Wednesday, August 27, 2014

OOTDs: Short. Summer. Hair.

Before I start the ootd post, I received the PURE collection catalog in the mail yesterday.  Although I don't buy a ton from them, I do buy from them when I need a good, high quality basic in a luscious, high quality fabric.  I wear these tie-waisted tapered trousers all the time (that is why I have three pairs--they are in heavy rotation) and their super-soft cashmere keeps me nice and warm in winter (for example, the turtleneck here and the snood here--second outfit).  Anyhow, the catalog featured some beautiful items, and since I forgot to do a spring/summer 2014 look, I figured better late than never by at least getting the fall 2014 rollout off to a good start.  The catalog only featured a 15% off code, but upon checking the affiliate program, I realized I had access to a 25% off code for the blog, so I immediately put that in the sidebar (third or fourth item down on the right hand side).  For those of you who want to see my few picks and stick it out to the end of this post, I have also placed the coupon at the bottom of the post.

Okay, onto the outfits!

Day: Thursday, August 21, 2014.

Where: Hair Cuttery for a haircut and La Madeline for dinner.

Ease of Wear: (5 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.) The Boden Santorini dress (here on sale, my original review here), once again, was exceedingly comfortable to wear.  I wanted something that would make me feel good and also look good, and this dress did both.

Cool Factor: (4.5 of 5 stars--5 being the coolest.)  Love this look, maybe I will try it with a different belt next time. 

Love that CW is so self-assured, look at all those colors/prints/textures.  :-)

Anecdote from the day:  After finding out that I had lost the baby, I knew that I needed some time to do something to make me feel better.  Since CW was heading back to school, and my hair was getting long and heavy, I knew that a visit to the hairdresser and a dinner out to La Madeline was exactly what the doctor ordered.  My dad came along, too, and because he is awesome, even threw in a visit to the local Sweet Frog for a yummy frozen yogurt dessert. 



Day: Monday, August 25, 2014.

Where: Harris Teeter to do some shopping.  Of course.

Ease of Wear: (4 of 5 stars--5 being the most easy to wear.)  I ordered the Delancey Slouch Trousers (from Madewell, here) in a size 10 thinking they would fit, but I maybe could have gotten away with the size 8 since the pants are a bit loose.  I am fine with the 10, though, they are really comfortable in the bigger size.

The Linen Piscine Muscle tee (from Madewell) is also quite large and loose in the size I ordered (one up from my J. Crew xs size), but again, doesn't look too bad a bit bigger, and again, very comfy.

The Slide sightseer sandals from Madewell (notice a theme, lol) are my favorite part of the outfit, though.  They are really cool and very easy to wear.  They didn't have the 9.5 available, but that was fine since the 10 I ordered fit perfectly out of the box.  I guess that means you should size up 1/2 size.  ;-)

Cool Factor: (4.5 of 5 stars--5 being the coolest.)  This is definitely a cool outfit.  The slightly bushy take on the shorter bob (didn't blowdry it that morning) combined with the sunglasses help up the cool, too.  Definitely not polished, but sometimes I don't need to be, right?

Anecdote from the day: A neighbor stopped by who speaks Spanish fluently.  She also speaks French and upon seeing my shirt exclaimed, "oh, you want to go to the pool, huh?"  So while J. Crew apparently screws up their French tees, Madewell doesn't.  Well at least this time.  ;-)

I had gone to the pool that day, so I could reassure her that the dream came true.

Okay, as promised here are the five picks I found from the PURE collection catalog, and below the picks is the coupon for 25% off with free shipping.

Ankle Length Trousers (here).  Since I love my tie-waisted trousers so much, I figure that these have to be a good pair of pants, too.  They are made from a stretch twill and I kind of dig the zip detail on the front of the pant at the hem.

Wool Pencil Skirt (here).  A pencil skirt is a pencil skirt is a pencil skirt, but they have one in a GORGEOUS turquoise color (above on the model).  If you love wool pencil skirts and pretty colors at a pretty good price, this one is probably gonna make you squeal.

Silk Abstract Print Tunic (here).  This is one of the only printed items in their catalog, but what a stunner it is.  And made from silk, too, yum.

Cashmere Blend Coat (here).  This is a wonderful example of what PURE does best, the classic item made very well in a high quality material.  The navy color will be timeless, and unless you don't stay the same size, you could potentially have this one in your closet for years and not ever need to get rid of it.

Luxury Cashmere Textured Sweater (here). Okay, this one costs as much as the coat above, but can't you just imagine yourself on the coldest of days putting this on and being all toasty and warm?  Yeah, tell me I am not alone in dreaming of wearing something like this when it is just awful outside.  If cashmere didn't exist, I would probably have to move to Miami since I just hate hate hate cold weather.  Warm soft wool makes winter tolerable.  But just barely.

Alrighty, take a poke around if you feel like it, and report back if you see something you just love.  Hopefully my budget allows for something from them before too long (probably not the textured sweater, though, sadly).