Spry On The Wall

My Take - Rochas Fall 2013

2013-05-13T07:00:00.000-04:00

One day my best friend emailed me about how much she loved this necklace from Rochas Fall 2013 runway show. I quickly did a search and came up with some much more affordable alternatives. I really love this necklace because it's easily dressed up or down, so versatile. Enjoy!

1. J.Crew - $98

2. Givenchy - $75

3. BaubleBar - $34

4. Charter Club - $48

5. Blu Bijoux - $32

6. Ann Taylor - $75

7. J.Crew Factory - $32.50

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links

Runway image via Fashionising.com

Gap vs. Tory Burch - Get A Jump On Fall!

2013-05-10T07:00:00.000-04:00

Loved all the beetle/scarab motifs in Tory Burch's Fall 2013 collection (see my Fall 2013 Pinterest board with all my picks). Imagine how delighted was I when I stumbled upon this lady bug print shirt from the Gap available right now!

Gap boyfriend printed shirt - $45

What do you think, are you on board with the beetle trend?

Disclosure: This post contains an affiliate link

Runway image via Style.com

Pattern - Leopard vs. Cheetah

2013-05-09T07:00:00.000-04:00

You know I don't get all preachy on here, but I'm going to get a little preachy today. I'm not trying to be hateful, I'm just trying to be helpful. I'm a fabric designer, a designer that deals with a lot of prints and patterns. And this makes me so anal about terminology , I'm anal because getting a placement depends on the proper communication of what is desired by a customer. Or on a more practical level, what I'm looking for when I go shopping for clothes/shoes/home furnishings. Lately there have been a slew of missteps when it comes to what is labeled as "leopard print". I'll see things that are obviously not leopard print being labeled as "leopard print" (like one snakeskin print jacket recently - really?) but more often than not I'll see a cheetah print being labeled as "leopard". While they are similar, they are not alike. A quick big cat lesson:

First up - the leopard (snoozing in a tree - aren't cats all the same on some level? They love to get their nap on.)

Leopards have the distinctive spots that are known as "rosettes". Tan ground, black spots surrounding a darker brown spot.

Next is the jaguar - has the same rosette spots as a leopard

Basically, interchangeable with a leopard print. Work it, you jaguar, you! Meow!

Lastly - the cheetah (aka the fastest land animal)

The cheetah has a tan ground with just black spots - I would say like an almost irregular polka dot. None of that third color rosette stuff.

Here are some examples of the patterns out in the retail world:

While I love them both, I'm a bit partial to the leopard because of that third color that adds a little more depth and sophistication. Now both of these patterns can be used as neutrals and make for outstanding additions to your wardrobe (I always encourage everyone to own a pair of leopard shoes).

What do you think? Do you prefer Leopard or Cheetah?

Images of the cats via National Geographic

My Take - Reed Krakoff Spring 2013

2013-05-08T07:00:00.001-04:00

Yay! First "My Take" in a long time (too long). I picked this outfit from Reed Krakoff's Spring 2013 collection because it's super cute and I could visualize wearing it, and of course, recreating it on a budget!

1. Baseball shirt - similar from Forever 21 - $9

2. Shorts - similar from Old Navy - here $23 and here $27

3. Vince Camuto clutch

4. Enzo Angiolini sandals - $60

5. Steve Madden sandals - $70

I'm finally able to limp along with the new Shopstyle, but I created this look over a month ago and it disappeared, so I had to try and figure out what I had used. The next one will be better with the exact links, etc. It's always something...

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links

Runway image via Style.com

Best Dressed - Met Ball 2013

2013-05-07T12:59:00.000-04:00

Well, last night was the "Oscars" of fashion, the annual Met Ball gala for the Costume Institute. This year's exhibition is "PUNK: Chaos to Couture". From the pictures I've seen of the exhibit, it looks pretty weak, I feel like we've seen this before with the McQueen and the Anglophile shows of years past. Time to do something completely different next year, please. The red carpet looks were pretty weak too, not many brought the punk and those who did seemed a bit forced and random. Anyway, here are the looks I liked (punk or not punk):

Naomie Harris in Donna Karan Atelier with an Edie Parker clutch (obsessed with these clutches) - hands down my favorite look of the night.

