My emailbox is out to get me.

Is everyone else going insane from all the sales notices in their emailboxes? Or is it just me?

Between the sales notices and the cookies on my laptop (that appear to keep all of my selections permanently in every shopping cart I ever use on line), I've stumbled across some nice markdowns this weekend. I'm putting these up here in case anyone has something on their list that they'd like to order tonight.  Which, OK, is the next ten minutes. Anyway, this is where I was shopping.

J. Crew 

 

J. Crew's Bling Button cardigan, marked down from $72 to $59 to $41

I thought I'd missed out on a great J. Crew deal, because they were offering 25 percent off for Black Friday. At that point, I loaded up my shopping cart with some cute cardigans for my daughter, and then forgot to pull the trigger. Well, I went back to the site to discover that this weekend's sale--using the WINTER coupon code--was even better, with 30 percent off.

At the moment, it's back down to 25 percent off and free shipping.

Honestly, trying to keep up with on line deals is like telling time by looking at the second hand of a clock.

All I know is I got myself some button downs and my daughter the Bling Button cardigan for $41, marked down from $72.

Carson Pirie Scott

Carson's is offering 25 percent off everything in the store, and 10 percent off Beauty and Fragrance, with code FRIFAMNOV12. If you're interested in the Estee Lauder seasonal blockbuster or the Michael Kors/Estee Lauder collaboration, this is a good way to get it. 

This set features a cosmetics bag from Michael Kors, a compact blush with 3 shades of Pure Color Blush, a Pure Color Lipstick, a Pure Color Lipgloss, a Sumptuous Mascara, Intense Kajal Eyeliner and Pure Color Nail Color.

The Michael Kors set is available in three different colors, but each color is offered only by certain stores. Check out this post by GWP Addict for details.

Also, costume jewelry is on sale, which meant that I could pick out a cute Betsey Johnson necklace for my daughter.

Bloomingdale's 

OK, this is when it really got crazy. There was a combination of

• Free shipping on all on-line sales
• Loyalists receive double points
• Buy more/save more (10 to 30 percent off Women's, Men's, Home, Fashion Jewelry)
• Some kind of code they emailed me (X40936A7VCRK) for $25 off a purchase of $100 or more.

So I bought a bunch of clothes for my son--and a little wine cellar for Mr. Buxom--but you don't want to hear about them. I also picked up the Estee Lauder Blockbuster, because Santa likes to add these little goodies to the stockings she stuffs.

Estee Lauder's holiday blockbuster--better pictures and description available on Chic Profile.

Honestly, all I know is that it seems impossible to keep track of all these deals. It's worse than airline frequent flyer programs. All I know is that if I ever pay full retail for anything ever again, you can give me a good hard, internet spanking.

Merry Christmas shopping to all, and to all a good night!
 

Shopping for boots when your calves aren't a standard size ... and how I found a pair

I don't know why, but I've never been that crazy about boots. This seems odd, because I tend to be completely nuts about anything ridiculously expensive, and the average pair of boots is ridiculously more expensive than the average pair of shoes. I can't really explain how I overlooked this opportunity to blow wads of cash. It might be because I have muscular legs, and once I put on a few too many pounds, most boots refuse to zip over my calves.

Anyway, a few days ago, J. Crew was offering 25 percent off everything on their site. I decided to forgive J. Crew's stylists for the insane combinations of crap they put together for their catalogs and actually buy something. Maybe.

So I asked whether anyone out there on the internet had anything to tell me about J. Crew's wide calf boots. And answer came there none, except an inquiry from blackbird, who, like my friend Joke, likes to remind me from time to time that I am not actually deformed and should perhaps not abandon hope of fitting into something in a normal size. (Joke is usually referring to The Balcony, but the point stands.)

So then the J. Crew sale was over, and I was ready to abandon hope all over again.

But then I got an email offering me some great savings at ShopBop, a site I'm usually not even aware of. But they had these Stuart Weitzman boots.

Stuart Weitzman is a brand that sort of flies under the radar. The shoes are very high quality, and they do narrow and wide widths. I've had good luck with Stuart Weitzman shoes in the past. The last seems to suit my foot, even when I buy the normal- rather than the wide-width styles.

I'd heard that Stuart Weitzman's 5050 boots (the shaft is half leather, half elastic) had a lot of fans. The Arlington boot also has some elastic in the back. Not as much as the 5050, but enough, I hoped, to get around my calves.

