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Updated: Oct 31, 2018 171 Comments · by

Splurge Monday’s TPS Report: Notch Neck Ponte Sheath Dress

The Personal Shopper (TPS)

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Classiques Entier Notch Neck Ponte Sheath Dress | CorporetteOur daily TPS reports suggest one piece of work-appropriate attire in a range of prices. This dress looks gorgeous — sleeves! darts! a great hem length! I particularly like the notched neckline because it's interesting enough on its own to not require a necklace — but it wouldn't look bad with one, either. The dress is ponte, available in five colors in sizes 0-16, and costs $228. Classiques Entier Notch Neck Ponte Sheath Dress Here's a lower-priced option and a plus-size alternative. Psst: A) Piperlime's closing sale just started. B) In unrelated news, I just put a bunch of new plus-size picks on our page for plus-size workwear — please check it out (and sign up for the newsletter so you never miss a new batch!). Seen a great piece you'd like to recommend? Please e-mail tps@corporette.com. (L-5)

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Kat Griffin is the founder, publisher, and editor-in-chief of Corporette. You can read more about her here.

Comments

  1. JEB

    Random question: when I hug people, I’ve noticed my make up rubs off on their shoulders. I feel terrible about this! Anything I can do to prevent it? I wear moisturizer, primer, and powder (no liquid foundation). I’m thinking the powder sits on top of my skin and rubs off too easily.

    • tesyaa

      I think makeup artists use a fixing spray that “sets” your makeup so it doesn’t rub off. Alternatively, don’t hug so close that your face rubs against their clothing.

    • Zelda

      One of my friends (pro makeup artist) taught me a technique of pushing powder into the skin with your brush, instead of just dusting it. Let it sit for a few minutes and then dust off extra powder with your brush and/or blot off extra with a blotting sheet.

      • CountC

        Yes! I am not a hugger and it makes me SUPER uncomfortable when people hug me. If you must hug, please do the fake hug mentioned below.

        • Baconpancakes

          Maybe she’s hugging her significant other and feels bad about marking up their nice work clothes?

        • JEB

          This is a little unnecessary. I don’t hug with my face, and I’m not going to stop hugging family/husband. Sometimes when people are taller than me, even if I try to avoid it, it happens.

  2. Anonymous3942

    Things seem bleak for Jones New York. Yesterday they were doing a sale for email subscribers for 60% off, layered on top of the 50% off sale items. It seems like they’re trying to clear out inventory quickly. They have new markdowns on dresses and sweaters today, if anyone’s interested.

    This is good news in the short-run for shoppers, though – I picked up a suit for $45 total!

    • JEB

      Agreed – seems like they’re clearing out. In the meantime, I’m stocking up on suits!

    • JNY

      How do their sizes run, compared with J crew etc..? Never ordered here before.

      • Anonymous

        Big. I’m an 8 at Banana/Ann Taylor/The Limited/J. Crew etc and a 6 at JNY in tops, blazers and pants. I usually wear the same size (Medium) in skirts/dresses but that’s mostly for length because I’m tall. Their stuff is quite boxy on me and I have to have it altered or it looks frumpy.

      • Anon

        I find JNY sizing pretty inconsistent.

        I am a 12 and L, and I’m pretty straight up and down.

        I usually get a 12 from JNY, and that fits for tops and dresses. I have some skirts in a 12, and one fits perfectly, the other is way too big. I have bought pants, but had to return all of them because they were too big in a 12.

        The one thing I have found there consistently is that their blouses tend to be cut pretty close in the waist. I don’t have much of a waist, and for shirts that I think I might wear without a blazer, I buy an XL, just because I really don’t want it tight on my waist.

      • Anonymous3942

        I wear Banana Republic 6 pants, 4 skirt, 4-6 dress (4 for waist/hips, 6 for chest), and 6 jacket. At Jones New York, I order 4 pants (they are giant through the leg but fit at the waist and hip, and at these prices I can get them tailored), 2 skirt, and 4 jacket. I haven’t ordered dresses or tops.

  3. Lawyer Mom

    A couple of generous fellow corporetters volunteered to share materials they had put together while studying for the texas bar last week – I am afraid my reply with my email was stuck in moderation. Here it is and I would be hugely grateful! This really is the best community, bar none.

    Mary at mysistersbookshelf dot com

  4. DC movers?

    Not to layer on the moving threads from last week, but we’re moving apartments in downtown DC in the next few weeks and would love a recommendation for a company. We have enough stuff packed into our small apartment (how did we fit so much in here??) that we’d like to outsource the whole move, and we’d love to keep it under $500 for about 4-6 hours. Any recommendations? TIA!

    • roses

      ALS movers are packing up our stuff as I type this…I’ll let you know in a few hours how they are :)

    • JEB

      We had a great move with Cathedral Movers, but I think they may no longer be in business. We also used Bookstore Movers. They were affordable, but we haggled a bit over a hole they put in our wall. They finally agreed to cover it, but with some level of snark that made me uncomfortable. Other than that, they did a nice job, and the price was right.

      • MFKN

        Online reviewers rave about Bookstore Movers but I’ve also had a less than stellar experience with them. They were prompt and generally professional, but caused minor damage to my floor, left a significant amount of miscellaneous items at our old place (I’ve never understood how or why this happened), and waited a long time to cash our check. In general, I would consider the service mostly adequate for the money, but definitely not perfect.

