Corporette.com

Updated: Oct 31, 2018 223 Comments · by

Wednesday’s Workwear Report: Refined Crepe Dress

The Personal Shopper (TPS)

This post may contain affiliate links and Corporette® may earn commissions for purchases made through links in this post. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Short-Sleeve Work Dress: Talbots Refined Crepe DressOur daily workwear reports suggest one piece of work-appropriate attire in a range of prices. This flowing A-line dress from Talbots looks cute and has a ton of nice features: sleeves! a variety of sizes so you can get the right fit and hem length at a reasonable price! (It comes in regular, petite, woman, and woman's petite sizes.) I might try adding a wide suede black belt to add a bit of texture. It's $159, full price, at Talbots. Talbots Refined Crepe Dress Seen a great piece you'd like to recommend? Please e-mail tps@corporette.com. (L-2)

Sales of note for 9.10.24

Some of our latest posts here at Corporette…

RSS Error: WP HTTP Error: cURL error 60: Issuer certificate is invalid.

And some of our latest threadjacks here at Corporette (reader questions and commentary) — see more here!

Some of our latest threadjacks include:

About Kat

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

Comments

  1. Opal

    LOVE this. Anyone know how full the skirt is? Full skirts don’t look good on me usually, so I wonder if I could have it tailored to a sheath shape, which I’ve done on other dresses before.

    • Anonymous

      I have a partial wool version that I got from Talbots Outlet, and it is not that full, but just lined. It’s Aline in the skirt, so it will flare out, but not too full. I’ve been complimented left, right and center on mine, and it’s going to become a workhorse for me.

    • Anonymous

      The entire point of this dress is that is has a flowing a-line skirt. Why would you alter that? Buy a different dress.

      • Opal

        Might be feeding Nasty Anonymous here, but I’ll answer anyhow…. I would alter this because I love the things that can’t as easily be changed – color, neckline, sleeves, price point, NOT exposed zipper. I have a skilled tailor that has does an amazing job making this exact change to many dresses of mine. As someone mentioned, the seams and/or material might make it a tricky change, but I’d have to see it in person.

          • Let's keep it nice

            No, it was nasty, and unprovoked. Saying ” Buy a different dress.” is an unwarranted and unasked for piece of advice and has a hard, mean edge to it. Saying nothing or “If it needs that much altering, it might not be the dress for you.” would have been ok, but the comment was needlessly dictatorial.

          • Anonymama

            I don’t know that I’d go so far as to call it nasty, but it was definitely dismissive. But I do agree that in general it’s more productive to try to view internet comments with a thicker skin than in-person comments, and to try to assume the most positive interpretation, if possible. Assume they mean well but are either too busy, too awkward, or too lazy to type in all the modifying phrases that women usually use to soften what they say (e.g.: “well, my favorite part of the dress is that it has a flowing a line skirt, and any changes to that could mess up the balance of the silhouette, and might be expensive too, so it might be risky to alter that way. It might be better to just find a dress with the silhouette you like”)

        • Anonymous

          I think that type of dress is easily found, it would be kind of expensive and pointless to modify this dress.

    • Anonymous

      It does look to0 full, but it will be complicated to tailor well. If the skirt only had side seams, that would be relative easy to take in, but it looks like this has back side seams (maybe front too?), and a waistband, so taking the fullness out of the skirt would be a lot more involved.

  2. Recommendations for where to eat in LA?

    I’m going to be visiting my brother at UCLA and could use recommendations for where to eat in the area (he’ll be in class/occupied for a good portion of the visit and my husband and I will have time on our own to explore the area). What are your best casual food recommendations? I’m more into finding a great local Mediterranean or pizza joint rather than Michelin-starred restaurants. TIA!

    • Gail the Goldfish

      I am not in LA so I don’t know if there’s one near UCLA, but my favorite quick casual food when I’m visiting LA is Lemonade. It’s a local chain “cafeteria” style restaurant, except it’s LA, so it’s healthy and delicious cafeteria.

    • Calico

      There are so many restaurants right in Westwood Village that you could walk around and find something. That said, I find them overpriced for the quality. If have time and a car, drive west to Venice and go to any of the ridiculously delicious places there on Abbott Kinney. As Gail said above Lemonade is a great lunch spot.

      • jumpingjack

        And Tasting Kitchen, a few doors down from Gjelina on Abbott Kinney.
        .
        If you like celebrity spotting, both of these restaurants are prime spots.

    • LAnon

      A short drive or longer walk from UCLA is the Sawtelle area. If you enjoy Japanese food, local wisdom is that the ramen shops in Sawtelle have the best, most authentic ramen in the United States. The best places usually have lines out the door at dinner time.

      Another option in Westwood is 800 Degrees. It’s a “design your own pizza” place that has a few locations around LA and is pretty popular.

    • Aurora

      Popular spots for students are 800 Degrees and TLT. TLT is my favorite, they have grilled cheese and pulled pork type of stuff with a slight Latin American flair. Diddy Reese has famous cookies but an equally long line, depends on if you’re up for it. The main sell is they are super cheap and fairly tasty. Fat Sal’s is a famous sandwich place with incredibly greasy food, as the name would imply. Bella Pita’s decent if you’re looking for Mediterranean.

      As Calico said, there’s so much stuff there it’s hard to strike out completely, but there’s also tons of good food slightly outside Westwood, so honestly, I’d Google map it, click on restaurant names, and read reviews to see what’s up your alley.

      Slightly outside of Westwood: Sugarfish on San Vicente is considered one of the ~the~ sushi places in LA if you get one of the “trust me” menus.

    • SoCalAtty

      If you don’t mind a little drive (shouldn’t be more than 30 minutes) check out Papa Christo’s on Pico. It is kind of near Korea Town, but it is the BEST Greek place. The best. There is also an attached shop that is their house deli / Greek importer and you can get all kinds of good stuff – olive oil, sweets, bread, cheese…yummmmm

    • Anonymous

      Westwood is next to little Tehran so go get some yummy yummy Persian food that is probably different from what you can get wherever you live. And then some Persian ice cream (saffron, rose, pistachio….yummy!)

