don't miss sample sales for Thursday, September 9: on Rue La La: Cole Haan outerwear. on Gilt: L.A.M.B., Oliver Peoples, Seven for all Mankind. on Hautelook: Voom by Joy Han, Betsey Johnson, Shae. on ideeli: Marika Workout WEar.
Remember the Dylan Folding Tote by Linea Pelle bag I was carrying in an outfit the other day? Well, here’s the full review. I’m going out of town on Monday and this will be my carry-on/handbag while I’m in Florida. In the video, I packed it exactly as I will on Monday to carry on the plane, and remove everything so you can see how much STUFF fits in this bag:
(I want to apologize for the video and that my head is cut off sometimes, I shot it with iMovie and I always forget that what I see on the screen is NOT what ends up on YouTube! Anyway, the video is about the bag, not me )
This bag is wonderful, and perfect for traveling. I have been carrying it around here shopping, etc., but even for me, it’s a bit big for an everyday bag. This Summer when we take day trips with my future step-son, it will be perfect, because I’m sure I’ll be carrying water bottles, hand sanitizer and other random stuff, but just for running quick errands, it’s big. If you’re a frequent traveler, it’s a wonderful bag, because you can fill it full of stuff to carry on the plane, and then fold it over to use as a handbag. Or use it as a work tote and keep a smaller clutch inside.
I also love it for traveling because while it’s an ORANGE bag, it’s neutral, because it will go with black and navy. Call me old-fashioned, but I don’t like to carry black bags while I wear a navy dress – I’d rather use a color, or a brown bag. Since I’m bringing a few navy & black dresses with me to Florida, by bringing this bag, I won’t have to worry about changing it out. And I am DEFINITELY not the type to bring more than one handbag with me on a trip…
Overall, as my first Linea Pelle bag, I’m very impressed. I’ve heard wonderful things about their bags for quite some time, but never had an opportunity to try one until now. The leather is seriously soft, and thick (I don’t worry about carrying my laptop in this bag, it’s sturdy enough), and the hardware is luxurious, but not frivolous. And I’m VERY happy with the vibrant orange color! Since I don’t wear a lot of color in my outfits, it’s essential that I try to include a bit in my accessories
*disclosure: Linea Pelle sent me this bag at no charge to review for you. Thank you Linea Pelle!!!
My TOMS Shoes wedges arrived this afternoon, and I am sad to admit that I have mixed feelings. I wanted them to be PERFECT and WONDERFUL right out of the box, and well, they’re not.
First, I was a little taken aback by the brightness of the color; on the website, they were clearly more muted. They’re not horrible, but I was hoping for more of a light minty green than a bright minty green. That’s really not a big issue though, because I’m assuming they’ll fade a bit with wear, and honestly, the brightness doesn’t bother me that much. I still like the color. I chose the mint green because I had just received the orange linea pelle bag and hate to be matchy-matchy with shoes & accessories. And my initial feeling was to get the green anyway…
Second, they slip off my feet in the back. I wore them around the house for a while, but it was difficult to walk because it was like walking in flip flops, but not flip flops…I think I can remedy this quite easily with those sticky puffy things you can tape to the inside of the heel area. I really hope I can anyway. Otherwise, they were very comfortable. The padding on the sole is great, and I like how the wedge narrows a bit in the back. In spite of the height (which really isn’t that high), it doesn’t feel like you’re walking on “high” heels in these. But again, it’s hard to tell because I could hardly walk in them anyway because of the slipping-off-my-feet problem.
I did take my normal size (8), which is also my “TOMS” size, and I definitely can’t size down a half or a whole size. There’s no room in the back when I put my foot in the shoe, so I don’t feel like they’re too big, it’s just a problem when I walk. IMO, that’s maybe a design flaw with the shoe…
I do really love them, and I hope I can make them work somehow, because I think they will be a great summer shoe. But I am kind of sad that I wasn’t as excited when I received them as I was when I ordered them
What do you think? Do you have any suggestions about what I can do about the heel slipping?
Okay, so yesterday after I posted ISO the perfect ankle booties, I went ahead and ordered both pairs of Seychelles booties from Endless and they arrived about an hour ago (how cool is that?). I intended to only keep one pair, so I need your help choosing which you think works better on me – or if neither float your boat, that’s okay too. Honestly, I’m not sure I’m going to be able to find a pair of shoes to wear with skirts/dresses that I’m happy with – I’m just not liking my calves much right now…but I’m trying to give it a go.
First pair (mine are brown):
I’m wearing the first pair in these two outfits -
Second pair (mine are “clay” – which is kind of a grey/olive color):
I’m wearing the second pair in these three outfits…I think. I don’t remember now which pair is with the outift with the black dress! I think it might be the first pair….
Do you have a favorite pair of booties? Favorite outfit?
THANKS
You may have noticed in my most recent outfits of the day, I traded in my Alexander Wang Donna bag for a Fullum & Holt oversized spiral bag in cream I received from Emmy’s Boutique:
After carrying this bag for about a month pretty much non-stop (the days I didn’t carry it, I regretted it!), I can say that it’s a phenomenal bag. When I first saw Fullum & Holt bags online, I was intrigued, but not in love; the shapes are very “different” and I wasn’t convinced I’d want to carry one for very long. So, I was really interested to see and feel (and carry) the bag in person so I could form my own, more educated, opinion about them. And while I can’t necessarily speak about the other shapes and styles by Fullum & Holt, I’m convinced that this spiral bag will be one of my favorites for a very long time.
