Universal Mix Up!

Now that I own J. Colleen Boutique, I have fallen back in love with getting dressed and I'm not talking about "complicated dressed" or "too expensive dressed."

I have one room that is vintage and high-end consignment at my boutique, where the prices are a third of what they once retailed for. So, I have all prices, both high and low.

The “Grunge look” was popular in the 90's, and so is the “Workout look” today.  Don't get me wrong, I wore the coolest looking flannels. I was dressed in my grunge look from head to toe. With the economy being so bad during that time, like it has been today, the look was an affordable alternative. But workout clothes today are very expensive, grunge was not. 

We all have to get dressed, no one is walking around naked. I'm just saying there are some really beautiful clothes out there other than Lululemon workout gear.

I'm boycotting the 24/7 “workout look”, and after my workout is done I am changing out of my workout gear and into an outfit that is fun, and chic, while still feeling comfortable in well designed clothing.

And guess what? The last few days of summer I am going to wear summer clothes! I know it's shocking. I'm going for it! It's hot out there! I can't wear workout pants any longer. I'm sorry! 

Here are my fall suggestions. No one can deny the sophistication of the French. A beautiful scarf is a must. Ballerina flats for day and or a black sexy heal for evening. Who doesn't love the style of a French woman?

But then again, there's always Manhattan. Shorter skirts but of course with an edgy J. Colleen legging underneath is always classic. Think chic. 

For daytime, try clean make up and a high pony tail, keep it simple. For evening, wear red lips and smoky eyes: a simple and sophisticated look.

Don't forget your new or vintage cashmere sweater. Fall into fall fashion with your ripped, torn up, favorite American vintage Jeans. There is nothing sexier!

Universal fashion is where we are at. Mix and match and shake it up but in the end classic chic is always a winner.

Universal Fashion

The sophistication of the French. A beautiful scarf is a must. Ballerina flats for day and or a black sexy heal for evening. Who doesn't love the style of a French woman?

But then again there's always Manhattan. Shorter skirts but of course with an edgy J.Colleen, legging underneath is always classic. Think chic. 

For day time clean make up and a high pony tail. For evening red lips and smoky eyes. Simple and Sophisticated.

Don't forget your cashmere sweater. Fall into fall, fashion with your ripped torn up favorite American vintage Jeans. There is nothing more sexy!

Universal fashion is where we are at. Mix and match and shake it up but in the end classic chic is always a winner.

Xxo

J Colleen

Spring Break 2014

I just got on the plane coming back from Sayulita Mexico. I'm feeling tanned, stressed, and a little worried about my dogs. We always miss our furry companions after a long trip; but wait a minute, let’s start from the beginning of spring break 2014.

Elijah, my 17 year-old junior in high school, is looking at colleges. We knew spring break no longer meant visiting family on Oahu's North Shore with wine glasses in hand and family and friends laughing while my husband and son surfed the big waves that all of the veteran water men and women of the world only dreamt of. No, this year we had to look at a few schools, shop for J. Colleen and then maybe have some fun? USC, here we come to look at your newest program! Then off to Malibu to look at Pepperdine and lay on the beach for a few days.

As I looked through my closet on what to pack, I stopped to check the weather. To my shock and dismay it was solid rain and clouds. It was already raining in Orinda and had been for the last few days. California so needed rain but now we were leaving rain for more rain. Okay, so now that I know of the expected stormy conditions, what to pack?

I'm always cold on the plane and I aim to be comfortable. I knew I would need a big sweater, my San Diego Hat Company beanie, and my warm, loose and chic Indah pants.

Pause for a second, are we seriously still thinking of going to Malibu, rain and all?

I started thinking, hmm what flies out of LAX and is close enough to get us to the sun but not too far? We wouldn't have too much time after visiting schools. Ugh. Mexico? Okay, but where in Mexico? Then it hit me. Six years ago I had went to a sweet little artist town called Sayulita and hey, maybe I can find a few new designers for J. Colleen? I began planning around our collage visit. First things first – look at the weather in Mexico. Bingo! Blue skies. Sun, sun, sun and more sun. A three hour flight from LAX. We are in.

