The 4-5 piece French wardrobe #2

[farou7a]

^ not bad belowen

ta-ta those shoes are a nice color! very cute!

 

[fashionista-ta]

bluefly, b2c.verso.be

Finally, a successful shopping trip!!

Got these flats ... damn, Bottega took them off their website, they just went on sale (that part is lucky, glad I didn't get them last weekend ) ... it's the slingback flat, in anemone (bright purple), but the color of the heeled shoe:

 

[fashionista-ta]

talbots, eggellershoes

And, I finally found white Ts ... and a pinky coral one too ...

And this one in white (on sale

And, a friend whose feet are hard to fit won a GC to her specialty shoe store, and offered to share it with me, which was very sweet. So we each got a pair of sandals. It was slim pickings ... got these (the SA asked if I was used to wearing heels this high

 

[farou7a]

that coral T is to DIE for! very nice choice.

 

[salomelovesjohn]

I like seeing everyone's lists! Belowen you are insanely organized. I try to do something simliar each season and sort of lose it during the process. Tata, I love how what you're posted seems to fit into an overall look.

I've really cut back my purchases this year in terms of numbers of items (ytd I've bought a 1/4 of the # of things I bought last year!). And I've only purchased one pair of shoes and one handbag (sort of amazing for me) -- Narrowing down my purchases to only a few splurges a season instead of lots of low-mid range purchases has really been liberating and kept me from making as many mistakes.

So here is my summer (and start of a f/w) list, major purchases only:

- black casual flats, have tons of work flats but don't want to wear business casual on the weekend! Probably getting a studded pair by Rock and Republic that I've been eyeing
- black Chanel reissue 225 or 226 with gold hardware. I'm a little torn on this since I might not use it often, but love the look & semi-classic status.
- Pamela Love talon cuff in silver. Ordered and on the way. Hope I love it, my only other statement bracelet is a Hermes CDC cuff.
- 1-2 new dresses.
- 1-2 new casual tops/tees (not a major purchase)

f/w

- transitional casual jacket
- red sweater/shell
- cashmere/merino blk v neck sweater
- casual l/s tee (not a major purchase)

I hope to keep decluttering and selling on Ebay.

I once read that you can have too much icing in a wardrobe and not enough cake --- that was definitely my problem before this year. Tons of cute shoes and bags and not enough basic pants! So I now I think cake first, icing later. lol.

 

[fashionista-ta]

^ Good for you!!!

I don't yet know what I want to do for fall, except I want a pair of Marc Jacobs shoes. Probably not the ostrich, if they're even produced The good news is, that very cool cutting and stitching he did was apparently a cost-cutting measure ... those I've seen in editorial coverage so far have been very reasonably priced for his main-line shoes. I'm pleased to see that someone agrees with my idea that minimalism should cost less

You may be picking up on the fact that I've recently bought several things that have pleats, gathering, etc. radiating from the neckline. That effect works really well with curves. If you don't have that extra fabric, the way the sleeves fall can be distorted. And then you have to leave whatever it is at the store ...

How come you think you won't use the Chanel very much? I have to admit I'm not seeing it with the Pamela Love

 

[Belowen]

Belowen you are insanely organized.

Yeah, it's a bit of a concern actually

I am thinking of cutting off my shopping for this season after 2 more pieces. I have basically everything I need for this season, and am interested in putting together some savings to spend on my spring/summer wardrobe. That way I won't have to space out my shopping throughout the season

 

[salomelovesjohn]

lol, tata, its funny you say that about the reissue and the pamela love bracelet. I got the bracelet last night and am really undecided. I like it on, my husband likes it, but it might be too much for me. Just not sure and have to decide quickly with the return policy. I'm having a hard time deciding if this will become a go-to piece for me when I'm wearing dark jeans, a black or dark tee, and my black b-bag or not.

Just ordered the reissue today. Would have never ordered something so pricey without a seasonal budget and list, but I could because I've spent so much less this year, in large part thanks to this thread.

 

[mie]

fashionista-ta, nice buys! I wouldn't have guessed that those tops came from Talbots

I don't have any summer-specific needs, but in general I've worn out (and grown out ) all but one pair of pants, which are on their last legs. So my short list is looking something like:

• 2-3 pairs of jeans
• maybe a pair of pants
• a few basic tees or tanks

I've been out of the fashion loop for a while and haven't really done any shopping this past year, so I'm simultaneously looking forward to and dreading the challenge of finding bottoms that fit. But I've decided to be optimistic - for now, anyway

 

[quimby]

I recently bought my summer bag: an adorable little denim bag by Paul & Joe Sister. I absolutely love using it, in part because I thought about past handbags to figure or what I like and use. So it had to be crossbody and lightweight and unfancy. This "french" system might be totally worth it if it can make me love all my wardrobe and be excited about getting dressed.