  3. BB

    Trying to assuage some spending guilt here…I went to Wolford over the weekend and totally splurged on a pair of cashmere silk tights, like WAY more than I would ever think of paying for tights. But it has been a really stressful few months at work and I kind of felt like getting myself a treat. I have them on today and oh. my. god. they feel AMAZING. Like having warm fuzzy kittens on my legs :)

    • bridget

      Can you afford them? Do you enjoy them? Do you do things like this often?

      If the answers are “yes, yes, and no,” then enjoy your tights.

      • Care

        Even if the answer is “yes, yes, and yes” then enjoy your tights :) Primary emphasis on the middle question

    • tesyaa

      Oh please. This is a totally appropriate way to respond to stress. Very tempting…

    • rosie

      If you are getting that much happiness from a pair of tights, sounds like they are worth a lot more than whatever you paid!!

    • Snick

      Obviously, what you really need to be feeling guilty about is feeling guilty for buying these tights. :) Enjoy.

    • Calico

      There is a wonderful short story by Kate Chopin about a woman doing this very thing! “A Pair of Silk Stockings.” She really couldn’t afford the stockings, though.

    • Anonymous

      There’s absolutely nothing wrong with having nice things if you can afford them. Enjoy your splurge!

    • Wendy

      Go ahead and treat yourself girl! No need to feel guilty, I googled them and they look fantastic. I have a b-day coming up, I think I’ll drop a few hints with my hubby.

  5. Runner 5

    Bag question – I’ve been carrying a Longchamp Le Pliage Hobo (in khaki) for the past seven or eight months as an everyday bag. It’s currently a little too battered to be smart so I’m thinking of getting it again in navy – will that then be smart enough to carry to my business casual job (people don’t wear suits but go one step down)?
    If not – can people suggest leather bags that are a similar shape and size? From a utility perspective it’s perfect (it doesn’t look big even when it’s full, can take my lunch, a book, a knitting project, and assorted tissues/ etc) so I’d love a leather equivalent

    • Opal

      I have the Coach Edie Shoulder Bag 31 one and it holds e-v-e-r-y-t-h-i-n-g. I stuff it to the brim daily, and it never looks silly fully – keeps the same shape full as it does empty, like what you’re describing.

      • Runner 5

        I like it, but I’m really looking for something with the long strap so when over my shoulder it hangs around hip level/ can be worn messenger style when needed. (Which is why I currently use the Le Pliage hobo rather than the standard totes)

        • Amelia Earhart

          If you can find it, the previous version of Edie is called Phoebe. I just got one on eBay recently, new with tags and 1/2 the cost of the original price with long, over the shoulder straps.

        • Amelia Earhart

          Reading comp issue today – I missed that you wanted crossbody/messenger.

      • Shopaholic

        Much heavier but I think much more polished. Although I hate the look of nylon bags so I’m probably biased.

        • Anonymous

          Yeah you are. A pliage is perfectly acceptable to carry to a business casual office. A hunchback or shoulder surgery isn’t super polished either.

        • Wildkitten

          Agreed. A nylon bad has to be exceptional to look polished, and the Le Pliage doesn’t do it for me. I’d totally swap for a leather bag, especially early in your career when you are trying to make a professional impression. I think I recall Runner 5 is pretty fresh out of school.

          • Runner 5

            I’m not even out of school yet! I graduate this July – but yes, being early in my career is one of the reasons I want to look as professional as I can. I also don’t wear heels, so the bag is I think quite important.

        • Runner 5

          I agree that leather looks more polished, hence the hunt! I have until September…

          • S in Chicago

            I feel like I’m always recommending, but I think some of the MZ Wallace bags look really sharp and many have cross-body straps. They’re a little pricey but you can often get a deal on EBay. I own several styles and always feel acceptable, even when I’m traveling and have to wear a suit.

      • Runner 5

        Good to know, thanks! Mine was second hand when I got it and I haven’t exactly babied it so it might be that if I got a new one and looked after it it would stay nice enough for work.

      • Runner 5

        Same issue as the Coach Edie/ Phoebe – I’m really after a bag with looong straps. Thanks though!

          • Runner 5

            There really aren’t that many hobo shaped Le Pliages around (I’ve never even seen them for sale in the UK – discovered it when studying in Germany) so it’s an understandable mistake!
            I will indeed let you know if I find this unicorn bag!

        • Anonymous

          I think your best bet would be to find a regular tote bag that has a removable long strap.

    • Killer Kitten Heels

      You didn’t mention budget, but have you checked out MZ Wallace? Possibly more than you’re willing to spend, but their bags meet every other of your stated requirements (polished looking, most come with cross-body options, they hold their shape even when empty, and don’t look overstuffed or big even when full). I have a Kate (the largest one they make), and it’s an absolute workhorse that I still get tons of compliments on, even after carrying it nearly daily for 2 years.

    • Mindy

      I personally think a lightweight leather could be your answer.

      How about this: http://www.coach.com/coach-designer-purses-scout-hobo-in-pebble-leather/34312.html?cgid=women-handbags&dwvar_color=LINAV (wait for coupons at Macys or a sale at coach).

      Furla also has a good lightweight leather bag with a cross body strap but that doesn’t zip closed.

      If you get graduation money, Balenciaga has super lightweight leather bags with cross body as well.

      I find Dooney bags to be of heavy leather so I wouldn’t recommend it at the size to fit your lunch and knitting.

    • Bonnie

      Also consider getting yours fixed. Longchamp will fix the corners once free of charge.

    • Anonymous

      Check out Tumi. They have great bags for women, but are not usually first to mind.

  6. Ann Taylor Eryn Pumps

    I have weird almost triangular feet (high instep, narrow heels, and a formerly narrow foot that, a few broken toes later, is now medium / medium plus width around the ball of my foot).

    These seem to fit right out of the box! No rubbing!

    I am not used to skinny heels though and have to walk on sidewalks a lot (and over a grass margin to get to my car). What is the over-under for how long they last in the rainy southeast? Any good suede protectors to recommend? I guess I carry these into my office, but the overall wetness probably makes them a one-season shoe except in leather . . .

    But I am so happy — nothing ever fits me (e.g., SW, Delman, Ferragamo), regarless of price, so this is such a win!

    • bridget

      I have suede pumps that I love… and quickly took to carrying them in my purse when outside. Yes, suede boots can last a while in snow and such, but my feeling is that suede pumps look pretty ratty if they get at all water-stained or the heels get torn up.