So I ordered them, and they showed up today. I got my normal size, a 9M, and they're wide enough across the metatarsal. And the calf fits perfectly. And the black elastic is is NOT HIDEOUS, I swear.

Stuart Weitzman "Arlington" knee boot

I'd show you the boots on, except as soon as I tried them on, I fell madly in love, and now it's too dark to get a decent picture of them. But imagine me sitting with my legs straight out, crossed at the ankle. From time to time I move my toes or flex my feet and hear that lovely creaking sound that new leather makes.

The back view, showing the elastic

So if you have difficulty wearing knee-high boots, whether your calves are too narrow or too wide, I'd suggest you check out boots like this.

I also suggest you shop at Zappos. I say this because Zappos includes a lot of helpful information about the boots they sell, including the shaft height and circumference. And there are helpful reviews--in the case of really popular styles, like Stuart Weitzman's 5050 boot, 72 of them. 

Also, quite a few of the Stuart Weitzman boots are currently on sale.

What I Wore Today

I had an appointment at my hair salon first thing this morning, and 10 minutes before I was due to leave, I was running around like a chicken with her head cut off. I couldn't find any jeans, so I grabbed a pair of black knit Tory Burch pants that I bought recently.

I wanted to wear a black t-shirt because Lord knows I don't want to anyone to get hair dye on a white shirt.

Then I realized that I was wearing all black, right down to the motorcycle boots and black jacket.

To avoid looking like Brando in The Wild One, I wanted to add something colorful like, say, my violet colored Tory Burch Simone cardigan.

But then I thought it would look stupid because everything else I was wearing was black.  So I added my trusty J. Crew statement necklace, to bring in some plummy tones.

Usually, when I add a color to an outfit, I use the rule of three. One item in a color looks random (on me; it looks great on you! I swear!) Two looks contrived. Odd numbers are better. Three is best.

But then, as I got ready to go outside, topping everything with my black leather jacket but adding mulberry colored wrist worms and my purple Prada purse, I realized I had gone beyond the Rule of Three to full-on Moby Grape.

Once I got outside, though, I realized that it wasn't my fault. It was nature.

 We just happened to share a color scheme today.

Links for a lazy weekend IV: When the light bulb goes off, and other stories

As I was reading the article about whitening creams on the Fashionista, I thought, I should write one of these, too! But I read on and realized that this article can't be topped. Finally, someone has taken on the subject of dark spots, why all the cosmetics companies are releasing lines designed to deal with them, and how they work. Also, it explains why my expensive Chanel Le Blanc serum, cream, and cleanser have been doing zip, zilch, nada to clear up the giant sun spot on my left cheekbone.  And why I should just buy another bottle NuFountain Vitamin C serum instead.

Don't they?

We've all been subjected to numerous photographs of "arm parties"--that stacked bracelet craze that's been around for a couple of years now. And frankly, a lot of the time, the stack looks kind of tatty. I don't know whether people want their bracelets to tell a story, but I see stories that look like "OK, here's my watch even though I really use my phone to tell time, and a beaded friendship bracelet that my daughter made for me, and a bangle that my husband gave me when we were dating, and a set of three costume bangles, and a double wrap leather bracelet." And they're all higgledy-piggly, and look a little sweaty.

So here's District of Chic showing us How It's Done.

It doesn't hurt that there are two Hermès bangles in the mix. Or that she's carrying a Chanel flap.

In other news, I am entranced with a lot of the new styles that are coming out for fall. I'm at a stage in life where I occasionally need to wear a dress. And not an empire-waisted, one-shoulder dress six inches above my knee accessorized with platform sandals, the whole outfit designed to make me look like an adolescent giraffe. At least, that would be the end result if I were seventeen years old.

Therefore, I'm absolutely in love with the stuff I've seen coming out for fall. I had to dig around a bit on line to find it, since the stylists for the catalogs are doing their bewildering best to cobble together outfits that look like the sort of thing I'd throw on if my house were on fire, and J. Crew, I'm looking at you.

Here's a thought: don't. Unless you really, really want to look like a fashion blogger.

And don't think I'm not aware of your lapses in that respect, NORDSTROM. Blame your catalog stylists for the fact that I went to the Anniversary Sale on the first day ... and didn't buy anything but makeup.

