Wednesday’s TPS Report: Printed Linen Blazer

61 Comments

1. Ladies, I am so pleased – so far this week my new nanny has
   1. given the baby a bath
   2. played soccer with the kids
   3. read to the kids
   4. taken the kids to the park
   5. and is now doing some grocery shopping for me!!!!

   Woohooo! (Our old nanny never did items 1,2 or 5, and 3 and 4 less often than we would like!)

   1. Woohoo! No kids here but I imagine it makes such a huge difference when you’re confident that your kids are being properly looked after.

   2. Good for you! I know it was hard for you to fire the old nanny…this situation sounds SO much better.

   3. ok – I think I might need a nanny just for me :) So glad you’re all off to a great start!

   4. That’s fantastic news! Congratulations!

2. I love this Blazer, and I love Macy’s, but I have to start to be fruegel to impress Philip. My dad told me that he think’s that I never am goeing to get MARRIED if I am to assertive, and that I need to take a lesson from Mom, who managed to get DAD to marry her. He suggested that Mom was abel to get him to marry her b/c she was a great cook, and that the way to his heart was thru his stomich. I knew I heard this before, but now I have to listen. Mom told me she would teach me how to cook a great meal from scratch, either turkey with fixing’s or pot roast, which is what hooked dad. Grandma Leyeh has other idea’s b/c she knows mom is a great cook, but not as good as she is. So anyway, I have to get some recipe’s from BOTH and start testing them first with MYRNA, b/c I have to convince Philip to marry me b/c I will make a good wife and mother for OUR children and run the house hold for us while he work’s at Merrill Lynch. Ed says if Rosa can do it, so can I and he knows that Philip is a guy who just like’s his life quiet. I will have to learn to be less bossy around him if he MARRIES me, but right NOW, I need cooking idea’s to make him MARRY me. Has anyone in the hive figured out what meal’s to cook to make there boyfreind MARRY them? Right NOW, he is NOT even a boyfreind, so I have along way to go. FOOEY! I want to get the $50,000 from Grandma Leyeh, and do NOT have alot of time.

   1. Ellen Try making Engagement Chicken IT WORKS!!!

      http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=engagement%20chicken%20recipe&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&sqi=2&ved=0CDYQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.glamour.com%2Fmagazine%2F2006%2F07%2Fengagement-chicken&ei=9bKTUej-LYyN0QHQlICQCQ&usg=AFQjCNGLjVFx2NNhR9E8ZXhnNfDgpmX8yg&bvm=bv.46471029,d.dmQ

3. I’m not a big fan of this. I can see how one could style it in a cute way, but it’s a little too Carmela Soprano for me. Plus, I don’t get the utility of a linen/rayon jacket with polyester lining — the whole beauty of linen is that it breathes, adding a polyester lining defies that purpose.

   1. I own this exact blazer, only in black and cream. I love it, and get ton of compliments on it. I think the lining helps it not wrinkle, because it has more structure to it than your average linen blazer. It really doesn’t wrinkle at all.

   2. For me, it looks a little Chico’s. One of my girlfriends lives in Chico’s so I’ve spent a lot of time there and have bought some basics (mostly plain v-neck cardigans) but I can’t stand the prints.

      1. I really like it, but I’m a sucker for Chico’s even though I’m about 50 years younger than its target demographic (it’s my grandmother’s favorite store!). I definitely do NOT need another blazer, though, especially since I don’t wear them to work much in the summer.

4. I’m wearing a navy blue lace pencil skirt to work today. I feel a little self concious because of the lace. It’s a proper length and not clingy, but I’m still not 100% sure it’s great for the office.

   1. Honestly, I think it depends on the lace in question. Some lace I wouldn’t bat an eyelash at wearing to the office, other lace really does look like it belongs in a boudoir. I don’t think you should assume your skirt isn’t okay for the office, purely because it’s lace…but if you feel uncomfortable, that might mean you’re straying a little too close to the s**y line.

      1. It’s a navy on navy lace, and it’s thicker, if that makes sense. There’s no lacy edge hanging off either. Honestly, I’m a pretty conservative dresser at the office, and it’s a bit out of my comfort zone, but I don’t really think its even that close to the border of not appropriate. I just felt a bit weird — kind of had to force myself out the door this morning.

         1. It sounds completely fine, then! I understand feeling a little uncomfortable, if it’s not something you’re used to wearing, but it can be a really good thing to push your comfort zone.

            1. I agree – tonal on tonal and no visible hem of lace … should be very appropriate. But if you’re uncomfortable, then that will show in your stance and maybe make it more obvious? I would see a navy lace skirt with a lovely purple or dove grey blazer … rockin it!

