New Additions to my Closet: Basically I needed More Casual Tops!

As I was packing for my mini vacation in VA and NC, I realized that I was in need of more casual tops. When I visited Madewell a few weeks ago, I was able to take advantage of their sale and several of silk jersey tops came home with me. I got a gift card for J.Crew from a friend and I decided to check out the extra 30% sale. There were several pretty things that caught my attention, but I stayed focused and I ordered some tops that I could wear to work and while running errands on the weekends.

Did you take advantage of the after-holiday sales at J.Crew or Madewell?

1. J.Crew Cascading flutter shell

2. J.Crew Drapey ruffle henley

3. J.Crew Tissue ruffle cardigan

4. J.Crew Vintage cotton ribbon henley

5. Madewell Delicate drape tee

6. Madewell Silky scoopneck tee

7. Madewell Zip-it-up tee

8. Madewell Sparkle pullover

The Madewell Obsession Continues...And a Special "True Crew Love" Holiday Dinner.

The Snapshot Minidress was one of the pieces I picked up on my recent trip to Madewell. To be honest, it did not look great on a hanger, but once I tried it on, I loved the fit and the feel of the fabric. On my ride home on the metro and while listening to Frank Sinatra, I thought about how this dress would be perfect for a very special event I was planning to attend (see below). Therefore, I present you, the OOTD featuring Madewell, J.Crew and my other obsession, leopard print.

{Snapshot Minidress-Madewell}{Necklace-J.Crew}{Cardigan-Zara}{Boots-Taryn Rose}{Belt-Vintage}

On a cold night in DC, a group of friends gathered to celebrate the holidays at Oyamel restaurant. The evening was full of fashion, presents, food, drinks, chocolate, and of course, J.Crew. Several contributors to this blog including Drewablank, Dina, and Kater, along with J.Crew aficionadas Cleo, 3PennyPrincess, and Kelly were in attendance. Rebecca from iwadg, another one of my fashionable friends in DC, was also able to join us. Among the dishes we tasted were the baby cactus salad, chiles en nogada and the squash sopes.

Summerilla's OOTD's

Here is my Saturday outfit for a Holiday party I attended.

Vest: Jcrew electra vest

Sweater: JCrew cashmere v-neck sweater

Skirt: JCrew last winter

Belt: JCrew jeweled party belt

Shoes: Tory Burch Gabi flats

View of the outfit without the vest.

I do love the vest but it did shed quite a bit on my sweater.

Holiday shopping with the family outfit.

Top: JCrew striped tunic from outlet

Leggings: JCrew

Boots: JCrew tall vintage roadsters

Bags on the floor? All the damage I did!

Picture of the headband I wore with the outfit.

JCrew outlet on clearance for $4!

Additional Holiday shopping outfit.

Tee: JCrew navy striped LS tee from outlet

Sweater: JCrew cashmere cardigan

Jeans: JCrew skinny stretch jeans

Boots: JCrew tall vintage roadsters

Scarf: JCrew outlet

Outfit Inspiration: Curly in the City. Incorporating J.Crew items to recreate her stylish outfit.

I recently found the blog, Curly in the City. Taylor, the fashionista behind this blog, has a great sense of style. We became Twitter/Blogger friends and realized that besides the curly hair, we also love J.Crew.

A few weeks back, she featured a fabulous outfit that would be perfect for a holiday party or dinner. I looked in my closet, and sure enough, I had the right J.Crew pieces to recreate her outfit. The vintage bateau top, my beloved Bella jacket, the zip utility pants and any of my statement necklaces would be perfect.

I had a little fun with the J.Crew website and put together a list of items that would recreate Taylor’s outfit.

Do you have any of these items in your closet?

Source [Curly in the City]

1. Tuxedo jacket

2. Zip utility pants

3. Stripe painter tee

4. Zigzag zipper clutch

5. Little bow tweed platform peep toes

6. FENTON/FALLON™ for J.Crew rhinestone chain jaws necklace

7. Madewell Digby & Iona oval cut ring

A "J.Crewing" tumblr!

I just found an awesome blog (or excuse me, awesome TUMBLR ;D) 

that features J.Crew photos - old and new!

One of my favorites. :)

Check out his pants! ;)

 I've never seen this cover before!

 It even has some J.Crew staff photos as well.

I think it's fairly new, but I look forward to future posts!

My Favorite J.Crew Collection Pieces for Winter 2010 and the OOTD by a Very Special Guest.

I only have a few J.Crew collection pieces and I love every one of them. My favorites are the tiered brique skirt, the jaspe sequined slouchy sweatshirt and an olive green silk skirt with raw edges. Summerilla, another fabulous contributor to this blog, and I found the unidentified collection skirt in one of our DC JCA shopping trips and we both loved it. Luckily, the store had several of these skirts and we both were able to take one home.

