<p>Shopping rule #6, ALWAYS, always make sure you look at your back side in a full length mirror before buying anything. Just because something looks nice from the front does not neccesarily mean the backside looks good as well!</p>
<p>mousegrayâIâve found a better fit w/my latest pair of Dansko professional clogs (closed back) by getting leather, but not âoiled leatherâ. This kind is a bit more shiny, but not patent leather. There is less give in them (my latest pair is about 3 years old & still fits well & looks very goodâless stretching). </p>
<p>Alsoâif you havenât tried the closed-back ones, they give more stability, I think, than open-backed. If you ever are in an operating room or ICU (hopefully not) just look at the female surgeons/drs/nurses â a very large percentage have on Dansko closed-backed clogs, in white.</p>
<p>Btw, I am LOL at missypieâs images today â pinapples on feet, back-up dancer for Beyonce (maybe combining the two concepts for a really rocking lookâŠ)</p>
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<p>Um, I think there are a *whole lot *of people who have never heard of that rule!!!</p>
<p>Iâve seen a lot of medical staff lately with MBTs.</p>
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<p>Yes, this definitely used to happen to me a lot when I first owned them, but much less so now - I guess I got used to them. At first I thought it was just me, but another Dansko loving friend of mine says it happens to her, as well. I wouldnât give them up because of it, though, just because they are soooooo comfortable and still nice enough looking with casual jeans or cords. I especially like wearing them if I will be doing a lot of walking or standing. They are great for people with wide feet. </p>
<p>I really like the look of a white buttondown shirt and jeans (especially nice with low boots). Unfortunately, I also find it challenging to find a button down that fits right. One exception is the line from J.Crew - they happen to be a good value for the quality, too.</p>
<p>Agree with rule #6! Also from the side. </p>
<p>This Michelle Obama thing with the belt is hard to pull off. </p>
<p>Look at self from front - okay
Look at self from rear - still okay
Look at self from side - oh dear, not so sure. </p>
<p>I personally have to eliminate rule #3. If anything, the thought of another person picking up something I am considering brings forth a competitiveness that is unbecoming to my otherwise gracious self.</p>
<p>roshke, thanks for the J. Crew shirts tip - the store is not my usual shopping stop, but I will check them out.</p>
<p>Jolynne SmithâŠI just bought the âmerrieâ style Dansko⊠cabrio leather Mary Jane with open heel at REI for $69.95. They have a perf. design on top so Iâm assuming they were reduced because they were meant for warmer weather. Iâm planning to wear them with thick wool socks and jeans. </p>
<p>Mousegray, did you know that Dansko and Sanita make the Professional series in narrow sizes? They only come in a few colors though.</p>
<p>PackMomâwow, we have REI near us, I will check it out asap! I like the summer styles, because ordinary flip-flops & flimsy sandles donât cut it for my feet, and closed back clogs arenât too stylish w/shortsâŠ! </p>
<p>Btw, great infor on the narrow for DanskoâŠnot for me, but a bunch of my friends wear narrowâIâm always raving about Danskos, but they never worked for them. Will update!</p>
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I canât imagine following rule no. 2. There is no item of clothing I would love enough to pay full price for.</p>
<p>Last night I thought of the OPâs original question:</p>
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<p>I saw a pretty, youthful looking mom in a black sweater with skinny jeans tucked into bootsâŠshe would have looked terrific except her jeans were the heavily âdistressedâ kindâŠyou know, the kind with at least 3 manufactured âholesâ on each leg. Iâm not fond of the heavily distressed look anyway (except when Iâm working in the yard and my pants are legitimately worn) but I think people over 25 should stay away from them.</p>
<p>missypie- Dispressed look is popular in parts of Ca with a wide range of ages. I would not wear it myself but I donât have a problem with other women wearing it if they have the figure. I always think of Texas women as being more âdressedâ. The families we know who have moved here from Texas have a much more formal style of dressing. Their homes are also much more formal.
Last weekend I had some car time with my 15 yr old. She was talking about how some of the Momâs dress too young. But what really annoyed her was one teacher who is about 25 and my D said she dresses like she is 50. My D said I know she is trying to not look like a high school student but my D felt there was a lot of leeway in between. She also had the same complaint about her religious school teacher who is probably 30. She felt she also dressed matronly.</p>
<p>You can hardly ever get it right in the eyes of teens - too young or too old. D took a summer class and while both teachers were recent college grads, she said they dressed âlike they were out of a religious cult.â (I guess thatâs the extreme in dowdy.)</p>
<p>The distressed jeans definitely looked like they came out of a teen store.</p>
<p>My East Coast D reports that holy jeans are not very popular in her neck of the woods - I guess the smartwool liners show right throw the holes :)</p>
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<p>Sigh. It looks like I will have to buy something that may not be on sale. I will need a little black dress soon, and my existing LBDs are too baggy! What do you all think of this:
[Lauren</a> by Ralph Lauren Dress âCaraâ Beaded Crepe Dress](<a href=âhttp://www1.bloomingdales.com/catalog/product/index.ognc?ID=440960&PseudoCat=se-xx-xx-xx.esn_results]Laurenâ>http://www1.bloomingdales.com/catalog/product/index.ognc?ID=440960&PseudoCat=se-xx-xx-xx.esn_results)</p>
<p>I like it- you wouldnât have to wear a neckless- but I * would* have to wear a bra so I donât see how that would work.
:(</p>
<p>^LOVE IT! And the price is pretty good.</p>
<p>That dress is gorgeous!</p>
<p>BusenBurner, are you one of us who has a nearby Nordstrom Rack? I ask because when I was in mine last Saturday, they had about 4 little black dresses that I thought were way cute (but for which I had no occasion.) (But I do like the one you chose.)</p>
<p>That dress is my backup plan if I donât find anything at the Rack tonight.</p>
<p>Good luck at the Rack, but the âback upâ is cute. The thing about Norstrom Rack (and other stores like that) is that sometimes theyâll have a 0 or 2 and an 18 and nothing in between. I guess thatâs why Iâve found some really cute stuff there for my size XS daughter.</p>