Labor Day Shopping Trip

I went shopping in Santa Monica on Monday hoping to see some good Labor Day sales.  I didn't find too many.  But I did buy a few things anyways.  The most exciting find that I am super happy about is this Pleione Faux Wrap Blouse at Nordstrom!  I actually got it in two different colors - Black/White Chain, and Ivory (which just looks white to me).  I have decided that I need to wear blouses to work more often because they just look a little better.  So I need to build a little collection.  =)  It is my first time with this Pleione brand.  I searched for it on Nordstrom's site and like a lot of their designs.

These blouses are very reasonably priced at $68!  They are made of 100% polyester, but they somehow feel nicer.  Not quite like silk, but close lol.  They just don't give me the usual yucky polyestery feel.  I like that they drape well and don't really seem to wrinkle.

The black/white chain print I got in size S, while the ivory one in size XS.  I think they are not too different, with the size XS being almost indistinguishably slimmer fitting in the body.  The upper arms is where I feel the most difference.  The size S feels very comfortable in that area, whereas the XS can feel a little bit constricted if I raise my arms.  Not a big deal, but you can notice it if you try on both sizes back to back.

Here they are on me!

Rolled sleeves that can be let down all the way or buttoned up:

There is a hidden button closure in the front where two sides of the wrap front criss crosses, so that the blouse won't fly open.  You can also wear a cami under and then leave it unbuttoned for a pop of color as well.

So the back of this top is a lot longer than the front.  This is what it looks like from the side and back:

But you can just tuck the back into your pants and it looks a lot better!

And... here's the ivory one in size XS.  I also let the sleeves all the way down so you can see what it looks like.  I like that the collar stays flatter in the size XS.

 

This color is slightly sheer - I am wearing a light teal colored bra under it and you can kind of see the bra here.  But if I were to wear a nude colored bra, it would be fine without a cami under.

I think this is pretty much the perfect white blouse to have!  It sounds simple, but it is actually quite hard to find a good white blouse.

I thought at first that it would look odd under a suit jacket, but I think it looks fine!

I love this blouse!  I will definitely keep my eye out for more colors in the future.  It can be worn with casual bottoms or be more dressed up.  Totally versatile!

I also got a blouse from Banana Republic during my shopping trip - the Plaid Riviera Blouse in preppy navy.

I like the pattern, but I think the fit kind of pales in comparison to the Pleione blouse!  I am trying to avoid buying the same style all the time though.  I tried on size XS in this top first at the store, because it looked pretty big on the hanger.  But it was SO hard to get in.  The arms were wayyyy too tight and once I got in it, I literally was scared that they'd have to cut me out of it lol.  But I wiggled my way out.  So definitely size up in this one.

The color code says navy, but it looks black to me...

The sleeves are also convertible in this top.  So it can be completely let down as well, and this is what that looks like:

The sleeves are super long though:

Banana Republic is having 40% off everything.  But apparently not "everything"!  I tried to buy a sweater at the same time and they told me it was "one of a few exclusions".  I think all the blouses are though, that makes them a lot more reasonable - from $79 to $48.  But that's probably the right price anyways.  Banana Republic is priced too high for the type of products they carry, in my opinion.

The last thing I picked up on Monday was the Nike Dri-Fit Touch Breeze tank in hyper cobalt from REI!  I just had to do it - "hyper cobalt" is the blue color in my new favorite Nike shoes!  So now I have the perfect top to match!

These pictures are actually from the Nike website:

 

I really could never have enough burnout tanks anyway.  This tank is really cute actually, and the price is not bad at $35.  I love the relaxed fit.  Nowadays I lean more and more towards tanks of this silhouette rather than tight fitting tanks (like the Lululemon cool racerbacks).  This is just so easy.  

I usually wear size S in Nike tops, but this tank is size XS and it is still rather loose fitting.  I seriously love this tank!  I see that there are many more colors on the Nike website, some are on sale here and here, so I might get some other colors!  

I don't know why I never thought about it before - but of course Nike would have clothing colors that match their shoe colors!  Now I'm going to have fun searching for all the items I can match my shoes to.  =)

I'm happy with my finds.  I hope you all had some luck with Labor Day shopping as well!