Tightrope Walking In Stilts

So, today I did something I haven’t done in a while. Sitting in my closet I saw a pair of new satin pumps I ordered from Ruelala 6 months ago and yet I had not broken them in yet. Yes folks, there were these beauties in my closet and while thinking I would save them for a special occasion, that moment never seem to make it.  OK, OK, who am I kidding…I actually sorta-kinda forgot about them, lol!  Just don’t tell my husband that.  But lovely they are.

Staring at them this morning I decided today, a random Friday with no special meaning at all, I would celebrate these sassy little hotties by taking them out for their first spin, which could easily turn this day from good to great very quickly.  After all, these cuties were wonderfully high and very feminine to say the least. 

The outfit I decided to accessorize my shoes with was so-so but the shoes in all their glory definitely made the ensemble so much better. I put on my new satin babies and left the house strutting around like it was nobody’s business. I got to the parking garage at work, stepped out of my car, walked 5 feet and was utterly exhausted. Oh my, I was not expecting that, I thought to myself. Shoot! On top of being tired after just a few feet, why was it I had hardly even moved? So, I walked a few more feet then tripped over my own foot almost falling down but coolly stood up poised and continued to walk a little bit more.  A few wobbles here, a few wobbles there and hurray, I walked another 5 feet. At this pace, I calculated that I would be arriving at my office in precisely 2 hours. “Seriously?” I thought to myself! This was just so much work and so inefficient if you asked me!

I realized the best way to describe this super cute satin high heel wearing situation was this: imagine walking in place on a tightrope in stilts while giving someone a piggy-back ride. That my friends, is what it feels like to walk in heels again.

FUN!!!

That’s honestly the best description I can come up with and here’s why.  You’re not really moving (or at least quickly), it requires complete balancing without falling over, and you can’t help but feel tons of pressure on your back causing you to lean forward just to get control over your feet and the ground underneath them. And this is supposed to make you look and feel good, I thought?!! FORRRGET ABOUT IT! What I realized was that when it comes to wearing heels after a long time, you don’t care how good you look because you’re too focused on just getting to where you need to be in under an hour without falling, nor developing a clinically diagnosed hunched back during the process.

And I used to this every day? WOW!

The longer I thought about it the more I realized it takes a lot of talent and skill as well as uber elegance to pull off such a stunt like wearing heels, and still looking classy. Yeah, I am NOT any of those things in heels anymore, and now I question if I ever really was.

Suspicious of today’s challenge this morning, I packed away some socks and low-heeled comfortable boots in my bag. Ohhhh, I’m such a smarty pants, haha! So that means no matter what, today’s premonition of having a good day because of my fancy shoes will NOT be ruined despite that possibility, had I not done my contingency planning.

Well, if nothing else I guess my feet will look pretty here as I sit at my desk, under the assumption that if I were to walk around I might look good, but that’s about as far as it’s going to get. It’s just an illusion.  Because sitting and not walking today sounds delightfully perfect for a Friday and definitely beats trying to walk in place on a tightrope in stilts while giving someone a piggy-back ride.

Happy Friday, everyone!

-Tanya Walks (yeah right)…

Shopping Smartly On The Internet

Does the Internet save you money or do you tend to spend more? That’s the question this inquiring mind wants to know.

At first thought, the answer was clear to me. OF COURSE it saves you money! It can save you lots of money! After all, didn’t you see that Groupon deal for half off on a dozen of Trophy cupcakes? Then I thought a little bit longer about this question and recounted all the various purchases I’ve made as an Internet shopper and my second reaction was, NO WAY – you can spend a lot MORE money if you’re not careful.

These are words from a true Internet Shopper so listen closely…

I’d like to walk you through a few examples of how you can save money by shopping online as well as how you can easily overspend by becoming an Internet shopper if you’re not careful. 

So, it saves you money. That is right.

My iPhone cover/case had seen the last of its days and I was in dire need of a new one. I jumped in my car and used my gasoline which cost me $4.49 a gallon to go to the Apple store where I found several cases for around $30. Unfortunately I sort of care about how cute my phone case is more than I should so I walked out of the store empty handed after seeing boring, uninteresting cases. I got back in my car to use more gasoline which cost me $4.49 a gallon in case you didn’t hear me the first time, and I headed home. Trip unsuccessful! The worst part was I still had no iPhone case replacement.

I got home, hopped on my laptop and started to browse the wonderful worldwide web for a practical yet pretty case and I found one on eBay for $6, and that included shipping and no taxes. Score and it was stylish! Wahoo!

