Bourgie Staples: Oxfords

I admittedly did not understand the power of the Oxford until last fall, but I'm so glad I learned!

According to Zappos, Oxfords:

Defined as a low leather shoe with lacing over the instep, the oxford shoe is as versatile as it is timeless. There are so many styling options: round toe, cap toe, bicycle toe, Algonquin toe, wingtip -- and the list goes on. Whatever aesthetic the occasion calls for, from casual to formal, there is a pair of oxfords that fits the bill. Take the workplace for example; oxford shoes are ideal for the white or blue collar professional. If you spend your days at a desk and in meetings, match a pair of Allen-Edmonds, Johnston & Murphy®, Bostonian®, Florsheim® or Rockport® oxford shoes with khakis or slacks for a board-approved look. If you work in the construction or hospitality industry, tried and true brands like Dickies®, Caterpillar®, Wolverine®, Timberland PRO®,Skechers Work® and Dr. Martens® offer shoes with steel toes and slip, oil and abrasion-resistant outsoles. Work won't seem like work when you're wearing the perfect oxford.

When it's time to relax and enjoy yourself or head out on the town with friends, it's time for your favorite pair of jeans and a comfortable, stylish oxford. Timberland®, Skechers®, Nunn Bush®, Dunham®, Dockers®, Bass® and Clarks® offer denim-friendly oxfords for men and women with an abundance of comfort features.

If your style is a bit more sleek and contemporary, youll want to check out fashion-forward brands like A. Testoni, Bruno Maglia, Giorgio Brutini®, Calvin Klein, Stacy Adams® and Ted Baker. These feature men's oxford shoes with a wide variety of cutting-edge styling and color options with great finishes. These are the ultimate compliment to a fashionable ensemble and a testament to your great taste.

With the wide range of kid's oxford shoes on Zappos.com, your little ones can be just as stylish and sophisticated as mom and dad. Great brands like Polo Ralph Lauren Kids, Petit, Sonnet Kids, and Stride Rite® have children's oxfords to help you dress up your son and daughter for school, play or events.

Oxfords can be worn all-year round and are an absolute staple in any decent footwear collection. So whatever style, color and size of oxford shoe you are looking for, chances are pretty good you'll be able to find it at Zappos.com.

I own a pair of these Bass oxfords,
and I absolutely love them!

Now, I can't attest to the power of Zappos (I've been wanting to test out their site for a few years now), but I think they're pretty spot-on with their description of this shoe style. They're comfortable and practical shoes, and a nice fashion statement if you get an interesting pair. I own a pair of Bass oxfords, and I get compliments every time I wear them. What's cool about the ones I picked up is that I got an amazing deal at DSW (and I hardly ever shop there), and it seems that you can get good deals on them this time of year. What's even cooler about Oxfords is that they are fashionable for both men and women. So, hurry! Get yourself a pair during the Labor Day Weekend! (Hey! Remember: Bourgie on a Budget!)

Tick Tock: The Bourgie Watch Hunt Begins

A year older, a year bourgier -- that's how I see my upcoming birthday...

As a gift to myself (who says you can't buy yourself a gift?), I am looking into purchasing a nice "grown-up" watch. Not too fond of leather straps, I have been looking into several styles of watches by various designers/manufacturers. So far, I have come up with a list of a few likes and dislikes:

Likes
Rose Gold - The color is just perfect for me!
Ceramic
Bling - A bourgie girl without bling is like a zebra without fierce stripes.
Medium-sized faces

Dislikes
Silver - Color looks good on some people, but it is dreadful on me!
NFL Linebacker-sized faces
Blong - When the bling doesn't bling like it's supposed to.
Boyfriend watches - My wrist is just too small for this foolishness. (Plus, how can a single lady wear a "boyrfriend" watch. That's just not right.)

One thing I learned from a sales associate at the Michael Kors in The Mall in Columbia is that Michael Kors watches are manufactured by Fossil - as are DKNY and a number of other designer watches. What does this mean? You are getting the same quality watch at all of the stores, you're just paying upwards of $100 extra for the designer's name! Even more interesting is that Fossil has way more options, and their warranty is incredible (11 years!!).

