Coffee Break: Small Pavé Huggie Hoop Earrings

56 Comments

1. Is it me, or are “huggies” what we used to call “hoops” when I was young? Because to me, Huggies sound like diapers.

   1. It’s always struck me as a bit too cutesy.

      1. Not a fan, either. I understand the distinction for regular hoops and have no alternate suggestions, but the term does not sound right to my ears.

         Unfortunately, this is my favorite style of earring. haha.

   2. Child of the 80s here.

      When I was growing up, we had a cassette tape (Betamax!) on which my mom recorded the broadcast version of the Wizard of Oz for us to watch. We watched it again and again and again. Nearly every commercial break had a Huggies commercial. It is impossible for me to think of Huggies without also thinking of the Wizard of Oz.

      Carry on…

      1. I love these huggies! My mom used Huggie’s on me in the 1980’s but those were diapers that I pooed into! Yay! I’ve outgrown those and now want these, but they are at Bloomie’s and I am NOT allowed in there any more, unless I go to one on LI or Weschester. FOOEY!

         Does anyone in the hive know how to bake a pumkin pie? My task is to bake one (or bring one), and while I can alway’s buy one on 3rd Avenue, I would like to try to BAKE one on WEDNESDAY. If anyone in the HIVE has a GOOD receipe, please send me a link. I will check back to see what you have. THANKS, and YAY!!!! b/c Myrna agreed to bake it with me! PS it can be rich and fattening b/c it is Thanksgiveing! YAY!!!!

      2. My grandmother recorded The Wizard of Oz on a cassette tape, which my cousin and I watched over and over. I remember the Double Mint gum commercial on that tape, and to this day I can’t think of Double Mint gum without also thinking of the Wizard of Oz :-)

      3. I still have the VHS tape on which I recorded the Wizard of Oz off network TV in 1989.

         1. I do too! It’s the best. The Minute Maid commercial…the Pepperidge Farms cookies commercial…those amazing waffle fries by McCain! The best, though, were the McDonald’s commercials. The Arches, and the one about the grouchy old teacher who retires. I need to steal this from my parents’ house this weekend…and locate a VHS

   3. My impression is that huggies are very small diameters hoops, such that there is no (or very little) open space between the earring and your ear lobe. To me, hoops sound more open, with a larger diameter.

   4. I think they are hoops that hug your earlobe rather than hooping below it.

   5. I thought it was based on how they closed – into the back of the hoop as opposed to a post outside of it (http://www.overstock.com/Jewelry-Watches/Simon-Frank-14k-Gold-Overlay-Channel-Set-CZ-Small-Hoop-Saddleback-Earrings/3297724/product.html?refccid=YCOWBQDF3TNKWIKIR5KQ5NRJC4&searchidx=1)

   6. I have only heard Kat use the term, but my understanding is that they are very small hoops, not the big ones. I actually just bought my first pair of this style from White House Black Market and I really like it, particularly when paired with statement necklaces. I tend to go for dangly styles (or larger hoops) but my new pair of “huggies” has definitely gotten a lot of wear in the month I’ve had them.

2. Do any of you ladies know good guidelines for buying suits for men? I am helping my mom shop for my dad (she is marching him in to Brooks Brothers, just wants to have some ideas on color beforehand), he is not in law (big oil) and doesn’t typically wear suits to work. He needs one for more formal meetings and another for weddings and other dressy non-work events. TIA!

   1. I’d choose a charcoal gray if I had to pick only one color.

      1. What if you had to pick two or three?

         1. Two – charcoal and navy

            Three – charcoal, navy, and charcoal pinstripe

   2. Charcoal and navy are both traditional and classic. If your parents are in the southwest US, a lot of men will do tan/beige patterned suits for summer weddings and such. Not sure if you’ll have much luck finding lighter colors at BB this time of year, though.

   3. This link has some good tips on how to gauge fit, although I imagine where ever you buy will have a tailor to help with the final adjustments. In fact, I wouldn’t go any place that didn’t have a tailor to help make suggestions or measurements for the final fit.

      http://www.artofmanliness.com/2013/09/25/good-fitted-suit-visual/

   4. Someone please tell me pinstripe is unacceptable. My extremely fashion averse boyfriend only has a pinstripe suit. He’s an engineer so he doesn’t need it and they all dress horribly but we have some social events coming up.