I received my case in the mail a few days later, adored it, used it, and 6 months down the road the process of looking for a case would begin again but this time I would be smarter about where to get a good case. A case I loved.

That’s not so bad, right?

The part of that story you didn’t hear about was how while looking for a new iPhone case, I had checked my email and was told by a mail in my inbox that there was a Michael Kors sale going on. I browsed ideeli to see what this noise was all about and what do you know, yes there indeed was a great sale going on! I saw several items which were originally $135 on sale for $60 and I started racking my brain for my future plans trying to see if there were occasions I needed to buy such a cute dress for. Ahhh, so maybe I couldn’t think of any occasions off hand but I was certain there would come a time where I would need to wear a dress. THAT dress. After 2 seconds of thinking about it and deciding I needed that dress or I might not get through the rest of the day, I was convinced we were destined to meet. The checkout process commenced and a few days later I would be receiving the lovely threads on my doorstep.

It was quite magical actually.

Another thing I was told while cleaning up my inbox was that a nearby spa was offering a massage for $40 instead of their normal $95 price. Hmmm, my neck and back had been a bit stiff lately so I thought this would be a great reason if any, to click on the buy deal button and help treat my physical ailments with some tender love and care. Heaven forbid I pay $95 when I could get such a steal on something I needed so badly anyway… RIGHT?

Yeah, WRONG.

Before you know it my friends, that $24 I had saved from my iPhone case is out the window, having spent $100 in that same sitting on items which I can assure you were by no means must-haves but nice-to-haves instead. Along the way somehow I convinced myself the two unnecessary buys were so much better than spending the original $224 I would have otherwise but the point is, I probably wouldn’t have spent that money.

Note to Hubby, the above scenarios are purely fictional :)

See, I believe the internet causes us to spend more. I mean, yes we have “on sale” items readily available at our fingertips and with a few clicks and a couple of days later can find the goods on our doorstep.  But with constant ads, emails, feeds, tweets, and promotions, being tempted by reduced prices and sales at a constant rate, are we really spending more than we normally would?

Instead of making you guess my opinion on this, I’m just gonna say YES to that one!

But it doesn’t have to be that way. I would say after a year or two of converting to being an Internet shopper primarily, I’ve learned how you can maintain healthy spending habits even when we’re being sent a thousand signals and messages daily so that you don’t end up in a poorhouse hell.

Here are my top 10 pointers to keep in mind so that you don’t overspend and kill your bank account due to the easy world of internet shopping.

1. Remember your buying basics. Just because you’re shopping online does not make every other budgeting or money rule you’ve worked so hard to abide by, suddenly invalid. Ask yourself the following questions when tempted online and see how it goes:

a. How many times will I use this item in the next 6 months?
b. How many things do I already have at home which are fairly similar (i.e. little black dress, nude pumps)?
c. How many hours of work did I have to put my heart and soul into just to pay for this item?
d. How will my life be impacted if I don’t get this item?
e. How badly do I need this item vs. want this item?
f.  How badly do I need this item RIGHT NOW?

2. Avoid subscribing to email notifications when going through the site’s registration process. It’s easy; just force yourself to uncheck that little box which asks you if they can send you email notifications. What they are really asking you is if it’s ok if they send you amazing deal emails and reminders and bleed you of all your money! I recently unsubscribed to several daily deal notifications and outta sight, outta mind, baby! You don’t know what you’re missing and therefore you can’t be in physical pain if you don’t have those BCBG shoes you’ve been eyeing and waiting for which suddenly showed up on Rue La La.

3. When paying for an online purchase, avoid checking the box which reads “save credit card information for future purchases.” Here’s another sneaky little checkbox to avoid. I know this sounds trivial but it’s no joke. If you’re like me and you still don’t have your credit card numbers memorized, having to dig it out and go through the rigmarole of entering my card info each time is annoying and it actually makes me question how badly I need the damn thing. If it’s worth the effort, I probably need it. If you have your credit card numbers memorized, then I’m just sorry – get new cards and quit trying to be so smart already.

4. Shut your window and shut it fast. I would bet you, if you walked away from an online purchase and closed the page and came back to it a few hours later, there’s a pretty good chance you’d realize you really didn’t need it anyway. It’s true! There’s something which goes completely out of whack in our brain when we see a good deal, where we believe life cannot go on unless we buy it right then and there. Truth is, we’ll still live and life really will go on but you need to take a breather allowing time for the wacky thoughts to exit your brain. I promise you, they will!

