Everyday Goddess Does...

Gap Magic!

The clothes discussed below were given to me for free from Gap.

As a blogger, I tend to compose the beginning of posts in my head a lot. I think of a hook for a post and then compose the sentences in my head. For this post, I had a hook all planned - I was going to tell the story of my beloved Gap khakis - circa early 90s - that I once called in late to work to get a wood stain out of after slipping and falling three stairs before catching myself with two flailing arms and my butt on the slippery-when-wet wooden staircase that led out of my garage apartment. The same khakis I still wear at least once a week today.

It would have been a great opening, but then I came home, pulled them out of my closet, and read "Express Chinos" on the tag. Oops.

But it's actually a good metaphor for my Gap Magic visit to the Hollywood & Highland Gap today. Can an Express girl find clothes she loves at the Gap?

Well, I'll tell ya one thing, the sizing is a bit more forgiving. Both the jeans and the pants I ended up with are size 8s, and I'd probably still have to get a 10, maybe even a 12 if I could find one, at Express. (Although admittedly I haven't been there in years; I turned into a Macy's girl a few years ago, and then turned into a broke girl who doesn't buy anything ever. But my work pants are still my Express pants from years ago.)

At Gap, I was beyond excited to see "curvy" as one of the pants & jeans options. Because I have issues with pants. Usually, to get pants that fit in the hips, I end up with pants that don't fit in the waist, and I have to cinch them in with a belt or get them altered. So two things: First, very cute salesguy Aaron helped me decide to buy size 8s after I explained that I have a terror of buying pants too small and therefore a closet of pants that are too big. Second, I could get the 8s because they fit right. I didn't have to go up to a 10 to get the room I need in the hips.

They carry long and regular, and they call the shorter pants "average." Aaron and another Gap guy, Joel, both thought I could go with regular, but I went with average. They seem like the right length to me, although at 5' 4" I may be hitting the top of the "average" height range. Sometimes when I've bought "short" at other places in the past, they were indeed too short, and buying petite to get a shorter pant leg is usually a disaster for me.

So Gap pants = Win. I have seriously - FINALLY - found a new place to buy work pants.

Meanwhile, my most favorite find today was an awesome jacket that will go with pants and jeans whenever I want to look a little professional:

 

This pic doesn't really do the jacket justice, and as an outfit, there may be too much going on between the shirt, which has a pretty pearl and ribbon treatment at the neck, and the gray jacket, which has a striped inner lining. I'm not sure - What do you think? In the store, they had the gray jacket with black pants, but the top underneath was cream.

Here's outfit number 2:

 

The best thing about this green cardigan is that I now forever have something green to wear on St. Patrick's Day. I am so serious. Also, LOVE the little lace tank underneath which is an awesome purple.

But let's talk jeans. The "curvy" jeans did indeed fit me fabulously - but there was one little wrinkle. I didn't like the back pockets, which felt oversized, underdesigned, and frankly, made my butt look big. Now, I've got as many self-esteem issues as the next Angelino, but if I know one thing in this world for sure, it's that I've got an butt for jeans. It's a rare day that I pull on a pair of jeans, turn to look at my butt in the mirror, and don't like what I see. So the jeans above are not the curvy jeans.

The jeans above - which I am crazy about because they feel a little 80s retro meets modern denim to me - are the cropped skinny button jeans. A commentor on that link says, "...they look great and the detail on the leg makes them rock n' roll." I heartedly agree, and I really like how the denim is distressed.

So can an Express girl find clothes she loves at the Gap? Yes, yes, she can.

In fact, there seemed to be a lot of different choices. There were definitely some clothes I didn't like, but that's as it should be. You can tell I picked pieces with catchy detailing (including the studded, braided belt), but I'm sure other people came out with other sorts of looks. If I liked everything then maybe there wouldn't be clothes someone else might like. Perfect example: one of the pants styles hits the waist. I HATE pants that hit the waist, but I know for a fact that some women hate the low-rise that I love. So, especially in pants & jeans, the selection of fits and sizing was impressive. They had A LOT of different kinds of jeans.

Also, it should be noted that I was purposely and with difficulty fighting my love of the T-shirt. Gap is like T-shirt heaven. Both for solids and for designs. I'm beyond tempted to go back and get this "wild hair" t-shirt. But I already have SO MANY t-shirts OMG. So I resisted coming home with a T-shirt.

Oh, and I grabbed some cute panties, too, but sadly I did not have the chutzpah to ask Aaron to take a pic of me holding them up, ala BlogHer '08.

Speaking of BlogHer, I'm volunteering at BlogHer Business on the Thursday, and I am very glad to have this new jacket to wear. It's been a long time since I've gotten any new clothes (besides T-shirts!), so many thanks to Gap for a fun shopping experience.

