These lovely shoes arrived at the office today - hello! We'll be using them in a photo shoot to close our holiday magazine. Naturally, all of the girls tried them on and declared them the most perfect party shoes, the timeless kind you'll wear forever and ever.

But, ick! They're $328, at jcrew.com. At that price, you'd have to wear them forever and ever.

And then I got thinking ... I could totally make these for a smidge of that price.

Follow me here: Start with these Van Eli satin pumps, $89.95 at Nordstrom. Snip off the middle loop, leaving a quarter inch or so of fabric at the base...

...then you can attach a brooch to the little strips of fabric left in the center. Try either of these:

left// Liz Claiborne crystal pin, $22 at Dillard's.
right// Rhinestone pin, $7.80 at Forever 21.

The genius part about this plan is that you can swap out pins anytime. Possibilities for days!

Hey, jealousy.

I don't want to brag, but I've been a bit of a savvy shopper lately. You may begin marveling at these fab sale finds:



{top left} Scarf neck top, on sale for $25 at martinandosa.com (it sold out). Sale items were 15 percent off, and then I got an extra 20 percent off using a coupon code I spotted in People StyleWatch. Final cost: $16. Cute on it's own with trouser jeans and flats, but today I layered it underneath a long, black v-neck cardigan and it became super cute.

{top right} I found this silk dress, originally $150 at Banana Republic, on sale for $89. The store was taking an extra 30 percent off everything that weekend, so I got it for about $60.

{bottom} This double-pocket cardi at Gap was $54, but I found it for $25. (Of course, it's still $39.99 online. Gap's inconsistent pricing drives me crazy.)

. . .

And, although these three things weren't on sale, their full prices were either insanely cheap or justified by price per wear:




{top left} Slim pencil skirt, $44 at Gap.

{top right} Suede slouch boots, $79.95 at Nordstrom.

{bottom} Long cardigan, $17.99 at Target.

Sale!!! Sigh...

I swung through Nordstrom's anniversary sale this morning and thought it was pretty snoozy.
I got there at 9 a.m. with the other crazies, even after being disappointed with the online selection. I was hoping for a pair of really great flat brown boots, but no luck.

Here are a couple hits and misses...

HIT: Joie 'Chasity' cashmere cardigan, on sale for $159.90, from $248.
Love the color and long shape. There was also a more frugal version in BP for $30, though it was sans cashmere.



MISS: Juicy Couture velour hoodie, on sale for $89.90 from $138.
Really, aren't we over these awful velour getups?


HIT: ABS by Allen Schwartz belted high-waist dress, on sale for $158.90 from $268.
I've never tried one on, but I love the idea of a dress that looks like two pieces. Such trickery! I've been seeing a lot of this style for fall. I'd swap out the belt.



MISS: Free People 'Future Cozy' French terry vest, on sale for $49.90 from $78.
There's just not enough vest here to justify the $50 price tag. Also, it's ugly and does not look at all cozy as the name suggests. It looks about as cozy as curling up on the couch with a napkin.

$200 would buy me ...

You know when you spend a lot of money on something you don't want, and then all you can think about is what else you'd buy if you had that money back?
That was me today with $200. Here's what I'd get instead:

For Fall: Franco Sarto 'Branzino' riding boots, $174.95 at Nordstrom.



For the rest of summer: Dupioni strapless dress, on sale for $139 from $465 at shopadam.com.


A year-round classic: Karl Lagerfeld metal aviators, $179 at Nordstrom.

i've already got the jewelry taken care of

I hate when my entire outfit is from one store. It's, like, cheating. So when you see me at my engagement party in this outfit below, entirely from J.Crew, I'll definitely lie about its origin.

This navy dress with white pin dots, on sale for $78, is a total steal because I'll dress it up and down all summer long.

(Sans the flower belt, which is a ridiculous $68 more. At the office, I requested three of these to use in a photo shoot, and, upon closer inspection, I can say that you can definitely replicate one after a $9 trip to the craft store. Also, they're kind of silly-looking in real life.)

And I could not resist the pretty, pretty blue of this Jackie cardi, $62, to layer over the dress. This color is sold out everywhere. Online, it won't ship until the end of May.
But as I pleaded with a saleswoman over the phone to please, please, please find one for me anywhere, a kind soul/fool was returning this very cardigan. Victory is mine!

I'm also adding a pink belt, $29.50, which is like the one below, but dressier, and ballet flats, on sale for $98, in the most classy metallic finish imaginable. Not even close to blingy.

I feel like I just spent a squillion dollars. But I got two things on sale, and I can also count three events happening before mid-June where I could wear this entire outfit again.

Practice: "Gosh, you know, I can't remember where I got these shoes!"