Love It Or Leave It: Camouflage Trend Fall 2013

Sanctuary Camo Chinos and Creature Feature Top

I'm really gravitating to these camouflage pants I found at Anthropologie on Grandville in Vancouver and had to bring them home to think about. With taxes they came out to about $150 which seems a bit pricey for such a trendy statement and I'm not sure I have enough tops to pair with it effectively. Shoes are covered with ballet flats and converse sneakers, but I feel like these may not blend in appropriately with my very casual style. I love how camo is looking paired with more glamorous items like silky black blouses and high healed booties, but I'm just not sure how I feel pairing them with Aeirie tee shirts or Lululemon long sleeve tees. 

The fit is on the generous size so I was able to go one size down and still get this relaxed look to them. I like that they are not a skinny jean as this makes it a little more casual and fresh. The print is pretty subdued and washed out, not highly contrasted like some younger versions of camo print. I'm 5'4 and the pant is actually full length on me ending just below my ankles. It really looks best rolled up, and since I have very athletic thighs, I like them rolled up a but higher than usual. I think the amount of lower leg that shows helps the proportions out.

The top was a pass for me. I think its adorable but I have a few other 'critter' print tees from anthro that I haven't worn in a long time. This one is not the correct size for me as it was all they had left and too small but I wanted to try these pants on with a tee. 

For now, I think I'm going to love these and maybe keep a look out for more suitable tops to pair with them. 

Fit Review: Finely Feathered Tank, Seychelles Good Intention Wedges, Pollination Tank, Kanoko Striped Tank, Side Tucked Tee

Hello old friends, it's been quite a long while since I've updated this blog. I've had a few Anthro finds over the past few months (tees and stuff) but nothing really grand has caught my fancy until now. I've been lured back into the Anthro web with this gorgeous Finely Feathered Tank which I found on my trip to Portland last month but sadly the only size they had was a 10. I searched and searched every Anthropologie from Pearl District to Seattle and no other store had this tank in yet. Once I was back in town I called my local store but they also hadn't seen this tank so after a few days of obsessively looking at it online for reviews I decided to order it (still waiting for mine to arrive since it was out of stock). When I stopped in store today I finally saw it again in person and got to try my size on (12) as well as the 10 I'd tried on before. All of the sizes in stock had the exact same print distribution with the bird on the side and on the back. It was identical from tank to tank and yet completely different from the one shown online. I do still love this tank and truthfully I think I prefer the bird a little more inconspicuous. Hopefully the tank I get from my order will be as nice as this one or better as far as the print otherwise I'll exchange it for this one. I found it TTS, maybe a bit large in the armholes but otherwise the size down (10) was a touch too fitted. I adore this tank even though I've been luke warm about the peplum tank trend so far. Surprisingly I don't find the cut of this peplum unflattering to my pear shape, probably because it's cut longer in the back than the front and is broken up with a monochromatic graphic peplum. 

Finely Feathered Tank

Left is my TTS 12 and the Right is the 10

Size 12

Pollination Tank

Roomy in the size 10. I liked this size. 

This is the other tank I saw in Portland and really loved but it's a bit pricier than I want to pay for it and I'm not sure the color/print will have longevity in my closet because of the bright colors. It was about $118 in store today so If I head back down to the states this summer I'll hopefully find this one marked down. I love the hot pink with the navy line drawn bees. 

Kanoko Striped Tank, Orange size L

This is another one I really liked today. The color is a super pretty peach and looks especially nice with my dark grey pants. The size I tried on, although I was thankful for the roominess in the tummy area,  was a touch too big in the arms. You'd definitely need to wear a racerback bra with this one. I'm wish listing this one in this size, I'd definitely get it on markdown. 

Side Tucked Tee, pink size L

This tee is really pretty and flattering from the front due to the ruching across the middle and the double layer of fabric on the bottom half (sort of a bubble hem) which you can adjust to hide mummy tummy. I really liked it from the front and wished the back had the same consideration but it's totally solid and single layered on the back so it showed a lot more flaws in the back (muffin top) than it does from the front. 

