New Cardigans and Other Stuff

UPDATE:  My mom was curious about the cardigan lengths so I added them below.  (I measured from the outer shoulder, where the shoulder meets the sleeve, and straight down.)

I did a major online shopping run over the Labor Day weekend and was lucky to mostly find what I had been looking for.  One of the primary targets of this shopping was some colorful cardigans.  I had a good number of black and grey cardigans but was low on brighter colors -- and with cardigan season lasting about 9 months in Snow City, having cardigans is important.  (By contrast, I own one pair of shorts that are not wear-while-I-exercise-only shorts.  I'm not in Texas anymore.)

My mom has also been in the market for cardigans so I thought I would show some (terrible!) photos of the cardigans I bought, as well as some other things.  (Because I often buy new things and put them away, not to wear them for a while, I've been striving this week to wear several new items every day.)  Because I'm holding my arms up to take the photos, it's kind of hard to see exactly how the sweaters lay, but none of them are horribly baggy/shapeless or anything, and you can see how they look on a model at the links that I'm including along with prices -- though of course you don't want to buy anything online without checking for a coupon code at retailmenot first!

Day 1

This is such a common look for me in the summer.  T-shirt, skirt, cardigan, and necklace or scarf.

New items:
*Olive cardigan from Kohl's (still on sale for $30.80, fits true to size) (26.5")
*Olive patterned skort from Kohl's (I love the pseudo-camo look to this, esp. as a birding skirt)

Day 2

This one was so fun; I was smiling every time I saw myself in it.  I loved adding another graphic T to the mix and this one was super on sale.

New items:
*Teal cardigan from Lands End (still on sale for $24.99, fits true to size) (26")
*Parrot t-shirt from Kohl's (can you tell it also has postage cancelation on it?  I was like, WTF, and Robert suggested that it is intended to be reminiscent of a vacation postcard from an exotic locale.  I'm all over that.  Note: it's important to pronounce parrot as "pay-rot" when referring to this shirt.  Because...well...it rhymes with "kay-rot" that way, and I always called carrots "kay-rots" when addressing my bunnies.)
*Burgundy jeans from Kohl's
*Leopard belt from Target

Day 3

I didn't wear a cardigan with this outfit until later in the evening, when I added my beloved cheap-ass Wal-Mart cardigan -- black and thin fabric -- that I bought to wear in OK and TX last winter (a winter cardigan for the south = a summer cardigan up here).  The fish scarf isn't new, but I haven't worn it much yet and love it (Target).  Something about black and white striped shirt + scarf = as close to casual French chic as I ever get (not that close, admittedly, but still).  Also note that yes, I am a convert to the semi-tuck.  Please excuse my pathetic photo fix of the hovering Grey Box Menace -- I didn't really want the world to see my undies hanging on the drying rack.

New items:
*Striped shirt from Macy's
*Jeans from Kohl's

Day 4

Because it was the weekend, I got Robert to take this photo.  I had initially thought, damn, too bad I don't have any grey shoes....then remembered these comfy old Skechers shoes. 

New items:
*Berry cardigan from Lands End ($30, fits true to size; I also got this in cobalt blue) (25.5")
*Grey jeans from Kohl's

Day 5

Again, I added that same black cardigan when I got cool later.  I decided to dress up a bit in honor of a phone interview I had in the afternoon.  The blouse looks a odd with my arms in this position, but under normal circumstances, it is loose but has a nice drape so it isn't totally shapeless as it might seem here.  (This kind of shirt is not as "figure flattering" as some, but I really like to wear something looser that surrenders the waist sometimes.)  These pants will need to either be hemmed or relegated to wearing with shoes that aren't totally flat.  

New items:
*Red animal print blouse from Jones New York
*Black pants from Rafaella
*Red flats from Nordstrom

Day 6

I love these braided belts I bought at Target a few months ago -- I hate it when you are between holes on a normal belt, and these avoid that issue altogether because you can size them at any point.

New items:
*Teal cardigan from Macy's ($27.99, fits true to size; I also bought it in berry).  I know this is two teal cardigans, but they have different fabrications and different shapes.  This one is gathered in the back so it is more curve-fitting than the other. (26")
*Sleeveless shirt from Kohl's
*Jeans from Kohl's

Day 7

This brings us up to date to today.  These shoes have a 2" wedge heel and are super comfortable and as stable as much flatter shoes -- excellent.

New items:
*Royal blue cardigan from Lands End ($59, fits true to size) (26")
*Jeans from Old Navy

You can see that my fall formula is knit shirt, cardigan, pants/jeans, and scarf.  I love layering and am glad to be living somewhere that supports that choice most of the year.

I still have a couple other cardigans to add, which I'll do over the next few days.