Sunday, December 15, 2024
In June 2024 I purchased several colors of the same dress in a size medium from Amazon. At the time, the dresses were a little snug, however wearable. I purposely ordered the black dress a little snug because I knew I would be losing more weight.
I loved the way the black dress suited my body type so a week later I ordered the navy and green versions.
Earlier this morning, I tried on the black dress to see how I am progressing
with my weight loss program. I was very pleased it took little to no effort to zip the dress.
I like pairing the dress with a blazer and tried on several different styles. The blazer shown above is a Casual Corner black size 6 purchased in 1992 or so and it just so happens I have it in black, navy, and green like the dresses I purchased in June.
There are many things I can pair with these dresses so it will not seem as if it is the same dress. The new dresses are a great addition to my wardrobe.
Thursday, December 12, 2024
Only had one errand this morning, so I decided to wear my Eddie Bauer oversized sweater dress.
I normally wear the dress with a black shrug and black suede
boots, however, today I decided to go with the browns. Photo on the right
taken over 15 years ago. Also decided I liked the
Perry Ellis jacket rather than the brown suede with today's pairings.
Wednesday, December 04, 2024
I left the house around 9:00 AM this morning and finished most of my errands by 1:00 PM.
I liked the way my brown suede jacket paired with the tie blouse and my new sweater. That said, the compliment received concerned the boots.
Tuesday, December 03, 2024
The end of the year often brings a myriad of site issues I wish I did not have to address, however, I do- and this year is no exception.
On the to-do list this year is/was (updates still in progress) integrating the new universal tag version for the InMobi Consent Management Platform (CMP) resource I use on all of my sites.
The reason the updates are cumbersome is because some of the core areas of my sites are not maintained by content management systems like Wordpress or Joomla. Why? Long story that I do not wish to bore you with. The following list provides how my different site areas are maintained.
- wiredpages.qisoftware.com -- Manual
- reginadenisethomas.com -- Thingamablog
- personal.qisoftware.com -- Thingamablog
- qisoftware.com -- Manual
- realty.reginathomas.studio -- Wordpress
- hosting-q.com -- Manual
- remix.qisoftware.com -- Thingamablog
- wired-shops.com --OpenCart
- marylandbloggers.com -- Thingamablog
- reginathomas.studio -- Thingamablog
I am almost finished with this chore and have also been looking at style pairings for new and old items. What new things?
I recently posted a photo to the QiSoftware Instagram account of my new business bag.
When I first decided to move the bag from my wishlist to the cart, I had a $40 coupon I could apply. When I finally decided to hit the checkout button the coupon was no longer valid because a lot of things in my cart went on sale leaving the $40 coupon invalid. I needed to add about $10 to my cart for the $40 coupon to be applicable.
The $12 item I added to the cart to enable use of the $40 discount coupon is shown below.
I loved the unique design of the sweater, however added low profile shoulder pads and had a tie blouse that matched almost perfectly (as shown). The knit used in the sweater is heavier and the shoulder enhancements added the right padding for the weight of the sweater.
Now, why did I need a new business bag? I carried what appeared to be an expensive book bag (yes, was a very expensive gift) for many years. The straps on the bag ripped about 3 years ago and I refused to consider getting something new. I simply loved the bag.
When I found the bag shown in the photo below, I finally decided I could replace my old bag.
Needless to say, I am very happy with the new bag. I want to offer the bag in my shop however, it is not cheap and I need to do more market research. That said, it is well made.
Sunday, December 01, 2024
I have no big plans this holiday season, however, I have been thinking about holiday inventory I would have wanted for my shop. Of course, this year it is way too late in the season to try and order inventory or offer styles that are shipped directly from the source. I also have a number of legal issues which are more the reasons preventing me from stocking inventory for my shop.
That said, since most of my personal holiday shopping is complete and Thanksgiving went off without problems, today I began thinking about styles I would have wanted to offer for the holidays via my shop.