Seychelles Good Intention aka Fabriella T-Straps $49!!

And lastly, my score today were these Good Intention T-Straps, from Seychelles that I'm wearing in the pictures. Someone had ordered them online and returned them to the store so as soon as I saw them I snatched them up without even checking the size first because for $49 I'm not going to hem and haw over them. Luckily they ended up being just my size so I kept a vice grip on these as I walked thru the store.  They are TTS (9) and the leather is butter soft. I'm not a heels wearer when I can help it but as I tried on all these tops I totally forgot I was wearing these shoes they were THAT comfortable. I really don't need a pair of shoes but these go with everything in my closet and they are really comfortable...so what the heck, why not elevate my closet with a new pair of 'fancy shoes' that I can wear with jeans, crops or skirts. 

Annoyed: Striped Steps Socks Mislabeled.

Today I made the treck out to anthropologie to pick up some new long wooly socks that I'd been eyeing on the anthro website. I normally am really, really sensitive to wool except when it comes to my feet which seem to really enjoy the luxurious feel of wool. Anyways, I decided to splurge and picked these cute socks up based on the online product description (acrylic, wool, nylon, spandex) and when I arrived home and pealed back the price sticker the fabric contents are actually 65% cotton, 31% nylon and 4% spandex. Really annoyed! I'll likely be returning these and will have a better look around to see if they have any long wool socks in store.

Striped Socks Horizontal

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

Many of you (all 16 of you ;p) have probably been aware of what has happened with the Anthroholic blog and her fraudulent personal shopping services. I feel a little bit out of place posting about this since I'm a very new Anthro blogger and I'm pretty unknown, but I have been an Anthro blog reader for a very, very long time and so I've been reading about all of the events and feel the need to reflect. 

I almost had a transaction with her a couple of months ago. She reached out to me when I posted an APB on an item. She had this item and was selling it at a reasonable price but she was being incredibly pushy about getting payment right away due to her travel plans. Something about her polite pushyness, her unwillingness to look at other solutions and her convenient and ready excuses about travel plans sent red flags to me. I desperately wanted this item but I did not feel good about the circumstances and so after sending emails back and forth for days I reluctantly passed and purchased this item on ebay instead for $100 more. I'm really glad I followed my instincts because until yesterday I felt really foolish for having paid more for this item on ebay.

I just wanted to say how impressed I am by some of the very honest and genuine posts that are being made by her betrayed blogger friends. It's hard to put yourself out there to readers and share your self in such an honest way, it's so easy to hide behind outfit posts and posts about 'things' in the midst of something so hugely betraying and very public. It's hard to take a stand against a friend when you see them behave in such a wrong, and totally incongruent to the person you know behavior. Especially when you don't have the full birds eye view of events and you really want to be able to give them the benefit of the doubt. I just want to say how much I respect the integrity of these bloggers and I respect their words.

These types of things happen in real life every day and sometimes we have a hard time seeing the ugly truth until it really hits us in the face and is too hard to avoid, and sometimes it's just a million tiny offences that never quite hit us in the face. It can make us feel bad and very jaded in people in general and that robs us of being able to experience other more genuine friendships. It felt really good to read these posts this morning and to know these bloggers are sharing their real selves and not projections of a fantasy they want us to believe. I may have had a change of heart about how I shop and my consumer habits but I have not had a change of heart about reading these ladies blogs. 

Some of the ones I've read so far:
Anthro Closet Chaos
The Top Drawer
The British Anthropologist
The Stylish Soprano
Effortless Anthropologie

25% Off Sweaters

My latest Lust Item and My Weekend in Seattle

Oh man. Oh man. My wallet is in trouble with this gorgeous Hampden Pea Coat. I love every little thing about it and will have to sacrifice much of my wish list items for this beauty. I just love the browns and oversized print. If only I could start this early in dropping Christmas wish list hints. 

