Friday, September 24 and 37 Days to Go!

I have been the ultimate in busy this week and haven't thought about shopping, well almost.  I did think a wee bit about those black pants I need.  I spent a day in a training this week.  The room was alternately hot and stuffy and then cold.  You know how that is when you are not in charge of the A/C or your personal comfort level?  I was in a room with 39 teachers, most of them women in their 40's or early 50's and they were either having hot flashes, or wrapped in sweaters!  It was truly amusing.

But I digress...the pants.  When I left the training, I felt very disheveled, wrinkled, and soggy.  Since 'The Mall' was on my way home, I thought, "why not?", and I swung into the Nordstrom parking lot to check out the black Halogen pants with the great fabric I wrote about a post or two ago.

I found them right away and tried on 3 styles.  They fit great, I like one style best (they didn't have my size in black in those) and now I am hoping they still have them in 37 days.  Folks, I am almost down to a month!  Aack!  

Love,
S

PS:  Let me know what you think about the pants.  Halogen Whitney Pants, $78.00

45 Days and Counting!!

Yesterday I finished cleaning out the closet.  Took a load to the Goodwill and dropped a large load at Working Wardrobes.  I highly recommend this organization for any good business attire you may need to move out of your closet.

The goal of Working Wardrobes is to clothe men and women that are or have been homeless, or are living in shelters, and are rejoing the workforce.  They work with adults to make sure when they go for their interviews they are dressed in appropriate work apparel, coach them in interviewing skills and work very hard to get people back into a productive lifestyle.  WW helps both men and women in more ways than just giving them clothing.  They are a support system for people trying to restart their lives. 

There are Working Wardrobe type organizations all over the country.  Check them out next time you are clearing your clutter.  They are a worthy organization!

Love,
S

PS:  I am getting giddy with anticipation for November 1st. I am EXTREMELY busy for the entire month of October and hope it will help me get through those last couple weeks without too much anxiety.  I can't believe this is almost over.

51 Days - The List has started

I have had so many people ask me what is the first thing I am going to buy once I am out of Cold Turkey.  It 's interesting to see how many people, now that I am nearing the end of the road, want to know what is missing most in my wardrobe.  There are a few MUST HAVE purchases.  I need them, so I will buy underwear and bra's.  But what I want and feel are must have's to complete my depleted wardrobe are the following:

1. Black flats: One's that can be worn with capri's, jeans, skirts and slacks.  I am sorely missing this very basic item in my shoe wardrobe. I almost think there will be TWO pairs of black flats coming home with me in early November.  I'm on shoe alert for the perfect pair now.

2. Black slacks that are not part of a suit.  I need a pair for work, that can be paired with tops and sweaters I currently own.  Nordstrom has a line of basic black pants that are wash and wear and come in several shapes and fits.  A trip to Nordstrom will be in order.

3.  A white shirt.  I have a great JCrew shirt that I love, but it is too big and doesn't really look sharp enough for work.  A long, tunic length would be great and then another in a shorter length might be in order. We shall see. (Do you think I should 86 the too big shirt?  I put it on and take it off every week, it seems.)

4.  A new bag.  Boy I'd love to have a good slouchy bag, and will begin the watch now.  I don't want to spend a small fortune on one so I may have to wait until they are on 'sale' at Half Yearly in December.

5. Moroccan Oil - Yes, I wrote about it last week and I still am jonesing for it.  Gotta have it!

Not too bad a list, if you ask me.  We'll see if the list gets longer the closer I get to November.

Love,
S

52 Days and I am OH SO Tired of this.

I am so close and it seems to be getting harder.  I have done a fairly good job of cleaning out the closet. I absolutely got rid of shoes, 12 pairs to go to Working Wardrobes, and several that are too casual and will end up in the Goodwill pile.
I have several beautiful suits in the spare room on hangers and I am still deciding about some tops - whether I should keep them just in case, or have them go to WW along with the suits. I cleared out my sweater bags, have cleaned house in that department and there are beautiful cashmere's along with a couple of gorgeous Eileen Fisher sweater type jackets.  I don't think I am going to miss them a bit.  I didn't even wear them last winter in WA State in the snow, what makes me think I will wear them in Southern CA in the heat?   A benefit to the whole project is I can actually move the clothes around now, I can see what I have and what holes I have in my wardrobe. I am not done.  Not by any stretch of the imagination.  I still have another whole row of tops to work through. 

I need to pull out my old resource manual:  Clear Your Clutter with Feng Shui, by Karen Kingston.  It is an amazing book about how to clean out the clutter and feel better overall. 

I definitely need some inspiration.  52 days, it seems like forever.

Love,
S