Stylish Petite | Fashion, Reviews and Petite Style: March 2011

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Petite Review: Banana Republic Erin Textured Sheath Dress- 00P

It appears as though I may have a Banana Republic sheath dress addiction. Just w/in the last few months, I have accumulated 4 BR dresses. I can't seem to resist! I tweeted about this dutch blue sheath dress but all the small sizes were of course GONE! It just happened that one late night while shopping online, a 00P popped back up! I about rolled off the bed with excitement. I quickly ordered it with the 30% off. My fingers were shaking while trying to type in my order because I was afraid it would be gone out of my cart which has happened to my countless times before.

Dress: Banana Republic Erin Textured Sheath Dress- size 00P (buy here or similar here)

Shoes: Ann Taylor Porcini Pumps- size 5 (similar here)

Necklace: BR factory necklace

SIZE/FIT: 00P- The reviews online were not so great regarding the sizing so I was a little worried. But luckily, the fit is quite decent. Not perfect but I do love how the top portion fits on me. The armholes aren't too big and it hugs me perfectly. The bottom portion is a bit big but you have to expect that with a tulip style. I don't mind it but it could definitely be more fitted. The best part is, the length needs no alterations! Woo hoo! Here are the measurements:

COLOR: One of the biggest reasons why I loved this dress so much was the gorgeous dutch blue color. I have nothing like it so I wanted to add this color to my dress collection. It's even prettier in person. I can see myself wearing it with tights and dark colors for winter and a light colored cardi and pumps for the Spring and Summer.

MATERIAL: This dress is 69% cotton, 26% nylon and 5% elastane. The material is made out of Italian fabric (love Italian fabric). I was a bit leery of the material because it was cotton but it's actually quite heavy which I was not expecting. The only downfall is it's unlined but the thickness of the material makes up for it. It's super comfortable which is always a plus. (the color below was due to the lighting)

PRICE: Full price was ~~$130~~ but now on sale for $110. Petite sizes seem to be out of stock but here is the tag in case anyone wants to call and check stores.

I was able to call and get a one time courtesy price adjustment so I ended up getting the dress for around $77. It never hurts to ask! They normally do not do price adjustments if you already received a promotion on your order. I got lucky because there is a 30% off promo going on which was the same discount percentage (Friends and Family promo) from when I ordered the dress so I sweet talked myself into them making an exception. It makes the price much easier to swallow. I paid much more for my BR Factory tweed dress! A bit on the expensive side but I know I will definitely get a lot of wear out of it.

VERDICT: Good fit + no alterations + love the color= KEEPING! There's not much that would make me return this.

What are your thoughts on this dress? I would love some feedback. Sometimes I get over zealous when it comes to sheath dresses so please give me your input:)
Only 2 more days to enter my $100 LOFT gift card giveaway!!! There will be 3 winners chosen! Enter HERE!!!

Saturday, March 26, 2011

Still in the Midwest...

Hi everyone! Just a quick hello to my new readers and of course a big hello to my loyal and lovely readers (you know who you are) while I am in the midwest visiting my family :) I apologize for not responding to emails, comments and I desperately need to catch up on my blog reads! I am definitely going thru withdrawal. I finally have some down time to write a short post. Here's to show you my pile of good treats:

Sorry for the terrible iPhone photo but didn't bring my camera attachment. I am having a fantastic time with my family. It's so nice to see my parents, brothers, sisters and all my nieces and nephews. It gets lonely in CA being away from my loved ones. I have been eating so much, my belly is round! LOL :)

I have done quite a bit of shopping and as you can see, I have done some damage and this does not include the items from today. Shopping tax free, I tend to go a bit crazy, And the deals here are so much better than CA! My biggest score today was at Macy's where I found a Theory tweed skirt in 00 marked down from ~~$225~~ for $49 plus an additional $20 off (sister's coupon). So total came to $30. I had to buy a water to get the total to be $50 in order for the coupon to be applied. It fits PERFECTLY and ironically I blogged about it months ago when Bloomingdales had a sale. I have been watching this skirt for so long and it's unbelievable that I found it for that cheap. The tag was actually marked down to $122 plus $20 off and I was even comtemplating it at that price. I just happened to scan it just to see and voila, my eyes bulged out when the price rang up as $49! I did a little dance in Macy's. And FYI- not all Macy's carry Theory. Only a select few has Theory.

