navy, red, you name it.  I like adding a statement necklace or loads of pearls. Stacked bracelets would give it an extra edge, as well.

This is also a great super casual shirt to throw on for a weekend morning coffee and paper (I put it over my neon pink J.Crew tee this morning with cropped pants and flip flops):

Keep checking back as I add photos of different ways to wear this Keeper!  The name says it all.

Here are some different ways I will wear it with the items I own:

J.Crew Raj No.2 Pencil Skirt and Valentina Pump Options by handbagaficionado featuring a red nail polish

or this way:

Inspired. Now all I need is the bag... by handbagaficionado featuring long sleeve tops

How would you wear it?

Veteran's Day Shopping at U Village J.Crew

 On Friday, I went to University Village near University of Washington in Seattle.  I stopped by J.Crew, Madewell and Anthropologie and went to the Ram Restaurant and Brewery where my husband went to watch the game while my daughter, her friend and I shopped.  My daughter and her friend (both 12) had a blast trying on clothes in H&M and putting lipstick on in Sephora. I really like this mall and don't know why I don't go there more often.

The J.Crew at U Village is really nice and has a great selection.  I  tried on the Plaza Coat in cobalt.

It is a fitted silhouette (I've got a long sweater underneath and dress so it's not one you can layer a lot underneath without seeing bulk).  I like the classic shape and length.  It hits mid-thigh which is perfect for winter skirts and boots, like in the picture below.

I ended up with the Sequin Stripe Tee, although I tried not to like it.  I am really, really trying to boycott more sequins in my wardrobe, since thanks to J.Crew, I have enough to make a disco.  However, I love stripes, and this is a great tee with a nice fit and crewneck.

I paired it with the Navy Excursion Quilted Vest.  I've never been a vest girl (I owned one in 1990, I think) but this is a lightweight puffer and easy to layer.  I like it for some reason.

J.Crew Sequin Stripe Tee and ExcursionVest in Navy 

Excursion Vest in Navy

There are some other fun colors including Getaway Green and Candied Cherry, as seen below:

In addition to shopping, I did some pampering and got a mani/pedi with a shellac french manicure.  This looks really nice.  I got it done a couple few weeks ago and it lasts a long time.  I hope that it last for Thanksgiving.

I'm excited for the holidays soon.  In the middle of all of it, I'm traveling to London, Dublin and Luxembourg for work in December.  Either I need to finish my Christmas shopping early, do it all online, or pick up some things in Europe.  Maybe all of the above.

I am super jazzed about the Kindle Fire tablet coming out on Amazon.com this week.  I'm excited about the tablet version and the price.  In addition to the Kindle Fire, here are some other things on my holiday wishlist from J.Crew, including the bubble necklace and bag:

Wishlist by handbagaficionado featuring chronograph watches

What are some items that you want to get or give for the holiday season?