Just Jen

Stitch Fix #3 Review - April

The anticipation of getting this box is just too fun for words. 

For the first time I made a request for layering tops and lots of color. They totally delivered.

I really wanted to like the teal top because the color and silk fabric is delish - but pintucking in the front just does not work with my figure. Looks like a tent.  Even tried a belt, but it's just too much fabric. Bummer.

The coral top is really fun. I typically don't like hi-low tops (as you can see in the second picture of this piece), but it is not overdone, and tried with a few jackets actually looked nice. Doesn't totally cover the bum, which is nice because I think mine is half way decent - don't hide your assets, right? I needed a little Hollywood Fashion tape to stop gaping in the front between the bottons, but it worked like a charm and that's a common need for me. And the gold button detail on the shoulders is really unique. Most likely keeping this.

The bracelet is actually 2 pieces and could be worn separate, so I really like that.  A bit heavy, but it made them hang really nicely and the feel is really smooth. Most likely keeping these.

Um, hello multi print tank. Fell in love with you on first sight and you fit awesome.  Love the versatility and all the color options with this one. Grey, navy, red, orange and even hot pink! Oh yeah, you are living here now.

The cardigan is really neat. One small button in the front allows it to pull together more like a jacket for a fitted look, and the flip out royal blue inside the navy is an awesome touch. I also photographed the unique striping in the back,.  This cardi could be casual or dressy in an instant - LOVE that. Lovely piece.  I suspect I will either keep it or Kathy will talk me out of it for herself tomorrow. LOL  Too unique to not keep this one.

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Also have to show you my new wall of washi. 

Found these fun little washi boxes  at Michaels on 60% clearance (yeah!).  They include a dowel rod and metal tear strip, but I took those pieces out and just let the rolls sit inside (mostly because I had too many - blush). 

Already more useful in that I can see what I have and that's how I get to using it... and obvious I need to get to that since this shows blatently that I have a serious washi addiction - YIKES!

Thats all for today folks.  Thanks for stopping by!

(oh and yeah, still haven't found a house, for those that are wondering. It's making me a little mental... sigh)

 

Beautifully said

Found this on pintrest today and gasped with the truth I heard here.

Now that's powerful stuff.

Happy Easter

Hope you are enjoying family and happy memories today.

It's good to be alive.

Vacation Pages

Florida vacation album is currently underway!

I went back to a favorite technique to give it unity by adding a consisent little page corner showing which day of the trip the vent was.  This old sheet of MME paper that I had been hoarding forever ended up being the perfect touch ... the little beach huts were perfect - I fussy cut a couple dozen of them so they are ready to go...

Pages will be posted in the side gallery under vacation pages... so check out all my little beach huts!  tee hee

 

Stitch Fix Review - March 2013

Serious fun fashion right to your door... I am addicted to Stitch Fix already.

This is my second month getting 'a fix'. Last month I kept 2 things... a blouse with funny birds and some front pleating that I would have never thought to try (it's the same one that Stephanie Howell had if you happen to follow her darling blog) and a tshirt that looked like nothing special until I put it on and it fit like a glove.

So what came in my box this month?

• black ponte pants
• royal blue jersey blazer
• silk shirt
• another fun (more subtle) bird shirt
• chevron tunic

Wanna see?

Sorry for the goofy faces - I suck at self portraits apparently.

 

I'm keeping the bird shirt - love it. I clearly have something with birds. Which is funny in it's own way... but I digress.

The blazer was super cuddly and quite a lovely color, but it was a bit too snug for 'the girlfriends' so it went back. If it had come in pink or stripes, I might have kept it...

The ponte pants were tempting, lovely material I'll be watching out for now, but I didn't need another pair of pants like them and they were snug. Made me want to workout though, which is probably a good thing. 

 

This mint silk shirt was lovely, but almost the exact same cut as the bird shirt and I decided it wasn't a great color for me. (my friend Kathy swooped right in and snagged it though - we started a fix share this month, checking out each others goods before we sent back... double the fun. I highly recommend.)

The tunic was a major ' um, no'.  Lovely for being a tunic, as it was a lovely pattern and fabric and I love that it wasn't a loose tie, but tunics often translate into 'dress' for me.  And again, things with ties aren't flattering with a little more giftedness on top. My fashion nemesis.

So that's that.

Oh and I may have snagged an orange cardigan sweater from Kathy's box. And yes, it is the exact same one that Gillian Nelson totally destroyed in her blog... I laughed out loud and promptly tried it on again to make sure I wasn't crazy. I'm good. Whew.

Until next month...

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For those who are saying. "What in the heck are you talking about, lady?"...

Stitch Fix, is like a personal shopper that comes to your home. You take a survey about your fashion likes and dislikes, give them your sizes and preferred price ranges, and they choose 5 pieces for you and mail them to you. A $20 "styling fee" is charged when shipped that is applied to your purchase. You have 3 days to try on the clothes, you pay online for what you want to keep and send the rest back in an included, postage-paid envelope, and drop it off at the post office. Easy peasy. They also offer a discount of 25% off if you purchase all 5 pieces.