In this post, I discuss a sweater style I love which I believe is versatile enough to dress up or down. Below, I paired the slate gray version of the sweater with a jacket and fur trimmed cape, which in both cases added a more festive look to the sweater.
I love dressing up for the holidays. The styles shown in the post are more for my office holiday look, however I continue to look through my closets. I am excited about trying on my old gowns and cocktail dresses as I lose more weight.
Not sure why none of the tripod shots were in focus. Thought I used autofocus. Did not have my readers. Used one of the photos anyway to show the full length style.
Saturday, November 23, 2024
This morning, I was in a great mood because I was expecting a package containing my new 9WEST Magnett Knee High Slouch Boots in Dark Brown that I ordered on Wednesday. In total I paid about $65 (credit card rewards, coupon discount, 50% off sale) for boots that were selling for $169 at department stores.
That said I was in a great mood this morning until I learned someone used a bank debit card without authorization. I spent about 10 minutes insuring I had all the information I needed for the 30 minute phone call (mostly waiting for a customer service rep) to the bank. Someone used the card to pay $16.11 at a movie theater in Dallas, TX. The bank was very responsive in processing all of the needed actions to correct the problem. The bank rep asked if I called the police. Is that normal?
After I finished with the call to the bank, I did my hair and makeup so I could try on my new boots with different styles.
I am very happy with my new boots, however not that happy with the photos
and videos I shot modeling the outfits. Decided to use only some of the
photos.
I justified the purchase of the boots- because I often wear my brown suede jacket and the price was good. The problem? Because I am losing weight the jacket is now a little big.
Thursday, November 14, 2024
Life has been moving along. Mostly I have been preparing for a birthday and the holidays. Spending this year is not as much as in recent years, however thinking it will be a nice holiday season in any case.
Went out on Tuesday, November 12, 2024 and decided to wear a pair of 9West over
the knee boots I have never worn. Paired the boots with a long black wool
skirt, black v-neck tie blouse, and the brown sweater I have been using a lot
lately.
I am loving the new OttLite LED Wellness lamps placed in different locations around the house.
Recently, replaced the banker's lamp on my desk with one of the newly
purchased lamps.
Also taking photos of the Fall foliage in our area.
Still working on my diet, however, as noted, worried about how much I love holiday foods. Also wanted to update the progress on the new planting. Hope your holiday plans are going well.
Monday, November 04, 2024
As I lose more weight, I have been trying on more of my older clothing items. This weekend it was some of the dress coats I used to wear with business suits.
As shown in the top photo, I put on a long turtleneck dress and a pair of 9West black suede boots to shoot photos.
I miss dressing to go to the office everyday and now that things are beginning to fit again, I really miss dressing for the office. That said, I do not miss the dry cleaning bills.
Tuesday, October 29, 2024
Today, I had a non-business related meeting which did not require I leave the house. I chose to wear a pair of old military pants my sister (ex Federal Officer) gave me.
Normally, I pair those pants with my brown suede jacket and my Bass heeled boots (shown below), however today I simply put on a sweater and the sandals I normally wear around the house.
Lately, I have been working a number of software projects so in addition to my normal routines I have been busy. This the reason I have not posted as much.
Some of my recent software projects include:
Saturday, October 12, 2024
Thursday, October 10, 2024 I had a few errands to run. It was a bright sunny day with a high in the 70s. I decided to wear a pair of black slacks, one of the sweaters I was thinking about offering on WiredShops (sourcing maybe an issue), and a pair of Cognac Anne Klein's.
Today, happy an old skirt (not shown) fit, so I started trying on other items. Pulled out several of my dress coats and tried on my Romeo & Juliet Couture sweater.
I love that Romeo & Juliet sweater, however it is a little bit too foo foo for my normal style so I keep trying to convince myself I can wear it. It was a little too tight around the hips when I purchased it, however it fits now. What do you think?
Recent Purchases
Sunday, October 06, 2024
I started my weekend on Friday, with the Real Estate Coffee House Zoom meeting. Yes, I am still a Maryland licensed real estate salesperson, see resume.