      • SH

        I’ve used Bookstore Movers twice. The first time was really super excellent. The second time was OK. They moved all our things from the old apartment to the new apartment, nothing was broken, I received everything, etc. But our building is in a funny location where the only place to park the truck is in a bus zone in the front (back parking lot is for the building next door, no back alley) or in a parking zone that is across a small street. We had reserved the block across the street for them to park, but there was some discussions because they apparently weren’t allowed to carry things across the street (but they were going to get towed everywhere else they parked). The deliberations added about an hour to the total time, and I was charged for the extra time in the end.

    • DC anon

      We used Anytime Movers, they were fine (broke an Ikea bookshelf, but paid for it as soon as we pointed it out to them). Should be in your price range, assuming you are packing everything and they are just moving boxes you packed & furniture that they might need to wrap a bit. We found them from reviews on popville.

    • Kelly Andthenblog

      Get Up and Go Movers is great, affordable, careful. They are mostly students from Galludet, so a heads up that most/many are varying levels of hearing impaired or mute (PC?). It was the most calming, quiet move-in I’ve ever experienced.

      Also important to note: you need to rent the truck. They are labor. So maybe this is a terrible recommendation for an in-town move?

      • Anonymous

        I used them this summer, and they were three hours late with no explanation even though I was the first move of the day. If my schedule had been flexible, it would’ve been fine–yet did a great job once they arrived. Unfortunately, I had an 8-hour drive in front of me.

    • DC Wonkette

      Bookstore Movers is the best. I’ve used them multiple times and had zero issues… on time, polite, efficient…

    • CountC

      I have used My Guys Moving four times in, around, and out of NoVA – they are fantastic and very reasonable. They are local, so I assume they also go into DC.

    • DC movers?

      Thanks to all! I’ll check these companies out. We’ll definitely have everything packed ourselves, it’s just the truck and the lifting that we need.

    • Ellen

      Yay! Pricey Monday’s! I love Pricey Monday’s and this notch neck dress, tho Frank would interpret the NOTCH as a keyhole and try to poke his fingers in there. FOOEY on Frank! He alway’s focuses on my BOOBIE’s, even tho he has a wife and I am sure he was busy with her boobie’s all weekend.

      As for the OP, do NOT feel frumpy, b/c you are an urban professional who read’s Corporete and if you follow the advise Kat give’s, you will be a sucess at work as well as in your personal life. My guess is that you need a nice guy to call on you and make you feel better about yourself. That is what Alan did for me when I was workeing for the process server, and he continued until after I got the job with the manageing partner. Right now, I don’t have a boyfreind either, but I am at a point in my life that I realy do NOT need one who is NOT just the right fit for me. I would think this could be you also. Do NOT settel for a schlub like I did, and wait for Mr. Right to come into your life. Grandma Trudy told me that waiting is NOT a bad thing if you give it a chance with guy’s who have some potentieal. So I have NOT dismissed every guy who show’s up, just the one’s that are obviouseley just trying to park their winkie’s in my garage w/o investing at all in my feeling’s, and takeing me seriousely as a profesional.

      In NYC, there are thousand’s of guy’s who fit the description above, but onley dozen’s that qualify according to Grandma Trudy. She want’s me to remain open for those dozen’s, by sampeling them b/f dismissing them. The key is to be abel to diferentieate between mere winkie parkers and guys who want to also take care of my need’s once parked.

      Myrna has met a guy she is thinkeing of dating, but he wants to park first. She wants him to consider her intellect, not just her garage. So for the time being, it is not goeing anywhere b/c every time he calls her, he talk’s about haveing sex, and she is not thrilled about him huffeing and puffeing on top of her as the basis for the releationship. She did NOT tell me if they have had sex already, but it is clear she does NOT want that to be the sine quon anon of their releationship. She said there is more to life then letting a guy into her bed to have sex all day. FOOEY on men that just want sex w/o askeing for our opinion on politic’s. I say that a man MUST be forward lookeing when it come’s to politic’s too. I have to do alot of research today on res ipsa loquitor, and have pulled my class note’s from GW to write my breif to the court. Thank GOD I kept my law school note’s!!! YAY!!!!!!

    • Idea

      You look beautiful. Take yourself out for coffee or lunch.

      Also, there’s a week every spring where I feel frumpy, not sure what to wear or trends or the weather or what. It happens.

      • Diana Barry

        Also, PMS never fails to make me feel frumpy, fat, and just generally terrible.

      • Yep

        This. Right around this time of year I’m always feeling inappropriately dressed for the weather and off-trend and blah. Mostly because Chicago can be spring in the morning, summer at lunch, and winter by the commute home..

  6. Sydney Bristow

    Can anyone recommend an environmentally friendly sunscreen that works really well? Or a resource for info and reviews?

    I’m going to Australia this summer and planning to go to the Great Barrier Reef. I’ve heard the chemicals in sunscreen are damaging the reef. I burn really easily so I need a really good sunscreen that isnt as harmful to the reef.

    • Anonymous

      I use BananaBoat Natural Reflect SPF 50. I’ve found it to be super effective (I’m extremely pale and have used it in all sorts of tropical locations with barely a tan) and I think it is about as natural as sunscreen comes. Of course, all sunscreens, even “natural” ones, have chemicals that aren’t great for the reefs. Especially because you’ll be there in their winter, I’d invest in a wetsuit – it keeps you warm and leaves you with much less of your body to cover with sunscreen (plus it provides better SPF than any sunscreen can). Enjoy! Australia and the GBR are amaaaaazing.