    • Ellen

      Yay Kat and Kate! I love A-line dresses and I love Talbot’s, so this one is a NATURAL for me. Frank won’t be happy, but FOOEY on him as I need to appear LITHE, the judge says, so I look JUST LIKE AUDREY HEPBERN in Breakfast in Tiffany. She was much more PETITE then me, and did NOT have my tuchus–I am sure she was NOT sad about that. Dad says that the Judge is right. I NEED to loose weight in my tuchus to be more LITHE. FOOEY!

      As for the OP, I also have unusueal feet. Yours are triangular, and Mine are “clunky” according to dad. Dad alway’s compare’s me to Rosa, and tell’s Mom that she got it right the second time with her, and that I am a “work in progress”. I told dad that Rosa does NOT bill 7500 hours a year, so of COURSE she has time to tone her body and her personal trainor works with her 3 days a week for 90 minute’s. How in the WORLD can I possibly compeat with THAT? I simpley Cannot. DOUBEL FOOEY!

      Myrna is comeing over tonite. Her freind is disapointed that I told his freind that we could NOT see each other any more. I tried, hard, to make it work, but he was kind of a veggie monster who smelled like a fish tank. I simpley could NOT fathom the thought of him as my HUSBAND, hanging around 24/7 eating COTTAGE CHEEZE, with that stuck between his teeth. I will say he was acomoddating to me, and did NOT make a move on me, which is a good thing, especially b/c of the fish odor. FOOEY!

      I guess I will have to go back to square 1 and look for another mate. If the HIVE has any idea’s, I will finaly listen. I will NOT use TINDER or any other app that encourage’s men to have sex with me. TRIPEL FOOEY!

  8. nice Cube

    Planning a spring family trip for 6 adults (two are grandparents) and one 5 year-old and one 2 year-old within 2-3 driving distance from Los Angeles. Organizing this group is like herding cats, so I need something super easy, easy. Like cruise easy, but not a cruise. Any ideas? Palm Springs? Ojai? Lake Arrowhead?

      • Senior Attorney

        +1

        San Diego is great for kids. The beach, the zoo, Balboa Park, Sea World (but I’m over it because of the problems with the Orcas), LEGOLAND right up the freeway…

        And if you can get the grandparents to watch the kids in the evening, the Gaslamp District is fun in the evenings.

    • Anonymous

      Palm Spring seems exactly right.

      But I’d want to add a speeding ticket to the mix and go to the Hotel Del in Coronado.

      Catalina Island?

      • Anonymous

        I went to a conference at Hotel Del in Coronado and loved it!! It would have been even better for vacation.

    • frustrated academic

      Just got back from San Diego with my 72 year old mother and two year old–so many things to do–zoo, safari park, lego land, beach. We rented a 2b/2bath via airbnb which was perfect–full kitchen, separate spaces, parking. We even met friends from LA who drove down for brunch with their toddler–def consider San Diego.

    • OCAssociate

      Catalina is nice for the grandparents, and the beaches/boating options are nice for kids.

      • Baconpancakes

        I get NYTNow morning briefings – quick, summarized news that pretty much covers everything I need to know because it’s the NYT. I also get The Skimm because it’s snarkier and has clever puns in it.

        • Anonymous

          I used to love The Skimm. I fell off reading it at some point. Should get back on that.

        • Anon

          Does The Skimm not sit right with anyone else? Everybody I know LOVES it, so I keep thinking I must be crazy, but there’s something about how they condense the stories that reads condescending to me, like we women are too flighty/air headed to read “men’s news.” And I’m not normally one of Those People on the warpath taking offense to every little thing, but something about the tone really gets under my skin. I wonder if anyone else feels this way or if I’m alone.

          • TBK

            I never took it as being an alternative to “men’s” news. I took it as a less serious alternative to non-gendered news.

          • Care

            Sometimes I find the stories condescending, but I think it is more a factor of being too condensed and requiring over-simplification. On the whole, I like the snark and the jokes and I love when they break down different complex things (usually these are linked and not actually in the email).

          • Sarabeth

            I hate it. Not so much because it’s gendered, but because it’s vapid. Just tell me the news, thanks.

          • nutella

            Yes! I read it but I get the same feeling. It doesn’t just make it less serious but it also breaks things down in a way that is definitely geared towards women (OK, that’s their readership) but then *sometimes veers in a way that makes it feel like I’m too stupid to understand the real world so it’s analogized to flighty girl things (talking about adele tickets, talking about ‘your BF’, summarizing sports in a condescending way, heck even the logo is a lady with heels and a purse and pearls).

            I enjoy knowing the latest so I read it occasionally (even though I typically have already read it all elsewhere), but try to ignore the tone that I’m just too flighty to understand things. My own “BF” tried reading it but found it so condescending. Mostly we stick to following news orgs on Twitter to get the headlines and read further from there.

          • Anonymous

            These are not “flighty girl things”, these are non-gendered young things.

          • nutella

            Most of the time they analogize to non-gendered things, but I occasionally see women-gendered references (“when your mom asks your boyfriend about his intentions” 9/10/2015) but have never once seen a male-gendered reference (“when your girlfriend’s mom asks you about your intentions”). As I said, most of the time it’s just young things (“your phone screen is cracked”) but the only time it’s gendered it goes female. I’m sure that’s their demographic (just look at the logo or the birthdays, it’s all women’s names), and there’s nothing wrong with that but when it’s already being simplified/condensed and then it throws in women’s references, yeah, it feels condescending.

            (Separating the fact that apparently being young means I’m irresponsible and dumb.)

          • soaps

            I like it, I like the snark and concision. I’m not offended by the “dumbed-down-ness” of it, because, while this doesn’t generally apply here, I think a lot of what I read/hear is presented at a level that’s easy to understand and well within the limits of my abilities to comprehend.

            I also think it takes a lot of intelligence to make complicated and complex issues easy to understand. So I appreciate that.

          • Betsy

            But isn’t the young, female gendering due to the fact that the writers are young and female? I don’t think that makes it condescending, I think it means that they are speaking their language to their peers. It definitely narrows down their target audience, but I think it creates a more compelling product for that audience. Personally I love The Skimm. By no means is it my only source of news, but by reading it every morning I feel like I have a good grasp of the major headlines of the day.

