Working Peplum For A Night Out

Just when I think Kate Middleton -- Ahem! I mean, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge -- mania is over, she pulls another wardrobe wow!  I think people, myself included, are so intrigued by what she wears because whatever she chooses to wear fits her perfectly, is not showing too much, is always appropriate for the occasion and she looks perfectly put together.  No matter what an individual's personal style is, it's that last part that keeps people watching.  I know I love the absolute polished-ness of her looks.

So she's been pulling out peplum outfits a lot as well, which inspired me to create some more peplum looks of my own.  But instead of a day or work look, I took a stab at peplum for a night out.  Check out the looks I put together on Polyvore.com and see what you think.  I love the range there is available in this collection.  As you can see, coral, pastel green, nude and gold make their way into quite a few places.  I really love combining these together!  It includes a bit of spring (pastel greens) and summer (coral) in one look!  In case you're wondering, gold is very prevalent in many summer jewelry looks.  In fact, one of my favorite jewelry looks for the summer is the combination of turquoise and gold.

Is peplum on your radar or are you passing it by?

Working Peplum For A Night Out by sspicknall featuring enamel jewelry

Alice by Temperley glamorous dress
$173 - theoutnet.com

Aryn K tweed dress
$95 - shopruche.com

Dorothy Perkins pencil dress
$69 - dorothyperkins.com

Peplum dress
£65 - houseoffraser.co.uk

Mystic Groovy Peplum Dress
$55 - tobi.com

Walli
$35 - wallisfashion.com

Steven by Steve Madden platform heels
$159 - jildorshoes.com

Zigi Girl platform pumps
$105 - heels.com

Zara shoes
$100 - zara.com

Nine West peep toe pumps
$69 - ninewest.com

Faith high heel pumps
£65 - debenhams.com

Black clutch
$210 - shopthetrendboutique.com

Michael kors clutch
$188 - piperlime.gap.com

Vince camuto handbag
$148 - shoptheshoebox.com

ASOS studded clutch
$87 - asos.com

Rachel Rachel Roy canvas handbag
$59 - macys.com

Belle Noel by Kim Kardashian long necklace
$188 - metroparkusa.com

Astley Clarke enamel jewelry
$125 - astleyclarke.com

Amrita singh jewelry
$100 - amritasingh.com

By Malene Birger plastic jewelry
$89 - shoplesnouvelles.com

Kendra scott earrings
$70 - charmandchain.com

Lauren Ralph Lauren dangle necklace
$58 - lordandtaylor.com

Sequin gold plated jewelry
$58 - charmandchain.com

Jigsaw feather jewelry
£39 - jigsaw-online.com

Panacea chain earrings
$36 - neimanmarcus.com

Miss Selfridge yellow gold bangle
$25 - missselfridge.com

Aqua enamel jewelry
$25 - bloomingdales.com

Oasis teardrop earrings
$20 - oasis-stores.com

Lauren Conrad tahitian pearl earrings
$7.70 - kohls.com

Gold metal belt
$48 - topshop.com

Good Things Come...

... to those who wait.  Well, I wasn't necessarily waiting for these things but free stuff is alway a plus!  And when it rains, it pours!

Apparently my sister bought some shoes that were too big for her and picture messaged me a photo of them with an offer for me to take them.  YES!!! What else could I say?  Knowing my sis, these were going to be fabulous shoes since I always love her style.  Free black, patent leather, Mark and James (by Badgley Mishka) heels?   Now you're talking baby.

You know it's totally fancy when it says the brand name on the tissue paper too! 

These shoes are gorgeous, fit well, and are amazingly high!  I definitely love them already!

I also opened my mailbox a couple of months ago and discovered something amazing!  VOGUE magazine!  Which I did not sign up for or pay for and it was definitely addressed to me!  Actually I did think it was a mistake because as much as I love fashion, beauty and style, I definitely do not know that much about it.  Why on earth would Vogue send me anything?  After all, (and this is my confession) I learned how to pronounce Givenchy (Gee-von-shee with a soft G) from the book The Devil Wears Prada.    I also learned a lot of fashion terms and designers from the books The Devil Wears Prada, Bergdorf Blondes, The Debutante Divorcee, and the Shopaholic series and from movies and television such as Clueless, Sex and the City, America's Next Top Model and Project Runway. And I absolutely abhor that super tall and super thin have been, and still are, the only standards for being beautiful.  Kate Moss may actually be considered an "enemy" of mine (in the funny and not serious sense), though she does not know it!  Not that I have anything personally against her, just the whole "heroine chic" thing, at which time I was only in my early teens when that concept was adopted and, even then I felt that it was a bit extreme and unfair to the rest of us.  I guess I've always thought my own personal style knowledge and taste was the antithesis of what Vogue stood for.   Nevertheless, I relished in the opportunity to see what I had been be missing.  I was a bit surprised however, to find that there were ads for brands I could totally afford in there!  Who knew?!  While there are a lot of ads in the magazine, it is definitely worth looking at.