    • Meg Murry

      This product claims to be reef safe, although I haven’t used it myself. It gives a list of what chemicals are considered to be the most harmful to reefs though, so you can look through your existing sunscreens to see if they contain them. It looks like the most harmful ones are the chemical sunscreens (benzophenone, etc) not the physical ones like titanium dioxide and zinc oxide.

      http://www.badgerbalm.com/s-35-coral-reef-safe-sunscreen.aspx – Oxybenzone (or anything named -benzon-), Butylparaben (or anything named -paraben), Octinoxate (Ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate), 4-methylbenzylidene camphor (not in US sunscreens).

      I’d also highly recommend getting a rash guard to protect your neck and arms as well if you burn easily. Land’s End has been hit or miss for me – some years the rash guards have been great, and other years they are fine out of the water, but stretch and sag in the water, so test in a pool first before you go. I actually returned some that I had worn in the pool once under their “satisfaction guaranteed” policy, since they were unwearable to swim in when they sagged – but the ones my mom got that same year were fine, so it was limited to certain fabrics or cuts.

    • mascot

      I like the zinc/titanium dioxide based sunblocks. Badger Sport and Blue Lizard sensitive work well for me. Try looking on PADI or another dive site for more suggestions for the biodegradable stuff.

    • Idea

      Environmental Working Group is the group that ranks products like sunscreen for environmental impact.

      Signed,
      An Envioronmental Consultant

    • Sydney Bristow

      Thanks for the recs. I’ll definitely get a rash guard. That’s something I completely forgot about but have been meaning to get.

    • Sowieso

      Kiss My Face is the brand I’ve used in Mexico where certain marine parks require reef-safe sunblocks. I bought them from Amazon but have also seen them for sale at Whole Foods.

  7. applicant

    Working with an external recruiter, I interviewed for and have been offered a job. The recruiter called last week to share the news, and I have been waiting to receive something more formal, including benefits info.

    This morning, the recruiter emailed the details. Instead of a formal offer letter, however, it is just an email from her stating the salary and title. She then attached a boilerplate 1-pager on benefits by title and tenure.

    She is pressuring me to have an answer by tomorrow, with the implication that I’ll lose the offer if I don’t respond by then. However, shouldn’t I be waiting for a real offer letter, signed by the company, before making this decision? Or is this standard?

    • Anonymous

      I have never heard of this. I would 100% insist on a real offer letter before accepting.

    • MJ

      Your gut is spot-on here. The recruiter is working for the company moreso than you. But you should make him/her earn his commission. Tell him or her that you are uncomfortable accepting any offer that isn’t on company letterhead, and you have some benefits questions that you would like to ask the HR contact, so please arrange for you to be in touch.

      Also, this is just a lean-in thing, but recruiters have very little incentive for you to negotiate on salary. You should try to negotiate if it’s not what you want or the benefits aren’t good enough. It’s fine to express your concerns to the recruiter. Speak up!!!

      • mascot

        My experience with external (legal) recruiters was that they were happy to help me negotiate salary. Their commission was based on my starting salary so any increases benefited everyone. I agree that you should push to speak directly to HR and then you can ask if this company typically sends formal offer letters.

    • tesyaa

      According to Ask A Manager, an email is an official offer letter (i.e. you don’t need a paper letter for it to be official). I don’t know if it makes a difference if it’s from a recruiter rather than directly from the employer. If the recruiter is an agent of the employer, it should be OK. I’d be more concerned about the pressure/threat to respond so quickly. Asking for a few days to make a decision should not normally be a problem.

      • Anon

        In my experience, anything not signed is not official. The offer should be signed and the acceptance should be signed. Replying back and forth in any e-mail chain isn’t.

    • Scarlett

      This doesn’t strike me as terribly unusual. I’d talk to the recruiter about your concerns – my guess is they probably want a verbal confirmation that you’ll accept the job and then they’ll formalize things with a letter. I’d also just hold off on giving notice at your current employer until you get it all worked out – that should solve both the “rush” on the recruiter end and your concerns about it not being official enough.

  8. MJ

    Important real-life question here–anyone have any tips or tricks for getting hair dye stains off in your bathroom? I didn’t notice until this week that a spot fell on my tile and is now a nice dark brown…HELP! TY!

    • tesyaa

      Did you try Tilex or just plain bleach? Should be safe for the tile and should work, though you might have to let it sit for a while.

      • Wildkitten

        Soft scrub with bleach takes the paint of the walls – I bet it’d be great at this.

    • anon

      I don’t know if it works on tile, but I have had some success removing hair dye from skin and towels with rubbing alcohol.

    • Idea

      Probably nail polish remover should help.
      Or graffiti remover, like to remove permanent market. Look in the cleaning aisle of a place like Home Depot or Walmart.

      • Anonymous

        Seconding acetone-based nail polish remover. I had work done in my laundry room and they failed to put a protective cover on my washer lid, leaving behind purplish-blue plumber’s primer stains on the lid. I tried all the things mentioned above and acetone was the only thing that worked.

    • la vie en bleu

      Alcohol. I use hand sanitizer to get off spots immediately, either on my skin or on surfaces in my bathroom, and a little rubbing. Also I’ve used straight rubbing alcohol.

  9. Op

    What are the rules for using work done at a firm for clients as a writing sample? Especially when no one at the firm knows you’re looking elsewhere. I’m too far removed from law school to use those samples anymore.

      • Diana Barry

        +1. Nothing I write is ever filed so I just use a memo or something on an issue of law with the client name, etc., redacted.

