May 11, 2014 by gn0mel0ver

In The Queen’s Rose Garden

I snuck away to a rose garden the other day to take some pictures of my new Frangipani Peasant Top. I kept my eyes peeled for a Cheshire Cat, but in doing so stumbled and fell.

Just call me Tweedledum-b.

I had no idea that Frangipani was a flower until sweet Liana from The Frock and the Hound commented yesterday on my giveaway stating it was her favorite flower. I looked it up and found that Frangipani is actually Plumeria. Who knew? Well, I guess Liana did. ; )

I had purchased the Frangipani Peasant Top (sold out, kind of similar Forever 21 version here and slightly similar plus size option here) during the additional 20% off sale items and received free shipping through a store. I was unsure about it, because it was so expensive. But it was like nothing I had ever seen before. I am a sucker for baggy clothes. Especially baggy clothes with floral and crocheted lace.

I was ignorantly calling it, “Fran-ja-pan-neeee,” with a deep Southern twang around my house. Having no clue of its definition, I just thought it was a fun word to say. And whisper in my husband’s ear.

He loved that.

We went to the local rose garden to take pictures. I felt like Alice wandering through The Queen’s Garden. Except instead of falling down a rabbit hole, I fell into the cactus behind me. I, of course, would manage to fall into the only cactus in the entire rose garden. I did not say, “Frangipani!”, when I fell. Although, now that I think about it, that would be a great exclamation. Certainly more appropriate than what I probably said.

I love my new Anthropologie Scalloped Monogram Bracelet that I wore that day. I have two of them. One with my initial and the other with my husband’s. I cannot wait to pair them together.

The roses are gorgeous right now. It was nice to see blooms with this drought going on. It is such a peaceful place. Each time I am there, there is no one else visiting. They must be scared of The Queen.

I even wore my Rabbit Earrings to sneak through the garden. If you will notice, the rabbit has two different colored eyes. Kind of like a certain Mad Hatter. You don’t think this is the secret love child of The Mad Hatter and The White Rabbit do you?

If it is, you know I will love them even more. Does that make me mad?

Do you have a rose garden near you? Be sure to visit it soon. The best blooms will be gone in three weeks. And with them, any chance to visit Wonderland or the opportunity to yell, “Frangipani!” at a cactus. And that would be a shame to miss.

*The links in this post are affiliate links. Clicking on a link will result in a small commission for ~~Alice~~ this site.

P.S. Happy Mother’s Day to all of the moms out there. I was lucky enough get to see my sweet mom yesterday. It was so nice. I love you Mom!

And I shared this on The Pleated Poppy!

And Because Shanna Said So

April 23, 2014 by gn0mel0ver

Hippie At Home

I know I promised pictures of me not in front of my fireplace (Sunday, I have some outdoor outfit pictures to post) , but I wanted to show what I look like on a day when I am kicking back at home. And I actually have clothes on and not pajamas.

Wrinkled. Shoeless. Beltless. Happy. Cooking.

I knew the moment I took my apron off, I was going to get flack from my husband. You think he would not give the woman making him his favorite meal grief, but you would think wrong. ; )

You see, he hates long denim skirts. Hates them. And, well, I… I love them!

So, never the two shall meet.

But I wanted to share my Forever 21 Peasant Top that I adore. And I thought it fit perfectly with my Citizens of Humanity Aja Skirt I purchased from a seller on eBay last year. I had it tailored for my body, so I know it fits the way it is supposed to… Big!

Here is the commentary coming from my photographer as I tried to smile for the camera:

“That skirt is ginormous!”

I was not phased.

“That skirt is Duggarific!”

An explanation of this word my husband gleefully made up, derives from one of my favorite shows on t.v., “Nineteen Kids And Counting” (their last name is Duggar. I love the Little House On The Prairie vibe to it even though their lifestyle and choices are very far from mine). My husband is sometimes ~~trapped~~ in the room when I watch the show. The women all wear long skirts. A lot of the time they are denim, because they do not wear pants. Or short skirts.

This brings this question to my mind, “If a long denim skirt is the opposite of sexy, how the heck did they have nineteen kids?”

Hmmmmmm.

“Be careful, you might expose your ankles!”

To which I did this.

And then this.

Yep. It was a typical day in the Gnome Lover household. And this model is going to go add a little something extra to that meat on the stove.

Just kidding. That little somethin’ would just be love. My husband and I have a good time. Just don’t tell him that.

