Cutting back

With the state of the current economy, it could be said that it’s an employed shopaholics dream out there…sales like never before, prices slashed to rock-bottom levels, coupons galore!  But how’s a company to get the people to their stores when everyone is hiding and socking away their cash? Why, spend money on advertising of course.  Which is why I think Old Navy has got this thing down.  I mean they’ve always employed some quirky advertising campaigns, but how cheap must it be to make commercials using mannequins! I mean it’s genius. Don’t pay the talent and sell clothes for under $20! It’s elementary, mannequins–they are cheaper than children! How else could they afford to sell those $15 jeans, $10 bags, $5 tank tops and the like?  I mean, they are not sacrificing design quality, these are some of the best clothing and accessory lines I’ve seen out of them in a long time.   The commercials are horrendous, but if they keep up with the cute clothes and the super cheap prices I am in.

Case in point:

Old Navy < $100 by babybanana featuring Old Navy earrings

My newest obsession

Friends, meet www.polyvore.com. An web-based look book of sorts. I wonder how I have not found this before now.

Here is my first creation, what I wish I were wearing today instead of the frump I currently am sporting. It would help if I actually owned any of these pieces, which I don’t.

Thursday by babybanana

From fabulous…to reality

I was –> <– this close to being whisked away this weekend for some grand event (it was to Chicago, nothing glamorous or warm like these bitches). It didn’t end happening due to circumstances beyond our control, but I decided that I needed to try on the dress I would have worn to this black-tie event, you know just to see how fabulous it would have all been.

Turns out, it wouldn’t have been so fabulous at all. No really. The dress? A satin, floor-length, chocolate brown, BCBG, boobalicious number that currently is not looking as hot on me as it did for its debut event (New Years Eve last year). Thank goodness for small favors–such as those above-mentioned, “circumstances beyond our control”. Sigh.

So the horror of this realization prompted me to try on ALL of the dresses in my closet. Every.Single.One. Not completely irrational behavior, as I have a conference next week which will require the donning of these dresses for various evening events…so it can legitimately be chalked up as “planning” and “due diligence”. Thank God my lackluster running/gym routine has not taken such a toll as to bust the seams of all of the dresses in my closet. I feel like I can still make myself presentable, if not slightly pretty with what I have stashed in my closet (but don’t think I won’t be on a diet of brothy soup, green tea and vegetables for the next seven days). Also, don’t invite me to any black-tie affairs for the next few months, this girl needs to get in fightin’ shape.

180

Due to my depressed state of realizing my favorite (televised) sports are done for the season and at the request of a documented girly-girl, I am doing a 180 today and talking about dresses.

Courtesy of Neiman Marcus, I’ve spied these lovelies that I most certainly cannot afford but will drool over nonetheless.

 
Pink Tartan – Floral Tunic Dress $475

Now this is totally me, but I’d have to get in fightin’ shape in order to pull it off and do it any justice.  But with peep toe pumps? How freaking cute?

Kay Unger New York – Belted Dot-Print Dress $350

I think I could pull this one off, but I am unsure…it is ever so adorable.

Nieves Lavi – Silk Halter Dress $350

Oh how I wish I could pull this look off. I never could, but my inner B-cup persona wants to so badly.

Baby, I need your lovin’

rly ThingsOh, the girly parts in me are screaming, just screaming!

And there are those shoes that I have been coveting from Christian Louboutin since April. Well, it seems that our good friend, Steve Madden, makes a similar knock-off that is about $300 cheaper than Christian’s version. AND, as of two weeks ago, DSW had them for $90. AND, AND! they are actually comfortable, 4.25″ heel and all.

Le sigh. Le want.

The Impatient Procrastinator

So I talked to this dude last week about refinancing my condo to see if I could get some cash out to buy a car…er…do some remodeling . And the end of our hour-long meeting, he said I would hear back on my loan and interest rate options in 48 hours. He used those words exactly “forty-eight hours” (twice!). It is now, not including weekend time, 120 hours later and I’ve heard nothing. I hate hearing nothing when I am waiting for something. I want it now. Granted, I procrastinated my ass off in getting in contact with him in the first place, but now that I’ve sucked it up and gone ahead with the initial paperwork, I want to know NOW.

nownownownownownownownownownow
nownownownownownownownownownow!

