Little Pink Blazer of Love

I have a few "issues" of late. 

Who am I kidding, I have many issues, but there are two I'm going to specifically talk about here. My addiction to H&M and little jackets. These two things go hand in hand. Without one, I may not have the other, but they definately work together to overcome me. 

I've been doing The Dailey Method workout now for a few months. I can't say enough wonderful things about the workout and the owners of the studio in the Carlsbad Forum shops. But its fabulous location does have its downfall - it's right upstairs from one of the most wonderful H&M's in the United States. 

Two stories of cheap Scandinavian clothes goodness. Womens! Mens! Kids! Even an escalator up to a second floor of shopping heaven. There is nothing more magical than wandering around an empty store right after they open because you managed to get your booty to the mall for an 8:45 workout. Knowing that after 60 minutes of squeezing my ass tighter than I thought possible and hoisting my leg up in ways that are really unnatural, but does amazing things for the side of your booty, that my perfect, clean and uncrowded H&M is waiting for me is inspiration enough. 

Now onto jackets. I love me some little blazers. And thanks to H&M I now have seemed to amass a bit of a collection of adorable little blazers. Black. Gray. Beige. And now? HOT PINK.

It called to me from across the store. One look and I had to have it. But could I pull it off? And HOW would I pull it off? If you abide to the Rachel Zoe style, you always style your outfit around one, fabulous jacket/vest/scarf. The first time I dared to don the pink was out to dinner on a GNO. For this adventure I paired it with a slouchy black T, black skinny jeans and black wedges.

For the Bel Bambini We Heart Mom Bloggers event a few days later, I recycled the outfit but since I was with Zoe, opted for easy to walk in boots. While I had recieved positive feedback on the jacket, I was still a little unsure... that's why I was actually pretty pleased with how well the color photographed in this picture. 

It also pairs well with the Zebra stripes of the Baby Mat we won, huh? 

The next hurdle was work. Could I wear it in a professional casual environment? And how? For this, I one to my beloved Pinterest. 

Apparently I needed a new stripped t-shirt. And for summer a white dress (like this one from Nordstrom?). While I wore black under before, white is obviously the color of choice under the hot pink. But since we had a week of 70-80 degree temps last week, I opted to pair the striped shirt look with white pants and brown wedges. 

I must say that I'm loving the pink blazer. While you can't really tell in this photo, I also (inadvertantly) painted my toes the same color as the jacket. I have such a sweet spot for pink. 

The moral of this story is really simple. Take a fashion risk this spring. Get something that calls to you even if you think it *may* be ridiculous. And WORK IT, Mama. 

Shut up and put your money where your mouth is...

T minus 2 days until Jason and I hit Vegas for Blog World Expo 2010. To say we are excited would be putting it lightly - we are elated. In desperate need of a kid-free weekend, we are looking forward to networking, meeting our online friends face-to-face and some good old-fashioned VEGAS time. 

Of course, when packing for any trip, I'm going through the WHAT THE HELL AM I GOING TO WEAR issue. Here is the challenge: It's Vegas, it's a professional trip (casual and fun, but these are people I want to impress) and I kinda have to live up to my pseudonym...

Let's backtrack a bit...to a sunny San Diego day about 5 years ago. There was this under 30 newish mom putting together her first online journal on Blogspot. I needed a name and somehow HipMamaB was born. It's pretty tongue-in-cheek - as you know the "Hip" part is more of a desperate attempt than an actual true statement. But it's me, it's my brand, and I own it. But meeting people in real life, I often feel I should really try and live up to it and be, well, hip. 

So there is the criteria for my Vegas wardrobe: Hip, Professional and Vegas appropriate.

Do you see my conundrum?

After a few weeks of deliberation, I've come up with these 5 categories of things to bring:

1. The Skinnies

Currently waiting to be packed are 3 pairs of skinny pants - jeans, black pants and my new edition of skinny cargos. Between these three options, I think I'm pretty well covered for day and night. 

The thing I love about skinny pants is that it doesn't matter what height shoe you wear with them. They look good with flats, flip flops, heels or platforms. Unlike a boot cut jean, where the are tailored to a specific length, limiting the height of your shoe choice, skinnies are more flexible. Great for when you need to do a mid-Las Vegas Blvd shoe swap out of those painful 6 inch wedges to the mushy pair of Haviannas hiding in your bag. 

2. Speaking of shoes...

 Yes, I will pack too many shoes. It's a given. I don't even fight it even more.

All I can say is that I'm really happy we are driving so that I don't need to squeeze my shoes into every pocket of my suitcase. I can even pack them all in their OWN bag!