Here is a peak at things I loved and some things I scratched my head over:

Love that Dillard's is included here! And LOVE that Max & Cleo dress!

I found a pair of BVLGARI sunglasses at the Sunglasses Hut in Pentagon City Mall in Arlington, VA, which looked amazing on me.  Too bad they were $380 dollars.  I almost rationalized that price...almost!  But one day, maybe I'll get to a point where that won't seem so expensive anymore.   Or maybe I can just ask for them for a present from my hubby!

I just love Claudia Schiffer and the fact that she still looks so beautiful and as amazing as she did 20 years ago! I remember wanting and getting my first pair of Guess Jeans when I was 12!

Meh.  I don't really get it.  Is that a dress or bathing suit?  I feel like I have seen this ad (or very similar ones) for years.

Love H&M and their collaborations!  I have yet to get a designer dud at an H&M price but I just love their regular stuff!

I love this ad.  It looks so glamorous that I would want to look this chic!  This is an ad done right.

I don't get it.  The dress is fine, but the all white ghosty person?  How long is this dress if I can't see the model's feet?  Nope!

Meh again.  Not sure why you need a model if you're taking their face off... Why not use a mannequin?  And that's where they lose my interest in the dress and I spend time focusing on the missing face.

What is that chick on the left doing?  Is that supposed to be editorial?  An open-mouth fly trap?  Ms. Tyra Banks would have something to say about this! 

This is not so bad but I could do with a better view of the dress and include the top of the model's head in the tux.  Actually that tuxedo blazer is pretty fab. 

There you go!  All the good, the bad and the fugly, summed up brilliantly with my fashion ignorance!  I'm learning, but I'm not ashamed of my inexperience.  There are some style choices I may not agree with, although I completely respect the artistic perspective.  If you are interested, Vogue is also including some interesting articles on philanthropy serving women and the underprivileged.  In my opinion, this was actually the best part of the magazine.  I recommend you to scan through one if you get a free second to see what it is all about if you haven't had the chance yet!

Have Yourself a Bah-Humbug Day!

Tuesdays are great for one thing... They're not Mondays!  This particular Tuesday stood out in my mind as being significant as being my "bad day of the week."  We all have them, we all have to deal with them.  Be it that some car on the street splashed water from a nearby puddle as you were waiting to cross the street in the morning,  some guy quickly runs into the spot you are standing in on the Metro when you move to allow another person to get off the train, you get pulled over by a police officer when you're already running late, you are overloaded at work, some crazy person decides to follow you and scream profanity while you are walking down the street (yes, this actually happens to people on their morning commute) or you have unknowingly taken the fall for some unforeseen snafu.  There's always something that can come up and sour us for the rest of the day!  Not to fear!  This too, shall pass.

Some people move on easier than others.  If I have a particularly bad day I have two goals: (1) move on and (2) use it to my advantage.  With the first, I find that I have to dwell in the bad, let out the stress by talking (a.k.a. venting) to a friend or taking a break or both and then finding a way to balance out the rest of the day by treating myself to something.

Today in particular, I took my evening off the usual chores and went straight to my comfort foods in the grocery store.  Mainly, because I worked through my lunch.  My go to items include things I remember being so tasty as a kid:

1.  Chicken wings
2.  Fried chicken (put those first two together and you have fried chicken wings! YUM!)
3.  Stouffer's Turkey Tetrazzini
4.  Stouffer's Escalloped Chicken and Noodles
5.  Stouffer's Macaroni and Cheese and
6.  A pint of ice cream or frozen yogurt

Here are a few things I picked up this evening:

I cannot wait to break into this and try it! Taste--aaaay!