When choosing a watch, it is important to see how it will look on your wrist. You may love silver, but silver may not love your skin tone. Rose gold was the most flattering for my complexion, but what works for me may not work for you. Also, don't be afraid to try on some that you may not exactly be in love with. You never know how they'll look on your wrist!

*Get Your Bourgie Up mini lesson: Before going into the store, make sure you know how to put on a watch. I know that sounds like common sense, but bourgie watches don't work the same way regular old watches do. If you've never tried on a watch, just go to the store, put on your best bourgie face, and politely ask the sales associate to help you try on some different watches. When you try them on, male sure you ask them if they remove links on site. (This can be a real pain if you don't get it taken care of while you're shopping.) Most places will remove the links for free, and they'll give you the removed links when they're done.*

Make sure you check out a variety of stores/websites before making your final decision. Different stores have different prices, and you want to get the best product AND warranty for your $$. You're going to want to try to product on before you purchase it, so please be careful before ordering online! You also want to make sure you understand how to change the time, date, and any other features your watch might have. (Most "grown-up" watches don't come with instructions!)

I can't wait to buy my watch! If you're hunting for watches, let me know what some of the things are YOU look for.

Happy watch hunting!

A little bonus, for my bourgie nerds out there: The History of Wrist Watches

Fragrance Madness: Round One - Juicy vs Poppy Flower

The Contenders:

Juicy Couture (Original)

vs

Coach Poppy Flower

Fragrance Notes:

Coach Poppy Flower

• According to the booklet accompanying the gift set, this fragrance smells like blah blah blah blah blah. They list over 10 things. It's really ridiculous. The few that stand out: Apricot skin, wet ivy, lychee, sugared raspberry, and jasmine petals. The only thing more complicated than this long, drawn-out description is the hat the model is wearing in the accompanying picture.

Juicy Couture

• Tuberose, princess lily and caramel creme brulee. Aside from the fact that it simultaneously sounds delicious and feminine, the description alone puts it ahead of it's competitor. (I love me some tuberose.) Sephora describes the woman who would wear this as "flirtatious, charming, decadent, irreverent." 

What You Get:

Juicy Couture - a 1.0 oz of Eau de Parfum Spray

Coach Poppy Flower - a 1.0 oz of the Eau de Parfum Spray

My Bourgie Review:

Coach Poppy Flower

This fragrance is much too sweet. When I originally sprayed it on my wrists, the scent overpowered the room. Smelling it again today was even worse than two weeks ago! The fragrance is layered with fruits and florals, sweet on top of sweet, and is headache inducing. I tried to give it an hour. Two hours. Three hours. It really only got worse. I had to wash it off!

The description states, "The Coach Poppy Flower woman is a sophisticated romantic. She is fashion-driven with a youthful spirit and is never afraid to express her personal style." Translation: She is an old lady who is desperately holding onto her youth by attending various free local music festivals and twirling around drunkenly. You know the one.

Score: One sniff  

Juicy Couture

When I first saw this was in the box, I admit - I was a little disappointed. I see Juicy Couture everything EVERYWHERE! I thought it could not possibly smell good. I figured it would smell like one of those Victoria's Secret scents that smells like a Bath & Body Works scent. (I refuse to refer to these smells as fragrances. Refuse.) I sprayed it on, and was originally underwhelmed. I didn't get a headache or feel the urge to dry heave as I did with the Poppy Flower, but it didn't blow me away. Then, after about 30 minutes, the fragrance really started to gain some character. By the end of the day, I loved it!

This fragrance is simple and perfect for everyday wear. It's not overpowering, so the beauty is in the subtlety. 

Score: Four sprays and a trip to T.J. MAXX*

Winner:

This was a pretty simple decision. Juicy made me want to go out and buy a bottle (which I did). Poppy Flower made me want to take a shower and an aspirin.

Juicy Couture advances to Round 2 in Fragrance Madness!

