It was 9am on a mild autumn Saturday morning in NYC, when five fashionable ladies gathered around a small table in the corner of a restaurant for tea and pastries.  Angie, Tarzy (Tara), Maya, April and Lisa (me) haven’t seen each other in quite a while.  For some of us, it’s been a full year.  For others, it was meeting for the first time.  The conversation ranged from–catching up on experiences from the past year–to YLF’s revised approach to NYFW this year–to why Angie was wearing an adorable monkey pendant necklace (homage to hubby Greg). As is often the case when dining with distant friends, our time together was too short and Tara left to catch her flight home.

The remaining group of four pushed onward to the shopping, first stopping in the MoMA store and then Uniqlo where, on Maya’s recommendation, April, Angie and myself stocked up on heattech tops and pants in anticipation of cooler days ahead.  After hearing Zara is looking quite nice right now from Angie, we stopped inside to see what new gems awaited us.  On our way we received a delightful phone call from forum member Michelle, who sounds as sweet and kind on the phone as she does in her forum posts.  At this point, our time with April ended as she had to leave for her next commitment, leaving just us three ladies to shop. 

Maya tried on an adorable pair of zebra striped ballet flats with a flattering green trim and bow and Angie tried on a striking cream blazer that fit her perfectly.  After asking Angie how I can break out of my 95% blue wardrobe rut, she quickly pulled garments in multiple colors that I could incorporate into my wardrobe.  Then I tried on a black blazer with a navy trimmed lapel with fine workmanship that Angie selected for me.  I purchased the blazer and a printed ‘NYorker Magazine’ T-Shirt. As we were finishing up in Zara, Modgrl (Rita) joined us and we were off to the next store, Club Monaco. 

Within the walls of Club Monaco Angie showed us how to tie an Obi belt (which is quite comfortable and waist slimming) and Rita picked one up in black.  Next stop was Mango where nothing struck our eyes and a white sweater left a considerable amount of lint on the arm of Rita’s black blazer.  Angie quickly took command and after applying a few pieces of scotch tape there were no more traces of lint.  We proceeded into Miz Mooz where Rita tried on a stunning pair of light colored boots that ended underneath the knee and fit her five foot frame perfectly.  I was so delighted with her find after hearing of her lack of success during prior shopping trips to find beauties such as these.  Angie tried them on and gave her seal of approval, marking what I consider to be the purchase of the day. 

Our pleasant autumn day was interrupted by rain showers along the way to meet the rest of our party for lunch.  But we were in NYC where there is no shortage of drug stores, and it wasn’t long before we ducked into a Walgreens to purchase umbrellas.  At lunch our group grew in size to 11 people with Janet, Sheila and her hubby, my hubby, and Greg meeting us at the restaurant.  The husband’s gathered together while the ladies discussed the purchases thus far this day and various other topics.  The rain showers did not last and by the end of lunch we were greeted to the sun and much warmer weather.  

Following some photography by Greg, we said our farewells to Sheila and her husband. We pushed along to Nordstrom Rack where Greg joined my husband for some conversation, leaving me to enjoy one last round of shopping with the ladies before we departed!  Inside Maya found a pair of premium denim jeans that fit her perfectly, Rita snagged a lovely watch with a purple band for her niece, Janet purchased a gorgeous teal colored handbag and fun wool hat in dark gray, and I picked up a red poncho with a cowl neckline.  Angie tried on a gorgeous white L.A.M.B. leather jacket that she photographed for future reference. 

By now it was after 4pm and my long, fun filled day was drawing to a close.  But not before the lovely Auburn joined our group.  As my husband and I walked away hand in hand I glanced over my shoulder to view the ladies walking into a Starbucks, no doubt to refuel and grab their second wind – after all, Auburn had some shopping to catch up on.

It was a delight to spend the day shopping and dining with ladies from YLF.  This was my 5^th YLF gathering and I plan to keep attending both the shopping days and the swap meets in the future.  The ladies are always so kind and fun to spend the day with, and I highly encourage you to consider attending a YLF gathering if one is ever near your area.

Vildy thought it was interesting that businesswomen in skirt suits are seen as more “flexible”, but not in a pushover sort of way. Women in skirts are seen as more confident and higher earning. 

MaryK enjoyed Kat’s post on the clothes that we buy over and over again. 

Dresslover recommends this gateway to all the shows and stories of London Fashion Week. Must-sees include Vivienne Westwood, Burberry, Issa London, and Christopher Kane. I loved The Burberry Prorsum show. 

Butterflylady liked Imogen’s post on how to dress a short waist and long rise without using a belt.

Goldenpig, who is having a ball mixing patterns in her outfits, enjoyed these 8 Simple Rules For Pattern Mixing. 

Marianna finds the Anthroholic scandal both fascinating and sad. Read how an Anthropology enthusiast created a personal shopping service to scam trusting readers out of their money. 

Transcona Shannon liked Patti’s perspective on what it means to embrace our age. 

