Wedged Between a Bow and a Pretty Skirt

      

     

     

     

      

     

Outfit details

Teal top - Plains and Prints, Gift from Mommy

Full skirt - Plains and Prints, Gift from Mommy

Orange sash - Plains and Prints

Men's watch - Guess, Originally E's

Bead bracelet - Love Joy (as in it's not really mine, it's LJ's)

Sunglasses - Banana Republic

Tan wedge - Aldo

What and Where

My closet is like the wardrobe in the Chronicles of Narnia (no Chickie, not that kind of Narnia!), once you get inside the closet, you can get lost in the beauty and multi-diversity of its citizens: cottons, silks, rayon, nylon, spandex, acrylics, polyester, yes polyester and others. You can't have a way overstuffed closet and know where everything is, especially when the closet floor and the surrounding area is littered with unopened shopping bags. Oh, I kid you not, I tend to go shopping, run home and stuff the retail bags into the front hall closet in case E is in the living room and then act nonchalant as I sigh over such a long day in the office while he hands me a glass of wine. Or - I leave them on the bedroom floor (absolutely unopened, untried and obviously, unused), their temporary holding cell, until the age old question is answered: To keep or not to keep?

p.s. Please tell me I am not the only crazy one here. In fact, it would make me feel so much better if you tell me about your crazier shopping stories!

The thing is, I absolutely hate returns. I don't like walking up to the cash and have to explain why I am returning this dress, jacket, skirt, cat. It makes me a little uncomfortable when they ask for my name, address, e-mail address, phone number and favourite soccer player (ahmn.. that cute foreign hottie in short shorts?) like they will put me on a universally-shared mall-wide black list of returnees (wait, maybe there really is such a list?) or worst, they will send an army of retail detectives knocking on my door or my Outlook inbox to conduct a return inquiry. Is it just me or are the sales associate friendlier and more accommodating when you are buying than when you are returning? Oui, oui, I do understand how one will get upset as returns could result to a deduction in their commissions cheque but what's with taking it so personally as if they've designed or actually made the items themselves?

My point is, I spent a good two hours last night going through my closet, drawers, shopping bags and under the mattress to look for a Banana Republic dress I bought for Natalie awhile ago - her intended 2010 Christmas gift. Si mi amor, I know it is only July but the short version of this is, I have this unrehabable (if that is not an actual word, then ooops!) habit of buying things for friends and family, just because, or for their future special occasions: birthdays, engagement party, anniversaries, bat mitzvah and yes, especially for their Christmas presents.

Not finding the dress made me sweat like the hairy semi-nude dude in the elliptical last night and it made me doubt myself, big time! Did I really buy that dress? I'm pretty sure I did, I even wrote it in my inventory list (told you, craaazy!) but I just couldn't find it. After making a huge pile of retail mess in our bedroom, I finally found it. Thank the Fashion Gods! Wheeew... it was in my 'to gift wrap' section of Narnia.

It would have been such a shame if I lost it, it is so pretty and classy that she can wear it to a number of special events and I think its one of those pieces (I hope) she can keep in her closet forever. Let's ask for beautiful photos of her in that dress, shall we?