Look Before You Leap

There is an old German proverb : Look Before You Leap, For Snakes Among Sweet Flowers Do Creep.

So what does this have to do with my outfit today? Well, first, let's look at the overall picture.

These pants are ancient. They are 100% polyester knit with a twill texture and an elastic waistband. I don't care if knit pull on pants scream old lady. They are the ultimate in comfort, and if they still fit, and haven't disintegrated, I will still wear them. The chiffon tunic is by New York and Co, and I got it in San Antonio. The tank underneath is by Old Navy. Let's take a closer look at my belt, and then you will get the drift of this post.

This piece is made by Betsey Johnson. It can be worn either as a lariat style necklace, or as a belt. I took it off and put it on a piece of paper, so you can see both the head and the tail more clearly.

Since the little snake is gold tone, I chose to wear a gold necklace with a pale blue topaz pendant.

You can also see the little ruffle on the tank in this shot. I decided to one arm it as far as jewelry goes today. The sleeves on this top reach exactly to my wrists, so bracelets are really hard to see. I did wear two rings - on my right, a blue topaz/garnet ring, and on my left, my chalcedony ring, along with the same blue enamel cuff I wore yesterday.

These pants are another pair that is very long, so I needed a higher heel. I went with my Carlos Santana suede gladiators.

So there you have it !!! I am the snake in the grass today. Also today, I am linking up with www.stylelixir.com for Effortless Style. At least I am on the right schedule this week (so far). Go take a look, and I'll see you later!!!

Wrapping Up The Weekend

dreIt was a pretty busy one around Casa De Holtzman, due to the usual stuff, along with added preparations for a business trip. The first order of business - this gnarly, nasty hair of mine. I was definitely overdue for my touch up. Note the regrowth, as well as the rogue gray hairs in this mop o' mine.

It would appear that I am ombre without trying. I used my favorite brand of at-home color : Garnier Nutrisse. It makes my hair very soft and shiny.

A few of my friends have asked if it's hard to color my hair at home. Not at all. I put the color on and do some chores while I am waiting. I leave it on for 40 minutes, for resistant grays. I do take care to wear an old shirt that I won't care about if hair dye drips down on it.

And here is the finished product, taken this morning, prior to styling.

Much, much better. So we went to a party on Saturday night, but since it was a backyard BBQ and we walked, I just wore jeans and a top. So no pictures. But earlier in the day, we stumbled upon a flea market. Both of us wanted to take a look around. Since it was almost closing time, there were discounts being applied. So I got a couple of bargains. These two necklaces were 50% off. The first one is made of speckled cowrie shell halves on a beaded strand. Here is the look, with a closeup of one of the cowries.

I also got a pretty necklace made of black crystals. It has an unusual stone for the center piece.

I paid $5 for both, which I thought was an outstanding deal.

Yesterday was filled up with a run, then a walk over to the HOA office to pay the dues for our rental condo, then cleaning the yard, then deciding what I will need to pack. I don't believe that I ever changed out of my shorts. But today, I am wearing another one of my favorite dresses.

It's a wrap dress, similar to the DVF style that is so classic, although not that brand. The tag is gone, so I don't know where it came from. But I did get the best matching necklace ever on a trip to San Luis Obispo, which is a little town up in the beautiful central California coast. I went into a jewelry studio there, and had a really tough time deciding which piece to buy.

It came with matching earrings. On my arms, I mixed blue and green. On the left, two turquoise enamel bangles with crystals from Charming Charlie, and my Montana peridot ring.

On my right arm, I wore a turquoise enamel cuff and two cabachon rings - one malachite and one chalcedony. I got both rings in Las Vegas this summer.

Since the dress has black in the print, I wore my black Nine West sandals with the tiny gold studs.

And that's about it for today. I am really busy at work, and have a few things to wrap up at home as well. Thanks for dropping by, and stay tuned!!!

I Am In Quite A Pickle

Last night, I started my most recent athletic endeavor - pickleball. Basically, you play in the same type of court as tennis, except for it's only 10 feet wide. You play with a wooden paddle that looks like a big ping pong paddle, and the ball resembles a whiffle ball. I wasn't sure about whether or not I would like it, but I did. Stay tuned to see if I become a pickleball addict.

Onto my outfit. Today, I am trying to force autumn into happening. This cute little dress is from Old Navy. It's chiffon, and it has an attached knit slipdress underneath. The only problem is that the slip is about 4 inches shorter than the chiffon part, so it still requires a half slip. That could be the reason that this cute dress was on such a deep discount.

I also decided to break out a pair of shoes that I got last year and wore exclusively during the fall and winter. They are tan suede and made by Mossimo, which is a Target brand. Here in SoCal, Target donates a lot of new items to the Goodwill shops, and I got these at one of those. I layered dark taupe hose with cheetah print ankle socks to complement these boots. They are a desert boot style with a lug sole and a stacked heel.

This dress came with a self belt, but for more interest, I went with a rust colored braided belt with an antique gold buckle.

In keeping with a bohemian theme, I wore a necklace that is made of a bone disc with some ethnic looking beads making up the balance.

I went all hippie with my arm jewelry also. On the left, I have a tan leather cuff with a mother of pearl bar, and my wedding set. On the right, I wore my carved amber ring and my Native American souvenir copper cuff.

So that about does it for today. Oh, and in keeping with my usual "day late, dollar short" week, I am linking up with Erin at www.simplyjustlovely.com for Working Girl Style. I have been working hard all week, and am looking forward to my weekend off. Stay tuned for lots more shenanigans.

I Just Went 10 Rounds With Floyd Mayweather

Or at least, that's how it feels. I had an inspection from the California Dept of Public Health yesterday, and I got pummelled for 10 rounds. But I fought back valiantly, and the result was a draw. The rematch will be next year, when the next inspection is due. As I was driving home, I kept wishing that my pool was filled with vodka. It wasn't.

