I Want to Get Off the J.Crack

Ladies, is J.Crack a "Gateway Drug?" & I mean this with all seriousness. This is something I've wanted to post about for awhile, but haven't had the time to really sit down to discuss with you all. As I sit here amongst a closet full of Tory Burch Reva ballet flats, Kate Spade suede wedges, and Gucci sunnies, I am pondering how I went down the path of $300 sunglasses without batting a Latisse-infused eyelash. It all makes sense, right? I mean, J.Crew is at the mall, it's not a "serious" fashion brand, it's a mall brand -- a catalog at that. But the Crew's prices are steep sometimes, and their Collection items can cost a pretty penny.

So when you buy a pair of J.Crew ballet flats, for instance, at $190 (just throwing a number out there for argument's sake) and a dress for just under $200, the numbers start to blur. Well, I know for a moment in time they blurred for me. & I thought nothing of doing this on a weekly basis. So when your shopping budget is in the arena of $500 - $1000 a month, you find yourself moving on to the next level --- Diane Von Furstenberg starts looking like a decent price. & you wonder why you haven't paid more attention to the sale rack at Neimans before. & then at some point, you move on from the sale rack and are moving on to bigger and better.
I've found myself here, peeps. I start to think I'm slumming it when I go to the Gap. Or when I land in Banana Republic! P'shaw!! They're dresses are $150 at Full Price!!

At some point soon, and I'm so ready you have no idea, I want to get back to reality. When I thought that $98 for a polka-dotted pencil skirt that wasn't lined was absolute highway robbery. Or when I thought that $68 for a hammered silk tank was just for suckers (do you even know how many hammered silk tanks lie in the dimly lit recesses of my closet?). I want to be a simple girl! I want to get off the J.Crack.

A Glimmer of Hope: J.Crew's Holiday Roll Out

*Sigh*

There may be hope yet, peeps, for J.Crew. I'm going to go on the record and say that Holiday 2010, though not 100% fabilis, is a standout compared to the rest of the year. I may just want to buy a few things full-price. I haven't said that for 11 months, so this is a day that may just be my turning point. It's like that scene from the first Sex in the City where Miranda and Steve have to meet on the bridge. She's hoping he's there, he's hoping she's there, and then... well, you know the rest. Let's hope there's a glimmer of that hope for the Crew et moi.

*Cue the Al Green music!

Dusted Sequin Shift Dress, $275

Perhaps I've been watching one too many episodes of Boardwalk Empire, but this dress is a fabilis, fabilis option for a Holiday Party. I find it tres speakeasy. With hair done in a loose, side-done chignon and red lips, this is something I would consider. I also believe it's Collection. Always an added plus for a J.Snob.

Starry Night Cardigan, $128

I know we've seen (and own) a plethora of sequined cardigans, but I like this one for the jacket effect, and the dreamy chiffon at the edges. I also like the three-quarter sleeves and the punk way the model's styled with just black moto pants and a grey tee. I would want to wear it with a white tee, those moto pants, and a pair of fab heels for a sit-down party, or slouchy and flat moto boots if I'm expected to stand all night.

This, peeps, is wearable. Finally.

Serengeti is a Neutral, I'm Sure of It.

I'm very sure this is a neutral color. Either that or I've gone off the deep end and am considering it so in my off-kilter universe. These are my patent leather Serengeti Juliet pumps from J.Crew, of course. & I wear them with everything from white dresses to eyelet skirts, to anything with a solid color. First, comfy as all heck. Second, I never fail to get a compliment out of these. Hawaii women love these shoes!

When this particular pair dies, I'll have to go scout eBay for another pair.

Worn with the Schuyler dress, a J.Crew flower cardi, and my much destroyed and loved J.Crew men's belt.

♥

Dusty Rose Spectator Pumps: You Finally Belong to Me!

I have to show off my Fall 2008 Spectator Pumps in Dusty Rose I got off of eBay for under $10, still new. Ladies, you have no idea how baaaadddddly I wanted these shoes when they first came out. & I stalked them on eBay season after season, thinking of their dusty pink perfection. You could almost call them neutral. Couldn't you? Or is that a stretch?

♥

The sequin cardigan from last fall, with some bling-eriffic necklaces.

Paired with a simple back skirt from Ann Taylor. Their tropical weight wool? Perfect.

Fashion Night Out in Honolulu, plus New to My Closet

First, I'm going to apologize for being MIA. With going back to school, my Little Guy and his myriad of activities that I am primary chauffeur for, and oh yeah, that little thing called work, I've been a little bit preoccupied. But I'm here and I've got a bunch of posts lined up that will keep me present in the blogosphere for the next couple of weeks.

First up, Fashion Night Out was a couple of weeks ago and moi, being of a fashion-minded nature, had to attend. Between some lovely champagne bubbly at Club Monaco (love that store), great deals at J.Crew, and an excellent cause at hand, Fashion Night Out was a hit and I can't wait to attend next year!

Live models in the window at Louis Vuitton. Ugh, to be tall and thin and modeling such gorgeous bags!

