Style in Print: Summer Reading for the Jersey Shore

T minus 3 days, if you count the departure day. I couldn’t be more excited.

We won’t talk about what life is going to be like between now and then, though. At all.

Later this week, I’m hoping to put up a post - and join the masses in the “how to get ready for vacation/ summer essenials/ what to pack” posts - about how I’m approaching our 2 weeks at the Jersey Shore. We’ll see if that happens. In the meantime, though, here’s one thing I’m looking forward to immensely.

Reading.

I go through phases. I grew up a voracious reader, going to great lengths to keep reading (um, hiding in the bathroom, the Place My Mother Couldn’t Argue With, with my book, to avoid chores and keep reading? Yup.). I’m absolutely an escapist reader. Annoys H to no end, at times, especially when he’s suggested for the 10,000th time that I read Into Thin Air, one of his all-time favorites. The combined library of an escapist reader and a non-fiction reader make for some pretty interesting bookshelves, let me tell you.

Come Friday, I certainly won’t get to while away long hours reading on the beach. I do have two Beans, you know. They’re much more interested in sandcastles and burying each other than flipping pages (at least on the beach). I will, though, take advantage of Bean No.2’s midday nap. One of us has to stay home while he’s sleeping. It’s not unusual that I’ll volunteer for that duty (when it’s not time for The Bean and me to hit the nail salon for our weekly Jersey Shore mani/pedi session). Reading on the balcony while overlooking the ocean is pretty good motivation for nap duty.

There’s a mix in here of things I’ve read and things I intend on reading. There are also some actual, physical books sitting on my nightstand I’ll bring along.

My Nook Book Library

Southern Charm by Tinsley Mortimer - I missed her stop in DC, but can’t wait to read her take on NYC.

Nora Roberts - I’m a sucker for a good, formulaic romance novel, and the native MD author writes trilogies I just plain ol’ enjoy. These are the first two in her latest (I hate waiting for the last one to come out).

The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides - One of the few places H & my literary tastes overlap is on Middlesex, Eugenides’ Pulitzer Prize-winning story of Greek refugees escaping the Turks. OK, so that’s not really what the book was about, but it’s part of what hooked us both (H’s Armenian family escaped the same area as the beginning characters). So the newest Eugenides book is definitely on our list.

A couple of books for The Bean - I’m torn on how much to let her read on my Nook, but the books that read to her have been a godsend on a couple of afternoons when I’ve been sick or exhausted and needed to nap while the little one was also napping. The Bean was thrilled to read herself!

A couple of sample cookbooks - haven’t taken the plunge into Nook cookbooks yet, though I have a cookbook addiction. Chef Chloe’s might be the first.

The Uncommon Reader by Alan Bennett - a rare purchase recommended by a Nook blog post. It’s a book about books. Duh.

The Game of Thrones - bandwagon. Undecided, despite my penchant for maidens and armor and family tragedy.

Weisburger and Bushnell - already happily devoured

The Flame Alphabet, a novel, by Ben Marcus - I no longer remember exactly why I bought this one, except that I think there’s a Romanian (another piece of H’s heritage) connection.

The Drop by Michael Connelly - Already read, I love Connelly’s Harry Bosch books. Also a sucker for old school detective stories (JD Robb is a favorite, too).

25 Favorite Novels - the joys of the Nook. Everything from Austen to Cather. For 99 cents. First thing I started? Anne of Green Gables.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins - also happily devoured

What else? Well, there’s that Justine Picardie Coco Chanel bio I’ve started but not finished, a hilarioius read penned by Simon Doonan, and the novel I can’t find anywhere in my house, which is very very annoying, the German copy of Herta Mueller’s Atemschaukel (The Hunger Angel) I desperately want to read.

I’ll let you know in 2 weeks what I’ve finished. Bets?

Healthy Style: Appearances Can Be Deceiving or How What You Wear Can Drop 10lbs

I posted this originally on my Weight Watchers Online Community blog - details at the bottom of this post.