Do you have an item in your closet your partner does not like? Do you wear it anyway? Do you wear shoes at home?

* Please excuse my wild hair! It was a day at home. And, yes, I see that hair brush on my fireplace. It is my daughter’s. It never occurred to me to use it. ; ). It’s hard to think when you’re bein’ heckled.

April 15, 2014 by gn0mel0ver

Anthropologie Spring Reviews Part IV

This is going to be my last set of reviews for awhile. I overdid it. I broke my shop box. Tore my dressing room nerve. Split my trying-on-gene in half.

Yesterday, I showed you some pretties. And, they were pretty. And I liked them a lot. But today is where my heart is. Today is the day I show… Well… You’ll see:

Do you recognize this Midday Dress? How could you not? I have been wearing pretty much nothing else for a week. If you missed it, you can see me wearing the dress here and here.

I know by now that in the Puella brand I always take a medium. This was found by trial and error. I love this brand. They create flattering silhouettes for women at a decent price in comfortable fabrics. What’s not to love?

I purchased this dress on sale. And I love it!

They only had a large in the Sunpass Dress. I have admired this dress online for awhile. I tried it on anyway. I will need a small in this dress. If I remember correctly, it was not lined. I just remember it being an incredibly thin material. Very light. Very pretty.

I believe this dress will look amazing on the more voluptuous gal. I cannot wait to see many women rock this dress.

Lovely dress that remains on my wishlist hoping for a great sale price.

The Stripe Swing Tunic Dress is another dress by Puella. It just came out. It is expensive for what it is. I love it. I mean I love this dress so much I want to cry.

I am wearing a medium in the picture. I love the way this dress flows. I am a sucker for grey and white stripes. They are everywhere in my house. I might as well match my interior.

I did not purchase this dress that day. I went home and thought about it. And thought about it. And when I was still dreaming of this dress a week after these pictures were taken, I ordered it and one other lovely below.

My soul is happy. Even the broken review parts.

This little number is the other item I ordered. It is currently on sale for approximately half off. It is so fun. Surprisingly flattering. At first I was hesitant due to the length, but I love it. The blue is so vibrant and gorgeous. I wear the Caravane Tunic Dress with silver flat sandals now. (These to be exact). I have a fun outfit post featuring this dress going up next week. In the wintertime, I will wear this with black leggings and booties. This is probably my favorite closet addition in awhile. It is a good sale price. It is mostly sold out online, but if you call customer service you might still be able to snag one.

When I was entering the dressing room, another gal was exiting. She had the Galen Dress in her hand. She was purchasing it. I got excited to try it on in the dressing room. I generally find that shirtdresses do not do much for me. It is just not my favorite style of dress.

This dress was cute. This is a size small. It fit well. It is short. The pattern is pretty. And so is the color. Again, this is a great style of dress for all women’s body types.

My husband liked this dress a lot. But I did not like how much of my side thigh was showing. Who does this dress think it is? Humboldt Tunic? Although my broken fitting room soul was not havin’ it, it is a nice easy little number.

This dress was a pass for me, but I think on the right person, it will be lovely.

I tried on the flower patterned version of the Caravane Tunic Dress I purchased, as well. It was a medium and too big, but I did like it. If I had not all ready fallen head over heels for the blue version and my heart had not been hurt from contracting the fatal shopping bug, I might have loved this. As it was, it was a “no” for me.

I am on the fence about this West End Top. It is a medium. I bought it, but I have not worn it. I am 99% sure I am taking it back. I am not sure if it is the size (maybe I need a small), but I am thinking it is not all that flattering on me. I love the rust color. It is gorgeous. The hem is such a cool idea. It is a reasonable price. But… I don’t know. I might reconsider in a different size at a sale price, though. What do you think? I need help with this one.

* Update 5/11/14: I ended up keeping The West End Top because I found a fun way to wear it here.

Thus, my reviews are concluded. I am happy to report my shopping wounds are being tended to. It makes it so much easier when your bandages are beautiful clothes.

It is going to be a ~~ridiculous~~ recovery.

And, yep, still hot in the dressing room. You can see the start ~~and the end~~ of the illness here.

What is on your wishlist this spring? Are you happy or bored with this season’s fashions?

More of my more recent reviews can be found here:

Anthropologie Spring Reviews Part I

and

Anthropologie Spring Reviews Part II

and

Anthropologie Spring Reviews Part III

and

Free People Spring Reviews

Whew! No wonder I’m sick of the dressing room!

