New shoes! Cute ones! And the coat search continues...

I wore a very successful outfit today, and like the best ones, it was simple and pretty effortless. I bought three v-neck, long-sleeved T-shirts the other day, in a heavier weight that's perfect for air-conditioned offices and cooler weather: white, black and charcoal grey.

I wore the black one today with a black/cream scrollwork skirt. I started the day in off-black hose, but changed to white when I got a run. Waaah! I think the off-black stockings had a slight edge, though the white looked nice too. Tortoise bangles, of course (I live in them), pearls, silver ball-drop earrings. What really made the outfit memorable were the cute new shoes I bought yesterday!

Valentine by NaturalSoul by naturalizer, believe it or not! 37.99 on sale! I went to Kohl's with a friend at lunchtime; she was buying socks for her husband so I tagged along. When I saw the shoes on the display rack I couldn't resist. Shiny! Deep, deep red patent leather! The velvet bow on the toes! I'm such a sucker for an embellished shoe that it's almost a sickness. Anway.

I've been wearing my new cognac Pierotucci bag since I got it a couple of weeks ago, and in a very happy accident, discovered that my deep red shoes and my bag are gorgeous together. You'd think cognac would be brown, but the bag's more of a dark red with slight brownish tones. I don't normally do the bag/shoes matching thing, not conciously, so I was beyond pleased to see that it looked effortlessly polished and not matchy-matchy...because the shoes are patent and the bag isn't, most likely. I felt totally fabulous.

Also, the great coat search goes on. This one is so Madonna-in-the-80s, when girls bought men's vintage coats for a couple of dollars and turned them into huge style statements.
I like it; it comes in charcoal, which is another plus, but I'm a bit put off by all of the pockets. Do I really need a breast pocket? Boiled Tweed Coat, 139.50 at TravelSmith. The jury's still out, but it's fun looking.

Today's bag: cognac Pierotucci Birkin-inspired bag. Still no pictures. Yes, I'm ashamed.

My coat is made of squee!

Now that the fall items are beginning to roll in, my annual coat search has begun. Last year's attempt to be fabulous fell far short of the goal; this year I just want to find a simple, beautiful, classic coat that will work just as well dressed up as down. What I'd really like is a classic menswear cashmere topcoat, cut for the feminine body, of course.

I wrote the above in a draft post on July 4th. Fast-forward a few weeks to last night...

Unlike my rather cracktastic claims of coat fabulousness last year (ye gods, what was I on?), I'm set to achieve true outerwear perfection this year. As mentioned in my last post, I've been positively giddy with this season's offerings. I've seen so many beautiful coats and cute jackets that my hard drive is filling up fast with the photos I've saved!

I wanted a neutral color, nothing too long, and nothing too trendy. I wanted a coat that would look polished with work clothes, but relaxed with casual clothes. Ultimately, I wanted something classic that would look great for a number of years, and not look dated as soon as the leaves begin to fall next year.

After looking at many, many coats, this is the first one to really slot itself into the "buy me!" niche in my brain:

Despite the fact that it looks slightly purple or lavenderish, the website listing (and the catalog picture) shows the coat is grey. I saw it and fell in love, despite the fact that I'm not the world's biggest fan of hooded coats. Still, pretty! I very nearly bought it a couple of days ago, but last night I kept surfing. Then I saw it, this beauty by Eileen Fisher:

The people at Saks really know how to style a photo shoot, eh? At first I thought it was a bathrobe, and I was completely underwhelmed. But the more I looked at it the more it intrigued me, and I wondered if somewhere out there, someone had actually taken pains to make the coat look interesting. Hurray for Garnet Hill!
I was sold, because this is exactly what I've been looking for. It's stylish, it's got that vintage vibe that I love, and the oatmeal shade is a perfect neutral (camel would be better, but I can live with it). This coat can be dressed up or down, and I'll still be able to rock it when I'm 70! How perfect is that?

Two things are a bit worrisome. It's unlined, so will it be warm enough? On the other hand, an unlined coat is a much lighter coat! The length is the stickiest point: it's about 42 inches long, and I'm about 61 inches high. If I'm lucky, it will hit at my mid- or lower-calf. I've got my fingers crossed. Stay tuned...

Edited to add another picture:

Eileen Fisher coat, at Neiman Marcus, Saks, Garnet Hill. Also at Eileen Fisher. Plus sizes, $378.00, women, $358.00.

Today's bag: camel Pierotucci Birkin-inspired bag.

Fabulousness revised.

Yay! I finally ordered my coat! Because there is clearly something wrong with me, I didn't order the camel I've been thinking about day and night, but instead ordered dark brown. This is probably why I still covet a camel coat rather than own one, because another color always seduces me at the last minute. But! If my coat is still available in camel by the time the clearance sales roll around, I'll buy one then. Woohoo! Responsible consumerism at its best.

My plan for fabulousness (see link above) has been revised. Because I'll never be able to buy gloves that satisfactorily match my bags, I'll satisfy my lust for leopard instead.

