All Things EARTH... part 2

[laurspag]

 

Now, for accessorizing my dresses.  I chatted with my daughter, and tried a few things on, and I've got everything picked out now.

 

Our first night might be the most casual, so I'm going with my maxi dress.  I can wear a few different sandals with it, but it brushes the floor a little bit, so I opted for these, since I am wearing them with another outfit as well.

 

 

I got kind of lost on jewelry with this dress.  I want to wear a necklace, but I find print dresses to be really busy.  I have a few necklaces that I am going to take out that I think will work.  I'm not keen on the bracelets, but they are an option.  The necklace I am thinking of has an antique gold colored chain, and a small tiger's eye look pendant to it.

 

This is another casual night.  I wouldn't say my daughter's dress is casual, but I think our strong colors will look nice together.  The first picture is closer to the correct color of the fabric.

 

 

I decided on the brown dress rather than my Michael Kors high low dress.  The main reason was not wanting to include another pair of shoes.  I have a pair that would have looked great with both the brown dress and the gold, but I didn't want to wear them with the maxi, simply to give my feet a break.  It's that whole shoe dilemma thing.  By the way, my daughter has indicated she will likely wear flats with the animal print dress.

 

 

In theory, I will likely be wearing a pair of the flat sandals when I board the plane.  Makes TSA easy!

 

And you can see my formal sandals here.  If I really wanted to dress up the brown dress, they would look cute and I have an awesome bracelet that is dressier that would complete the outfit.

 

 

 

Edited May 2, 2022 by laurspag

[laurspag]

Lastly, formal night.  This dress needs ironing, lol!  This is the one thing that was frustrating me the most when it came to photos for the color.

 

 

Some miscellaneous jewelry.  This necklace looks great with the brown linen blend shirt.  It was my sister's...I have three necklaces that were hers, and I always bring one.  

 

 

You can see how bad the acetone messed up my nails and cuticles.  No more of those nails for me, except for once in a great while, as a one time thing.

 

Swimsuits...I think this is too much, but I am not certain yet.

 

These are my one piece swimsuits.  The left is a strong red Athleta suit I have had for a while.  The second is a bit newer.  Both are warmer than they look here.

 

This picture gave me conniptions.  The tankini on the left is that coral tone that AThleta had so much of a few years ago.  The brown is my new Athleta one.  

 

Want to see an awful picture?  This is what the hot tub has done to this suit.  I would love to wear something nicer, but I don't want anything ruined.  I am still contemplating an ivory suit!

 

Lastly are the coverups I am bringing.  I have the matching AThleta one for the red suit, but have never been a fan of the long sleeves so I don't use it often.  

[awhfy]

Laurie, did you ever show that faded swimsuit to Athleta?  I’ve never had a suit fade out that badly from one cruise, absolutely awful. 

[laurspag]

I didn't, although I should have, Melody.  I keep eying an ivory suit because I figure it will stay looking nice.

 

Margaret, remember the dress I posted  link to that you said you'd buy? It came in and it is so much better than I anticipated.  It fits so good, and the colors are great.  I was worried it would have a tent like look to it and it does not.

The Red look a little bright in this photo, but it really is a great red.  And that background color picks up very brown like.

 

[MJC]

Laurie, I really like that dress. I'm very tempted.

 

I've gotten a flood of catalogs. Here is an interesting green from Coldwater Creek:

 

https://www.coldwatercreek.com/search?q=garden+green

 

There was a top I was thinking about, but it's already sold out. 😒

[MJC]

jjill has a lot of teal.

 

https://www.jjill.com/SearchDisplay?storeId=10101&catalogId=10051&langId=-1&sType=SimpleSearch&resultCatEntryType=2&showResultsPage=true&searchSource=Q&pageView=&beginIndex=0&pageSize=36&authToken=&searchTerm=teal

 

https://www.jjill.com/product/pj-coastline-garment-dyed-linen-dress?color=4FN&searchTerm=linen dress

 

Coral:

 

https://www.jjill.com/product/ibiza-tiered-maxi-dress?searchTerm=

 

https://www.jjill.com/product/madeira-pintucked-blouse?searchTerm=

 

 

 

[awhfy]

Our JJill closed this winter 😢. Their sizes are sometimes weird on me & I really like to try on before I buy. I’m very tempted by the teal tshirt dress with pockets & the print maxi. Not that I need anything!!!  Melody

[MJC]

I'm tempted by the shirt dress too. I pass a jjill on my way to the dermatologist, so I sometimes pop in to try stuff on.

[laurspag]

We no longer have a jjill near us.  There used to be one at the mall, but the mall isn't doing very well these days.  

 

I love teal, and I love the coral/rust tones they have.  Those are some of my favorite colors.

 

I really feel like I did well with my more recent purchases.  I'm loving that new dress, and I can't wait to wear it.  I also spent a total of $40.00 at Old Navy and bought a pair of jeans, the blue version of my brown shirt, two sleeveless tank tops and that print short sleeved top you see in the photos above for my cruise.  The coupons and everything were great.

