For Gigi -- The Redwood Schoolboy Blazer, Three Ways

Another quickie from me today, girls.  I am wearing my Redwood Schoolboy Blazer today (look number three below) and thought I'd Polyvore up a few options for Gigi.  Keep that jacket, girlfriend.

This is fast becoming one of my favorite jackets, and right now it's still available in a wide array of sizes.  Marked down from $198 to $99.99 plus today's EXTRA30 -- at that price, I think it's a deal and a half, girls.  It runs TTS for this type of classic, fitted blazer, which, for me, translates as the larger of my 2 JC jacket sizes.

Enjoy the day, everybody!  It's so pretty here and I'm about to go and enjoy some errand-running and a little bit of cranked-up Beatles in my car! :-)

The Redwood Schoolboy Blazer

(a surprisingly versatile little jacket!)

Option I



Redwood Schoolboy Blazer I by JCAUNCMom featuring J Crew

Items in this set:
Frances ruffled tuxedo shirt - J.Crew, $90
Women's jackets & blazers - jackets & blazers - Wool schoolboy blazer..., $100
Women - wool - Wool tweed Oona coat - J.Crew, $90
J.Crew - Search, $165
Tory Burch 'Nico' East-West Tote

Option II

Redwood Schoolboy Blazer II by JCAUNCMom featuring J Crew

Items in this set:
J.Crew Frances stripe ruffled tuxedo shirt, $90
Women's jackets & blazers - jackets & blazers - Wool schoolboy blazer..., $100
WILD BLACKBERRY Stretch twill minnie pant - J.Crew, $40
Women's Patent Tortoise Ballet Flats - J.Crew, $125
Women's Navigation - Women - Campo bag - J.Crew, $300

and Option III (what I'm wearing today, with very similar oxford shoes)

Redwood Schoolboy Blazer III by JCAUNCMom featuring J Crew

Items in this set:
j.crew doggie tee
Women J.Crew cashmere Tissue turtleneck, $40
Women knits & tees Ringspun cotton crewneck tee, $33
Women's jackets & blazers - jackets & blazers - Wool schoolboy blazer..., $100
Women vintage slim Distressed vintage slim jean, $135


The tissue turtleneck is worn under the doggie tee, but is also optional -- if the day is warmer just wear the tee.

Another shoe option for this look would be the Cadogan ankle boot (without the argyles, of course). Wicked cute with the jeans rolled tightly to about an inch above the boots.

And for an fun alternate belt look, try using TWO skinny leather belts.  Sometimes I criss cross them and buckle each one into the other one's buckle.

For this look, I'd use these two faves -- the hazelnut and the neon orange classic leather belt. 

For Gigi -- The Redwood Schoolboy Blazer, Three Ways

OOTD 1/24/10: Sunday Night Sushi featuring the Professor Blazer

Hi everyone!  Quick little post (I know, uncharacteristic) with an equally quick Polyvore for you of a simple and comfy outfit that I wore last night.  It was raw, chilly and raining cats and dogs, but DH and I ventured out to have all-you-can-eat sushi & dim sum with some good friends.  Given the weather it seemed appropriate to incorporate the much-love doggie tee!

And by the way, this outfit would have been cute, too, with the Schoolboy blazer in Redwood and the same glass cylinder necklace in dusty blossom (or both necklaces).  I know Gigi has pondered keeping that Redwood blazer, here, and FWIW, I'm finding that it's a very workable neutral.

Enjoy your day! :-)

Sunday Night Out featuring the Professor Blazer by JCAUNCMom featuring J Crew

Items in this set:
j.crew doggie tee
Women knits & tees Ringspun cotton crewneck tee, $33
J.Crew - Wool herringbone professor blazer, $200
J.Crew ankle toothpick jean in twilight wash, $125
Black Boots (Nine West "Frollic" in black suede)

OOTD 1/24/10: Sunday Night Sushi featuring the Professor Blazer

Speaking of Sperry Topsiders

Hey gals and the occasional guy! Busy day around Casa di Tar Heels.  Journey Boy's having a few extra friends over for dinner.  JB's college buddy/housemate and housemate's girlfriend are coming later today to spend the night with us en route to driving out to Colorado where they'll be living for two years and working, I think, with Americorps.  (Could be Teach America or the Peace Corps -- I'm not 100% sure which organization, but you get the idea.)

But of course, even in the midst of a busy day I have to make time for a cup of coffee and pop by my Blogger Dashboard.   Something always catches my eye amongst your wonderful writings.  Today's eye-catcher was the chatter over at the mothership about Sperry Topsiders.

