Tag: derek cardigan glasses

geek style · tasty travels

Crown & Crumpet

Nina Penalosa8 Comments

Hey my little ponies! On Monday I headed to San Francisco with a few of my friends to celebrate my birthday at Crown & Crumpet. It’s an adorable little tea spot in Japantown that’s a definite must for any tea lover to go to! I passed by their original location a few years ago when they were still in Ghirardelli Square and made a mental note to eventually go there.

When making plans for my birthday, I decided early on that I wanted to have afternoon tea in the city with my girlfriends and dress up like Disney princesses a la Disneybound! How else would one go about celebrating the last year of their twenties? I ended up not wearing a princessesy outfit, but I still felt pretty damn fancy in my navy doe dress from ModCloth and t-strap heels.

As I looked up different places that served afternoon tea, I remembered Crown & Crumpet and promptly Googled it. Their menu seemed less pricier than most places, and their tea menu had a bunch of delightful sounding blends. I nearly ordered Alice’s “Drink Me” tea — a black tea with champagne and sugar crystals — but was told it had caffeine, so I opted for the fruity Snow White tea. 🙂

Crown & Crumpet has the most adorable decor too! The tables are lined with cheery floral table cloth and with little pictures of angels, Union Jacks, and tea cups. The walls were adorned with the cutest art, and there’s a large clock on the wall with antique tea cups and saucers instead of numbers. It says, “It’s Time for Tea” underneath it. I didn’t get a chance to take a picture of the clock though. Sorry!

Crown & Crumpet had some delicious food and treats as well. Jen ordered a slice of berry cake that came with jam and clotted cream, and now I want jam on all the cakes I eat from now on. No more frosting, just jam! Caitlin and I ordered scones to go with our tea, and they came with lemon curd, clotted cream, and raspberry jam (I think it was raspberry anyway) which I haven’t been able to stop thinking about since then. Why aren’t there any places closer to me that serve afternoon tea with all the English accoutrements like Crown & Crumpet?! WHY?!

Shanice, Jen, and myself all ordered the tricolore sandwich and they were really nice about letting us add on chicken and substituting cheddar for mozzarella. Caitlin got the chicken pot pie and Jen damn near stole it from her because she thought it was amazing! Our waitress also overheard us saying it was someone’s birthday and brought a little cookie dough flavored cupcake with a candle, and had my friends sing happy birthday to me. 😀

Afterwards, I asked the manager (or perhaps she was the owner…?) if I could take some pictures inside their private party room for the blog and she was more than accommodating! I mentioned to her that I had heard about Crown & Crumpet from passing by their old location a few years ago, and she talked to me a bit about how they ended up in Japantown and that they hope to open another location in downtown San Francisco.

I’d definitely love to go back to Crown & Crumpet and try a different tea and get more scones (and a slice of cake)! You guys don’t understand, those scones were SO. TASTY. And that jam! Oh my goodness.

cheers

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dress: ModCloth (no longer available) // cardigan & hair pin: H&M
shoes: American Rag // necklace: c/o oNecklace (buy here)
glasses: Derek Cardigan (buy similar here)

geek style

Hey Girl. Cool Shirt.

Nina Penalosa5 Comments

Hey Girl. Today is Ryan Gosling’s 34th birthday!

What better day to show off this crazy, stupid, lovely (see what I did there?) t-shirt from Clashist that features the Gos’ handsome mug all over it than today? I’ll be honest, I forgot that today was RyRy’s special day until I checked Facebook this morning. But to my defense, am I really obligated to remember all my celebrity crushes birthdays? I certainly hope not! Anyhow, I immediately put this outfit together because it is absolutely appropriate for today. 😀

So this outfit post, unlike all the ones I’ve posted in the past, is a legit #OOTD/#WIWT (Outfit of the Day/What I Wore Today). Like, I’m seriously wearing it as I put this post together. I had to ask one of my co-workers to take pictures of me during within a 5-minute span just so I could make this post after I got home from work. Shout out to Brianna for taking the pictures with my phone!

