Thursday, August 5, 2010

Ann Taylor Charmeuse Ruffle Blouse

I'm working nights again this week which means that after working, sleeping, and eating, I only have about an hour of "free" time so not a whole lot of time to blog.  But here's a quick review of the Ann Taylor Charmeuse Ruffle Shirt in 00P:


I've been looking for a center ruffle blouse that I can wear with a pencil skirt and cardigan.  I wasn't expecting too much since the only Ann Taylor blouses I've tried on are always too big.  But I think this one works!


Untucked, it's still on the long side, but looks better tucked in:


Here's a closer look at the ruffles:


I really like how it layers underneath a cardigan:


The fit is pretty good for a non-zippered item.  The armholes and neckline are appropriately placed.  Initially I thought the material was silk, but it turns out to be a mix of polyester and spandex (but is machine washable!).  It's not a big deal to me, I do wish it was cheaper.

The biggest issue for me is color.  I had a really hard time trying to get it to show up on the pictures, because the purple is so deep it's almost black looking.  The blouse does also come in teal as well as an animal print which I'm not sure I can pull off... I'm still not sure what color I should get:


In the pics, I was also wearing the Ann Taylor Perfect Leather Pumps and the Perfect Skinny Belt, both in Porcini.  The pumps are really nice, but slightly too big in size 5.5.  The belt is also too loose, but that's no longer a problem now that I've found the leather hole puncher!  I'm curious though about what everyone thinks about matching belt and shoes.  Does it pull the outfit together or is it too matchy-matchy?

25 comments:

  1. I think you pulled the outfit together pretty well. As far as your top, it fits you pretty decent. Teal is my favorite out of the 3 colors. The purple is nice too but it's kinda plain (it almost looks like black in the pictures). I am glad you found something that fits you.

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  2. I thought it was black too! I agree with PetiteLG - I like the teal.

    It fits you really nicely!

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  3. It does look fab tucked in and under a cardigan! I love ruffles too. I like both the other colors.. but the animal print would be super fun and could be toned down w/black skirt+cardigan so that only a little bit is peeking out. The teal would look great by itself with no sweater.

    Heh being the cheapskate that I am, I'm planning on getting a couple of these http://www.forever21.com/product.asp?catalog_name=FOREVER21&category_name=21_items&product_id=2000000464&Page=all. Surprisingly silk (prob the lowest quality silk but hey!).

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  4. OMG I'm so sad :( Just saw that the tank I linked is only avail in Large.. in all 3 colors :(((

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  5. I am totally in love with ruffles, love the cascading kind on you too! It looks great tucked under the pencil skirt that you are wearing, for a second there I thought it was a dress lol. I personally like royal purple but the teal one might be more versatile.

    I don't think it is too matchy, matchy with the shoes and belt! Nude pumps + belt is never a bad thing in my book.

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  6. The outfit looks very pulled together in my opinion. The color is a personal choice. I think both colors are very pretty. I would use black pumps instead of nude, but that's just me. The top "is" kind of expensive. I thought it was silk too. I can't believe they can charge $78 for polyester. Not liking that.

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  7. sophia - That IS pretty! Too bad all the small sizes are gone... maybe we can find them in store? But finding one shirt in a F21 store is like a looking for needle in a haystack :(

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  8. Very nice! I like it paired with the skirt and cardigan a lot.

    If you need a size 5 in those shoes...I just so happen to be returning a pair to our local AT. We can plan a co-vert return/buy operation if you're interested.

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  9. Matching shoes and belt is a staple! Definitely not a faux pas. It's classic. :)

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  10. Whoaa...LOVE this ensemble! The blouse is long, but it looks wonderful tucked in and esp. under that cardigan. I agree with Jen - matching shoes and belt is classic. Matching everything is faux pas. Darn, I should have told you about the shoes. I need between a 5 & 5.5 in those pumps, but I got a 5 and stretched it out with newspaper. Thankfully AN has them in a 5...so jealous you guys may get to meet face to face!

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  11. I REALLY like this outfit you put together. The Loft cardigan looks like a boyfriend cardi on you, which is nice! The color goes so well with black. Now I'm convinced that I'm keeping it :).

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  12. Great outfit! Matching belt and shoes is a definite 'DO' in my book! My fave is the teal. It makes a statement all on its own.

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  13. that blouse looks awesome on you! i think it fits quite well and flatters :) yay for ruffles!

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  14. I think it's super cute!! I also love the animal print one :) you could pull it off as long as you went very neutral with everything else!

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  15. The whole outfits look very lovely - great color coordination. I really love your ruffle blouse - you make me want to get one really bad now!

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  16. I bet the teal would look lovely on you.

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  17. the blouse is so pretty...i love it in all color esp the animal print. im crazy about animal. HEEHEE

    definitely better tucked in also!

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  18. I vote for teal! :D

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  19. I think you should go w/ teal - the color pops more :]

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  20. Forgot to comment on color. I personally love the animal print, but amongst the two colors I would go for the purple because it matches your loft cardigan : )

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  21. I really like the purple ruffle blouse and how you paired it with the pink cardigan! I am definitely a fan of the purple over the choices. And I also agree that the porcini pumps and belt together are classic rather than too matchy matchy. I also bought the porcini pumps in 5 but unfortunately they were a tad too narrow for my feet. I'm still searching for the perfect pair of nude pumps.

    By the way, is the skirt you're wearing from Ann Taylor as well? I love that it has belt loops!

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  22. Thanks everyone for the nice comments and color picks. Hopefully it'll go on sale so I can get both and THEN choose :P

    AN - Lol... sounds like a spy mission or something! Let me know when you return yours so I can go try them on (Westside Pavilion?). Don't think we can do it at the same time because one time in line I heard a customer argue with the SA about wanting to "return" an item and then immediately re-buy it at the sale/clearance price. They didn't let her re-buy and cited some standard restocking period policy.

    PAG - I think the pink cardigan does complement the dark purple really well but I was afraid that it wouldn't be very versatile if that's the only thing I can wear it with!

    PetiteGorgeous - So you got the LOFT cardigan too? I'm curious to see how it fits on you.

    R.L. - The skirt was actually tailor-made for me in Asia. I wasn't into skirts back then so I only had one made... BIG mistake! I want to go back and go crazy with the custom tailoring! :)

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  23. How classy!! I love the whole ensemble with the belt and shoes! I just got the porcini's in a size 5! I hope they fit otherwise I'll be super bummed!

    I like the top tucked in...I don't know why they make their shirts so wide on the bottom - especially for petites...strange!

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  24. i share you petite ladies' pain when it comes to skirts, shorts, pants, shoes. gahh it is very frustrating!

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  25. If you are open to having a guest blog poster please reply and let me know. I will provide you with unique content for your blog, thanks.

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