Monthly Archives: September 2012

Weekend outfits.

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Thursday night was fab – the meet and greet was so much fun and we’re lucky we have a great bunch of parents and a fabulous teacher for our class.  I decided to wear my loud Zara snake print pants – they are lush.  They have so many colors in them – pink, taupe, green, and the zips at the ankle – I will wear these a lot through Fall and they’ll also look great with boots or my Ash trainers.  The shirt is a really old Zara shirt – their basic shirts are fabulous and wear well – they have a similar style this season with an elastic waist which is lovely in all three colors.  Of course I have on here my trusty Tory Burch Eddies in Camilla pink – I wanted to wear heels but hate clomping around on someone else’s hardwoods in heels – I never walk on mine in them so why would I risk damaging someone else’s?!

Fall has absolutely arrived here – the weather is stunning.  Clear air with no humidity, bright blue skies and stunning sunshine – this is my favorite time in Atlanta.  Yesterday was Fall Festival at Hugh’s daycare – pony rides, fire trucks, bouncy castles etc and we had a great time – another family not so much – as their kid got off the bouncy castle with the worse bloody nose ever, poor guy!  I wore my new Ash Bowie trainers – just gorgeous soft leather and perfect for this kind of event.  Kat over at Doesmybumlook40 has a fab blog on wedge trainers today.  She introduced them to me as I see very few Ash over here but Nordstrom‘s do sell them.  I ordered mine on Amazon but they do have an online store here too but a lot of sizes are out.  These are another pair that I love from Steve Madden – the Hilight available in a variety of colors – a complete rip off of the Isabel Marant style but only $150.  Steve Madden has a plethora of wedge sneakers here this season.

I went casual with J.Crew selvedge denim shorts and my Top Shop t-shirt bought back in the UK in June – though I did notice that Top Shop is now available here in Nordstrom – exciting!

Off to spend the day by the pool today so there’ll be no outfit photos this evening:)
A big thank you to all of your comments on the Warby Parker frames too – you can see them all here!

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Meet the parents.

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So tonight we have our parent/teacher party.  We didn’t go last year so I’m really not sure what I’m in for but basically one set of parents from the class has kindly offered to host a ‘meet and greet’ where all the parents get to mingle and meet the teacher in a relaxed, informal environment.  It’s also a potluck where we can take an appetizer, dessert or wine – guess who’s taking wine?  Yep me – partly because I want to make sure there is some there and partly because I am rubbish at being organized enough to prepare something to take.  As MM and I had to organize a babysitter for the evening we have decided to get our moneys worth and head out afterwards for some fun:)  I can’t wait – it feels a bit naughty on a school night!

Given my daughter and her friend have already been to the Principle’s office just 5 weeks into the year (the shame!) it should be interesting!  MM is quite proud of her achievements, and after getting 2 yellow lights in 2 days he has suggested encouraging her to just go for it this September and get it all out of her system.  As you can imagine I don’t quite approve of this approach – but I’m also quite proud of us for dealing with it in such a relaxed fashion – she is only 6 after all and she has been quite remorseful – at least in front of us!  In my eyes they were fairly minor offenses and I’m happy for the discipline to be handed out at school – we’ve obviously discussed it at home and I think she’s got the message.  My dentist is also a parent at the school and yesterday she made me feel so much better when she told me she had received 3 calls from her son’s teacher in just one day last week – relating parenting nightmares is always fun and it’s nice to be reassured that we can all be as incompetent as each other sometimes:)

So hopefully I’ll have another outfit shot tonight to share – not sure what to wear at all given it’s relaxed and informal but I go out so rarely it’s always nice to make a bit of an effort:)

Today I decided to wear a skirt – mainly because I wanted to wear my Frye Sabrinas and they look so much better with skirts than trousers – these clay ones are currently on sale at Zappos.com.  This is an old J.Crew linen skirt worn with an Express tank and H&M linen jumper.  The necklace is an old J.Crew outlet one which I love – it’s like the blue one I wore here.

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A quickie.

