Friday Finds April 30th

This has been a wonderful week of finds. Anthropologie and the thrift shop have both been very good to me. I didn't have time to model everything so I just took some photos of some of the clothes on hangers. So first off is the thrift shop haul. I spent only $25.00 on all the goodies I bought there. Seriously.


Jacket and skirt. Not sure if I am going to keep the trim on this jacket or not. My daughter thinks I should take it off and change out the buttons.



Cropped pants with adorable button detailing, dusty pink/mauve sweater, white embroidered blouse and ivory knit shell. All great pieces to mix an match in my wardrobe.



Lady-like purse. I just fell over when I say this bag. Just perfect for recreating that elegant 50's look.


Silk sheath. While the colours are not great I plan on dyeing it tonight and seeing how it turns out.

Now to the Anthro items.


Teal Silk tunic. I love, love love this colour and it goes with so many things I already have. A bit pricey at $59.90, but originally it was over $100.00.


Tartan Rose top. So sweet and sassy!


Dollops of Cream Blouse. Worn with a cardi I got at the Lancaster Goodwill a few months ago and my vintage belt. Perfect!

I also got a cute navy jacket and an ivory petticoat. I will show them off next week :)

Target was also on the menu this week and I had fun playing around with my daughter there. I tried on a few things from the Zac Posen Collection. My favourite is this blazer.


Elegant navy trim on this and the cut out front made it special. Too bad it was too expensive. I had already spent way too much money :(

I also tried on lots of hats and fell for a modified cloche style. I wore it today with my floral trench.


The green trim with buckle on this hat and the little brim are oh so cute!

So all in all I had a great time shopping with my daughter and I found some sweet deals. I need to go back to that thrift shop soon!

Well, I must be off to work on some stuff. I need to finish some things for a friend and to see to dyeing that new dress.

Pel

Look Like A Lady

Many of the runway looks shown in Feb. heralded a return to lady like looks reminiscent of the 1950's and "Mad Men" (gosh, it is so weird to think of Fall Fashions when it is SPRING!) One runway designer that I just can't get out of my head is Louis Vuitton(click for full collection). Those circle skirts and bodice-styled tops, oh my!



Don't forget your gloves and an impeccably styled bag



A jacket and skirt is a very lady-like option



I believe if I start now I may be able to make some circle skirts by Fall and I have added leather gloves to my must have list. I adore that tobacco brown colour, but the grey is nice too! I have a couple nice jackets already that will do very nicely and my new Miche bags are just perfect so I think that it will take very little to pull this look off for much, much less. Let's say for a song?

Pel

Panty Raid!

I was surprised to read one day that the average lifespan of bras and panties is 6 months. Wow. talk about built in obsolescence. These are items that we use every day (well, MOST of use do, LOL!) and they are NOT made to last. They are also confusing to size and most of us are not wearing the right size bra and our panties give us the dreaded VPL. Such a horrid dilemma! All I know is that I want comfort, style and and I don't want my panties to creep up my butt. Please? So that leaves me with a collection of different types of intimates that serve different purposes.

Panties-
I have my panties grouped by the ones that I can wear under loose skirts (cute but would leave lines under pants or tight skirts) and ones that are nearly invisible under pants and tight skirts. No, I do not wear thongs. That is a personal preference of mine. I tried them and I just couldn't get used to them and I get too many UTI's to really justify the no VPL issue. My favourite panties for nearly no VPL are from Victoria's Secret. I hate that they are so expensive, but love how they feel. No other ones have come close to them for comfort.

3/$30.00 I try to wait for clearance!

I also shop at Target. I like boyshorts to sleep in and some times to wear under skirts. The Gillian O'Mally brand is a great bargain and also carries some pretty sexy styles as well!


2pk for $9.00 I have these in pink :)

At Anthropologie I can get totally frothy stuff on clearance sometimes. Great to sleep in or for under skirts.

$9.95 on sale (I couldn't resist them and I got the matching bra!)

Bras-
The same with my panties, I have bras that have different uses. You need a flexible bra wardrobe to cover the different items of clothing you wear. I feel that it is never good to go bra-less unless you are in a bathing suit. It is bad for the girls!
Now for my basic all around favourite bra:

Scoopneck demi bra from Victoria's Secret. It is very low cut so I can wear all my tops with out it showing at all. It has a convertible racer back that is great for tops that have open cut sleeves. It is also nice and smooth so it leaves no lines under close fitting shirts. It would make a great t-shirt bra.