Anyway, I'm in love with the longer lengths I've been seeing for fall. Ditto the paucity of platform shoes, which have started to look really dated even to me--and I cling to my favorite styles like a terrier with a bone. I'm pleased to see that waistlines appear to have headed south from the supposedly-flattering empire waist that has bedeviled me (and my Balcony) for the past several years. And I love the peplums. Although these are not great for those of us with Hips. However, they are helpful for those of us who have developed Elephant Ass, adding much-needed fullness to our meager side view. 

Not to toot my own horn ad nauseum, but you can see the stuff I've been admiring on my Pinterest board.

I mean, honestly--what's not to love?

Meanwhile, I'm sort of on a spending moratorium until I have time to hit the stores and check this stuff out in person.

In parting, I'd like to wish you all a wonderful weekend, as we wind our way into August and the end of summer. Get outside, eat watermelon, have a drink or two on the porch, find a large body of water and gaze at it. And you'll never guess what I'm doing this weekend, so I'll tell you. I'm dragging Mr. Buxom to a dance studio in Chicago to learn Balboa swing dancing. Check it out:

I mean, seriously. Look at those shoes. How could I not want to do this?

Trip report: England; Day 2; The Tower of London and St. Paul's Cathedral

OK, let me get this out and then I promise I won't whine much more: what is with hotels that don't offer wireless internet? I don't even care that much if they charge a little something for it. I think charging for wireless internet is ridiculous, too, but not as ridiculous as charging 20 pounds a day for high speed internet access via ethernet cable. Come on, Marriott--get with the program!

I have to use my husband's work laptop to type this, and it's balky and uncomfortable. And I can't get pictures.

Instead, I'll tell you what I wore, and what we did.

I wore

pink Eileen Fisher 3/4 sleeve cotton t-shirt

J. Crew City Fit Cafe Capris

tan Prada driving mocs

black 3/4 sleeve Nordstrom rain anorak

under the rain anorak, my Chanel wallet-on-a-chain

I also carried my idiotic Coach Poppy tote for things like bottled water, my umbrella, sunglasses, the guidebook I broke down and bought, etc.

What I Did

Our first stop for the day was the Tower of London. Can I just say how ... weird ... it is that I've only been to London once before, and this choir trip's itinerary is duplicating so much of what we did 20 years ago? Luckily a few things were different or I'd start to feel ossified. The crown jewels are displayed differently; the Tower is more Disney-fied (every attraction exits into a gift shop) and this time, we have teenagers with us. So that was interesting enough, I guess, and it was a lovely morning--sunny, but mild. Good weather for exploring.

We ate lunch at a sort of outdoor food court area in a newly-developed area just west of the Tower (for newly-developed read "after 1991".) There were lots of tourists of different stamps, and the food selections were OK; the teenagers could chow down on hot dogs with fries, but I could go to Paul and get a ham baguette and a bottle of Badoit.

(I love Badoit SO MUCH but they don't sell it in Chicago. I bought three bottles.)

After lunch we went to St. Paul's Cathedral. I was ready to give it a quick walk through and bail, but the teenagers insisted on really exploring. So we walked up the 200-plus steps to the whispering gallery and another two-hundred steps through some very steam-punk looking metal stairways to the dome. There we had great views of the London Eye, and the London Eye had great views of us.

Afterwards we hit a bookstore for a little browsing (and the purchase of a much-needed guide book) and then the teenagers insisted on going back to the cathedral for evensong. The choir sang a setting of O Nata Lux that our choir has sung, and the teenagers just loved hearing it.

Sitting in St. Paul's--site of the previous Royal Wedding (Charles' and Camilla's doesn't count) listening to gorgeous music and watching the sky darken through the clear glass windows while the setting sun illuminates the gold in the mosaics? Is well worth the blisters those Prada driving shoes gave me.

For want of a nail

Right around the time we start thinking about wearing sandals in Chicago, I managed to drop a toolbox on my left foot, and gave myself an owie on my big toe.

The results were just as unattractive as you'd think. I had quite a bit of bruising, and I broke my big toenail. It looked ghastly. It's better now, but I'm off pedicures and sandals and all that wonderful summer stuff until it's  grown out. Toenails grow really slowly, and I'm expecting to make it all the way through the summer without wearing sandals. At least, when I'm trying to look good.

It hardly seems fair. Here I am, not even half way through my fifties, and I've discovered another body part that, out of consideration for my fellow man, really should be covered up.