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Between dashing from the dentists, doing some work and heading to swim team practice there is very little time for blogging today – but I was quite happy with my casual ensemble this morning so wanted to share it with you:)

This t-shirt is an old Gap one that I found in a bin bag of tops still lurking in the basement after the renovations.  It now has just the perfect washed, faded appearance of a well loved tee.  I used to just wear it around the house but I love it with my Zara off white jersey jacket.  I was going to wear some very loud, acid bleached jeans that I got from H&M a month or so ago but I was a tad worried about them being far too distracting for my lovely dentist so I saved those for another day and went for my Gap boyfriend jeans again – I haven’t worn so much Gap for years!  All finished off with my new favorite shoes – my Ash Thelmas.  I jumped on the band wagon a bit late with these as they are a rare shoe here in Atlanta.  My friend at work just swooned over them and went straight to the Ash website to order some.  My Ash Bowies arrived the other week and if you are tempted by this style be warned they fit much smaller than the Thelmas and I had to size up, but the leather is divine and lovely and soft – they’ll be a Fall favorite for me that’s for sure.

 

 

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Remembering.

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I cried this morning.  Listening to ‘Imagine’ on the radio just made it worse.  As I took Tennyson out for a walk it dawned on me that it was 9/11 again.  I immediately had a flash back – I remember it all so well.  I was driving to work here in Atlanta, running late, it had just gone 9am and the radio announcer said they were getting reports that a plane had flown into the World Trade Center.  I was shocked but somewhat dismissed it as a dreadful, unfortunate accident.  As the morning unfolded it turned out to be far more sinister than that.  I remember feeling guilty because I was so irritated when all air traffic was grounded as my sister was supposed to be flying out here on the 13th and I so wanted to see her.  There were many people who would now never see their siblings again.  Even for those of us who were no where near NYC that day it still feels very raw, we will carry memories of that day forever.  So peace and love to all, and we will never forget.

Shifting gears now to something far more trite and inconsequential – clothes and hair.

Inspired by Miley’s new look (totally wrong for a 41 year old to be inspired by Miley Cyrus) and Pink’s hair at the VMA awards (again totally wrong of me) I decided to try and go for bigger hair up top today using a bit of pomade – I quite like it for a change:)

I’m wearing my Zara floral jacket and in attempt to transition it to Fall I wore a darker blue Boden long sleeved essential tee from last Fall.  I love these t-shirts – they are so soft and stretchy and great quality.  I’m in my Gap boyfriend jeans and my Tory Burch Revas in hibiscus pink – the necklace is an old J.Crew Factory store one that I bought years ago.  I’m making an attempt to be more thoughtful about accessorizing – accessories are the first thing to be forgotten about if I’m in a hurry in the morning.

My final order from Zara arrived yesterday – final for now anyway – remember I am going cold turkey.  It’s a stunning blue jacket that I just love – it will look great with jeans and tan ankle boots.  I love the gathered shoulders too – I know I will wear this a lot.  Question is do I get the most out of it and start wearing it now or wait to wear it in October when MM and I are off to a trade show in Louisville (oh the glamour!)?  I’m thinking if one really likes something then surely it makes sense to wear it and enjoy it – but nervous about that approach as I know I will want something new to wear come trade show time!

 

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Guilty as charged.

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I buy too much.  I’m a hoarder.  I buy things because I like them, not because I think I will wear them or use them.  I think I’ve been aware of this for some time but since I’ve been trying to reduce the number of items hanging unworn in my closet I have been stunned at just how much I have bought.

I am an online shopping addict.  I love the buying experience online – I can browse, compare prices – so I think I’m getting a bargain, my size is almost always available, I know it won’t have been tried on by 500 people and all I have to do is click a button and I’m done.

This weekend I made a vow to myself to 1) stick to a monthly clothing budget and 2) be more discerning about what I buy.   I’m already putting this into practice – having returned all my Boden preview order for the Fall I know there are just 2 items that I really would like to reorder – both knitted tunics – and neither will be worn here till November.  I am determined to wait till November to order – I know it’s a risk but by then I may have reappraised what I need/want and changed my mind…if I buy them now I could end up with 2 more tunics hanging in my closet unworn.  I think this is how I’ve ended up with so many rarely or never worn items – I buy them in the preview before the weather is appropriate to wear them – so I either forget about them or have moved on to another item I want!