Sorry I've been lacking in posts lately, my husband has been on vacation and he's been sort of cramping my Anthro drop ins as well as my free blogging time. We spent a weekend in Seattle though and he did allow me to shop at Anthro to my hearts content with the trade off that the rest of the weekend would be totally free of shopping so I was happy about that, especially when he broke his own rule and discovered the watch department in Nordstroms. He has a weakness for watches so all I had to do was sneakily mention that Nordstroms had a huge selection of some of his favourite brands and I was left to wander the store while he tried on each and every watch he wanted too.

At Anthro I tried on many, many items but settled on getting fall casual staples. I got the Banded Ripples Tee in purple (looks more maroon to me) and I got the Starred Entry Tee (again) in Grey and the Anza Cardi in Turquoise. Today I was able to get a price adjustment for the Anza Cardi since it went on sale this morning, which made me very happy. I also got the Aldabra Barrette finally. This was my 3rd time ordering the barrette after it getting backordered and finally the order went thru. This is my top favourite hair barrette of my collection and it literally holds all of my thick, course hair in a ponytail.  I also managed to find the Speckled Lotus Jaw Clip and quite love it. I have really thick, thick hair and since discovering how well made french hair accessories are and how well they hold all of my hair I've decided to collect them when they are on sale. Nordstroms also carries some of these hair clips by France Luxe but sadly they didn't have any of the bigger ones that I wanted or I would have gotten some more. I think ebay is also a good place to find these at sale prices. 

Thats all for tonight but I will try to post a fit review of all the tops I got tomorrow evening. 

Hampden Pea Coat

Did You Hear...? Roxy's Holding A Contest!

Roxy at Effortless Anthropologie is hosting two contests on her blog to win a healthy $250 or $100 gift card to our favourite store. I told her in my entry I was hoping to buy the Noon & Night Dress with the gift card but now that I see today's post about the blogger event she went to I've found some absolutely beautiful boots that look promising in the cuff circumference department for my 15.5" calves.

My Beauty Arsenal

Moroccan Oil, Arbonne Seasource Gelee, Origins, Arbonne Primer, Arbonne RE9 and Clear Advantage Acne Line, Dr. Reckeweg R30 Universal Ointment (Homeopathic), Arbonne Tinted Moisturizer

MAC Red lipstick and Coral/Pink Lipstick, Body Glide, More Arbonne makeup

OPI Nail Polish, Jo Malone Blue Agave Perfume, Diaper Wipes (makeup remover)

Behind The Dressing Room Door Contest

It's Behind The Dressing Room Door's 1 year blogiversary and she's giving away a a $25 gift certificate to where else but Anthropologie. Make sure to check her blog out (one of my very favourites) and enter to win.

A Random Post For You

~ My daughter sporting a serious arm party

Lepidoptra Dress

~ Is it just me or did Anthro add a bow to this dress overnight? I wonder if the sash is included..

~ I'm really missing my favourite TV shows. I have a LOT of favourite TV shows that my husband and I record on our PVR and watch on the weekends or after the kids go to bed. These are the shows that I get most engrossed in. Have you watched any of these? I think Mad Men is my top all time favourite.  

Images from Pinterest

The Help

~ My solution to the TV ADD I'm suffering is reading this book which is so far fantastic (only about 100 pages in). It's a lot harder to read books now that I have two toddlers. It's pretty much impossible to do during their waking hours so I read for a bit before I go to bed. 

Chia Mihara Shoes

~I have been obsessing something crazy about these Chia Mihara Shoes. It is so unfair that they are priced so steeply. Gravity Pope in Vancouver sells Chia Mihara's so I may put the bug in my husbands ear early for Christmas. I'm thinking I'd like an everyday shoe like a Mary Jane that can be worn with skirts or jeans.

Happy Anthro Markdown Tuesday!

What an amazing sale today!! Lots of items got marked down that I was tempted by but I've been coveting the Backswept dress something bad the last few weeks and so I purchased it in two sizes to see which one works best. And now is when I realize that I have no shoes to go with this dress ;p

My store never received the Backswept Dress or the Meyer Meringue so I don't want to take my chances waiting till I can get to the store to see if they received a shipment of them for the sale. I'm convinced I can fall the Backswept Dress up despite the open back design. Chrysanthemum are fall flowers after all, aren't they?