Maryland laws which affect areas associated with real estate recently went into effect and I wanted to sit in and listen to some of the local experts.
After the meeting, since I did my hair and makeup, I started to try on things I recently pulled from the back of my closets. Though the charcoal sweater with the detachable fur collar is something I wear normally in the Fall and Winter months, I never wear the collar.
I purchased the sweater because of the collar, however for whatever reason
I could never find a look I liked using the collar. So Friday, I looked into
one or two things I could do to use the collar with the sweater.
Today, I pulled out more of the pencil skirts I purchased as separate pieces for the corporate workplace. Some of those skirts (black & charcoal gray wool skirts) are shown above.
Other pencil skirts I purchased like the leather and lined linen skirts shown below, were worn on weekends or on other outings. The style worked with my body type and I always liked a more conservative look for most outings. I played with color a bit more, outside of the workplace. Most of the skirts are size 6 and lined.
I am still going through my closets to see what I can wear again- because of weight loss.
Other things I took care of this weekend included updating the renewal
terms for a CD that will mature later this month, some work in the
garden, and I added to the clothes donation pile.
Some of the movies, videos, and sports events I watched over the weekend.
- Silent Witness w/Dermot Mulroney
- Hypnotic w/Ben Affleck
- Madeline Argy recent vlog
- Baltimore Ravens win over the Cincinnati Bengals
My days are pretty active, and because of this I have been able to lose more weight than normal over the last year. The activities discussed in this post are in addition to my normal routine.
Wednesday, October 02, 2024
It rained today, however I decided to go out as planned. The high in my area was about 71 degrees so I wanted a light jacket to wear with my dress.
In the illustration above, I included the prices for the items I had on. The dress is available at this link. The 14K gold earrings were a gift, however, I found an exact match and noted the $500+ price tag.
In a recent post, I provided a photo of a wool lined suit I purchased in 1983 or so in Falls Church, VA.
I paid about $50.00 for the suit at a discount center. This is not a noteworthy stat, however interesting to me insofar as how my buying habits changed after leaving the corporate workplace. Okay, my weight also played a factor.
Monday, September 30, 2024
Over the years, I have spent a lot of time in the mirror putting together business styles that worked for me. I have also purchased a great many outfits to accommodate my business world.
A type of suit that worked for me- included a tunic jacket with a matching pencil skirt. Two examples from my closet are shown below.
How am I defining tunic jacket? The jacket to the suit could be worn without a blouse underneath because it had some type of closures from top to bottom.
What I do not have in my closet is the suit shown below.
I would like to own the suit illustrated above. I know this suit will work for me in black, caramel, and the gray shown. Leave a comment if you have answers.
Thursday, September 26, 2024
The new flyer for Costco arrived Monday, and I wanted to pick up several sale items on Wednesday with the start of the new promotion.
The problem, it rained all day Wednesday. So I made plans to go today,
Thursday, September 26, 2024. Though it rained earlier in the morning it was
not raining around 11:00 AM when I left the house. Because it was steamy and
wet, I
decided to wear jeans and a sweater. Below photos taken before leaving the
house.
Below, closeup photos of the items I wore.
What is amusing about this? Before I could reach the entrance to the store I had to
pin my hair up because I had absolutely no curls left. Outside, it was like a
steam bath. You would think, I would simply pin my hair up before leaving the
house on days like today.
I managed to purchase most of the items I wanted on sale. In addition, I noticed a
bright LED OttLite being offered for $49.99. These days I need all the bright
light I can find and the lamp on display seemed to cast a bright light.
Happy to report, the lamp worked out well in the area I wanted to use it. See this link for a similar offering on Amazon.
Monday, September 23, 2024
I seldom wore or purchased sweaters to wear to the office. Three sweaters I owned before I started or early in my professional career are shown below.