*Umm, hello? The T.J. Maxx near me was selling the 1.0 oz of eau de parfum for $29.99. Nordstrom is selling the same fragrance (but a 1.7 oz) for $69. You could buy two from T.J. Maxx and still pay less! And I see you over there turning your nose up at T.J.'s. Someone needs to take some lessons on being bourgie on a budget.

Bourgie Gifts

Those of you close to me have probably already heard me raving about this awesome gift my sister bought me for Christmas. For those of you who haven't, I'm going to share with you one of the coolest gifts I've ever received, and will add that I highly recommend this as a gift idea.

The Sephora Fragrance Deluxe Sampler

From left to right: Refillable fragrance atomizer (with funnel),
12 fragrance samplers, and voucher/info on each sample provided.

What Is It?
Sephora sells several types of fragrance samplers (Remember: We say "fragrance," not "perfume.")  - some for women, some for men. The one I received is the Fragrance Deluxe Sampler. This sampler has the following fragrance samples (listed in the order that I've tried them):

1. .05 oz Juicy Couture Eau de Parfum
2. .05 oz Coach Poppy Flower Eau de Parfum
3. .04 oz Marc Jacobs Daisy Eau de Toilette
4. .05 oz DKNY pureDKNY Verbena Scent Spray
5. .05 oz Giorgio Armani Acqua di Gioa Eau de Parfum
6. .05 oz Dolce and Gabbana Light Blue Eau de Toilette
7. .03 oz Givenchy Very Irresistible L'Intense Eau de Parfum
8. .05 oz Prada Infusion D'Iris Eau de Parfum
9. .05 oz Bvlgari Mon Jasmin Noir Eau de Parfum
10. .05 oz Versace Bright Crystal Eau de Toilette  
11. .05 oz Clinique Happy Eau de Parfum
12. .06 oz Gucci Guilty Eau de Toilette 

How Does it Work?
You get to sample a dozen fragrances. A dozen. I recommend putting one on in the morning, and wearing that fragrance all day. You could be surprised; some fragrances smell much better on your body as you move throughout your day.

Once you pick your favorite, head over to a Sephora store near you, and trade in your certificate for a bottle of the fragrance!

Why This is an Amazing Gift

Many people seek different fragrances when they are going through a change in their life, as well as when the seasons change. If you gift this to someone during the December holidays, this enables them to select a new fragrance for the new year - or at least to try something different (which may also be a new year's resolution). If you give someone you love one of these sets for Valentine's Day, it's a two-fer: They get to pick a fragrance to take them into Spring, and you get to cozy up and smell them wearing something different every day (for almost two weeks), and will hopefully get to help them pick the one you like the best.  

Selecting a fragrance that someone else will like is a daunting task, but these Sephora gift sets allow you to give them two hands full of fragrances, while allowing them to choose the one they like best. 

Coming up next... 

Reviews of each of the 12 fragrances. Stay tuned!

Bourgie on a Budget: Email Coupons!

Some people pooh-pooh coupons, but if you're going to live a bourgie lifestyle, the smartest way to do it is by being smart with your money. Now, you don't have to be one of those crazy extreme couponing ladies, but you should know how to get great deals -- especially in stores where you're a regular customer.

You know how every store under the sun seems to ask you for your email address? And you may get an attitude sometimes and tell them, "I don't need any more junk in my inbox!"? Well, stop doing that! So many stores (AND restaurants) give you free things for your birthday, frequently shopping in their store, and sometimes even for NOT shopping at their store very often (I just got a coupon from Sephora for not shopping there in like a year). So here's what I do (recommended for smartphone users):

1. Set up an email account with Yahoo!, Hotmail, or any other provider that doesn't do such a great job with filtering spam (hey, I'm just keeping it real!). If you already have an account with one of these providers, but you don't check it very often or use it for anything important, just use that one.
2. Make sure you have your account synced with your phone. 
3. Get your shop on! 

Even if you don't check this email account often, you can search your phone when you're in a specific store to see if there are any deals. Also, you won't be getting these coupons (stop calling it junk!) sent to your work/personal email address. Most stores honor the coupons on your phone. They usually just need to get the code from the email. 

You will be amazed by how much you can save!