Jessica Pare in Jason Wu (with Jason Wu)

Blake Lively in Gucci Premiere

Honorable mention for actually bringing a punk vibe (in a high fashion way) - Sarah Jessica Parker in custom Giles, Philip Treacy headpiece and custom Louboutin shoes

What do you think? Did you have any favorites?

Images via Style.com

What I Bought - April 2013

2013-05-03T07:00:00.000-04:00

Here are the goodies I brought home this month. This is a pretty typical month for me.

1. Prabal Gurung for Target dress - $10.48 on clearance at my store

2. Merona basic tee from Target - $6 on sale

3. Covergirl nail polish in Forever Fawn - $5

4. Flower nail polish in Eye of the Tiger Lily - $5

Total out of pocket for April = $26.48

Go forth and shop responsibly!

Disclosure: This post contains an affiliate link

What I Bought - March

2013-05-02T07:00:00.000-04:00

Not much this month (this is way more typical than last month's gift card purchases):

1. Mossimo Falk Thong - Target - $20

2. Prabal Gurung for Target flats - $30 (returned)

I wanted to like these flats but I just wasn't 100% so they went back. Still on the hunt for the perfect pointy toe, black flat.

Total out of pocket for March - $20

Go forth and shop responsibly!

See you tomorrow for April's purchases.

What I Bought - February

2013-05-01T12:00:00.000-04:00

I thought I would start rounding up my clothing purchases on the blog each month. I love when other bloggers do this, so I thought I would jump in and do it too! I'm going to hit you with three months over the next three days (and get caught up). Now, first a little about the "B" word - Budget! I don't have a set monthly budget for clothes specifically. I have a very strict food/household goods budget that I stick to. I'm so militant about staying within my means (nothing is worth the stress of consumer debt). I don't work outside the home (I work part-time from my home and when I do have to go to the mill I have a company uniform I wear). So really my needs are slim (meanwhile, my wants are out of control - ha!). I like to keep things simple and basic and I can't stand a crammed closet. I generally buy good quality items that I know will last a while. Therefore, I rarely spend more than $100 a month on clothes/beauty items. This month was an exception because I won a gift card to Coldwater Creek! Here's what I got in February:

Top from R to L:

Printed jeans from Coldwater Creek - $37.16 (on sale)

Broken-in straight khakis from Gap - $40 (20% off promotion)

Slim ankle pants from Coldwater Creek - $41.96 (on sale)

Winter Wonderland cardigan from Coldwater Creek - $49.54 (on sale - no longer available)

Middle R to L:

Slim ankle pants from Coldwater Creek - $44.21 (on sale)

Indigo Dream ankle jeans from Coldwater Creek - $53.06 (on sale) - LOVE these, so soft!

Slim ankle pants from Coldwater Creek - $41.96 (on sale)

Bottom:

Castaway shell from Coldwater Creek - $41.96 (on sale - no longer available)

Necklace from Coldwater Creek - $27.99 (on sale - no longer available)

Total = $377.84

-$337.84 (Coldwater Creek gift card)

Grand total spent out of pocket = $40

Go forth and shop responsibly!

See you tomorrow for March's purchases!

What I Wore Wednesday 5-1-2013

2013-05-01T07:00:00.001-04:00

One outfit this week. It's a bright and cheerful one though!

Tee - J.Crew outlet

Pants - Gap

Shoes - Max Studio

Bag - Momentum Textiles trade show swag

Here's a better look at the bag from a few contract trade shows ago. I ran across it in my closet and thought it was perfect for this time of year. And bonus, I didn't spend a dime on it!

I'm linking up again with The Pleated Poppy for WIWW and Shanna for Random Wednesday today!