Here’s a few pieces that I am currently in love with. Sequins, fur, tweed, and feathers are among my favorite things and this season the J.Crew collection certainly covers all these trends so perfectly.

What are your favorite pieces of the current J.Crew collection? What pieces do you own and love?

1. Elena lace shift dress

2. Sequin tulle cardigan

3. Electra vest, as seen here on Dina

(her styling made me fall in love even more with this piece)

4. Martinete feather jacket

5. FENTON/FALLON for J.Crew Carrington crystal bow necklace

6. Plumage mini

7. Fluttery sequin mini

8. Crystal briolette dress

9. Eyelash tweed blazer

My OOTD right now is not very representative of the luxury of the items listed above. Thus, I am sharing a picture of Lola, a fashion-forward chihuahua who has a passion for faux fur, pleats, and preppy argyle sweaters.

Someone Loves JCrew More Than Us!

While driving home from the Lynchburg JCrew Clearance stores I found myself behind this car......

How awesome is that license plate? And what a coincidence!

I also highly recommend the drive to the clearance centers. There are two now, the main one and another that is just women and kids clothing. I got some amazing deals on current sold out online items. I expected items to be slightly damaged but I walked out with 3 items in perfect condition, that would have totaled $850 for just $150! Perhaps it's time to move to Lynchburg!

My Rediscovered Love for Madewell

I discovered Madewell during a trip to NYC. I fell in love with the design of the store but most importanly, the clothes. And then I found out that Madewell was part of J.Crew so I was sold. Online ordering was not possible until a few months ago, so I would visit my nearest store in VA. However, it would take weeks/months in between visits but it was enough to keep the love affair going.

My prayers were answered when a Madewell store opened in Georgetown a few weeks ago. I walked into the store for the first time on Sunday and I was in heaven. The store is big and the selection is amazing. The sales associates are incredibly helpful and on all sale items had an extra 25% off. I walked away with a few things that I will review later. In the meantime, I leave you with some Madewell pretties that I am currently coveting.

1. First frost necklace

2. Cozy-up scarf

3. Pemberly blouse

4. Silky swing dress

5. Brass studded belt

6. Twisted metal & crystals bracelet

7. The brownstone suede minibag

8. The suede ankle bootie

Styling the Severn Lace Mini

When I buy a new piece of clothing, I always make sure I can wear it with other items in my closet. Before ordering online or buying in the store, I do a quick mental review of the clothes and accessories I already have and think of a few outfits with the new item I am considering. On Saturday, before heading out for lunch and errands, I put together some outfit options for a party I was attending later that day. Here’s some of my styling ideas.

For other styling ideas for this skirt:

Anna Jane’s post at See Jane. (in the slate color)

Chloe's post at The Chloe Conspiracy

And I know another lady in this blog has this lovely skirt and hopefully we can see how she styles hers soon.

And after all that work, I rewarded myself with a nice lunch at one of my favorite restaurants in DC, CoCo Sala.

My Favorite Fashion Trends for Winter 2010

I love fashion. Unfortunately, my profession is not very glamorous. My daily uniform consists of jeans, sneakers and sweaters that I would not mind getting ruined by nasty chemicals. Also, I would love to wear incredibly cute outfits but most people at work do not get my sense of style. I once wore a top with a few sequins and one co-worker told me that I looked very shiny.

True Story.

So I might not be able to share my OOTD with you often, but I will post about my fashion obsessions and favorite JCrew items.

Let’s get started. I put together a list of all the hottest fashion trends that I am currently loving. What are your favorites? Any trends you cannot live without this season?

1. Vintage pearl necklace $118.00

2. Soleil necklace $98.00

3. Sequin mesh bell skirt $128.00

4. Starry night cardigan $128.00

5. Camden leather brogues $250.00

6. Langford wool high-heel oxfords $295.00

7. Kelcey calf hair ballet flats $248.00

8. Leopard patent belt $19.99

9. Lace shirt $198.00

10. Severn lace mini $89.99

The Jaspe Sequined Slouchy Sweatshirt and my week supply of cupcakes.

Last Spring I got the Jaspe Sequined Sweatshirt while shopping with other JCAs from the DC area. This beautiful piece has been seating in my closet unworn until today. The weather was incredibly cold and windy so I thought it would be the perfect time to wear it with jeggings and flat boots.

Before meeting my friends for dim sum, I stopped by Georgetown to visit one of my favorite cupcake places in DC, Baked & Wired, which has the best Strawberry cupcake in the city. I picked up a few just so I could have a week supply of these delicious baked goods. I even got their new vegan cupcake, which I am very excited to try. Now the question is, will these cupcakes really last a week sitting in my kitchen? I doubt it.