   2. If it’s more of a cotton/eyelet/thick lace, I think it’s fine, especially since it’s navy on navy. I’ve been looking for a skirt like that for the office! I bet it looks great.

      1. It’s Ann Taylor, but it’s last year. Yes, it’s taken me a year to work up the nerve to wear it to the office!

         1. I think I know the skirt you’re talking about and I think you’re fine – probably the only person who’ll notice is you (and possibly other women who think your skirt is cute!) I remember totally wanting that skirt, so I’m jealous.

         2. I have that skirt and think it is completely appropriate for the office. Styling it with more conservative pieces may make you more comfortable.

5. I’m currently in a business casual work environment and looking to buy some pieces to push me more toward business and less casual.If you had a limited budget, say $200, to spend at a gigantic outlet mall what would you buy?

   Also, I had been posting under SJ but have noticed some others using that handle so I’ve hopefully chosen a more unique name.

   1. For me, it would be 2 sheath or wrap dresses in the $40-60 range and a coordinating/complementary blazer. From there, I’d pick up 1-2 cardigans with whatever $$ you have left. Try to stay with one color family (cools, warms, or neutrals) and pick pieces that will work with the tops and trousers currently in your wardrobe.

      Nothing says women’s business casual to me like cardigans and sheath dresses, but YMMV.

   2. +1 for sheaths and blazers, and I’d throw in some fun jewelry. Cardigans are much more casual to me — maybe a structure cardigan or ponte blazer to keep it more on the business side of business casual?

   3. My go to item has become pencil skirts. They look nicer on me than dress pants and it helps me to stay out of black pants and top rut. Somehow even if it becomes black pencil skirt and a top rut, I think it looks dressier. I have 3 that I wear all the time, 1 black, 1 charcoal gray pinstripe, and 1 gray. I also have a camel colored one that I’ll probably be wearing more as the weather gets nicer. For me, those colors go with pretty much every top that I own.

   4. No specific items suggestions, but if you can, wait until Memorial Day weekend and hit up an outlet mall. You’ll defintely be able to get more bang for your buck. I love the Ann Taylor Factory Store for quality pieces.

   5. +2 for sheaths with blazers. If you’re hard to fit and don’t have money/time to tailor a blazer I’d go with cardigans and skinny belts over top of the cardigan. A belt can take a cardigan from messy to polished over a sheath.

   6. I have to agree with the above, I would get three pencil skirts (or your go to skirt cut of choice) in two neutral colors – like gray and navy or black – and one in a brighter color – like green or burgundy. Then I’d get one nice blazer (or two if you can fit it in the budget) – nicely fitted that will go with all the skirts – maybe a navy tweed or a gray linen, something like that? Then if you can fit it in the budget, I’d get 1-2 dresses, ideally with sleeves or 3/4 sleeves (or short sleeves at least) so you can wear them alone or with the cardigans that you already have.

      But, I also bet you could take what you already have for your business casual office and take it to the next level with some new shoes, or new accessories, and pairing it with a blazer and just generally tightening up the styling a bit. (Feel free to submit a question if you want some more ideas.) :-)

      1. I’ve gotten great deals on pencil skirts at a Banana Republic outlet.

   7. Love this question and all the responses!

   8. I agree that sheath dresses are great for this. I would also throw in button down shirts/blouses, if you are comfortable in them (I know some posters here hate them and never wear the ones they have). My dress code varies between business and dressy business casual, depending on what is in store for a particular day, and one of the easiest ways I find to dress up without too much effort is to put on a button shirt or blouse + pants/pencil skirt.

      If you’re going to the outlets, Brooks Brothers factory store often has very nice button down shirts for around $30-40.

      1. There are some sheath like dresses on clearance at Boden. The Textured Ponte Dress is like a sheath with a waistline. Almost #FlyTheFriendlySkiesRetro. Nice fabric.

         You can probably get some good pencil skirts at Nordies upcoming sale … but I am sad that they are not all lined, it varies from style/fabric to style/fabric. Shame on them. Really starting to make the NonTheSkirt a worrisome thing.

         Shop the sales!

         NM Last Call has some unlined ponte blazers that, if kept worn, won’t be bad and a good price point.

6. DH and I are traveling to Portsmouth, NH for the first time this weekend with our 3 month old. Any must see attractions? Also, any great restaurants we should go to that are kid friendly? We are both vegetarian (no seafood, eggs/dairy ok).

   Thanks in advance!