Like many ladies my age, I was first exposed to the sexiness that is Ryan Gosling during his Mickey Mouse Club days. Err… okay, so he wasn’t sexy then — I mean hellooo, what was he, 13? GROSS. At the very least he was adorable and 7-year-old me totally had a crush on him, but Tony Lucca was my main man back then. But all of sudden he got all grown up and started appearing in all these great movies, formed a band (Dead Man’s Bones), and stole my heart along the way… along with millions of other girls. ♡

Happy Birthday Ryan Gosling!

Are you ponies fans of the Gos too? If so, what are some of your favorite Ryan Gosling flicks? Mine are Blue Valentine, Half Nelson, Remember the Titans, Lars and the Real Girl, and Crazy, Stupid Love. Oh, and do you guys remember when he was Young Hercules? – insert laughing emoji here – 

Cheers,
Nina

t-shirt: Clashist (buy here or here) // cardigan: Forever 21
booties: Blowfish Shoes (buy similar here)
skirt: Uniqlo (buy similar here)
glasses: Derek Cardigan (buy similar here)
purse: Steve by Steve Madden (thrifted)

geek style · out & about

Jack’s Back

Nina Penalosa7 Comments

On Friday night I flew down to San Diego to visit my sister (I’m staying here until Sunday, wooo!). Since we renewed our Annual Passes to Disneyland, a trip to the Happiest Place on Earth was in order… obviously. In fact, we went twice already! We only planned on going once, but since she had Monday off we thought, “Why not?”

The Haunted Mansion has currently undergone a holiday make-over and is decked out in all things The Nightmare Before Christmas now. This is one of the reasons why I love visiting Disneyland during the holiday season. I actually prefer the Haunted Mansion like that because it’s still creepy, but more cheery compared to the original, and it doesn’t make me think about my mortality — because who wants to think about that while they’re at Disneyland? So when we went on Saturday, I figured it would be perfect for me to wear my Jack Skellington dress! I paired it with a skeleton hand hair clip, my Poe-ka-Dot bag from Out of Print (if Edgar Allan Poe were alive today, I’m sure he’d be a huge fan of The Nightmare Before Christmas), some fishnet stockings, and my black Chucks that are totally falling apart. I think it looked cuter when I wore the dress with black ballet flats, but I figured the Chucks were a more comfy option for galavanting around the park.

My fellow Disnerds, have you been to Disneyland during the holiday season? If so, what’s your favorite part about it? And if you haven’t gone, what would you love to see most? 😀

Cheers,
Nina

dress: Hot Topic (buy here)  // skeleton hair clip: Hot Topic (buy similar here)
cardigan: Forever 21 // glasses: Derek Cardigan (buy similar here)
shoes: Converse // tote: Out of Print (buy here)

geek style

Elite! Elite!

Nina Penalosa8 Comments

outfit details – cardigan: Merona // t-shirt: Teefury (buy similar here) // belt: Xhileration // skirt: Princess by Vera Wang // moccasins: Seychelles // purse: Kate Spade // glasses: Derek Cardigan (buy here)

I’m still trying to get back into the swing of things since coming back home from San Diego yesterday. Even though I only went to Comic-Con for one day I’m completely zonked out by it! I went on Sunday and I remember Sunday being the day that no one really cared to go to because nothing super exciting usually happened panel-wise, but friggin Doctor Who, Breaking Bad, and Supernatural were all at the infamous Hall H (it’s damn near impossible to get into a Hall H panel unless you plan on camping overnight), and that’s a pretty exciting line-up for a Sunday. I decided to ditch Doctor Who — as much as I love the show, I wanted to get the most out of my one day at Comic-Con by exploring the floor to see what was going on rather than spend it waiting in line.