Ah... childhood memories.  They're a bit larger than I remember as a kid, but at 430 calories a box, this makes a great dinner portion! 

These I had ordered a while ago but could not hold off very long on breaking into the box!   Gotta love my niece who sells these!

And a couple of other things people have suggested, and that I've considered, as good pick-me-ups to balance my day include:

1. Exercise
2. Chick Flicks and/or Sex and the City episodes
3. Booze

Yeah, that's about it.  Short list!

Add in some cuddling with super cute pets and I'm back baby!

After all this balancing out the day to move on, I then consider how can I take this bah humbug event and turn it into something positive.  I really do naively believe when life gives you lemons, make lemonade.  Although some lemons are a lot harder to juice!  It takes some time and consideration.  Today I've considered using a stressful day toward working harder for better opportunities in the long run.  It's a step, a milestone really, but one day that I won't forget.

Here's to the bah-humbug days! They make life easier to appreciate.

One Great Party Dress

After years of buying dresses, I had an epiphany.  I really need one great party dress.  By this I mean, a dress without a super low neckline, something tailored and fitted without being made of only spandex or stretch jersey and one without a super short hemline ranging from mid-thigh to the knee.  The perfect cocktail dress.  The perfect guest of the wedding dress.  The dress you can wear when your significant other's boss invites you to a dinner (I say significant other's boss because this would not happen in my work environment).  The dress you can wear to the theater (i.e. Kennedy Center type outing) and out on a hot date to a fancy restaurant.  That great New Year's Eve party dress.   This is the go-to for all fancy occasions and which will be appropriate for all situations.    

Perhaps this is partly due to growing out of some of those styles that I loved in my 20's and my past few years of working and attending events for which "stretchy and tight" do not cut it anymore.  I've come to realize that having just that one great party dress is a great wardrobe staple.  Previous party dresses from my college days and early 20's included stretch jersey or spandex or they were too casual, too low cut or too tight.  Considering that I did not used to have to work out to stay in shape due to my young/fast metabolism and did have to put out a professional vibe, that was mighty fine with me.  With age, I came to appreciate the subtlety of a nice cut dress that does not show everything but rather, emphasizes one's assets through tailoring.  Thankfully, I found my perfect party dress just before this past New Year's Eve.  I got it for a steal off of Loehmann's online and could not have been happier.

Adrianna Papell Dress from Loehmanns online.
Yes, when I run out of hangers, I use the ones from the dry cleaners.  

Look how wonderfully fit it is!

Of course Ginger has to sneak herself in that last picture...  What a ham!

To really put my dress to the test I had worn it to a New Year's Eve bash at the Old Ebbit Grill, a DC staple. I paired it with the black stilettos with rhinestones and sequins on the heel from this post.  If you are looking for a fun night out in DC for New Year's Eve, the Old Ebbitt Grill had a great deal with a raffle, some gambling stations, a dance floor and deejay, several open bars and plenty of delicious food!  I mean, the food was exemplary for the price and the stations were never too crowded.  There was a raw seafood bar, pasta stations and passed hors d'overs throughout the night, including mini lamb chops.  Actually, the entire venue was full but definitely not as crowded as one would expect with a typical New Year's Eve party with a standard flat rate $150 ticket price.  Knowing all the dresses available for New Year's Eve parties, I was expecting a wash of sequins and sparkle and was not disappointed!  As anyone can see, my own dress had some sequin and beadwork but was not completely spangled with sequins as most of the others were.  But I just loved the shape and style of it. The design of the sequins and beads, the high neckline, the cap sleeves, the grey color -- it was just enough without being too much.  When I checked my coat, I was shocked and gratified to receive a compliment on my dress from the coat check lady.  Thereafter, throughout the night, I continued to receive compliments on the dress from persons passing by.  It was a great confidence booster and I knew I had made the right choice.

I truly believe this dress is an instant classic and definitely a keeper!

Adrianna Papell is  a wonderful designer to look up if you have not encountered her dresses before.  You can find them anywhere, including Nordstrom's and Bloomingdale's.  While this line is not as high end as Gucci or Prada or other expensive designers, the designs fit so many body types and personal styles.  And I always find something in this line that I just fall in love with.  There are so many affordable options for anyone looking for that one great party dress.

Do you have a great party dress or are in the search for one?  There are so many out there to choose, that it's really up to you which style really suits you!  It's all about how versatile it can be and how great you feel in it.