Here’s one of the tunics I ordered and returned – it’s the Boden smocked tunic dress and it is gorgeous – so soft and works perfectly as a dress with tights and boots.  Fortunately there is a long wait right now for my size to be back in stock so that is helping me to stand my ground and wait to order until it is cool enough to wear it.

The second is from the Winter preview – and it is the bottle green collared tunic.  I am actually just in love with this photo too – it makes me think of Twiggy every time I see it, not to mention the setting reminds me of my old haunt Notting Hill.

I will wait to order I swear.  In the meantime I am going to try and go cold turkey and stop browsing the Zara website and Zappos.com – let’s see how it goes.

Fall arrived here this weekend – we’ll still have temperatures up in the 80s each day but this morning I actually had to wear a jacket at the bus stop – it was in the low 60s – just gorgeous!  I took Tennyson, our boxer, for a long walk – another promise I made myself this weekend – I will walk him every morning!

I’m wearing my Hudson Collin jeans, Zara animal print t-shirt, Zara black jersey blazer and my Tory Burch black patent Eddies.  I love wearing a jacket with jeans – and these jersey ones are so comfy and easy to wear.

To those of you who are helping me purge my closet I want to say a huge thank you and USPS are going to be busy with shipments of fabulous items all day.  I am trying to be ruthless and have posted more items over the weekend on my Facebook store.

 

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Poppy’s Style Closet Store

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Just a quick note to let you all know that, disenchanted with eBay fees, I have opened a store front on Facebook!  Enjoy and I hope you find some great bargains!

http://www.facebook.com/PoppysStyleCloset

Flourescing.

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The tooth fairy came the other night.  Poppy has already lost the two front lower ones but now the first top one has gone!  She was actually very brave and gave it a tough yank herself to get it out – she was determined to get that $5!  I remember the days it was just 10p per tooth – showing my age again I guess.

It seems a long time since I wore a dress/tunic which is unusual for me so today I popped on last year’s Boden chic linen tunic.  Given it’s a very flat grey/silver color – the same color as the sky here today – I decided to elevate it with a bit of neon – not sure if I’ve overdone it with the lime J.Crew scarf, pink J.Crew cardigan and pink Tory Burch Revas?  So funny too – I walked into the office and my colleague, who I have converted to Boden, is wearing exactly the same tunic with black leggings and a black jacket – it’s the new Halcyon Media uniform:) Sorry for the fuzzy photo – was too much in a rush this morning and too tired again after another late night listening to Bill.

Give me strength this afternoon – I have a 2hr session at the Y with swim team followed by gymnastics for Poppy – which means instead of sitting on my backside watching, my guilty conscience will force me into the gym – 2hrs in the steam room may be preferable:)

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Officially obsessed with boots.

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Fall is my favorite season.  Mainly for the weather – it stays in the high 70s here through till November normally and we’ve had many a Halloween where the children have been sweltering in their costumes – and it is perfect once the humidity dissipates towards the end of September.  You can’t beat a gorgeous, crisp Fall day in the Georgia mountains.  However, another key reason for loving Fall is all the fabulous boots that I can start wearing.  I have always been and will always be a boot fan.

Many of you who have been reading my posts for a while will be familiar with my outrageous Frye obsession.  Though I am pretty miffed with them right now due to their recent partnership with Coach, I am still loving some of the new Fryes that have been released this Fall – many embracing the studded trend.  My favorite are these Jenna boots in gray that I have already treated myself to and wore the other week.

They also do a tall version but I think I prefer the shorter version – but maybe that’s because I already have the Veronica slouch which is similar but without studs.

I’m currently lusting over the Phillip harness studded but I can’t decide which to get – the short would look great with skinny jeans and my All Saints jumpers, but the tall are slim enough in the calf to wear with a knitted dress and tights – and I love the impact of the zip all the way up the calf.  They both have a great flat heel too, perfect for chasing after children.