 

Here is the link for the blue shirt.  It is not as warm as I would like, but I think it looks good.  With my hair going gray, I can get away with some different things.  I think Curt once told us that if you are an earth, you will always be an earth.  However, as you age and your hair color changes, skin lightens, etc., you may go from true earth to soft earth or deep earth, for example.  I think there is some validity there.  I think I will know more when I see cruise pictures and the like.  

 

I remember when my girls were always here and I'd have them take pictures of me wearing all my outfits. 

 

I feel good about all my outfits.  I think the only questionable thing right now is my sandals choice for the brown dress.  While I know it will work, I have never worn that casual of shoe with that dress.  I have always loved how you can dress it up or down.  It is probably one of the purchases I have gotten the most out of.  The gold dress I'm bringing is the same way - I've gotten a lot out of that dress too.

 

I had my yearly physical yesterday, and found out my doctor is retiring.  Honestly, I never realized he was older than me until we were talking about it yesterday.  I have to say, I almost cried and I'm still insanely sad about it.  I have been going to the same doctor since before my older daughter was born, so about 34-35 years.  They have a new doctor ready to take his place.  While I thought about the fact that he would retire someday, I never thought I would be this sad over it.  My daughters both go to him as well as my sister, and we are all sad.

 

Do any of you feel that way about any of your health care providers?

 

My Set Sail Pass is ready.  This means it's real!  I haven't told my daughter that our flight leaves at 6 AM yet.  That means we need to get there around 4:00 - 4:30.  Yikes.  When should I tell her?  🙂  She will be good with it, as I know she is super excited.

 

 

[awhfy]

We’ll have the same issue with our doc, it’ll be in the next couple of years. We’ve gone to him since we moved to CO in 1983. My husband really likes him. He won’t bring someone in, he’ll close the practice 😢

 

tell your daughter, more vacation time!!  Have her stay at your house tge night before so she doesn’t oversleep!!!

[laurspag]

Margaret, before I forget, what were the nails you used that you liked?  Color Street?

[MJC]

Laurie, for the November cruise I used Color Street nails. They were hardy and I only had to remove them when the gap between the color and cuticle got too big. But, they are a gel product and damaged my nails. I am just at the point where they have grown out enough that my nail beds are healthy, though the tips are still a tad brittle, so I am keeping my nails very short. That was 5 months ago already.

 

In January I tried the Diva Ultra Shine Gel Color nails. They are a tiny bit thicker, and even though they say gel, they do not harm my nails. With that product I find that the shimmer colors look natural but the solids are a little too shiny for my taste? I never thought before about how glossy one prefers their nails to look.

 

As for removal, the Color Street required soaking with a cotton ball first for the color to come completely off. The Diva nails I could just peel off (carefully) and then use remover for whatever residue was left (very little). They are super convenient and a bit easier to apply IMO. I just bought a bunch on sale at TJMaxx, so keep an eye out if you want to save a bit on your first try.

 

I've been working in my yard a lot lately so my nails are being a bit neglected. I'll be applying some Diva nails before we leave for our Niagara Falls trip, though, after I give myself a pedicure first. Now that some warm days have arrived my toes will be public again soon. 🙂

 

 

 

[MJC]

Here's a cute summer dress in cotton. I don't think the online colors look right, but in the catalog the teal is teal and the purple looks like it might be a FIRE color:

https://www.northstyle.com/itemdy00.aspx?T1=NP124+BK+S

 

This is a cute top but I'm not a fan of spandex:

https://www.northstyle.com/itemdy00.aspx?T1=NL964+PKM+S

 

Nutmeg! Nice color:

https://www.northstyle.com/itemdy00.aspx?T1=NL948+NV+S

 

You can see why I might like the color of these pj's:

https://www.northstyle.com/itemdy00.aspx?T1=NF406+CF+2X

 

 

[PurpleHays]

23 hours ago, laurspag said:

I had my yearly physical yesterday, and found out my doctor is retiring.  Honestly, I never realized he was older than me until we were talking about it yesterday.  I have to say, I almost cried and I'm still insanely sad about it.  I have been going to the same doctor since before my older daughter was born, so about 34-35 years.  They have a new doctor ready to take his place.  While I thought about the fact that he would retire someday, I never thought I would be this sad over it.  My daughters both go to him as well as my sister, and we are all sad.

 

Do any of you feel that way about any of your health care providers?

I saw the same (nurse-midwife) gyn provider for more than 20 years. Took both my daughters to see her. I followed her to multiple practices. I was talking to my younger daughter about scheduling a visit and she said "you know J***** retired, don't you?" Uh, no. Thanks for breaking my heart. I went to the one the daughter was seeing and I like her too. Almost as much. 