On occasion, I did wear the brown sweater to the office with a long brown
plaid pencil skirt if I had no meetings planned. One of the photos below shows
the brown sweater with a dress similar in style to that of the skirt. Keep in mind I was a lot
smaller when I worked in the corporate world (resume).
When I started my small business it seemed I purchased a lot of sweaters.
This probably due to the fluctuations in my weight and working from home. Below
photos taken in October 2009 showing styles incorporating sweaters I wore back
then. Note the tweed lavender college sweater from above.
See this post for my corporate business style.
In the previous set of photos did you notice the burgundy sweater I have on in the top left photo? I like that style and since leaving the corporate world I have purchased several in the same style however different colors.
I can also change the look of the crew neck sweaters shown above- by clipping on the black velour collar shown below.
Three of the sweaters I purchased after leaving the corporate world came
with collars and are shown below.
And finally, okay yes I have purchased other sweaters, however these are the
sweaters I wanted to use for business style, I purchased the following
sweaters to wear with pencil skirts rather than a business jacket.
Why are the tags still on these sweaters? Though I love them and only paid $15.00 apiece for this designer brand, they are men's sweaters and have pockets where I need no further adornment, breast pockets. Because the sweaters are thick the pockets added too much. Now that I have lost weight, the fit is more to my liking. Purchased the sweaters over 15 years ago.
Sunday, September 22, 2024
With my recent weight loss I have looked forward to trying on old and new clothes to see how things are shaping up.
Around ten this morning, after my AM routine, I did my hair and makeup in preparation for trying on Fall fashion styles along with some of the new pieces recently acquired.
This did not go exactly as planned.
One of the old pieces, I have always wanted to wear is the brown sweater
shown in the following photos.
The problem with the sweater is not size, more, it simply did nothing for me. I purchased it from the Saks Off Fifth Avenue at Arundel Mills many years ago thinking at the time- it was more suitable for the area I lived and worked in.
Next I tried on another
sweater with the same cords and boots and liked the results better.
That said, I was annoyed about the first sweater and thought about the Mac & Cheese casserole I made Friday and finished off late Saturday. Why doesn't that sweater work for me? I look heavy.
The upshot? I did not want to try on more old Fall pieces.
So next, I tried different looks with one of the new tube tops.
This too rather annoyed me because I thought my top seemed disproportionate as compared to the rest of the look. Yes, I had on the new strapless black bra, which does have a bit of padding.
Thought the outfit looked better in the mirror than the photos I took. One of the photos shows an evening jacket that will help to correct the styling error. In my case, when I wear something like the tube top shown, I always have a jacket or shirt topper.
Friday, September 20, 2024
Yesterday, I had several errands to run and I wore something new- which worked out well with the spaghetti string camisole I wore underneath my dress.
- Banana Republic Wrap Dress (Black)
- Charlotte Russe Spaghetti String Camisole (Tan)
- Light Weight Summer Jacket
- Calvin Klein Black Patent Slingbacks
- Tan Strapless Bra (new)
- 14K Gold Button Clip On Earrings
- Timex Brass Watch
- Brass Bangle Bracelet
- Sunglasses
- Readers (I wear contacts)
I was up early, however some of the photos seem to suggest I just rolled out of bed. It was a productive day.
Wednesday, September 18, 2024
On September 9, 2024 I submitted my first order to Temu and yesterday (September 17, 2024) the package arrived. Below a redacted copy of my purchase order.
I was pleasantly surprised by the whole experience and very happy with the items I ordered. Below photos of the items I received.
What led me to try Temu? I used to own a velvet/velour corset that had hidden snaps in the back. I could pair the corset with business suits, dress slacks, or a long velvet/velour skirt I had that went with another top. The original velvet/velour skirt and top are shown below along with other top options and the new corset I just ordered from Temu.
Somehow the black velvet/velour evening top (corset) was stolen and though I have searched over the years for something similar- could never find a replacement until I ordered the new one from Temu.
No the new corset it is not velvet/velour, and not as deep in color as the one stolen. In addition, the new one zips rather than snaps in the back, however it will work for the look I want.