I am also loving the Vince Camuto Autumn boots that are sitting waiting to be worn at home.  After buying them at DSW I discovered them $60 cheaper on the Vince Camuto website so I ended up returning the first pair to DSW and getting the black and taupe for *almost* the price of one pair:)  I justified it don’t worry!  The taupe by the way is very much more of a taupe color than the ivory that is depicted on their website.  I’ve never worn this brand before so will be interested to see how $100 boots hold up compared to my Fryes.

Finally these are on my hit list too – but how many pairs of boots does a girl really need?  They may be a little too similar to my Frye Shirley strappy boots to justify this one.  Again at $100 they are a great bargain.  I love the straps and buckles and both colors look fabulous on the Nordstrom website.

As it is past Labor Day now I think can get away with wearing light weight long sleeves and boots so today I am wearing my Express blush Zeldas, a Zara zip back top from the sale that was only $15, my H&M scarf, which only when I came to wear it for the first time today did I realize that it was actually a snood, all polished off with my Ash Thelma wedges which are coming into their own in the wet drizzle that Isaac is leaving us with.

A tad tired today after staying up to watch Michelle Obama’s speech – I have to say I thought she was incredible – passionate and sincere – she looked stunning too in a Tracey Reese dress and J.Crew pumps.

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I love the 80s

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I hope all you US folks had a great long Labor weekend – we certainly did – very relaxing with a baseball game thrown in there for some good fun too.  Most of it was spent around the pool which in turn leads me to one big gripe I have living over here – why are so many Americans uncomfortable with nudity?

I really think next time around I need to come back French or Scandinavian or similar.  Leaving the pool on Sunday we were reprimanded by the lifeguard for changing our children by the pool instead of using the nasty changing rooms (someone must have had a party in there the night before).  Another swimmer had complained about us.  Now feel free to disagree, but anyone who is offended by a 4 and 6 year old changing discretely by the pool has some real issues.  I’m neither a prude nor a frequent visitor of nudist beaches, but when in France I often sunbathe topless and the last thing I want is for my children to have any hang ups about their naked bodies, or anyone else’s for that matter.  I want them to retain their innocence and cavort naked when they please – in the appropriate setting of course.  Unfortunately this is not the first time I have encountered this kind of concern about nudity here.  Once in the Y a woman complained to another lady changing her 3 year old son in the ladies changing room.  The complainer actually said it was ‘like pornography’ – I stepped in irate that anyone could suggest this about a naked 3 year old.  I was so angry I was almost in tears.  Please get over it – we all have the same bits, relax and stop imposing your hang ups on everyone else.

We were lucky enough on Sunday evening to head to Turner Field to watch the Braves.  MM and I used to go to the baseball quite often before the children arrived.  It is a fun spectacle – great for people watching and enjoying a hot dog and a cold beer or two.  Sunday was the first time we had taken the children and in Chipper Jones’ last season it was an important game.  We all had a fabulous time with great seats close to home plate.  We left at the 7th innings as the children were getting tired and the Braves were heading for defeat…unfortunately we missed a cracking final innings when the Braves won with a home run from Chipper!

For the game I wore my J.Crew chambray spotty shorts, AllSaints Tilly t-shirt and fab Ash Thelma wedges.  It always surprises me how comfortable these shoes are.

Once again I am loving the 80s and today I feel very Nik Kershaw with my baggy Top Shop pants and Zara jacket with rolled up sleeves.  Even the Sam Edelman Alvin loafers have a retro feel about them.  I’d fit right in back at Live Aid.

One last note – I’ve just had a vent on one of the posts on The Frye Company’s Facebook page.  They have just released some boots in collaboration with Coach.  Why oh why would they do this??  It is a dangerous partnership if you ask me with my marketing head on.  I cannot believe that their research tells them the same people that buy Frye buy Coach.  I am so disappointed – Coach has become a masstige brand and I fear the halo effect will reduce the credibility of the Frye brand…What do you think about brand partnerships?

 

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