    • TBK

      My old firm had a policy that a member of the managing committee had to review and okay anything before it was used as a writing sample. (The writing does belong to the firm and not to you if you wrote it on firm time for a firm client.) The way most people handled this was to put off providing a writing sample until a job offer was imminent — kind of like when you’d give references. That won’t necessarily work for every situation but some employers are fine with it, especially if they know your firm and know the quality of the firms’ lawyers.

    • PDXK

      Having seen several friends go through this, with limited/mixed results, is covering it up something you’d consider? Removal seems generally both painful and not 100% effective, and most of my friends who’ve tried have wound up doing cover-ups anyway.

      • Anon

        Not really. It’s a stupid flower that I’ve regretted for fifteen years. I guess I’d rather have it faded and use make up to cover it, if that’s an option.

        • PDXK

          YMMV, but depending on skin tone/ink colors you may be left with something that looks like a really awful skin condition. Would recommend asking to see before/after pics for people with similar skin tones/ink from the provider you wind up going to if you can. But you can always choose to cover it up later if you want (and often having done some removal sessions gives you more flexibility in what you cover it with). Good luck regardless!

    • L

      I’d recommend talking to a dermatologist’s office on this (if you haven’t already) and ask to see before/after photos. I had something different done with lasers at one of those ‘med spa’ type places and got second degree burns.

  11. Anonymous

    I like this. I have several items from Classiques Entier and they are very nice quality.

    • Anon

      This looks nice! How is their ponte? I only have ponte from LE and Talbots and somewhere else (Halogen? that one has sleeves) and would like this dress (and I love that it is lined). This is a big step up in price. Worth it? Also, the only other nice sleeved dresses seem to be from Boss (but at least they are wool and generally lined), but I’m not sure I have a budget for $500 dresses if I can’t also get a same-fabric jacket so I can have something that qualifies as a suit in a pinch.

      My big concern with ponte is that it’s a fabric that looks a bit more casual to begin with and then starts to look worn (fuzzy? mini-pills?) awfully quickly. Definitely not the quality fabric that wool is.

      • Anonymous

        A have a ponte dress that is lined and lovely from Classiques. It’s dry clean only and I’ve not had any issues pilling. I do try to wait for sales with this brand but if it’s something I truly love, sometimes I go ahead rather than risk my size being gone. Certainly better quality and better tailoring from Lands End and Talbots and I’ve owned dresses from both brands.

      • Mo

        I’ve never purchased a CE ponte dress, but I’ve tried on a few. The quality of the ponte is miles above Lands End or Talbots. It’s much more tightly knit, the seams lie flat and the dresses are lined.

      • Mpls

        Well… you can have wool ponte too (just bought some). Ponte is type of fabric construction, wool is a fabric fiber, so they are different things. If you mean ponte as opposed to a woven wool like gabardine, you might have a point. But like Mo said, you can have differing qualities of ponte, just like you can have differing qualities of gabardine or twill.

  12. NYC recommendations

    Love this dress!

    Quick TJ – I’m in NYC for work this week. I will get there tomorrow afternoon for a conference the rest of the week, staying near 51st and 7th Ave. I have two hours tomorrow afternoon for two things:

    1) I need to get my roots touched up to cover the greys – just a little, nothing fancy, just my natural color (black).
    2) I need to get my eyebrows threaded.

    Any NYC ‘ r e t t e s have recommendations around 51st and 7th Ave for either one of these services? Somewhere between bucket 2 and bucket 3 prices…

    Thank you so much!!

    • Basics

      There used to be a branch of Jean Louis David salon near there. Never used them.

    • Wanderlust

      This might sound silly, but in the Rockefeller Center concourse, there is a really good eyebrow threading place. It’s best accessed from the subway entrance on 6th avenue next to Radio City.

    • Boden sizing

      Go to see sabah for threading at blink inside saks. She’s the only person I let touch my brows, and I live 2.5 hours away from nyc.

  13. End of the year travel

    If you had a week off (between Christmas and New Year’s) and could go anywhere in the world, where would you go and why? Let’s suspend disbelief for a second and pretend money is no object. Goals are to sightsee and relax.

    • Idea

      Thailand. I’ve been there that time of year. You could do a few days sightseeing in the Northern Golden Triangle, a few days on the beach in the south, then hit the New Years Eve Fireworks on the river in Bangkok. So. Great.

        • Warm locations

          Depending on where you are, how about Dubai? This would work well if you can get a direct flight from the east coast that would be 11-12 hours, one way. If you are elsewhere then travel time might be longer.

          Also Bermuda, it would be off season, their high season is the summer. But it is certainly a relaxing place

          • Zelda

            I travel to Bermuda almost every year at Christmas and it’s lovely. Weather is 60’s and low 70’s, similar to spring on the East Coast. I’ve definitely walked on the beach and dipped my feet in the water, though I wouldn’t go for a full swim (I know people who do). I pack layers and end up wearing short sleeves most days and a light cardigan/jacket during the evenings.

            Perfect weather nature walks, bike/horseback rides, golfing, or relaxing with a good book. Also great for spa days (the Reefs has a fabulous spa with gorgeous ocean views) and afternoon tea.

          • CDA

            Dubai is lovely that time of year! And it’s more “Western” than you might be thinking, so you won’t have stress of figuring out different languages, visas, etc.

      • Anonymous

        I’m hoping to go to Thailand next Christmas/NYE. I’m a little worried it will be too crowded, any thoughts on that? Prices are absolutely insane (everyone kept telling me Thailand was so cheap and I wasn’t getting it and then I realized prices are super inflated this time of year).