Why I love it:
Lightweight: I love a bag I can stuff my laptop into when I want to go and work somewhere else, and even with my laptop and wallet (which is HUGE), makeup bag, phone, another pouch and odds & ends, this bag didn’t get so heavy it was hard to carry. I wouldn’t necessarily use it as an everyday laptop bag though, I don’t think the leather & stitching was meant to hold up to that much weight.
Easy to carry: the shoulder strap is lightly padded on the underside which makes it a little easier to bear. But as I mentioned earlier, the bag isn’t really that heavy, so it’s not a huge concern, just a very nice touch. And the strap never ONCE slid off my shoulder. That makes me very happy!! The shoulder strap can be adjusted so you could wear this bag as a messenger, although it still hangs a little too high up for my taste (I like my messenger bags to hang at my hip).
Holds everything: obviously…this bag is HUGE, so it’s even a great size for an overnight trip if you don’t carry your laptop. There are three inside pockets, one zipper pocket on one side, and two pouch pockets on the other side. I do wish the pockets were a little deeper though, my phone falls out of the one meant to hold your phone, and the zipper pocket could be a little wider & deeper to hold more stuff since there’s not an outside pocket.
I chose the cream color because I don’t have a bag that color in my wardrobe yet, and was interested to see how it would work with my clothing. I love it, and feel like it brings a little “light” to my otherwise black/gray/brown wardrobe, but I HATE that my dark denim has already worn blue spots on the leather. That is no one’s fault but mine – it’s inevitable that you’ll stain lighter bags with dark denim (all of my bags are stained) – I will just need to clean it and try to avoid carrying it with my dark jeans in the future.
Something I feel like the bag is missing – but not missing – is an outside pocket. I say that it’s not missing it because with the spiral design, I don’t see how you can add an outside pocket without messing up the beauty of the design. So, I put stuff I normally put in outside pockets in the inside pockets and all is well…unless I forget and just dump stuff in the bag – then it’s a disaster trying to find anything loose in there!!
All in all, this is one of the most well-designed bags I’ve worn. The spiral is so cool, I love the color, and mostly, I LOVE that I can carry this bag all day and not want to kill myself afterwards. (I did use it the second day of a conference I attended last weekend and was very happy I did)
Buy Fullum & Holt at Emmy’s Boutique for 15% off with code “Grechen15″ or for a limited time, use code Emmys100 for $100 off your order of $325 or more (this is better, the bag would be $500 with this code as opposed to $510 with the “Grechen15″ code)
**update: I sent both dresses back. I didn’t feel like either one was worth the money for me, the dress on the right I considered keeping, but I wasn’t sure I would get my money’s worth out of it. The dress on the left I liked, but I hated that it was dry clean…so, back [...]
In the pictures: Love Shop silk scarf, Gap jeans (that are still too long, even when I’m wearing platforms), James Perse casual u-neck, Tory Burch cardigan, Alexander Wang Donna hobo. (ugh, I’m having such a hard time getting good pictures lately. Our place is so small, so there’s not a lot of room to spread [...]
You’ve probably seen fringed handbags popping up here and there lately, and pretty soon, you’ll see them all over the place. They fit right in with this Spring’s long, printed dresses and slouchy tees to round out the pervasive “boho” look that keeps coming around in warmer weather. I must admit, I’m not all the [...]
I’m back!!! I know, it’s been FOREVER since I posted a review, and I apologize. Things have been insanely busy around here, and honestly, I didn’t really get anything in that was worth of review until now. (Be sure to scroll down after you read this review for two more….) Remember the Jenny Yuen Gatsby [...]
I wrote about Kate D’Arcy’s new venture, Lux Green Living, a few weeks ago, and now, I am excited to review a few organic cotton pieces from Toggery, Kate’s clothing line! First, the french terry lounge pants. This has basically been my uniform whenever I’m home: Kate’s pants, a SPUN organic cotton tank top, and [...]
I have talked about, Interviewed, and Reviewed SPUN Organic clothing before…but now it’s time for a follow-up, and some new pieces…(these are just random pictures from outfits I’ve snapped recently – sorry for the brightness/color quality!) You can get all the SPUN pieces at Fashion Ethic and save 30% right now with code “grechen30.” I [...]
I have been delinquent in posting this review, but I have already worn this necklace to death since receiving it! The seaglass necklace by Jessica Lee is just the pop of color I need for my mostly black, grey, and white wardrobe. Jessica Lee handcrafts this necklace (and her other seaglass items like earrings and [...]
I’m really not a huge graphic/message-tee person – I tend to stay more with solid colors and eschew patterns altogether. I know. Boring!!! But…that’s just what fits my age/lifestyle better and makes it easier to work pieces into my wardrobe. That said, I’m certainly not opposed to said tees, especially if they’re more environmentally friendly [...]
I’ve received quite a few bamboo pieces to review (scroll down for more reviews) this Eco-Month on Grechen’s Closet, but Lizzie Parker’s are definitely the most “fashion-forward” and unique of the bunch. The “Short Twiggy” in “hotpants” has been getting me through the weekends, and walks with the dog. And it “dresses-up” quite nicely as [...]
I don’t think I’ve ever appreciated multi-tasking clothing as much as I do now that I have this lovely Gaia Conceptions “Love me two times” dress. I love it as a tube dress more than just a skirt, but they are both fabulous, and perfect for travel. I took this to Florida recently and got [...]
I have been looking at Melissa’s “plastic” sandals for quite some time now, but only just now decided to take the plunge and buy a pair. The ballet flats are especially cute, and maybe I’ll try a pair this Fall, but I just can’t wear “shoes” in the Summer time (my feet just get too [...]
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