My PGA 2009 Wardrobe

As alluded to on Twitter and in a previous blog, next week I will attend the PGA Championship golf tournament at Hazeltine in Chaska. I golf a little bit (BF bought me my own clubs for my birthday!), but I have never been to a golf tournament. I bought tickets almost a year ago to give to BF as an anniversary present because I know how much he adores golf (another testament to my superior girlfriend abilities), and now I’m very excited to go! Only one small problem: Attire. I asked BF what he thought I should wear, to which he replied, “I don’t know, whatever you wear to go golfing.” Helpful.

While I do golf, some, I haven’t quite reached the level where I will spend money on golf shirts or shorts. Normally, when I go golfing, I wear some version of a t-shirt and khaki pants (or even… gasp… jeans), which is definitely not something I want to be wearing when I take my picture with Tiger Woods (Oh yes, that is my mission).

So this week I have been on the hunt for the perfect golf outfits. I needed to find something cute for Monday- the first practice round- where picture-taking and autograph-getting is allowed, and then something sophisticated and classy for Sunday- the final day of the Championship round- where no pictures or autographs, or even CELL PHONES, are ok. Sunday is also a good day to look pristine, as out of the two days BF and I are going it is the one that we are most likely to run into people we know, such as co-workers, bosses, business associates, or networking contacts.

I thought, two days, not so bad. I’ve shopped for full weeks of events before with no problem. Little did I know, “Golf” has a very particular look, with added restrictions of no heels (not only will they stick in the grass, they also make it hard to chase Tiger down the 15th fairway waving a camera, he, he), no flip-flops (My feetsies need some support for the long walks), layers necessary for this most unusual Minnesota summer, and lightweight/portable (once again, a hefty handbag won’t help me get my hands on Mr. Woods). After two days of scouring, buying, returning, and speeding down Highway 100 to get the last one of the perfect cross-body bag, I’m exhausted. May I now present, my wardrobe for the 2009 PGA Championship.

Monday:

I picked up this beauty of a dress at Banana Republic. I decided in order to only have to buy one set of accessories; my color theme for the week would be navy. This fit the bill to a T. Lightweight, with the ability to keep me warm while still letting air flow, and most importantly, totally chic and classic. Tiger Woods will be asking ME to take a picture with him.


Sunday:

This was the real trick. How do you look sophisticated while maintaining a summery, flowy, classy look that will let you move? How do you look sophisticated without wearing heels?!

I was lucky to run across this picture of a style idol of mine, Olivia Palermo, for inspiration. Here she is shooting for The City:


I immediately adored the Topshop cardigan, and then decided I might as well re-create the whole look. I already have the Ray-Ban sunnies (a classic I would have worn anyway), but it was up to me to find the shirt, necktie, and shorts. Luckily, Topshop still had the cardigan in my size.

While in Banana, I took a look at some of their white dress t-shirts. They had a few promising options, but all of the women’s shirts were so heavily pleated around the chest and waist that I couldn’t achieve the flowy look Olivia’s blouse has. The whole time I was in the dressing room I was wishing they could just make women’s shirts like men’s, with no pleating or fittings. Then I had an epiphany: Banana Republic sells men’s shirts too! I headed over to the men’s side, and found the perfect white dress tee. Sure the salespeople gave me some weird looks, but it was worth it.

The navy shorts were the hardest to find. No one seemed to have any, until finally, on a whim, I headed into Old Navy- a store I haven’t shopped at in 10 years. Good thing too, these are perfect:

A quick search on Etsy discovered the perfect navy necktie, made by NadineNewYork:
Accessories:

As I said before, I wanted to wear the same shoes/purse both days. I also wanted to create an interesting twist on each outfit, so I decided on red accessories! A pop or two of red is so on trend right now. Here is what I came up with:

I knew this cross-body bag from Dooney was perfect the moment I saw it. Big enough to carry a camera, cell phone, and other essentials for Monday, but not so big I will look like an idiot carrying a huge tote with nothing in it Sunday. Also, cross-body means I don’t have to “carry” it all day.
Loafers by Franco Sarto. On sale. Keep my feet from getting dirty. Have an arch for some support. Perfect.


What does everyone think? Is anyone else going to the tournament? If so, what are you wearing? And if you are, maybe you will spot me! (Hopefully in the clubhouse sitting next to Tiger ☺ )

I'm Trapped

I promise not to become one of those bloggers that spends all their time posting pictures of handmade goods- but it's true, I have fallen for Etsy.com.

I've known about the site for some time, and visited here and there for a quick look, but yesterday I fell in. I decided to see if anyone had any quality black leather totes (not much luck), which led to three hours looking at headbands, two hours looking at necklaces, and another hour perusing the vintage section. Here are just a few of my favorites:

Vintage Dictionary Glass Pendant Party Girl Necklace by robbiejenkins, $10

The Juliet by BelleChevelure, $20

Creamy Flowering Locket by Peaches4me, $22

Vintage Tiffany and Co. Sterling Silver Compact by Jenstar68, $65

Black Tie affair necklace by JustLive, $15

Sailors Knot Headband by mireillemanuel, $22

I haven't committed to purchasing anything yet, but I'm close. Does anyone else have the Etsy bug? How do you escape it!?

