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Ooh: I think I found these heels when I was sorting through various wine-colored heels for our recent purple heels roundup. While I do generally prefer the purply wine colored heels for maximum versatility, these dark red heels from Kate Spade are also droolworthy. Something about the mixture of feminine details like a crinkle patent and a bow, juxtaposed with burgundy, which can be a sedate color, is a fun mix to me. It's a 3″ heel, and also available in black patent, as well as an ivory and cream satin in sizes 5-11; all shoes are $328. Kate Spade New York Cristie Here's a more affordable version in a similarly dark red patent. (L-3)Sales of note for 11.5.24
- Nordstrom – Fall sale, up to 50% off!
- Ann Taylor – Extra 40% off sale
- Banana Republic Factory – 50% off everything + extra 25% off with your GAP Inc. credit card
- Bloomingdales is offering gift cards ($20-$1200) when you spend between $100-$4000+. The promotion ends 11/10, and the gift cards expire 12/24.
- Boden – 10% off new styles with code; free shipping over $75
- Eloquii – Fall clearance event, up to 85% off
- J.Crew – 40% off fall favorites; prices as marked
- J.Crew Factory – Up to 60% off everything + 60% off clearance
- Lo & Sons – Fall Sale, up to 35% off
- M.M.LaFleur – Save 25% sitewide
- Neiman Marcus – New sale, up to 50% off
- Spanx – Lots of workwear on sale, some up to 70% off
- Talbots – Buy one, get one – 50% off everything!
- White House Black Market – Holiday style event, take 25% off your entire purchase
And some of our latest threadjacks here at Corporette (reader questions and commentary) — see more here!
Some of our latest threadjacks include:
- What to say to friends and family who threaten to not vote?
- What boots do you expect to wear this fall and winter?
- What beauty treatments do you do on a regular basis to look polished?
- Can I skip the annual family event my workplace holds, even if I'm a manager?
- What small steps can I take today to get myself a little more “together” and not feel so frazzled all of the time?
- The oldest daughter is America's social safety net — change my mind…
- What have you lost your taste for as you've aged?
- Tell me about your favorite adventure travels…
Houstonians
I wanted to publicize a great event happening in Houston next Thursday based on Lean In. It’s a panel discussion between a Fifth Circuit judge, a VP at Reliant, the director a Methodist B *** Cancer Center, and a woman who started her own petroleum networking company. It seems perfect for the crowd on here. The tickets are only $10 and include a drink ticket and light bites, plus it’s all for a good cause. And we can give the secret r * e t t e handshake when we see each other.
http://www.thewomenshome.org/news/entry/leanign-in-taking-names-1-2.html
Anonymous
I think you have a typo in the link– “leaning-in”
Houstonians
I know, but it’s actually the way the link is. I’ve emailed people to fix it but . . . .
Anonymous
Never mind– looks like the error is on their end :) The link works as posted, but it is misspelled!
Houstonians
Thanks for the heads’ up!
Ellen
Yay! I love Kate Spade and these shoes, but too expensive for me now that Dad put me on a buddget for this new year. I said we should wait until January but he said no and cancelled my L&T card. FOOEY on that. It is now going to be MORE expensive w/o the card but he does NOT care. He said that no sane man would marry me with my spendeing habits. FOOEY b/c there WERE men that would even tho they were loosers. DOUBEL FOOEY!!
these shoes
I want to like these, but there is a whiff of 1986 about them that I can’t put my finger on.
Anonny
I’m with you… bow shape and patent leather combo?
Houstonians
I’ve personally never really liked crinkle patent. I like 99.9% of Kate Spade shoes, so it’s odd that I don’t like these.
lawsuited
1986 was a very fine year.
SC
I love these shoes but will not be spending $328 on shoes (or anything) any time soon.
Bonnie
I absolutely love these.
Thoughts on this bag?
I am a total smitten kitten with this purse. It’s on sale and I can afford it, but it’s also a very big, definite splurge. I certainly don’t need it. Questions: 1) is it too crazy? 2) will it stand the test of time? 3) what would you think if one of your co-workers showed up with it at the office? 4) girlfriend at brunch?
http://www.neimanmarcus.com/Stella-McCartney-Faux-Snake-Hobo-Bag-Green-Handbags/prod180060035_cat46590758__/p.prod?icid=&searchType=EndecaDrivenCat&rte=%252Fcategory.jsp%253FitemId%253Dcat46590758%2526pageSize%253D120%2526No%253D0%2526refinements%253D&eItemId=prod180060035&cmCat=product
Diana Barry
It is cute! BUT it is polyester – I wouldn’t pay $645 for it by a long shot.
