Bright Idea

Do you ever have those days where you just want to post pictures with a "Here you go!" byline? Or what about those days where you feel inclined to empty out the entire contents of your head in between some outfit pictures. Or maybe you'll ditch all of that to just go to bed and promise to do the post tomorrow?

I think I can safely say I've had all of those moments in the (relatively brief) lifetime of this blog; tonight has turned out to be a combination of the first two. I started by writing a lengthy tome of questions and self-reflection, only to delete it all and let the pictures do the talking. More or less.

Cardigan - The Limited / Skirt - Shape FX / Belt - LOFT / Sandals - Banana Republic

I must say I do like these pictures though. All the bright colors in the bush, my skirt, my handbag - and their playful variations on primary colors - kind of slap you in the face with glee.

So take that, self-doubt. All you needed was a little sun and color.

Ring - The Limited / Earrings - Lane Bryant (?)

Watercolors

The hours I keep are killing me! I'm not quite sure how I made it through this particular 14-hour day, and I'm even less sure how I'm managing to stay up to blog about it! So, if it's alright with you, I'm going to keep this one short and sweet tonight.

Grey cardigan - LOFT / Watercolor tank - Anthropologie / Blue pencil skirt - Shapefx (Spiegel) / Pink skinny belt - The Limited

Yes, I know -  I forgot to wear polka-dots today... I was so excited about the outfit I put together with this new skirt (the same Slimming Pencil Skirt by Shape FX that I reviewed yesterday, but in blue) that I had to wear it as soon as possible, forsaking all else! That's okay though, because had I worn a polka-dot ensemble, it probably would have been this one again, just because I love its brightly-colored pattern-mixing (with polka-dots) goodness oh-so-much. (And seeing as how I rarely repeat outfits for anything, that's saying something.) So we'll call this one a wash, eh?

Anyhoo, I'll just let the pictures (read: color) do the talking for the rest of this post...and maybe you, too!

Handbag - Steve Madden / Shoes - Banana Republic

Ring - Banana Republic / Necklace - Kohl's / Earrings - NY&Co. (?)

Happy International Women's Day!

Shape FX Pencil Skirt Review

As promised, I'd like to share a review of the red pencil skirt I posted yesterday.

It's the Slimming Pencil Skirt by Shape fx®, which you can purchase through Spiegel.com or the Shapefx site itself (though still related, I think). If you follow me on Twitter, you know that I've been on hunt for a red pencil skirt, and preferably one in ponte knit. (Just can't get enough of the stuff.) After searching high and low for one of good quality and good length, I thought I'd try the Shape FX line, which apparently comes highly recommended by Oprah (saith the description).

Photo courtesy of shapefx.com

It's a pull-on skirt, which I like for its ease. I thought it ran pretty true to size, comparable to the sizes I wear at Lane Bryant actually. Some (but not all) Speigel skirts do have a plus size line with more generous cuts in the waist and hips, but I thought I'd see how I fare with the straight sizing on this one...and cuz it was cheaper. (The straight sizes go up to size 18.) I chose the 16 regular (I wear the same size in bottoms at Lane Bryant) and it fit perfectly. It does fit VERY close to the body, and though it does smooth away some lines as it says it will, I don't think I'd wear it without Spanx.

The other thing I like about it is that it has a higher waist specifically designed to help shape those problem areas in the midriff. It did do so a little bit, giving a relativity smooth line there, but not nearly as well as my high-waist Spanx do. I did appreciate the fact that it wouldn't hit me right at the worst spot of my waist to exaggerate my muffin-top, however...

Diagram courtesy of shapefx.com

I like the length on this one, too. I think skirts that hit me past my knees are the most flattering on me, but for some reason they've been pretty hard to find. The description states it's 27" long, but this accounts for the high waist. The nice thing about that, though, is that how high of waist you choose is pretty adjustable, so you can determine exactly how long you want the skirt to be.

After wearing the skirt all night, I did notice it stretched out a bit, owing to its high Lycra count. But I appreciated that fact since it felt less clingy as the night went on, making me less self-conscious even with my Spanx!

I had contemplated purchasing the Hold-You-In Pencil Skirt by Shape fx® instead or even in addition to the other skirt, especially since it had come with rave reviews. But, for the same reason I didn't try the ASOS CURVE Ponti Pencil Skirt, I didn't care for the seaming all over it.

I purchased both this red color, which is a nice deep scarlet red (more blue than orange in the hue), and the sapphire blue, which I'll be wearing later this week!

Bonus: If you register for emails at spiegel.com, you'll eventually get a 30% off welcome coupon good for your entire purchase! It's good for only one day, but I kept getting them every 3 days or so! Guess they really wanted my business...

Disclaimer: This review was done on my accord and by my own desire to share information. I purchased it with my own $$ and I was not asked or paid for this review in any way. =)

Bootie Call

Today's outfit may be considered a lesson in experimentation. I don't particularly care for this outfit, but I did decide to wear it anyway because, bottom line, what's to loose? Not every outfit can be total perfection, and that is just too much stress to put on a person to try. (I've had to learn that the hard way.) Besides, I'll only get to know my personal style better my having a few duds from time to time, and - shoot - I might even learn to like styles I previously hadn't liked!

Red pencil skirt - Shape FX* / Striped wrap - Maurices / Cream tank - Banana Republic / Black belt - LOFT / Black Booties - Payless

One of the things I liked least was my shoe choice, these faux-cuffed booties. (Though, the more I look at the pictures, the more they grow on me. Huh.) I've had these booties for a while, even with tags still on, but I never felt up to the challenge of wearing them. I decided to wear them with this outfit, again, to just give it a whirl, and because I did think the outfit need some kind of additional spunk. I figured if ever spunk could be added, t'would be with the currently trendy (but somewhat questionable) bootie!

And I guess I don't hate it as much as I initially did. True, they are ridiculously comfortable and, as I said above, super spunky, but I was most concerned with what they did to the line of my leg, which I think is the most common complaint leveled against them. Or maybe having all that solid black on my (giant size 11) feet is just too jarring; perhaps an open-toed bootie in a nude color would have been better? But the picture documentation continues to make me reconsider, as has been done more than a few times before. Maybe not a total loss, after all?

The other thing I don't love about the outfit is my jewelry choice. All the pieces seem to be a bit hodgepodge and don't work well together. I blame the necklace, which is new and wanted to be worn whether it worked or not. (My jewelry can be so pushy sometimes.) Well, it didn't. Perhaps some kind of funky gold or black number would have been more cohesive. Funnily, I didn't think much about it at the time because I was so concerned about the booties!

Black enamel flower ring - The Limited / Necklace - Lane Bryant Outlet / Gold loop earrings - The Limited

Meh, overall it's not bad. I think my knee-jerk reaction of dislike is simply caused by the fact that it's quite a different look for me with those shoes! Yet again, I'm grateful for my blog's ability to help me push my own limits...

* If you follow me on Twitter, you know that I've been looking for a new red pencil skirt. I've purchased a few, including this one from Shape FX, and thought I'd do a proper review in a future post. Stay tuned!