Special Deliveries

I've been doing a bit of online shopping lately. Here's my hits and misses.

Old Navy had a special sale a few weeks ago, with 20% everything plus free shipping. I couldn't resist that, so I got the light blue pleated clutch I posted about previously, which is a keeper due to its $4.99 price and simple style.










I also picked up this Two Pocket Tote, $19.50, but didn't realize how freaking huge it would end up being. I was hoping for a good laptop bag, but I could find a desktop computer plus a small child in this thing. I took it back to the store.



I also rejected this Boat Neck Color Block Dress, $24.50, after trying it on. I thought it would be good to add a dress with a higher neckline to my stable of V and scoop-neck dresses, but then I realized that the reason I never buy the crews, boats or turtles is because they don't look good on my body. I look top-heavy and too broad, never a good thing. It's a cute dress, just not on me. I'll leave the boat neck dresses to Jackie O. in the future, I think.



I've wanted a trio of intertwined rings for ages, but these aren't the ones I've been waiting for. The enamel trio in turquoise, $3.99, only come in one size and were too big for my ring finger. Also, they looked a little too cheap for me to ever get excited about wearing them. American Eagle made a silver ring trio last spring, which I bought but then tried to exchange through the mail when they, too, were too big. But I wasn't fast enough, and they sold out before giving me a replacement. I'm keeping my fingers crossed they'll bring the trio back, since I love a ring that doubles as a toy.



I did keep this 3/4 sleeve Oxford shirt, $24.50. I already own it in yellow, and as I get ready to enter the work force I can never have too many cute button downs. I'm obsessed with the striped underside of the color-- it's such a fun detail on what's normally a boring classic.





I also got two things from J.Crew when they did the "extra 20% off the final sale" promotion they do every so often. And, to be honest, it didn't work out that great for me. J.Crew has great sales, but too often they're final, which means no exchanges and no returns. The featherweight cotton pleated top, $12.99, is no great loss even if it's the entirely wrong color for my skin and hair. In this photo, it looks like a lovely lemon sorbet color, right? But I should have taken the fact that it's called "citrus lime" as a clue, because it's more of an electric yellow crossed with neon green. I'm not even sure if this color would look good on anyone, because it's so in-your-face bright. It's very soft, though, and perhaps I can hide it under a cardigan a few times a year in order to get my twelve bucks worth.

I've been pining over this dress for months, so when it went down to $139, then $112 with the extra discount, plus a gift card I'd totally forgotten I had, I decided to go for it. I took a risk by getting it a size below what I normally wear, but luckily enough, it fits perfectly. And it even looks pretty good. But, if I'm being totally honest with myself, if I tried on the Giverny-print Sydney dress in the store, I would have hemmed and hawed a lot but ultimately decided not to buy it.

The last time this happened, when I bought a sweater coat that not only made me look like a box but was a gross orange-y red (why so misleading with the colors, Jcrew.com?), Danielle and I planned this elaborate sting where she took it back for me (since they run your name and address through the computer) and told the cashier it was a gift, getting the refund on a gift card and then passing it on to me. I lost a little bit of money since it had gone deeper on sale since I bought it, but that was better than having a monstrosity in my closet. Now, my partner-in-crime is across the country, and I have to cross my fingers that someone I know gets married and invites me to the wedding-- this would be a pretty fantastic wedding guest dress, I must admit. And hey, it has pockets, one of my very favorite dress details! So it's not a disaster dress-- just not the glorious frock for which I hoped.