Suit of the Week: Burberry

60 Comments

1. Hello! I need help! My best friend’s water just broke- just got the text message. Its her first and she is a month and half early. What can I do? I live far away and probably won’t be able to see her until the first or second week of December. What can I send her? What can I do to help?

   1. Send her:
      – words of encouragement (calls, texts)
      – gift cards/cash (for grocery delivery/takeout at hospital/outsourcing things)

      Do:
      -visit earlier if you can. She will, in all likelihood, be spending a lot of time in the NICU and support is crucial.

   2. A month and a half early is certainly quite early, but that’s the window where it may mean they have NICU time, or it may mean they are just small but healthy and able to feed normally and they are released from the hospital in the standard time frame. I would text her back that you are thinking of her, and wait and see what happens.

   3. Take a wait and see on this; they may be able to stop the labor. Texts/emails are good. I like the idea of gift cards and outsourcing gifts too (good for bed rest/NICU/new baby)

      1. Not if her water broke they won’t.

         1. I’m just going to put this here and step away quietly
            http://www.amalah.com/amalah/2011/05/and-they-kept-asking-if-this-was-my-first-pregnancy-for-some-crazy-reason.html#.VGPM4qMo4dU

            1. Agree that what she thinks was her water breaking could, in fact, not have been her water breaking. But if it was, then there is no “stop the labor” option.

            2. Actually not true. They do sometimes stop the labor even when someone’s water has broken. But likely not at roughly 34 weeks, when the baby is likely to be fine.

         2. Honestly, they may even have to kickstart the labor if she wasn’t having contractions or otherwise progressing. There are a lot of variables that aren’t known. My point was more to wait and see how it develops and for right now just be there emotionally as I am sure she’s pretty anxious.

   4. When you visit, bring food, make food, order food, stock pile food, do laundry, take out the recycling, and snuggle the baby long enough for the new mom to shower every day you’re there.

2. I am always at a loss as to what shoes to wear with ankle pants. I am 6′ tall, so would the shoes even matter…will it still look like I am wearing pants too short for me?

   1. My favorites are pointed-toe flats (very Audrey) or d’Orsay pointed-toe heels — both make the ankle exposure look very intentional IMO.

      Rock your height! At 5’4 I can only dream of people thinking my pants are accidentally short…

   2. I am short at 159 cm so I find that ankle pants flatter my petite frame.
      I wear flat shoes that have a bit of a heel so no ballerina flat for me. My favorite model is the carrousel from Clarks.

3. Thanksgiving food TJ poll! What sounds like the better dessert pairing: Pumpkin pie + dark chocolate tart (like a flourless chocolate cake, from Smitten Kitchen) OR pumpkin pie + classic apple pie?

   I’m super excited to host Thanksgiving since I love all the cooking. It’s only 4 people, but I’ve got enough food planned for 10 already! My first thought was to make all 3 pies, but I think 2 pies are already way gluttonous for 4 people. :)

   1. ALL THREE. How much dessert is too much dessert is a silly question :)

      1. Make mini pies so you can have all three?

         http://www.amazon.com/Norpro-Nonstick-Mini-Pie-Pans/dp/B000F7A5PS

      2. I regularly make 3 pies for 4 people. It’s all about the leftovers! I make pumpkin, apple, and cranberry pies.

   2. I’m a fruit pie fan, so I vote pumpkin and apple. Plus, then you can eat leftover apple pie for breakfast on Friday, which is awesome in my book and one of my favorite parts of thanksgiving.

      1. You can also have leftover flourless chocolate cake for breakfast with a strong cup of coffee. Add whipped cream to both.

         1. Brilliant!

   3. Apple. For me, chocolate would be too rich after all of the rich food in the meal.

   4. If anything I’d skip the pumpkin pie – but I know you don’t want to ! How about making slightly smaller versions of all three?

      For Christmas Day this year we’re having (for 3 of us) a Christmas pudding and an apple strudel.

   5. I vote apple pie. But if I were just making pies for myself, it would be 2 pumpkin pies. Because eating pumpkin pie for the rest of Thanksgiving weekend is the whole point of Thanksgiving.

      1. +1

   6. Looks like it’s majority apple. I’m a massive chocolate dessert fan, but maybe what I’ll do is make pumpkin + apple and take the chocolate one to Christmas dinner (which I’m sadly not hosting).

      1. Pumpkin and apple pie and buy fancy chocolates? Less work than making 3 pies and you still get chocolate :)

      2. I rescind my earlier vote. You’re cooking Thanksgiving dinner for these folks + you’re a massive chocolate dessert fan = you get to have chocolate tart if it pleases you.

   7. I guess I’m the only vote for pumpkin and chocolate – one “harvesty” and one more rich and elegant. I may be swayed by the fact that I often bake apple pie but never pumpkin so I’d want someone else to bake me a pumpkin pie!

      1. +1 vote for Anything and Dark Chocolate tart.

   8. Make all three – we routinely have five pies for six people. Pumpkin, pumpkin/cheesecake layered, pecan and apple with pecan and pumpkin done both dairy-free and gluten-free for the three of us that need that.

   9. Apple Pie. You can always have a small bowl of rich chocolates (think: Ghirardelli balls with liquid centers?) or chocolate ice cream available in case anyone is really pining for chocolate. You can’t really have a small bowl of apples as a substitute for apple pie.

   10. All 3 and send your guests home with leftovers.

   11. I’m a chocoholic but I’d vote for pumpkin + chocolate so you have one option for fruit lovers and one option for chocolate lovers. I don’t think chocolate candies are at all a substitute for a rich dark chocolate tart or flourless cake.

