Fashion Peeve #3

I didn't title this Peeve, because I'm not sure how to phrase it in a pithy way. It's going to take me a whole paragraph, or at least a sentence, and here goes:

What's with the fashion experts who tell us that the cheap way to update our Look every season is with bags and shoes? Bags and shoes are not necessarily inexpensive, especially not the ones the same experts are telling us to update with. A trendy leather bag for $800? A pair of killer heels for $300? I'd hate to see what the experts are paying for their jeans and sweaters if those are the CHEAP items.

Personally, I don't like to spend more than $2500 for a bag, but that's just me.....

And really, I don't think I own a single "bag," because I buy "purses."

However, I do like my shoes to be of as high of a quality as I can afford. I like good leather, comfort, cute styling, and something that will last a while. I hold to the philosophy of Hercule Poirot---Mystery writer Agatha Christie's famous detective---who said that however shabby an impoverished British Lady may have become, her footwear will always be of the highest quality.

Does anybody else get these?

I got an interesting piece of mail the other day. It was addressed to The Main Grocery Shopper {well, that would be me} and the letter inside began:

Dear Shopper,

As a Nebraska resident, you play a key role in our Consumer Surveys.

Once in a while we carefully select individuals {oh, you do, huh?} in your community---those whom we feel represent the smartest, most value conscious shoppers {well, thank you}. If our hunch {hunch? Your "mass mailing" hunch?} is right, you are such a person.

I read through the enclosed survey and felt like throwing it over my head in frustration. Under the category "Grocery Products" there were listed items such as bottled water, cookies, crackers, frozen fish, frozen meat substitutes (what is that?), frozen pizza, salad dressing, whipped topping, snack bars. Beside each item there were two check boxes for me to tell how often I buy these products. Here were my choices:

3 or More Times Per Month or 1 or 2 Times Per Month.

Seriously? Who buys whipped topping every week? I buy juice once or twice a month, salad dressing a few times per year, hot dogs once in the summer, frozen fish rarely (it's expensive here in the landlocked midwest), and "frozen meat substitutes" never.

The rest of the survey was the same. Lists and lists of products I never use, such as canned soups and frozen waffles and artificial sweeteners-- all wanting to know how often per month I buy them.

Either this survey is ridiculous or I'm more out of step with modern America than I knew--which, of course, is very possible. The kicker was this question:

How often does your household do the following At Least Once A Week or Twice a Week or More Often?

~Prepare meals from scratch {uh, every day, twice a day}
~Use ready-to-serve dishes {never}
~Order in or take-out {how do you do that, anyway?}
~Eat at a restaurant {once in a while}

By the end of my perusal of the survey I came to see that if I filled out any of it, I would probably soon be inundated with magazine subscription requests, and coupons for products I never use (to encourage me to try them), and credit card offers. No thanks. I threw the thing away, in spite of the cheerful promise that I "may" receive "a chance to win thousands of dollars in cash."

Do you get consumer surveys? What do you do with them?

Makeover Quote #12

I started very early to believe in an inside-out concept--that if you look as good as you can, you will feel better. ~~Jil Sander, designer.

How you feel in clothes is as important as how you look in them. ~~Leah Feldon, author of "Does This Make Me Look Fat?"

Like a kid in a candy store...

....that's what I'm like at the annual Library Book Sale. There are tables and tables of books set out for sale, either library discards or donations, priced at ten cents for a paperback (twelve for a dollar!) or fifty cents for a hardcover. Them's penny candy prices!

In spite of the fact that I love the annual January sale, I never seem to keep up on what week it actually transpires each year, and it's hit or miss for me. Sometimes I catch it, sometimes I don't. This year, I happened to walk in on it, and not having prepared for it, I only had a dollar or so in change with me. So I stuck to looking at paperbacks, figuring that was the biggest bang for my literal buck.

The biggest find (literally and figuratively) was this:

For several months now I've been wanting a copy of The Jerusalem Bible, partly because I've read about it and it sounded interesting, and partly because, to tell the truth, I'm a bit of a bible version junkie.