   1. The Friendly Toast is a great option for breakfast. Their Pumpkin Pancakes are incredible. If you like beer, you have to hit the Portsmouth Brewery and see what they have on tap. Have fun!

      1. Second both the Friendly Toast and the Portsmouth Brewery (which has a surprising number of vegetarian options for a brewpub.) If the weather’s nice you have to drive out into the mountains and get a look at the nature in New Hampshire (if you can make it up into the White Mountains, all the better). Newish to town is Portsmouth Book and Bar – which is a restaurant/cafe and bar – but also a bookstore. Its pretty sweet.

         The USS Albacore Museum is pretty cool, if you’re into military history at all. Also if you have time, driving up to Freeport in Maine or down to Salem in Mass could be fun. Have a good trip.

   2. If you like historic houses, Strawberry Banke is fantastic. It’s not very stroller friendly (at least not if you want to go into the houses), so I recommend bringing a front carrier too.

      We usually visit with our kids about twice a year and enjoy walking the downtown shopping area. There are a number of good galleries and home stores, a good letterpress store and a great independent book store. There’s also a large, well-stocked Banana Republic that we always find ourselves in (despite living within 1 mile of 3 different BR stores).

   3. Thanks all for the great suggestions! I really appreciate it. Also just saw that Friendly Toast has a Cambridge location….good to know.

7. OK gang, any advice for dealing with infighting coworkers?

   I have two peers at my organization; all three of us report to the CEO. One, I’ll call him Tim, was hired about 10 months ago. Tim is great — smart, very capable, a leader in his field, and is doing amazing things here. I’ve been with this org for about three years myself; I was brought on to revamp my area and implement best practices, and have had good success since arriving. Both Tim and I have had to make some significant policy and structural changes in our areas (read: firing/hiring staff) to get where we are.

   Our colleague, Jane, is a lovely person but she and Tim are starting to wear on one another, I think, and I’m getting caught in the middle. Jane has been here for 7 years. She is admittedly overworked — has way too much on her plate. But I also don’t think she’s a very good manager of staff and/or of her tasks; honestly, she’s probably too tired to push back/reorganize all that much. (For the record, our boss is not much help.) I spend a lot (and I mean a LOT) of my time listening to Jane complain about her staff and general work situation, and there’s not much more I can do besides offer her a few suggestions because it seems as though she’s too behind and/or disinclined to make the changes that need to happen.

   Now, Jane and Tim are starting to butt heads and Jane in particular is confiding in me about some of it. It mostly has to do with Jane’s underperforming staff (which she acknowledges). I’m about to walk into a meeting with the two of them later today and I’m dreading it! Quite frankly, I think Jane’s area is the weakest of our three, but I can’t ever allude to this because I don’t want it to come off as though I’m ganging up on her. Jane’s staff, however, are impacting other areas (mine and Tim’s) and while it’s not crazy-significant at this point, it could definitely spiral out of control shortly.

   Sorry this is so long…any advice? Just smile and nod? Duck and cover when she starts to get tense in our three-person meeting? Tell her she needs to take her staff issues seriously? Tough love? I am out of ideas, and while I value my relationship with Jane I can’t take much more b*tching about Tim, who’s awesome and who’s simply doing his job to the best of his ability.

   1. I think the best thing you can do is sit her down nicely and explain that whining about it, isn’t going to help. She needs to buckle down and focus on her staff issues and that will free up more of her time. Maybe suggest a helpful book on managing people if you’ve read one, or give her tips you’ve learned, or put her in contact with someone who may be able to help her navigate this (if you know someone who’s had similarly bad staff, but turned it around.

   2. If her area is the weak area, address it as such. Point out how it’s affecting your work, let Tim point out how its affecting his work, and ask her what her plan is to address it. Try to keep it professional, not personal, and work it through as a problem that needs solving. It’s better to nip a problem in the bud if you see it coming (and address it as such), then to wait until you have a huge confirmed mess. That just seems like smart business to me.

      If it affects you, I wouldn’t ignore it since that’s just sticking your head in the sand and it seems like it could bite you later. I would try to keep it focused on business and what needs to be done to keep doing business/keep the customer/boss happy, and less focused on “Jane, this is what you are doing wrong”.

      1. Also, has Jane considered replacing some of her staff, the underperforming ones? That might be a solution to float.

         1. Thanks for the good advice, all. Diana Barry — it’s funny, she is loathe to let anyone go b/c they’re strong in certain areas but weak in others. My feeling is that she needs to replace people to get an all-around stronger staff. I also think she’s scared to do it b/c she feels as though she’ll be overloaded with work until new hires are made/up to speed.

