natural life slouchy sweater; shorts = american eagle outfitters , shoes = nine west
(This was originally to be a post about letting go of material possessions and how freeing it is to economize, but it got too heavy [ever notice how ruminations on de-cluttering your closet can evolve into philosophizing about how great it feels to finally cut untrustworthy people out of your life? RAWR! ... no?] ... so I scrapped it.)
Positively positive do-over: I love slouchy tops and am so happy I found several ways to make these marked-down cowboy-esque boots work with something other than skinny jeans. And I capital-L Love that Eden in Love's Black Friday sale did not leave me guilt-riddled or penniless. Slouchy and swingy tops have become my new closet staples because I'm not a fan of turning down desserts and I'm physically tired of sucking in my muffin top. And everyone knows that once you hit your 30s, you can do all the plyometrics you want, but that donut is still going to settle on your ass. (Or wherever you least want it to settle.) The solution: slouchy tops, blouson dresses, the occasional foray into shapewear. (Yeah, shapewear. I have no shame anymore. I will do what is necessary to look decent in a matte jersey dress, and I will tell you allll about it. I will also tell you which of my "designer" purses are from the pit-bull guarded back-alleys of a Hong Kong night market and which ones are real. No. Shame.)
The clothes buying rule in our house is "one in, one out." Scott's rule, obviously. It's a good rule, but it gets ignored a lot. My rule is (and it will help if you've seen the shoe-trying-on scene at the end of Cinderella, where Drizella declares determinedly ...) "I'LL MAKE IT FIT!!" Yup, that's my rule. I'll make it fit in the closet. So, I let things get to the point where the closet was so jam-packed that I could slip the hangers out of the dresses and tops and nothing would fall. And then it was obviously time to apply Scott's rule. So for the first time ever, when I brought home my Eden bag (most of which were Christmas gifts because THAT'S WHY YOU'RE REALLY SHOPPING, REMEMBER? i kept screaming at myself as I navigated the black friday waters), I actually got rid of more stuff than I acquired.
Big goal while stocking up: add color.
I'm sorry it's hard to see how vibrantly, beautifully purple this dress is.
Also, that belt is looking a bit Santa Claus so maybe I'll rethink that.
But separately, I do love this dress and this belt.
[Edit: EIL had the most fun, best-stocked, most incredibly organized Black Friday chaos I've ever seen. It was so crowded, but everyone was happy. The checkout process was a thing of beauty. First you exited the main room and entered the accessories area, where of course you were sidetracked by belts in every color under the sun, statement necklaces, scarves, fedoras, handmade earrings and other trinkets designed to put a twinkle in your eye and a major dimple in your savings. Then you were ushered into the checkout area (a whole conference room unto itself) where your accessories were bagged and you were sent to the next checkpoint, where hangers were shed and garments draped over your arms. Next you went to the bagging table, where more Eden elves expertly folded your items (and complimented your choices), placed everything in a reusable shopping tote, and sent you to the Actual Line, which made your heart drop a little bit because it resembled the line for Peter Pan at Disneyland. But as you were waiting, smiling workers walked around offering you water, you'd notice someone(s) you knew and strike up a conversation, you'd read the posters on the wall about Divas Doing Good, you would in general have the best time anyone could have while standing in a line to pay for stuff. And when you got to the front of the line, you'd show them the 40% off stamp someone had put on your hand earlier that morning and they would congratulate you on getting there early, and they'd ask you how your day was going, and you'd say, honestly, "Great!"]
To sum up Black Friday: You CAN sleep til a decent hour and you DON'T have to be miserable to get good deals. The end.
One last love note on Eden in Love -- many of these pieces are work-to-play, weekday-to-weekend, dress-up-or-down types, and so I don't miss the things I got rid of. I can mix and match shoes, jewelry and pants to create different looks with a reasonable amount of pieces, and not feel like I have to amend the rule to "one out one in." Much to Scott's relief.
:)
Disclaimer: I don't work for EIL.