Hubs trying his best Zoolander impression, whilst carrying my purchases and keeping our Little Guy busy. You gotta love a man who can multi-task like that!

A copy of the flier that acted as our map. It outlined every activity, deal and highlight of the night.

My purchase of the night at J.Crew. A great dress that was on the sale rack. I went right by it at first, thinking I didn't need a dress like that. I had just told myself earlier that day that I needed to stock up on basics, not fabilis pieces. (hmmm... writing that down just now, it didn't sound as great as it did in my head when I originally had the thought. Not the best wardrobe strategy.)

Well, with a simple black eyelet dress in hand, I strolled around the rest of J.Crew looking for pieces that would go with this dress instead of the one I had in my hand. At that point, I knew it was meant to be mine, so I put the other dress back and grabbed this one instead.

With some help from the CS, I found the most perfectly destroyed leather belt. Why oh why, ladies, do we covet things that look this old and ugly. My saving grace is that it was on sale. But I find myself reaching for it over and over since I've bought it, so, perhaps it wasn't a crazy purchase after all.

Paired with a cardi from Tar-jhay, my Fashion Night Out purchase makes its debut.

♥

J.Crew Fall 2010 Lookbook Arrived. Want it?

The Fall 2010 Lookbook just showed up on my door the other day. The images are available online to view. Coincidentally, my PS also sent a note my way to let me know to check in with the website soon to see all the new goodies. & though what I see is very fall, very luxe - furs, sequins, fishnets, baubles and sparkle-encrusted-fill-in-the-blanks galore - I find myself missing the days of the hints of prep.

Here's one of my favored looks from the book. The shorts appear to be reminiscent of the Shakespearean era; there appears to be elastic bands around the leg openings of the shorts. I like the look of the fishnets with the shorts and how it looks completely grounded by the socks / boots at the foot.

Did you receive the lookbook? If you didn't receive it, would y'all like mine?

If you would, leave your email address in a comment and I'll contact you for your address. If more than one gal is interested, I'll pick a lucky recipient tomorrow.

J.Crew Carly Dress: Polite Summer Ruffles

Ladies, my Little Guy is on vacay with the grandparents. So here I am, a mommy who suddenly has quite a bit of free time. Do I go to the gym? No. Yoga? No. I blog, peeps. Thought I would show you a few snaps of the J.Crew Carly dress I bought a while ago -- FP, damnit. It's now since been marked down to $59.99 in Final Sale and was an additional 20% off a few days ago. Quite a deal. If you don't mind drying it flat.

I'm going to say right now, this is a very comfy, flattering dress. The sleeves don't cut you off at the fattest point on my arm. Instead, I find them a very nice length. The ruffles are, goodness me, wonderful at hiding what you don't want others to see. A year ago, I put myself on a ruffle-ban when I had just had it up to *here* with J.Crew's ruffle-addictions. But either I've mellowed out on my ruffle outlook or ruffles out of cotton are exempt from the ban. Haven't figured which one it is yet. Did I also mention the shift shape is very cute? Me likey very much.

A quick focus on the shoes, which is new to my closet and happily living amongst new brothers and sisters here.

They are Saks Fifth Avenue, happily picked up on Clearance with an additional 50% off from the Off Fifth Outlet. I believe my final price was about $75. When I posted last month about the few pairs of shoes I brought with me initially to Hawaii, I was lacking a cute wedge/platform heel for summer. & I've refused to settle for something that wasn't perfectly what I had in mind. I wanted something that was comfy, interesting, could be worn casually or used to dress something basic up. & I wanted a color that would work with lights and darks. Oh, and I needed the darn thing to cover my foot. This was no easy mission to find, but I'm happy to say I was very pleased to see these.

These sandals are very, very comfy and I love the heel -- totally different than anything I already have. I love how it covers quite a bit of my foot. & the back is very flattering. & did I mention the quality is great? All in all, a very good buy.

Ok, now back to the Carly dress. One thing about this dress that works for me is the length. I'm about 5'4" and I never find dresses that hit at a flattering point like this one. If you're taller, this may not be your bag - you may need something a little longer. For me, this is a great casual length. Not something I'd wear to work - the cupcake factor of the ruffles coupled with the length wouldn't go over well in my work "casual but conservative" environment. But for a Saturday of lunch or shopping, this is such a great summer buy. In my opinion, it is the ultimate white summer one-piece. Another love? Do not be afraid of the VPLs, ladies. The ruffles ensure that your derrier is covered and safe. :0)

But buyer beware: Ruffles have a downside. When this baby comes out of the washer, be prepared to lay flat or hang, and tame those things. I can't imagine putting this thing in the dryer. I actually fear Hubs being *nice* one day and doing this exact thing. The ruffles would be out of control. & we can't have that, Ladies. We need polite ruffles.

Anyone buy this dress? I tried styling it with a belt but it hasn't worked for me. The belt seems to get lost in the ruffles and then I get befuddled. & befuddled by ruffles? No.... we can't have that.