What a jolt of nostalgia THIS product reappearance has given me!  I lived in Topsiders for four years of college, honest to goodness.  At both of my colleges (I switched mid-sophomore year), Topsiders were a part of the unisex uniform, and life simply could not go on if yours wore out.  We all had plain old brown ones with cream-colored soles and caramel rawhide laces, just like these:

I don't think Sperry even made this shoe in another color, and if they did, my crowd didn't buy 'em.  In downtown Athens, Georgia (home of my beloved UGA -- go Dawgs!) there was a fantastic clothing and shoe store called Heery's Clothes Closet that had student-priced stuff AND chic mom-and-dad-priced stuff.  Heery's is still there and still fabulous, and boy, back in the day it was THE place to shop.  They did a brisk lil' biz in Topsiders -- I'll bet I bought 5 or 6 identical pair in my 2.5 years at UGA.  I wore them with Army green fatigues or canvas painter's pants from the Army/Navy store, plus an Izod shirt and a clear vinyl belt.  Voila, uniform completed.

So I will mos' def get myself some Topsiders for this spring, and I'll grin every time I put them on, I'm sure.  Which ones to get, though?  The color and fabric choices now are mind-boggling.

Here are a few of my favorites from Zappos, in the Topsider classic "A/O 2 Eye" style and in a sister style called the "Bluefish 2 Eye".  Be forewarned, kids -- I am a sucker for brightly colored shoes.  If you prefer neutrals, click on the Zappos links because lots of cute neutral combos are available.  

Here's the A/O 2 Eye in Raspberry. Cute as a pink bug, and available for you to invite into your closet RIGHT HERE.  I'm picturing cropped pants or shorts, a fun tee with ruffles or a graphic, and a Jackie in a contrasting bright color.

 

Meet Miss Orange, the cheerful sistuh of Miss Raspberry.

Oh please, STOP it.  How can anybody NOT love Topsiders in navy denim with navy patent accents??  What could I NOT wear these with, from my khaki/grey/army green/honey glaze/rosy pink basic palette?  Welcome to my closet, cuties.  Heidi, are ya seeing these? ;-)

These are the "Bluefish" style (which also is available in a couple of colors with a shearling lining -- oh SNAP!)  Check them out along with FIFTEEN other color combos RIGHT HERE.  This color is so luscious in the suede, and although it's hard to see here, there's patent on the accents here, too. 

Same shoe.  Had to show you this rich forest green.

Last one of the "Bluefish" for ya.  I love this combination of a creamy vanilla, springtime-y base color with the fun plaid accents.  Come to Mama.

So whatcha think, glaydies?

That's it for me for now -- off to make lasagna for a crowd.  For which, by the way, I'll post the recipe later if you like.  This variation is vegetarian (in honor of JB's vegetarian buddy/housemate) and uses roasted veggies of all sorts, black beans and a spicy sauce.  Yum-O!

Speaking of Sperry Topsiders

Oh my, an award!!

A view of Atlanta's downtown skyline ... with a rare addition to the ground cover!

Good morning, everyone, from freeeeeeezing (16 degrees) and ice-glazed, snow-dusted Atlanta, where we are so not used to dealing with this!!!  BRRRR!!!

As always, a cup of coffee and a visit to some of my favorite blogs started me off on the right foot -- I should say the right fashionably-clad, fit and well-fed foot.  My blogroll is chock full of JCA's, but in the wake of Julie & Julia and the holiday season I've been adding a few cooking and baking blogs, and of course I follow my most beloved fitness instructors' blogs as well.  To be a proper online guest, I really should sit down at my computer dressed in a fetching workout ensemble accessorized with great J. Crew jewelry, with one perfectly-brewed serving of coffee in a bone china cup on the rim of which is perched one perfectly-made gourmet breakfast scone.

Hold onto that image, friends.  Naturally, that is exactly what I usually look like sitting here.  Do not picture me, hair thrown up on my head like Pebbles Flintstone, sprawled in my comfy leather office chair this late in the morning in a UNC sweatshirt over candy-cane-decorated thermal jammies and fuzzy red 'n white Victoria's Secret snowflake slippers (yeah, I'm slow putting away the holiday garb, I know.)  I plead total inertia and I blame it on ice and cold and snowy dust, which in the ATL equals immobilized city.

So, you got the right pic of me in your minds, right?  Super, because yours truly was given the prized Beautiful Blogger award by one of my blog heroes, the always-wonderful Fabulous Florida Mommy!  Thank you so much, FFM!  It's a wonderful award, and especially nice to receive it from you!

To accept this award I need to tell you 7 random things about me, and then nominate 7 of my favorite bloggers to receive the same award.  Cool.  Here ya go, inquiring minds!