Aren't they cute? Available at Bloomingdale's: Echo Leather Turnlock Gloves, $75.00. The only thing I'm not crazy about is the fact that the lining is polyester, which isn't the warmest of fabrics.

Now all I need is a fun scarf. Hmmmm. Would a leopard scarf be too much? Again, hmmmm.

Today's bag: None today, because I'm home sick. Bleh. :-p

Fabulous for fall!

WARNING: If you're easily offended by designer-inspired bags, the following post isn't for you.

My Plan to Be Fabulous This Fall.

The perfect spring coat managed to elude me, but I'm making up for it with a vengeance. Here's the first part of my plan to be Fabulous. I want this coat, but in camel:

I don't need anything too fancy because I drive to work. Also because I drive to work, I don't want a long coat, but it still has to be long enough to keep me warm once I'm out of the car. This one should do nicely. I like the relaxed shoulder, and it's got the flirty attitude of a swing coat. Cute! Once I actually place the order I'll be set.

What do handbags have to do with this, you may ask? That's the next part of the plan!

Just like the mother in the "Visiting Tennessee" Kate Spade ad, I like the look of matching bag and gloves; it's a nearly effortless way to look polished and pulled together. Bag, gloves, and silk scarf (featuring a bit of your bag color), and you're set!

You may (or may not) have noticed that I seem to carry my Birkin-inspired bag quite a bit. I hadn't realized myself actually, until I began this blog. I change bags every couple of weeks or so as the mood strikes, but it seems the bag I'm usually changing back into is my Pierotucci.

I've seen Vogue spreads featuring women with rainbow assortments of the real thing: ten or twelve Hermes Birkins in different shades, like a collection of gems. I'll buy a t-shirt or blouse in several colors, but I've always loved diversity in handbags. I didn't quite connect with the idea of putting so much loyalty into one bag, even one as lovely as the Birkin - until my bought my Pierotucci, that is. A couple of days after I'd first carried it, I knew it wouldn't be my last. Which brings me to...

I've got an annual raise coming up, and a few weeks after that, my birthday. And then there's Christmas just a couple of months later! Yes, I'm planning to buy a new Pierotucci to mark all three occasions. These are the colors I eventually hope to purchase. From left to right: black, dark brown, olive green and navy blue.

Mine is camel, so a darker neutral would be nice - I'm leaning toward the olive green for my next purchase. The kind folks at Pierotucci offer a choice of hardware, palladium (silver) or gold. I'll probably go with gold no matter the bag color.

These are the brights I'd eventually like to purchase. Again, from left to right: cognac, orange, yellow, and beige.

I'm thinking maybe cognac or orange for my birthday; I'll probably go with cognac, though I've been dying for an orange bag! I have a pumpkin bag now, but it's on the flat and skinny side, not at all suitable for my kind of day to day toteage. The Pierotucci looks a bit bright, though. A browny orange would be nice, but this one looks like Crayon orange. I could always request samples...

I figure a couple of mulicolored scarves should take care of any bag I might want to accessorize. Something like this or this (ooooh!) would be lovely with the dark neutrals, and this one would work with the brights...actually, that would punch up the neutrals, too. Now I get to start looking for gloves to match!

So there it is, the first part of my plan to be Fabulous for Fall. Stay tuned!

Today's bag: Pierotucci Birkin-style bag.

This is my luck. A.K.A.: Spring coats, take two.

Two posts down I lamented my lack of a spring jacket - and just for the record, we had another bright, beautiful, cool day today. Look at all the days I'm wasting, not being fabulously jacketed!

While surfing around Neiman Marcus I saw a cute linen version of the classic denim jacket and fell completely in love. $158 .00, though. Not bad, but I don't think I'll be buying it. Still, I was inspired. Yes! A denim jacket! I've never had one, but I've always wanted one, and I have *no* idea why I've never bought one. I now know what I want.

I cruised around a bit more and found a jacket on the Eddie Bauer site, for about half the price of the linen version. Hmmm. But!

Then I found the perfect jacket. Look! Dickie's garment washed, relaxed fit, and only $28.99! Sadly, and I do mean sadly, the site's telling me there are "no sizes currently available" which I'm guessing is Dickie's-speak for: "currently out of stock." The bastards!

Witness the cuteness and share my pain.

Today's bag: Pierotucci Birkin-style bag.

No spring coat for me.

I'd really like a new spring coat. Last year's, a pretty, leaf green quilted number, is perfectly fine, but there's nothing like a new spring coat to usher in the season. It's been sunny but cool here, so a new coat wouldn't just be celebratory but useful as well.

While shopping the other day I found a cute coat (On sale! Thirty dollars!) and very nearly bought it. It was a stylized pea coat, heavy, cream-colored cotton, with matching buttons. I fell instantly in love. Unfortunately, the coat was obviously designed to be worn by those smart young things who walk to work; it was structured to within an inch of its life, so structured in fact, that while I looked fabulous standing with my arms to my sides, miming a driving motion proved painful and nearly impossible. Sadly, that fabulous little coat was not meant for me.

Today's bag: Pierotucci Birkin-style bag.