"Blog Inc." Review

2013-04-30T11:56:00.000-04:00

I posted this picture on Instagram (@spryonthewall if you aren't already following) this past weekend and got some comments about a review/what I thought of the book. So I thought I would do a post about my thoughts of Blog, Inc. by Joy Deangdeelert Cho. First of all, it's a super quick read, I mean I zipped right through it. I found some useful information but I would really say it was steered towards new bloggers. Look, I've been plugging away at this blog for a little over 4 years - 4 years!?! And I'm still baffled by a blogging, I've learned a lot by observing, trying and just trial and error. I think she oversimplified a lot of it. If you don't have a blog and you read this book, it makes it sound like you can start growing and cashing in lickety split (and lickety split for me is a year or two). There are so many blogs out there it's just not that easy. Maybe it's just me and my current level of blogging frustration* (I'm sure you all have been able to tell because I just haven't been posting) but I didn't get much out of this book at all. Have any of you read it? What do you think? Am I just sour grapes? :o)

*My frustration has come to a head the past few months because I just feel so overwhelmed and saturated with blogs. It's like information overload and I feel like 90% is just noise and not much use. I struggle with whether to continue on a daily basis. I'm going to re-assess my part in the blogosphere after Bloggy Bootcamp next month. That will be the make or break time for me.

Happy Weekend!

2013-04-12T12:00:00.000-04:00

First up, head over to Elembee today and see what I love about my home state of North Carolina (as part of her outstanding "Across the USA" series)!

Meanwhile, we don't have any plans for the weekend other than to avoid all the traffic from The Masters. It's been crazy, a lot of people rent their houses out that live around us and it's been party central every night. Between that and the endless stream of jets in and out of the private airport near us at all hours of the day and night, I'm done. My husband, on the other hand, loves it (he's headed over to Augusta National on Saturday).

I'm a Jackie Robinson fan and I am so excited about "42" which opens today:
I'm hoping to sneak off and see it in the next few days. I have a couple of books about Jackie that I would recommend if you are interested in more information about him:

Jackie Robinson: A Biography by Arnold Rampersand - a comprehensive and extremely informative book on his life. I loved reading this!

Teammates by Peter Golenbock - a kids book that is one of my all time favorites about a day in Cincinnati where Pee Wee Reese took a stand and put his arm around Jackie and declared him his teammate. I bought this book before I was a mother and now it's one of my daughter's favorites.

Do you have any exciting plans for the weekend? See you next week!

What I Wore Wednesday 4-10-2013

2013-04-10T13:01:00.001-04:00

Here's what I've been wearing over the past couple of weeks. We've gone from chilly to hot in a matter of days. Welcome to Georgia!

Tee - Target

Printed jeans - Coldwater Creek

Sandals - Target

Tee - Target

Necklace - gift

Pants - Coldwater Creek

Shoes - Nine West (old)

Sweater - F21 (thrifted)

Trouser Jeans - J.Crew outlet

Shoes - Max Studio

Bracelet - Mimi Boutique

Left:

Tee - J.Crew Outlet

Pants - Gap

Necklace - Jess LC

Right:

Tee - Target

Cardigan - Bebe (old)

Pants - Gap

Necklace - Vintage

Sweater - Galleries Lafayette (old)

Pants - Coldwater Creek

Necklace - gift

I'm linking up again with The Pleated Poppy for WIWW. Make sure you head over and check out what everyone else is wearing!

What I Wore Wednesday 3-20-2013

2013-03-20T13:15:00.001-04:00

I only documented one outfit this past week - bad, bad blogger. But at least it was a good one:

White Tee - Target

Printed Jeans - Coldwater Creek

Shoes - Minnetonka

Clutch - Target (old)

Bracelet - Mimi Boutique

Nail Color - L'Oreal "Tweet Me"

I'm linking up again with The Pleated Poppy for WIWW. Make sure you head over and check out what everyone else is wearing!

The Scary Hair (color) Incident - Garnier Olia Review

2013-03-19T10:08:00.000-04:00

I had a few people ask me to share my home hair color horror story, so here goes. First of all, I just want to say that I really like Garnier products, never had an issue with any of them and I certainly don't want this to be a hate filled rant - but I do hate the Olia hair color product ;o) Here's why:

Yeah, that's my hair the day after I colored it. Like I said before, I've been coloring my hair at home for 20+ years and have never seen anything like this. The aftermath was a weird patchwork of platinum, orange, fire engine red, burgundy and brown.