 

Same Family Practice group for over 30 years, mostly the same doc. I live 45 minutes away now and tried a doc closer. Didn't like her (she didn't listen to me at all) so I went back to Dr. S. I usually only go once a year, so it's not bad. Same with the dentist, also 30+ years. My favorite hygienist retired, so there's that, but why fix what ain't broke.

[laurspag]

It appears our local Target has Dashing Diva Gel Nails, so I will try to get up there and take a look.  Since my nails are so bad, I think a neutral will make them look more presentable.  

 

My nails grow super fast.  I am trying to remember when I removed the dip polish....end of March?  I am just guessing, because I know it was prior to COVID.  About 2/3rds of my nails are new growth.  I just wish that a regular manicure would last.  I've tried my own and have gone to numerous salons to no avail.  I got them to last 3 days once when I babied them, but I normally can't go two days without it chipping off.  My nails are brittle, so they break easy and get those little hairline fractures, as I call them.  That is what forms the chips - when the nail flexes where the cracks are.

 

If that is my biggest problem, then I'm doing pretty good, aren't I?  I think I may just get the suitcases out, and get started!

 

North Style has some cute stuff.  Have you ever ordered from there before?  I would order those nutmeg cropped joggers. Those are cute and they look comfy!

[MJC]

I've ordered their leggings, and I really like them. So soft.

[MJC]

[jhsocal]

Ref faded swimsuit-Had a Lands End suit completely changecolor from a pool in Palm Springs. Have worn several other suits in same pool, no problem. Not sure if problem was the suit or too much chemicals in the pool.

[laurspag]

For me, the color faded in the hot tub.  I am not in swimming pools very often.  I do like the beach when I'm on a cruise, so thankfully, that doesn't cause any fading!

 

The upcoming cruise is with my daughter, so it may be very different.  She has much to celebrate.

 

The cruise was booked to celebrate her master's degree.  I told her too that we are kind of celebrating her 30th birthday a little early.  Then,, she was scouted out by a local accounting firm, and they have offered her a job starting in August!  She is super excited.  They are offering her a competitive package as far as pay and benefits go, and they will pay for her CPA test.  If she obtains that within a certain time frame, she will receive a bonus and instant pay increase.

 

I'm very proud of her!    

 

We have been having amazing weather this week, and her graduation day is also supposed to be beautiful.  My plan is to wear that new dress, so I should get a picture or two of it.

[awhfy]

Laurie, it sounds like things are falling into place for your daughter!  Have a great girls cruise!!!

[laurspag]

I just saw this at jjill online.  I need to look at it on my computer to see the colors better.

 

https://www.jjill.com/product/embroidered-paisley-dress

[laurspag]

And this...

 

https://www.jjill.com/product/pure-jill-embroidered-linen-maxi-dress

[laurspag]

Here is something fun.  My sister attended my daughter's graduation ceremony and went to dinner with us.  I was wearing my new dress, which I was thinking would make a great cruise dress in October.  The print is rather tropical.  

 

The dress is wonderfully made - the fabric is just the right weight for jersey, and it fits really well.  In the midst of running around in the morning and then picking my sister up, I realized I didn't put any jewelry on.  I got caught up in what shoes to wear, as you have to do a great deal of walking there, as parking is a bit farther out and then you have to walk to campus.  I ended up wearing a pair of flats that I have previously posted a picture of, and they looked okay with outfit.  But...no jewelry.

 

My sister handed me a little bag with some odds and ends of things.  There was a bracelet in the bag with lots of different colors, that I look forward to wearing.  Then there were two pair of earrings, and both were perfect for the dress.  As a matter of fact, they go with a lot of things that I'm bringing on this cruise, and I plan to wear them with the maxi dress.  I had those bangle bracelets out, and I think they go so well.  I'll post the picture I took shortly.

[laurspag]

[MJC]

Laurie, I like those two jjill dresses. The first one I'd have to try on to see where those swirls would land on my girls, KWIM?  That brown one caught my eye too when the catalog came. Always nice to find linen in an EARTH color.

 

How sweet about the earrings! Now you will think of your sister when you wear them. I sometimes wear my mom's or grandma's jewelry just to feel them close when I'm missing them. I still use my grandma's car key fob even though she has been gone a long time now.

 

I have clothes all over my bed to pack for our Niagara Falls trip. This morning I picked out earrings and went through my toiletries bag to take stock. Since we will be walking and hiking a lot, wearing hats and sunglasses, with camera straps too, I chose mostly small ones that have backs so I won't lose them. We have planned two nice dinners out while in NF Ontario, so I have two pretty tops and dressier earrings, and a pair of black pants to wear for those, with some wedge loafers. Otherwise it will be a very casual week. 

 

If anyone is in the market for luggage, I recommend checking out your local Macy's. Our NJ store had a 60% off sale going on to move out the inventory that's been hanging around through the pandemic. Since the handle broke on my roll-aboard during my last return flight from FL, I got a new London Fog at a steal last Wednesday.