Accent on Jewelry

By Abby

I love color, and I like to incorporate color into my wardrobe. Even though all my professional clothing is grey or black, I can selectively add some colorful jewelry to finish the look. I have nearly every color of jewelry imaginable: red, pink, orange, blue, purple, gold and green.

Deep emerald necklace and earrings

Usually I buy a piece of jewelry at a time and later find pieces that match. I’ve had a gold necklace with a green stone for years. It wasn’t until about two years ago that I found matching earrings. (Just between us: I actually bought the earrings as a Christmas present for Elle that year, but they matched my necklace so perfectly I just had to keep them.)

One of the great things about jewelry is that each piece doesn’t have to match exactly; close is good enough.  And it can be inexpensive. Try Kohl’s, Target or department stores, where you can skip the jewelry cases and go right to the racks of fashion jewelry. A lot of it is stylish and classy, but you have to browse.

My husband found this assortment of sparkling red jewelry for me at Kohl’s, and the dark silver of the metal perfectly complements dark grey clothing (aka my professional wardrobe).

Assortment of sparkling red jewelry

Other great places for inexpensive jewelry are small fashion boutiques and thrift stores.  And when you have an occasion where you want the real thing (gold and diamonds), I suggest looking in places like pawn shops (where you can haggle for a better price), online or at shops that sell new and used jewelry.

I bought my husband’s wedding ring — a simple band — for $50 from a local jeweler who sells new and used jewelry and believes there’s nothing romantic about paying extravagant prices for it.

So keep your eyes peeled for bling to add dazzle and color to a monochromatic wardrobe.

Our Sorrow

By Abby

By now most have heard the tragic news of the school shooting that occurred this morning at Chardon High School. Our hearts are heavy as we mourn the loss of a 16-year-old boy, and our spirits are shaken as we ponder the disregard for human life so graphically displayed today and everyday throughout our world.

My husband and I both graduated from Chardon High School. Elle and I only recently moved away from Chardon. Our ties to that community are strong.

There will be candlelight vigil tomorrow night at St. Mary’s Church in Chardon. This evening at Notre Dame College in South Euclid there will be a prayer service in the Regina Chapel at 9:00pm.

To read more about this tragic event, click on this link:http://edition.cnn.com/2012/02/27/justice/ohio-school-shooting/index.html?hpt=hp_t2#

Look What Came in the Mail

By Elle

Grey/yellow tights and kimono scarf

I underestimated by a few days how long it would take for my rockin’ cute tights to arrive, but alas they are here! And rockin’ they are.

As I suspected, they pair nicely with my kimono scarf as well as my grey slouchy boots — though, really, who wants to hide these beauties beneath boots!

When Fashion Hurts

By Elle

If you’ve ever experienced numbness in the leg, you may have a serious medical condition — or it may be that your belt is too tight. Here’s a good read from the Wall Street Journal, Feb. 21: Tight Ties, Killer Heels: Clothes Make the Fashion Victims.

Still, I’m not giving up my flip-flops.

Why I Bought It #1

By Elle

The other day I was out “gathering” at Green Roots Collection and stumbled across this funky top. It didn’t take me long to decide to buy it, and here’s why:

Ribbon-weave top with dark brown skirt

• Colors  I’m partial to fall colors, and I like the rich red mixed with taupe and yellow-orange. (Here I’m wearing it over a dark green tank, which actually looks better in real life.)
• Material  I like the ribbon weave in this top because it gives it airiness yet texture and body.
• Versatility  I can definitely wear this over a cami on a cool summer evening, draped around my shoulders with sleeves tied during a summer afternoon, and over a long-sleeved top with a similar neckline in cooler months. It also pairs well with a skirt or pants.

Oh, plus it was on sale for about $30. Woo hoo!

I really wanted to wear it with a brown skirt, but the few brown skirts I already have just weren’t perfect. Plus, this top is long, which added to the difficulty. That’s OK. I’m a patient girl. On Saturday, I was in Little Italy, again gathering, and found this beauty at Juma Gallery. Also on sale ($65). Why’d I buy it?

• Color  Love the rich brown in this skirt! My others are lighter, so this is a solid addition to my wardrobe.
• Material  As they say, softer than a baby’s bottom.
• Style  I like the “flounce” in this skirt, though I’m not a big flounce fan ordinarily, and I like the dropped waist — perfect under a long top!

Soft-knit brown skirt

“Overdress,” You Say?

By Elle

As Abby always says, “We don’t dress; we overdress.” The other day someone asked me what this means. It’s like this: When we’re at home, you may find us lounging around in sweatpants and a t-shirt — uh, possibly. But if we’re going out in public — even if it’s just a quick trip to Trader Joe’s — the sweatpants stay home.*

OK, so we don’t wear sweatpants in public. Not that unusual, you think. Ah, but it’s more than that.

In years past, people used to dress (as in “dress up”) for air travel. Traveling by airplane was a luxury; not everyone could afford to fly, and those who could naturally dressed for the occasion. Obviously those days are gone, but there’s no reason anyone should appear in public looking like they just stepped off the treadmill. Or rolled out of bed.

Abby and I are of the opinion that every day is an opportunity to feel luxurious. After all, is every day not a gift? Eat off the bone china, drink wine (or soymilk) out of your finest crystal and replace paper napkins with cloth, we say. Don’t save the good stuff for the holidays that roll around once a year. Make the ordinary luxurious. What better way is there to live? (And if you’re afraid of breaking the china or the crystal, consider this: Have you ever risked having your heart broken? And is that not more valuable?)

So with that in mind, one shouldn’t simply dress. Don’t go out in a pair of jeans and a random shirt. (You’ll look like everyone else, and how boring is that?) Don’t settle for the ordinary. Consider the “presentation of self,” and overdress.

To overdress is not to say that you should grocery shop in a cocktail dress and heels. Good grief, no. But it does mean that you should put yourself together in such a way that you will feel, and people will think, that you’re someone worth knowing. Because you are, aren’t you?

Save the jeans and random shirt for the weekend you’re hosting a garage sale. Or raking leaves. Or writing your novel. But when you step outside your door, do it with pizzazz.

I recall Abby’s Uncle Michael once saying that he doesn’t tip wait staff. He overtips (and that’s not a lie). This over thing…must be something that runs in the family.

*True confessions: Sometimes (rarely, actually) after a workout, I have been known to pop into a store in, yes, my workout clothes and Nikes. But only if absolutely necessary. And let it be known that the entire time I feel as if I’m sporting a tired bathrobe, bunny slippers and pink foam curlers in my hair.