          • Anonymous

            The Skimm wants to be cool, but it’s just an aggregation of old news. I used to get it, but it kept mostly being just a bunch of Jezebel headlines from the last week pasted together.

          • Anonymama

            Yeah, it is really not for me, but I tend to read a lot of news anyway so it just feels like a sort of dumbed-down version. I may just be too old for their target demographic though, the jokes often seem like they are reaching to be hip, and not very funny to me. I could see it being okay if you aren’t really interested in current events but want a way to keep tabs on it.

    • Anonymous

      My local paper, Financial Times, WaPo, National Review, and, as launching points, Twitter and Facebook.

    • Rarara

      NPR but mostly because orcs easiest for new to listen to the news on my commute to work/while I’m getting dressed in the am.

    • Anon

      I follow all the major news sources (including the ones I disagree with politically) on Twitter and read the headlines that way. It’s great because you’re up to speed in a flash. And you can quickly see how both sides are spinning an issue without wading into longer ideological commentary if you don’t want to.

      Note that I don’t use Twitter for personal purposes and have never tweeted; my Twitter is nothing but a news aggregator for me.

      I also like the Ozy daily headline email.

    • TBK

      WSJ, Economist, FT (when I remember), Twitter feed, Facebook feed. Sometimes WaPo, but their quality is really hit or miss.

    • MJ

      NYT, WSJ, Matt Levine’s MoneyStuff, Dan Primack’s TermSheet. Sometimes The Atlantic, Business Insider and Economist too.

  10. Anonymous

    I always feel like a pack mule- I walk 2 miles each way, and I carry my gym clothes, and my lunch, plus in the winter, I’m usually in boots. I don’t think there is any solution to this problem, I just wish I could teleport my stuff to work and enjoy my walk

    • Anonymous

      yeah… hate this too.

      Get the lightest possible shoulder bags. I have a Graf& Lantz that I like.

      Consider a back pack, since your walk is quite long.

      Bring more stuff on Mondays (ex. enough for the week…) and bring more back on Fridays….

      • Baconpancakes

        Whoa, Graf & Lantz is seriously gorgeous. Expensive, but dat pleat tho…

        Which Graf & Lantz do you have?

        • Anonymous

          I actually learned about Graf & Lantz from this site. Right now I have this style (I think it is the Jaunt, full size), but in all black. I started basic to see how I like the bag, and then plan on getting more.

          This one, but in all black.

          https://www.google.com/search?q=Graf%26lantz&espv=2&biw=1247&bih=594&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjgzOulnf_KAhXFOj4KHT9kAHMQ_AUIBygC&dpr=1#imgrc=YPbQ_HKiP8f8bM%3A

          If you follow for sales, they come up on deep discount frequently.

          I am always looking for professional but a little unique LIGHT but structured bags for work. What’s unique about these Graf & Lantz bags is they use a strong felt instead of nylon as their light fabric and a bit of leather to help give the bag structure. I really don’t like the nylon bags that many on this site use. They also have a lot of neat textured leathers and colors in the bags, which I really like. I am planning to buy another with these features.

    • Anonymous

      I don’t even walk that much, but I still feel like a pack mule. Food, gym clothes, sneakers, maybe a second pair of shoes to get from my car to my duty station, jacket, but wear a cardigan I can take off, wait do I want some soda water for the work fridge…. etc.

      I generally speaking don’t get it under 2 bags unless I’m not bringing food that day.

    • Little Red

      Yup. Backpack with laptop, purse slung crossbody, lunch bag, and possibly gym bag.

  11. Avery

    Any thoughts on student loan refinancing?

    I refinanced with DRB two years ago, which has been an excellent experience. I have under $60,000 to pay off, and with my normal monthly payments and expected bonus this year I should repay the loan in full by the end of the year. I currently have a 5.25% interest rate. Does it make sense to refinance this loan to take advantage of lower interest rates? I would keep paying the same monthly amount, but it would be nice to chip away at that loan even faster if possible. I appreciate any thoughts from the wise hive!

    • Anon

      For me it simply wouldn’t be worth the paperwork hassle. You’re going to pay it off in 10 months or less – why bother? It’s not like you can save that much on interest in that short amount of time.

      • Avery

        That was kind of my thought as well…so long as I’m not stupidly leaving money on the table then I’m happy to avoid the paperwork. Thanks!

        • bridget

          Doing some very quick math, you would save what, $500 max? Yes, it would be great if someone knocked $500 off your loans or handed you $500, but you have to go through time and stress in order to get there.

          Decide how much your time and stress is worth – and then figure out how much you would save. We all make trade-offs every day with time, stress, and money (whether it be buying a lunch at work or having the plumber do something we could theoretically figure out ourselves), and it’s not “money left on the table.”

    • Blonde Lawyer

      I’m in a similar boat. I refinanced with SoFi (link in name explains more) to a similar fixed interest rate. I’m frequently tempted to refinance again to a lower variable rate since I’m shooting to pay them off in less than 2 years. However, even though the process was easy, I just don’t think it’s worth the hassle for the amount I’d save. I have about $40,000 left. Plus, if I had an interest rate less than 5, I’d start seriously considering socking away more in retirement and less on my loans and I’m really happy with the current payoff plan I have so I think I’m going to stay the course.

    • Simsi

      I initially refi’d with DRB and recently refi’d again with SoFi. For comparison, my DRB rate was around 5% fixed for 10 years. I switched to SoFi and am at 3.9% for 5-year fixed (includes the auto-pay discount). Good credit, 6-figure loans. If you’re paying off this year, I’d consider switching to a 5-year fixed because it was super easy with SoFi (took like 20 minutes/no stress). I tried to get DRB to just refi my loan they already had but that was in fact a big hassle so I abandon DRB.

    • Anonymous

      I initially refinanced with SoFi at a 3.9% variable rate, approximately $50k. I refinanced a year later with Common Bond when I had about $35k left and the rates had dropped to 1.9% variable (now up to 2.13%). I’ll have them paid off at about the 16 month mark of the second refinance. The e-paperwork is really incredibly simple so don’t let that stop you. I’m typically one to value time over money, but the effort was so minimal that I’d say it’s worth it even if you only save $500. And you never know what happen in your life that may extend your planned repayment horizon, so the lower interest could end up saving you even more–plus it should work out that you’ll get you a lower minimum payment, which can buy you flexibility if an emergency arises (you can still continue to make the larger planned payments if everything goes well).