    • metoo

      1) Turkey! I did this precise trip one year and had a wonderful time. The weather is just above freezing (so not too cold if you dress appropriately) and all the touristy sites are empty. Be advised that everything closes up for New Years. Ephesis was particularly amazing.
      2) China outside of Beijing. Maybe fly into Hong Kong or Shanghai, then continue to Xi’an (to see the terra cotta warriors).

      • "Allergies" PSA

        If you have asthma or any respiratory/sinus/allergy issues at all, consult your MD before going to China. The air pollution there was incredible.

        • BB

          To piggyback on that, I would not rate China as a “relaxing” vacation at all. Hong Kong would be fine, but nowhere in the Mainland. Also, it will be quite cold.

          • Sowieso

            I would disagree. Mainland China is huge. You can totally have a relaxing time outside of the big metro areas without the worries of air pollution. Also, southern China does not get cold at all. Yunnan Province is a lovely place to visit in winter. Look up places like Dali and Yuanyang rice terrace.

    • Sydney Bristow

      Prague and/or somewhere in Germany. I’ve only heard amazing things from people I know who have gone there in December.

    • Anonymous

      Christmas and New Years is not my favorite time to travel. Prices are super high, kids are out of school and there are often terrible delays at the airport. I guess your hypothetical removes the first issue. Probably I’d just go somewhere warm, hideously expensive and not kid-friendly like Bora Bora or the Maldives? I love Europe but prefer not to go in the dead of winter and I think most of Asia/Australia/Africa etc is hard to do in 1 week. And cruises/all-inclusive resorts in the US & Caribbean are probably overrun with families.

      • End of the year travel

        Sadly, I realize all of these are issues, but that is when we can take a vacation so we just have to deal with it!

        • emeralds

          I’ll just keep plugging the US Virgin Islands. My family went to St. Thomas for Christmas last year and it was 1) amazing and 2) a lot mellower and less overrun with humanity than I was expecting. It’s definitely better for relaxation than sightseeing, but there should be enough to do between all of the US and British islands to keep you occupied for a week.

          Otherwise, the other best Christmas that I’ve ever had was in Italy. It was chilly, but nothing someone used to East Coast-level winters should find overly onerous (e.g., I wore a sweater and a leather jacket with hat, gloves, and scarf the whole time and was fine). Rome is pretty magical that time of year, and it’s a lot more relaxing than it usually is since it’s very much the low season. There’s obviously plenty to see, including seasonal stuff like Christmas markets and programs at the Vatican, but it’s also very pleasant to just stroll from bar to bar drinking Italian hot chocolate (which is seriously a magical substance).

          • Anon in NYC

            I would be concerned that stuff in Italy (and Rome in particular) would be closed for the holidays – did you not find that to be an issue?

          • Anonymous

            How did you island-hop in the Virgin Islands? Did you do a cruise or boat trip?

          • emeralds

            Late responding, but I didn’t have issues with stuff being closed in Rome. Obviously you’re not doing a big day of museums on Christmas Day, but my friend and I had a relaxing breakfast at the hotel and strolled around the rest of the day taking in the lights and the atmosphere. There were more limited restaurant options, but we found one that was fantastic near Campo dei Fiori. For dinner we just did pre-bought wine, cheese, and bread. Honestly, it’s a big enough city that nothing’s ever going to shut down totally, plus a lot of people travel there for festivities and services at the Vatican so the city’s prepared to handle people.

            As for the VI, ferries regularly go between all of the more notable islands. You can also schedule a private boat charter if you want to go to the uninhabited islands and atolls. We just did ferries so I don’t know what pricing would be like for a charter, but it looked like there were a ton of options.

      • December isn't so bad

        December can be a great time to travel for just the opposite of those reasons if you choose carefully, however the week between Christmas and New Years is a whole other ball game. Domestically in the US, it is college bowl season in many of the best places to visit and the travel costs go through the roof. Add in New Year’s celebrations and the general prices of flights on your likely departure dates and it can get crazy.

        However, given the no-budget dreamy request, I’d say Japan or an Antarctic cruise. Iceland would also be high on my list (also because it’s great with a shorter amount of time). Vienna is also splendid during the season.

    • Anon in NYC

      For me, it would depend on whether you want something holiday-ish or not. I went to Asia during that time frame and it’s not Christmas-y. But if you want holiday decorations and the like, I’d stick with more Western Europe (Vienna, Austria, Prague and Germany all jump out at me). I’ve been to London in that time period and pretty much everything was open.

    • Wildkitten

      South America. It’s warm, but they celebrate Christmas, and it’s not too far away to go for a week if you go to the top of the continent.

    • West Coast

      If I only had a week, I would go for somewhere relatively close, probably Central America. Potentially Costa Rica, Nicaragua, or even Mexico. I’d also consider the southern Caribbean.

    • France!

      The Southern coast of France.

      Just. Amazing. And it is one of those places a lot of tourists skip because they just want to see Paris and they never know what they miss out on.

    • WellHeeledBlog

      Not quite the week between Christmas and NY – I booked a trip to Munich / Salzburg the week of Christmas for Christmas markets and general merriment. I think even though it’s Christmas it’s not quite high season for southern Germany – lots of hotel availability from what I can see.

  14. Ciao, pues

    Does anyone know the policy for returning shoes without a receipt at DSW?