My Unemployment Salvation: Nintendo & Netflix

Disclosure: I am a Nintendo Enthusiast, which means I get free tech & games & stuff.

As someone who really doesn't enjoy unemployment, I have been so thankful for the Nintendo & the Netflix in my life. You simply can't job hunt every minute of every day, and when you do have free time, you can't be spending tons of money. Lucky me, I've got plenty of Nintendo and Netflix joy in my home. Both give you massive bang for your buck.

I was OVER THE MOON when Netflix came out with streaming disks for the Wii. I'm working two queues on my Netflix, one for films & one for television, but now I know that even if I don't have a disk in the house, I can always find something to watch.

So when Brand About Town asked me if I wanted to have a little get together to celebrate the Netflix streaming disk for Wii, I was all about that! They supplied lots of munchies, which was SO nice. Also, Nintendo points cards for my guests, and one of my friends went home with a 3-month Netflix membership. AND they gave me a Flip UltraHD Camcorder, which I have been coveting something fierce.

Is it wrong that I really love the popcorn bowl they gave me, too? I just love simple pleasures.

Like 4-player New Super Mario Bros OMG. SO FUN.

My friend Matt was Mario and thank goodness, because the rest of us were giving more lives than anything else for the team:

   

 

I was the yellow dude.  :)

I have to admit that we never got to stream a movie, because we were having so much fun gaming, but I have used the Netflix streaming to do a yoga workout, watch lots of movies, and I just finished watching all of Avatar: The Last Airbender. And I had to promise my friend Kathryne that I will save Beverly Hills Chihuahua to watch with her.

It was really great to have a night to celebrate this two things I honestly love so much: Nintendo and Netflix. Keeping me sane while unemployed, that's for sure.

My new love: Vita-Myr Herbal Toothpaste

This is an unsolicited and uncompensated review.

For as long as I can remember, I have hated to brush my teeth. Primarily, because there never seems to be a good time besides right before bed. In the morning, I eat my breakfast in the car, and I certainly don't want to interfere with as much coffee consumption as possible.  In the middle of the day, if I'm not at work, I've always got some sort of beverage at hand.

And truth be told, I *hate* that minty fresh feeling. It always feels like the last thing I want to do to myself. It always feels too harsh. I can't even bare to drink water after I brush my teeth with regular toothpaste.

So the regular brushing of my teeth has been an ongoing personal battle for most of my life, mostly done at night and before I might be kissing anybody.

Enter: Vita-Myr Herbal Toothpaste.

A good friend gave me a sample, and just like that, my brushing has doubled at the very least. My teeth and gums feel great, and the natural clove flavor does not preclude my almost immediate consumption of tea & coffee.

I actually look forward to brushing my teeth! Seriously. If it sounds crazy to you, believe me, it definitely sounds crazy to me. But, it's true.

If you've got issues with regular minty toothpaste, you might want to check it out. I absolutely love it.

My New 4pm Treat: Werther's Original Sugar Free Hard Candies

This is a compensated review by BlogHer and Werther's.

On an average workday, I am a healthy snack guru. Reduced fat cheese stick, celery with low-fat peanut butter or cheese, cherry or grape tomatoes, nuts. My get-through-the-workday system is fool-proof.

Until 4pm.

By 4pm, my snacks for the day are gone, gone, gone. And with 2 hours left till the whistle blows, some days find me climbing the walls. Forgive me father, for I have purchased a candy bar.

So I was eager to try Werther's Original Sugar Free Candies.

  

They sent me Original Caramel, Caramel Cinnamon, Caramel Coffee, Caramel Mint (all sugar-free). This is me trying these flavors: "Oh, this one's the best." "Oh, wait, no, *this* one's the best." "No, this one!" Seriously, I can not even tell you which is my favorite, because I liked them all. I hope they come out with a variety bag.

Also, they are smaller than the original Werther's, which I really liked: Just the right size and last just long enough to be satisfying. They come in bags, but there's also a small "minis" box available. The pieces in there are the same size as the ones in the bags, thank goodness. My little box had 14 pieces.

Finally, they are not too sweet, which is SO KEY. The last thing you want in your desk drawer is something without sugar that's going to trigger cravings for something with sugar. I found that the caramel flavors totally hit the perfect sweet spot.  :)

I'll leave you with a work survival snack tip: Keep these babies stashed away! I'm not a fan of having your snacks where you can see them before you really want them, and if they're in your drawer you'll only have to share them if you really want to.

What are your favorite tricks for staying healthy during a work day?

Read what other BlogHer reviewers have to say about Werther's Original Sugar Free Candies: BlogHer.com special offers page.