Did you find anything from your wish list marked down today?

Backswept Dress

Meyer Meringue Dress

Seattle had one size 14 Meyer dress when I was last there and despite it being too big for me I tried it on anyways. I loved the dress so much but it's really a summer dress and I wouldn't want to wear it in the Fall with such a sunny color.

Flower Stand Dress

Triple Bar Belt

I got the Triple Bar Belt in Navy several weeks ago and I was tempted to get a second one since it's such a versatile little belt. I got it in a medium and I can wear it around my waist thru my pant belt loop or I can wear it at my upper waist. The blue was the right color choice for my wardrobe as it looks lovely over browns but If I happen upon another one of these in store I'd love any one of the other colors. 

**Update**

I ended up ordering the Cuffed Clogs on sale and with free shipping. Not sure I'll keep them but they would solve my shoe issue with the Backswept Dress and it will be wearable for Fall I think. I'm almost certain the catalogue shot of the Backswept Dress is styled with these shoes. I also think they'd go nicely with my Checked Crops. 

Free Shipping On Shoes!

I was so excited to read 'free shipping' and ready to place my order for a few dresses (Noon & Night Dress, Backswept Dress) I'm eyeing and then I realized it was for shoes. I do have my eye on some shoes on the website but my priorities lay with clothes right now. Hmmmm, come to think of it, maybe we will see a big shoe sale tomorrow. Time to study up on the shoe offerings. 

Happy Anthro Markdown Tuesday! + Store Report: Checked Crops, Starred Entry Tee, Across The Lands Dress (Green Motif)

I stopped in at Vancouver Anthropologie today to pick up the Readymade Dress which has been on my wish list ever since I tried it on on a whim. I'm a bit disappointed at the sale price since I expected it would probably get marked down to about $59 since It's marked down to the same price as the Reflecting Pools Dress which is originally priced at $10 more then the Readymade dress. Not a huge deal, I was just hoping for a lower price today. I'm just glad the sale prices in Vancouver are the same as online. 

Trinket Flats

Shoes in store again today. Oooh I wish they would carry the entire selection of Anthro shoes, especially Miss Albright. 

Readymade Dress

So as I said, I tried the Readymade dress on before (over here) and was really impressed with the fit. I'm still hesitating on keeping it or not because the style is restricted to just summer and $69 is steep for a seasonal dress. Also, I have the Sailboat Skirt and it seems like having two nautical themed outfits is a little much..but I do love it. And, I'm not sure how I feel about the Chambray. Will it be too dated by next year? The fit is really flattering on me since it makes me really long torso seem shorter and my really short legs seem longer. I also really like how simple and comfortable this dress is. It sort of feels as comfortable as wearing sweats. Probably a keeper although I need to mull over if I want to hold out for second cut. 

 I decided to try it on with the Starred Entry Tee just to see if I can fall this dress up and I think it's possible although the way this top clings around my middle and where the top of the skirt sits I think this look needs to be belted. 

 Across The Lands Dress Green Motif

I LOVE this dress in this colorway. It's a funny way to do up a dress with eye hooks down the sides and at the neckline. It makes this really a wrap dress without a sash. I'm not sure I love how big the peep hole is at the bust.. I felt a bit exposed and would probably wear a black bandeau bra underneath to shorten the cleavage exposure but otherwise the dress was perfect. I really love the print and color in this dress. It's quite fall but can be worn in summer or spring as well. It's a size 10 and felt quite comfortable and roomy so I'd stick with this size. Wish listed for markdown or possible full price purchase if a dressy function pops up. 