I'm not affiliated with Stitch Fix in any way, but if you are interested in checking it out and use my code, I will get a $25 credit towards my next purchase.  And if not me, pick someone, share the love.

Here's my code:  http://stitchfix.com/sign_up?referrer_id=3050715

A decade ago...

I held this wee boy in my arms and knew he was the last. He has been a bundle of energy since day one and our family really would not be the same without him.

But 10 years sure have flown by. No more single digit ages in this house. (sigh)

Happy Birthday, my Sweet Andrew.

I love you just the way you are. Full of passion and energy - both good and bad.  It's signature 'you' and I wouldn't change a thing. Looking forward to seeing who you become - you've just begun the journey to discovering who you are and it's a treat to watch. Don't accept being a poor version of anyone else, because you were made specifically just the way you are for a reason. Go find that reason.

Love you so much.

 

Brave words.

Did you know that being creative is simply making something that did not exist before you made it? We are ALL creative, and being creative is a very important, wonderful part of being alive.

You can be creative with your meals, with your clothes, with your parenting, and with your job. You can be creative in friendship, in gardening, in the books you choose. Anything!

Please don't EVER tell yourself that you are not creative, or that others are more creative than you are. Creativity is a tremendous gift that was born into all of us and that keeps our lives interesting. It is a gift that helps others because we can all think of new things that others would not think of themselves.

Share your creativity today. It is healing, it is exciting, and it is essential for forward progress. We believe in you and all that you do. Don't let the world miss out on your creative ideas!!! We need you!

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I haven't posted one of these messages in a long time... I was overdue to hear words from the lovely, inspiring Brave Girls.  I hear the truth. http://www.bravegirlsclub.com

Sold.

So the clock begins this week - Friday actually.  We have 6 months to find a new home. 

I don't want a house - I want a HOME.  A nice one.  Possibly the last one and the one my boys will call home and bring their families to.  Yes, it's mushy and emotional and all that. 

Our current house is sold and we sign off officially on Thursday... we will be renters starting Friday (of our own home - yeah, kinda weird) and it will be the first time in that scenario in 18 years.

Yeah. Wham.  How's that for feeling your age?

So please send good mojo my way.  We are 'stalking' for a house. That's what is required in this market... I won't say house 'shopping' as that implies an inventory that isn't there.  The good ones go fast, and we are armed and ready.

Bring it. The packing is already underway and I'd really like to not wait 6 months...

 

New Year Resolutions under way...

 

Changing the way I treat this body that is the foundation of everything I have to get this list of stuff done. 

On the top of my resolution list is the last 'diet' I'll ever do - and it's not really a diet at all - as I learn what my body just doesn't like and is thus causing it to be fluffy and unhappy... that means every morning I make this tasty 'pepto bismol vomit shake' (thanks for the name, Ben - you are hilarious).  It doesn't taste bad at all and has kale in it! I'm so proud of me.

And I am a little obsessed with this song right now... Hall of Fame by The Script.  Pure awesomeness for me right now.  AMAZINGLY powerful.  I will admit to replaying it multiple times in a row and singing loudly in the car.

 

Oh, and I became the mom of a teenager officially this past weekend. (sigh)

I am soooooo proud of this beautiful boy. Brings me to tears how awesome he is.

But wow. I really once thought that the phrase 'time flies' was just a fun saying... 

 

 

That's all for now.  

2013 is going to be full of POWERFUL STUFF.

Sharing Tara's Gift

You-Shaped Hole   by Tara Sophia Mohr

Sometimes the world feels inhospitable.
You feel all the ways that you and it don’t fit.
You see what’s missing, how it all could be different.

You feel as if you weren’t meant for the world, or the world wasn’t meant for you.

As if the world is “the way it is” and your discomfort with it a problem.

So you get timid. You get quiet about what you see.

But what if this? What if you are meant
to feel the world is inhospitable, unfriendly, off-track
in just the particular ways that you do?

The world has a you-shaped hole in it.
It is missing what you see.
It lacks what you know.

And so you were called into being.
To see the gap, to feel the pain of it, and to fill it.

Filling it is speaking what is missing.
Filling it is stepping into the center of the crowd, into a clearing, and saying, here, my friends, is the future.
Filling it is being what is missing, becoming it.

You don’t have to do it all, but you do have to speak it.
You have to tell your slice of the truth.
You do have to walk toward it with your choices, with your own being.

Then allies and energies will come to you like fireflies swirling around a light.

The roughness of the world, the off-track-ness, the folly that you see,
these are the most precious gifts you will receive in this lifetime.

They are not here to distance you from the world, but to guide you
into your contribution to it.

The world was made with a you-shaped hole in it.
In that way you are important.
In that way you are here to make the world.
In that way you are called.

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Beautiful right?  I had to share, Tara. Your words are beautiful. Your words sum up your class and my experience in it. Taking you class 'Playing Big'  was easily one of my best decisions this year that make me excited for next year. Thank you, sincerely.