       1. Just saw a recipe for Chocolate Pumpkin Pie (I think in this month’s Bon Appetit) – best of both worlds?

   12. Apple!

       I don’t like pumpkin, so it’s really a question of whether I’d rather have apple pie or chocolate for Thanksgiving. Apple will always win even though I’d love a flourless chocolate cake any other day.

       My real vote is for all three, though :) Forget the turkey, Thanksgiving is all about the dessert in my book. I’d have two slices of each.

4. Yay! I love Burbury and this suit, but would HAVE to get the skirt. The manageing partner gets mad whenever I wear pant’s, even in the WINTER for causal Friday’s! FOOEY b/c it is getting cold this week in NYC and I am expecting to freeze my tuchus off this Friday with a skirt, even tho I have NO cleint’s comeing in for meeting’s or court apearances. DOUBEL FOOEY!

   I was walking on 34th Street, and a guy pinched my tuchus and said “nice a***! ” I did NOT know what to do or how to respond b/c he was walkeing the other way. Kat, can you do a SEGMENT on how people in the HIVE deal with men who say and do crude thing’s like this? I would NEVER pinch a guy’s tuchus, even if I was dateing him, so why do they do this to us? I was goeing to pull out my Iphone and snap a picture, but it was crowded on the street, and he was gone b/f I could even think of doeing this.

   We women need to figure out how to be snappy and respond instanteanousley so that men will not get the upper hand on us, or their finger’s to pinch our tuchuses like this schmoe did. TRIPEL FOOEY!

5. Anyone else think this suit is hideous at any price (let alone its actual cost)? I’m so ready for the leather-accents-everywhere thing to be over.

   1. Jinx! Yes, yes and yes.

   2. I still love the leather trend but would never buy such an expensive suit that’s so obviously trendy. Well, I would never buy a Burberry suit anyway, but if I were going to I would make sure it was something classic that will never go out of style. I have tons of leather trim stuff but it’s all cheap because I know in a year or two it will look super dated.

   3. I don’t mind leather accents (except it’s such a pain to clean/alter those items), but I agree that the leather here is horribly done. What is with the big pucker in the back?

   4. Yes. Truly awful.

   5. I can’t get passed how poorly it fits the model to even form an opinion on the style.

   6. I don’t mind the pants but the blazer does not look good from the back. Agree, the leather trim is a trend that now seems overdone.

   7. I love this suit and would buy it if it weren’t wildly out of budget.

6. IMO this suit is pretty fug. I might just be tired of leather trim though.

   1. Shoot, accidentally clicked report while scrolling over the page – did not mean to do that!

   2. Yep.
      -Mulder

7. I am going to DC next weekend. I live in an incredibly casual place (specifically, flip flops year round) and really want to use my trip as an opportunity to dress up. How dressy is Off The Record bar? What should I wear? Any other recommendations are very much appreciated! If you have any not-so-fancy but amazing recommendations (bars, pubs, restaurants, etc), please chime in too! Thank you so much!

   1. Off the Record is fairly dressy. A nice going-out-dress will do the trick – it doesn’t have to be a full on cocktail dress, although people do get that dressed up, but you definitely want to look like you’re going to a nice party at the very least.

      Quill at the Jefferson has a similar vibe and is even slightly more upscale.

      1. Thank you, roses!

      2. Wait, let me ask more specifically: over the knee black leather boots, black tights, black bodycon dress and a black wool coat – is that ok? Is there coat check? I live in a no-outerwear climate so I forgot how this works!

         1. That sounds great! At both places there are coat hooks – you might be able to check your coat at the hotel restaurants but it’s really not needed. These aren’t clubby or loungy places, but rather upscale, somewhat formal, kind of a Mad Men type vibe. For a trendier/younger vibe, but still dress-up worthy, try The Gibson (make a reservation), Marvin, or Two Birds One Stone.

            1. Ooh roses, you are wonderful, thank you!

   2. For other bars/restaurants I recommend Daikaya Izakaya (the upstairs one). I was just there last weekend and loved it, am planning to go back soon. It’s a Japanese-style bar with shareable plates of food, so no actual sushi but other stuff that you rarely see here in the US like donburi (ricebowl), onigiri (rice ball), octopus, kaarage (fried chicken), just to name a few. The foods are supposed to be eaten with a drink, and their drink list is pretty extensive. Their dessert menu is small but delicious, I would eat their purin (orange ice with purin espuma) over and over again.

      The izakaya portion is only open for dinner, but the downstairs ramen shop (which is pretty delicious in its own right) is open for lunch and dinner. Both are affordable casual places, as well as fine for eating solo, if that’s a concern.

      1. Thank you so much!

8. Hoping for some late night feedback. . . I’ve worked for the same manager for 8 years. He makes me write up my own reviews each year and the extent of his feedback is “you’re doing fine!” each year. My reviews are usually 4-5 bullet points of “doing the same as last year, but more! Bigger! Faster!” He won’t really use this review for anything but the file – my comp change is probably already decided. In “Lean In” spirit, would you all put much effort into really thinking up real achievements for the review, or just do what I’ve done in the past? I do update my resume with real accomplishments, so I do have other records of this.

   1. We have to write up real memos on our annual accomplishments.

   2. We have to do self-evalaulations at my firm. Most are ignored, but they do start to matter when you are close to being up for partner. I’m starting to get to the line where they matter, but still can’t motivate myself to do anythign bysides the basic because I HATE BIGLAW. So, i vote for just do what you did last year.

   3. It sounds like it just goes into your HR file to document that you’re doing your job and not causing issues, so I don’t see any motivation to do more. If you feel your comp or position are not in line, though, I’d definitely start doing it ‘for real’ to provide back up for that discussion.

      1. Thanks, all! My comp is great (see: 8 yrs, same manager), so I’ll just update.

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