Vacation Slideshow: Florida, The Sunshine State, Part 1

Hello Kittens!

Tim and I just got back home from a nice long vacation in Florida and boy, do I have some photos for you!

We headed down to Florida for the sun, the surf, the beach, the warmth, the humidity, the occasional thunderstorm, but also for large amounts of family, and one cousin in particular. My little cousin was getting married! It was due time to see the family and it was great to finally get to meet my cousin's new wife. Also,  this time around we got to see most nearly everyone which is rare as I have more than 20 cousins in total if you count extended family and second cousins! And while we were there we got to meet some new family to boot!

We stayed in Florida for just about 10 days and we really packed our activities in the time we had to spend there.



Day 1 (Wednesday, November 19)

We arrived the night before and was picked up at the Fort Lauderdale airport by my wonderful aunt for whom was graciously giving us a place to stay for most of our trip out there. We woke up the next morning on Wednesday to unexpectedly cold weather! And I mean it was so cold! I don't remember Florida ever being that cold even though we have old home movies of icicles growing from our roof from when I was little. My aunt said jokingly that we must have brought it with us because the day before it was 81 degrees! But the weird thing was was that California was actually warmer than what it was in Florida on our first day there. Anyways, with so much cold, it kind of put a damper on things and limited us with what we could do with our day.

But it didn't stop us completely. For the first day I had to go out and get some Cuban food! We made a lunch stop at a local Cuban restaurant, Las Vegas, and I chowed down on a Cuban sandwich and fried plantain chips. If you've never had a Cuban sandwich, they're awesome. The bread is fresh, crunchy on the outside, and soft on the inside with the most delectable sweet and tender ham ever.

Cuban Sandwich and Fried Plantain Chips

After lunch we picked up my little cousins from school and hung out for a while then went to my grandfather's house to see not only my grandparents but also my uncle and two more cousins who surprised us by coming over. It was a full house for dinner and it was great to see family after being away for so long.

Outfit of the Day:

Juice You and Me dress by Freeway from Modcloth, paired with a peach cardigan, navy leggings, and navy flats

Juice You and Me dress by Freeway from Modcloth, paired with navy leggings, and navy flats

Juice You and Me dress by Freeway from Modcloth, paired with navy leggings, and navy flats, side view

Day 2 (Thursday, November 20)

On our second day it was too windy to go to the beach. Instead we went out to lunch at a bbq restaurant and then had an extra special treat getting to go see my uncle's restored 1951 Chicago Fire Patrol truck! My uncle is a real buff for the old Chicago Fire Patrol and has even written and published a book about it! He has a special place in his heart for its history since his grandfather was a Captain in the fire patrol. This is the actual fire patrol truck his grandfather rode it!

 

Later that night Tim and I went to my other aunt's house for a bbq dinner and got to see my aunt, uncle, three cousins, and my new second cousin. It's been a long time since I've seen my cousins and it was the first time I got to meet my second cousin. It was a great day and a great way to end the night!

Outfit of the Day;

Trashy Diva Varga dress in Zebra Bows

Trashy Diva Varga dress in Zebra Bows, side view

Day 3 (Friday, November 21)

On our third day in Florida Tim and I went out on our own to see our friend who recently moved to Florida from California. I must have miscalculated how long it would take to drive up to see her and didn't account for so much delay going through the turn pike toll booths... also we should have set the alarm to wake up earlier...  but anyhow, we made it up to see her and while we would have liked to spend much more time visiting, it was a good visit. We got to see her new house, went to see her mom, and then we all went out to eat lunch at a cute resturant between the beach and a waterway. After lunch we went to check out the beach where there were tons of kitesurfers which Tim loved seeing and also got to drive by the local lighthouse which I liked seeing ;)

Entrance to Guanabanas, Jupiter, FL

Beach in Jupiter, FL

Kitesurfers in Jupiter, FL

That night Tim and I went to the historic and iconic Mai Kai restaurant. After reading about it in the blog, Coffin Kitsch (for whom also gave me the inspiration for this blog post), I was jazzed to see it! It was everything I had hoped it would be and more! This restaurant was built in 1956 and plays host to a nightly Polynesian show! While reviews online of this restaurant mainly gush about the show I found the ambiance in both the bar and the restaurant as well as it's vast outdoor garden equally amazing! I had previously made reservations the week before but once again, had miscalculated the time it would take us to get back from our friend's house and into the restaurant and so we missed our reservations by more than an hour! We decided to still go thinking we probably wouldn't get to see the show or get to have dinner but would at least get to see the bar and check this place out. When we got there I told the host our predicament just to see on the off chance if they might have any late cancellations. He told us we can check back right before the second show to see if there were any open spaces. Until then Tim and I went to the bar and had some drinks and snacked on some delicious escargot. The bar was awesome. Just off the main entrance, the bar is decorated like a pirate ship that has sunk underwater. All the windows looking out were continuously flooded with water on the outside and the dim blue lighting on the inside gave it a decidedly eerie vibe.