I go to events. And I get my picture taken.

You know those 3-4-people-holding-drinks-pics in local society pages? The ones in glossy mags with stars scrunched in looking chummy with editors and Rich People whose names you don't recognize?

Yeah. Those shots.

They can be the most unflattering pics out there. No matter what a photographer does, sometimes (and some of them are very good, quick, catching the best angles), well, the angle just doesn't catch me in the best light.

Sure, it has a lot to do with what I'm wearing. It also has to do with the "pose" I strike. I still haven't figured that one out. Especially since I'm often the tallest, biggest one in the pictures. See below for reference.

In the first shot, I'm wearing what is actually a very flattering sheath dress. But a) the folks I'm with, even the glamorous tall woman on the far right, are, shall we say, significantly less in poundage than I, b) I need to stand up straight, and c) my white- **** arm shouldn't be facing the camera like that. I hate this picture. Let's label it Before Picture No. 1. It's also at my starting weight in this shot. (BTW, photo is courtesy of an absolutely phenomenal DC-based photographer, Kate Warren. Her work is inspiring and fun, and you can see it at Go Kate Shoot.)

Yours truly, the Corcran's Kristen Guiter, Rachel Cothran, Melanie Kimmelman, and Betsy Lowther at the Simon Doonan book signing party at the W (thank you BrandLinkDC!)

In the second, I'm wearing an also flattering but completely different blousey top, and my hair, though washed, is completely and totally fly-away. I dislike this picture much less, because a) I crouched down to be shorter than my friend, and b) we were having fun, which goes a long way in making you look better in a photograph. Before Picture No. 2. Here, I'd already lost 5lbs., I'm wearing an also flattering but completely different blousey top, and my hair, though washed, is completely and totally fly-away. I dislike this picture much less, because a) I crouched down to be shorter than my friend, and b) we were having fun, which goes a long way in making you look better in a photograph. Before Picture No. 2. Here, I'd already lost 5lbs.

Yours truly and Alison of Chain Strap Purse (conservative style blogger Gingers who spell their names The Right Way from PA, unite!) at the CapFABB Anniversary Party.

In the last picture, shot in my office bathroom this morning, well, I'd call it Before Picture No. 3, but I am acutely aware that posting this in a WW forum could lead to folks saying "why are you trying to lose weight?" Sure, I suspect I might hit a 10lb loss when I weigh in tomorrow, but I've lost a few pounds more than Before Picture No. 3.

Yours truly in a Calverton, MD, office bathroom.

What it really comes down to?

1) Angle. I did shoot this picture on an angle, and a teensy bit from above, both of which, when my Big White Arms are covered (even in white), take pounds off.

2) The Right Clothes. When I threw this together last night so I could get out of the house and into the office super early to finish some things, I had no real idea it would work as well as it does. I was even concerned that the jacket would make me look larger than I am. In the end, though, the pieces are simple (a pencil skirt + fitted long sleeve T + belt + fitted jacket), structured, and, oh BTW, they're comfortable. I feel good, so I look good.

So I have 2 challenges for my Infintessimal Readership:

I Love Me Challenge No. 1: From reading other blogs, getting emails and tweets, and talking to folks In Real Life, I know that lots of women don't think they know how to put together an outfit. Lord knows there are lots of resources out there - so many it's overwhelming. But sort through your closet and try things on - even if you think that you hate what you have. There has to be at least one piece (and probably more) that fits you well, no matter what your weight. Find it. And wear it. Wear it til it has holes in it, then go find another. You'll feel better, which will help you make good choices. (If you're so inclined, and on twitter, tweet me a snapshot of your new favorite ensemble @DCCeline with #ilovemeNo1 and we can have a Mutual Admiration Society.)

