EPIC morning at Saks!

It's December 26th.  And instead of sleeping in, Lisa, our friend Heather, and I were at Saks, bright and early at 7:45am.  

Waiting for the doors to open at 8:00am, we felt the press of the crowd growing behind us.

Why you ask?!?!?  The SALE people!  50% off of reduced prices from 8am until noon.  Always.  Every December 26th.  Lisa, Heather and I have been going for years, and some of the best deals we've ever seen have come out of this sale.  

We always start in the shoe department.  It's madness, but oh so fun!  

What was hot this year?  How about these Tod's wedges for 65% off?

 These Prada ballet flats were hundreds less than the original price.  Hundreds!

Gucci loafers in all colors - at the morning price, how could we leave them in the store?!  Look for brightly colored loafers on all of us.

We ended up with an epic number of shoes.  Really, it was something else.  This was 2 of us checking out.

But, we didn't just stop at shoes.  On the advice of Lisa, I picked up this Weekend Max Mara coat, at 70% off retail!  70%!  Adore.  Thanks Lisa!

Image from static.buyma.com.

Those are the highlights.  Thank you, Saks, for making the day after Christmas so much fun.  Now, onto spring. ~ JH

Images from Jennifer Houston, unless otherwise noted.

Holiday 2013: Where is it?

You might be wondering why we have been SO quiet about Holiday 2013 attire.  Well, it's been quiet because we haven't really found anything that has WOW-ed us for Holiday 2013.  A lot of the trends are the same as last year:  metallics, leather, sheer.  Maybe a little velvet thrown in here and there, but nothing new and exciting to report.

So you know what we have done?  Gone shopping in our OWN CLOSETS for holiday wear!  Should we rename this a 'Cheap & Cheerful' post?  Maybe!

You see, I had a lot of holiday wear just hanging around in the closet, only having been worn 1 or 2 times.  Over the years, that's a lot of outfits.  So I made the decision to go "shopping in my closet" and replay some of the oldies but goodies.  

Some of my top items for reusing?!  How about this Vince, sequin t-shirt?  I wore it last week over long black Worth pants and black Manolo heels.  I've had it for a couple of years now, and it just works.  It was a good investment and I still get compliments on it.  Guess what?  Lisa has one too. 

Image from shopbop.com

I hope to wear this Tory Burch Metallic pencil skirt which I picked up last year.  With a sheer black top (with cami under, of course), it's still very 'on trend' for Holiday 2013.

Image from theoutnet.com.

I had to get the cost-per-use down on this lovely top by Gerard Darel.  Combining 2 trends - metallics and leather - it did the trick again this winter by attending a party, paired with skinny, black, cropped pants and black peau de soie pumps.

Image from vestiairecollective.com.

Here's hoping that you too have had a happy holiday season so far!  And recycling outfits can really only mean one thing - more to spend at the Saks day-after-Christmas sale!  ~ JH

W2WW Friday Funny

And because the holiday season is upon us, and we will ALL be doing this tonight and tomorrow night.  Happy Friday! ~ JH

Image from walkinginprettyshoes.com.

How to wear a Beanie Hat

It is the winter of the beanie.

Image from thesartorialist.com.

I have never been a winter hat person.  The only time I wear a hat is if a) I’m skiing or b) I’m shoveling.   And it’s not a pretty hat either – a New Balance black fleece hat that I’ve had forever.  Just function, plain and simple.  I am stepping up my game this winter with a beanie hat.  There are so many ways to style the hat and your hair for a super cool look.  Didn't have time to wash your hair?  Throw on the beanie, some shades and BAM!  You're ready to go.

Image from loveitsomuch.com.

Try this slouchie look if you have a long hair like me.   Put the hat on from the front and pull it back until the front of the beanie is just past your hairline. I like the hat slouched down in the back, covering my ears.   This is my favorite look.

Image from lyst.com.

Image from fabsugar.com.

If you have short hair or bangs, try wearing the beanie slightly back over the top of your head, just above the eyebrows.  Put the hat on from the top and pull it down until it is just past your ears on both sides.  You can either tuck in your bangs or peek a few out.

I have two beanies.  The Savannah cable beanie from Club Monaco in cream; I'm pairing it with the ubiquitous black coat we all wear in the winter.  For a pop of color, I went with this blue Echo beanie which pairs nicely with camel, gray or black.  Here it is in red:

Image from nordstrom.com.

So ladies, challenge yourself this winter.  Put aside the exceedingly practical ski hat and embrace the beanie!  You will be happily surprised! ~ LB

W2WW MULXIPLY Giveaway result...

…and the winner is…

Justin of New Jersey!  Justin, your wife's Christmas present will be shipped directly to you.  Glad we could help with your holiday shopping!

