Cranberry and Grey for a Long Weekend

It's that time of year, when many of us have to put in a beautiful appearance with family and friends.  Packing light, and smart, is a good way to begin.  And cranberry is such an appropriate color for autumn holidays...

If you've always wanted ruby earrings, check these out.  They're not exactly the Crown Jewels, but they are lovely, and very affordable!

Cardigan – Uniqlo,  earrings – Novica, jeans – Adriano Goldschmied, tee shirt – Uniqlo, watch – Skagen, scarf – Zegna,  flats – Munro,  Coat – Uniqlo,  tote – Comme des Garcons

Plaid shirt – Uniqlo, scarf – Uniqlo,  dress – Uniqlo,  necklace – YooLa,  boots – Munro,  wool pants – L.K.Bennett,  cabled sweater – Uniqlo

And if your weekend is longer than most, or if you absolutely can't bear the thought of traveling with only 4 pieces of clothing, consider adding these:

Sweater – Tory Burch, blouse – Rebecca Taylor

More Random Travel Observations and Appreciations

Home, sweet home...

Well, my mother is securely and warmly ensconced in her new home, and I have logged quite a few miles - air and ground - in making that dream a reality.  As with all things in life, I think I learned a thing or two on my travels.  At a minimum, I have a newly warm appreciation for a couple of my wiser packing choices, and a refreshed dislike of Midway Airport.

Just to get this out of the way first - if you have a choice between the 2 Chicago airports, choose O'Hare.  Yes, it is bigger than some European countries, and you can walk yourself into a marathon getting around there, but at least it has clear signs giving you a clue about where to go.  And moreover, it has SEATS.  In a place where people have to wait, sometimes for hours, wouldn't adequate seating be the most OBVIOUS amenity to provide?  Not if you're a city of Chicago Airport manager...

We arrived back in Chicago Sunday night, hot on the heels of those terrible storms.  The airport was dealing with many delayed flights, and the impatient and exhausted passengers were draped over every available flat surface, which made walking an obstacle course of bags, strewn bodies, and darting children.  Lovely...

Even if flights are precisely on time, the average gate at Midway provides maybe 45% of the needed seating for boarding passengers to wait.  There's no such thing as giving up your seat for an older person or someone in obvious need of a seat - you're on your own in a sea of people tethered to their phones or computers.  It does not bring out the best in humanity..

Eileen Fisher Slouch Pants

These pants look a LOT better in person than they do in this photograph - especially if you get them long enough that they don't leave your ankles looking abandoned...  These are sort of the dressiest possible take on sweat pants - they have an elastic waistband, and deep on-seam pockets,but the legs look nice and low-key with flat shoes or walking shoes.  I wore mine relentlessly on this trip - machine wash delicate, tumble dry 'til they're kind of sort of dry, and hang overnight.  Perfect for car riding, walking miles in a new city, dining out at casual restaurants etc.  I just wish she hadn't named them "slouch".  I NEVER slouch.  I slink, insouciant and elegant...

Munro walking shoes

These shoes are destined to be workhorses in my wardrobe until they have completely collapsed!  I wore them with jeans while I was cajoling/castigating the movers, I wore them with the black Eileen Fisher pants to walk for miles some days, and they were always comfortable.  I thought it was risky buying shoes online, but now that I'm sure of my size, I would do it again tomorrow.

Alexis Bittar stud earrings

And I found that I wore the same pair of earrings for 14 straight days...  It was easy, they are beautiful, and they worked well with my mostly grey and black wardrobe. They are small enough to be subtle, but have just enough sparkle to make me happy.

One thing I did that I might have sworn would never happen - I downloaded the Starbucks app to my phone!  While I'd much prefer to patronize small, independent business in most cases, when you're in the middle of a five-day drive, and you aren't even sure what STATE you're in, familiar coffee is a wonderful sight...

I'm sure there are other things that I picked up on my travels that I will share with you in the future - do you find that you come home from travel with new insights, observations and appreciations?

Thought Provoking

Simple Kindness

This is a sign on one of the food vans that's always parked outside of the Field Museum in warm weather.  I know that Kim and Carlo have to get extra quarters from the bank every day, in order to have enough to offer them to anybody who asks.  But this kind of little gesture can make all of the difference in the quality of someone's day...

Scarves for a Six-Pack - Grey, Pink and Black

square scarf - Alva-Norge,  pink cashmere scarf - Nordstrom

Cardigan – Uniqlo, skirt– Uniqlo,  watch – Movado, tee shirt – Uniqlo, opal earrings – Novica,  boots – Vaneli, scarf – Alva-Norge, tote - Tumi

Bracelet – Novica,  Black andgrey pants – Uniqlo, grey sweater - Uniqlo,  skirt – Wunderkind,   dress – Emilio Pucci, shirt – John Lewis,  pumps – Isaac Misrahi, pink sweater - Jil Sander

The Shopping Sweet Spot

I live within walking distance of TWO Nordstrom Racks.  Two.  For those who don't share my good fortune, those are the stores where everything that didn't sell at Nordstrom goes to be flogged off at discount prices.  While the store is mostly filled with dreck, there are almost always a few unspotted (but soiled) gems lurking around - especially if you're a fan of the kind of clothes that look sort of "meh" on the hanger.

So recently, I wandered into one of the stores and spotted a couple of grey Eileen Fisher tank tops, in her signature fabric that drapes beautifully, wears like iron, and flatters everybody!  And my first thought:

"I could use that!"

Sigh...  The world is full of things that could be useful.  I don't need them, and the odds are pretty high that most of them would hang unused in my closet.  I already HAVE a couple of grey tanks - one modal and one linen - and that really is sufficient for me.

I could make the case that I should grab them so that I have them when my current two wear out, but that assumes that I'm still going to want to be wearing tops like that in three or four years.  Brave assumption...

I walked away.  But it was difficult.  And I'm still pondering the peculiar attraction of the useful...

Chic Sightings: Blue and Grey

Blouse – Tory Burch,  Suit – Linea,  pumps – Natan,  sweater – Kenzo,  scarf – Nordstrom,  jeans – J. Brand, canvas shoes - Keds

Earrings – Ippolita,  peacock print sweater – The Elder Statesman, skirt – Uniqlo,  boots – Paul Green, scarf – Missoni,  dress – Uniqlo, earrings – Novica,  pumps- 9 West