I’ll talk more about my con experience throughout the week! I just wanted to post this cute outfit I wore to the the Neil Gaiman book signing earlier this month. I actually planned this outfit out right after Tim bought the tickets months ago. Is that weird? I can’t be the only person who put together outfits months in advance to wear to special events that aren’t weddings! Anyhow, I really dig the design on my shirt. It was designed by The Atomic Rocket and features a dapper Cyberman rocking a bowler hat, monocle, and a bow tie. There’s a little word bubble by him that says, “Elite! Elite!” (a play on their “Delete! Delete!” catchphrase). It was on Teefury awhile ago, which means that it was only offered for 24 hours, so I immediately bought it! I love the Cybermen, they’re definitely one of my favorite monsters on Doctor Who. I feel like they don’t get as much love as the Daleks do. And Neil Gaiman wrote an episode featuring Cybermen in the latest season of Doctor Who, so it was super appropriate for the signing! 😀

Until next time, kitties!

Cheers,
Nina

geek style · the biblio files

Curiouser and Curiouser…

Nina Penalosa14 Comments

outfit details – dress & belt: Heart Soul // cardigan: Lily Pulitzer (Goodwill find)  // necklace: Hot Topic (not available anymore) // purse: LeSportsac x Fafi // keychain: Tado // shoes: Dirty Laundry // watch: Timex x Disney // ring: ModCloth (buy here) // glasses: Derek Cardigan (buy here) // leather bound book: Barnes & Noble (buy here)

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Vanessa of Nessbow asked myself and a few other bloggers if we’d be interested in doing a blog collaboration by putting together outfits based on our favourite fairy tales. I was excited about the idea, but overwhelmed by what character I could possibly seek inspiration from. TOO. MANY. CHOICES!

While browsing through Ross last week, I came upon this white lace dress with a pleated black bow belt and immediately thought that it would be perfect to base an Alice in Wonderland ensemble around it! But I need to be honest: I’ve never actually read either Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland or Through the Looking Glass. AH! I have a copy with both books in it, but every time I attempt to read it I just immediately flip to “Jabberywocky” because that poem is my jam. I know that poem by heart! ❤ And of course I’ve seen and love the animated Disney film.

Anyhow, I found this blue Lily Pulitzer cardigan with crystal buttons for $3.25 the week before at Goodwill! If that’s not a thrift score, then I don’t know what is. I think my outfit would’ve looked better with my black ballet flats, but I’m pretty sure my house ate them because they’ve been M.I.A. for at least a good month. *sigh*

My LeSportsac x Fafi bag is something I’ve had for years. I remember being so excited when I found out about their collaboration! The design Fafi created has a Wonderland feel to it so I felt that it would go perfectly well with my outfit 🙂

What’s your favorite fairytale?

Cheers,
Nina

PS: Here’s a video of The Muppets performing “Jabberywocky” 😀

geek style · pup life

Huckleberry Blues

Nina Penalosa1 Comment

outfit details – skirt/shirt/belt: Mossimo (buy skirt here) // horse brooch: vintage // straw hat: H&M // backpack: don’t recall, but it’s actually for kids! // shoes: Blowfish // glasses: Derek Cardigan // Duffy Bear keychain: Disneyland (buy here)

Hello kitties!

Summer school started up at the junior college I tutor at, so I’ve been adjusting to waking up at the ass crack of dawn to make sure I get there by 8 am Monday-Thursday. So far my body has taken a liking to passing out as soon as possible once it realizes it’s at home. I forgot how amazing naps are! Except I hate when I doze off well after the sunset because I feel all kinds of discombobulated. Like, “OMG, it’s 8:15! Am I late for work?” Also, where the hell did June come from? Wasn’t it just January? What is happening? How are we at the halfpoint of 2013 already? I haven’t accomplished many the of the goals I set out for myself to achieve this year, but I figure I still have 6 more months to change a few things.

Anywho, let’s talk about my outfit! I wore this last week when I hung out with my bestest friend, Shanice. We went out for a long walk with Rory by a levy, had ice cream, and did some shopping (at Target of course. Where else would we go?). And speaking of Shanice, she’s graduating today! YAAAY!!! Unfortunately I have to work during the ceremony, so I can’t witness her workin’ the cap and gown, but we shall meet up later for ice cream. We love ice cream, okay?