One sale right now for $21.00!

Strapless bra. This a must if you wear strapless tops or dresses. I got mine from Target with a matching garter belt. It is the Gillian O'Mally brand, natch!



This one is so cute and only $13.49

Push-Up Bra. I have a few different types of push-up bras that I have bought at different places. My last WonderBra I bought from Macy's on sale. I also bought a couple cute ones at Kohl's on their Saturday sales and from Target and Ross. The last one I bought was from Victoria's Secret and was from their Very Sexy line. It looks good as long as I am standing up. If I lie down it doesn't push them up any more. Not good for the bedroom, if you get my drift, LOL!



Wonderbra $25.99

Soft Cup Bra. I love soft cup bras for sleeping in and for general wear around the house. Super comfy and you can get such cute prints! Again, I shop at Target for these mostly. I scour the clearance rack and pick them up for a song! I sometimes can get the matching panties too!

I got this pretty one from Anthro for $19.95 and snagged panties to match!

Sports bra. Here you can go to a sports store such as REI They sometimes have sports bras on their clearance rack. I bought my last sports bra there along with a pair of performance wicking boyshorts to wear under my hiking clothes. Target also has a good line of performance sports bras.


$19.93 on clearance.

There are many other things in my underwear drawer. Garterbelts, slips, tap pants, camis. All fun items and all needed to make my clothes look nice. So do shop around to find deals and do try things on if possible. Take a friend to help you if you can. Here is a link to a bra fitter if you need help to find your size. It really is true that most of us are not wearing the correct bra size. But even with your right bra size in hand, sizes vary by manufacturer (damn them) so you still really need to try them on.
ElectronicZNY Bra Fitter

Well, I am off to look at more lovely bras online. I still just can't get enough!

Pel

Friday Finds April 24th

Yesterday I spent a lovely evening trying on clothes at Anthropologie. Poor Tom was so patient! Of course the stuff I totally loved was not on sale and was way too dear to even think of purchasing. Here is one of my favourite outfits

Poppy Fields by Peldyn featuring Anthropologie

Items in this set:
Blouses - Clothes - Anthropologie.com, $150
Sweaters - Clothes - Anthropologie.com, $88
Woodblock Print Skirt - Anthropologie.com, $78
Coated Rouge Heels - Anthropologie.com, $200
Woven Buds Belt, $28

The blouse is absolutely adorable on and I want it so much! I hope that it will go on sale and that they have my size left *crosses fingers*

I did get a couple tops that were on sale.



This is the Emmer Corset Top $39.95 and I nearly didn't try it on, but they had my size and I just threw it in with the other stuff I had to try on. I am glad I did. Totally cute and will go with lots of things I have in my closet! I will take pics of the other things I got as I wear them, and weather permitting. The pictures of my new modcloth dress did not turn out so I can't post them :( I will try to retake tomorrow.

I hope you all have a great weekend. I plan on going out to the line as usual and doing more protesting. What a little agitator I have become!

Pel

Ups and Downs

Our society is obsessed with weight. As women we are judged on how thin or heavy we are. It is an awful thing that we do to ourselves and others. Because of this many of us are fighting with our weight. Trying to lose or gain. I myself have had a rollercoaster ride with weight loss and gain over the past few years that has led to much frustration. It all started out with a small weight gain and an illness that turned out to be a thyroid node. I never even realised that I had gotten heavier. I am pretty oblivious and I guess I still looked okay. Looking back at old photos though I can really tell the difference a thyroid disorder makes.



I had surgery to remove my thyroid in Aug 2007 and I felt so much better and I lost a few pounds. I figured that was that and went on my merry way. Then a few months after that I started getting horrible abdominal pains and starting losing weight FAST. This was not good. At my heaviest I was a size 12, at my mid weight I was a size 8 (and pretty happy to be there) I eventually lost so much I went to a size 0. Yep, a size 0.



