July 2009

Weekend Open Thread

by C July 31, 2009 Fashion

Something on your mind? Chat about it here.

Pictured: kate spade “Collingwood Drive” Mug, available at Amazon for $25.

Weekly Roundup

by C July 31, 2009 Fashion

Liking these posts? Follow Corporette on Twitter — this is the edited version of what we’re reading! (We also Tweet if we hear about a good sale.)

- Sweet Hot Justice ponders whether a nose ring should be removed. Judging by the debate we had over tattoos a while back, we’d say yes. (Pictured: Ring through his nose, originally uploaded to Flickr by florriebassingbourn)

- Elena Kagan will reportedly not be arguing in Jimmy Choos. [Above the Law]

- Jezebel wonders if women make better bosses — and whistleblowers.

- From Business Week: How to excel at your job and be home for dinner.

- The best career advice, in 10 words or less. [The Simple Dollar]

- All the cool kids are thinking about this: how to manage your Facebook account. [Wired] Also: CNet rounds up the social sites that are competing with Linked In.

- Slate advises you how to fix your “terrible, insecure passwords” in 5 minutes. Also: some good things to keep in mind if you’ve ever used a Hotmail account. [Lifehacker]

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Bargain Friday’s TPS Report: Banana Republic’s Bow-Tie Top

by C July 31, 2009 Fashion

Our daily TPS reports suggest one piece of work-appropriate attire in a range of prices.

Banana Republic has its 30% Off Friends and Family sale this weekend, and have been sending out e-mails to “good customers.” Some customers (like us) got bar-codes for in-store use; others got coupon codes valid for one online use. One generous reader is apparently a very good customer, and C has sent us three online coupon codes to share with the readers. So: post a comment in this thread (tell us what you’re up to this weekend, perhaps), and by 5:00 E.S.T. we’ll pick three lucky winners and e-mail your code.

That said, we’re loving this bow-tie top from Banana Republic. It’s slightly quirky in a vintage way, but not a full homage to the fashion of Mad Men. It’s available for both regular and petites in summer orchid (shown), military navy, and black. It’s $40 at Banana Republic. Women: Bow-tie top – Summer orchid

If you’ve recently seen a great work piece you’d like to recommend to the readers, please e-mail editor@corporette.com with “TPS” in the subject line. Unless you ask otherwise, we’ll refer to you by your first initial.

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Reader Mail: What color shoes, other than black, can I wear?

by M July 30, 2009 Fashion

Today’s reader is tired of her black shoes…

I wear black shoes far too often, including with grey slacks. Do you have any guidance on shoe colors and recommendations on what should go with grey?

mia Well, our love of purple shoes is well documented — really, they’re great with navy, gray, beige, and even a dark green color. Otherwise, we’re getting into your risk tolerance with shoe choice. Red shoe: bold, but can be a great neutral to wear with things. Patent leather red: probably too bold for work. Lately, we’ve been lusting after green shoes, having seen a number of women wearing them. The trouble with green is that, between the shade of green and the shade of your skin tone, you may not be able to wear them with skirts without your legs looking slightly sickly — but if you’re just looking to wear them with gray pants, go for it. We would also recommend playing around with ideas of what you can and can’t wear together — for example, some would say that gray and brown should never go together, but if you wear gray slacks, brown heels, and a cream colored sweater, it can be a lovely outfit.

Pictured above left: Joan & David – Joey (Medium Green/Medium Blue Leather) – Footwear, available at Zappos for $163 (was $204). Pictured above right: Mia Women’s Mabel T-Strap Pump, available at Endless for $33 (was $60).

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Thursday’s TPS Report: Calvin Klein Belted Ponte Knit Dress

by C July 30, 2009 Fashion

Our daily TPS reports suggest one piece of work-appropriate attire in a range of prices.

Nordstrom’s Anniversary Sale continues through this weekend, including this lovely knit dress from Calvin Klein. We love the royal blue color (it’s also available in a muted gray patterned print) — it’s bright, fun, yet professional. We’d wear it with a boyfriend cardigan (perhaps putting the belt on top of the sweater), or perhaps a long pendant necklace that hits above the belt. The dress is now $78 (from $118) and was available in plus size as well (though only 20W is left). Calvin Klein Belted Ponte Knit Dress
If you’ve recently seen a great work piece you’d like to recommend to the readers, please e-mail editor@corporette.com with “TPS” in the subject line. Unless you ask otherwise, we’ll refer to you by your first initial.

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Suit of the Week

by C July 29, 2009 Fashion

For busy working women, the suit is often the easiest outfit to throw on in the morning. In general, this feature is not about interview suits, which should be as classic and basic as you get — instead, this feature is about the slightly different suit that is fashionable, yet professional.

This week we’re loving this suit — on sale! — from Anne Klein, whose suits tend to fit comfortably and classically. We’re particularly intrigued by the notation that this suit is machine washable — we can’t say we’ve ever tried that with any of our AK suits. We particularly like that the suit is available in a wide variety of sizes — regular, petite, as well as plus sizes. The jacket (Micro Stripe Three-Button Blazer) is now $94 (was $189), the pants (Micro Stripe Slim Bootleg) are now $49 (formerly $99), and the skirt (Micro Stripe Straight Skirt) is now $44 (was $89) (available only in regular and petite, not plus sizes).