OK, I've scoped; I've read, and now I've listed my favorites from the Anniversary Sale.

Here are some of the finalists I'm going to check out:

In the shoes department:

In red or black: http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/29.....1&P=2

Copying from Angie:
http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/29.....rchresults

The Me Too Oxford in Burgundy
http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/29.....rchresults

In the Coats Department:

I'm looking for something colorful (per Angie's advice) so I have a go to coat other than my black wool coat (even though I love it . . . it does show pet hair). I live in LA; one coat is really enough, so this would be kind of a splurge item. The quality of my other coat is great, so I don't want to spend too much on this one.

In camel:
http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/29.....rchresults

In apricot:
http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/29.....rchresults

In winter white:
http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/29.....rchresults

In yellow or red:
http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/29.....rchresults

In mustard:
http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/29.....rchresults

In either color, but I glanced at this the other day and my first impression was that the piping seemed to cheapen the overall look. But I want to take another gander.
http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/29.....rchresults

Or this as a more casual alternative in spruce:
http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/29.....rchresults

I won't bore you with the pants/tops list. Way too many to check out there. If any come home with me, I'll post pictures. In the meantime, I actually twisted my ankle leaving Nordstrom's yesterday, so I suppose I won't get to hit the mall anytime soon to make my final selections. It's kind of a funny story . . . I was so absorbed in the catalog that I missed a step on the way to the parking lot and fell. Hehe.