My sister took me to the outlet here and I was able to score some great stuff at Ann Taylor. I got a deep blue jacquard sheath dress that is exactly like this purple one I bought last year at the regular AT store and love (see post HERE). It needs to be slimmed and hemmed but it's so cute that I think it's worth it. I got some more shells and some great deals on some cardigans. Some of which were out of stock in my size so I had to order them and pay sales tax to ship to my house in CA (grrr...). And I did ask for the petal front shell in white or pink for you ladies that desperatly want this top but no luck:( They didn't even have any small sizes left in store! I was super happy to score my Ann Taylor silk pintuck shell in river rock and 00P! I returned mine weeks ago hoping to get it on sale and thank goodness I was able to track one down! YAY!

Last week I ordered several cardigans including the whipstitch cardigans in 3 colors but found the full needle cardigan in-store on sale for $26.99 plus an additional 25% off PLUS my sister had 15% off on top of everything. So I was able to get the full needle cardigan in lilac and soft grey. I also ordered this sheath dress when it popped up late at night in a 00p (after I had tweeted about it the day before saying how much I wanted it in a 00P). I guess someone must have heard me!

Hubby texted me a picture of all my packages that arrived while I was gone and I got a bit giddy. My back-up pair of GAP legging jeans should be one of them...Can anyone say obsess much? It's my fashion OCD kicking in. You know when you have to have back-up's of certain favorites or every color of one particular item because you are afraid you will never find anything like it ever again. But the truth is that you will either get sick of it or it will go out of style. Oh well! At least I feel good for now :)

I better turn in now...I have another fun filled day of good eats and shopping! Hope everyone is doing great!

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Petite Fashion Challenge #6: Dress up your basics

This month's Petite Fashion Challenge is being hosted by Jess from Stylepint. This challenge is:

"“Dress Up Your Basics”

Jeans and a tee is a classic outfit starter. Depending on what you layer over this basic pairing, you can change style and feel of the entire look. This is your chance to show your personality and your creativity.

I have to admit, I was quite panicked when I saw the "tee" part because I am NOT a

"tee" type of girl. But luckily I found a simple gray H & M tee that I could at least start with. And of course, my all time fav pair of jeans, the GAP legging jeans! I know, I am boring but oh well:D
Here's what the outfit looks like after some accessories and layering:

Jacket: Theory Gratian Tweed Blazer- size 0 (buy here in winter white)
Tee: H & M Divided - size 2 (similar here)
Necklace: Nordstrom Long Strand Pink pearls- (similar here)
Pin: Vintage flower pearl brooch (cheap one here)
Earrings: Chanel
Purse: Chanel medium double flap purse

I know, not the most creative but it was the best I could do and that I felt comfortable in. I didn't have time to really think about this challenge due to work and traveling so I hope I did okay:) I attempted to do a couple of other looks but it was so terrible, I had to stick to what I knew was more "me". And I had to layer the tee with a blazer otherwise it just wouldn't look right on me.
Here's what it looks like before any layering or accessories:

Looks totally weird right? I don't like t-shirts worn alone on me. It just looks odd and I feel like a boy.

After taking these, I realized I have no color to make the outfit pop but for the sake of time, I decided to not re-shoot.

I figured my gorgeous Chanel flap would make up for my boring, non-creative outfit...hehehe

Be sure to visit Stylepint to see all the other lovely petite participants! This has been a :

Monday, March 21, 2011

My Top 10 Petite Shopping Rules

A fellow petite named Jane from Facebook suggested I do a post on my top 10 shopping rules. I thought it was a genius idea!!! She shared some of her rules with me so I going to borrow some of her ideas and use it for this post because they were so similar to mine:) Thanks Jane for the great suggestion! (if you haven't LIKED me yet on Facebook, please support me by doing so)

MY TOP 10 SHOPPING RULES:
(in no specific order)

1. Buy things that fit. I know- being petite, this is extremely difficult to follow and sometimes we have no choice but to break this rule. Alterations are so insanely expensive so if I can avoid having to completely alter the item, I will pass or at least try to. Expensive lesson learned within the last 2 years: Victoria Secret skirt/pant suits. I stopped buying pants because I would always have to tailor the waist, hips and hem. Just not worth the investment for me. I stick to skirts and dresses that fit and will splurge on the hem if I love the item enough. So for petites, try to buy things that fit or need minimal alterations. It will not only look better but will help your pocketbook too.