Thanks to everyone who participated and 'Liked' MULXIPLY!  We hope to introduce more cool products and companies in 2014!  Stay tuned… ~ JH

W2WW Giveaway - MULXIPLY Clutch

Ok readers!  With Thanksgiving over, it's officially the holiday season!  And what better way than to start, but with a giveaway (W2WW's very first!) from a cool, new, Boston-based company, MULXIPLY (pronounced 'multiply'). MULXIPLY reached out to us and Lisa and I were impressed.  Impressed enough to talk about them and their philosophy and products.

One of the co-founders of MULXIPLY told their company's story the best:

"My friend and I started a business about a year ago in partnership with a women's cooperative in Nepal. We wanted to make beautiful products as a job-creation project for women in the developing world, but we wanted them to be modern and interesting. So off we went to Nepal to figure out how that could be done. Fast forward, MULXIPLY (pronounced multiply) was born!

Based in Somerville, Massachusetts, we design small-batch accessories that are then fabricated with hand-felted wool and leather by artisans in Nepal. We are inspired by minimal, modern design, and strive to ensure that our products -- from the raw materials, to the labor used, to the finished product -- are created ethically (and beautifully)!"

Lisa and I are ALWAYS looking out for anything new and fun, so off to their website we went.  It was love at first sight with their clutch.  It's casual, different, and fun.  Total 'girls night out' bag.  I see it with jeans, booties, a gray Vince sweater.

Image from magnifeco.com.

I want one.  And at $72, you might want one too!  Or, better yet, want to enter our giveaway and win one?!  Yes?!  What do you have to do, you ask?  Two things:  1.  Leave a comment below telling us how you would use the clutch and 2. "Like" MULXIPLY's GIVE GIVE Facebook page.  Lisa and I will choose one name at random and BOOM, MULXIPLY will send that winner a clutch.  Entries close on 8:00pm EST on Thursday, December 5th.  Winner will be contacted and announced the week after.

In addition to the clutch, there are a bunch of great, unique holiday gifts on MULXIPLY's site.  Thinking of the iPad sleeve for my husband (shhh…) - it's only $44.

Need a couple of 'Secret Santa' or 'Yankee Swap' gifts?  How about a couple of these $34 pouches?  They come in a couple of colors, but I love the peacock blue one.

Or how about these cute hand warmers for $15?  Great stocking stuffers! (They come in heart shapes too!)

Lisa and I hope you enjoy their products as much as we have.  Off to do some holiday shopping! Good luck! ~ JH

Unless otherwise noted, all images from mulxiply.com.

100

A hundred pairs of shoes?

Image from decorpad.com.

A hundred necklaces?

A hundred likes?

A hundred comments?

No people, 100 THOUSAND hits!  We can't believe it either.  100,000 separate visits to our little blog.  Currently, we are averaging over 300 hits a day.  And for a blog that just depends on word-of-mouth, THANK YOU!  We love writing and sharing our stories, wishes, and obsessions.  We look forward to more questions from our readers, live events, and general fun in the next 100,000 hits.  Stay tuned for more! xoxo - LB & JH

W2WW News Flash - Calypso St. Barth now open in Chestnut Hill

Calling all Calypso fans!  Yes, it's true, we now have access to Calypso in the 'burbs!  As of last Thursday, Calypso is open at THE STREET (where the Shake Shack is located), 33 Bolyston Street.  Hours?  Monday-Saturday, 10am-7pm, Sunday noon to 6pm.

Image from calypsostbarth.com.

Have you been yet?  Looking forward to checking it out! ~ JH

Don't we have enough sweaters?

The last thing I need is another sweater.  My drawer is full of them. Jen and I have pinky-sweared "NO MORE SWEATERS!" this season.  Problem is I fell HARD for Fisherman cable knits this fall.  

Images from habituallychic.blogspot.com.

The texture of a cable knit is the perfect partner for jeans, waxed or leather pants.  There are lots of style and color options out there in stores. But no pink cable for me.  Just the preppy, classic, gorgeous ivory color that goes with everything.   The search began in earnest.  Candidates must be:

• Not too heavy but heavy enough to be warm with just a cami under, scarf and jeans.  And ankle booties. Or riding boots.
• Not too bulky.
• Somewhat refined so I could wear it to work with trousers... 
• Yet cool enough to work with ponte leggings or waxed jeans 
• An interesting, classic cable pattern.
• Wool blend, not cotton.

My search turned up these...

525 America, Tusk cable sweater.  It's super cool and the loose turtle is a bit of a spin.

Image from cusp.com.

The Theory Innis Cable Knit sweater.  This is a gooood one. Sometimes I throw on a denim shirt underneath and Theory's sweater can handle that.

Image from cusp.com.

This Gap cable knit. Gap has great basics and they are doing their own version of cable knit.

Image from gap.com.