•  My parents nicknamed me "Kathy" when I was born (short for Kathryn), but I don't remember a single time in my entire life that either of them called me Kathy.  They had other pet names for me.  My dad's favorite was Kas -- pronounced like "Cass" -- and my mom's fave was Katie. Even my sister never called me Kathy (she did, and does, call me "Sister".)  Being the good girl that I was, for years I only introduced myself as "Kathy", as instructed.  Imagine how confusing this was to new friends who visited me at home!  As an adult I still introduce myself as Kathy, but sometimes I share this oddball naming tidbit from my past with my friends, and as a result one whole group of friends has chosen to call me "Kas."  Another group has made up a whole new nickname of their own and only call me "Kath."  By the way, my DH calls me Kathryn or Kath -- NEVER Kathy.  I'll answer to anything if you're holding movie theater popcorn for me.
  

• I'm a seriously addicted fan of everything Star Trek and own the entire 7-year box set of ST: The Next Generation.  You could strand me with Patrick Stewart and I'd be a happy castaway.

• I have watched and adored Days of Our Lives since I was in college.  Of course I missed a few years pre-VCR/pre-TiVO, when I was a full-time working mother of two busy boys.  But in the soap opera universe time is a weirdly fluid kinda thing, so when I was able to start taping the show I caught up in no time.  Now I TiVo the whole week and on the weekend I cruise through all five episodes in about 45 minutes.  A real guilty pleasure.

•  If Journey Boy (DS #1) had been a girl, we were going to name him Caroline.  His girlfriend of almost four years is named Caroline.  I consider this cosmic.

• If I'd been a boy, my parents were going to name me Kevin.  I wanted to name Blues Boy (DS #2) Kevin.  For months DH said no (and it was always more like "HELL NO", actually), but he was strangely dodgey about telling me why, so I kept trying to persuade him.  Finally he confessed that the only wrestling match he lost in his stellar high school career was to a guy named Kevin. 'Nuff said.  I didn't entirely lose the war, though; hearing me tell the story of why NOT "Kevin", my paralegal said to me "Well, why don't you name him 'Evan'?"  Eureka.  We did.  Close enough.

• I looooove spinning and take a class on Tuesday and Thursday nights at 6:00.  One of my secret (except to you ;-)) 2010 goals is to become certified to teach spinning myself.

• My taste in music is kinda all over the map.  I love 70's and 80's music (you could also strand me with Jon Bon Jovi, actually -- I'd never wanna be rescued.)  But I also like me a little country (Carrie Underwood, Martina McBride, Sugarland, a little bit of Brad Paisley and Willie Nelson, and I highly recommend you check out Billy Currington's "People are Crazy" for a classically country hoot 'n a holler.)  And I'm a big fan of Usher and Kanye.
  

Okay, fangirls, that does it for my mini-autobiography. Now I'd like to pass along this award to seven terrific bloggers, some of whom y'all might not know.  Not in any particular order...

• The Brownie Project  -- An awesome, awesome blog devoted to one of my favorite food groups.
• Mid-Century Mom -- The nom de plume of the beautiful DinaGideon, who in my book would give June Cleaver a serious run for the money as Most Elegant, Effortless & Ethereally Pretty Homemaker.
• Jillian, Inc. -- A recently-discovered new favorite; an Atlanta JCA gal like me who is gorgeous, well-dressed, devoted to her equally gorgeous family and very, very witty.
• Dinners for a Year and Beyond -- A gold mine of great recipes and a delightful cook/author.
• Smells Like Home -- Another foodie blog that I really love, devoted mostly if not entirely to Ina Garten (Barefoot Contessa) recipes -- and I always love Ina's food!  Beautiful pictures that you just wanna take a bite out of.  Great stuff.
• My Favorite Things -- Love this blog, love this gal.  Read about what she accomplished in 2009.  And she's a big fan of LOST -- me too, girl, me too. :-)
• Tracey's Blog -- The blog home of my friend Tracey Staehle, who is a truly wonderful gal.  She's a fitness instructor who has been producing fitness videos for a few years (see her website, Fit by Tracey) and she's the proud new mommy of the beautiful Scarlett Olivia Staehle.  If you own a treadmill, you MUST buy Tracey's "Walking Strong" DVD and you MUST preorder her just-filmed "Walking Stronger."  She makes walking on a treadmill hard, productive and fun.  A party in a package.

Happy Friday, everybody!  Stay warm and have a nice weekend.  Blues Boy leaves to go back to college on Sunday morning so we'll be doing Fun Things With the Family for the next two days.  See you soon!

Oh my, an award!!