  12. Driving shoes?

    I have a basic question: Are “driving shoes” like the classic Tod’s or the M. Gemi Felize supposed to be worn in non-driving situations, like waking around the street? Or are people only using them for driving? I like the way they look, but those nubs on the bottom seem kind of impractical for walking around?

    • tesyaa

      They are for street wear, I believe. Most of us don’t need special shoes for driving (though I believe this might not have been the case when this style was originated).

    • Anonymous

      I’m about to buy driving shoes for driving! The backs of my street shoes get all torn up.

    • Cat

      I have a pair of driving mocs and sadly the nubs did NOT hold up well to a half hour walk around my city — they have been relegated to house slippers because some of the nubs were totally worn off at the heel.

      • Driving shoes?

        This is my thought exactly! I had a pair over a decade ago and had this exact thing happen, but I see them becoming popular again and I don’t get what the use case is beyond driving?

  13. Anonymous

    I was listening to coffee orders this morning at starbucks, and some people have super complicated orders! What’s your usual order?? I want to try some new drinks

    • JJ

      Mine is super complicated (although I only drink my drip coffee black…). But I order a triple grande non-fat, no whip vanilla latte. On rough mornings, I’ll switch out vanilla for mocha. It’s ridiculous, but I own it and I don’t care if people judge me for it.

        • JJ

          Thanks! To each their own. I come from a family where anyone that didn’t drink only black coffee was weird and couldn’t handle “real coffee.” (Yes, I know…). Lots of eyerolling whenever I order this with certain family members around.

      • former barista

        former barista here. you can simplify your latte order because lattes do not come standard with whip (so no need to say “no whip”). mochas do, however, come with whip generally.

    • anon

      I’m an evangelist for their vanilla blonde roast.

      It’s their blonde roast with a pump of vanilla in it. You could ask for a half pump if you wanted to cut sugar a bit more. Add cream and no other sugar. Has the deliciousness factor of the more sugary drinks (vanilla latte, etc) that plain ole’ coffee and sugar doesn’t have, but has fewer calories and is way cheaper (only extra 40 cents more than regular coffee). Plus, you don’t have to stand in line at the bar to wait for it!

      • lost academic

        This is also my order and it is indeed super fast – except, just yesterday, I ordered it at an airport Starbucks and what I received was a cr*ppy pour over job that was incredibly weak and full of grounds. I was especially annoyed because I literally didn’t have time for them to try and remake it. This hasn’t ever happened to me before and I’m imagining that the pour over is not a WRONG way to do it, but having never had it before I wonder if the method is the main reason for the quality.

        • anon

          Once in a while I’ve been told they’d have to do it by pour over, and they ask if it’s ok- its usually if I’m ordering at a coffee off time (2-5 pm) (not an off time for me!)–but I’ve never had that issue. The pour over method is totally a fine way to do it… as long as they do it properly.

          Quality standards at airport coffee places always seem off to me.

        • emeralds

          I worked in very upscale coffee for a while and they just did a sh*tty job. Done properly, pour-overs result in a higher-quality cup of coffee because of some of the chemistry behind coffee-making. I can’t actually even figure out how they could have gotten grounds in your cup–it’s a lot harder to do with a pour-over than a standard drip.

      • Susan

        You are an excellent evangelist as this sounds delicious and I’m going to go to Starbucks right now to try it! Thank you!!

    • Anonymous

      If I’m in a rush – grande half caff or venti peach tranquility (because the barista ringing you out pours these beverages, it’s much faster)

      Other than that, either iced coffee or an iced Americano. With heavy cream if I’m feeling frisky. 1 pump pumpkin in the fall.

      I was behind some ladies the other day at the Starbucks in Potomac, Maryland and somebody complained that her sugar free hazelnut 2% whatever latte had too much foam. She had ordered a cappuccino. I had to stop myself from laughing out loud.

    • Baconpancakes

      My go-to is a traditional cappuccino, or in the afternoon, a cortado or macchiato. If they ask “what size” and “what kind of milk” I know they don’t know how to make a traditional cappuccino and I just get a medium roast coffee with room for cream.

      “Fun” drinks I’ll at places like Starbucks include a dirty chai (chai with a shot of espresso – surprisingly drinkable), and grande coffee with two pumps of whatever fun flavorings they have at the time, like pumpkin spice or gingerbread or just vanilla.

      If you’re really interested in exploring coffee, look up what the terms mean, and how the drinks are traditionally served (ie in Italy). Some coffee snobs take it too far, and look down on anyone ordering anything but espresso after 10am, but if you find a really great coffee bar with knowledgable and friendly baristas, they’ll explain it to you (when they’re not slammed with a rush, of course!). If you’re in a moderately urban area, you should be able to find a coffee bar that serves cappuccino only in one size, and probably has gorgeous, microfoam latte and cappuccino – that is a good sign that they know what they’re doing. Here’s a good glossary to start: http://drinks.seriouseats.com/2012/06/coffee-comparison-a-visual-glossary-of-some-common-drinks-slideshow.html

      • Meg March

        Agree with you that cappuccinos should only come in one size, but not about the milk. If you don’t specify, they should assume whole, but cappuccinos can be made with other types of milk. Soy/Almond milk are super hard to steam and get proper foam, so I only order that at places I trust, but it can be done!

        Working at a coffeeshop in college was the best decision (and not just for the free drinks).

    • CountC

      I don’t often go to Starbucks, but if I do it’s a grande, soy, extra-hot, chai latte. I forget if those come with whipped cream, but if so, I always go no whip.

      • Anonymous

        THIS IS ALSO MY ORDER – extra hot no water soy chai latte. May I suggest you add “no water” to your order – they dilute the chai base with water so a “no water” chai is a stronger chai and more bang for your buck.

    • Anonymous

      So far none of these count as complicated in my book (as a former barista and current high-maintenance orderer): When I really want something sweet: large half-caf mocha with only one pump of chocolate and whole milk (default is 2% in most places), no whip.

    • Bonnie

      I only get the fancy coffee when I have a reward and I’ll get a venti coconut milk 3 pump dirty chai. Usually I just get a no-frills drip.

    • Anonymous

      Flat white with coconut milk (usually just say “coconut flat white”).