 

[mermaidsandcats]

I am looking for 3 pairs of jeans, all of them should be
-> high waisted
-> very classic, "no used" look, no super contrasting stiching... you get it
-> from international available brands
-> good for a pear shaped body (please no mom jeans )
& have straight legs


in the following colors
a. black
b. dark blue
c. dark grey

and it would be good for my behind if they have a seam like this between the pockets and waistband to make everything appear a little bit smaller

net a porter


I would love some recommendations! To stay on the same topic, do you usually buy 2 pairs of the same jeans to hem them at different lengths (for flat shoes and for heels)?

 

[scrubb]

mermaidsandcats: I've never thought to buy two pairs of jeans, I usually fold them in when I change shoes. But now that you've mentioned it, it sounds like a great idea.

 

[fashionista-ta]

It's warm 3/4 of the year here ... I typically buy cropped jeans, which work with either flats or heels, and no alterations required. Pants I have hemmed to wear with heels only. I'm long-waisted and not that tall, so pants with flats is not a great look for me.

 

[farou7a]

^ same. im 5'2 so I have to make sure I dont look stout and avoid pants and flats.

3/4 pants with flats i feel arent that bad.

 

[fashionista-ta]

nordstrom

^ Speaking of which, just got a pair today

I bought a pair last spring, a size smaller than I usually wear. They've always been huge, and they fall down (not down to the ground, but too far ) if I try to wear them. So now that I'm working at a casual place & need them, I took them back to exchange, and got these:

The beauty of Nordstrom (and my filing system) is, I had the receipt & the SA gave me no flack even though she had to make a fake tag for them in order to process the return. And ... I even got a .43 refund

The only problem is, the other ones had sewn-on pockets and these are inside, and as you can see in the picture, they show. I have more well-developed quads than the model (OK, than all models ), so they show more. If they bug me, I'm going to have the pocket lining thingies removed & the pockets sewn shut.

 

[salomelovesjohn]

^^
Sewing pants pockets shut is so worth it to me. I have some dress pants that I just had it done for and someone asked if I had lost weight! Um no, just finally got something tailored.

I bought a couple of things for summer 3 tops from Ann Taylor and I love them all. Two are slightly metallic tanks in a white and light grey that I can use as shells and one is a layered ivory top.

All do need a little tailoring. I find that often the shoulder straps of tops are too long and they look bunched up for me so I have to get them taken in. Another top I might have shortened in length (although I'm going to check out the Petite vesion since I want every color this comes in - it works that well)

I also ordered some things for fall from the net a porter sale:

A simple black v-neck merino sweater,
a pair of Marc Jacobs tweed fluorescent flats ,
a Rick Owens long sleeved black hoodie (I don't have any Rick Owens so I'm dying to see what the fuss is about!)

And a couple of purchases from J.Crew

- an aged brass bracelet that goes perfectly with a black BcBg jacket that I adore (which has brass/tweed accents)
- a layering tank

This whole limiting purchases thing is HARD! Usually the sale season is the worst for me. Although I am thinking more in terms of outfits and that has really helped. Plus, of the items purchased a casual jacket (the RO), black v-neck, and ivory/white shells were all on my list.

So my plan is to go home and create some outfits, maybe even take pictures of them in a lookbook. Anyone else do that??

 

[fashionista-ta]

^ Ann Taylor is pretty good lately, huh? I'm happy with my blouse I got there ... just wish that overall the cut was a better fit for me. I cannot imagine dealing with an artificially enhanced bustline

Sometimes I try things on together when I get home from shopping ... usually I put things together on the fly. Necessity is the mother of invention I often come up with my most creative combinations when one of the usual pieces is at the cleaners & I have to come up with something different.

 

[quimby]

I think a lookbook is a good idea.

I've thought about taking pictures of my outfits
so that I can remember the various combinations that have worked out.

It would be useful when I'm late for work and whatnot.

I want to cut down on the putting-on-one-item,
taking-off-another routine that lasts forever once I start.

 

[Belowen]

I finally ordered my first cashmere sweater this week... That is one more thing I can cross off of my basics list. I think I'm going to have a smaller shopping list for summer this year, and will hopefully have enough of a basic wardrobe already created that I can finally stick to the 4-5 piece guidelines!

sambag.com.au

 

[fashionista-ta]

michele

I ordered a couple of new watchbands to celebrate my new job ... I wanted purple alligator, but it wasn't available in my size (the smallest) even at trunk shows, so I got purple patent and raspberry pink alligator instead ...