good gets (and some regrets)

j'adore.

This post brought to you by the fabulous 

(parent)thetically speaking.

You ever open your closet and just sigh with happiness at some of things you find hanging there? The pieces that you turn to time and again and never let you down? When I think about those pieces, I find that most of them are within a certain color spectrum (black and cream are totally a spectrum), cost slightly more than I normally spend and were purchased pre-motherhood (see point #2). So my sigh of happiness is usually more a sigh of thankfulness that pre-baby me had the foresight to purchase some nice, quality pieces (or get them as gifts).

These items are clutch, always always. For a wedding, a weekend away or a celebratory night on the town - when I want to reach for something just a little bit more special than the Cheerio-dusted duffel bag that is my purse, or the American Eagle jeans I live in.

To contrast, there are also times when I open my closet and I see missed opportunities. The shirt with the tags still on or the shoes with nary a scuff on the sole. And I find that most of them were impulse buys. We all do it, and we will always do it! Shopping is fun! But at least as I "mature" I'm getting better at impulsively grabbing something I may actually end up putting on my body.

5 items 25-year-old-me totally nailed:

 *Michael Kors satchel bag (I wanted to link to something similar, I did, but I couldn't find anything. It's black, with gold, and some buckles, and some patent leather, and I just love it. Every single time I use it. It was love at first sight - for both of us)

*J.Crew strapless black cocktail dress (ugh, again no linky. I'm giving away my age here, aren't I?!)

 *J.Crew black patent heels

 *vintage knee-length winter coat, with fur-trimmed (faux?) neck and cuffs. yup, it's black.

 *red (just kidding, black) belted trench coat. I do wish I had gotten a hooded one though.

  

5 items that I...oh, something shiny...

*turquoise flats. in theory, they are the cutest ever and lend such a pop of color! nope, uncomfortable and too bright.

*black skinny jeans. not a flattering fit and too long. I was desperate to make my Pinterest dreams a reality.

*American Eagle "women's" hooded sweatshirt. It's a little too form-fitting. Now, I'm allll about the hoodie, but hoodies are supposed to hide holiday cookie transgressions, not highlight them.

*There's this one store that lures me in, and other than some jewelry and one awesome dress, the stuff I buy there just gets worn once...

*For a time I was drawn to crew neck shirts. I grabbed one at every store I went to, all different colors. And guess what? I wear the black one, and the white one. You knew it, why didn't I?!

Pretty please, I'd love to know what some of your favorite, go-to pieces are! Anyone else have a problem item (or whole store!)?

For previous posts from (parent)thetically speaking, click HERE.

variety is the spice of life.

Pick a jacket, any jacket.

The other day, as I was throwing on my raincoat to run out for lunch, my colleague said "you have so many coats! It's like you have the perfect coat for every kind of weather!!" which I found a touch embarrassing (if a dude noticed, it must be very noticeable!) but mostly it just made me smile. "You're right!" I exclaimed, "I have a bit of a coat habit, but I wear them ALL so I think it's not such a bad habit to have!" 

If you ask me, coats, like shoes, scarves, jeans, jewelry and hats are items one can never have enough of. There's the heavy coat, the ski coat, rain coat, dressy coat, lightweight winter coat, lightweight spring coat, puffy vest, stylish cape-let, the list goes on and on. Outerwear can easily be an extension of your outfit and what better way to polish your shine than with the perfect jacket (or shoes or statement necklace) for that particular day!? I mean I've got enough pashminas to run my own street vendor business, but always having the "perfect" color or print makes me happy every time. I think the key is to focus on occasion and variety... it's not "I have a hat already" it's "do I already have a hat that I'd wear when I would wear this one?" Variety is the spice of life and in my opinion, the spicier the better!

Ed. Note: I've also been told I'm excellent at justifying things... purchases in particular :)