      Is it really necessary to add the “no whip” to drinks that aren’t frappucinos? I used to get mochas and lattes and didn’t specify no whip, and they never put it on.

      • Susie

        Mochas usually come with whipped cream, lattes do not – but certain of the seasonal special lattes do. If you ask for skim milk, then for the drinks that come standard with whipped cream they ask if you want it – would make sense if they do the same if you ask for a non-dairy milk but I haven’t tried that.

        • Anonymous

          Makes sense. I get coconut milk or the standard 2% now, but used to get skim when I was getting mochas.

    • KS IT Chick

      Mine: Venti Pike Place Roast, 3 packets sugar, 5 pumps Vanilla syrup, extra splash of 1% milk (yes, I prefer very sweet coffee)

      DH: Grande cold brew with 5 pumps caramel syrup

      I have these saved as favorites in the mobile app for purposes of mobile ordering. As we’re getting ready to leave the house, I punch in the “order our favorites”, then they are waiting for us about 6 minutes later as we walk in the front door of the store.

    • Anonattorney

      Grande nonfat flat white. I love the flat white. I especially loved the holiday spice flat white but, alas, that’s gone now.

    • Public accountant

      I usually order a Grande Americano with one pump vanilla and one pump hazelnut. If I’m in for a rough morning I’ll treat myself to a cafe misto with coconut milk :)

  14. Anon for this

    Q – a guy I met through OKC and I agreed to be exclusive and be in a relationship. Fast forward 3 months and I found out that he had changed his photo on OKC and logged on several times during our relationship. There are times when I fly off the handle, so I’m trying to stay calm and collect myself before confronting, but just want the hive’s opinion – there’s no excuse for him, right? I mean, I can even understand logging on to OKC (I’ve done it to look at a friend’s guy’s profile), but for him to change his photo too….

    • Avery

      Before you jump to conclusions, is there any way that OKC automatically updates your photos when you update photos on facebook? The logging on doesn’t bug me too much – I feel like the dating apps are kind of wonky – but the photo is odd. Definitely seems like you need to have a conversation though. Hugs.

      • CountC

        I believe that you can link your OKC profile to your FB so that may have happened. I would take some time to calm down (I can act irrationally when upset as well), do some investigating into whether the FB/picture link is a possibility, and then calmly ask him about the picture changing. If you too have logged in to your OKC account following the DTR talk, you can’t hang him on that on it’s own, but I agree that the changing of the picture is odd (outside of it happening automatically as a result of the FB link).

    • Anon

      I would ask him about it (calmly), but would be pretty skeptical of any answer he gave. Are you positive he understood that you guys had agreed to be exclusive? Like was there a definitive conversation in which you both agreed not to see other people? If so, I cannot think of any reason to be updating a profile on a dating website other than you are still looking for dates (or plan to be in the future) – neither of which are conducive to being in an exclusive relationship.

    • TBK

      If you’ve decided there’s no excuse, then just dump him and move on. But there’s no way to know what his reason is unless you ask him. It’s much better to assume the best and keep an open mind until you’ve heard him than to decide that he must be cheating on you. Who knows, maybe there was a day when he was feeling uncertain about the relationship, but then he realized that, no, he’s got a good thing going. People can be into a relationship and still have doubts from time to time. Maybe his friend wanted help setting up a profile and was having trouble with the photo so he walked his friend through the process while doing it on his own computer to try to remember how it works. There are non-nuclear reasons for him to have changed his photo.

    • Jitterbug

      Last time I dated an OKC user (we didn’t meet through it, but he’d been using it), he told me he deactivated his OKC profile when we decided to be in a relationship. To me, that’s what you should be doing when you’re in a relationship. There are people who use OKC to make friends, and maybe he logged on to check something, so I would try to calm down and not immediately assume he’s cheating, but this is definitely something you should ask him about, and say that you don’t feel comfortable with him using it while you’re in a relationship.

      There are guys who are actively building a list of potential dates or hookups while they’re in a relationship, and see no issue with it. I once had a boyfriend who, any time we’d be at a party together, would approach every attractive woman, introduce himself, get to know her, exchange numbers and make a tentative plan to grab lunch, get coffee, go climbing together, etc. and it drove me bananas. He even admitted that he was padding his contact list with women to date when we broke up. I know we’re all kind of keeping our options open to some degree until the day we get married, but if someone can’t be subtle about it, that’s a huge red flag that they’re not all that invested in the relationship, and they probably don’t respect you if they’re blatant about it.

        • Jitterbug

          Y’know, we actually became really good friends and occasional friends with benefits after the relationship. He went away for a few months which helped, and it actually helped become FWBs because I know he was a cruddy boyfriend.

          • anon

            You do you, but I don’t think that I could dignify someone like that with my friendship. That is really poor behavior.

            I don’t even think this sort of behavior would be ok if he were “subtle” about it unless you two weren’t exclusive.

        • Jitterbug

          Wait, are people really that shocked? I thought I was being irrational for getting upset, he played it off like it was no big deal, like everyone did that.

          • Kerry

            Gaslighting at its finest. Many (most?) of aren’t keeping our options open until we’re married. When I’m in a committed relationship, I’m committed to that person and am not seeking other options. If I wanted to keep my options open I wouldn’t be in a relationship.

          • Jitterbug

            I think I did at one point, after the relationship, tell him what he did was a form of gaslighting, and he didn’t take it well. I forget if he felt I was accusing him of a serious form of abuse, or if he felt that because it’s a serious form of abuse it shouldn’t be applied to what he did because it diminished the severity, or something.

          • Jules

            Yes, shocked – it’s not normal but in fact terrible. How did you not sock him in the face when he was basically courting other women in front of you? All the attorneys on this s*te would have volunteered to represent you in any ensuing criminal charges.

          • CountC

            Yea, this is pretty terrible. He openly disrespected you publicly. He was telling you, I don’t value this relationship and I don’t respect you, so I am going to show you I am looking for something better and you are going to have to deal with it.

      • Jitterbug

        Guhh I totally derailed this thread! I’m a major douche blanket. My point was that it’s, sadly, not uncommon for guys to keep seeking potential dates when in relationships, but it’s super disrespectful and if your boyfriend does it, subtly or blatantly, he’s a jerk turkey and you deserve better.