      1. Not unacceptable, generally. The weight of the pinstripe could swing my opinion. But, I work at a finance firm with men who drop lots of money on their suits. I can see three pinstripe suits just from my desk right now… they are all light pinstripes in gray and navy suits.

         1. Yeah, I would have to see the pinstripe to know. It could seriously be horrible or fashionable, either one.

      2. I have a fashion-forward husband whose suit collection includes several pinstriped versions. It depends more on the cut of the suit, the fit, and what kind of pinstripes. (Big thick ones that look like they were done in chalk require a certain personality to carry off. Thin pinstripes on a charcoal suit, or even navy, can look very classy. If the suit is boxy and includes pleated pants with cuffs…it’s not the pinstripes that matter.)

      3. Depends on how subtle the pinstripe is. My friend has a charcoal suit with a very subtle pinstripe, and it looks great. The ones with big thick stripes tend to remind me of zoot suits.

   5. It used to be that if you walked into any Brooks Brothers or into the men’s suit department at Saks, you could work with a professional salesperson who would know exactly what you needed (single- or double-breasted; single- double- or no-vent; cotton, wool gabardine, flannel; charcoal, pinstripe, navy) based on your geography, profession and body type and would make sure that it was tailored to fit properly and that you had the appropriate accessories and knew how to work them all. Those were the days. In my more recent experience, BB is hit or miss (Boca Raton — not so much; Boston or Manhattan — better) and Saks (at least where I live) is not helpful. Perhaps your parents will have more luck where they are.

   6. Charcoal first, navy second. Pinstripes later. Black never. Tan or seersucker for summer. To wear to a wedding: Google “wedding ties” . Grenadine ties are classic. Never wear a button down collar shirt with a suit…too casual.

      1. Where are you? To me, black suits seem normal, while I can’t imagine seeing anyone in a seersucker suit not looking like they are in costume (this is in a west coast city).

      2. I hope you are wrong about black suits, Hubs spent a months mtg payment on ablack suit last Christmas. FWIW, he’s a banker in Toronto

      3. Agree on black suits for men. They are for waiters, undertakers and perhaps if you are a salariman in Japan, which is the only place I see them in the wild as a mainstream choice.

      4. Disagree regarding black suits. I see tons of them every day in DC

         1. Just because you see tons of black suits doesn’t make them right. Black isn’t a flattering color for most people and men don’t have the optionof makeup to look better.

            1. Men have the option of makeup. Like wearing black suits to non-funerals, it’s frowned upon, but the option is available.

      5. Plus one on no black suits for men. Origins of the convention are icky but I think it’s seeped into the “rules” of style. Formalwear excepted.

   7. Colors:

      A solid navy and a solid gray suit will go very far for a wide variety of events, both formal and informal. The darker the colors, the more formal, but most anything in navy or gray will be suitable for almost any occasion. After those two colors he should get black or suits with simple patterns like pinstripes, though black is scorned a little in the business environment and is mostly for formal events. But it sounds like he doesn’t need more than a few suits.

      Other design questions you’ll encounter:

      He should go with two buttons instead of three button jackets, unless he’s over 6 feet tall, in which case he could consider three buttons.
      Peak lapels are slightly dressier than notched lapels, but this part is discretionary.
      Pick stitching (the little stitching on the edge of the lapels on the jacket) is optional but is considered a little fancier/dressier.
      Vent style in the back is largely discretionary but two-flap is slightly better looking than single-flap, in my opinion.
      If the suit comes with an optional vest, he should strongly consider buying it and wearing it to more formal events. But, of course, the comparison of the cost versus the odds of using it often will help dictate this decision.
      Pants should be flat with no pleats (pleats are horrible and double pleats are double horrible).
      Cuff on bottom of pants is optional.

      Ultimately, given that your father won’t be buying suits again soon, he needs something simple and timeless that will look and be in style even five or ten years from now. For this reason, the more traditional, the better.

      1. Correction: above comment should say “double vent looks better than single vent” instead of the confusing language about flaps. Sorry.

3. deleted – wrong place

4. Does anyone else love earrings, but find they just don’t look good on your face? I wonder if I’m just buying the wrong kind of earrings for my face shape

   1. I find I don’t look right without earrings. I think it’s just what you’re used to seeing in the mirror. Start out with small studs or pearls – they look good on everyone. If you don’t want to wear earrings, though, don’t feel like you have to!