 Starred Entry Tee

Checked Crops

My store finally got the Checked Crops in today (after I've ordered online). I really like the fabric in these pants. I was initially sceptical that I would like the fabric since it's polyester but it's a really soft, thick and brushed fabric and totally not itchy. The crops, as you can see, are really pant length on me. This is just fine by me since I plan on wearing this mostly with my boots or with my flats and if I wear it with chunky heels I can roll the cuff higher. The fit on these pants are a bit big and higher rise. I tried these on in a size down from my usual (12 in most pants) since they didn't have my size in. I'm going to stick with my true size since I think I need the baggier fit over my athletic thighs to prevent the pattern from distorting and just so it drapes a bit better in my upper thighs and butt. If you have narrower hips then me I would suggest sizing down in these as all the SA's in my store have tried them on and preferred the size down. If the one I ordered fits not too much roomier then these ones then I will keep them, if there is a big difference in size I will return and wait for markdown for this size. 

The Starred Entry Tee I have really mixed feelings about. I really love the orange and the grey colorway but unfortunately they really cling to my muffin top and highlight it. The Blue colorway seemed to disguise my problem areas more and was a bit better balanced on me then the others so I brought it home to think about. This is a large and I take a medium or large in most tops. I think there is not a lot of difference in fit in this shirt between medium and large but I got the large for the bit of extra length in the torso so that I could bunch it up a bit around the middle to hide my tummy. I also think that the horizontal seam across the front may be a problem for some depending on bust size and where it lays on you. May be returning this top and waiting for markdown. 

Remember These?

Mystery Miss Albright heels I mentioned last week? 

 

Well they just popped up online

Malbec Heels

My Current Fall Lust List

I'm suffering from Anthro ADD at the moment and wish I could go on a fall shopping spree (since it's 16*c here at the moment and not really summer) so instead of actually shopping I'm just gazing at my wish list. Most of these items are not in my local store so my wish list may change once I get a chance to try some of these on. 

Starred Entry Tee

I tried this one on in the grey color last week in Seattle and I'm really not sure why I didn't buy it. I think I was hung up on my first impression of it on the website where I thought it was just sort of plain and boring. When I saw it in person I was surprised that it was a thin sweatshirt like material and had a really flattering fit. Perfect for me for fall - casual yet elegant.  It was lovely on but I passed on it and now I think I would love it in either orange (that's a branch out color for me) or the grey which really looks like a soft blue/pale purple. I just noticed this picture of it online today and it really shows how well this top hugs your curves in the right places. 

Checked Crops

As much as I'd love to wear skirts all of the time, I know I just wont unless I'm going somewhere fancy. These pants really drew my attention because they're dressier then jeans...but can still be quite casual and effortless. I can wear them with my boots, flats or my heels. It's a bit of a pipe dream that these pants will look nice on me with this particular print or that they will fit me at all since I have quite athletic thighs and a curvy figure, both of which make pant shopping a pain. But I really waaaaant these to work on me. My store hasn't gotten them in yet and I'm quite anxious to try them on. 

Stash Away Cardigan

This is such a great cardi. My friend got one the other day and it looks so Jacki O on her. The length is lovely, the fabric is lovely and I adore a 3/4 length sleeve on a cardigan. It looks perfect with pencil skirts and jeans. I'm drawn to the yellow since I'm a bit obsessed with the color lately but I think the grey would have more versatility in my closet. 

Backswept Dress

This was on my pipe dream wish list back in May and then I sort of put it out of my mind. Lately I'm obsessing with this dress again and very badly want it to go on markdown. I'm obsessing about how to pair colors with it and how to make it fall appropriate. I have no shoes to wear with this dress but I have a few occasions in the Fall that I will need a dress for so If it goes on sale, and I can satisfy myself that this is a versatile dress to style then I would love to have it. 

Tsuru Blouse

Beautiful blouse to wear with a pencil skirt or trousers. It's just stunning and so elegant. I can see wearing a blouse like this to a dinner party.  Although I'm visually really drawn to this top it doesn't have that comfortable effortless look that appeals to me so I wouldn't be tempted by this unless I have a very specific function it would be perfect for. 

Helping Hands Top

This top is too adorable. I love a 3/4 sleeve over full length and the print is just too cute. I wonder how the print would look like on and if it would be obvious what the print is or if it just looks like smudged colors.