5. Remove and Replace. Replace all of the deal and shopping sites in your favorites with more useful sites such as NY Times, CNN, Yelp, Tanya Talks, and your other favorite bloggers.

6. Stop with the integration already. Disable all shopping and online deal site apps from your Facebook, your iPhone and quit following these sites on twitter as well. Otherwise the deals will still pop up in your feeds and you’ll still be noticing them and will be tempted. Sometimes ignorance really is bliss or in this case, ignorance is good for the pocketbook.

7. Research. If you are going to have to buy something off the internet make sure you find the best deals with no tax and no to low cost shipping. You’d be surprised with how many sites don’t charge for these things so take the time to check out other sites. Also, make sure you read customer reviews! Finally, triple read the terms such as the return policy, etc.

8. If you’re buying clothes make sure you know yourself well before committing. Women often make this mistake the hard way, I know that I have. Know your body well, know how clothes fit you, know your sizes, and know how Missoni vs. Helmut Lang fits so you have a pretty good idea what size you would be.  This DOES differ quite a bit from designer to designer! Returning is a huge hassle and most people don’t end up doing it so avoid situations where a garment you ordered ends up finding a nice cozy spot in your closet which goes forgotten.

9. Give yourself an online allowance if this is how you do your shopping. If you shop for clothes every three months you can create a budget for your online shopping which matches up to your 3-month clothes allowance. Just make sure you stick to it and manage it properly.

10. Quit justifying and lying.  When the deals are hot there is a natural tendency to justify why you needed that purse, dress or pair of shoes RIGHT NOW. Stop doing that! Be honest with yourself and if you’re buying it simply because you want it, be aware of that and admit that rather than lying to yourself with some made up reason why you needed it.

I think I’ve gone on long enough about the negatives yet realities with how easy it can be to overspend while shopping online. Let me end this post on a more positive note….

The internet really does offer some amazing deals and to date is the best resource I’ve found for finding what I’m looking for at a lower price than in the stores. Just be careful not to overindulge since online transactions can be a little TOO EASY at times (can we say um, “PayPal?”) and it’s easy to think you’re getting a great deal while forgetting about the fact you just bought a lot more than you probably intended to (and more often).

Also remember, there’s a lot more to consider with online shopping such as understanding how returns work, shipping, how it looks in person vs. online, how it will fit, etc than you previously had to deal with by just walking into a store. If you do it right – you can save quite a bit of money and get some great deals to boot! “To boot,” as in to show for of course. Please don’t go out there and buy some boots now.

Oh but wait, did you see the Nordstrom’s anniversary sale online recently? Talk about GORGEOUS boots! Check it out: Nordstrom boot sale.

Oh… sorry :)

-Tanya

The Wrinkled Pants Theory

I was chatting with a friend this morning who told me about a big fuzzy sweater she keeps in her office since her office is always so cold. I laughed and told her I usually have to do the same thing myself since my office is also always so cold, too. Before we knew it the conversation spun in a different direction, as it always does when we chit chat, and soon we were talking about our latest fashion sense, or really, lack thereof. This particular friend worked with somebody who dressed so cutely every day and we discussed how her seeing this person reminded her of herself not too long ago.

This friend recently bought a beautiful house and was telling me how when she went to sign the papers, her husband asked her to please put on something decent. A few years ago I would have not understood this comment at all, but now more than ever, I get it because I live it.

I noticed lately when I roll out of bed and have to get ready for work, the most important thing to me when selecting an outfit is the convenience opportunity. That means, what is going to take the least amount of time deciding, trying on, coordinating, assembling, accessorizing, and that is usually what I’ll go for. It doesn’t usually matter if I wore the same exact outfit the day before – I work with a bunch of men. Men always look like they wear the same thing every day. It doesn’t even matter if I show up wrinkled. I just need to show up in something half way presentable and I’m golden. By the way, throwing a scarf on a repeated outfit does WONDERS. So what is the big deal about this?

The big deal about this is my heels are covered in dust and cobwebs, 75% of my closet goes untouched and I probably look like I wear the same thing every day because well,  I do. When did this happen and how, I wondered. I am not sure and I wouldn’t be so concerned about any of this except for when I have to dress up a) it’s such an ordeal and feels like a lot of effort b) I think I’ve forgotten all fashion sense I once had and suddenly don’t know what works well together and lastly, c) even when I try to bring my A game, it still looks very B/B- to me.