2. Don't let sales cloud your judgement. I have a very difficult time w/this one. Who doesn't love a good sale? I certainly am a major sucker for a good deal and low prices but due to my impulsive purchases, I am left with a large pile of donations. I am definitely guilty of breaking this rule multiple times. I am working on getting better but it's not looking good.

3. Be Practical. I tend to get really excited when shopping and jump the gun on anything I think is nice. Since I work and don't do much else, 95% of my wardrobe is business attire. So when it comes finding a casual outfit, it's like going to the dentist- excruciating. I always think to myself, is this REALLY practical for me? Even if it's the cutest dress on the planet and fits perfectly- am I really going to go to the club on a Saturday night? Like for instance, this dress below is in my opinion, super cute and sexy but I have to be real with myself, where on earth am I going to wear this?

4. Buy things you LOVE. A year ago, I would buy anything and everything w/out even giving a thought to fit. Unfortunately, I was buying all the wrong sizes which left a hole in my wallet after alterations. Now I try to give my purchases some thought and I have to really LOVE what I am buying otherwise it will end up in a blog sale. If you just feel "eh" about the item, it's probably not going to get much wear so practice some self-control and put the item back on the rack or get away from the computer (if online shopping).

5. Try everything on before buying. I have a big issue w/this because when I am shopping, time is always not on my hands. So it's a rarity I get to try things on. So it leaves me with tons of returns which in-turn is a lot of gas spent and time wasted driving back and forth. I could just easily save myself the hassle by just going into the fitting room to begin with. This obviously does NOT apply if you are shopping online.

Image Credit
6. Don't buy based on price. Anyone guilty of this? Hahaha because I sure am! This rule kind of goes along with Rule #2. I sometimes will buy things just because it's dirt cheap and then guess what happens? You guessed it- it sits there, tags attached and then ends up at Goodwill. I can't even tell you how many times I have done this, continue to do this and have that sick feeling of regret. I am working on this one!!!

image credit

7. Buy quality vs. quantity. If only everyone could see all my closets filled w/clothes that are just crap. How sad and so much money has been wasted. Thank goodness for blogging because it forces me to really stop buying all the poor quality, ill-fitting clothes that I used to. I went from shopping at Ross Dress for Less, Marshalls/TJMaxx and any discount stores I could get my hands on. There are some great finds at Marshalls/TJMaxx so please don't take this the wrong way. I am not a snob even though I may sound like one right now. I have found 2 Vince cashmere cardigans at TJMaxx which I love and wear all the time (Runway Collection).

8. Buy things that will go w/other items in your closet. This is a tricky rule because I think you should definitely try new things, styles and colors. What I don't believe you should do is buy an item and then have to buy more items to go with it that first item. For example, I love the idea of some red pumps (classy ones not the hooker style) but I know it won't go anything I own. I could wear them with an all black or even gray outfit but would I really do that? It's a bit bold for my business but I do love the idea of it. So then I would have to buy outfits that go with those red pumps. Result = unworn red pumps that collect dust.

9. Buy things you feel good in. I know what makes me feel good and I hope most of you do to. I feel GREAT in skirts and dresses so I don't bother with pants. I have a couple pairs of LOFT pants that I feel somewhat decent in but other than that, I have given up on pants all together. Every time I wear them, I feel weird and self-conscious in them so why bother?