    I bought some end of season shoes last fall but tried them on again this morning and they are a terrible fit. I truly don’t remember how much I paid (tag says $59, but is a green sale sticker, so some percentage off of that). I’m happy with store credit, but I wan’t to maximize how much I get back. Does anyone know how they calculate that (if they even allow it?). It’s likely I paid for them with a credit card, so possible to look up my receipt, but then they’ll know how long ago it was and might reject the return. I wonder if it might be better not to look up my receipt at all (as if I had paid cash). Anyone know the ins and outs?

    • HSAL

      The website says returns without a receipt will get store credit for the current selling price, and returns past 60 days also get store credit. Given how long it’s been, the last price might have been less than what you paid. I say throw yourself on the mercy of the clerk.

    • Anonymous

      If you’re a DSW member, they probably keep a record of your purchases, so that’s a possibility.

  15. Good Enough?

    I’m a 2nd year associate at small firm. While I may have always noticed this all along, it has recently become clear to me that my firm demands a level of perfection that I just don’t think I can reach (nor do I agree with it). Currently, I have no client contact and all emails I send have to be reviewed and approved by a partner. Before anything can be sent to a client, every. single. possible. angle. must be determined. I get documents back 5, 6 or 7 times before they can marked final. I thought for awhile this was just me, but I’ve talked with another associate who has similar issues. Does anyone else struggle with this? I feel constantly beaten down and like my work isn’t good enough. I realize it’s important to do the best you can for your clients and I want to be good at what I do, but sometimes I think good enough should be good enough. Just wanted to vent. Thanks.

    • Anon in NYC

      This was my life as a second year associate. It could be the people you work for too. I worked on teams where every client email (even if just a paragraph) was revised 10+ times as it went through the partner pecking order (junior partner had 2-3 rounds of revisions, slightly more senior partner would chime in, then it would go to the most senior partner who would want to wholly revise everything about the email but of course not give very clear instructions so it required several more rounds of revisions). I also didn’t have client contact as a 2nd year, but again, that could be the cases you’re on. My advice is to try to get on smaller teams if you can.

    • TXLawyer

      While the 7 times mark-up of documents seems excessive, it’s not at all uncommon to be a second year associate with no client contact or subject to external email review. Is there a 4th or 5th year associate you can talk to about whether this changes as experience level, comfort and familiarity increase? Or perhaps there’s a partner or senior associate who might be able to tell you whether your firm has been burned by a junior associate before?

      • Diana Barry

        +1. In my first job, I would almost never email anyone externally, let alone a client. It was only when I was like a 5th year that my next job let me do that. :)

        • Senior Attorney

          +1

          Not, come to think of it, that we had email when I was a first year associate.

          • Coach Laura

            LOL Senior Attorney. I remember the first time I got a fax (granted I was in college but working for the summer) and I also remember the first time I funded a loan based on a faxed signature.

          • Senior Attorney

            OMG faxes were, like, this HUGE deal when I was a new lawyer. You only used them in the most urgent of circumstances!!

            Good times, man. Good times.

          • Former Partner, Now In-House

            We used TELEXES in my first job (not law) out of college. Faxes were a huge improvement when they came along.

          • Senior Attorney

            My business cards for my first law job had the firm’s telex address on them!

    • Emily

      I think this is also practice area based. I did not have client contact as a litigator as a 2nd year and drafted emails for partners that would be edited and sent by the partner; but in the corporate world, I was meeting the GC of the client during my first week.

    • TO Lawyer

      I find small firms are like that. My boss is a micro-manager and I have this experience a lot. I basically just learned to live with it but if there are things that I can do on my own, I insist on sending out things in my own name. I also send out a lot of emails with attachments so at least my name gets out there, even if my boss has signed the attached letter.

      FWIW, it gets better once you prove your competence I think. The amount of stuff my boss lets me do now is huge compared to what I was doing a year ago. If you’re otherwise happy with the firm and your job, I would just ride this out, try to prove your competence and push to send out smaller things.

    • Maddie Ross

      That’s unusual for most small firms to not have any client contact as a second year, just because in most situations the small firm environment translates to not enough man-power and therefore earlier autonomy. That said, a lot small firms pride themselves on being run more like BigLaw. While I think your experience can be completely normal (though frustrating), I’d ask myself whether there is churning going on…

    • rosie

      What do you mean that you don’t agree with the level of perfection? Do you think the firm spends too much client money in trying to reach that level? Are clients kept waiting such that whatever is sent is too late or no longer useful?

      Do you think that all the iterations actually improve the product? Are you learning something from them?

      • Good Enough?

        I don’t agree for the first two reasons you stated. It’s inefficient and takes forever, which means other clients’ projects get pushed back and it creates a vicious cycle. It also causes a lot of “fires” that need to be put out because things go on too long and then it is a rush to get it out.

        While sometimes the improvements are substantive and helpful to me, often times they are very stylistic or what I would consider nit-picky.

        • rosie

          I think I would look at more senior associates to see if things get better or not, so that you can try to discern if there are partners who will give associates more autonomy once you get experience and demonstrate competence (as opposed to the partners that will treat a trusted sixth year the same as a new attorney), and then seek out work with those partners. If you can pick up on a partner’s style/nit picky tendencies (and they are consistent), you can start anticipating those in your drafts to reduce the edits they make, which may make them more comfortable with your work, too. I know it does not make sense all the time, but it’s in your interest to write things to their preferences the first time–and then as you gain experience, you can decide whether theirs is a habit you want to adopt for yourself, or if it does not make sense.

