What kind of cuts and styles are you thinking about? Different stores and labels have different design strengths, so somebody else's shop of awfulness may turn out to be your Best Store Evah!, or vice versa.
Well, I feel like my best colors are dark and/or jewel tones. Black, navy, forest green, royal blue, teal, burgundy, true red, that sort of thing. Color Me Beautiful told me I was a Winter when I was twelve, and I don't think it led me wrong. But the past 5-10 years, I've been wearing my blacks and blues and greens to look inconspicuous, and I'd like to wear them as bold, strong colors instead, you know? Brighter fabrics, better cuts, the occasional eye-catching accessory, etc.
As for cut, I guess I'm looking for mature and womanly without being frou-frou. Soft lines and frilly things AFAIC match neither my appearance nor my personality, and they CERTAINLY don't match my writing persona! So I guess more of a tailored look, though that can be plain and fade into the background if you're not careful. And no matter what I want to look like, I have to work with the linebacker shoulders and big breasts, which limits what clothes fit at all, much less fit and look flattering.
I just need to mention that my car got rear-ended on the way home tonight. Rain, dusk, merging onto highway. You know the drill. It wasn't very hard; my bumper looks unscathed, and I feel fine, although I'm unbelievably rattled. (Am having a big glass of wine while The Boy, prince among men, makes me grilled cheese and tomato soup.)
Unfortunately, I bumped the car in front of me, though even less hard than I was hit (someone here can calculate the physics involved). But the poor girl driving had recently (I think she said in the past 2-3 months) had neck surgery, so she was really worried about whether her neck was okay. Which I totally understand.
Cop came, was nice, called paramedics for neck!surgery girl (one paramedic knocked on my window and asked if I needed evaluation, and I said no....then I saw how HOT he was and wanted to call him back, but I didn't), took all our info, and when he told me I could leave, I asked him -- in all seriousness -- "Do I get a ticket?"
Because I had never been clear on whether the middle car in a threesome of rear-ending (heh) is at fault for hitting the front car. Like, should I have left more distance in front of me, or something? But apparently no, the guy who hit me is at fault for all of it.
And fortunately he has insurance.
I think my wee sturdy car is just fine, and I think I'll be sore tomorrow but not injured. But it still makes me very glad that I got hit by someone with insurance.
ION, Susan, re: clothes, are you interested in brick-and-mortar stores only? Because silhouettes.com is a good store for sizes 12 and up if you want to shop online.
Ooh, Newport News is a good idea.
Oh, Steph! I'm so glad you're ok and that the guy has insurance and everything.
Susan, do you guys have CJ Banks out by you? They're the plus size of Christopher and Banks, and I've had GREAT luck with them. Some of their stuff is ick, but they have fantastic sales. Really fantastic. Like, once something is on their racks for more than a couple of weeks, it gets marked down. I've gotten nice tops there for as little as $4.99. They've got a lot of basic stuff, and then, well, the ick. They like putting snowmen and leaves and Easter eggs on some of their clothes, and that's not my favorite (I call it Elementary School Teacher Clothes--no offense intended to our elementary school teachers!). But, their basic stuff is great. In just November, I got a burgundy suede jacket for $29.99. It's one of my favorite accessories now.
I'll have to take a closer look at the Newport News website, though I have to say the outfits that pop up on the homepage are all Not Me in a huge way.
ION, just got a call from the property manager. It sounds like the house may have sold. I was really hoping this wouldn't happen until we renewed our lease. I mean, maybe the new owner want to keep us on at the same or not much higher rent...but it's an added stress. Our lease is up 3/31, and I so don't want to move...
Susan, I suggest you try the Erinaceous Patented Wardbrobe assessment Technique: [link]
I shop at J. Jill a lot. It may be too lineny & artsy for you if you want a tailored look, though.
I'll have to take a closer look at the Newport News website, though I have to say the outfits that pop up on the homepage are all Not Me in a huge way.
It's worth digging around. Also remember that the Newport News photo stylists are frequently on the bad drugs; you need to be able to look at a photo and focus on the individual clothing items, not how they might have put them together.
Steph, I'm glad you're okay!
Flea, I bookmarked that!
Off to clean the house. Sigh.
Will possibly check craigslist rental listings first, just to know whether to be freaked out or reassured about having to find a new place...
Oh, another place you can get some good stuff if you dig around the sales racks is Coldwater Creek. And I second the J. Jill recommendation. I've gotten some great basics on sale there as well.
Oh, and one more thing about CJ Banks. If you're interested in them, you should definitely sign up for their e-mailing list. They sometimes send out coupons for things like 40% off your entire purchase--even the sale stuff. That's where I got my shorts for St. Thomas. They were marked down to $6.99, and then they were 40% off of that. It was crazy how cheap they were.
