Weekend Shopping Review

It's been particularly blustery in New York lately, and I'm personally suffering from a monster cough that's causing my roommates to call out "Julia, don't die!" across the apartment. So it is little wonder that when I venture out into the drizzle and wind, I want something soft to snuggle up in?

I bought this softest pullover hoodie, $49.50, at the Gap yesterday, which would have made a nice addition to my post on Adult Hoodies. It really is incredibly soft, and the fabric is satisfyingly heavy without being bulky or suffocating. I also love the longer length-- it's almost a tunic, which always makes me feel more luxurious. This is a sweater that'll work anywhere: with pajamas on the couch, over a basic black dress at the office, with jeans and a nice cami for dinner. And the red color couldn't be more ideal for the holiday season. I'll probably wear it on Christmas morning with my favorite red and green plaid flannel pajama bottoms!

Speaking of Christmas, I'm about 80% sure that this reversible robe, $68, will be on my list. One side is light blue jersey (good for throwing on over my pj's when I need a little more coverage or warmth) and the other is super-soft white terry (good for putting on after showering when I don't want to get dressed).

At the Gap I also tried on the black ruffled strapless dress I posted about on Friday-- it was too tight in the chest but too lose in the hips, and I looked a Christmas tree. Poorly played, Gap. However, I did think the blue color it also comes in looks much better in person than it does online, so there's one plus.

I also went to H&M yesterday. Can I just say how much I hate that you can't shop H&M online, because it makes blogging about it so much harder. Photos and links are the funnest part, right? My descriptive powers just don't do clothes justice, but I'll try. I ended up buying a simple navy blue cotton tank dress, empire waist with white stars on the top portion (very patriotic). It was $10, and I think it'll be perfect for when I take a late-afternoon shower and then don't want to get dressed for real (I hate the feel of jeans on freshly lotioned skin), but feel that it's a little early to put on my pajamas. This dress will perfectly fill the position of clean-but-lazy uniform for now, and when spring arrives and I can wear it with metallic sandals and a ponytail and be effortlessly adorable.

But there was another tank dress I tried on, a way nicer one. It was black, empire waist (I realized that the reason I'm so obsessed with empire waist dresses is that my torso is sort of oddly proportioned, and my real waist is higher than any on a wrap dress or belted top. The empire waist is way easier to match to my body, as long as there's room for my chest), with a satin top with three black buttons down the chest and thicker, matte fabric for the skirt. I put it on and immediately knew it was way too small to buy (advice: never go to H&M, where everything is sized cruelly, after going to the Gap, where everything is sized generously. Not only will you take all the wrong sizes into the dressing room, but you'll feel like a heifer). I could zip it up, but I could barely breath and there was no way I'd be able to sit down. And yet... it looked hot. And the fabric on the skirt was so forgiving that you couldn't tell how tight it was; it didn't get all creased and stretched across the hips like most small dresses do. Despite the fact that it made me look surprisingly skinny, I knew I had to go get the next size up. But when I went back into the store, there was a girl (about my size, maybe a little bigger) browsing the same dress, and she took two before moving away. I swooped in, but, of course, my size was gone. Bitch! I considered following her around until she went into the dressing room and then grabbing her rejects, but decided to just come back later.

Our next stop was Victoria's Secret. The friend I was shopping with had both a VS coupon and a new boy toy, so she had way more motivation to buy some lacey new undergarments than I did. I wasn't in the mood to try anything on, but I couldn't resist their Beauty Rush colored mascara, 2 for $12. I got it in purple and blue, and while I don't think they'll replace my everyday green mascara from Almay, it's always have to some new makeup to play around with. I was disappointed that it seems like they stopped making their So Sexy shine serum, a hair product I've run out of. After every Victoria's Secret fashion show, I get the urge to buy all their hair products because those supermodels have incredible tresses (in addition to perfect bodies and faces. Sigh.). If I could get my hair to look like Caroline Trentini's, I would be pretty much ready to die happy.

While I didn't buy any lingerie, this bra and garter set did catch my eye. The balconet push-up bra, $34 and garter skirt, $26, isn't as over the top as some of VS's stuff, but it's undeniably glamorous and sexy. I love the stripes on the cups and the scalloped lace edges, and the garter skirt is irresistibly old-fashioned (question: would you still wear panties under that or is the garter itself count as underwear? Questions like this are why I can't have nice lingerie).

I've been wanting to buy something from the Intimissimi line VS carries (I know, such a cheesy Italian name), because it seems a bit younger and is definitely a bit cheaper. I'm obsessed with this plaid plunging push-up bra, $29.50 and matching bikini, $14.50. How genius is it to put a print typical for flannel jammies on a hot-as-hell push-up bra? (My obsession with plaid is only growing, you guys. Expect a post including a bitching plaid purse sometime this week.) Imagine unwrapping this on Christmas morning, wink wink, nudge nudge. The other thing I like about the Intimissimmi bras is that they all have a little pocket inside each cup, so you can buy these gel inserts, $12.50, for some extra oomph. While I'm normally very happy with my god-given oomph, I rewatched Casino Royale on Friday with three boys and they were hardcore drooling over Eva Green's decolletage. There's no debate that she has an awe-inspiring body, so I think the gel inserts will help make bring me a little closer to the Bond Girl level.

Robes

So in just a few short weeks I won't be living with Danielle anymore, putting an end to a glorious semester filled with Vogue and Lucky, Sex and the City and Gossip Girl, Britney Spears and Beyonce, and almost daily sessions of, "Want to see what I bought?" "Yeah, go try it on!" It's maybe been the girliest four months of life, and I've adored it.