        • Anonattorney

          Oh my god, I love this post. “Major douche blanket” and “jerk turkey.” Well done.

        • Anonymous

          I don’t know about douche blanket, but it’s worth considering why you thought this was OK behavior!

          • Jitterbug

            Probably because I was 22 and didn’t know better . . . yet. I had also been in a few other dysfunctional relationships in the past, so I had a skewed view of what was normal and acceptable.

          • Friend

            I’ll allow it and feel badly for you. And you’ve learned.
            Have a hug and a drink.

    • Anonymous

      How do you know? Were you logging on regularly? If so, what does that look like from his perspective? Sounds like a calm, grown up conversation is in order.

    • OP

      Jitterbug – omg, not at all! Your ex sounds like a major douche blanket. Thanks for sharing :)

      After some add’l thought, there’s some other weird things too – like I found (unopened) c-ndoms on his nightstand, which we don’t use. And we definitely had the exclusivity talk. And the fact that he never wanted to discuss our relationship beyond “exclusive”. Sigh. Why do guys do this? Don’t want to be exclusive? No problem. Just don’t lie to me.

      • Anonymous

        DTMF. He’s cheating on you (and he’s not exactly being stealthy about it). I’m so sorry.

      • Jitterbug

        Dude, that box should be its own conversation! “What are those doing there? We don’t use them.”

        At this point, you probably have enough clues to walk away. Even if he’s somehow not cheating, he’s an idiot who’s making you super uncomfortable, you don’t need that stress. Find someone who won’t do weird, sketchy stuff in relationships. They exist, I swear!

        But ask him to explain anyway, for entertainment purposes.

  15. Anonymous

    Any tips for waking up earlier in the morning? I have no problem waking up when I have to (for a work appointment, doctor’s appointment, etc.), but on days when I don’t have an early appointment, I tend to struggle to get out of bed. I get to work at a normal time, but I’d like to start waking up earlier even when I don’t have an appointment so I can walk the dogs, enjoy my cup of coffee, etc., and then go to work – but I never stick with it.

    I’m thinking about getting one of those “wake up” lights, but any other tips would be appreciated.

    • banana

      Not trying to be a smarty-pants, but have you tried going to bed earlier? It sounds like you need more sleep!

      • Meg Murry

        Yes, the only thing that helps me be consistent about getting up in the morning instead of snoozing until the last possible minute is to have a series of “get ready for bed in 15 minutes” “are you brushing your teeth now, you should be?” “no seriously, go the f*ck to sleep” alarms on my phone (which I turn off when I actually am in bed, obviously).

        Otherwise it’s so easy for my bedtime to creep later and later and next thing I know it’s an hour past when I should have gone to bed and I’m still up and about.

        • Jitterbug

          I need to start implementing this. I’m really bad at managing my time when I have nights in, I get wrapped up watching TV, scrolling through Facebook and Tumblr, reading stuff on Reddit, and the next thing you know it’s 11:30 . . .

    • Anon

      I charge my phone (which is also my alarm) across the room. If I charge it on the side table next to the bed I won’t get out of bed when it gets off. Without fail I will either go back to sleep or lie in bed and check email/FB/etc. If it’s across the room and I physically have to get out of bed to shut it off, I have no problem going straight from there to the bathroom to start getting ready.

    • Anonymous

      I have a wake-up light alarm. It helps to get out of bed when the room isn’t pitch black.

    • Jitterbug

      I’m the same way, when I work from home it’s tough to get myself up earlier than I “need” to. I usually think about something I need/want to do early, and remind myself how important it is to do the thing early or how much easier my day will be if I get up NOW and not half an hour from now. Sometimes it helps. On weekdays I tell myself how bad traffic will be if I hit the snooze button, on weekends I tell myself that if I don’t haul my stuff to the laundry room by 8, someone else will beat me to it and I’ll have to wait, and it’ll delay my whole day! It’s all about convincing yourself to do the thing now.

      I also find that the more you do it, the easier it gets, BUT if you break the habit even once and hit the snooze button, it’ll be tough to get back on track the next day.

    • Kerry

      I’ve recently started using the Sleep Cycle app, which wakes you up when you’re in a light sleep cycle. You input the latest time that you have to be awake and it wakes within 20/30 minutes of that time, depending on your sleep patterns. I wake up every morning feeling more rested and refreshed.

    • Anonymous

      I think I said this awhile back in response to a similar post, but THE BEST idea I’ve ever heard on this issue is from the Happier p-dcast.

      A listener suggested that “Obligers” need some external motivation to get out of bed early in the morning. In the absence of a meeting or other set obligation, this one person scheduled an embarrassing Facebook post to automatically go up a few minutes after they’re supposed to wake up. That forced her to get out of bed to turn it off. I’ve never had the guts to do this myself (sometimes I just genuinely don’t hear my alarm and turn it off in my sleep), but I’d be super curious to hear if this works for other people.

      Also, I use my FitBit’s silent alarms — all 8 set in minute increments leading up to my alarm — to start to wake myself up before my alarm goes off and annoys my boyfriend.

    • Rarara

      I had an alarm app that required me to do math problems to turn it off. You can set the difficulty too whatever works for you. Unfortunately, I became very good at doing math in my sleep and eventually learned to sleep through it (i’m an avid sleeper).

      I second going to bed earlier or do things to improve the quality of your sleep so that waking is easier — I like chamomile tea and a (paper) book before bed and a “no screen zone” in my bed.

    • Seattle Freeze

      I was going to recommend dogs, but I see that you already have some :) Mine leap off the couch as soon I shut the alarm off, and won’t settle down until I take them out, so no sleeping in at my house, even on the weekend.

      • Anonymous

        Ha, mine was like this when he was a puppy (crying in his crate to go out once he heard me stir) but now he shoots me daggers and sighs loudly when the alarm goes off interrupting his beauty sleep. He will also curl right up next to me for snuggles when the alarm goes off so that I want to snooze forever instead of getting up. What a manipulator!

  16. craigslist question

    When you buy stuff off people on craigslist, do you always ask for a lower price first or just pay whatever they have listed? I don’t like bargaining so I almost always just pay what they are asking, though I’ve occasionally tried when something seemed a bit high. Just wondering if I’m some sort of sucker for not always asking to pay a little less.

