The Gabriela Duster by Soft Surroundings & Spread The Kindness Link Up On the Edge #802
I have a few confessions. I am a shopaholic. I love clothing and accessories. I am a maximalist when it comes to personal style. And I am susceptible to advertisements featuring beautiful apparel…especially when said apparel is on sale.
I honestly can’t remember where I first saw the ads for Soft Surroundings but I suspect it was on some social media platform. Social media seems to be overrun by ads these days. I generally find this overabundance of advertisements rather annoying. And then an ad for this gorgeous Gabriela Duster in a Peacock Paisley print popped into my life.
The duster length, the mixed prints, and the stunning color palette immediately grabbed my attention and yelled in my ear, “You know you want me!”
Duh. Of course, I want you. You are everything that speaks to my bohemian soul.
So I clicked the ad. As appealing as the coat was to me, the price tag of $139.95 was not as appealing. Although I don’t have a problem paying that price for a unique statement piece of high quality, I really don’t need another darn thing in my wardrobe!
So I waited. And I watched.
It didn’t take long. A few days, maybe a week or two. That ad popped up again with a reduced final sale price of $49.97. I did not hesitate to hit the “add to bag” button. And in true Shelbee fashion, when my total was below the free shipping threshold, I added two more things to my cart…the Hana 3/4 Sleeve Open Front Satin Topper ($119.95 on sale for $39.97) and the Scarlet Serenity Long Knit Topper ($219.95 on sale for $59.97).
After I placed my initial order, I received a new customer discount code for 20% of my next purchase. I was inclined to save the discount code for a while before purchasing yet another unnecessary article of clothing but the code had an expiration date only two weeks into the future. And I did have my eye on the Noelia TENCEL™ Duster which was on sale for $99.97 from $319.95. So with my new customer discount and a free shipping code, I ordered it for only $83.18.
My husband and I are going to a concert tonight in Saratoga Springs and I will be wearing my new Noelia duster. The pictures on the Soft Surrounding website actually don’t do any justice for this piece. The details are exquisite and I am really excited to style it with my newest cowgirl boots, the Old Gringo Women’s Eagle Western Boots. I have actually been stalking these boots for a few years, never expecting them to go on sale with a price low enough for my taste. Then a few weeks ago, Country Outfitter was having a major sale on select boots and I was able to snag these up for a grand total of $229.48. In case you don’t have a calculator on hand, that is a savings of $481.51. Their original retail price is $710.99 and they are currently on sale for $424.97. I am so glad I bought them when I did!
But I digress. Let me get back to the Gabriela Duster. She, too, is not justly represented in the product photos. The craftsmanship is impeccable, the colors are so pretty, and the jacket is much heavier than I anticipated, making it even better for my cold weather wardrobe.
Yes, it is April. And yes, it is still snowing here on occasion. This is not an extraordinary occurrence. It is, in fact, very ordinary weather for this time of year in the North Country. Yet, every year at this time, I get so frustrated with the cold and the daily precipitation.
By the way, I recently discovered that my region of the United States experiences the highest number of days with precipitation in the entire country. We have rain or snow approximately 170-180 days every year. And I need my wardrobe to match my climate.
This Gabriela Duster does just that. It is springlike in its color and peacock paisley print but it is conducive for cold weather due to its length and heavier weight.
For Gabriela’s first public appearance, I wore the same monochromatic olive green base outfit that I styled with my Peregrine Eagle Cardigan Sweater including my green floppy felt hat. I stepped out of my cowgirl boots and into my old trusty brown BedStu boots and switched up my accessories to include my ivory clay earrings, my wooden owl necklace, my white thrifted butterfly tassel necklace, my Shelbee mala, and a newly thrifted floral scarf which coordinated perfectly with the duster.
I am absolutely, 100%, totally, and completely in love with this duster and I can’t wait to style it with different colors. However, I am hoping that the weather will be too warm soon enough and I’ll have to put old Gabriela into summer hibernation mode!
For your information, all of these Soft Surrounding pieces are still on sale and available in a wide range of sizes.
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I do love shopping end of season sales even if I don’t get much wear immediately. However, due to my climate, I often get a month or more to style my season-end clearance purchases. Do you like to shop the end of season sales?
Keeping it on the edge,
Shelbee
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
I am a midlife woman, wife, and stay-at-home mother of 2 boys and 2 cats. I have a passion for helping other women feel fabulous in the midst of this crazy, beautiful life.
16 Comments
Suzy Turner
Shelbee, I’ve always known that we are alike but after reading this, I know we are even more alike and true soul sisters lol! I, too, wait for the sale prices and then add things to the cart until the shipping is free!! My friends always laugh at me for that! But it just makes sense, right?! lol
You look beautiful as always, and I LOVE LOVE LOVE the Gabriela duster and I can totally understand why you had to have it. I’d have been the same. I also love the boots. You got some real bargains there!