I Love Me Challenge No. 2: Once you're in that piece or outfit, snap some shots of yourself, and play with the angles (3/4 side shot, camera a little bit above your head), or get someone else to do it. Having one picture of yourself that you love At This Weight will also make you feel great, and will help you make good choices. Proof that WW - or whatever your healthy lifestyle plan is - is working, so to speak. (Tweet me one of these newly favorite pics - your new avatar, perhaps? - @DCCeline with #ilovemeNo2.)

Then let me know what you feel, alright?

If you want to follow my journey to being healthy, check out my starting post, here, and look for other posts with the tags "healthy style" and "healthyme." #healthyme tags my journey tweets. If you happen to be in Weight Watchers, and are using the eTools, I have a WW blog, too: StyleBloggerWorkingMamaWife Gets Healthy.

Style in Print: Simon Doonan

Just a pretty pink, silly picture for you to brighten up your Saturday. I had a lovely time at my, as I've been calling it, Triumphant Return to Events. Meeting Simon Doonan was the way to make that return.

I'm about a 3rd of the way through Mr. Doonan's newest book, Gay Men Don't Get Fat. The title is familiar for a reason. His book's thesis, if you will, is that gay men are French women with, well, additional appendages. So far, he's absolutely made his point, along with a number of others about how we "straights" live our lives and could live them better.

And, in case you were wondering, he's as lovely and gracious in person as you'd expect him to be.

(My ensemble, in case you were wondering, but why would you be when !Simon Doonan! is in the picture: 9 West zipper front "mod" dress, Oscar de la Renta straw/patent sandals, fish scale chandelier earrings, bought for me by my sis, vtgracie, in Philly.)

Style Dilemma: What to Wear to Meet a Fashion God

I'm going to meet Simon Doonan tomorrow.

Yes, he of the Barney's Windows Fame.

Except that now, he's much more than that. He's Barney's Creative Ambassador.

No, I don't know exactly what that means, but I don't really need to know. He. Is. A. Fashion. God.

Or at least a hero with some superpowers.

Anywho.

What does one wear? I know, I know, I'll get to shake his hand, smile at him, ask him to sign my newly purchased book, and maybe, just maybe, he'll spell my name with one "L." All without - most likely - even looking at me. It's an open-to-the-I-sent-an-RSVP-public book party at the W.

What do I wear? I'm hoping beyond hope that I can catch his well-trained eye and garner a gracious response.

What do I wear? I'm hoping to catch his eye with an accessory, since I'm not really happy with my body, and therefore with what I'm draping around it (as I sit here eating potato chips and french onion dip. next week i start with the healthiness, i swear). I'm also hoping for bonus points with either vintage or local talent, like lillybee or Queen Bee Designs.

What do I wear? The immediate response yesterday when I posed the question to the twitterverse was "color, color, and more color." And then "simple elegance." So do I have something - that fits - that hits both of those?

To figure this all out, The Bean and I hosted a bit of a #fashionshow tonight before she went to bed. hillarygrove, TheMadamEditor, and CarlyJaneZ (with jesserker and stylish_in_dc piping in at the end) cast their votes. The funny thing? Their response was, at first, the exact opposite of The Bean's. Team Orange, as they named themselves, loved my drapey Grecian orange knit - that The Bean immediately panned (she came around in the end). Apparently, she doesn't like dresses with belts, "only fashion dresses." (BTW, this rule apparently only applies to me, as she's constantly adding belts to her party dresses.)

The first look, a classic hi-lo combo of Target dress, belt, and Oscar de la Renta sandals, was the quick front runner.

Next votes went for my mod black, white, and grey 9 West shift, then for my vintage brass and green necklace, dress aside. What didn't garner any response - at all - were my grey bronzed T & cargo skirt ensemble and my beautiful red dress that is, well, let's just say I need to put it on again after I start taking care of myself.

So where will I end up? What do I wear? In the end, votes or no votes, it'll be me and my mirror - and my comfort level with myself tomorrow. But in the meantime, if you'd like to cast your vote, head on over to my facebook page, where I have all of the options posted, and critique away.