Anonymous
No- I am sure 9 west or someone makes a version of this for 30. I think its crazy to spend that much on that bag
Susie
It’s not something I would pick for myself regardless of cost (too unstructured; too deep without much organization and would be hard to find anything in there) but I don’t think it looks too crazy.
Susie
I’d consider this in the Forest Leaf: http://shop.nordstrom.com/s/kate-spade-new-york-chatham-lane-harlan-satchel/4132349?origin=category-personalizedsort&contextualcategoryid=0&fashionColor=FOREST+LEAF&resultback=1026
animal print lover
It is cute, but I agree with Diana – no WAY would I pay even $65 for this. I’m sure the quality is better in person, but it looks like one of my fun cheap buys from Marshall’s.
RED
I actually disagree with the above responses. Stella McCartney only does vegan bags and that’s what the brand specializes in. The quality of its man-made materials is superb. As was highlighted in another thread yesterday, there is a difference when manufacturers use man-made materials because they are cheap vs. because those materials have better performance or are consistent with the brand’s ethical values.
RED
And to respond to your questions: it depends on your office setting. The green snake print is a bit much for a law office but would work on Fridays and weekends.
Lobbyist
Its cute. I like it. Too much money for me, but if it’s not for you, use it with pride!
meme
I would not think anything beyond maybe a fleeting “cute bag.” But I’m not a bag or fashion person really and never pay much attention to these things beyond briefly noticing pretty bags occasionally. I would not have any thoughts related to how much it cost because I would have no idea. Probably I would be tricked and think it’s real snakeskin or something. But really I wouldn’t give it a second thought.
anon
I love it! if you buy it through ebates (Which is awesome), you can get 8.0% cash back also..
Bonnie
I like it but I think it’s too much for a bag that has limited wear. That being said, NM does have crazy sales so I’d recommend putting it in your cart and starting the checkout process but not finishing. They’ll send you coupons and also periodic emails about further sales.
Thoughts 0n this bag?
Thanks, y’all. As to the fact that it’s not leather, I actually like that. I do buy leather products but I’m trying to limit that as much as I can and as RED said there’s pleather and then there is pleather. Stella McCartney tends to make very well made stuff in this regard so I’m not concerned with the fact that I am overpaying for the material, so much as do I really want to spend this much on a bag, period. Especially a bag that’s a bit out there like this one! But then I think how fabulous it will look with so many things…. It just strikes me as one of those bags that you could wear with a plain outfit and it will make everything look great! Choices, choices…
S in Chicago
I actually prefer to buy bags that are a little out there for just that reason. I wear a lot of classics in neutral colors and like to have my bag or shoe (or a bright coat or scarf or interesting necklace) make the statement. Sort of like great throw pillows on a blah couch. The bucket shape is not one I usually favor–I think it can look a little frumpy and proportion usually only works for the tall and thin–but this one does sort of have that something extra. More stylish than most. Of course, with my horrid commute these days, I’m not usually handbagging it just to keep weight down for the walk. Sigh.
moss
It sounds like you really love it. If you’re not going to starve if you buy it, then GO FOR IT!
ace
Agree that’s way too distinctive for me to wear regularly, and if I spent $600+ on a bag I’d want it to be one I could wear all the time.
Anonymous
This bag is not my style, but it’s gorgeous. Ignore everyone who commented on the fact that it’s not leather (it’s Stella McCartney, duh). I also disagree with people who said that you won’t get much wear out of it, but it depends on what you wear. This bag would be gorgeous with just about every single neutral outfits you could possibly put together. If you wear a lot of color, you would definitely get less wear out of it (or risk looking clown-ish, because that green can clash with a lot).
I wouldn’t wear it to work, but that’s just because I need a jumbo structured bag to fit my laptop and files that I regularly cart home. Otherwise, I don’t think it’s inappropriate.