10. Give yourself a budget/Make a list. Instead of spending sporatically every month, I suggest a list of of things you really want/need to buy. Set a budget and stick to it. I personally don't have a budget now (in progress) but I do make a list for myself of things I want. It's amazing when you actually write things down, they come true! Before getting my beige Chanel, I had on my list: Chanel beige flap and what do you know, it's in my possession now:)

Which items have I excelled in? Definitely #3, #7 and #9. I definitely have to work on the rest! Blogging has really helped me a LOT and I just want to say hats off to the ladies that blog and the twitter friends that respond when I am in question whether to buy something or not.

And if you haven't entered my $100 LOFT gift card giveaway, please enter HERE. There's not that much time left! Ends on April 1st!

Readers: Which ones do you need to improve on?

Saturday, March 19, 2011

How to wear a halter top to work: LOFT rosette cami

I never would have thought in a million years I could wear a halter top to work. When I think of halter top, I think of bare shoulders, exposed back and obviously against my office dress code. But I figured out a way to incorporate this gorgeous LOFT rosette cami into work my daily work attire.

Top: LOFT rosette cami halter- size XXSP (similar here)

Sweater: J.Crew Merino Placket Cardigan- size XXS (similar here)

Skirt: Theory Lindra Chateau Pencil skirt- size 00 (similar here)
Belt: Ann Taylor Skinny belt in granite- (buy here) **on sale**

Shoes: Cole Haan Suede Pumps- size 5 (buy here)

Several other petites have this top but the only one I can think of is Cee- see her post here. She styled it so many different ways and I always loved seeing it one her.

I probably wouldn't wear this top by itself, even casually. It's a bit strange on me w/out the cardigan so it works great for me as a shell. But I am loving this rosette halter cami! The color is such a pretty and bright color. I was able to get this all thanks to one of my fav bloggers- Vicky at VickysFashion. She tweeted it and I was fast enough to be the first to respond. Thanks Vicky!

So if you have a similar halter style top and want to incorporate it into your work wardrobe, just remember to cover up with a blazer or cardigan. Another great way is a bolero shrug or open cardigan.

Sorry for the short post:) Hopefully I will get back to my regular posts once things slow down for me!

Enter my LOFT giveaway to win $100 gift card or some gorgeous jewelry from their Spring line! There will be 3 winners! Ends 4/1. Enter HERE!

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Lookbook: LOFT Camel blazer

It's been so busy for me this week so I apologize my posts have been lacking:( I finally got my LOFT camel blazer after 3 attempts. First one smelled like the blazer was dipped in some nasty, heavy perfume. I got so allergic, had to keep the blazer in a different room. The 2nd one came and it had a pen mark on the sleeve. So 3rd time is the winner!

Jacket: LOFT cropped camel blazer- size 00P (similar here)

Top: LOFT ruffle blouse- size XXSP (similar here)
Jeans: H & M Young girls skinny- size 11/12 (similar here)

Shoes: Ann Taylor Perfect Pumps- size 5 (buy here)

Purse: Chanel beige flap
Necklace: Vintage Cameo

Inspired by 9to5chic and her camel blazer, I decided to try something a little different which is leaving my top un-tucked. It's very uncomfortable for me but I wanted to sort of get out of my box. And yes I took my H & M girl skinny jeans out of retirement for this post. I stopped wearing them ever since I got my Gap legging jeans which are now faded from washing so much. I did however manage to pick up an extra pair last night!

Okay, it's obvious I love LOFT. After re-organizing my closet last weekend, I realized my closet is beginning to resemble the racks at LOFT. This blazer is super cute and a great length but it is a bit big. I always feel so "frumpy" when things are un-tucked so hopefully I was able to somewhat pull this look off.

Here is how I would wear it to work and what I am actually wearing today. I feel way more comfortable in styles like this. I added the color turquoise for a tiny pop of color in my Forever 21 vintage fillagree ring (size 6).

I love my new Chanel beige flap. It goes with everything and it's just gorgeous!! My other Chanel's should be arriving in the near future (*scream*).

Hope everyone has a great rest of the week!