Examining the purchase order shows I received quite a few discounts (first time buyer), so I am not sure if the same deals are available for existing users of Temu. If you are a new user, you may be able get a good deal too, here is the Temu link.
I always loved the idea of a simple classy corset as an evening top option so when I noticed a wholesaler offering a similar style in different colors I thought about also offering them as women's accessories via WiredShops.
Still thinking about it. What do you think? Again the above tops are not the same as the new corset I ordered via Temu.
Friday, September 13, 2024
Sometimes I get questions.
- Is that hair all yours? Yes, every raggedy strand.
- Why don't you do something with that hair? I keep my hair pinned up until I have to go out or depending on the visitor. It needs color and a good cut, however hairdressers never do what I want. My hair is very thin and a hairdresser tends to want to make it very straight. I prefer more of my natural body to cover how thin my hair is. Not bald thin. Just thin.
- Why are your legs so white in coloring? Though my skin color changes from very pale on some days to a bit darker on others, for some reason my legs always seem very light. A relative once told me I had poor blood circulation. I believe I have a rare blood type like my mother's- AB negative. Not sure if this is the problem.
- Why do you dress old? These days I am old. That said when I was 20 I wore the same style suits. Classics. Did you watch the Gilmore Girls? I have always preferred Emily's style to that of her daughter's or granddaughter's on that show.
- If you are a techie, why is your style more a TV lawyer or the old Charlies Angels wannabe look? I love style and spend time and money in this area. I also like makeup. I like being a girl. When I first started my career, there were not many girls doing the same thing. There were secretaries and support staff, however I was often at the Pentagon or NAVSEA and the support staff was not. Sometimes I had lunches, meetings, travel. That said since high school I have liked what a business suit could do for me. I interned in offices in high school.
- Did you really develop all of the applications found on WiredPages and other areas of your sites? Yes.
Just a few of the old suits in my closets. Yes, some need to go to the cleaners for a good pressing.
Why am I showing you these suits? Because I wanted to show my style is the same as it was 30 years ago. Should I brag that I wear a dated look? My old style suited me and is similar to the outfit I have on in the top right photo of the series. I have a lot of business suits. I have no plans to get rid of them. The problem? The sizes. I am now beginning to fit many of my old suits.
Why don't I look like a vlogger claiming to be a software developer? Software developer roles have changed over the years. In my day, someone with my role owned the software project. Requirements definition, all areas of development, debug, documentation, and customer interaction.
These days, software developers on Youtube own a bug and they have to fix it. Then go through many levels of review to make a change. They also do not wear suits.
I do all of my own work- from soup to nuts and continue to wear suits.
Software development has changed. I like understanding the whole project. I own the project.
I love working, coming up with new business ideas, developing software applications, reading, old movies, shopping for new outfits, and tennis.
Why am I telling you I am not really an agile software developer? Because I do more, which is not really wanted in software developers anymore. Businesses do not want programmers 'owning' the software project. They cannot afford to allow one or two programmers to own the project. I own my software consulting firm.
When I have a problem with a resource I have to work out the issues. For example, Google notified me earlier this year that the Representatives API resource I use for the "Who are my representatives?" application on the WiredPages Government page will retire in April 2025. I have been researching for a new resource, and thought I had a good option, however, today I found out I need to continue searching.
Today, most developers are not required to do this type of research nor engage with outside organizations. Well not the ones on Youtube, in any case. Okay, a little annoyed I thought my problem was resolved.
Wednesday, September 11, 2024
Yesterday, before the dishwasher installer arrived I quickly snapped photos of me trying on the two sweaters and caramel jacket I recently highlighted in this post.
Unfortunately, after the dishwasher installer left, I was too upset to re-shoot the photos with a tripod and more lighting.
I like the way these pairings turned out.
I also decided the new lip color I have been playing around with, works with my new Fall wardrobe additions.
I would love to offer these items for sale, however, not sure the wholesaler would be onboard with this plan and the sizes may be problematic.