So why has this shifted? Here’s my theory:

• I finally discovered that comfort is just… well, COMFORTABLE. I had no idea a fleece, flats and tees could be so amazing!! You all always teased me about my skyscraper high heels but I have to say, you are all right on about heels being uncomfortable now.  Unless it’s comfortable heels, I’m content in flats all the way, baby.
• Is it because I’m married to a man who tells me I’m pretty no matter what and I’m taking full advantage of this? Yes.
• After enough closet cleanings and bags full of clothes with the tags on and being dropped off to Good Will, investing lots of $ in clothes makes little to no sense.
• I can buy all the cute clothes in the world but there are 5 solid items I’ll only wear regardless.
• I work in an environment where I get zero inspiration in being a trend setter; in fact I feel sort of out of place if I look too cute. Just sayin.’

Here’s the funny thing – in High School I received the award for “most fashionable” my senior year. Haha! They should do a “Look at Tanya Webb now” edition and take a surprise photo of me walking down the street downtown.  Oh, and by the way I actually still wear some of my favorite high school clothing pieces also. How sad is that?

I have a pile at home of recyclable clothing items. In case you’ve not heard of a “recyclable clothes pile”, it’s a pile where I put clothes I wear often and then cycle through that pile throughout the week. At the beginning of the week the pile gets washed and we start the process again, mostly with the same items as the week before. Unless I’m having an ambitious week, this pile does not even get hung up properly so that in the morning when I roll out of bed, I can mindlessly grab something from the recyclable clothes pile and it will almost always work. When I do shop nowadays, instead of looking for cute clothes, I go for clothes which might be a nice addition to this very much used pile – meaning neutrals and things I can wear over and over for years to come. 

This morning I grabbed a pair of slacks that seemed wrinkled. Oh well. They still worked. If you drive with a warm beverage such as coffee on your way to work and roll your travel mug down your pants at stoplights or stopped traffic and also cradle it in your lap, this hot temperature beverage works as a mini portable iron. Although most of my recyclable clothes pile shopping takes place online, when I do shop retail I noticed instead of shopping at chic boutiques, I go to places such as Aerosoles, even Naturalizer – places I made fun of previously. Yes, things do changed.

There’s a lot of benefit to this new lack of fashion sense I have though. For example:

• My hubby never has the stress of me asking him if I look ok anymore, with my proceeding questions/comments like, but how do I really look, are you telling me the truth, do I look fat, is my butt big, so now you think my butt is big <outfit switch happens and the process starts again>.
• I save money since I’m not buying clothes the way I used to.
• I save time on figuring out what to wear which means more billable hours for me at work which means I make more money for not having fashion sense.
• When I do wear something nicer the compliments come flying in – it’s more noticeable than if I wear something nice every day – it’s all planned you see.
• I’m saving my feet and perhaps my posture is improving with flatter shoes at work. This is for health reasons.

So for all you women out there who enjoy dressing up for work and during other times my advice is: Enjoy it. It’s so much fun, sky high heels are sexy, accessories can make or break an outfit, and there’s nothing better than a well-put together ensemble to brighten your day. It just makes you feel good and gives you a boost like nothing else. But does it last forever? That I can’t guarantee as I’m proof of how things have changed quite a bit.

Off to get lunch (and more hot beverages) in my wrinkled pants,

Tanya

My Car, My OWA, My Dress

I sit and wait.  I am sitting in the Acura Service department right now in Bellevue. I jump started my car 4 times yesterday.  It was such a scene.  I had to double over and laugh a few times from it all.  It’s just not really my thing… under the hood of a car with cables but at least I know how to do it now.  I really thank the cool guy who taught me how to do this at Bartell Drugs Wednesday night in Capitol Hill, when it first began.  With out hesitation he jumped my car and showed me this awesome battery jumper he got at costco, showed me how to do it and I was good to go.  But as Kim and I ran errands last night and with having to jump start my car each time, after awhile we just couldn’t quit laughing every time I’d have to pop the hood and cable it up, baby.

 

I should be working right now.  OWA is acting insane right now though. 

 

Oh but I got such a deal.  I got a dress for $10 yesterday for a wedding I’m attending tomorrow!  Gotta love Nordstroms Rack.  That makes me laugh.  After being a piglet yesterday I just hope it still fits. 

 

Sent from a non-blogging mood girl.

 

Could YOU say no to these?

Exactly.  I couldn’t either..