J. Crew Electra Vest, Part Two...And a Lisette Lace Shell for Good Measure.

Remember Summerilla's post on the Electra Vest last week? In the comments, I promised to get a post up about how the Electra Vest looks on me...and in true dinagideon style, I couldn't stop myself with just one photo...instead I fashioned three separate outfits to go with the vest. LOL. Anyone who reads My Superfluities knows of my penchant for being a {bit} verbose, so if you want, just look at the photos. It's okay, I promise. :)

In all the photos I am wearing a size X-Small. Unlike Summerilla, I am nowhere near an X-Small on bottom, more like a large small or a small medium. The only reason I even take X-Smalls on top is because I am insanely short-torsoed and small-shouldered. This vest fits beautifully, only thing I personally wish it had was one more button and button-hole, I feel like just a wee bit more structure in the lower-half of this vest would suit my body better. Without the extra structure, the leather portion of the vest wrinkles a bit when buttoned, nothing terrible, but I feel like I can only wear the vest closed if I wear a belt to cinch it so the wrinkling is not as apparent. I wonder if I should take the extra button and have a tailor professionally add a new button and hole? Thoughts?  (BTW, I am not alone--look at this polyvore pic of the net-a-porter model, it wrinkles even worse on her than me!!!)

This is my favorite way of wearing the vest, it seems casual and cool.  Clearly I would have to wear an overcoat with this particular get-up in this weather, but I like the play of girly with the silk bow sash and the Anticipation heels and the harder grey color and zippered sweats (yes, those are the infamous unsweatpants from last summer).

I like it open, but not as much.  Maybe I just need to find the right top to wear underneath?  A striped long-sleeved tee, maybe?

I know this is mainly a post about the Electra vest, but recently I acquired the Lisette Lace Shell in the heirloom pink color on sale at a local store.  I feel like this needs a review.  This is in a size 6...bit baggy through the waist, but nothing terrible.  I love the contrast of black lace with the nude silk, very feminine.  Gigiofca recently reviewed this in the olive.  I have tucked it in here, but if you go back one photo, you can see it untucked.  I am wearing a light purple cami under it, but have no fear, there will be no way that I would do that in real life (this outfit was simply for you all, although I may wear it at some point in the near future).

I also tried the vest on with the merino boyfriend sweatshirt in the warm honey color from last spring.  I bought this top in a size small, if you need to know.  The yellow really is played nicely against all that grey.  With the right makeup and hair, this could be a winning combo, too.

Here is the outfit without the vest...the vest definitely takes this a notch or two up, huh?

Here it is on me with the halter sangle dress from last winter (2009).  I actually grabbed this photo a few days ago...was preparing to go to my hubby's work's holiday party (you will see the whole outfit at My Superfluities in a few days) and I had some time so I shot the dress with the vest atop it.  I really like this look.  If it weren't for the wrinkling at the mid-torso, I would be in LOVE.  ;)  (A nicely tied sash should help with that...)

I am glad that True 'Crew Love exists, so you all know, it is great to have a place to review and love on some of J. Crew's more controversial pieces.  I definitely feel the Crew Love a lot and it is nice to know there are others out there just like me.  ;)

Hello!

Hello to our followers! :)

We're excited to see so many familiar faces and share true J.Crew love with everyone! 

If you're interested in being a contributor, e-mail us at truecrewlove@gmail.com.

Baronet Beaded Vest

Here is another beautiful Fall vest I had been coveting but was a little too much $$ full price but with 25% off sweaters and additional 30% off card member promo it had to be mine.

Size XS, I say TTS. I think styled zipped is my favorite.

Side view.

Up close of the beading on the front.

The beading is a little heavy so when it's not zipped up I don't 100% love the way it hangs but it could also be that I don't have anything of substantial weight underneath to help with that. Perhaps layered over sweaters it will be different.

Completely a keeper and recommend. I also took advantage of the free gift wrapping and had it wrapped for myself....I'm bad....I actually didn't mean to I was toying around with it but then couldn't figure out how to delete it. Luckily I can save the box for a gift I give this year.

Please ignore my ultra-knit sweat pants although I do recommend them as well, super comfortable!

The Sequin Mesh Bell Skirt goes to brunch. Georgia Browns in downtown DC.

How I wore it

How I wanted to wear it

I recently got the J Crew sequin mesh skirt in the oyster color and I was in love. I was pleasantly surprised as this skirt is so comfortable and versatile.

I planned to meet some of my twitter friends for brunch in DC on a Sunday morning and I wanted to recreate a look I had worn the day before with a leopard cardigan. However, after snapping my picture, I spilled coffee all over my cardi and I had to come out with plan B. So I wore it with a denim shirt and a vintage patent leather belt.

And of course brunch at Georgia Browns with @iwbadg and @critterblogs was great. The buffet spread was excellent and I had a wonderful mimosa. The ladies were incredibly nice and that made for a great Sunday in the District.