What DD Wore, thanks to YLF

Last night was my daughter's 8th grade graduation. 

She gave the valedictory speech to an audience of a couple of hundred people. I will post a bit in off-topic about that in the happy moments thread. But I hope it is okay to show what she wore here, because it is ALL courtesy of my closet, and all, in turn, courtesy of YLF. 

The event was a family BBQ, followed by the presentations. It was not formal, but graduates had been asked to dress nicely. 

My daughter is the definition of a tomboy. She usually wears very baggy boyfriend jeans and loose Ts. And getting her to dress up or even try on different silhouettes is a major pain. 

But last night, she knew exactly what she wanted to wear. And she put it on without a minute's hesitation. 

For the dinner: My linen shirt, my white jeans, my white Cons. 

For her presentation: The Equipment kitty shirt, my white jeans, my white Cons. 

1. Pictured in blue with her teacher. 

2. In kitty shirt, with her other teacher and a classmate who is hamming it up. (Funny, but without any prediscussion, all the girls in her class wore black and white outfits!!)

3. Giving her speech. 

4. With proud parents and teacher. 

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72 comments

K/R: Colourblock sandals and BR dress

My new colourblock sandals came. I think this is a keep but I am checking to make sure. The straps are wider than on my brown/grey pair, and they don't feel quite as refined, as a result. Do they look too clunky? 

Because the straps are wider, they are also rubbing a bit on one ankle bone, so I need to wear them around the house to ensure full comfort. The footbed is great and the wedge an easy height. 

Showing with a denim pencil, my work-at-home shorts outfit today, and Item 2 for Review. 

The other item for review is this BR knit halter dress. I decided to consign the funky/ arty dress that my friend passed down. I just wasn't really feeling it, and why waste time with items we're not feeling, right? 

This would be the replacement for a casual, easy dress to pop on for running errands, etc. on hot days. Does it work? Showing with the new sandals and another pair of sandals I might wear with it. 

Thank you for your opinions! 

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42 comments

Am I nuts to be interested in this skirt?

Would this be frumptastic IRL, do you think? Something appeals...

23 comments

WIW: The Garden Party Retrospective. A style story, in 3 acts.

Every year we go to a strawberry social at this time of year called the "Bergman Brunch." The dress code is "white, if convenient." The food is a funny mix of down-home burgers (veggie, meat, and chicken) and fancy desserts, with sparkling wine. And the guests are a mix of professors, young and older, "kids" from 3 months to 33, and the odd assortment of artsy types. 

Here are 3 years of my outfits. 

  1. One of my very first YLF postings. A discount store shell, a reclaimed sari silk skirt, and red sandals. (Those shoes were cute, but they never would stay on, alas...)
  2. Last year, my white Kut Diana skinnies, my fuchsia silk blazer, a linen top and cami. It was a relatively cool and cloudy day. I was not happy with the footwear with this, but they were the only wedge sandals I had, and a wedge was required due to the venue. 
  3. Today. My white shorts, Clarks sandals, white belt, and J. Crew butterfly print T, with my blue bag. Bug spray, sunnies, hat in the bag. (Bleah to the bug spray!!) 

So. What would you say about this style evolution judging from these photos? 

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Succumbed to the lure of an Angie pick!

Uh...how many sandals do I own? (Quick count: 4) How many months do I actually wear sandals?  (Um...fewer months than I already have pairs, in most years.)  

And guess what found its way into my shopping cart just now? This Angie recommended sandal. 

In my defence: 

  1. I found a Canadian online retailer selling it for less money than Zappos! (Unheard of.) 
  2. I know it will fit and be comfortable, because I have the sister shoe from last year in brown and grey, and it was a workhorse for me. I am still wearing it (I figure it should last until the end of this season) and I find that cross-strap style quite flattering on my foot. 
  3. I didn't have a colourful sandal this year (only neutrals). 

I plan to retire a pair of red flats that are no longer comfortable. One in/ one out. 

Meanwhile, I still really, really want white sandals or pointy toed pumps, and if I find them I am retiring the ill-fitting pale gold Clarks. 

Please tell me I'm not a wasteful, spendthrift fool. And remind me how I can wear these lovelies! 

My plans so far: 

  • With my fuchsia jackets! :-) 
  • With white jeans and shorts and bright tops (oops...I see a wardrobe hole for a fuchsia or rhubarb or raspberry top...)
  • With my bright pink clutch and a white on white or all-navy outfit.
  • With my cobalt skirt and top and my pink clutch (which also works as a cross body, by the way). 

Note: the Zappos reviewer says they are great for wide feet. My foot is not wide, just average. But I do have a high arch, so all in all, I'd call my foot "medium volume."  I found that the strap (adjustable on my version, and elasticized on this new one) means that it holds you in quite well regardless. That is what gives it stability and makes it so comfortable. 

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30 comments

Claire: Clearly Fab to the Max

We all know that Claire is beautiful, thoughtful, witty, thrifty, a brilliant bargain-hunter, clever, kind, a superb writer, stylish beyond imagination, and the best closet curator this forum has ever known. 