Took a year and a half and a second opinion to find out that I had gallstones. I had surgery last June and did awesome afterwards. Now I have started to gain weight. I am happy because I was not at a good weight before. I was too thin and it was just not good with my bones sticking out BUT, there is a part of my brain that is freaking out! It is saying "What, are you insane to be gaining weight?" I have to keep shutting that tiny voice up and telling myself that I am fine, that it is okay that some of my clothes do not fit now. I can buy a bigger size and it is just fine. I feel that I have been brainwashed to a certain extent by all those weight loss commercials and my quest to be HEALTHY is being sidetracked by the media's bombardment of advertisements to be thin. Seriously, I should just want to feel good, right? At this point if I hear one more spokesperson tell me how they lost weight on their sponsor's program I am going to shoot my television and eat an entire chocolate cake!

Pel

Friday Finds April 9th

I am back for a classic Friday Finds article! First is my new sweater. I just couldn't pass it up.

• Sweater- Anthropologie only $9.98
• Blouse- Goodwill, Hesperia remix
• Dress- Anthopologie via ebay, remix
• Belt- vintage, remix
• Lace tights- Aldo, remix
• Peep toe Shoes- Target, remix

This sweater was originally $128.00 and I got it for $9.98 plus $5.00 shipping. Yes there was much rejoicing that day! I may not have much money, but I can certainly budget for a $15.00 sweater *does happy dance*

• Skirt- Goodwill, Lancaster $5.99
• Petticoat-ebay, remix
  
• Scarf and Necklace- Costplus WorldMarket clearance $9.99
  
• Cami- F21 $2.50 remix
  
• Dress- Target clearance $11.00 I think
  
• Socks- REI $7.99
  
• Shoes- Payless ShoeSource©, remix
  

This skirt still had the tags on it! I just couldn't resist. Sigh, I am such an impulse buyer. Thank goodness I didn't have much money or I would have bought more! I bought the scarf and necklace while on my little trip to San Diego. I love buying little things while on vacation. It brings back lovely memories of my trips when I wear them :) You have to get a better look at these socks! I got them at REI in the children's section. yes, you must always check out that section for bargains. Smartwool socks for adults run $15.00 to 25.00. These were only $7.99 AND Tom used his dividend check to pay for them so in essence they were free! Now who doesn't love stripey goodness paired with fabulous T-straps? These ones from Payless are my favourites. I hope they get more like it in!

• Liberty of London for Target® Jumper Print Tankini Swim Top - Purple/Red/Blue XL
• Liberty of London for Target® Jumper Print Boy Short Swim Bottom - Purple/Red/Blue L

Lastly is my new swimsuit! I haven't bought one in years so all my old ones were about 6 sizes too big. I was seduced by the Liberty of London print and the fact that it hid all the jiggly bits! So flattering! Also since it was two piece you can get two sizes if you are different on top than you are on bottom, I know I am!

I am also thinking about this suit as a future purchase. What do you think?

Pel

The Bees, They Are A Buzzing!

With Spring here it is time to get ready for sandals, sling backs and open toed shoes. I don't know about you but my feet needed some TLC after a Winter spent in heavy boots and closed shoes. I inadvertently stumbled upon a great product to fix those tootsies right up, right quick! While on my mini vacay in San Diego I needed some hand cream and while at Henry's Market I picked up a jar of Burt's Bees Banana and Beeswax hand creme.

Oh yum! It smelled good enough to eat! When we went on the walk through Balboa Park I picked up a couple blisters from my new shoes (silly me, I left all my walking shoes at home except for a pair of heels I happened to wear to the interview I went to before we drove out, so I bought new ones!) and I tried the hand cream on my feet to see how it worked at soothing them. Oh my, it not only worked wonders, keeping the blisters nice and soft so they healed well, but my heels, my heels softened up beautifully and stayed that way! It worked better than anything I have tried before. I put it on my feet and legs when I get out of the shower and before getting into bed at night. I smell like a banana milk shake my hubby says. Not a bad thing! I noticed that I also no longer have hangnails on my hands either. I guess that will save me a bundle in the cost of pedicures, manicures and no pedegg for me, just a little emery now and then! This little treat is a keeper :)

Pel

A Necessary Intermission

Forgive the lack of posts. I will be gone for the next few days. My mother-in-law fell and broke her hip, that combined with us going out of town necessitates that I will be away from my trusty computer :( I will be back and posting next week because I am sure that all will be well with Mom. I try to stay optimistic.

Pel