I always like trying new at home hair color products and when I saw the new Garnier Olia advertised with promises of oil powered color, little odor, etc, I knew that I was going to try it! So off I went to the store to check out the red options. There were only a couple in this line (first red flag - no pun intended). Reds are tough, trust me I know. I decided on this one:

I opened up the package and was met with this:

Second red flag - the developer wasn't already in the applicator bottle. This gave me pause, because with most haircolor products the developer is already in the applicator bottle all perfectly pre-measured and ready for the color to be added. I went ahead and squeezed the developer in the applicator but it was thick and super hard to get out of the tube. I felt I couldn't get all of it in the applicator, which made me uneasy. I then added the colorant and shook it up as directed. It really didn't want to mix. It was gloopy and splotchy but it finally appeared to be mixed. I applied it as directed and as I normally do with any at home color. But I noticed that as the color was running out, the more the mixture appeared to be more developer than color. Weird.

Tick, tock, tick, tock - time to wash it out. Took an amazingly long time to get the color out, I've never had so much red left on a towel after washing the color out in my life. Like a crime scene. It looked odd, but it was still wet and I decided to let it air dry and see what happened then. Well, you've seen the results. I was gobsmacked. I had no idea WTF happened - or how to fix it.

Long story, short, I decided to go and get Clairol's temporary haircolor with no ammonia in a brown shade to try and tone down the crazy red and even out the blonde/yellow/oranges. It worked good enough, not great, not perfect, but okay for now. Luckily reds fade quickly and even after all this time/additional color the Olia is still washing out leaving my towels with a lovely reddish hue when I dry my hair. Insane.

That all being said, I've seen several people use this brand and love the results, of course they weren't using the red. Needless to say I won't be using this color ever again.

As for what I will be using, these are the products that I've been super pleased with and would recommend:

L'Oreal Feria

Hands down the best color in my opinion. They have a ton of shades to choose from. I've been using it on and off since it came out years ago. Delivers a gorgeous, vibrant, natural looking color. Here's how my hair looked after a Feria coloring a few months ago using the color on the box above:

Gorgeous, right? And delivered exactly the color promised. This was an Instagram picture so excuse the quality.

Clairol Nice N' Easy foam

Super easy to apply and reliable results. Not as intense of a red as I like, but delivers a lovely, natural hue.

So there you go. Have any of you tried Olia yet? What are your thoughts? Any other at home haircolor products to you love (or hate)? Anybody else had a color disaster? Do tell!

Happy Weekend!

2013-03-15T11:12:00.003-04:00

What a crazy past couple of weeks. Here's a bit of what's been going on.

As everyone knows Google Reader is going bye-bye as of July 1st. Thanks Google. Really, I mean thanks for throwing a wrench in my blog reading/organization world. Jerks. Anyway, feel free to hop over and follow me on Bloglovin'. They are making it super easy to import all your Reader info (it takes a minute, seriously). I also signed up for Feedly to just have another RSS Reader option (they are making it easy to import your Reader info too).

I signed up for Bloggy Boot Camp in Charlotte!

I'm so excited! I'm ready to reignite my blogging fire and learn a lot of useful information. Because, duh, I've been a super slacker blogger lately. Is anyone else going to be there? Let me know!

This happened:

I tried a new at-home haircolor and it messed up my hair in the most epic way, I had no less than 4 different colors at random locations around my head. In over 20 years of coloring my hair at home, nothing like this has ever happened. And you can tell from the picture how silky smooth my hair was after coloring *ahem*. I'm debating on doing a post about this, I don't want to be crazy mean to the company, but the issues with this product are multifold. Would you be interested in reading about it?

And lastly, kudos for PopSugar for taking over Shopstyle and rendering the site virtually impossible to use. That's why I haven't been able to do any outfit stuff because I can't create a layout for love or money. I have emailed, tweeted, DM'ed, screamed, used two computers, a tablet, 3 different browsers and still the site is basically useless to me. To say I'm angry would be an understatement. Is anyone else having issues with the site? It can't just be me.

Boy, I'm all sour grapes today. Well, it all can't be rainbows and unicorn farts. On to a better week next week! Have a great weekend!

My Fall 2013 Picks!