Houstonians
What kind of shoes should I plan to wear when walking around NYC in early November? It looks like the highs are usually in the lower 50s in November. Would booties with jeans be a good option? Anybody know of a comfortable pair?
Anonymous
Booties and jeans will be perfect!
S
Booties and jeans are perfect — or cute sneakers if you’re doing a tons of walking. Everyone seems to be wearing New Balances these days.
LizNYC
Yeah, sneakers and “athleisure” shoes are everywhere. I’d avoid anything with a heel, unless you regularly log 3-5 miles a day with them.
November can be either unusually warm or unseasonably cold, too, so a scarf/pashmina and dressing in layers is helpful too.
Anonymous
Ecco has some great short boots that go great with jeans and they are very comfortable.
Anonymous
Everyone will be wearing flat boots or flat-ish boots, especially Chelsea boots. Clarks had some comfy but not hideous ones last season, so you may get lucky with them.
AMB
I turned the dreaded 3-0 last weekend and am thinking it’s time to get serious about wrinkle prevention. I’ve always had very dry and sensitive skin so have been very good about washing my face and moisturising for years now but am thinking I should add some retinol or something else to the mix. How often do people apply eye cream? Any recommendations appreciated!
Wildkitten
Oh hello, me from this morning. I use retinol and sunscreen (that’s what my dermatologist said to do.) Some folks made additional suggestions on the morning thread when I asked this question.
AMB
oops – thanks!
Wildkitten
I’m going to get the Ole Henrickson three little miracles – there’s an AHA product and a vitamin C serum, which seem to be the products I am missing.
Uhhh
“the dreaded 3-0”???
WTF
AMB
I know it’s not that bad but it was a number with probably too much baggage for me.
TBK
I know you meant that sort of tongue in cheek, but 30s are fantastic! So much better than 20s. So, so much. I’m now getting close to 40 and I am actually really excited for my 40s. I just feel like I’m ready to let go of so much. So much anxiety, so much wishing to be different, so much trying. It sounds like giving up but really it feels so freeing. I never understood when women were like “oh, I feel so much better in my skin than I did when I was 20!” But I totally get it now. It’s like when you’re younger you have so many opportunities, which is great, but they all take work and so you have to put in all this effort to try to catch as many as you can. I’m not done catching opportunities, but some doors are closed to me now and that’s actually pretty great. I can sit down and focus on what I have instead of chasing after all of it.
anon
I’m in my late 20s but have many friends in their 30s. I keep hearing this particular sentiment expressed over and over again, and it’s so encouraging! It’s nice to contradict society’s message that life (especially for women) is downhill after 26.
Senior Attorney
Does society really think life is downhill after 26? Srsly? That’s just nuts. I’m more than double that and honestly at 26 you are just getting started. Like, barely out of the gate. Things get so much better as you get older, it isn’t even funny!
And you kids? Off my lawn!!
moss
I’m in my early 40s, no regrets! It’s awesome. I have plenty of money & love. Life is good.
Anonymous
+1. I know it’s just an expression, but it perpetuates the myth that aging is bad for us. Especially as pertains to beauty standards.
Anon
OMG relax.
Uhhh
But there’s a point. The OP called it “the dreaded 3-0” and then immediately began asking for how to ward off wrinkles, as if women (maybe men, too) start to get old and saggy after 30, if you don’t watch out.
Part of me thinks this person needs a reality check about what women in their 30s look like.
Another part of me feels bad for her. I can understand that if you turn 30 and haven’t checked certain things off of your list, that could be really hard. (Although in that case, I don’t think that person would be asking for wrinkle creams; I’d think she would be more focused on other things . . . .)
Anon
Yea, but sometimes it’s ok to not make a point and just answer the OP’s dang question.
Anonymous
@Uhhh
Well, some of these things are related. It helps to look young in some industries, if the OP is dissatisfied with her professional life. It also helps to look young as a single person, if the OP is not in a long-term relationship and wants to be in one.