Just the other day I had an internship interview, and after freaking out about what I was going to wear and buying a $100 top at Anthropologie, Danielle helped me put together an outfit from clothes I already owned. I bought the top knowing that there was about a 98% I would return it; I was even willing to do the tackiest thing in the world, wear it, keep the tags on, and then return it. I've never done that, because I believe that it's one of those things that is just Not Done in polite society, like applying your makeup in public or smacking your child in front of company. Sure, you can argue that returning a top you wore once makes no difference to a mega-store like Anthropologie, but I think about how pissed I would be to find out that the top I bought, which I thought was brand new, had already been worn (and not washed) by a total stranger. Sure, there's no way I'd find that information out, but it's still the principle of the thing.

Here's the Anthropologie top I bought (and returned unworn!) in my fit of stress-induced shopping insanity. The La Rosarie tieback, $98, is certainly cute, but if I'm paying almost a hundred bucks for a shirt it better also be able to blow dry my hair for me or something. This one didn't even fit: the empire waist part hit above 3 inches too high, right across my boobs, and the bottom portion was so loose I could have been 6 months pregnant and still worn it (although, if I was 6 months pregnant my boobs definitely would not have fit). This is both the top's fault and mine, but I can at least defend myself by saying that there was a really long line for the dressing rooms and I didn't want to have to go get a different size and wait another 15 minutes to try it on.

This entry has sort of gotten off track. My point is this: in three weeks I'll no longer be able to flit around in various states of undress, because I'm going to be living with (gasp!) boys. Sure, they may not care if I want to spend an entire Sunday bumming around the apartment in the lacy slip I wore under my dress the night before (and was either too lazy or too drunk to take off and find real pajamas), but I care. And so, a certain amount of wardrobe revision is needed with this new living situation. What I've taken four paragraphs to say is, I need a robe.

I have a bathrobe that's really thick and heavy, basically a towel with sleeves. It's like 6 years old but I love it and I love putting it on after a shower so I don't have to get dressed right away. but it's so bulky that I never really want to put it on other than post-shower; if I tried to slip it on over pajamas I think the fabrics would get all twisted and uncomfortable. So what I want is a cute, light robe that I can throw on whenever I need a little extra coverage. There was one at Gap Body this summer that would have been perfect: really soft jersey material with thick stripes of navy blue and gold. I saw it and through, "This is something you would see on Greek," and I didn't even watch Greek then (do you guys watch Greek, on ABC Family? I highly recommend it, especially if you're actually in a sorority or fraternity). It just had a very collegiate vibe, which I dig. But unfortunately that robe is long gone, and Gap Body only has these rather boring short jersey robes, $39.50. I think I can do better.

Victoria's Secret has the Cozy Little Things short robe, $29.50, which could be cute. I would get it in a light blue and white stripe, since that's more my style than pink polka dots. But I'm worried that it's so fuzzy that it would be hot to wear it in the summer. In the winter it's more likely I'll be wearing sweatpants and hoodies around the apartment, so there's less of a need to protect my honor.

I like this Gilligan & O'Malley Eyelet Robe, $19.99, from Target. It's pretty simple, but the eyelet details on the sleeves are very sweet and feminine. I'm a little unsure about the bright white color, though; I don't want to be wearing it while cooking breakfast and get it stained egg yellow. On the other hand, it's cotton, so it'll be super easy to wash. But on the other, other hand, it would probably be see-through. Boo.

Oh man, I'd be so into this Hearts and Skulls robe, $24.99, also from Target, if only it weren't so cartoon-y. Some seriously menacing skulls alongside some seriously sweet hearts? That'd be great. But this print reminds me of Tom and Jerry, which is not what I'm looking for.

Speaking of fun prints, I'm sort of in love with this Nick and Nora robe, $21.99, in "Summer Cocktails." I'm guessing that, living with three guys, there'll be more beer drinking than appletini (light on the 'tini) sipping, but with robe I can feel like a Cosmopolitan drinking woman anyway. The print's a little busy, though, and I don't want to look like a walking drink menu.

From the same line, there's the Strawberries robe, $21.99. The full body shot isn't wow-worthy, but the close-up of the print might be. I love the little hand, and the lips are especially whimsical. Doesn't this seem like a great girlie summer robe? Too bad it only comes in an X or XX Large on the Target website.


In searching for robes I found this Oscar de la Renta "Expressions" chemise, $66, that I sort of want. I'd feel like the prettiest ballerina at the Nutcracker Ball while I'm sleeping! See, this is the exactly the sort of thing I want to be wearing under my robe.




I like this Old Navy Lightweight robe, $24.50, and it's "ballet slipper" pink so it would fit the theme. I like the short sleeves, and the cropped length might not be overly short. Pockets are also an essential quality of my dream robe. It kind of looks like the kind of robe you get in the hospital, though, right? There's something vaguely sickly about it.



Is this satin robe too "aging housewife desperate to prove she's still got It", or is it actually pretty cute? From Jones New York, this robe, $54, looks super smooth and slinky, and while I'm not huge into florals I'd be willling to give it a shot. You can't really see it in the photo, but there's a strip of pleated blue fabric at the end of the sleeves, which is a fun detail.

Oh, man, I want a ruby red cashmere robe. But this Arlotta ruffle robe is $215.99, and thus too much for something I'll never wear outside. Plus, a dry clean only robe is dumb.