You may have seen the clever ads featuring the always funny Ellen Degeneres during the Oscars. You may have seen the conversations on Twitter and Facebook. Or you may have been to a store and experienced it yourself. JC Penney has a new look, a new feel, and a new pricing structure. And I for one think it’s great. The fine folks at JCP gave me a gift card so I could go check it out for myself, and I was very impressed.

My goal was to refresh my work wardrobe for spring. In my mind, that means bright, vibrant colors, but I’ve been let down the last few seasons by boring neutrals and washed out shades. Not this time! I could not have ordered up a better mix of bold, fabulous hues to inject some life into my winter black. Plus, their new “fair” pricing structure was so easy to work with.  I’m not usually good at math, but even I was able to add up all of my purchases as I went along. Finally, all of the employees were so nice and genuinely happy to be there! It made shopping a real pleasure. I accomplished my goal of great spring work clothes, plus I found some very fun bonus items. Yay!

Here are my favorite finds:

My overall favorite, by far, is the fabulous Belted High-Waist Sateen Skirt by Worthington. The shape is fabulous, I love the pleat in the back, it’s available in several colors, and the price is definitely right. The green is my favorite, with the blue coming in a close second. I really like the way they have shown it in the photo, with black and white, but when I’m in a bright colors mood I will pair it with the yellow Belted Sweater below. (Worthington has another great pencil skirt available in several colors, but it was a tad too short for me. It’s still lovely though!)

Another find—the Belted Sweater Jacket, also from Worthington. It’s a great transition piece for moving from winter to spring, and will work with skirts, slacks, and dresses. I love it with the green pencil skirt above, but it would also be lovely with gray slacks and a teal blouse underneath.

This Bisou Bisou blouse is unfortunately sold out online, but definitely still available in stores. It would be fabulous on its own, or under a cardigan or suit. Plus it just feels so nice!

Even though it’s not a bright color, I love this navy-polka dot dress from American Living. It’s adorable, comfortable, will travel well, and will go with any number of fun accessories. It’s a little low for work, so I’m going to either pin it or wear a navy cami underneath. I plan to top it with my Kelly green cardigan for a fun preppy look, and it would also go well with yellow, red, pink, or purple.

Of course, I had to spend a good amount of time in the shoe section. There are a ton of fun spring espadrilles and wedges (like this adorable a.n.a. MaryAnn wedge), as well as bright heels (like this gorgeous slingback sandal from Studio Paulo). But my first love in shoes will always be flats, and my favorites by far are these color block ballet flats from Nine & Co. I love both versions, the blue/purple as well as the pink/orange. If you need a pair of neutral flats, a pretty gold-beige is also available.

Finally, I spent a lot of time in the jewelry/accessory section, and I will definitely be going back. It was hard to choose between the necklaces, earrings, and scarves….. but I finally narrowed down my favorite to this Mixit Multi-Color Bead necklace. The orange/hot pink/yellow combination will perk up any outfit!

I had so much fun visiting JC Penney, but there was so much to look at that I will have to go back! My local JC Penney is getting a Sephora right inside, which is super exciting to me (more Sephora locations=happy Road Warriorette). The easy pricing structure and fabulous selection (and the clever commercials—love that Ellen!) make the new JC Penney a big winner in my book.

As we have all probably realized by now, the airlines have figured out how to charge us for just about everything, with no plans to stop. With fewer, but fuller flights, and those a la carte fees, airlines are making more money than they’ve made in a long time, at the travelers’ expense. That makes it even more important to make sure that you are getting the best deal, and doing as much as you can to save money. CNN has a great article right now with suggestions on how to, as they call it, “outsmart” the airlines. The key takeaways:

• Check out Delta’s new Online Auction System. You can sign up ahead of time to get bumped, and it sounds like you can name your own price and see if they take it.
• Buy your tickets on Tuesday afternoon, and fly Tuesday, Wednesday, or Saturday.
• Take the earliest flight you can. This will minimize delays.
• Travel light. Not checking bags can save you over a hundred dollars round trip.

A few that I would add:

• Bring your own pillow and blanket, if you think you will need to sleep.
• Bring your own non-liquid food items. I have brought tuna kits (to eat in the hotel room, not in the plane, don’t worry!), granola bars, cut-up veggies, a sandwich, and string cheese in the past. Saves money, and helps you eat healthier too!

Good luck!!

Tis the season of sales, friends, and here is one more. The Memorial Day Sale at TravelSmith has clothing for men and women, travel accessories, suitcases, and everything else on sale. Some things I have featured here before, and am looking to scoop up at off to 60% off. Sales are so fun! Plus, TravelSmith has great clothes for travel (obviously), with easy-care, no wrinkle fabrics that are affordable and often so cute! Love these two dresses!

There was an article in the Wall Street Journal this week about airlines and discounted fares. Basically, there are a variety of different ways to sign up to hear about the discounts airlines are offering.  You can follow them on Twitter, sign up for email alerts, or, in the case of Southwest, download their Ding! tool. Deals range from buy one get one free, to percentages off total fares, to hugely discounted fares to and from certain cities. So if there is an airline you prefer, make sure you sign up! Or heck, sign up for all of them! We can all use some cheaper travel right?