(Posting text on ipad first then editing to add pictures from iphone)

Apologies in advance for the length of the post.

Monday was my Nordstrom personal shopper appointment. One fun and anxiety inducing hour. My stylist was young, probably about my son's age, and super nice. In fact my friends already have her married to my son.  We spoke on the phone last week and she had seven or eight (?) outfits ready for me when I arrived. My original goal was a pair of dark wash jeans and classic sweater. 

In summary, it was a fun and useful hour but could have been more productive if I had put more thought into it. I really enjoyed my stylist though wish she would have been a bit more critical - there wasn't much that she thought didn't work. Then again, she's the professional, not me  In hindsight, we didn't discuss shoe options for these other than maybe a moto-ish style boot for tucking bottoms. I would do this again in a New York minute but would need to make myself focus more on what is already in my wardrobe.

On a side note, I wore my new Brooks Brothers trench (shout out to Rae and the rest of the BB trench groupies) and felt terrific in it. Crisp, well fitting and functional - perfect!

While I can't remember everything she had selected, they were primarily skinny jeans/leggings, top and topper. I felt like Charlie in the Chocolate Factory! some "nays" were easy to determine, but I'm so often unsure of proportion and fit the remaining pieces were a challenge for me. This was the anxiety part of my appointment. 

The interesting part was the pieces I would never have pulled to try myself. I tried getting dressing room photos but didn't do a very good job of getting shots with all three pieces together. 

I probably ended up bringing home about a third of what she selected with the intention of continued winnowing while looking at combinations with my current wardrobe. I think my error was in bringing home the pieces I liked - not the complete outfit she was encouraging me to focus on. This was lack of planning on my part - I should have had a better mental inventory of my closet. 

All of the bottoms she selected were NYDJ. The dark wash skinny jeans I like very much. I've tried this brand at TJ Maxx and never had any luck. 

1. The animal print sweater was paired with NYJD leggings with pleather side stripe and also a black Halogen merino wool baseball style jacket with pleather sleeves. (Page 73 of the new October catalog) The jacket is a very nice substantial knit wool but too square on me. The sweater and leggings were comfy, but I felt like I looked like I was in lounge wear.  My friends tell me I should have brought the sweater home with me though.

2. Long black sweater paired with red Pleione dolman top and NYDJ dark wash jeans. While I really like the long sweater, the collar was tricky for me to get just right and I really don't know how I would wear this length. It looked great from the side but would need to be worn open as it didn't look good belted with my thick waist. I didn't see me wearing it in the winter because of styling issues with an overcoat.

3. A shot taken at home of the Pleione dolman top. It has a mesh insert that runs along the side seam.

4. Chaus waterfall cardigan, Vince Camuto banded top and lighter wash NYDJ jeans. I wasn't expecting to like the cardigan, but did - both color and silhouette. Also like the idea of the top, but find myself stepping back from bold patterns recently. 

5, 6, 7. This Caslon drape neck cardigan was paired with an Olivia Moon pleather shoulder accent top and NYDJ  jeans. The jacket is sooo soft I kind of love it.  I wasn't sure of the look of the cardigan on me, as if there was too much going on around my midsection. Again, it looked better open.  We tried two different color combinations because I'm trying to stay away from black.  The cardigan is another piece my friends say I should have.

8. Nic & Zoe golden cable sweater with metallic thread and NYDJ black waxed jeans for a holiday look. I loved the subtle sparkle and detail of the waxed jeans with a fun diamond stitch detail similar to a quilted look that runs down the side of the leg. I 'm pretty much an accident waiting to happen so they are simply too high maintenance for me. She said rather than washing they can be folded in a ziplock back and put in the freezer. For cleaning a spot I think she said they could be hand washed but should be dry cleaned. 

9. This Halogen cowl neck tunic sweater is something that pleasantly surprised me. I love the blue and also liked the silhouette.  She paired it with black NYDJ leggings, which are very much a departure for me. Any other legging I've ever tried has been hideous on me - these not so much.  At least I *think* they're ok, though I would have to wear the appropriate length top. Comfy, comfy.

10.  There was also a pair of oxblood NYDJ skinnies/leggings but I can't remember what she paired them with. in this picture they are with the tunic so they aren't very visible. Love the color but a little too snug for my liking. I kept trying to pair them with the red Pleione dolman or the teal Chaus sweater - which she pleasantly discouraged me from doing because they were "too much". 

11. Vince Camuto cream banded sweater, Olivia Moon black knit jacket with white micro polka dots, and NYJD skinny cargo pants. LOVE the cargo pants but they are available only in petite and plus. The petite was just too short in the rise and they didn't have the next size up to try. Liked the sweater, didn't love the fit of the jacket (besides, I already have the Gap Academy jacket in navy) loved the pants had they fit.

12 and 13. Caslon mixed media sweater. The back is a pretty satin mocha. This might have been paired with the waxed denim jeans too. 

14 and 15.. Latte art at Intelligentsia Coffee and a gratuitous picture of my son at the wedding we attended.

For what it's worth the pieces that came home for further consideration are:
Dark wash jeans
Oxblood jeans/leggings (likely going back)
Black leggings (having major second thoughts - so new for me)
Chaus waterfall cardi
Caslon mixed media sweater (not sure of where this hits on me though)
Olivia Moon pleather shoulder top in green
Pleione red dolman top
Halogen blue tunic sweater (having second thoughts - would likely get more wear from the waterfall cardigan)

Now what to keep. I didn't come home with a classic sweater per se, maybe the cream Caslon high low mixed media sweater could be considered an updated classic. Opinions anyone? I'm more than receptive to hearing about any missteps I've made - in items that did - or did not - come home with me.

Anyone who made it all the way through this must have had a very large latte today!

Thanks!