View outside the window from inside the Mai Kai bar

Mood lighting

Mermaid inside the bar

Pina Colada!

After drinking pina coladas and Mai Kai specials we headed back to the host/hostess station.... and after some farther wait we were able to get seated to see the second show for the night! The show was awesome, there were lots of different dances from several different Polynesian islands including my favorite New Zealand, and there was even a long and elaborate fire dance! It was hard ordering dinner since we were seated so closely to the start of the show because it was hard taking our eyes off of the performances to read the menu but no complaints here since it was totally all our fault for missing our reservations and I was truly blown away that were were even able to get seats at this busy restaurant as essentially walk-ins on a Friday night!

Fire dance during the show

After dinner, we walked around the outdoor gardens amongst the tiki torches, super large tikis, small man-made waterfalls, ponds, and bridges. It was truly an awesome place that should not be missed if you're in the area!

Amongst the waterfalls and lakes at Mai Kai's outdoor garden

Big tiki outside in the Mai Kai gardens

Tim with the Tiki

Small tiki in the garden

I forgot to do proper Outfit of the Day pictures because we seemed to be running late all day on our third day but hopefully these shots will suffice :)

During the day out with our friend I wore a 1950's diner inspired polka dot dress from Forever 21. I paired this with a cardigan and leggings because it was a little cold. For dinner at Mai Kai I dressed up in a Trashy Diva Lena Sarong dress in Blue Hawaii print while Tim wore Steady's Island Breeze shirt. 

Stay tuned for the second part of Vacation Slideshow: Florida, the Sunshine State!

100th Post!!!! Matching Your Dresses To Your Teaware Part 9: Black Kitties!

Finding teapot pairings to go along with my dresses is one of my favorite things to do on this blog!

I just really get a kick, a decided jolt of excitement, seeing two of my favorite things paired so perfectly matched together. And when you throw in another of my favorite things... cats, well then I get really excited!

Heart of Haute's Matey dress in It's Raining Cats is a cute sailor style halter top dress with black cats and red umbrellas throughout the bodice and contrasting black fabric at the halter ties, top tie, and skirt.

This retro kitty dress pairs adorably with Japanese Zakka designer and artist Shinzi Katoh's Tea For Two Deluxe Black Cat Tea Set. This adorable tea set features a stacking set of two teacups and a teapot. The black tea cups are rimed with white polka dots and have kitty-shaped tail holders. The black teapot is topped with a kitty head as the lid! I found this super cute cat tea set on Urbanities.com.au

Heart Of Haute Matey Dress in It's Raining Cats- Front View

Heart Of Haute's Matey Dress in It's Raining Cats- Close Up

Shinzi Katoh's Tea For Two Delux Black Cat Tea Set, photo: http://www.urbanities.com.au/shinzi-katoh-tea-for-two-black-cat-deluxe-tea-set

With all this cuteness combined, it makes me want to pull up my best kitty or two or three and put a pot on the stove to boil! ^. .^

Fancy Dress For Less

What I've really learned to love about wearing dresses is that you can truly look like a million bucks without spending much more than you would for a regular outfit.

While I won't completely mislead you... some dresses do have high price points, but there are a lot of dresses in my collection that are lower than the price of a pair of jeans and a top or even the price of a pair of jeans or a top. Also, even with the dresses that normally have a higher price point, there are many ways around the high MSRP price. One thing I most like to do is look for and wait for sales! It's amazing really how often most online retailers will have sales and 15%, 20%, and 25% off can really save you some money. Tatyana in particular will sometimes have awesome 40% off or even 50% off sales or discount last season's items even farther! Speaking of last season's items, I've found end of summer is a great time to shop as lots of retailers such as Pinup Girl Clothing and Trashy Diva will have sales to clear out their old stock and will dramatically mark down the price of some of their older dresses, often times marking them down more than 50% off. Of course clearing out stock can happen any time of year so it's always a good thing to keep your eye out if you're like me and are always looking for a good bargain. :)

While these are my favorite ways to get great dresses at great prices, another way I most recently caught on to is keeping an eye out on ebay! Lately I've been getting many a great bargain finding awesome finds on ebay. And seeing that the Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years holidays are just around the corner I thought it was a perfect time to post about these bargains. Check out my latest conquests!


Trashy Diva's Candice Gwinn Honey Dress in Turquoise

This dress came out last winter and was part of their fancy dress collection. The Candice Gwinn Honey Dresses are made with a heavy weight  ribbed rayon which has a great drape and flow and even has a nice slight sheen to it. The bodice is very well made and very structured and is even fully lined in the same fabric as the dress. It has a shelf style bodice which gives plenty of support and the wide straps on the shoulders ensures that the dress will wear nicely and not dig in to your shoulders from the weight of the dress! The waist is nice and fitted while the skirt has a great flair. This dress is also features a pointed collar in the back and a hidden back zip.

