Allison and JayZeeJay, I'm not surprised you had that idea about the Starfish trousers. Lands End has some absolutely terrible and very frumpy clothes. From here, it seems to have no idea at all about patterns but I do know that American and British clothes sense can be different.

Weight down again this morning, helped by the bold decision to remove my winter nightie when weighing myself. It weighs 1.5lbs or thereabouts.

Today, Tuesday, I will eat sensibly and not be seduced into bad ways especially if the SO and I go for a meal when we're out collecting our Christmas order from the farm. I will also (wind permitting) go for a walk on the beach near the farm. It's pebbly so that will be good for balance and general mobility. (The walk I had up the irregular and wet mountain path the other day really encouraged my back and I felt much better.)

LOL at the starfish image. My coworkers said the same thing when told them the brand name. It really wouldn't be unrealistic for seashells and anchors on pants from Lands End. I have no idea why they are called starfish pants.

I am wearing black Starfish pants today with a red sweater and black boots. They fit me well, despite the bizarre name. But I do agree, Birchie, that Land's End in general has frumpy clothes with strange and not very attractive patterns.

I eat the strangest stuff anymore, but it tastes okay to me. Romaine salad with crockpot chicken breast and chunks of roasted pumpkin I had to use up. The dressing is miso, rice vinegar, 5 grams nutritional yeast and half an avocado all mashed together with a packet of sweetener. It's actually good.

I used to buy a lot of Lands End clothes - I'm pretty much a chinos-and-oxford shirt frumpy type. The quality has declined so much in the last few years though that I don't have them in my top 5 any more - fabrics are thin, wear out way too fast, etc. They were trying to brand the Starfish line as a higher-end thing and I was tempted to give them a try and see if they learned anything from the customers like me who drifted away shortly after they made their association with Sears.

Doing well so far with the meal choices and so far, remain on target.

Becky - I stopped buying from them for a long time, and my mom did, too. The quality dropped a lot. These seem to be better.

About Lands End, I've also become disenchanted with them. But recently I did make a few dollars on eBay reselling vintage Lands End wool sweaters that have been entombed for about 15 years or more in a cedar-lined dresser in my girlhood bedroom. (I'm trying to get rid of any of my stuff still lingering in my parents' home.) Handling them and smoothing them out to be photographed for the auction listings was eye-opening. These sweaters were genuine Shetlands, made in the U.K., and the quality was far beyond anything I've seen from them lately. That was why I used to buy their clothes. Am I a snob to think the decline began with the association with Sears? Anyway, eBay buyers seemed to appreciate "vintage Lands End" in the listing and to understand what that meant.

Saef, I'm currently wearing a Lands End cashmere-blend turtleneck tunic that's about 15 years old. Still delightfully thick and cozy, not a single pill anywhere, and all seams strong and intact despite some pretty heavy wearing during the Michigan winter season. It's never seen a dryer, but I do wash it in the machine on gentle. Re the Sears snob - all I'd say about that is I'm right there with you, and that stereotypes aren't just made up out of thin air. Personally, I find it distressing to throw out worn-out clothes, and doubly so if their time with me has not been multiple years. At least our local charity office has a bin for worn or stained clothing that can't be sold or given away - they state that it goes to a "fabric shoddy" manufacturer who turns it in to padding, sound insulation, etc. I can live with that.

Yes, me too.

Some interesting nuggets in this conversation. Thanks for the US perspective.

My approach is to buy very few good quality clothes. The result is I always seem to have something in the 'dressing up box' for special occasions. What I'm not good at is everyday things. Lands End was all right for that at one point (mail order, t-shirts, chinos) about 10 years ago perhaps, but not really any more.

Weight still edging down. I can see it in my face now - I saw one of those flat planes on the cheek this morning. I'm still looking wrecked but it's a thinner version.

Chiming in on the clothing conversation. Canadian retail is a bit of a joke, has been for years. So I have been buying everything online for about 10 years now. Before that my "go-to" retailer was L.L. Bean via phone order.

Bean seemed to have the highest quality clothing that was simple, durable, and quite affordable for me. I still have shirts that I bought from them 10-15 years ago that I wear a couple of times a year. I noticed a significant decline in quality in their clothes a couple of years ago. The fabrics are much thinner, sewing is poor, and the buttons and zippers are also poor quality.

Lands' End made cheaper clothes and the quality was always poorer than Bean's. I did buy a parka from LE that I only wear on the weekends and it's going on 10 years old and still looks pretty good. I have returned the last few items I bought from them - t shirts like tissue paper, shorts that had crooked seams, etc. I will not buy anything from them now.

Which brings me to Eddie Bauer. They now make the only pants that fit me properly and are of any quality. Unfortunately with the exchange, duty, shipping, etc. I now wind up paying $140 Canadian for a pair of jeans.

So now my closet will have few clothes but ones of quality. I will have to maintain my weight within a 5-lb. range as I can't afford to constantly replace $140 pants.

Dagmar

I've been really happy with Eddie Bauer too, Dagmar. I would suggest too that you check out Duluth Trading - they cater to hardworking outdoorsy types that still need to look good.

I have too much in my closet. Every now and then I feel like I need to have a few "trendy" pieces, and occasionally I even wear one. I need to come to grips with the fact that I don't fit the consumerist mold where it comes to clothes, and just stick to the tailored basics. Period.

The Lands End Starfish trousers have arrived. They are much, much too small - despite being the same size as I previously bought. My bottom looks the worst I've ever seen it in these trousers. Back they go.

Let's hope for a mild winter and that I continue losing weight.

Peace and goodwill, everyone.

Me too - I have too many items in my closet(s). I need to find someone who can come over while I try things on and honestly tell me which things I should discard - I have very little style sense.

Birchie, you are doing so well with calorie control! I'm sending you some anti-craving rays across the ocean for the rest of the year.

I hope everyone is enjoying the holidays and finding some peace and love amid the rampant consumerism.

Dagmar, what do you think of Roots? I have had several Canadian friends tell me their clothes are well-made and more stylish than either Eddie Bauer or LL Bean. I imagine that they are also less expensive since it's a Canadian company.

I too have stopped buying things from Lands End. Pretty much as soon as they partnered with Sears, their quality dropped. They used to manufacture most of their clothes in the U.S., but when they added the increased volume from Sears, they moved much of their production to cheaper factories overseas. Worse, they were caught trying to lie about it- litigation is currently pending in California over the false "made in the USA" statements on their website.

I'm also a huge fan of online buying, though I can't trust sizing on anything form-fitting, so unless they allow free return shipping for exchanges, I won't order dresses, blouses or pants for myself. Still, even with that caveat, I go to the mall about 90% less often than I did 10 years ago. And I don't miss it, though I wish there were other ways of being among people in our suburban wasteland (I hate bars and I hate overly loud music in places where I want to converse).

Happy Christmas to any who observe it.

OK Becky, what IS that?

Yeah, what IS that? Reptile of some sort?

Dagmar