Wildkitten
I am really excited about turning 30 because I feel like it is the different between my wild and free 20s and my planned and purposeful 30s. I think it is dreaded because it’s such a big change, not because it’s actually bad. Change can be hard! I’m also realizing I need to take care of the skin I’ll have for the next 60 years instead of the dumb sh*t I did in my 20s like go tanning and fall asleep with my make-up on. So I think wanting guidance for the dreaded 3-0 is super legitimate and should not be insulting to those over 30 (who I understand to be very happy and confident in their selves, unlike the 20S).
moss
it’s …. not that big of a change though. Literally one day older than when you were 29 364/365 days old.
anon
I was eating low carb on and off in July and early August with great success – lost 17 pounds without calorie counting! It always seems to be the only thing that works for me – calorie counting, exercise, etc never work as well.
Life since then has gotten tough. Major breakup, moved to a new place, diagnosed with depression. I am now eating literally every meal out – breakfast from the coffee shop, buying lunch, delivery for dinner. It’s a huge problem for my finances and health. No weight gain yet, but that’s clearly going to be the consequence.
I love to cook, but seem to have no interest in it because I am depressed. I have also stopped exercising, which I used to be avid about. I want to be doing low carb, but it takes so much planning and cooking. I want to keep losing weight for an upcoming vacation – my goal has been to get into a healthy BMI – but it all feels really insurmountable. Every night I go home, order tacos, and watch TV. Not really a time issue – I have a low-key job.
Yes I am in therapy, on meds, and it’s helping a ton. But I also know I will feel so much better if I can get back into a healthy eating and exercising routine.
Help?
NYC tech
Can you do a subscription meal service (Blue Apron, plated, etc) or pre-order a week of healthy food from Fresh Direct or whatever grocery delivery service? You could view it as a temporary measure for a month or two until you’re over the hump.
TBK
Can you break it down into smaller pieces? So not “I have to go to the gym for at least an hour five times a week” but just saying today you’ll _____ [go for a 15 min walk at lunch? do 10 push ups? get dressed for a run and go out but only for as long as you feel like it with 100% permission to come home whenever you want?]. As for eating, no-cook low carb options include Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, cheese, deli meats, pre-cut fruit (not sure how low carb you are), salad from the grocery salad bar, pre-cut veggies with low carb dip. Or minimal cooking/prep includes rotisserie chicken from the grocery with grocery salad bar, pre-cut veggies microwaved in the bag with some sort of jarred dressing/dip, frozen shrimp thawed in the sink, omelette with pre-cut veggies, deli meat roll-ups with salad/pre-cut veggies. Can you also take eating a little piece at a time? So say you’re going to make sure to have breakfast foods on hand, and whatever happens at lunch and dinner happens. And once you’ve gotten breakfast down, you decide to have healthy dinner at least 2x per week, etc.
roses
I would start trying to cook easy, healthy meals that don’t require a “plan,” and see how that goes first before trying to get back on the low-carb bandwagon. I understand how hard it must be to plan meals, so I would suggest taking an eating approach that only requires filling your fridge with healthy food and figuring out the rest last-minute. Dinner can be a protein + vegetable + starch or fruit if you’re hungry. Chicken/broccoli/quinoa. Eggs/asparagus/salsa/bread. Really, really easy. If you get comfortable with that, you can branch out into looking for recipes online. Baby steps!
mascot
What’s your favorite workout? Go do it. Don’t worry about time/distance/ numbers of plates on the bar. Just go.
What’s your favorite thing to cook? Go make it. Call a friend to come over for dinner. Make a goal to eat at/from home for 2 breakfasts and 2 lunches or dinners a week. Do that.
Taking small steps (and then repeating them) is the only way I can get out of these ruts. I also find I do better if I do something other than veg in front of the tv every night. Reading or even going to bed early seem more relaxing. Again, just a few times a week.
Anon
My favorite diet would probably work for you. Every other day (e.g, Day 1, Day 3, Day 5), I eat nothing. But every two hours, I drink about 2 cups of water with a half a scoop of whey protein powder in it. Then on the other days, I just eat normally. It works really well for losing weight. And the diet folks say that you can do the protein waters twice a week if you’re just looking to maintain. It’s all based off of intermittent fasting.
I know this sounds a little extreme, but I like this a lot and have found it to be quite effective. It keeps me full, and it’s really easy to follow. Over time, my appetite becomes smaller and I lose the urge to eat when I’m bored. I’ve read about intermittent fasting, and how it helps your body re-set certain hormones that have gone a little nuts with our American diet. Plus, it is cheaper than eating regularly. Also — and importantly — I talked to my doctor about before I started, and he approved it.
fad diets...