I was in a bit of a Mumford & Sons mood when I threw this outfit together. Not sure if you can tell considering the fact that my backpack has Hello Kitty buttons representing my initials on them. And yes, N.P.H. are my actual initials. That’s not there for Neil Patrick Harris (even though I do love him). When I think of Mumford & Sons, I think of old, rustic, antique items. Not really sure why. So I put this newish-but-old-looking straw hat on my noggin to protect me from the sun, but it was crazy windy that day and kept flying off my head. And my skirt has engineer stripes on them, which says “old timey” and “Mumford & Sons-y” to me. I think my outfit would’ve looked cuter with a pair of brown cowboy boots, but since we were going on a walk I opted for something more practical.

The horse pin I’m wearing on my shirt is a flea market find. I remember digging through a bag full of vintage costume jewelry and had to stop myself from doing a happy dance when I found it. Gotta keep it cool at the flea market, y’know? If a seller can see you like it, they’ll most likely try to get top dollar from you! I don’t remember how much I paid for it, but I recall it was a pretty good deal considering that I got a few other things from the seller too.

Alright, enough blabbering from me. I gotta go get ready for work! I hope you kitties have a lovely weekend ahead of you >^__^<

Cheers,
Nina

PS: Here’s some Mumford & Sons for your listening and viewing pleasure 🙂

geek style

IT’S A [FLORAL] TRAP!

Nina Penalosa17 Comments

outfit details – dress + ring: ModCloth (buy here and here // shoes: American Rag // glasses: Derek Cardigan (buy here) // hair flower: Icing (buy here) // necklace: Rockets and Rainbows (buy here)

Hello kitties!

I’m going to start calling you guys kitties now, is that okay? Yeah? Okay, cool. I knew you’d dig it! >^__^<

It’s weird how having a part time job manages to keep you away from certain things. For example: this blog ‘o mine! I’ve also been working on a special project for my supervisor’s daughter’s birthday party t00, but I managed to sneak in a little photo shoot before I went to work the other day. And I damn near had a panic attack when my tripod broke on me AGAIN. But I managed to fix it once more, so let’s hope it stays that way. *crosses fingers — only on one hand though because apparently it’s bad luck to cross them on both and I’m superstitious like that*

Anyhow, for years I have drooled over the beautiful dresses on ModCloth, and now that I have a steady paycheck coming in every Friday I found that I was finally able to [barely] afford one! I purchased this pretty mint and pinkie peachy floral number for my cousin’s wedding which took place a couple weeks ago. This also happens to be the dress I put on my Wishful Wednesdays post last month. Look at me, making all my wishes come true! I’m super excited that I was able to get this dress in my possession because it keeps selling out pretty quickly! *happy dance* ModCloth literally has one more left in stock (at the time of this post anyhow)!  I paired the dress with my purple t-strap heels from American Rag and this incredibly fabulous Admiral Ackbar locket created by the uber geektastic Jennifer Landa! 🙂 I brought a vintage cameo necklace with me as another option, but when I asked what necklace to wear Admiral Ackbar was the unanimous victor. Florals + SciFi is always a winning combination!

I also wore this outfit to work and it took everything in me to not spin around in circles while standing around waiting to greet customers because this dress seriously has some crazy amazing flow to it! And it also makes me feel like a princess since it kind of reminds me of the dress Giselle made out of curtains in Enchanted.

Posts here may be sparse during June and July since I picked up a lot of hours for my other part time job as a tutor. I’m gonna have so much fun balancing everything out. Yaaaay adulthood! /sarcasm

I’m going to do my very best on updating Le Fancy Geek though! I hope you kitties stick with me 🙂

Cheers,
Nina

geek style

Coral Corral

Nina Penalosa16 Comments

outfit details – dress: American Rag // boots: Charles Albert // belt: Xhileration (came with another dress) // bolero: I have no idea! // glasses: Derek Cardigan (buy here) // purse: street faire find // cocktail ring:vintage // necklace: Once Upon a Smorgasbord

I forgot how terribly irksome it is to take your own outfit shots via self-timer and tripod. I’ve been very spoiled by having Tim take my pictures whenever he’s in town (he’s oh-so very patient and even gives me directions on where to look or how to pose), but since he’s in Ohio for a week I need to go back to the way I started. And damn, it’s been a bitch!