            I agree that this stuff needs to be addressed but I think I was secretly hoping I wouldn’t have to do it (I know, I know…). Time to put on my big girl pants for this meeting.

   3. Make it clear you won’t listen to either of them vent about each other. Ideally, you could do this while both of them are present. The bitching will lessen when she realizes she doesn’t have a receptive audience. Recognize that both you and Tim are fairly new though so do take some of what she says to heart–she probably has a better sense of some of the underlying challenges that you do, even after three years there.

      After that, I would just say look out for yourself. If her staff is hindering your team’s performance, then you need to let her know. As long as you are fair with everyone, don’t give venting an audience, and honest when you see positive and negative impacting your performance (while staying out of issues that don’t pertain directly to you), it will go along way to getting respect while keeping above the fray.

8. Has anyone used Stickygram? Or any of the other companies that will take your instagram photos and make them into books/iphonecases/magnets, etc.? Reviews?

   1. ive done it with vista print. made magnets, tote bags, note pads, and mailing labels out of pics of my kids for christmas. there were tons — tons — of other options too. i thought it worked great and the price was good. oh, and it came super fast. one photo i used was an instagram, one was a regular photo.

   2. I have used Stickygram. The quality of the photos was similar to what I could have printed off my color printer. I’d would not order from them again.

9. If anyone is still looking for a Google Reader replacement, I just switched to theoldreader.com and love it. The layout is very similar to GR and it actually displays things in chronological order (the major issue I had with Feedly).

   1. Thanks, I’m going to switch over today!

10. Thanks for all the great moving advice yesterday. I’m trying to remain calm and not freak out that I have 1 1/2 weeks to get everything done. Thankfully the move is really short (like 100 yards), but it feels like I have to do everything all at once.

    1. If it helps, I am in the same boat (have to be out of my current place by the 31st) and I have to move while working both of my jobs, preparing to assist with graduation (this Saturday), and catering a baby shower for 30 people on less than $100 (this Saturday). No advice, just commiserating.

       Why can’t I learn to say no?

       1. I seriously could have written this same post. Glad to know I’m not alone.

11. I’ve been unemployed for 13 months and today I got a job offer! And for my absolute dream job! I’m so happy and excited and terrified and relieved, and the emotions are all getting mixed up. Not sure of my start date, etc. just yet, but just knowing things are moving is so amazing.

    The job is in London. I am already UK-based but have never lived in London, although I’ve visited a lot recently for interviews. Any advice for moving, getting settled, making a life there? I need to commute very close to the Houses of Parliament and have no idea where to live that is affordable.

    1. No advice, but I want to wish you all the best. Congrats!!!

    2. Congratulations!

    3. Yay, how exciting!

       First of all, where to live depends a lot on what you consider affordable. Living on your own is expensive (£1000+ per month) and if you don’t know many (any) people here, then your best bet is likely to be getting a room in a house/flatshare. This is particularly because London isn’t that sociable for newcomers, so if you can find some fun housemates who can introduce you to their friends, that will help form your social circle.

       Second, for Houses of Parliament, it’s really a question of how long you are prepared to commute and how likely you are to need to get home late. The average London commute is 45 minutes. It’s relatively easy to get from London Bridge, Waterloo and Victoria stations to Westminster so if you are willing to live a bit further out on the mainline trainlines (rather than underground) then you are likely to find something a bit cheaper that way.

       If you want, you can email me on ellecommawoods at the mail starting with g and I’d be happy to give what advice I can (I’ve lived in London for 9 years, YIKES).

       1. Thanks, I just emailed you.

    4. W/R/T making a life there, a lawyer friend of mine from here recently moved to London with only her SO and joined the London Junior League to make friends and hook into the community. She definitely qualifies as an overachieving chick, not a lady-who-lunches, and really loves the JL in London.

    5. congrats — and may I say that ALL my dream jobs begin with “it’s in London.”

       1. congrats — and may I say that ALL my dream jobs begin with “it’s in London.”

    6. Congratulations!!

    7. Thanks, all! It’s very exciting!

12. I want to apply for a legal job that entails some litigation, but litigation is not listed in the required/desired experience. However, they specify that they want a writing sample from recent litigation, and I haven’t done litigation where I am doing most of the writing (when I am working on litigation matters, I am typically editing someone else’s writing and putting in a few sentences here and there).

    Should I mention in my cover letter that I don’t have a litigation writing sample, so I am providing xyz document instead? I don’t want to call attention to it, but I also don’t want them to think I cannot follow directions.

Comments are closed.