Annagybe is still debating whether Burberry’s Spring 2012 Collection was awesome or awful. I vote awesome all the way. 

Isabel liked seeing this daily travel wardrobe plan nicely laid out with great visuals for each separate day. 

Laurinda liked reading about the three components for an excellent pattern. A well timed read after New York Fashion Week, which suggests a very pattern-rich Spring and Summer 2012. 

Suz wants to nominate Steph, the dashing eccentric, because her musings on bending one style persona towards another, and whose suggestion to think about just ONE beloved outfit,  sparked her own recent style epiphany. 

Ironkurtin loves the blog stop it right now, and lifted one of her pics for her ID.

Aida had a nerd-fashion-moment when her hubby sent her a link to cute internet browsers. That’s what you call a Browserista! 

Inge is inspired by the colour comparisons of street style pictures, movie stills, runway outfits and polyvore sets presented next to artworks with similar silhouettes or colour palettes. Amazing colour candy. 

MNSara, who likes wearing tonal outfits, enjoyed Imogen’s take on how to coordinate colours. 

I’m taking a more fashion forward approach to work wear today because I’m excited about two refreshingly “new” silhouettes. They make a nice change to short and super form fitting shapes by being longer, looser, yet just as tailored. 

First, midis that end below the knee or on the calf are the happening length in skirts and dresses. After recently seeing the Spring 2012 collections at New York Fashion Week, I’m thrilled to report that midis are sticking around. Second, capes and capelets are bigger than ever, and Fall or a mild Winter is the perfect time to wear them.

Soft midi frocks like the Presley Skye Butterfly Print Silk Crepe de Chine Dress make for a super work look because it’s sleeved and structured, as well as comfortable and sophisticated. You might need to add a camisole or sew in a snap on the neckline if it’s a little too low for work. Swap out the belt for something wide or skinny to break up the pattern and add texture to the outfit. Whistle’s Felicienne Shiny Snake Belt bookends the shoes and subtly adds a little pattern mixing to the palette. 

Match anything from pumps and peep toes, to booties and knee-high boots for footwear. I’ve paired this dress with Stuart Weitzman’s “Ballot” kitten heels in burgundy because low heels are finally trending and red adds a spark of colour. They also look very “Audrey” with midi length skirts and dresses.

Adding a cropped tailored blazer, leather jacket, or trench coat as a cover-up is a no brainer. But let’s throw in the retro drama of a cape instead. Calvin Klein’s Belted Cape is brilliant because the belt adds structure to the cut. That way you won’t feel like you’re going to fly away. The volume of the cape works with the straighter contour of this dress. The tailored waistline lengthens the line of the leg. The cape will also work over sheath dresses, trouser and pencil skirt ensembles, and jeans. 

Any neutrally toned handbag will look fab with this ensemble. I chose Cole Haan’s Golden Heritage Quilt Archer Mini Satchel because we don’t need to pack our colourful bags away for Fall and Winter. Sport them to cheer up a grey day.   

I’m feeling dainty jewelry with this combination, like this drop necklace. But earrings, bracelets or a cocktail ring are just as fab (scale to your taste level). I’d have worn my specs and big gold watch and left it at that.

Living in Seattle, I use umbrellas often. The showers are relatively light, the drops small, and the wind slight, so as long as you are wearing fairly weatherproof footwear, an umbrella will keep you dry. Heavy tropical downpours make you wet no matter what, but we seldom have those here. 

A small, portable, lightweight umbrella is perfect for Seattle rain. For about 9 months of the year I carry one in my handbag, and there are always at least two small umbrellas in my car. I never use large umbrellas that won’t fit into my handbag. They are cumbersome, I lose them during the day, or I forget to bring them along in the first place. 

When you use an umbrella as often as I do, it becomes part of your look. So as strange as this may sound, I think about how my umbrella matches my outfit. I’ve found that a simple black and white polka dot umbrella works best for my style. It matches outfits made up of solids or false plains, and also works as a complimentary secondary pattern when I’m wearing prints. 

I have a few polka dot umbrellas, one of which is off-white with multi-coloured polka dots. I use that umbrella in the Spring with cream outwear, or when I am wearing very bright solid colours. Sometimes I throw in a solid bright coloured umbrella, like apple green, bright red, or yellow. I use those umbrellas when I’m wearing a black and white outfit, a patterned dress or a blouse. I also keep meaning to purchase a beautifully brightly patterned Marimekko umbrella because it will work well with my black and white outfits.  

I do not use plain black umbrellas unless I’ve been caught without one and I’m forced to purchase whatever’s available at the nearest drugstore or hawker stand. I find them dark and depressing, when bright and cheerful is what I need most on a grey Seattle day. 

I buy all my umbrellas at the Nordstrom Rack because it’s convenient and inexpensive ($10 – $14 each). Do you think about your umbrella style? Do you like to make them work with your outfit, or does that sound ridiculous?