Years ago, I had all sorts of odd versions, and then I had the misfortune to read a couple of books that argued that the King James version was the only inspired, God-ordained version, and I got rid of all my non-KJV bibles. Then I changed my mind, and once again I am enjoying accumulating and reading many different versions. (Most of them, except for my KJV {smile}, are cheap paperback copies, because how can I justify owning piles of expensive leather bibles--even though I would love to if I could afford it--when so many people don't even have ONE bible? That's my guilty disclaimer... Anyway...)

On my bible shelf at this moment I have:

KJV
NKJV
ESV
NRSV
NLT
NASB
HCSB
NIV
Phillips New Testament
The Five Books of Moses (Everett Fox)

and, now, of course, The Jerusalem Bible.

Which brings me back to my original thread of my great deals at the book sale. I was so tickled at finding the bible, beings as that particular incarnation is out of print and hard to find, not to say kind of expensive when you CAN find it, that I figured I bought the bible with my dollar and the other eleven books were FREE!

And now I just have to share something. This morning as I was waking up, wondering how achy I was going to be once I got up, and wishing my golfer's/tennis elbow would subside, I suddenly thought I knew why sometimes we feel betrayed by God. If we are put here in this life to accomplish certain things, and are given promises by God that he would help us, then  we find we are failing because we are ill, and feeling helpless and abandoned-- well, it sort of feels unfair. God is expecting things from us we can't do. In addition, we know that we walk by faith, not by sight, and that we are being trained in faith-- but for what? Normally when a person trains for something, it's because they are going to do that very thing. You practice running to run. You practice dancing to dance. The idea of learning to live without hearing God speak, or seeing him work, or without his help, seems to point to a horrible eternity. As I asked Hubby later, What are we being trained for?

But then. This morning after my vacuuming was done I picked up my new bible, and began reading. I just sort of flipped around, reading a few pages here and there, getting a "feel" for it. Then I read this, from 2 Corinthians:

"...though this outer man of ours may be falling into decay, the inner man is renewed day by day. Yes, the troubles which are soon over, though they weigh little, train us for the carrying of a weight of eternal glory which is out of all proportion to them."

Oh my goodness. There's my answer, in my exact terms. We are being trained for glory. Wow. I don't know exactly what that will look like, but it's gotta be good.

36 Ways to Reduce Stress

I stole this list from 1stholistic.com via It's Almost Naptime. I especially like (read: need to work on) number 11. Also, my response to number 35 is "Thank God!"

1. Pray

2. Go to bed on time.

3. Get up on time so you can start the day unrushed.

4. Say "No," to projects/activities that won't fit into your time schedule, or that will compromise your mental health.

5. Delegate tasks to capable others.

6. Simplify and un-clutter your life.

7. Less is more. (Although one is often not enough, two are often too many.)

8. Allow extra time to do things and to get to places.

9. Pace yourself. Spread out big changes and difficult projects over time; don't lump the hard things all together.

10. Take one day at a time.

11. Separate worries from concerns. If a situation is a concern, find out what God would have you to do and let go of the anxiety. If you can't do anything about a situation, forget it.

12. Live within your budget.

13. Have backups; an extra car key in your wallet, an extra house key buried in the garden, extra stamps, etc.

14. K. M. S. (Keep Mouth Shut.) This single piece of advice can prevent an enormous amount of trouble.

15. Do something for the Kid in You everyday.

16. Carry a Bible with you to read while waiting in line.

17. Get enough exercise.

18. Eat right.

19. Get organized so everything has its place.

20. Listen to a tape while driving that can help improve your quality of life.

21. Write thoughts and inspirations down.

22. Everyday, find time to be alone.

23. Having problems? Talk to God on the spot. Try to nip small problems in the bud. Don't wait until its time to go to bed to try and pray.

24. Make friends with Godly people.

25. Keep a folder of favorite scriptures on hand.

26. Remember that the shortest bridge between despair and hope is often a good "Thank you Jesus!"

27. Laugh.

28. Laugh some more!

29. Take your work seriously, but yourself not at all.

30. Develop a forgiving attitude (most people are doing the best they can).

31. Be kind to unkind people (they probably need it the most).

32. Sit on your ego.

33. Talk less; listen more.

34. Slow down.

35. Remind yourself that you are not the general manager of the universe.

36. Every night before bed, think of one thing you're grateful for that you've never been grateful for before.

Friday Fashion--Outfits for Spring

Here are some looks for this spring I'd like to copy. Well, either the look itself, or certain aspects of it.