At Zara there is this short sleeve cable.  Short sleeve is a nice twist on the classic.

Image from zara.com.

Zara also has this ribbed cable.  It's cute, but it's short in length, so it might be belly-baring which no one, including me, wants to see out in public.

Image from zara.com.

Ahh.  The Vince cable turtleneck.  Very warm and cozy. 

Image from vince.com.

The Barbour Beckwith sweater.  Barbour is the classic.  I like the trim fit.

Image from madewell.

And the new addition to my sweater drawer? Which one made the cut?  This little lovely from Madewell.  Already sold out in store and on-line! 

Image from habituallychic.blogspot.com.

Clearly, I am not alone in my cable admiration.  Move over Eric Bompard, you have a new neighbor. ~ LB

Ode to a Coated Jean

Lisa, a good friend, and I were shopping back in August at Satellite Office West (i.e. Natick Mall) on evening.  We strolled into Madewell and were admiring their ballet flats and other shoes when one of the sales women started talking with us (ok, she recognized Lisa and came up to say 'hi').  While we were talking and walking around in Madewell shoes to see how they fit, we paused at a table with black, coated jeans. 

Now, a coated jean is a pair of denim jeans, typically black, that are coated with pigment to give it a wax-like finish.  They look and feel smooth, and from afar, the sheen is reminiscent of leather pants.

As Lisa and I paused at the table, the sales woman said, "You know Bunny from J.Crew?  She has a pair and loves them."  Bunny happens to be the super stylish lady who works in the Crewcuts section of J.Crew in the Natick Mall and we love her. Lisa and I took one look at each other, each grabbed a pair in our size, and headed to the dressing room.  It was love at first wear.

Images from madewell.com.

If that sales woman had never come up to us and told us about the pants, I personally would have NEVER tried them on. Why?  Their name: the "Skinny Skinny Ankle Coated Motorcycle Jean".  For those of you who know me, I am NOT "skinny skinny" and "motorcycle" doesn't really fit either (unless it's a great Vince leather moto jacket).

Once on, these jeans were FAN-TAS-TIC.  Super fitted, but not suffocating. You can dress them up with heels and a fun top OR down with a boyfriend sweater and ballet flats.  I personally like to have the ankle zipper zipped up half way, creating more of a 'boot cut' bottom (which I think is more flattering on someone not "skinny skinny").  Wear them as you would leather leggings.

Throughout the fall, I have been complimented on these pants numerous times (including one friend, who yelled to me out of her passenger window one morning while in school carline that she LOVED my pants).  Before they are gone, you might want to check them out and add them to your fall/winter wardrobe.  At least try them on.  You won't regret it!  ~ JH

W2WW News Flash - Ines De La Fressange develops line for Uniqlo.

Image from luxuo.com.

The former French model and author, Ines De La Fressange, is partnering with Uniqlo for a capsule collection due out later this month.  We've admired the impossibly chic De La Fressange since she penned the Parisian Chic: A Style Guide and shared tips for looking effortlessly cool and put together.  Take the navy sweater, my personal favorite, paired with white jeans, flats, perhaps a scarf and voila! 

Image from hannekeverstegen.com.

New York magazine wrote: "She genuinely doesn't give a rat's ass about what she's supposed to look like, but always looks fabulous anyway.  She smokes, consumes bread and butter, has short hair, almost never wears heels, and always smiles in pictures, probably because she isn't dying for a foot rub and a sandwich."  If I had a closet of Roger Vivier, I would probably wear flats all the time too.  My kind of lady.

So, what to expect on November 20th (unveiled in Paris on 11/20, in stores early 2014)?  I'd bet we will see lots of her Parisian-inspired basics like slim pants, cardigan sweaters, striped tees, and cool jackets in the French uniform of white, tan, navy and black.  

Here are some of our favorite IDLF looks. And when-oh-when is Uniqlo coming to Boston?!?! ~ LB

Above images from nymag.com.

it's Fall 2013: Gray Area

Image from lyst.com.

One of my favorite colors is happening right now. Gray is a super cool and classic alternative to black, white and navy.  Every shade of in the gray spectrum is in and can be worn as a head to toe neutral (like the outfit above) or mixed with other colors of the season.  Check out my 'how to wear gray' guide below. ~ LB

W2WW - Gray for Fall 2013

Chinti and Parker long sleeve sweater / A.P.C. sweatshirt / J.Crew petite top / Nordstrom vest waistcoat / J.Crew tall stretch pants / Nina Ricci ballet shoes / Tod's loafer, $390 / Givenchy handbag / Longchamp leather handbag, $505 / Michael Kors bracelet / DIANA BROUSSARD necklace / raen polarized sunglasses / Massimo Dutti scarve / Old Navy scarve / Gray slouch beanie / Essie nail polish / Essie nail polish