It’s old news, right? The Nordstrom Anniversary sale has been going on for WEEKS, and all the bloggers and YouTubers and Instagrammers have shown you all the same items. Literally. I’ve read and watched them all for years, and I find it fascinating that they all highlight the exact. same. items.
And this year all you got from me was crickets. Why? Because I didn’t see anything all that great that I wanted to showcase. I have a shopping list I work from, and they didn’t seem to have anything I was looking for, and there wasn’t anything that I thought was so special I needed to tell you about it. But then I did find a few things worth buying, so I’m sharing before the sale ends. I haven’t seen most of these items shared anywhere else.
Why is the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale Such a Big Deal?
It’s the one sale where all the NEW stuff is on sale. This isn’t clearance from last season, this is brand new fall stuff that has never been seen before, and it’s up to 40% off. For me the best buys are the high dollar items, the things that that never go on sale. That’s where the real savings are.
This year I looked online and didn’t see anything that got my heart a-poundin. I went to the downtown Nordstrom location and saw a few things that were good, but nothing that made me pull out my Nordstrom card.
A couple weeks later I went to a different location and found some necessary-but-not-exciting items that I bought, 2 things that I like, and 2 things that made me go weak in the knees. I had passed them by online as I scrolled through, but when I saw them in person, I gasped. Then I swooned. Then I grabbed a sales associate.
If you’re a member of the Stunning Style Society, you’ve already seen these items in my unboxing videos. The Stunning Style Society is an exclusive Facebook group for women who have bought a Stunning Style Wardrobe Guide, and they get extra content that never shows up on the blog. That’s just one of the perks.
Necessary-But-Not-Exciting Items
Pretty much everyone can use some smoothing under certain clothes, and I am no exception. I find this to be particularly true under certain dresses. I’ve been needing some Spanx for just such occasions, and haven’t gotten around to it. During the sale they are heavily discounted, so I grabbed a pair of these. They give you a smoothed, lifted, and sucked in silhouette. I wore these everyday when I had a diastasis, and they saved my pride. I’ve also worn 2 of these and a pair of control top pantyhose shortly after having a baby when I had to slip into the only cocktail attire I owned. I wasn’t buying an expensive new dress to fit a body I knew wasn’t staying. They are miraculous.
Another thing no one gets excited about spending money on is bras. Boo. No one wants to brag about or show off their new bras. But here’s the thing, good bras make everything else you wear look SO MUCH BETTER. If you’ve had kids, it matters even more to keep the girls up and in place. It’s like the cheapest breast lift ever.
I was in need of some new ones, so I went to check out what they had. I wanted something nude colored and invisible under my clothes. I found my favorite bra ever! The color is absolutely perfect for me, and it completely disappears under a white tee. I mean it’s so stealthy, so invisible, it looks like I’m 20 years old, and I’m wearing nothing. It’s also very comfortable.
I had a Nordstrom bra specialist measure me, and I was SHOCKED at the size they picked. Just like other clothes, each brand of bra runs differently, and I came down 2 band sizes and went up 2 cup sizes (because that’s how it goes when you move between bands sizes, you have to adjust the cup size). But the brand I had on was Wacoal, and that brand runs small. So I was wearing the right size in the bras I had, it just didn’t translate to the brand I was buying. If you can get measured there, DO IT. They are awesome. Wearing the right bra in the right size is life-changing.
THE GOOD THINGS I BOUGHT
Trends are changing. Statement necklaces and stud earrings were the thing (and my thing) for quite a while, and I amassed quite a collection of stabby studs. Now it’s all about delicate necklaces, layered or not, and statement earrings, and I’ve been loving it. I bought these stud earrings, and I love them, but I don’t know if I’ll keep them, because I’ve been loving statement earrings lately. I have gads of studs, and I’m not sure I need another pair. If you saw my how to dress edgy classic post, this brand is one that I discovered in the last year and have been LOVING. So while I love these earrings, I’m not sure I’m keeping them because I haven’t been wearing studs much
If you’ve been reading here long, you know I’ve been working on dressing for my body type, which is pear-shaped. I’ve been looking for slightly a-line skirts in specific colors, including red. I ordered this one because the shape and color are fantastic. It’s a little too short in the back for me, so I ordered one size up to see if I can get some more length. It hasn’t arrived yet, so fingers crossed. I love that the placket is stitched shut so there is no gaping or pulling.
If the size up is long enough, the last thing I have to decide on is how I feel about those round buttons up the middle. I mean, buttons are often round, but that row of big circles feels very cute classic, which I am not. What are the chances I could find red square buttons to replace them with? I can’t just remove them because there are faux button holes underneath them. I really love the color and fit. If the length is right, I’ll worry about the buttons then.
