Dress #8

Joe and I went to Lake Balboa Park again yesterday (2/22).  We'll probably have a bunch more trips to the park.  I kind of want to go every week to see the cherry blossoms.  They're all starting to bloom but it will probably be another 2 weeks until they're all fully out, maybe even 3.  They also all seem to be blooming at different times.  The ones on the outer edges of the parking lot look like they're in full bloom while the ones in the park are just starting to bloom a little bit.  We had lunch and took a walk around the lake.  It's a good way to relax on the weekend and doesn't cost any money (which is something we're pretty short on).

I wore my cream skirt.  It has cream and white/pink floral print ruffles along the edge of the bottom.  The skirt has a curve in the cut that goes upward to reveal a little more leg on the left and a belt that flows down.  This skirt is the definition of flowing and aerodynamic.  It's always moving gracefully in the wind.  I love it.  It's definitely very beautiful and feminine.  I actually used to wear it all the time but it has been a while.  I wore it to Hawaii back in 2007 and I often wore it to work back then.  It's pretty much good for any spring or summer occasion.

I got my cream and pink skirt with the ruffled curved edge and long belt from Ross.  I can't even remember how long ago I purchased it but I'm sure it was about $10.  Everything I buy from Ross is $10 or less.  It's made by Miss Chievous.  100% cotton.  Size 11.  Made in China.  It is a bit big on me, but it's very comfortable.  The belt can allow you to tighten it so long as it's not visible.  If the belt were tightened and visible the fabric would looks scrunched up.  I always wear it with my cream tank top because I think they match really well but it's probably fine to wear the skirt on its own with a different top.  The belt could be visible with a smaller top but I like it pieced with my cream top that I think matches it so well which covers it.  The top is from Express.  It's a basic tank but has a sparkly gold outline on the neck and straps which adds a bit of glamour to it.  Size M.  100% cotton.  Made in the Philippines.  I got it out of one of those end of the season box sales.  It was $10.  I actually got two of them, so I also have a black one with sliver edges in an size S.  I would have gotten this top in an S as well but they didn't have that size available.  I think it fits just fine and love the way the outfit looks together.  I also always wear this outfit with my matching flip flops.  I got the flip flops from Old Navy.  They have a similar cream color  on the straps made out of a very comfortable fabric that has a brown leafy design with sequins on it.  The bottom of the flip flop is made of straw or bamboo.  Whatever it is, the material is super comfortable, durable and very well made.  I've had these flip flops since 2007, purchased for my trip to Hawaii, and they are still as comfy as ever.  I've definitely gotten my wear out of them because they match a bunch of my other outfits too, but they have gotten dirty over the years from all the wear.  I wish I had bought 2 pairs so I'd have a back up once these are finished.  I'm not actually sure how much longer these flip flops are going to last and then I won't know what to wear with this outfit.

Dress #7

Joe and I went to Lake Balboa Park today (2/17).  We like to go to the park pretty often on the weekends.  Sometimes we pick up sandwiches or burgers and go to the park to eat.  It's very peaceful there.  There are so many ducks, geese and birds that hang around.  They often come right up to us hoping for food.  The park has a bunch of benches and tables so there's always a place to sit and eat.  After lunch we took a walk around the whole lake.  I noticed that some of the cherry blossoms were coming in.  They only bloom for a few weeks in March so I always try to keep a close eye out for them.  Looks like they're going to bloom sporadically and early this year.  Only a few trees were blooming.  The rest were still bare.  The park has several benches that have a gazebo like overhead structure above them with vines all over.  All of the vines were bare except for one.  It had strands of purple flowers hanging down.  It was so pretty.  I could imagine how lovely the benches will look when all the flowers are in bloom.  I'd love to go back to the park when everything's in bloom and take pictures.