Monday, March 14, 2011

Sale Alert: Earn 20% cash back at GAP from Ebates and Petite Hangers

I didn't have anything planned for today so I thought I would share this just in case you haven't heard:) Ebates is giving 20% cash back at GAP on purchases from 3/13-3/16. Click HERE for a referral link. I know some of you have been waiting to get the petite favorite- GAP legging jeans in faded dark wash. I definitely will be picking up an extra pair soon:) Unfortunately the GIVE and GET 30% off promo doesn't start until the 3/17-3/20 but you can click here for that coupon.

I have been obsessed with cardigans for the past 6 months. I just can't seem to get enough of them! So this GAP shirred shoulder cardigan is super cute (and on sale) and comes in 7 different colors. If you like the GAP legging jeans but don't want to spend that much, the medium faded wash is avail in 00P and 0P and on sale for $24.99 plus the 20% cash back or if you wait a few days, you get 30% for the Give and Get promo. I was going to get these a few months back but I heard from Vicky that the wash wasn't the greatest so I passed. But the price is sure tempting!

For those of you who follow me on Twitter- know that I FINALLY re-did my master closet w/all kids sized hangers! Well I didn't finish because I ran out of new hangers but nevertheless, it was nice to get started. Diary of a shopper did a post on petite wooden hangers and Liane from PetiteXXS re-did her closet with the same kids sized hangers too. I debated over petite wooden hangers vs. the slim line kids hangers and decided to go w/the slim line only because the wooden ones tend to snag my clothes. I was finally able to hang all my petite cardigans instead of folding them and my favorite shells/tops are not longer being ruined by my large wooden hangers. Look how perfect it is!!! FYI- I got all mine at Bed, Bath and Beyond and make sure to use your 20% coupon!

Check out the size difference between adult sized hangers vs. kids:

My advice is to get the adult sized slim line hangers for blazers but the kid sized ones for shells, light weight sweaters/cardigans and tops. And of course the clips (sold separately) to hang your petite sized skirts! Worked perfectly for all mine! YAY!

Have you entered my LOFT giveaway for a chance to win a $100 gift card or some jewelry from their Spring line? Enter HERE!

That's all I got for today! Have a great start to your week:D

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Petite Review: William Rast (Target) Leather Moto Jacket- XS

I stopped by Target on Wednesday morning to pick up a few things and somehow I wandered into the clothes department. Maybe because I saw a 75% off sign and was drawn to it? LOL I hardly if ever go into the clothes section nevertheless, ended up scoring this:

Jacket: William Rast Leather Moto Jacket- size XS (similar here)
Skirt: BB Dakota Groton Tweed Skirt- size 0 (buy here)
Pumps: Ann Taylor Saddle Brown Pumps- size 5 (buy here)

I wasn't looking for a anything leather much less than another jacket. I never ended up keeping my Express moto jacket, so technically I still am looking. I was rummaging through the 75% rack like a crazy Asian girl looking for any small sizes when I touched this incredibly, soft, buttery, jacket! I was thinking, is this real leather? I have never felt such soft leather before- EVER!!! It was so soft, I just wanted to wrap myself in it and roll around in it!! LOL This is my 3rd attempt at finding a nice leather moto jacket:(

SIZE/FIT: It was a lonely XS hanging on the rack so I quickly tried it on and tweeted about it. The sleeves are way too long but if I love it enough, it will be worth getting fixed. The shoulders which have that patching, (I'm not loving the patchwork) is a bit square and weird. But the overall width when unzipped and zipped up, fits really nicely.

COLOR: Medium brown/saddle brown leather. I actually really like the color! I would typically wear this on the weekends which is nice because all my casual clothes are a neutral palette. It's a really rich color and not a gross 'poopy' brown.

MATERIAL: 100% genuine LAMBSKIN leather! Wow- I can't even rave enough about how soft this leather is. Seriously, it's so plush and supple- amazing!!!! Softest butter leather I have ever felt. I love it!

PRICE: Was ~~$199~~ but on sale for $49.99. I know- can you believe it? For genuine leather!!!!

DISLIKES: The shoulders are the only thing I don't like. I don't like the stitching/patch design. It's a big hard core for me but can I deal with it? Maybe...And obviously the sleeves which are super long and will cost a good chunk of change to tailor. But may be worth it since the price was only $50 for real leather!