After hours of exploring our booking options, trying every site from Hipmunk to Kayak and even DirectBooking, I secured us four sweet nights at the fab resort Villa Amour in Sayulita, Mexico.

The Mexico part of the vacation is taken care of, but now what to wear on the college tour? Flats for sure. I grabbed my slippers, AKA flip flops, two different pairs of my stretchy yet still sexy and sophisticated Veronica M pants, along with a soft Chaser tank to match. I couldn’t forget my flirty short jean jacket and silk blue scarf from New York. Done! Choosing my college tour outfit phase complete.

Moving on to the staple beach vacation outfit - bathing suits. Ahh I fell in love with Vitamin A bathing suits this season. I tossed three in my bag. My favorite is the black top with brown wood beads around the neck line paired with sexy ruched bottoms.

 

 

 

 

 

The next piece to my traveling collection is definitely evening dresses. My new Tiare Hawaii maxi dress fits the bill. The black crisscross straps are perfect for dinner or even a nice lunch. I can look amazing on the beach and walk into a cool restaurant and fit right in. And I can’t forget about my red endek Indah dress, by far my favorite in my closet. It too can be worn on the beach, followed by a nice dinner. Add a little bit of humidity and you’ve got a nature-made iron. I will top off the look with a wedge sandal.

Workout session on vacation? I think yes. This means packing my ever-trustworthy Spanx pants for yoga. Did I mention they have free yoga at the hotel? Spanx now carriers the coolest and hippest workout pants and trust me, it is much needed after a long winter of not working out nearly as much as I could have:)) Divinity Jewelry makes one-of-a-kind yoga necklaces that I love wearing whenever I take to the yoga mat. It brings me peace and happiness.

Now cute, but sporty shorts for running around the Villa. Indah has the cutest shorts you can imagine!

Every night I used my navy blue scarf from my New York finds. It adds warmth and style to my evening look.

Of course, I could not leave for vacation without my jewelry. The occasion is beach-wear so I go right to my Kawela Kai reclaimed sterling silver and gold-fill bangles accented with hand forged shell earrings. I love wearing my black Tahitian pearls from this line:) my white pearl ring set in a spiral reclaimed silver band and my black Tahitian pearls double hoop reclaimed sterling sliver earrings. Very cool yet simple and of the earth, giving a nod to the beach climate. Pieces that can pull together a day time look or dress up the selected dinner outfit.

Anything else? Oh yes, my comfy-cozy Coobie bras. They are great underneath my dress when I need to cover up but still have a pop of style doing so.

The four sweet nights came and went. We shopped. Yes I found that new designer. We surfed and we ate like pigs. I almost cried thinking about how fast I shoveled the food in my mouth. We had such a great family spring break. I was able to very casually dress up and still feel sexy and stylish at the same time.

With no phones or computers to distract, I felt grounded and connected to my family again.

So now I'm back on the plane with my Kersh sweater, Indah sweats pants and my navy NYC scarf. I always wear my off the shoulder Lani California long sleeve. It keeps me warm and looking chic.

We had a layover at LAX so we took the opportunity to have a peaceful family dinner. I felt put together. When you travel it's all about comfort, so why not look and feel your best at the same time?

For me this trip was about preparing for changes to come. My son is growing up and will soon enough be ready to scoot off to college. I will be on a plane often if he gets into his dream school - the NYU Tisch Clive Davis program. But hey, maybe then I will find more of those cool NYC silk scarves to bring home to J. Colleen and share with my customers, or who I like to call, my Lafayette family.

We arrived home, tanned and sleepy, opened the front door and were excitedly greeted by our two sweet little dogs, Chica and Blue. They had been taken care of just fine by our dear friends who graciously watch them and our home whenever we are gone. I felt complete.

As the saying goes, there is no place like home.