This is just so…. sad.
It makes me sad.
AnotherAnon
As someone experimenting with intermittent fasting, this was helpful. Thanks.
Anonymous
Where do you live? If it’s a major city, get a meal delivery service. There are a ton in NYC – stuff like Sakara Life. Also, join a group fitness class.
LAnon
Could you get motivated to cook once per week? I have struggled with a lot of the same… I love to cook but often get home from work and just don’t, and order takeout instead. So, if I have some extra energy on the weekends, I like to cook a batch of something and divide it into portions to be my dinners for the week. I put it in individual Tupperwares. You have to be OK with eating the same thing a few nights in a row, but it has really helped me. It helps me a lot with portion control. Sometimes I try the “stock the fridge with healthy foods!” approach, but when I get home from work and am faced with a fridge of kale and salmon… a few GrubHub clicks later, I’m happily chowing down on pad thai and potstickers. So, I find it better to make some correctly portioned, pre-made comfort-type food (like this week is jambalaya – yum!) that I actually want to eat.
NYtoCO
What I find is really helpful toward losing weight, plus is a super easy way to get (back) into cooking is to just keep things very, very simple. We cut out most carbs about 8 months ago, which has limited our choices but almost in a good way— there’s never these huge decisions about what to do for dinner. Granted, this is a little better in the summer but we’ll see how it carries into winter. Our formula is meat/protein (grilled if possible)+non-starch veggie+sometimes a salad. Sometimes sauces but not often. I know it’s boring, but it seriously works.
Meal Planning
Quick tip for eMeals and Fresh 20. They are meal planning services that have a variety of plans (low carb, low cal, paleo, kid friendly, etc). They take all of the work out of planning and make shopping lists and meal plans for you. I’ve used both and like both. I recently switched to Fresh20 because I find it even easier than eMeal. The premise is you only need 20 ingredients for the week (plus pantry items) and it simplifies shopping and eliminates waste. It also lists out what you can prep ahead which I find to be a time saver. It only takes me about an hour a week to do their recommended prep and it saves a decent amount of time during the week. Check them out!
anonforthis
Ok, kind of a sensitive issue here, so please be nice – I noticed the other day that my husband’s hair is thinning a fair amount at the back of his head. It’s sufficiently far back that I’m pretty sure he hasn’t noticed at all. I realize that many, if not most, men will eventually have some male-patterned baldness/hair loss, and that’s totally OK with me (I know I am not going to stay young forever either :) ). But I do know that although he cares about his appearance generally, he uses cheap hair products, and no conditioner at all. I think a thickening conditioner could do a lot for him, but I don’t want to make him feel self-conscious. Any ideas for how to handle? My current thought is to just include some in our next Amazon order and say that I needed an add-on item to get free shipping, and see if he uses it, but I’m not sure.
Wildkitten
Men get rewarded for aging, not punished like women, so I don’t think it’s as sensitive. I would straight up tell him rather than lie about the conditioner, but I don’t know that thickening conditioner would actually help.
Sacha
My experience with balding men is that they are extremely sensitive about this, and I can only assume it is going to be worse among the younger generations of men who seem to be far more conscientious about appearance than those in my own generation. (No idea how old your husband is.) Hopefully you can nicely explain that you don’t mind at all, but thought he would want to know so he can take whatever steps he wants to early in the game. Thickening shampoo isn’t going to do much long term, and I’m never a fan of this passive aggressive form of communication between partners (even though I genuinely believe you are well-meaning here). If he realizes what message you are really sending, he is going to assume it does bother you. Better to head that off and say what you mean.
Anonymous
This is your husband, right? I have to imagine you’ve faced far larger issues in your lives and marriage. Can’t you just be honest with the man?
anonforthis
True – I guess I’m coming at it from the perspective that if the roles were reversed, I might be self-conscious that my spouse wanted me to change my appearance in a way that may or may not work. But yeah, good point that men aren’t socialized to be as sensitive to their appearances as us!
Anonny
Right, so don’t recommend he change anything. Let him decide if he wants to do that or not. If it doesn’t bother him, move on and let nature take its course.