OMG Saratoga Springs!! We stayed there once. Unfortunaely, Michael got food poisoning whilst there, so we only managed to spend a few hours perusing the area but I loved it. It was such a gorgeous place—it was the middle of winter so was freezing. If I’d have known you then, I would have called you to come down and meet me while Michael was sleeping off the sickness!!
I hope you had an amazing time!
Big hugs,
Suzy xx
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Aw, Suzy, thanks so much! I have so much stuff in my closet that I likely will never “need” something new ever again so I have the time and patience to watch and wait for the best sales. Plus it’s a really fun hobby, don’t you think?! LOL Saratoga Springs is a really beautiful place. We are going to a concert there but staying about 30 minutes away in Lake George which is equally beautiful but a bit smaller with less stuff to do. That is so awful that Michael got food poisoning in Saratoga! What a terrible memory to have a place! If we had known each other then, I would have totally come to meet with you! It’s about a 3 hour drive from my house….but I will drive that far to see far away friends! I hope you have a lovely weekend, my friend.
xoxo
Shelbee
Cat
I don’t have the chance to wear dusters, so I just have a black velvet one myself (it must be 25 years old now), but this one is really beautiful!
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
A vintage duster! That’s even better than my new ones! It sounds like a lovely piece that is withstanding the test of time. Do you get the chance to wear your black velvet one at all?
xoxo
Shelbee
Cat
I don’t get out much anymore, so I hardly wear it, but it’s one item I would never get rid of simply because I love it so much.
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
I have lots of pieces like that. I don’t get out much either so every time I leave my house for any reason, I view it as an opportunity to get dressed up! I am usually way over dressed for the occasion but I don’t care. LOL
xoxo
Shelbee
Di
Shelbee, that is an exquisite duster and goes very nicely with your boho style! I can see why you could not resist it! The outfit you created is so harmonious, the new piece fits perfectly into your existing outfit. Thanks for sharing and hosting the link up and hope you have a good weekend!
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Di, thanks so much, my friend! I have so many of these beautiful long statement toppers and still I just can’t seem to get enough! I just love them so much! I hope you have a wonderful week ahead.
xoxo
Shelbee
Marsha Banks
May I ald my name to the soul sister duo? I always wait for sales and use points on my credit card to usually get things for pennies! I absolutely love end of season sales, but I hate the clearance racks at department stores. They’re so sad and shabby around here. The clothes just seem to be saying, “Please take me home and love me.”
This duster is gorgeous! I have been in a Soft Surroundings store, and they are just gorgeous! Sometimes, I think their stuff looks a bit mumsy in the stores because of what they’ve grouped together. Online (and obviously IRL), the clothing is unique and striking. I love this green column underneath the duster, but, gosh, you could go so many different ways with columns of colors underneath.
Speaking of bargains…you really got one on those Old Gringo Boots. That’s my dream brand…well, that and Fluevogs. But, I have this feeling I couldn’t get them on because my Frankenfoot just doesn’t bend very well. And, getting them off would be worse than giving birth! Thanks, my friend, for the link up!
https://marshainthemiddle.com/
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Yes, please, add your name, soul sister! Can you imagine how much fun we would have shopping together?! I agree that some of the Soft Surroundings stuff is a bit mumsy but their duster game is totally on point! And the quality is just so good. I love Old Gringo boots but my newest boot fascination is Black Jack Boots. Jeff and I were in Saratoga Springs this weekend and we went to the Saratoga Saddlery for some boot shopping. I did not buy the boots I really wanted because they are $1700 but I am going to start saving for them! I ended up getting a pair of much needed muck boots for $200 instead. LOL And I am still on the hunt for some purple ones!
xoxo
Shelbee
Nancy
I think you are the duster queen! No one wears it better then you do. It’s a beautiful one! Funny, we don’t ever see those here online or in shops. I hope you had a fabulous date night!
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
I accept that title of Duster Queen! LOL It is funny that you don’t see them very often in your region and I can find them just about everywhere these days. It used to be difficult to find a good duster or kimono in a thrift store but this week I went thrifting with my mother-in-law and they had an entire section of just dusters. I bought almost every one of them!
xoxo
Shelbee
nicole orriens
I can imagine it’s no fun having snow in April. Especially since it’s officially Spring. At the same time I love winter, and in a way I kind of like the snow ; )
And thank you so very much for featuring my post Shelbee. I really appreciate it!
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Thank you so much, Nicole! It was my pleasure to feature your post. I kind of don’t mind the snow in November, December, January, and February but once we get to March I am done with it! Four months should be enough for snow but around here we get it for 8-10 months! In the 13 years that I have lived here, I have seen snow during every month except July and August.
xoxo
Shelbee
Laura Bambrick
Such a gorgeous piece! That Gabriela duster is such a statement—it adds so much movement and personality to the outfit. I love how you styled it in your signature bold, creative way.
shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com
Laura, thank you so much. What a lovely compliment! This duster really is special. I am definitely going to get a lot of wear out of it.
xoxo
Shelbee