I was so excited to get the chance to meet Angie and over 30 other Fabbers at the Epic Seattle Shoptember Ingefest! I was only able to attend on Saturday from breakfast to lunch, but what an action-packed few hours it was! I brought the three kids with me by myself to Seattle (crazy, I know!), and they had fun meeting Angie and the other Fabbers for breakfast. (Thanks Ruth aka bj1111 for keeping DS1 and DS2 entertained and Deb for letting DD steal your croissant!) It was great finally meeting people in person, some who I immediately recognized from their WIW pics, and others from their usernames. Inge was kind enough to share delicious Belgian chocolates with all of us. Then my college roommate who lives near Seattle brought her family including 4 kids (!) and whisked my three kiddos away to the Aquarium so I could have some kid-free time to shop!

Greg took some group pictures and pics of us walking down the street. Then Anna took an intrepid group to a consignment store and her favorite designer stores, while I joined Angie's group and went to Nordstrom and All Saints. It was amazing to watch Angie in action. She managed to help all of us with suggestions and advice and yet kept us all moving and on time to meet for lunch. It was so fun to shop with a group of fashion savvy girlfriends and hear the chorus of "oohs" and "aahs" when someone tried on a winner, and also to get expert advice from the group when something seemed off. When I was having trouble finding tops to work with my apple shape, Aida wisely reminded me "it's not you, it's the clothes!" I must have paraded around in front of Angie and the others with 15 different pairs of boots and flats, but in the end with their help I got exactly what I needed--comfortable and fashionable black flats and black moto booties!

I also loved seeing other Fabbers try on items that were perfect for them. Like Kari's emerald green wrap blouse (the color is great for her hair and coloring), and the black snakeskin moto jacket. Watching Angie artfully arranging the cowls on the jacket while Kari was wearing it was like watching a master sushi chef in action--it looked so perfect when she was done! She's also very diplomatic in her assessments--she never makes you feel bad about your body, instead saying "I preferred the other jumper you tried earlier, it's less clingy" or "I think this other pair would work better with your slim ankles".

Angie also was great at making very specific recommendations for everyone. For example, Kathleen (aka K.period) asked "What one piece should I look for that I'm missing in my closet?" and without missing a beat Angie said "Ankle check pants--here's one to try on, and there's another one at Loft that might work if these don't." Then she handed me two asymmetric hem sweaters that she picked out for me "for the next leg of your style journey." And she added, "and they'll go perfectly with your black moto ponte pants." I think I only posted one WIW with those. How does she keep track of everyone's closet and style (and aspirational style) so well?! And of course she was right--they were perfect for my slightly edgier UWP MOTG persona. I bought the Vince Camuto sweater on the spot (so did Kathleen--looking forward to being sweater twins!). The other Eileen Fisher sweater poncho I tried was a petite and wasn't available in my regular size, so I ordered it to ship to my house.

Then the group headed over to All Saints and there were many lovely things there too. I tried on two draped black dresses. I got a lot of helpful advice on the fit and sizing from the peanut gallery (everyone was sitting on a bench and commenting on outfits as people emerged from the dressing rooms). The first one was very pretty, but it had double thigh high slits. It felt a little too exposed and I kept trying to pull it down--it felt like I had somehow caught the front hem of the dress in my underwear after going to the bathroom. Not an appropriate look for either work or MOTG! The other one was less "indecent", but still felt edgy, and the draping worked with my apple belly, so I got that one. I think I can wear it for both work and for MOTG with leggings, especially with my black moto booties!

Then I saw Ann (aka Dashielle) and Sveta trying on this gorgeous eggplant colored cocoon coat with darker contrast sleeves and I just had to try it on too. It was a very unusual looking coat and a new silhouette for me--I kept asking if it was too big, because it was so round in the middle, which as an apple is normally not an area I like to emphasize. I had bought a purple cape at NAS, but haven't worn it because I was concerned that the cape was too impractical to use when carrying purses, the kids, etc., so I was thinking of returning it. This All Saints one is much more expensive, but I also think it will be much more useful than the cape, because it has sleeves and is longer length to work with dresses. And it looks more avant garde/edgy, which is the style direction I'm inspired by right now. So with the encouragement of Angie and all the rest to push my style envelope, I went ahead and got it!!! It's a gorgeous plum which goes well with my deep autumn coloring. And the unusual shape and the contrast sleeves make it more interesting. Hope you all like it on me! (And I hope Dashielle or others end up getting it as well!). Anna said she liked the coat on me when I was modeling it at lunch, so it's great to know I have the "Anna seal of approval"!

I am so glad I had the chance to meet and talk with so many lovely people! Everyone acted like old friends even though many of us were meeting for the first time. And there were so many fun moments, like seeing unexpected twinnies like Aida and Sveta in their cream sweaters and matching plaid skinnies, or me and Suzanne (aka Ambergreen), who both did black and white matchy matchy--me with striped skirt and bag and her with houndstooth sweater and booties...so AWESOME!, or Jenava making a grand entrance at lunch with her beautiful baby bump and husband in tow, or meeting THE Inge of Ingefest, and Claire my fellow Arizonan (I grew up there), and too many others to list in entirety. I wish I could have stayed longer and participated in the dinner and cocktail party. But considering the damage done to my credit card in just a couple hours, it's probably good I didn't have more time to shop! Anyways, I have a great new fall mini-capsule for my edgy side. I am totally hooked on YLF meetups now and can't wait to do it again! Thanks so much Angie for organizing this and for all your help...it was wonderful spending the day with you and all the other Ingefest Fabbers!

1-2. WIW. Target black zipper top, Vince Camuto striped tube skirt, Brahmin striped satchel, Kate Spade zigzag stripe bracelet, and Kate Spade trench (though it ended up being so warm I didn't need it!)
3-4. The kids all wanted to match each other and match me with the striped theme.
5-7. Angie and the kids at Urbane.
8. Thank goodness I had help from my tablemates Ruth and Deb at breakfast to keep the kids entertained!
9. Check pants twinnies Aida and Sveta.
10. Denise (cocolion), Sveta, Mary, me, Aida and Claire.
11. Shoe shot!
12. Anna and others walking down the street.
13. The master at work.
14. Taking Nordstrom by storm.
15. All Saints.
16. Claire tries on a moto jacket.
17. View of the market.
18. Angie and me.
19-23. Lunch bunch at Steelhead Diner.
24. Jenava's grand entrance.
25. Matchy matchy black and white pattern fraternal twins Suzanne (Ambergreen) and me--houndstooth and stripes.
26. The black and grey contingent--Ruth (bj1111), Suzanne, Kate (Rabbit) and me.

My loot!
27-28. Vince Camuto asymmetric hem grey pinstripe sweater
29. Vince Camuto Haila black snakeskin D'Orsay flats--to replace my pointy black flats which were getting very worn.
30. All Saints Leena black draped dress (can't link in the finds for some reason) http://www.us.allsaints.com/wo.....ena-dress/
31. Ugg Riley black moto bootie (comfy and fleece lined!)
32-36. All Saints Klein contrast eggplant cocoon coat
37. Eileen Fisher asymmetric hem ash/black poncho--ordered in my size