Pocketful of Joules - November Stitch Fix: Help Me Decide!

November Stitch Fix: Help Me Decide!

I can’t believe my THIRD Stitch Fix is finally here. I feel like I’ve been looking forward to this Fix as soon as I scheduled it. That’s how they suck you in, right?!

If you are interested in checking out my first two Fix’s, you can see my first Stitch Fix box here and my second Getting Warmer Fix here.

Claire styled this month’s fix and I think overall she did a really great job. It’s actually my FAVORITE Fix so far… even better than last months Fix. Which is why I really need your help in deciding what to purchase!

They updated the styling cards that come with the Fix so that now the outfit suggestions are all on one sheet of paper. I actually really like the new design because you don’t have a big laminated tag poking you while you try on the clothes. I also like that I have all the outfit suggestions in case I want to mimic any from my own clothes.

Here’s my first item, which is the only one that wasn’t a winner AT ALL. I really like the color of the shirt… but there is no way that I’d ever pay $78 for a extremely thin short-sleeved blouse. You can’t see it in this picture, but it’s so thin that you can easily see my bra. As you can tell by my face, Joules no likey and this isn’t even included in the voting.

So I need your opinion on this top. It’s a Dolman Sleeve Jersey top, which means that I kinda look like Batgirl when I lift my arms. Is this a good thing? Do I WANT to be Batgirl? I thought it looked cute as a date night top (even though I accidentally cut my head off in the picture…) and maybe for a more casual work outfit. What do you think?

I really like the feel of this sweater, but the color and shape doesn’t really do anything for me. Thoughts? The jeans are also from this Fix (also worn in the last picture) and I love the way they fit…however I JUST bought an identical pair of jeans a month or so ago.

When I pulled this jacket out of the box I was like, “UM…didn’t I JUST leave feedback on how awful asymmetric jackets look on busty girls?!” and kind of glared at it for a while. I really didn’t even want to try it on because I was convinced that I’d look like a busty heifer. I was pleasantly surprised though that when I actually tried this top on…it looks kinda cute. Right? Or am I fooling myself? I like that the two zippers on the front are working zippers, so you can wear the jacket zipped asymmetrically or straight up the middle. I think this could be really cute as a more badass version of a work suit jacket. Do you think I should buy this one?

After trying everything on with my clothes, I’m strongly considering purchasing the black and white dolman sleeve top and the asymmetric jacket. I have until Friday to make my final decisions though… which is why I’d love to know what you think. Feel free to use this snazzy voting tool or just leave your comments below.

Disclaimer: This post is not sponsored by Stitch Fix, I pay for the $20 styling fee and any clothing I purchase with my own hard-earned money. I do have a special referral link though and if you decide to click through and sign up I will receive a small referral reward. Here’s my link. So thank you for anyone who chooses to click through and support my shopping addiction.

11/21/13 Update: Thank you so much to everyone who gave feedback! I ended up purchasing the black and white BATGIRL top from this Fix. I was on the fence on the asymmetrical jacket… but after trying it on for the 10,000th time, the zipper stuck and I figured it was a sign that I should pass. I already scheduled my next fix for December and requested a holiday party dress and all fun tops!

Psssst…Do you love checking out what other people received in their Fixes? I added quick links to every single one of my reviews on my Stitch Fix Reviews page!

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Brit Kit Fun: Clay Candle Holder Kit

I haven’t blogged about Brit Kits for a few months now, so I figured I’d fix that just in time for a fun holiday gift recommendation!

I previously wrote about my Polka Dot Popcorn Party Brit Kit and then about my first Brit Co-Op Par-DIY. I loved being a part of the Brit Co-Op, but they’ve decided to take a few months off since it was getting overwhelming for some hosts to have a party every single month. I can’t wait until it starts up again though, because I LOVE having an excuse to send the boys out of the house and have some fun girlie time!

This month’s kit included everything you need to create three clay candle holders:

I followed the instructions word-for-word…check it out.

Step 1 - ball of clay — First, roll a lump of clay into a big ball. Boom. A blue ball.

Step 2 - roll out clay — Then, flatten your ball and roll it out using your votive holder.

Step 3 - on candle holder — Fit it to the outside of the votive holder and trim off the excess. Roll it around on the counter some more to get rid of any lumps or seams.

Step 4 - poke holes with stick — Decorate the votive holder — I poked some dots with the stick that came with the kit.

Step 5 - bake — After repeating the process for the other two votive holders, I baked them for 10 minutes to set the clay (it goes from being rubbery to hard).

Finished Brit Kit candles — Take a pretty picture of the finished project! So cute, right?!

I really enjoyed this kit because it was quick, it was relatively easy, and I love that I ended up with three really cute candle holders. I think that this kit could be the PERFECT Christmas gift for the tween or teen in your life – it’s crafty (which automatically makes it cool) and it’s also kind of trendy because everything Brit does is pretty much awesome. If you’re interested in this kit, it’s available on Brit + Co’s website for $19.99. And no, I’m not rewarded for recommending this to you. I just think it’s a super cute idea!

Disclosure: I was provided a Brit Kit for free as a ‘thank you’ for participating in the Brit Co-Op. I was not required to review the kit, recommend it or even blog about it at all. I just loved it so much that I wanted to share it with my readers!

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Playing with my Crock-Pot: Crackpot Chicken

A few weeks ago I decided to start using my crock-pot more often and begged my Facebook friends for some new, EASY crock-pot recipes.

Within a couple hours, I had a ton of recipes flooding in. I vowed to start trying them out and have made three recipes within the last two weeks!

Don’t worry, I’m not going to become a food blogger – I like going out to eat WAY too much for that to happen – but I will share an occasional recipe that I try out if you guys want me to.

There was really no rhyme or reason to why I decided to start with Monique Serna’s recipe…basically it only used three ingredients so I figured I couldn’t mess it up.

Ingredients:
1 package frozen boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can Rotel tomatoes

Instructions:
Place chicken in crock-pot, pour other ingredients on top. Cook on low for 8 hours. Monique suggested shredding the chicken with forks and then using it for pretty much any recipe calling for chicken, as well as chicken burritos.

For our first night’s dinner, I just shredded the chicken a little and put it on a plate with green beans and tomalitos. For the second night’s dinner we shredded it up a little more, piled the chicken on potato buns and added some BBQ sauce to the top to make sliders. Both nights were SUPER yummy and super EASY!

So a big THANK YOU to Monique for adding a yummy recipe to my rotation! And I appreciate you naming the recipe “crackpot chicken” due to the fact that I giggle when spell-check tries to change “crockpot” to “crackpot” every time I type it.

If you’d like to suggest any easy crock-pot recipes for me to try out, feel free to leave one in the comments!

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