I mean, it's not like I was looking for work as a foot model, but my feet were OK. People didn't point and stare. But now my toes have joined my upper arms, thighs, buttocks, etc., etc., as body parts that must remain hidden, if only out of politeness.

And I've discovered something. What they always say is true; your shoes really do determine your outfit.

I went through my summer shoes and discovered that they're pretty much all open-toed. I have some pumps and slingbacks that would work for summer, but I didn't have anything that would work with casual pants.

I started shopping. I looked for ballerina slippers, because that was the one closed-toe shoe I could think of that wouldn't be hot or heavy looking. I got some subtle, non-logo-centric Tory Burch ones

and some loud, logo-rific Chanel ones

and these Prada driving shoes, but in beige.

But when I got my new loot home, I realized I didn't have anything to wear with them. My new flats looked completely stupid with every single pair of  pants I own (except--maybe--the bronze woven Tory Burch ones with my cargo pants rolled up.) The rest were all too long and too wide for flat shoes.

So I bought some skinny jeans. I know. Skinny jeans and Poppy shouldn't appear in the same sentence. But you can't wear ballerina flats with bootcuts. Your pants can be cropped, straight, or skinny, but not flared.

I also bought a pair of J. Crew Minnie cropped pants. They're OK. (Actually, they're J. Crew's most popular style. But on me, they're just OK.)

So here I am, with three pairs of shoes, two pairs of pants, and nothing to wear.

Stupid toenail! Grow! So I can wear my sandals.

Poppy orders J. Crew Platinum Tweed Jacket, Goes Postal

I went to the J. Crew site the other day, inspired by a Une Femme's post about their leopard print silk/cashmere scarf. I ended up ordering the scarf and five more pieces. More about them later. Right now, it's all about

The Platinum Tweed Jacket

J. Crew Platinum Tweed Jacket $475

Verdict? Fail.

My first issue was with the fit. See how the jacket has so much open space at the front? This looks adorable on a waifish model. But there was a huge gap. OK, the largest size available was a 12, which I am not. But strangely enough, the jacket fit perfectly in the shoulders and across the back. Also, the jacket has a hidden front hook, so it really should meet at the center. Once more, I come to the reluctant conclusion that what looks adorable on a waif looks Too Small on the jumbo economy size.

Also, in case you're coveting this jacket and are deterred by the fact it's expensive and/or currently only available in a size 10? Be of good cheer. When I took it out of the packaging, there were a couple of long gold threads hanging off the beaded trim. Fall out from glittery eye shadow I can understand, but fall out from a brand-new, unworn piece of clothing is unacceptable.

Also, this amount of fluffy, eye-catching, bulk-increasing trim

is a really bad idea when you have a lot on your balcony. What was I thinking?

For me, to box this jacket up and bring it to the P.O. was the work of an instant.

As for the rest of the story, it's sort of depressing. Of the other items I ordered, the only one that fits is a pair of cropped khakis. Which, hello? Bored now.

On top of that, the leopard print scarf that sent me there in the first place

is sold out.

Recent faves, or Friday Fun

What I'm Reading

Une Femme made a video to teach us two ways to tie a long scarf.

Deb's post at No Nonsense Beauty has convinced me to try Retin-A again.

Sally at Already Pretty ran a thought-provoking post on age-appropriate dressing. I don't know how that whippersnapper got so smart, but you should definitely check it out.

The New York Times published Dominique Browning's "Why Can't Middle-Aged Women Have Long Hair" and so far, 718 commenters have weighed in.

Where I'm Shopping:

Talbot's is running a special sale today only, from 12:00 to 3:00. They're offering 30 percent of all tops, tees, and sweaters. The offer is good on-line and in stores. The code is TOPS30.

Did you know Saks is running a Friends and Family sale? Until October 24, you can get 20 percent off clothes, 15 percent off accessories, and even 10 percent off perfume and makeup. The code is FRIEND7.

Sephora's Friends & Family Sale is on now, too. Get 20 percent off an online order by using the code FF2010. So don't buy any makeup at Saks.

Need a new coat? J. Crew is offering 20 percent off women's outerwear.

Why I'm pouting

British Beauty Blogger has a post up about Selfridge's Beauty Advent Calendar, and it's making me feel like the Little Match Girl. I'm no fan of the brown crayon-flavored chocolate in my kids' Advent calendars, so little bitty beauty samples? Sold! But Selfridge's doesn't do on-line orders to the US.  The big meanies.

Enjoy your weekend!