2013-03-08T15:56:00.000-05:00

Fall 2013 RTW picks on Pinterest

The weeks and weeks of Fall 2013 ready-to-wear presentations are now over and I've combed through every. single. collection. No lie (I mean I haven't been a good blogger because I've been looking at collections every night - I love it!). I have finished pinning all of my favorite looks, details, and accessories. We are talking 1,099 pins. Wow! So pop over and take a look at all of my favorites. I just love seeing them all in one place and I hope you do too!

Have a great weekend!

NYFW Fall 2013 Trends - Color

2013-02-21T16:02:00.000-05:00

As I finished looking at the images from NY Fashion week a couple of color trends popped out at me. These aren't new or groundbreaking, but I made note of them because they have been around and will continue to be around. First up, cobalt blue!

Love that this color is sticking around! It's just so happy and sophisticated.

Next up, vivid pinks!

Every pink from pastel to neon, they all are represented.

This by no means are all the color trends, just ones that jumped out at me (and certainly these are ones that you can find now and wear this Spring and Summer with no problem at all). I'll be back with more as London, Milan and Paris wrap up. I'm pinning away every day on my Fall 2013 Pinterest board - check it out for more great picks!

Images in collage via Style.com

Happy Valentine's Day!

2013-02-14T10:56:00.000-05:00

Happy Valentine's Day!

Source: Uploaded by user via Jenny on Pinterest

What I Wore Wednesday 2-13-2013

2013-02-13T11:21:00.001-05:00

I've been super lazy about getting dressed recently, it's just how it is at the moment. But I'm still craving fashion and have been pouring through the New York Fall 2013 shows every hour on the hour. I'm pinning my favorites on my Fall 2013 Pinterest board, head over and check it out! A little secret - cobalt blue isn't going anywhere, so feel free to snap up any cobalt blue pieces you like, they'll be relevant for a while.

Anyway here are a couple of recent outfits:

Cardigan - Old Navy (old)

Top - Old Navy (old)

Pants - Old Navy (old)

Necklace - gift

Sweatshirt tunic - Target (old)

Leggings - Target

Wellies - Hunter

I'm linking up again with The Pleated Poppy for WIWW. Make sure you head over and check out what everyone else is wearing!

My Pre-Fall 2013 Picks

2013-02-11T07:00:00.000-05:00

The Pre-Fall 2013 Pinterest board is complete and full of gorgeous picks!

My Spring 2013 Couture Picks

2013-02-05T12:00:00.000-05:00

I'm going to mix things up a bit with my picks from each fashion season. Instead of doing a post with my five (or more or less) picks per show, I decided to put all my picks from every show on a Pinterest board created specifically for that season.

Let's start with my Spring 2013 Couture board.

I think this makes more sense because you can see all my faves at one time whenever needed. I'm a visual person and it's nice to be able to scroll through and see any trends (color, cut, pattern) that start to appear. It also plays into my wanting to create a bit more original content for the blog (which is slow going). I would also like to do more runway looks for less for each season too (anyone remember when I used to do the "my take" posts? Yeah, long time ago). I want to get back to that sort of thing. So I'll put together a little graphic like the one above to let you know when I'm finished with my picks and the season's board is "complete". So head over and check it out!

Grace Coddington And Liz Tilberis

2013-02-04T10:16:00.000-05:00

First things first, I'm participating in the Mama Monday series over at Ava Grace's Closet today. Head over and check it out!

This weekend I zipped through the book Grace: A Memoir by legendary fashion editor Grace Coddington. Being as fashion magazine obsessed as I am, I must say I loved it! I loved every story, tidbit, opinion, just everything. I felt like she was chatting with me and telling me all these stories about all these legendary photographers/models/editors. I just ate it up. She is arguably the greatest fashion editor of all time, with her ability to tell a story and create a mood with the editorials she styles. That being said, I was so happy that she devoted a chapter to her great friendship with Liz Tilberis the late Editor-In-Chief of Harper's Bazaar. And while I adore Grace, I positively worship Liz.

