The Little WHITE Dress

We all know the magic of owning the perfect little black dress, which can be worn for many occasions. Redbook magazine editors recently issued the challenge for me to wear a little white dress for summer. They are considering using this image in a blogger segment for their July issue.

Those of you who know me well know that I would never even look at a white dress. White is not good with my hair color and skin tone. Dresses are not normally on my shopping list, even in the correct colors. I don't like to show my legs, and the top half of me is much larger than the bottom half. This makes my dress choices very limited because they look like a tent on me.

For this blogger feature, I decided to put aside my preconceptions and give the task my best effort. My shopping time is minimal, so I headed over to my favorite store, which I can actually see from my breakfast nook. (I live on a hill, and they are on another hill across the valley.) Stein Mart has a nice selection of dresses most of the time, and on this day, I found two white dresses for consideration. This pearl ivory sheath with an asymmetric layered peplum was my choice. 

You may also know that I always look for a great price. I will never suggest that you buy a $300 pair of jeans. (Honestly! How do these young twenty-something bloggers afford a $1,500 handbag?) That's another reason I love Stein Mart! I found this dress by Premise Dresses with a suggested retail price of $128 for only $39.99. 

Since the dress was so form-fitting, I tried it in size 10 instead of an 8, and it worked great.  It came with a belt in the same fabric, but I omitted that since I wanted to up the glam for this shoot.

 
I paired the dress with nude pumps by BCBGeneration and an ivory trimmed straw bag from T.J. Maxx. 

The silver jewelry includes crystal trimmed large hoops, a large face crystal trimmed watch, and a large-scale link bracelet. The watch and crystal ring are from Stein Mart, and the other items have been in my collection so long I don't remember where I got them. 

It's official! My image will be in the July issue Redbook!

Go Natural!

The shell buttons on this fuchsia linen jacket inspired my choice of accessories for date night.

Three-quarter length sleeves are the perfect choice for this time of year. This fuchsia linen-like fabric is also great for the cool evenings of early spring. The jacket style is rather casual with pleated details and shell buttons, making it a good choice to pair with jeans and the tan pants I am wearing here.

I often take my cues for accessories from the details of a bag or jacket. For example, the buttons on this jacket are made from shells, so I chose accessories made from natural elements. The back of the jacket features the same gathered details with buttons.

The bone and brass bangles have been in my collection for years. The necklace is one that I bought from the clearance rack at Belk a couple of years ago. It was damaged and was much more "in your face" bright silver. Since I own a jewelry supply company, that was no problem for me. I replaced the missing chain and added a regal element to the pendant, and antiqued the silver to tone it down a bit. The pendant also includes a mother of pearl shell.

The tank top is from Coldwater Creek, and it is a softer white, not bright white. The pants are tan side zip pants from Talbots last fall.   

The jacket is by Peck & Peck from Stein Mart. It was on the 30% off rack last week. The Etienne Aigner shoes are several years old.

Motown in Tennessee!

Last evening Mr. Mickey and I had a wonderful world-class gourmet meal and saw a fabulous Las Vegas show right here in Tennessee!

The sun was shining all day, so warmer weather has finally arrived. Oh, joy!

My three-quarter length sleeve jacket is several years old. I paired it with a fuchsia tank from Chico's and a pair of dark gray pants from Stein Mart.

The faux leather clutch is from T.J. Maxx, and the ruffle trim black leather platform sandals are from Kohl's a couple of years ago. 

Mr. Mickey and I always plan what to wear so as not to clash with each other. When I arrived to pick him up, he looked so dashing in his black and white silk jacket and black sweater! 

The patterns in our jackets look strange in the photos, so I include close-ups of them.

Closeup of Mickey's silk jacket.

Closeup of Susan's black and white jacket.

Jacob and John are the chef and sous-chef at Gourmet & Company in Johnson City. Last evening they prepared a pasta dish that was absolutely one of the best meals either of us has ever enjoyed.

The ravioli was made with porcini mushrooms and stuffed with goat cheese and spinach. A roasted shrimp topped each, and a perfect orchid was placed in the center. Bravo gentlemen! 

The Johnson City Symphony Orchestra closed out their season with special guests. A spectrum is a group of four very talented gentlemen who performed in Las Vegas for several years. The evening's performance was a tribute to many of the wonderful Motown classics we grew up listening to. We were sitting in fourth-row center seats! I felt like a VIP all evening. 

Thank you for reading my blog and for all of your lovely comments.

I hope you have a great week!

A Suit ... or Not

Do you have suits that you never wear?

This vintage Chanel suit was found on 1stdibs.com for $1,500.

Treat the pieces as separates instead, and you may find yourself reaching for them often.

It has been a trend to wear Chanel inspired jackets with faded jeans and heels for the past few years. That has become too predictable now, so I like to pair a jacket with more tailored pieces instead.

Pair the skirt or pants with a cardigan and a tank and pointed toe flats.

Think outside the suit!

Thank you for reading and commenting on my blog. I enjoy hearing from you!

Closets Revealed!

Readers have asked to see my closets to learn about my organization strategy, so this post is a tour of my closets and storage.

The walk-in closet off the master bath holds my clothes, small clutch bags, hats, and most of my jewelry. That black object in front of the blanket basket is a stool.

I organize clothes according to color and dressy or casual. Jackets are on the top, and tees are on the bottom of the right side. Pajamas, dresses, tunics, winter pants, and jeans are in the center. (Summer pants are in an upstairs closet for now.) 

You can see the left side in the mirror reflection, which holds blouses and tank tops and casual jackets and sweaters.

The folding doors are fully mirrored, and there is a built-in chest to the left. I keep jewelry in the chest and in the mahogany jewelry box on top, which was a gift from Mr. Mickey. Clutch bags are in those colorful storage boxes, and hats are in the round hat boxes. If they aren't so large, they won't fit in them. (Never wear a hat wider than your shoulders.) The one hat that you see is almost there. I have never found a box to fit it.

The best silver cleaner ever is in the gray jar. It can be found at Target. Look for Connoisseurs® Silver Jewelry Cleaner.

Shallow trays for organizing an office drawer are great to keep jewelry from getting tangled. They can be stacked in deeper drawers. You can usually find them at Walmart or any office supply store.

I bought that mirror in an antique store for $5. It was matte purple! I took it apart and painted it to look like rococo Italian carved wood. 

I store my shoes and scarves in the closet of a small upstairs bedroom I've named my dressing room.

I found both of these shoe storage systems at Bed Bath and Beyond.

On the back of the door is more shoe storage. 

  
The guest bedroom has shelves along the sidewalls, perfect for storing larger daytime bags and tote bags.

I keep bags stuffed with tissue to hold their shape. 

I hope you enjoyed the tour. Have a great week!