April 14, 2014 by gn0mel0ver

Anthropologie Spring Reviews Part III

Part three? How could this be? That seems crazy. But part four goes up tomorrow, so this is just proof that however crazy something seems, it can always be crazier.

You don’t have to tell that to my husband. He all ready knows ~~lives with~~ that.

I loved pretty much everything I tried on in both sets of reviews I show in the next few days. Anthropologie really did it right this season. I could not say no to quite a few lovelies.

This means I have made a pretty little chant for my family at dinnertime.

“What’s for dinner?”

“Top Ramen!”

“Who do we thank?”

“Our momman!”

I’m still workin’ out the kinks on that one. They don’t seem to like it too much. I can’t tell if it is the meal or the song.

On to the reviews:

This is what I wore to the store. In case you were wonderin’.

This was the only one of the Pernetiana Top in the store. It was in the sale section, because it was missing a button at the top in the back. It was discounted some silly amount like 5%, because of that. This is a size fourteen. The size fourteen was almost perfect except for the arms. This sucks. A true size fourteen will be sized out of this top. And this makes me mad.

With that said, I still think this top is gorgeous. The colors are beautiful. I did not look twice at this top when it was online, but after trying it on, I have wishlisted a size 10 as I wait for it to go on sale. I hope it does, because this is a great summer top with jeans.

What have we got here? Well, this is the Tessa Tee. I was very unsure about this top. I am wearing a medium. It has a cool back that I did not photograph (again. I am helpful). This top is $58 and I would reconsider it at a much better price. For now, I am just watching it. I like the khaki color, because it is different. In real life, it is a more brown color. I like the color more than the style.

The Turson Netted Tassel Vest is gorgeous. I am wearing the XS/S. Vests are such an odd thing to size in. In my favorite vest, the Ruffled Sweater Vest, I purchased a M/L in both. The XS/S fit fine here. I love the blue embroidered pattern. If I could snag this on sale, I will/would. I think this would be really sweet in the summer over a white dress.

It has pompoms in the back. I debated showing this picture, because it is so blurry. But I think you can kind of see what I am talking about with the pompoms.

I love this Songbird Skirt. In fact, I ended up purchasing it in a size 6. I agree with other reviewers that said the waist is just odd. But, somehow, I have made it work. I wear it with a navy t-shirt. Although I really adore the color of this one shown here (the khaki shirt from above).

Usually I would wait for sale, but this pattern has a beetle holding an umbrella. And, well, that is all it takes for me. You now know what it takes to win my heart.

And maybe you are more curious about my husband’s courting techniques, as well.

I had this Zocalo Maxi Skirt in two colors in my wishlist. That is before I tried it on. I tried on the yellow version in a small. I will definitely need a medium. If I ever purchase it (which I probably won’t). This was definitely the one snag of the day. This skirt has so much potential. But the lining is bad. The lining is tight (but this could be because I tried on the wrong size) and it stops at an awkward length on the upper thigh. The skirt is see-through, so this is a problem. It has slits on the side and I did not like those either. And the pleats? Why?

Okay. Enough negativity. The colors the skirt comes in are gorgeous. The material does not bother me. I like that it is a maxi.

But there were too many I-wish-it-didn’t-haves for me to lust after this skirt. If only it had a beetle…

Women have been raving about this Lolanthe Dress online. I did not get it when I saw it in pictures. I did not get it when I saw it in store. I told my husband it looked like a dress I would have worn in 1996. But I decided to give it a chance and try it on.

I guess all styles really do come back around again!

Because I was surprised. In a good way. I liked it. I didn’t love it. But I liked it. It is a very flattering fit. It is an easy throw on and go dress. I was also surprised to find myself wishlisting this dress for reconsideration at a future sale price.

‘Cause I liked it. Oh. And I am wearing a size small here. This dress seems to be an easy dress to size down in, because of all of the elastic. It will also be flattering on most body types. I think
I am the only one wishing the pattern was just a bit different. But then again, the bar was set high with that umbrella wielding beetle.

And, in case you were curious. Yes, the dressing room was hot here, too.

That is it for my reviews today. Tomorrow I will show you some more dresses.

Have you visited a dressing room lately? What did you try on?

Some of my more recent reviews:

Anthropologie Spring Reviews Part I

and

Anthropologie Spring Reviews Part II

and

Free People Spring Reviews

Have a Beetle-Holding-An-Umbrella Day! : )