Anyway, due to these "unforseen" circumstances, I was unable to show you guys my outfit yesterday. One more case of life interfering with blogging. So today, you get a double dose of Rosieness. First, what did I wear yesterday?

This is another dress that I made during the Great Sew-Off of 2010. I had a fairly boring September, so I made a slew of dresses. This one was tough, due to the design details and the fabric I chose, which was a printed chiffon. It turned out pretty good. It has a pleated detail at the waist, and a drawstring cutaway neckline. Here's a closer look.

I love the colors in the print. For work, I covered up the top with an olive green short sleeved cardigan. I just happen to own the perfect necklace for this getup. I have had this thing for many, many years.

It jingles when I move. I reminded myself of Elli. She wears a bell on her collar, so we can hear her coming. There have been a couple of close calls where she almost got stepped on. For my arms,

On the left, two Honu bangles, one green and one white. My Nordstrom creepy ring was a perfect match. On the right, my Montana peridot and a costume leaf bracelet from Stacy's Closet. For shoes, I originally went with my Vince Camutos, but changed to my Enzo Angiolini gladiators. The reason was that I had a blister on the back of my ankle from tennis, and I cut one of my dragon length toenails too short, so it hurt. But, never fear, I was able to wear the Vince Camutos today.

Speaking of today, I am wearing my favorite dress. It's by Bar III, and I got it at Macy's in Fort Lauderdale. As always, I am wearing the royal lace trimmed cami under it.

It's so comfy. It's almost a muumuu. And I will show you the jewelry in quick succession. The necklace is another perfect match. It's lapis and onyx, and I made it years ago.

My neck is pretty roll-free when I'm not looking down at the camera. That's encouraging. On my left arm, I have the leather and crystal bracelet that was my souvenir from Baltimore, and my London Blue topaz ring.

On the right, I have two sapphire and diamond bracelets, and a matching ring.

I am all set for a day free from tugging and yanking.

One good thing was that "someone" (named Lauren) put a first prize blue ribbon on Elli's portrait.

I am now an award winning artiste. Since I missed it, I am once again linking with www.thepleatedpoppy.com for What I Wore. HAHHAAA. If you misspell poppy, you get poopy. Well, back to my regularly scheduled job. I'm glad the battle is over for the time being.

Mona Lisa, Mona Lisa, Men Have Named You

I would venture to guess that the Mona Lisa is perhaps the most famous picture ever painted. So I decided to make my own version of that famous painting. And I guess that you can figure out who the subject matter will be. But first, we must take a look at the score of the weekend.

I went to visit my mom at Villa Valencia this weekend. We went to Wal Mart. They had quite a selection of doggy costumes, but most of the tiny sizes were picked through. But we did manage to get this:

They had a lot of hats, but dogs hate hats. I might get one anyway - the best one was a red crown with ermine trim. But Doc suggested the jester cap, and I agree, that would go better with the ruffle we got her.

At any rate, when I was trying to get on the freeway to get home (I hate the freeway and avoid it 95% of the time), it was jammed up. So I looked around for somewhere interesting to spend some time. Well, there was a Salvation Armani with a 50% sale. So in I went, clutching the $20 bill I was allowing myself. I looked around, and was seeing nothing worthwhile. Finally, I wandered over to the dress section. That is where I found this:

Let us illuminate the features of this gem:

1) Adrienne Vittadini

2) New with tags

3) $118.00 retail, $59.99 at Loehmann's

4) $7.19 with 30% off = $5.03 !!!!!!!!!!!! 5.03!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

5) Polyester/rayon/spandex = Washing machine.

So I brought this treasure home with me. I will be bringing this with me to my conference in Philadelphia in 2 weeks. I will be needing to bring professional outfits, so one black suit, and then this dress for dinner programs, and I am good. The closeup shows the best part - there are bands of plain ponte, and then they are separated by thin bands of tonal sequins. The band is actually only one sequin wide. A very elegant and sophisticated detail that elevates this ponte sheath way above the everyday.

It took me pretty much the entire weekend to complete my masterpiece. Here is how it started, on Friday. I did the background first, then did the black parts.

I finshed it on Saturday afternoon/evening after returning from VV. I did my front yard yardwork, then spent the evening painting. On Sunday morning, I played tennis, then took it to be framed. My first choice is always Hobby Lobby, but they were closed. So we went to Michael's, and this is the result.

I absolutely love it. It captures Elli's unique beauty and personality. I cannot wait to hang it. It will most likely be in my office for a while, but I would like it in our home eventually.

So yesterday was the Autumnal Equinox. That is the day when daylight and nightime are approximately the same amount of time in one day. It also happens in spring, and is called the Vernal Equinox. In honor of this auspicious occasion, I am wearing a fall-themed dress that I made back in 2010.

This dress was very simple to sew. The focal point was the beautiful print. I also made the belt of two colors of ribbon.

I can wear either green or red jewelry with this, so I mixed the two colors. For my necklace, I am wearing a costume piece that is a large faux stone. I have had it for a long time.

On my arms, I have mixed the two colors. On the left, a costume ring from Nordstrom with a large green stone, and two gold bracelets - one ruby and one peridot.

On my right arm, a semi-precious malachite ring, an emerald Claddagh bracelet, and a diamond/garnet bracelet.

To really make this a fun outfit to wear, I chose my Guess tricolor T strap shoes. Then I upped the ante with tan fishnet hose.

I am very happy with how this getup turned out. Since I missed yesterday, today I am linking with Patti for visible Monday at www.notdeadyetstyle.com. I know Patti is an animal lover, so I hope she (and all of you) enjoy Elli's portrait. See you soon!!!