As the days progress I am getting more and more impatient. I think a driving reason is because I found the bedding of my dreams and I want to know if it would be practical of me to purchase it instead of continuing to scrimp and save for a new car. Now by new car, I mean a different car that is not the one I currently drive, as opposed to something shiny, pretty and insanely expensive, reeking of monthly car payments. I mean who wants a car when they can have down bedding swaddled in pretty orange 260TC cotton to come home to and cuddle up with every night? So email me back dude, before I take back the normal things I said about you after our meeting last week and go back to hating you and thinking of you as a paunchy, short, dim-witted, wanna-be man!

I guess it’s just a fashion kind of day

I want I want I want I want I waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaant!

Problem is I don’t know who makes them. Girls, I know you read your Daily Candy and this is the shoe that was featured in today’s note alterting us to the opening of Fred Segal Feet. I visited the beautiful Fred Segal site and drooled over many of the pretty sandals there, but I did not see these. Anyone know who makes ‘em? Extra points and a beach towel to you if it comes in under $250.

Moment of……girliness

I may be overly succinct here since Blogger just lost my post. Oh who am I kidding, I am not one for brevity. Case in point as I am going to digress here, I just typoed “kidding” above as “kissing” and that surely would have taken this post in a direction I wasn’t prepared for, since I haven’t been kissing on anyone since my birthday. Oh the sadness…

…Wait, I totally have something else to talk about. September means one thing –> back to school shopping! Yes! This week’s Moment of….girliness is in the spirit of heading back-to-school. Oh, one of my favorite parts of going back to school was the shopping (yes, I say one of my faves because I was the kid that actually liked school). The new jeans, the “it” sweater, cute little mix-n-match skirts and tops, and the school supplies. I mean who did not love their Trapper Keeper?

If I were going back to school now, like so many of my friends are (PhD programs, undergrad, master’s programs? Eep!), I would so sport this number from Elie Tahari — I mean if my budget allowed (which it doesn’t, so the Suede Jacket with Beaded Cami & Plaid Trousers lives here instead of my closet). I would buy her entire line if I could. Her lines are so clean, the clothes fit fabulously and she has just the right amount of frill so you feel pretty.
The second portion of our Moment… is dedicated to school supplies. School and office supplies just make me so happy. There is something about new pens and pads of paper that just fills the organizer in me with glee. New for this year is this super cool line from Mead, called Zwipes. Now you might think Jimmy is the cutest boy in school and you might draw his name with frills and hearts all over the front of your notebook, you know so people know that he’s your crush. But what if he sits next to Allison at lunch? What then? How to deal with the embarrassment of having stupid Jimmy’s name right there next to the big letters “TLF”? No worries if you have the Zwipes Notebook. Just erase and replace…ooooh look isn’t he just dreamy?

Moment of … girliness

This week’s Moment of…girliness is brought to YOU by Coach. It is brought to ME by Buggie. Yay. Birfday present for me. ‘Cept picture it in a refreshing shade of powder blue with a smooth suede stripe, that’s what mine looks like.

COACH Signature Swing Pack

We happened across it on our NY trip and I fell in love, as I am wont to do with handbags (especially while on vacation). I pondered hard about whether it should come home with me and decided I’d wait it out to see how much I really wanted it. Well, I visited it online a few times, I even tried it on again in Minnesota, it got added to the sidebar here, but my bank account just wasn’t having it — it completely vetoed the purchase of this totally reasonable and practical mini messenger bag. Bah.

[insert Super Man music here]
um, I first typed just “insert Super Man here”. Haha. The man of steel himself, hangin’ out on my blog.
[also insert the Happy Birthday song]

And here comes Buggie…with a beautiful Coach box and ribbon…Yay. Mine. Love it. Love her.

Moment of … girly

Elsa Peretti® tag pendant

This week’s Moment is brought to us by the fine jewelry makers at Tiffany. BabyBanana really wants something shiny and pretty. A sparkly… Hey! isn’t that what that bird called pretty things in “The Secret of NIMH”? Ah, a sparkly, yes that is what I want. OOoh. Pretty.

EDIT:
Just so everyone knows, I totally went middle of the road here. I could have gone reasonable and cute (ala Flower Pendant):

Or not so reasonable, but oh so pretty ->