1)For example, this outfit from Ann Taylor:

















See the nice, soft gray/black slacks? See the blue sweater? Yes, I like this. I've begun experimenting with the black+blue or dark gray+blue vibe, after I saw a write-up about black and ink blue that inspired me, and it's working. I actually bought a thin-striped denim blue/dark blue flyaway-type cardigan on clearance at TJ Maxx not long ago. I intended to wear it with denim, to create a long, lean monochromatic line, which, by the way, does look nice. But then the other night I tried it with black jeans, black boots, and a vee neck black tee. Wowzer. I liked the look very much. So-- new color scheme for late winter, early spring: black and denim blue, or black and inky blue.

Also, yes, the dark gray comfy pants. I have a pair something like that with elastic waistband for sleeping in. Ancient, and stretched out. But one day Hubby brought them to me to put on in place of my jeans while I was relaxing by the stove, and the sharp look of the dark gray with the brown shirt I had on suddenly made me realize I was missing out on another great wardrobe option. So the hunt is on for dark gray pants, possibly comfy knit, and also denim, or corduroy.

2)Here's a look from Ann Taylor Loft:

















What I like: the skinny jeans. The jacket. The scarf. The wedge sandals.
The belt? Not so much. I'm so short waisted I get all bunchy and lose my waist altogether when I belt over top like that.


3)This outfit is from Banana Republic:


















I like the skinny jeans. I've been wearing regular flare leg jeans tucked into boots a lot this winter, which is giving the effect of skinny jeans-- the straight leg look all the way down-- and it seems to look nice on me. I like the leather jacket. I'd like to get one if I can. I like the skinny scarf thing.

4)Another one from Banana Republic:
















I don't look very good in khaki colors, but the general look is what catches my eye here: the skinny jeans, the trench, the scarf-- and look at those shoes. Some sort of shoe bootie. I think that's the spring version of jeans tucked into boots: skinny jeans with booties.

5)Aside from the fact that the skirt is WAY too short, this outfit from Banana Republic looks very do-able.















In fact, I can actually make this outfit already. I have black leather boots, black tights, a black and white graphic skirt, a black vee-neck boyfriend cardigan. I'll have to try it and see if 1) it works with a knee length skirt, and 2) it works for me.

6)And one more, this time from J Crew:












See those skinny jeans with the booties? That's the look!

Wearing Black and Gray

A year ago I had two black items in my wardrobe: a pair of slacks, and a long (ankle length) skirt. Those were worn approximately twice a year for worship team events.

Since then, I've learned two things. One, black is considered every woman's safe/good color, and everyone ought to have some black because you can wear it almost anywhere and be appropriate. Two, I look good in black! I never knew either of these two things before.

By now, I have accumulated quite a bit of black, but it's taken me some time to get used to it, mostly because I feel so dressy in black. I don't know if black is inherently dressy, or if it makes me look so good that I look like I'm dressed up, I don't know.

The other color I've discovered is gray. Not heather, sweatshirt gray; that shade of gray is why I've also never worn gray before. In that shade of gray I look like I should be laying on the couch recovering from the flu. However, when I wear dark gray, from silvery graphite, to charcoal, to almost black, my eyes shine and my complexion glows. I get lots of compliments.

I don't own as much gray as I would like, because the right shades are not easy to find, but you can bet gray is on my shopping radar at all times now.

Now I just have to learn to shut out the voices of many stylish people and designers who are saying that black and gray are "boring" and "unadventurous." Those voices are cheer leading women--who have been following the rules up till now and wearing black for everything-- to break out and be adventurous with color. After all, this is the season for that "pop" of color. (I'm so tired of that phrase!)

(Actually, the "pop" of color has become so trendy that it's more like popcorn--red bag, teal shoes, orange necklace. How many different "pop"s can you have before you look silly?)

But for me right now, black and gray--and yes, with an occasional "pop of color"--is my adventure!

What about you? What colors look fabulous on you?