I wore my black Hawaii sundress with white flowers on it.  I have several Hawaii sundresses.  This was actually the first one I ever bought.  I got it back in 2007 on my first trip to O'ahu in Waikiki.  Although I was in O'ahu for a whole week I don't think I had a chance to wear the sundress on that particular trip.  I bought it toward the end of the week and had already packed plenty of skirts and shorts.  I have however worn it several times since.  It's great for a hot summer day, a trip to the beach, a walk through the park, tea time, etc.  I wore it out one time when my friends and I went to pottery painting and afternoon tea.  We all got Groupons and went to Color Me Mine in Sherman Oaks.  I painted a plate that had my own version of Rapunzel's castle on it and a spoon rest with a tomato.  It kind of made me feel like a kid.  It was fun but I wouldn't go without a Groupon because it's too expensive.  The Groupon was $25 dollars for $50 worth of pottery and I reached that amount with just the two things I painted.  My friends painted a spoon rest, an hors d'oeuvre tray and a pitcher.  After painting we went to afternoon tea at Chado in downtown LA.  I really love that place.  They have every tea imaginable to choose from plus finger sandwiches and fresh scones for $18.  It's actually the cheapest afternoon tea place I've found so far.  And it always smells delicious in there, like a sweet bakery.

The dress is black with white flowers on it.  I got it at one of the ABC stores in Waikiki.  The ABC stores sell cheap touristy Hawaiian goods including sarongs and sundresses.  There's so many ABC stores in Waikiki you can't walk a block without passing one.  I was originally going to get a blue sundress but ended up liking this one more.  It was probably around $10.  It's very comfortable and fits perfectly.  The top is a tube stretch that's one size fits all.  It's made by the Hibiscus Collection Hawaii.  100% Rayon.  Made in Thailand.

Dress #6

I took Joe out to dinner for his birthday on 2/2.  We went to PF Chang's at the Sherman Oaks Galleria.  We wanted to go somewhere nice but not too fancy and hadn't been there in a long time so it was perfect.  The food was as delicious as I remembered.  It's Chinese food but upscale.  We had egg rolls, crab wontons, sesame chicken and pad thai.  I had a really delicious Riesling with dinner.  It was smooth and crisp like a green apple.  It wasn't too cold for being February but it was raining lightly so I wore my black leather heavy coat.  It was the same length as the dress so they complimented one another.

Since it was a special occasion I wanted to wear my black short dress.  I got it at Ross back in 2012 for $15.  I felt I really needed to get a 'little black dress' as realistically every woman needs to have one on hand for special occasions.  I originally went shopping for a formal black dress to wear to my company's Christmas party that year and ended up torn between two options.  Since they were both only $15, I ended up getting both.  I decided to go with the other dress for the company Christmas party but oddly enough I got sick that year and was unable to attend anyway.  I did however, wear this dress to a fancy night out in Vegas.

We had dinner at Tom Colicchio's Craftsteak at MGM.  It had a very pricey a la carte menu, honestly not really worth it in my opinion.  Though I will say the best thing we ordered was the cheapest steak option (the hangar steak at $36).  We also got the butternut squash risotto and potato gratin.  It was way too much food.  Only one side would have sufficed.  After dinner we went to see Cirque Du Soleil KA.  We were both totally blown away.  It's a martial arts and stunt heavy show, one of the only Cirque shows with an actual story.  Although the story does get kind of odd.  It's about two twins of Chinese royalty.  During an attack by a rival clan they get separated.  The Princess ends up washed up on a beach with giant sea creatures.  Then ends up in some kind of blizzard storm.  Then ends up dancing and swinging through the jungle with Tarzan.  The Prince ends up in a cave playing shadow puppets, gets captured by the rival clan, meets the clan leader's daughter who falls in love with him and frees him.  A corrupt member of the rival clan plans to overthrow the leader and puts him in the Wheel of Death that crushes and grinds down minerals.  The rival clan leader's daughter teams up with the twins to fight back.  And the final battle is waged over a crazy rotating vertical stage in the most insane game of human plinko I've ever seen.  KA is amazing and worth seeing for sure.  The Princess' side of the story is kind of far fetched but the Prince's side story makes sense.  The acrobatics are the absolute best.

The dress is black and stretchy.  I call it my little black dress but it's really not that short.  The length is a good balance of dressy but not revealing.  It actually has a black lace floral design on the outside that's wrapped around in paneled lines.  The lacey outside part is 90% nylon and 10% spandex.  The lining is 100% polyester.  Size M.  The brand is Sweet Storm.  Made in Indonesia.