You see, Liz took Harper's Bazaar to another level back in 1992 when she took over as Editor-In-Chief. Way back in the late 80's/early 90's Bazaar was sort of a garish, cluttered, very dated magazine. I should know, I was a subscriber (well, my Mom subscribed for me - ha!). It was never quite as sophisticated as Vogue. It had cheesy features, the one that stands out the most was it's annual "50 Most Beautiful Women In The World", which while lovely felt so forced. But when Liz took over she brought in some amazingly creative people (like Fabien Baron and photographer Patrick Demarchelier poached from Vogue), and in September 1992 this issue arrived in my mailbox and proceeded to blow my mind.

(and yes I still have it)

She and her team had created the most beautiful, well-designed magazine that felt both modern yet familiar in an almost retro way. It was the best of every world. So sophisticated. I remember holding that issue up and saying to no one in particular "Well, things just got interesting." I was obsessed. Obsessed with every photo, model, layout, just everything. It was genius in every way. Her magazine created instant buzz in the publishing world, picking up award after award. Every month a new beautifully designed fantasy landed in my mailbox. Her Editor Letters were fun and familiar (though not as good as Linda Wells at Allure - she writes the best ones in the business), she was enchanting and I was under the spell. Liz was my girl!

And then Liz was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. She bravely fought it for years and I rooted for her in every way. She was so open and honest about her struggles. So much so that in 1998 she wrote a really great memoir called No Time To Die. Which I would highly recommend picking up, especially if you have read Grace. She ultimately died in April of 1999 at the age of 51. Too young. And thus ended a most creative and inspiring period of fashion magazines, in my opinion.

And to me, nothing seemed quite the same. Certainly not at Bazaar, where Kate Betts (formerly News Director of Vogue) took over as Editor-In-Chief and changed everything, including the Bazaar logo (!), so much so that it felt like some weird publication that seemed to slant to a very young crowd. I like Kate Betts, but it was just an ill fit. But honestly, no magazine felt the same, the models all but disappeared from covers, the celebrity culture took over and the fantasy seemed to be pushed to the background. It makes me sound old, but I do miss those days.

Images via Amazon.com

Tory Burch Pre-Fall 2013 - My Five

2013-01-21T07:00:00.000-05:00

Fun mix of texture and pattern in this collection. Lots of long layers (note the below-the-knee skirts). Here are my picks:

Images via Style.com

Random Thoughts Friday

2013-01-18T07:00:00.000-05:00

I ran across this video on the Our State website (Our State is one of my favorite magazines, so well done). If you want a little peek inside a textile mill then hit play. They are in the Cone Mills White Oak plant in my hometown of Greensboro, NC. The denim woven there will be used for yet another North Carolina company - Raleigh Denim - who makes the jeans in Raleigh, NC. Which is awesome!

A couple of things, these are older dobby, shuttle looms (if any of my textile peeps are reading this, feel free to confirm or deny - the looms seem too close together for them to be rapier and too old to be anything else) so they run slower than the looms I deal with in my job. And second, this lady is so like so many of the weavers that I know and have known and I must say that I LOVE weavers. A good weaver is worth their weight in gold. Trust me.

So that was a tiny peek into the American textile industry.

On an unrelated note, I ran across this sweater in one of my searches:

Jaime sweater - Club Monaco

Which made me immediately think of this song:

I'm not sure about why you would want a sweater with "1985" on it unless you really love Paul McCartney and Wings or maybe if that was the year of your birth. The thing is Club Monaco was established in 1985, but who the heck cares about that?

Anyhoo, hope you all have a fab weekend! See you on the flip side!

What I Wore Wednesday 1-16-2013

2013-01-16T07:00:00.000-05:00

A few thing's I've worn recently (I've been so bad about taking outfit pictures recently - I'll get better, I promise!):

Top - American Eagle (thrifted)

Pants- Old Navy (old)

Bracelet - Mimi Boutique (giveaway win)

Shoes - Minnetonka

Left - Sweater - Ann Taylor

Pants - Gap

Necklace - vintage

Shoes - Tory Burch

Right - Sweater - L.A.M.B. (old)

Pants - J.Crew outlet

Shoes - MaxStudio (giveaway win)

Necklace - Forever21

I'm linking up again with The Pleated Poppy for WIWW. Make sure you head over and check out what everyone else is wearing!