Well, she is also beyond generous. 

Look what she sent me: Her Brooks Brothers button down! 

She said it was a bit short in the body for her and she is favouring silks these days. 

It came today, and it's gorgeous! The other nice thing is that it does not duplicate my other non-iron BB button down. My other one is crisp, optic white. This one is softer and a winter white or ivory. Plus, it has French cuffs. The fabric is a very fine tone on tone herringbone pattern. 

It is the perfect length for me (two inches shorter than Claire). The sleeves are not even a whole lot too long...the tight cuff makes them blouse a bit, so it works for me. 

I think I will get a lot of wear from this shirt, especially in the cooler months. 

Thank you, Claire, and thank you, YLF! 

P.S. Not styled, just thrown on with what I was wearing. 

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26 comments

WIW: White jeans (for Pil)

Today we had an early morning meeting with the guidance person at our daughter's new school. We have been having major frustrations with the staff at the school. DD has some special needs and requires some mindful programming -- and a decent connection with an adult who sees her. Apparently this will not be forthcoming from the person whose official job is to provide it. Ever feel you are banging your head against a wall? Yup. That feeling. 

Luckily, the woman we met with today was much better and is taking over the reins! Phew!

I wanted a cheerful, happy outfit that would look relaxed and casual yet convey a touch of authority. 

Pil, I am wearing my Dianas as slim BFs. They are freshly washed here but I had been wearing for about an hour so they were already a little stretched. They'll stretch out a bit more during the day. 

Jacket: Zara

Silk shirt: Ann Taylor

Jeans: Kut Diana skinnies

Belt: some no name store in Stratford

Shoes: Clarks (I do not love these; they aren't the right fit on the top -- my feet are not high enough volume, as Angie says. And the straps are loose and cannot be made tighter due to construction. Alas, mistake made. However, the footbed is super comfortable, so that is a plus. 

Bag: Ralph Lauren

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34 comments

K/D: Dress from a friend

A friend of mine offered me this summer dress. It's basically a shift with some fun design details. But I'm not sure whether it works for me due to neckline and cut. Would love your thoughts. This would be a simple, casual, day dress for hot summer days. 

If it doesn't pass YLF muster for me, I will simply pass it along. 

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47 comments

Tunic proportion play

So, most of us agree that this lovely tunic that Sveta sent is just a bit too long for me. I'm keeping it anyway, because I think I can make it work in at least a few outfits. But I also wanted to show you some other, possibly less successful combos that I tried, for a bit of proportion play. I'll be interested in any opinions you might have! 

Warning: you will be very sick of the sight of me in this top! 

In #1-2 I tried it with my VC midi. Showing a side view so you get a better sense of how it is shaped. It is not quite the right shade of blue to work with the midi, I think. What say you? 

In #3-5 I show it with other similar toned items in my closet for comparison. The Gap mesh sweater, the Loft T, the "Dutch blue" Club Monaco shorts. It is closer in tone to these. And a little bit too warm a blue for near my face. But acceptable. 

#6 trying it with my navy VC midi. 

#7-8  Tucking the crepe de chine portion and leaving the chiffon untucked, with the shorts. 

#9 with the Zara kimono. 

#10 - 11. Trying with a different pair of shorts and doing Vix's shoe experiment. The black sandals are as close to flat as I ever get (about a 1/2 to 3/4 inch teeny wedge). The other sandals are a wedge. I wanted to see how that affected the proportions with this very long top. 

#12-13 trying to see how it would look long over short. Not that I would be likely to wear my skirt that short in my advancing age. 

#14 trying volume over volume

#15 trying with a knee- length denim pencil

#16 trying with my shortest pencil skirt. I don't think it works well with taupe. 

#17 layering over a dress.

#18 layering over another dress. 

#19 tucking into the Leiths as with the shorts. 

One thing I must say: IRL it doesn't look as "blocky." There is more movement to it and while it is waist surrenduring, you can see that I have a shape and I don't think I look so much like I am a total rectangle. Or so I hope, at any rate! 

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Sleeveless silk from Sveta: How to wear?

Thoughtful Sveta offered to send me one of these Costco sleeveless shirts to try. 

It is absolutely stunning quality. And I adore the trapeze style, which for me has always seemed ideal for summer. The fit (especially in that tricky under the arms part) is perfection. 

But as you'll see, it does present some challenges for me. To begin with, the colour is a bit on the intense side  -- closer to my "Dutch blue" Club Monaco shorts than to my blue VC tube skirt. 

But I think I can work with that. 

A bit trickier is its length. I am not crazy about tunic length on myself for a whole bunch of reasons. My DH said he thought it looked a little too long even for a tunic, but agreed that it is so beautiful I should keep it anyway. So the question will be, how to style it. 

I'll do a separate post with a few proportion illustrations, for those who are interested in puzzling these things out. But for now, here are a few of the variations that I thought worked reasonably "okay." Which (if any) do you like? Am I deluding myself that I can wear this? 

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