THE HEART-STOPPING SPLURGES
These two items are heart-stopping for 3 reasons. First, the sheer beauty of them is enough to bring a tear to my eye. The second reason you might need a defibrillator is the price tag. Even though they are significantly discounted right now, they are still quite pricey. For me the Nordstrom sale is for buying these types of items because the savings are so great.
The third reason this item is heart-stopping is because one of them is outside of my normal color palette. Ever since I switched to a bold winter color palette, I’ve felt so at home and comfortable, and I’ve looked my best, but I’ve also been missing something. The neutrals in a bold color palette are black, white, navy, and silver. Since I love to wear all neutral outfits quite often, I’ve been missing a mid-tone neutral. I don’t want to just wear black and white or navy and white. I want another middle color. I’ve felt so discontent in this area the whole time. I’ve discussed this with the stunning ladies in the Stunning Style Society, and I’m not alone.
When I wrote the soft classic post I noticed that Mary Orton wears camel and cognac with her neutrals and her bold colors, and I think it’s beautiful. I have always loved those colors. I wouldn’t wear them by my face because I think they would wash me out, but to mix in as leather accessories, it’s exactly what I wanted. I mean, it’s skin-colored. How can that be wrong?
I get so bored of only wearing black boots with my dark-wash jeans for half the year. I want some contrast, but I’m not wearing white boots either. I spent the last 3 winter looking for bold red, true burgundy, and cobalt boots, but they always felt clownish on me. I also love certain browns with bold colors, especially red. I always have. In college I had a pair of cool, saturated chocolate brown pants that I wish I still had. They looked amazing with a bold red top.
I recently ordered $3000 worth of boots on Zappos looking for the exact right color. It needed to be cool, but not dusty, saturated, but not golden. None of those boots were right. Then when I was in the store returning a pair of brown boots I had ordered from Nordstrom online, I SAW THEM. They were perfect. And expensive. And so well made. I had the budget for them, so I decided they were a worthy splurge because I will wear them ALL THE TIME this fall and winter. And the next year. And the year after that.
My choice to add in brown leather accessories doesn’t mean you need to. If you aren’t feeling that loss of a middle neutral, then don’t do it. It’s a personal choice that feels right in my wardrobe. I’m not going to include brown in any of the Wardrobe Guides, so don’t worry about that.
I love the color of these. I love the little stud details (which I may or may not try to paint silver). The heel height is perfect for me. The leather is so gorgeous (and sourced from the same supplier that Gucci and Prada use, according to the sales associate). They also have a supportive orthotic insole that makes them very comfortable. I’m so smitten.
Then I was so completely in love with the brown ones, I decided to get the black pair as well. I have a pair of black boots I wore and wore and wore last year, and they are so good, but there are 2 problems with them. First, they are half a size too big. I loved them so much in the store, but they didn’t have my size, so I convinced myself that I would be fine in a half size too big. Maybe I’d wear super thick socks. But I’m not, and I didn’t. They don’t fit right. My feet slide all around in them.
The other pair of black boots I have don’t fit the top of my foot right. Because my arches are so high, the top of my foot is also very high, and that is something I struggle with in shoes in general. These boots are so tight on top of my foot sometimes my feet go tingly or numb. It doesn’t feel great, so I don’t like to wear them.
The second problem is since I only wear bootcut jeans, most boots look the same poking out from underneath. On a lot of boots, the interesting details are either on the heel or the shaft, the two parts you DON’T see in bootcut pants. So the amazing moto detailing on the first pair is completely hidden, and the super shiny exposed silver zippers on the other are hidden. I love that the stud detail on the new boots is visible around the edge of the sole, that it’s silver, and that it’s subtly edgy.
It doesn’t show as much in the pictures, but these boots have a high shine finish to them, which makes them even better. The boots run true to size for me. I bought my normal size 6.
Since I have a pair of brown boots, I need a brown belt (and maybe a brown bag?). Matching the color won’t be easy. I found this one, and the shoe sales associate said their shoe shine guy might be able to match it to the boots. It hasn’t arrived yet, but in the picture it looks really close. I will have to paint the hardware silver. Fingers crossed this one works because it’s reasonably priced, and I would love to nail it on the first try.
This bag isn’t available at Nordstrom (or anywhere that know of), butI have been drooling over it since Pinterest was invented. I think it’s one of the very first things I pinned. I love the diamond shape and the color of the bag. It’s too big for what I like to carry now, but something like this would be perfect for me. I’ll be on the lookout.
Are you shocked by my purchases? Do you miss having a mid-tone neutral in your bold wardrobe? Did you find anything amazing at the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale? Tell me about it below!
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