The Fake Debate

For a long time, I thought knock-off designer handbags, clothing, shoes, and accessories were not only morally ok, but also a great way for me to look chic and sophisticated. How wrong I was.

While there are a range of views on the issue of fake designer-wear, I am firm in my belief that knock offs may make you look chic (to the untrained eye who can’t spot a fake in seconds), but there is nothing sophisticated with supporting the plagiarism of countless hours of work and creative energy high class designers put into their collections.

As a writer, I would be horrified if I saw a story I wrote re-printed, either completely or partially, under someone else’s name. And this is for work I maybe spend 10 hours on, at most. Obviously, my horror can’t compare to a designer’s upon seeing their work knocked off, when their product took hundreds of people weeks to make.

The cheap street vendors in New York and the purse parties are bad enough, but what makes me cringe is when reputable stores and designers with the ability to be original decide to take the easy way out and copy.

For instance, this morning, Laura Nelli of Nelle Handbags, a seriously fabulous local handbag and accessories line, tweeted how one bag (and possibly belts) in the new line by Jaye Hersh for Target were ripped off from other designers. For instance, the snakeskin bag:

Jaye Hersh Hollywood Intuition for Target Faux Snakeskin Tote
(From StarTribune.com)

"Jenna" Beirn Handbag

You can decide for yourself, but while not an exact replica, it’s close enough that Laura tweeted that Beirn lawyers are addressing the situation.

This has happened before with Target, and while I love my hometown’s local retailer it upsets me that a large store with so many resources allows knock-offs on their shelves. Another example is Steve Madden, who can produce some beautiful original designs, but also takes “inspiration” from designers for a lot of his shoes.

Another reason I find knock-offs worthless is because they are so easy to spot. Just a few weeks ago, I saw a girl walking downtown with a “Chanel” handbag. Too bad for her, the C’s were stamped on and the leather was visibly fraying. Obviously not Chanel. If you can’t fool people with it, why buy it?

While I wish I could afford a Chanel bag right now, I would rather wait and save my money than blow it on a knock-off. They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but when it comes to ripping off designers, I can find other ways to appreciate their work.

What does everyone else think? Do you buy fake? Why?

Decisions, Decisions

I received a paycheck today (momentary break for a WHOHOO), but as fun as it is too see my account balance go up a large amount with one entry, now the hard part begins. What do I do with it?

With a steady income this summer and not many steady bills (the joys of being young and living cheap), I really want to focus on spending my money smartly and planning how to use it rather than just heading to the mall and blowing it every payday. Although that can be fun. Can I plan one paycheck for that? Hmm.

So, here are the options for this bi-weekly cash inflow. I think I know how it will go, but if you have any opinions, comment away!

Option #1: Beauty Products
If you haven't surmised from earlier posts, my skin and I are in a constant war against each other. This not only means I need make-up (lots), but I also need very specific kinds of make-up that won't cause a revolution of my pores. For many years I used Benefit products, but then seemingly overnight their concealers and foundations were so oily they might as well have been mixed with gasoline. Since changing, I have gone back to Clinique (from the early days when the most Mom would let me wear was a bit of peachy blush), to grocery store brands, to the latest- M.A.C. I know how everyone raves about M.A.C., but personally, I'm not liking it. It is very cakey, which is fine for nights out on the town, but sort of odd for mornings in the office. For my next round, which I am going to need sooner than later, I'm kicking it up a notch. Here's what I'm looking at:

Chanel Base Lumiere, $42

Chanel Brillance Pur, $45

Chanel Poudre Cristalline, $60

Chanel Correcteur Perfection, $40

Nars Blush in Orgasm, $25

Chanel Le Sourcil De Chanel, $65

Chanel Les 4 Ombres De Chanel, $56

Chanel Le Crayon Kohl, $27

Obviously, I would never get it all at once. But if I could have any make-up bag, that would be it.

Option #2:

Spa day. Or at least a spa half day. I could use a massage and maybe a facial or a mani/pedi, so I'm thinking about making an appointment(s) with my girls over at the Minneapolis LifeSpa. A 60 minute massage along with either a facial or a mani/pedi would probably run me around $200.

Option #3:

Haircut/Dye. I'm going to need a haircut soon, and have been thinking about having my color vamped up again for a while now, so this is a possibility. However, I really want to look fresh for fall, so I might just wait a month on this and have it done then. Cut and color will cost about the same as a spa day, $200.

Option #4:

Save it until Friday and head to GH2's 70 percent off sale! With my check, I should be able to pick up a few pieces, and anything at GH2 is fabulous.

The Decision: I think I shall wait until Friday and head over to GH2. I will check out the sale, see how many things I can't live without and then with (if) any leftover money I will head to the Nordstrom beauty counter for the essentials (foundation, eye shadow and maybe blush). Unfortunately, pampering (spa day and hair care) will have to wait for the end of the month.

Thoughts?