          I guess when I was working for a true micromanager that COULD NOT give up control no matter how (proven) competent the person doing the work or how trivial the task, what I would have posted as a vent would have sounded a lot different from what you posted. So hopefully you are not there and you can figure out how to work with these people without feeling totally defeated.

        • Anony

          The issue is not whether they are helpful to you, but to the client. As a second-year, you most likely need a great deal of supervision. Bluntly, no client wants to pay for what a second year thinks is “good enough.” It’s not fun to always be corrected, but that’s just what it’s like when you’re developing a new skillset.

          I’d consider what kind of changes are being made over time to figure out whether there’s anything you can do to improve the situation. Are your bosses constantly making the same type of change, such as improving your grammar or precision? If so, the problem is that you aren’t learning. Are your bosses constantly going back and forth with making x change, then y change, then back to the original? Then that’s their personalities and you can’t change that, but you also have to figure out a way not to take it personally.

    • (Former) Clueless Summer

      Does every partner you work for act like this? I’m also junior, but at a large firm, and I find there are several partners that I work with that act like this (I draft all emails, multiple revisions, I don’t generally get to send client emails, seemingly routine stuff goes through a million edits) but I also work with partners that are not like this at all (don’t want to even know I’m writing an email until they get cc’ed, generally want to know I am dealing with the day to day stuff and step in only on filings, etc.).

      Both types of partners (on the extreme end at least) annoy me somewhat. Micromanaging Partner sucks…until I’m in a bind and need my hand held. I know Micromanaging Partner will hold my hand and never fault me for not taking action, because they haven’t authorized me to take action on my own. And yeah, Hands Off Partner rocks…until I hugely muck up and he comes screaming at me about how I know nothing.

      If you reallllly hate Micromanging Partner, try to diversify your work at the firm to work with others.

    • Bee

      Most lawyers feel the need to make some kind of revision to justify billing the client for their time (or maybe to show that they actually looked at it). And some partners just have their little nits. I worked for one who was so against split infinitives that he would change the form orders available on the court’s website from “It is hereby ordered” to “It is ordered hereby.” Try not to take it personally. Learn the eccentricities if you can, but expect that every pair of hands that touches a document is going to result is some edit.

    • Anon for this

      I think your instinct is spot-on here. I’m a second year associate, and while I work for a large firm, I was also e-mailing clients within my first 3 months. For more complicated e-mails, I will still ask a partner or senior associate to look over my shoulder, but if I had to go through the process you just described before each and every e-mail we would get FAR less done. I can’t imagine it. It might be practice group specific- I’m an M&A attorney that works on fast-moving deals, so I could see how speed over accuracy might make more sense. But learning the difference between “it’s my responsibility to respond to this” and “I need to wait for someone more senior to weigh in” is, in my opinion, a huge part of how you grow to become a better attorney. Do I make mistakes sometimes? Yes. And no partner has ever been shy about responding over top of me to offer “additional clarity.” And lo and behold- the sky isn’t falling.

      Short answer: not every junior associate is treated this way. If you want different, demand different or go out and find different.

      And to the people dismissing your opinion of what’s good enough because you’re a second year associate- that’s a load. You have a right to have an opinion, and you’re certain intelligent enough to differentiate between a thoughtful markup and a waste of client time and resources.

  16. BB

    Random PSA: I just came across a great pair of black work-appropriate flats on sale. 3.1 Phillip Lim Dove flats at Barney’s Warehouse. Down to $199, final sale only unfortunately. I’m not in the market for new shoes, but thought someone might be interested.

  17. Client meeting attire

    I’m going to a client pitch in a few days. I’m 5 months pregnant. Can I get away with a black dress (with hose) or do I need something with a jacket? My non maternity jackets just hide my belly and make me look short and barrel shaped instead of petite and pregnant. For context, the client is financial services in NY.

    • Diana Barry

      FWIW, when pregnant I would just wear my non-maternity jackets but switched to maternity suits around 5-6 months.

      • Client meeting attire

        I’m a small petite (but swell up to a 30G in pregnancy) and just have never been able to find maternity suits. I swim in the maternity suits at pea in the pod. So the choice is really between looking too casual (ie the dress) or like I’m 30 lbs more than my non-pregnant self.

    • bhtsmama

      Eileen Fisher was great for this sort of thing – jackets that look presentable but are meant to be worn open, one magical stretchy one that I could even button when I moved the button a little bit, a skirt with a foldover waistband that coordinated with 2 different jackets…worth checking out sales online and it works as transition wear too.

    • Jessie

      I think you need a jacket. I would just wear a non maternity one that coordinates.

    • ace

      You need a jacket (even if it’s a non-maternity one you couldn’t hope to button over the baby bump.

      If there’s a female partner or approachable male partner, I might even give the partner a heads-up beforehand. On one pitch, a female partner emailed out to the associates attending “I am wearing a pantsuit” — which at the time seemed kind of weird to get via email without much context, but in retrospect was kind of nice to have the ambiguity of “do i need to wear a suit with a skirt or not?” removed.

    • Client meeting attire

      Thanks all. You’ve confirmed what I feared so I will wear a jacket. I’m going to be one of 2 women assoc and 6? male partners from my firm and the most jr person in the room. It’s far from ideal.

  18. Meg March

    Any recommendations for great jewellers in NYC? Looking for someone who can help designing a new setting for my grandma’s diamonds. I definitely have a more classic/traditional jewelry style, so someone who can work with that and with a budget would be good. I’m in Brooklyn, but anywhere would work.