    • Killer Kitten Heels

      I mean, negotiation on CL prices is common, but I don’t think you’re a “sucker” for not wanting to haggle. If the price is fair for the item, and it’s within the range of what you want to pay for it, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with just paying the asking price. Personally, I hate dealing with negotiation, so it’s worth the extra $10 or $20 on CL or at the craft fair or whatever to just pay the asking price. I can’t imagine what you’d be buying on CL (or that you’d be buying stuff on CL often enough) for the “tax” of not negotiating to be taking any kind of significant bite out of your budget.

      • Anonymous

        This is me.

        I am usually only looking on Craig’s list when I have a very specific need. I keep looking until I find exactly what I want. Sometimes it is months. At that point, I am usually so pleased that I have found it… and my standards are high for quality/condition… I am certainly not going to haggle for a few bucks. I also realize that I have found a good deal, so also want to lock it down fast so I don’t lose it.

    • Anonymous

      Yes, I think you are a bit of a sucker! To me the whole point of buying from an individual rather than retail store is the opportunity to bargain. You might end up getting a really good deal because often people just want to be rid of whatever they’re selling. All you have to do is ask nicely if the seller would be willing to take a lower price.

      • Two Cents

        As someone who regularly sells things on Craiglist, I price items very fairly but I give myself a little wiggle room if someone decides to negotiate (within the range of $50, on average). I usually sell things worth at least a few hundred dollars (ie: electronics, stroller, etc).

        I’m very very surprised that most people don’t negotiate at all! They just pay what I ask. I would be willing to drop the price but of course I don’t if they don’t bother to ask.

        Bottom line, you should negotiate.

    • anon

      I almost always bargain, unless it’s being sold for something like $5 and I know that’s a fair price. A less aggressive way to do it is just to ask, “I really like this item – can you do X price?”

    • cbackson

      I think that you bargain if the price is one you’re not comfortable paying, and you don’t if it is. But I don’t have an interest in bargaining just to bargain.

    • Mindy.

      When I see it’s inflated I haggle. When it’s the going rate, I don’t.

      Nobody has haggled with me before because I price to move it and I usually have 4-5 people lined up.

      • Meg Murry

        Yes, I pretty much don’t bother with inflated priced items because I hate haggling and instead just jump like crazy on the items that are priced to move or are exactly what I want and a better deal than buying new/full priced. I don’t hesitate to walk away from items that aren’t as posted though (for instance, damaged in a way that wasn’t shown in the pictures, or have an odd odor to them despite being listed as from a smoke free/pet free home).

        My husband and father are CL pros though that will stalk multiple CL in our area (I guess there is an app that will do this? I don’t know, I leave it up to them) so they know what the going rate is for a lot of items. They also use it to buy tools and farm equipment more than anything else, so YMMV depending on what you are trying to buy.

  17. Jules

    I love this dress so much I’m wiling to pay full price. But in the time since Kat posted it what is probably my correct size (because you can never actually know) has sold out. I ordered three other sizes, petite and regular, in hopes one will fit.

    But when I’m spending $500+ on this order, WHY does Talbot still charge $8.00 for shipping? Boo, Talbot’s.

    • NY CPA

      If you go into the store, they have a red phone. The phone goes straight to customer service. If you order through them, it’s free shipping.

      Agreed it’s annoying but I refuse to pay the shipping since I usually return most things anyways (not fitting / not flattering).

  18. Randi

    Question on interview follow up. I interviewed for a job in September that I didn’t get but was told it was a close decision and if there was a second position I would have gotten it (I don’t think this was a blow off as they were very honest in the hiring process from what I could tell).

    They called around two weeks ago with a second position and asked me to come back and update them, I did last Tuesday. It went really well.

    I’ve been on vacation since just after the interview, and I haven’t heard anything yet. Is today too early to follow up?

    • Anonymous

      So, it’s only been a week since you interviewed? Did they give you a timeline for follow-up? If they did, I’d wait for timeline + 1 week to follow-up. If they didn’t give you a timeline, I’d probably wait another week (so 2 total).

    • Cinnamon Gelato

      Why would you follow up? If they want to offer you the job, they will get in touch with you. They want to fill this position. Contacting them will do nothing but create additional work for the hiring person (responding to your call/email/whatever) and won’t improve you as a candidate. Don’t follow up. Also, they have a history of letting you know even when they aren’t making you an offer.

      This is my biggest pet peeve when hiring. I always tell people they’ll hear from us one way or the other: if we want to hire them, we’ll get in touch, and if we fill the position with someone else, we’ll let them know that the position is filled. I always do follow up with everyone (assuming they provided valid contact info on their resumes) and yet I regularly have to field emails or calls from people inquiring into the status of our decision making. When I’m in the middle of hiring I already have extra work (1) managing the hiring process and (2) covering at least a portion of the work usually handled by the person who recently resigned, leaving me with the vacant position to fill. Please don’t create even more extra work for me. I will like you a little less for it.

      • Randi

        Fair enough, the answer I was trying to get at was what he timeline is on making a decision not nessecarilly looking for an offer today.

        Tomorrow I’m back at work after a 2.5 week vacation and I’ve also got an internal position I’ve interviewed for so goal was to have an idea on the external position in case I hear about the internal one. But if it comes to it, and I hear something about the internal one, I can always reach out than.

        Thanks,

        Randi

        • Cinnamon Gelato

          That’s what I would do. I think waiting until you have a concrete offer pending, and then contacting another potential employer to let them know is a good way to handle it. Good luck! I hope you get the one you want!

      • L

        People are consistently advised that following up shows interest. I hate that you’re in a position to make hiring decisions and you’re this petty and imperious. Count yourself lucky that you’re on the other side of the desk and please have some more compassion- and humility- with people who are just looking for a job.

  19. Wildkitten

    I didn’t get the job. I want to buy a handbag and a bottle of wine but it’s 2:30 pm and I need neither of those things.

    • Wildkitten

      Bleach blonde hair. Hot pink ombre. Matching hot pink handbag. Rose.

      But Wildkitten, you currently have a job that might not appreciate hot pink ombre hair.

      GOOD POINT, self.

      • chilled coyote

        But they also might not NOT appreciate the hot pink ombre… only two ways to find out, and I’m voting for just showing up with it!

Back to Top

About

Work with Corporette®

Serious Stuff

work fashion blog press mentions