So multiple ballet flats, black and gold wedges, black pumps, gladiators and Haviannas. I think I'm pretty covered.

Oh wait, I forgot my boots... shoot... hmmm..

 3 & 4 To Top it off

The shrunken blazer with a tank under can go day or night... sparkly and black at night, white and navy for the day. A variety of shirts from t's to tanks. I'm also currently in love the with a Tunic shirt. I have a few at the moment in purple and blue. I love the look with the skinny pants and the blazer.

And last but not least, 

5. LBDs

It is Vegas after all.. you never know where you will end up or what you will end up doing. A Little Black Dress, or, 3, is the perfect option for dinner and drinks or a show or a club. Gold hoops and a bracelet and you can be sophisticated and still Vegas fun. Hopefully. 

There is my list and my game plan. So tell me - what am I forgetting?!

Monday Confessional: Baby's got...calves

I've loved knee-high boots for years. When they first walked their way into fashion five years ago (or so) I told myself I didn't need them and that they will be out of fashion by next season. The following year I tried to talk myself into thinking they were ugly. The year after that...oh, who knows what my excuse was. The reason I wasn't rockin' the look was this: I have big calves. 

While I'm not sure they are "fat", they are apparently disproportionately large to my foot and/or body according to the boot making industry. Out of all the areas on my body that I was worried about storing excess fat, my calves were never one of them. So why can't I squeeze these leg sausages into the leather casings they so deserve and desire?! Other women have gaps between their boot sleeves and legs, but I'm wishing they made Spanx socks that allow me to loose inches in just moments.

But you know this hasn't stopped me. I was thrilled last year when I found the Steve Madden mini-wedge boots (you know the ones, the ones that were part of the Nordstrom Anniversary sale last July and EVERY 3rd woman bought?) because they were larger in the calf. Then last January when San Diego hit a bit of a rainy season, I had a perfect excuse to a pair of Hunter rainboots. Which I could barely pull up. BUT WHATEVER. 

This week San Diego got an early rain, and while I wasn't planning on pulling out the boots for a few more months, I was excited to move my feet into fall. Until I put on my old Steve Madden lovers... and they were tighter than normal. Today was a full on rainy day and the perfect day to bust out the Hunters. Sitting on my bed I pulled and pulled and finally got them up, and promptly lost all blood flow to my feet. I wanted to cry. Did I GAIN weight in my calves this summer?

Clomping down the stairs ala Frankenstein in my green Hunters, it hit me. The stairs. New house. First time with STAIRS. While I was hoping that the 18+ stairs up to the second floor would help transform my body, I hoped it would help me to drop a quick 10 lbs - not make my calves EVEN bigger. 

So my Monday Confession for October 4th: I'm Beth and I have large calves. Sigh.

STOP! Hammer Time.

So, I'm pretty much a slave to fashion and trends. If Vogue or Rachel Zoe tells me to wear it, I will or die/sprain my ankle trying. If you read fashion blogs and/or magazine's you KNOW that Harem Pants are "the hottest trend for summer 2010". Every designer out there has shown a pair in their collection. Celebrities are performing in them. Every list of "things to own" includes a pair. But, I've yet to actually see them on a real person. But THEY say I need them, so I obsess. 

Last weekend my mom and I took a day to meet at our "Happy Place" - South Coast Plaza, for a girls shopping trip. And after some lunch and a little chardonnay, I was feeling brave and ready to ramp up my look. We headed to H&M (which, for some reason the SCP H&M is the ONLY one I've ever had luck in) because while I have no issue with trendy clothes, I refuse to drop fist-fulls of cash on something that I'm not even sure I will wear. (Although, I did notice a pair of L.A.M.B. Harem Pants on the sale rack at Nordies...)

Visit hm.com

H&M had just what I was looking for, a black pair, with a roll-over waist and the BEST part? The $14.99 price tag. Now I will admit, that even after trying them on I wondered if they were even worth 15 of my hard earned dollars. It's not that I didn't like them.. it was more that I didn't know if by wearing them I would be thought of as a total fashionista or totally fashion fugly?

A few years back my favorite summer look was the cropped wide-leg pants with flip flops and a white tank. In my opinion, these pants may just be an update to this look. Easy, cool, hip and comfy - they seem like a good option. So I was sold and almost excited about them...I even got Zoe a little baby pair because I just COULD NOT RESIST.

So Sunday morning, feeling hip, slick and cool,  I walk out of the bedroom clothed in my new duds, and Jason looked at me, and without pause, says "So, where are we going to breakfast MC Hammer?"

So tell me this, am I fashion forward or a slave to fashion?