  19. RZT

    Question about jewelry appraisals. I recently inherited a number of pieces of jewelry and sterling, most of which is nicer than anything I owned previously. The only item I’ve ever had appraised is my engagement ring, but I’m wondering if some of the pieces I now own should be appraised for insurance purposes? Does anyone have advice on how I figure this out? (These were direct bequests, not part of a larger divided estate, so no appraisals were done for estate purposes). Thanks so much for any help!

    • Anon

      Yes, definitely have everything appraised so that you can adjust your policy and coverage accordingly. You will likely also need to submit photographs to your insurer and the appraiser can take care of this as well.

    • Anon

      You generally need a rider to your policy to cover jewelry (and to back up the rider, you need an appraisal). Call your agent and see what is included and excluded as jewelry.

      FWIW, my jewelry rider is just for my engagement ring, my husband’s watch, and some diamond studs. Other things I own didn’t seem worth it (so for 25K coverage, it costs about $400/year).

  20. anonymous

    Does anyone wear the Roll Up chino pants from Banana Republic? How are they?

  21. CountC

    A giggle for today: there is a man at my office wearing shiny sweatpants. I did not think that being shiny elevated sweatpants to business casual, but what do I know! Of course he paired it with a motorcycle related t-shirt, so at least his top is in line with his bottom.

  22. business travel

    thank you all so much for the helpful tips on Friday. I don’t like checking baggage because I don’t. I don’t want to end up with the opportunity to not have any clothes except a single outfit. I also want to be able to just leave the airport when I land. I have managed a 9-day pleasure vacation to Tucson; 5 days in St. Thomas & 9 days in VG BVI with just a carry-on (including snorkel stuff!)

    Any ideas for easy-to-travel snacks? I bought some nuts, beef jerky, dried fruit, granola & fig newtons, but wonder if there are other ideas floating that I’m not considering.

    My plan is to wear jeans, pack 2 pairs of dress pants, maybe a skirt, and about 4 different tops, plus 2-3 cardis and a bunch of scarves. Flats with dress pants & skirt, something walkable for airport & everything else.

    • la vie en bleu

      fig newtons and jerky are perfect. Sometimes I feel like I need a bite of protein, so the jerky is ideal. I also really love the peanut-butter filled pretzels (i get them from Trader Joes) bc I get the peanut butter protein without the mess.

    • SmartCasual

      I travel with Kind Bars, Think Thin bars and almonds. Sometimes mix almonds craisins or dried cherries and choc chips.

  23. acf

    If I am a junior associate and going to be in trial in state court (not a major city – almost the opposite) and slightly pregnant, do I need to be wearing a full suit the whole time, or are dresses with non-matching jackets okay?

    The other thing I am dreading is timing on when to tell the partners on the case. I would’ve wanted to wait longer to tell work, but the trial is going to start right around the 15 week mark and will go at least a couple of weeks. Not sure how successful I am going to be at hiding this when we are together day in day out. They also work in a different office, so I would have to tell them over the phone (if before trial) … also less than ideal. Anyway, just venting out loud and open to advice/suggestions.

    • Must be Tuesday

      Do you need to tell these specific partners? If they’re not the people that you would normally need to inform re maternity leave and other benefits, and assuming your anticipated maternity leave or any other needed pregnancy accommodations aren’t going to have an impact on your work at trial, do you have to tell them at all ever? Conversely, do you need to actively hide it from them? I’ve never been pregnant so maybe this may be a silly assumption, but couldn’t you just tell people who will be impacted by any anticipated maternity leave, and let everyone else either notice or hear through the grapevine that you’re pregnant/just had a kid.

    • Anonattorney

      I would err on the side of wearing matching suits. State courts vary a lot – some are very conservative, others are more relaxed. At least where I am. You may be able to hide things just fine at 15 weeks. I didn’t start showing until about 4.5 months, and even at 5 months was able to hide my bump in looser clothing.

    • Manhattanite

      At 15-18 wks you’ll likely be able to wear your regular pant suits. And you may have a harder time with maternity suits bc you’ll be small for the jackets. Get yourself Bella bands (target’s version is called be band).

      I’m only familiar w fed ct, but as a junior you must be in a real suit.

      • acf

        This sucks, but is good to know. My pants have not fit for a couple weeks now, so I’m trying to figure out other options.

  24. D. Meagle

    Does anyone know anything/have any experience with Casper mattresses? Looking to get a new mattress, and the pricing is very reasonable. Biggest concern I have though is that it is foam — the FAQ section of their website says there is memory foam for the interior layers, with latex foam on the outer layer, and that latex foam sleeps cooler. I am a warm sleeper to begin with, so have concerns with foam mattresses in general, but wanted to see if anyone can speak to this brand. TIA.

    • Green Skittles

      I have one. Husband loves it, I don’t. In retrospect, I would have preferred something a little softer. I haven’t noticed a difference in warmth from our prior mattress (Ikea foam), but we’ve only had this one for a few months.

    • OCAssociate

      I have one, but have only been sleeping on it for 2-3 weeks. I think it’s still breaking in. It’s firm, but not uncomfortably so, and it’s slightly softer than when we first unpacked it.

      I’m also a hot sleeper (so sweaty!), and I haven’t had issues with being especially warm on this mattress. But nights aren’t warm here yet, and since it’s only been a few weeks, I’m hesitant to give a glowing review.

      Ultimately, I’m pretty sure we’re keeping it, but I appreciate the 100 day return policy.
      Also – I can get you a $50 discount with referral, if you decide to get the Casper!

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