Among the deeper, more important things I’m giving thanks for this Thanksgiving, like my family, health and friendships, there’s a lighthearted, tiny part that is grateful for this houndstooth dress! When I read Val’s post (see below), my shopping detective gene kicked in and I was on the run. Her cute styling, photos and story simply sold me:

http://youlookfab.com/welookfa.....tron-flats

I find searching for an item can be just as much fun as the purchase. Being a shopping sleuth is invigorating, especially when it’s found.

I raced to the H&M Store at South Coast Plaza, and left empty-handed (L.A./O.C. YLF’ers were here at our October Meetup). From my parked car, a flurry of phone calls had me driving south on the 405 freeway to the Irvine Spectrum H&M Store where there was one small left. It was mine, or so I thought.

Running a sprint (think of the woman in that Target commercial and I still had to get to the market!) I tried on the dress, realized I loved it, but the size was just too big for me. I knew, with certainty, that an extra small was the ticket and I had to find it. I was reluctant to leave the small, but now I knew what size I needed.

The next day, I called the Stores of Mission Viejo with the style # and a young male sales associate said he had an extra small in the dress. I was thrilled and asked him to hold it. Driving with both anticipation and dread (a thought lurked that something may be amiss), disappointment appeared! He brought out a black color-block dress, with white shoulders. I guess the SA didn’t know what “houndstooth” was. Dejected, I walked back to my car.

If you’re still with me, this is where the story gets good. I lamented the fact that I had seen the dress when it first arrived, and given it only a casual, but noticeable glance. Then, creativity struck! I decided to go online and look at all the H&M Store locations and I stared at the large United States map. Where are my girlfriends located and in which designated cities? Westlake, OH: “No, we sold out a long time ago.” Bowie, MD. “Sorry, we don’t have one left. They went very quickly.”

I decided this was crazy to spend so much time on it and made one last call to Tucson, AZ, where my friend, an acupuncturist, lives. She’s a free spirit and I knew she would help me if she could. I called the store and HELLO, sales associate, “Kristen,” said, “Yes, we have an extra small. I can keep it on hold for 24 hours.” I asked, “Are you sure it’s ‘houndstooth,’ and not a color-block dress?” She assured me it was and I believed her. I was ecstatic!

I emailed my friend to see if she’d do my shopping for me and she quickly responded, but it wasn’t what I wanted to hear: “They were leaving for Florida early in the morning.” Now, my dress was on hold in Tuczon, AZ and I was in Southern California! Then, inventiveness struck again. I realized my husband has a sales representative who lives in Phoenix, and occasionally travels to Tucson to make sales calls.

I casually asked my husband how often “Jack” goes to Tucson and he said, “He’s going there TOMORROW. Why?” “Oh, I just wondered.” The clock was ticking; I had until 9 p.m. the next evening to get this done. At 7 a.m. I called Jack about my houndstooth dress dilemma and added with emphasis that it was the only XS in the nation! (I may have embellished that a bit!). He said, “Consider it done; just text me the details.”

Long story short, Jack texted me at 5 p.m. with this message: “I got a new dress today! It looks a bit tight on me, but the color is good. It will be in the mail tomorrow. Don’t send money. We’ll worry about it later.”

My Val-inspired H&M houndstooth dress arrived in two days and “Tucson Jack” was sent money with a bonus! This little dress caper took me on a wonderful journey with wildly fluctuating moments and steady, reliable friendship and it was all worth it! Case solved by this houndstooth-wearing sleuth with thanks to Val and Jack! Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Photo 1: H&M dress, J. Crew Viv flats in henna, red clutch, Nordstrom Everyday Sheer Pale Beige nylons, black earrings.

Photo 2: H&M dress, Born flats in lime green, etc.

ETA Photo 3: With Stuart Weitzman black suede boots (forgot to include with first posting)