Calico
My brother is so sensitive about his thinning hair that it’s all he notices about other people. When I showed him a picture of my now husband when we were dating, the first thing my brother said was “Wow, he has a great head of hair for a man in his forties.” He literally worries that women won’t date him because he’s losing it. YMMV.
JJ
I chuckled at how Anonymous phrased this comment, but she’s right. I would hate it if my husband was trying a passive-aggressive approach (“Honey, try some of my anti-aging moisturizer” or something like that) instead of just telling me.
I’ve been jokingly telling my husband for years that his hair is almost totally white/grey–like Steve Martin–but he didn’t believe me until he got a speeding ticket last week and the officer wrote down my husband’s hair color as “grey.”
AIMS
I agree that passive aggressive is not the tack to take, but I think there’s a difference between trying to get someone to use something they don’t use (hey, I bought you this wrinkle cream!) vs. upgrading something someone already uses (I saw this and thought of you!).
AIMS
Actually my last example is bad. I just tend to upgrade things for my SO and it usually works out well.
Horrible Idea
Maybe she should keep the old bottle and secretly refill it with the hair-thickening ingredient of her choice. He’ll never suspect!
AIMS
Replace your/his shampoo with a two in one and buy him better hair products. Tell him, “try this, it’s supposed to be really great!” If he uses anything at all, that means he cares somewhat and will probably try it. I would not get into the whole hair thinning thing.
Anonymous
Thickening conditioner won’t fix that. That’s just normal wear and tear :)
Anonymous
Yes, he needs some Rogaine.
moss
he needs to shave it all off and become sexy bald man.
CountC
+1
bridget
“Love, I found some conditioner that I think you would like. It’s in the shower.”
Sometimes, simple is best.
Anon
Unfortunately, I’m a woman with thinning hair. I only write to comment that he may have noticed it. Even if it’s too far back to see, when your hair starts thinning, you notice breezes and cold air on your scalp. Or just when you put your hand on your head, you start to actually feel your hand.
There’s a good chance that he is aware of it, and if he hasn’t brought it up to you, it might be that he’s self-conscious. I know for me, it is far and away the thing I am most self-conscious about, hands down. But I’m a woman, and I do think that’s different.
If you guys do talk about it and he wants some help, look at Toppick. It is EXCELLENT.
Hollis
Your plan might have the opposite effect. I have thinning hair as well, and I actually don’t use conditioner on my roots, just on the bottoms of the hair, because from my experience, conditioner can cause more hair to fall out. I think the purpose of the conditioner is to make your strands plump and shiny, but it does nothing at all to keep hairs from falling out at the root.
Mpls
+1 Yeah – my understanding is that conditioner is really for the benefit of the older, drier growth of your hair (the ends) and a guy with short hair doesn’t have old enough hair for a conditioner to do any good.
Senior Attorney
Wouldn’t it be more more effective to start him on Rogaine or Minoxidil or whatever?
NewlyPreggo
Yes, Rogaine/minoxidil actually works. It only really works for the bald spot at the top of the head though (not other areas) and you have to keep using it (or you’ll lose the hair), but it’s really quite effective to stop the baldness and even regrow a little bit.
Anonymous
“Honey, I noticed that your hair is thinning a bit in the back. I think you’re s@xy as ever, but I wanted to let you know in case you wanted to do something about it. I would have felt badly if I didn’t say anything and you wished you’d known sooner.”
And by do something, I think it should be rogaine not thickening conditioner.
FTR, my husband’s hair is thinning slightly and I’m not saying anything because I don’t think he’d do anything about it. No reason to make it known if it won’t bring positive action.
Consideration
As yet another consideration, keep in mind that some of the hair loss products have side effects. I don’t think I’d try to slip a new product that has a heavy duty active ingredient for his use without a heads up. I honestly don’t know about the over the counter shampoos, etc. but I do know that rogaine and other prescription stuff was countraindicated (is that the right word? it basically would increase the harmful effects of another medicine my husband takes). Based on his doctor’s advice, my husband skipped any topical products, and is letting nature take its course.
Angela
I feel like this is akin to him saying to you ‘I noticed you have gained some weight so I put the Weight Watcher info I picked up today on the counter’.
As you both age all kinds of things are going to change physically, I would leave it alone