Trashy Diva Candice Gwinn Honey Dress in Turquoise- Front View

Trashy Diva Candice Gwinn Honey Dress in Turquoise- Front View

Trashy Diva Candice Gwinn Honey Dress in Turquoise- Side View

Trashy Diva Candice Gwinn Honey Dress in Turquoise- Back View

Trashy Diva Candice Gwinn Honey Dress in Turquoise- Close Up

Trashy Diva Candice Gwinn Honey Dress in Turquoise- Close Up

Pinup Girl Clothing's Grace Dress in Flocked Red

The Grace Dress is part of Pinup Girl's Laura Byrnes' collection, a label they reserve for only their fanciest of dresses. This lovely dress comes in a heavy weight cotton and spandex blend material which features black flocking (velvet-like texture) throughout. Like the Honey dress, this dress has a shelf-style structured bodice and wide shoulder straps which accommodate the heavier weight of the dress nicely. The bodice is completely lined in stretch poplin, the waist is fitted, and the skirt has a great flair. Like the Honey dress, this dress has a back zip which makes for an easy to wear design. 

Pinup Girl Clothing's Laura Byrnes Grace Dress-Front View

Pinup Girl Clothing's Laura Byrnes Grace Dress-Front View

Pinup Girl Clothing's Laura Byrnes Grace Dress-Side View

Pinup Girl Clothing's Laura Byrnes Grace Dress- Back View

Pinup Girl Clothing's Laura Byrnes Grace Dress-Close Up

Pinup Girl Clothing's Laura Byrnes Grace Dress-Close Up

I hope all you shoppers out there find great bargains this season and also don't forget Black Friday is just around the corner! ;)

Something Old, Something New, Something Classically Blue! More Awesome Ebay Finds!

I've been haunting ebay again.

I don't know if I've just been getting lucky lately with my ebay finds or if it's just that hard stalking pays off. In the last few months I have been able to acquire some seriously cute things from Bettie Page Clothing A.K.A. Tatyana at great prices. Here are my latest finds!


The Matilda Dress by Bettie Page Clothing

The Matilda Dress is definitely an oldie but goodie! I remember back before I ever made my first Bettie Page purchase, looking through their online catalog at all their beautiful designs, and seeing this dress. I would swoon over these dresses for months, imagining how awesome it would be to go out wearing one of these dresses, but not daring to take the plunge to buy one. I remember how classic and iconically 50's all their dresses were back then. I wish they would bring back some of their older designs. Until then, there is always ebay and also, it is nice to see that there are some staples they stock even from past years.

The Matilda dress comes in a caramel colored tan. This wiggle dress features an off centered faux button panel at the bodice, cuffed pointed sleeves at the arms, pointed collar, dainty neck bow, and a self fabric belt. To ensure a great fit, this dress has plenty of stretch, a back zip, and back slit for easy movement at the bottom of the skirt.

Bettie Page Matilda Dress- Front View

Bettie Page Matilda Dress- Side View

Bettie Page Matilda Dress- Back View

Bettie Page Matilda Dress- Close Up

The Micky Dress by Tatyana

The Micky dress is one of Tatyana's newer dresses. I believe this dress was just released this past spring/summer. This dress is an easy to wear cotton/spandex dress which features black and white stripes at contrasting angles, two white buttons at the neckline, a unique turned over collar, cute capped sleeves, back zip, and ruffles at the bottom of the skirt. I love the detail of the collar in the back which makes a sort of peter pan collar. This dress is so unbelievably comfortable to wear! I'm sure it will be one of my new favorites for next summer when the weather starts to turn warm again.

Tatyana Micky Dress- Front View

Tatyana Micky Dress- Front View

Tatyana Micky Dress- Side View

Tatyana Micky Dress- Back View

Tatyana Micky Dress- Close Up

The Captain Dress by Bettie Page

The Captain dress is perhaps one of Bettie Page's / Tatyana's most iconic and recognizable dresses. This is one of their classic designs that has endured and has long stayed a staple on their website. This dress, which is also available as a pencil style, features a wide sailor inspired collar trimmed in white satin, it has sleeves, and also features a double breasted bodice. As with the Micky dress, I love the back collar detail, the shape of which reminds me of Madeline, the little French girl in the yellow hat!  It is supposed to come with a white belt but since I picked this up on ebay for a bargain price I'm not too upset that the belt didn't come with it especially since I can easily take a white belt off of one of my other dresses. :)

Bettie Page Captain Dress- Front View

Bettie Page Captain Dress- Front View

Bettie Page Captain Dress- Side View

Bettie Page Captain Dress- Back View

Bettie Page Captain Dress- Close Up