   2. I agree with baconpancakes completely.

      What kind of earrings are you buying? I usually wear earrings but I find some styles (big hoops mostly) don’t look good on me. I think studs and simpler earrings look good on everyone though

   3. Agree with the others. I’m quite picky about my earrings, but I’m not sure how much is what’s flattering to my face and how much is just what I’m not use to. I have a pair of angular drop earrings with inset mother of pearl that I love… but I never wear them because I don’t think they look good on me or perhaps find them to be too big of a change.

      If you have something that works for you currently, then I suggest going from there. For example, I wear small gold hoops routinely. Large – even very large – gold hoops still feel comfortable for me, but even a diamond stud feels like a big change. Since I also wear gold studs routinely, I started with pearl studs the same size and then moved up.

   4. Yup! I think I look terrible in all earrings. I have studs, hoops, danglies, huggies, what have you, and I keep trying to wear them to no avail. Usually I take them out when I catch a glimpse of myself in the bathroom mirror at work. I can’t explain why, but they just look awful on me.

   5. I think earrings come down to a combo of face shape and hairstyle. I have a square/round face, and hair in an angled bob with the longest part in front hitting right at my jawbone. Studs get lost, and hoops get hair stuck in them. I only wear earrings occasionally, but when I do wear them, I wear drops that hit just lower than my hair. If my face were longer, a higher focus would be more flattering.

5. Biglaw ladies, do your firms tie bonuses to billable hours? I was surprised to see in ATL that some firms give bonuses to everyone, regardless of hours. Is that the norm?

   1. No longer BigLaw (now in-house) but when I was BigLaw, you had to hit a minimum to get the standard bonus, you got another lump for every increment over the minimum (I think it was every 100 hours), and then you could also get a separate bonus for extraordinary performance.

   2. NY model is to give same bonus to an entire class year (with potential minor, very limited variation for very high/low hours).

      Chicago model is a grid based on class year and number of hours. E.g. (WITH TOTALLY MADE UP NUMBERS AND NOT ON A SCALE), a 5th year who billed 2000 hours may get a $30K bonus, a 3rd year who bills 2000 may get $22K, a 2nd year who billed 2400 hours might get $35K. The idea is that the bonus amounts generally increase with seniority and number of hours worked.

      I’m actually not sure what California firms do.

      1. For the NY model, you have to be “in good standing” to receive the bonus, which accounts for poor reviews/very poor hours, but typically the vast majority of associates in a given class will get the same bonus.

   3. I saw both in my time in biglaw; tends to depend on what’s trending at the moment.

      1. I think it is also a matter of how competitive the firm is. I think the better-ranked / higher-netting firms tend to give everyone the same bonuses, and other firms tie them to billables.

         1. This is not true in CA or NY. It’s just that some firms are lockstep (same for everyone) and some are not. It’s the Cravath model vs. not.

   4. Bonuses for associates are based on either hours or fees and are not given unless you meet the threshold for one or the other.

   5. To my knowledge, the major firms in Atlanta (K&S, A&B, TS) don’t do that. Mine gives no bonus unless you hit an hours threshold, and it’s small. You get an additional bonus increment for each chunk of hours over the threshold you hit. We also have a non-hours-based bonus that only some people get, and that’s where the big money is.

      By contrast, my NYC-based friends all get the same (large) bonus, provided that they’re “in good standing” (which seems to mean everyone who hasn’t given notice that they’re quitting or received notice that they’re going to be fired).

6. Could anyone recommend earrings of this style with a small pearl drop off of them? The ones I’m finding are either $2000+ or under $50. I’m looking for something more in the $150-$300 range. Thanks!

   1. Costco has a couple of options, but I’m sure Blue Nile would have even mroe: http://www.costco.com/8.0-9.0mm-Freshwater-Pearl-Earrings-14kt-Yellow-Gold-.product.100080553.html

      1. Oh oops – that’s not a huggie. The one below is.

   2. http://www.bluenile.com/white-topaz-cultured-pearl-silver-hoop-earrings_25781?elem=img&track=product

      1. The description calls it a hoop, so I guess a huggie is what I called a “small hoop” in the 80s. I do like small hoops a lot, just never knew they were called huggies. (I got out of the earring habit when my kids were little and never got used to wearing them again. )

      2. Thanks! This is what I’m looking for, but without the topaz or other stone in the hoop itself. Costco has an option but I don’t like the large metal the pearl is hanging from. Also, I had no idea Costco sold higher-end jewelry. Good to know! Thank you again for the ideas.

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