So for the 4/18 Club meeting this year, we all convened at Lil A’s parents’ new apartment for the weekend and for a Princess-themed party. The best surprise was having the third member of our club, my first cousin S, also show up for dinner one night. In all the excitement, however, I forgot to take any pics. What a shame as it’s not every day you have three family members with the same birthday in the same room!
Anyway, Club President Lil A started the three-day annual meeting with a breakfast pow wow. The dress code was casual PJs and the guest speaker was Mr. T. We’re still comparing notes on his speech–terribly hard to focus on content when the speaker is so cute:
Then the conference really kicked into gear with topics like “culture through exercise” (her management style is clearly leading by example)…
“dressing for success” (so you see the mini 2.55 flap is perfect whether you are 3 or 5 ft tall)…
“saving the world economy, one ice cream cone at a time,”
and “balancing family with work” (note my bag and shoes on Madame President)…
All very relevant topics in these challenging times for a modern woman. Our marathon meeting ended with a fabulous party overrun by toddlers dressed up as princesses and dragon slayers. Here’s Lil A with her BFF, Lil R (my mom made Lil A’s dress!):
Lil A got tons of pressies and sweets today, but I think her best present of all is having two very loving if sleep-deprived parents:
I was lucky enough to get Mr. T to pose with me in his black tie (What? Don’t you show up in a tux for these shindigs? What are you, a Barbarian?) before he passed out. His gift to the world? Lookin’ handsome, of course!
So I know the title of today’s entry is the ODJ, so here we go…
ODJ: 4/18 Club Third Annual Meeting. Kors black top, some random $15 (no joke) black cropped jeans, JP Tods flat slingbacks, Chanel 2.55 mini dark silver flap. Lil A is in a smocked sundress and DVF for GapKids espadrilles.
After the party we all headed back upstairs and I got ready for my Trans-Atlantic flight. This final pic of Lil A basically sums up my life on the road, consisting of a stuffed suitcase and one tiny handheld gadget…
Wonder what we’re doing for the fourth annual meeting!
Birthdays make great excuses to pig out, and this year was no exception.
I had some rather fabulous hand-made shrimp raviolis, but let’s face it, today’s short entry is really all about featuring Mini Leo at dinner…
Tags: mini Leo
So it’s another year for the 4/18 Club but I’m not reporting about our annual meeting till later this week when I see Lil A for her third (where has the time gone!) birthday. Instead, today is all about a Leo for an Aries–a very special “Leo” bag that I received on Monday as an early birthday pressie. It was in the works for months because it’s not easy to find this limited edition purse from so many seasons ago, and in pristine unused condition at that!
You’ve already read here about my love affair with the larger sized Leo flaps which I’ve featured over and over…
But my collection was not complete till I found the mini Leo:
I know what you’re asking next…just how mini is this new leo? Here it is next to the 2.55 in the mini (224) size:
So yes, this Aries is all set with her Leos.
Are you tired of seeing my mug here all the time lately? I am, too, but preparing for a protracted upcoming trip has made it a bit challenging to blog too frequently these days, so these ODJs have been more or less a substitute for writing. Now speaking of long trips, I always seem to get into a rut of panicking exactly ten days prior to departure about packing the right accessories. This time it has been even more crazed because of a shoulder pain I’ve been, well, shouldering for almost 9 months now. I joke often about self-medicating but I am really trying everything out there to fix this problem without resorting to pain killers.
Then yesterday I went to see an acupuncturist. She even offered to take a picture of the needles on my leg in case I wanted to Facebook it. No, not Facebook, I muttered, but maybe for my blog 
…
I lost count of the number of needles along my body and metal stickers inside my right ear. But as I was laying there listening to her stories of the injuries she has cured, I was thinking I could be a fool for letting a stranger poke me with sharp objects. I hadn’t done any research on acupuncture, just desperate enough to get my arm and shoulder back in shape before the trip. Then my mind drifted off to other things, like how much I’m supposed to tip this person, what terms I wanted to negotiate with a client on Monday, which pairs of shoes I should pack for the trip…you get the picture. Would acupuncture work on attention deficit symptoms? Then all of a sudden, she snapped me back to where we were and asked me to wave my arm around. The pain was gone. I repeat. The pain was gone.
Call me a skeptic, cynic, atheist, Chanelaholic, any of those things. But I’m going back to see her this week for another session.
So that’s a long segue into today’s ODJ, but the story I wanted to relay was that I need to stop carrying big bags. The medium sized flap you see in today’s look should be as big as I can go and still save my shoulder, acupuncture or no acupuncture.
ODJ 250: Diane von Furstenberg wool jersey dress, Gucci heels, Chanel “Malaysian Special” flap, and South Seas pearls. I’m thinking the shoes don’t really vibe with the bag, which I think maybe should be funkier than a Chanel bag, but these shoes are so comfy I stuck with them for the event. And I wanted to use the bag for the event, so those are the breaks.
PS: love the slit pockets at the waist on this dress…
Tags: Chanel, Diane von Furstenberg, Gucci, Malaysian Special
It’s no secret to you dear readers that one of my all time favorite handbag styles is the Chanel 2.55 flap. I adore it in all sizes and finishes…
Is it about the secret compartments and hiding places…
or the engraved link chains…
or delicious quilted leather choices that draw me in, year after year?
Probably all of the above. I like the fact that it can transition from day to night, work to play.
But my number one reason for collecting this bag is that it’s always going to look both classic and modern, even 30 years from now. Looks like I’m in it for the long haul…even while patiently waiting to go orange .
Tags: Chanel 2.55 Flap