In the process of trying to take shots of this outfit I wore last week (it’s been a busy weekend full of wedding festivities so I haven’t been able to do a write-up until now– mah bad), my tripod got knocked over by a sudden gust of wind while my 3-month old camera was still mounted to it! Thankfully, the camera only has a bit of a scratch. *PHEW* But the little removable part that the camera screws onto totes broke. I superglued it back on, but now I don’t have the convenience of taking it off and whatnot. Oh well!

But enough of my moaning, check out my purse! It’s a friggin horse saddle!!! I found it at the Lodi Street Faire earlier this month and fell in love immediately. Whenever my mom and I go to flea markets or street faires, I usually have a certain thing I’m looking for. A quirky bag wasn’t on my agenda (now that I think about it, I didn’t really have anything on my agenda), but once I laid eyes on it I knew I had to bring it home with me. I’d be a fool to pass it up, right? It was originally marked at $55, but mom (a total haggling pro), asked the vendor what her best price was and she said $45. SCORE!

Tip: When bargaining with vendors at street fairs and whatnot, throw out phrases like “What’s your best price?” or “What’s the best you can do on this?” if you’re interested in an item because then it sounds like you’ve been doing this haggling thing forever and have it down pat. Plus it sounds a lot better than, “Can you go any lower?”

I made the necklace I’m wearing with a little horse toy that I adorned with pink ribbon and some flatback Swarovski crystals. I dubbed it my “Neapolitan Pony” since the colors go along with the ice cream flavor. ERMERGERD, doesn’t a bowl of that sound super tasty right now?! I actually made quite a few of these necklaces with other animal toys, but have yet to put them on my Etsy store ’cause I’m lame like that. But if you’re interested in ordering a custom one, don’t hesitate to ask me! I’ve actually done three custom orders for these little animal necklaces already via Instagram; four if you count my mom’s birthday request for a hippo 🙂

Cheers,
Nina

geek style · the biblio files

The Great CATSby

Nina Penalosa6 Comments

outfit details – glasses: Derek Cardigan (buy here) // pullover: Out of Print Clothing (buy here)

Hello, Old Sports!

With the recent release of the film adaptation of The Great Gatsby, I wanted to re-read the novel before seeing the movie… ’cause that’s how I roll. My expectations aren’t too high for it though; I already have a feeling that it’s going to be one of those the-book-is-better-than-the-movie kind of deals. And Christina Hendricks should’ve totally been cast as Myrtle Wilson, am I right?! I mean, Isla Fisher is gorgeous, but Myrtle’s described as having a bit more of a figure. Plus Christina Hendricks and Carey Mulligan are my lady loves, so it would’ve been mind blowing to see them in a movie together! Anyhow, I found my old copy from high school with notes dated from May of 2002 (#hellaold!) hidden within the pages, but both of my part time jobs have kept me busy and so has my Etsy store, so I haven’t really found a whole lot of time to sit down and read. RUGH. But thankfully audiobooks exist ! I just bought the version Jake Gyllenhaal narrates on Audible (it’s $6.95!!!), and I’m listening to it as I type this very blog post!

The glasses I’m wearing might look familiar — I put them on my “Wishful Wednesdays” post awhile ago. I bought them immediately after I wrote the post too. Waste time I do not! The frames are a lot smaller than I’m used to, but I really like them. I’ve always wanted to try out cat eye frames too. And just like my first order from Coastal.com, the glasses came in a nice case and also came with a bottle of glasses cleaner, a cloth to wipe them with, and a screwdriver to tighten/loosen the glasses. I was a little freaked out when I first put them on though because they were really narrow and had the sides of my face in a tight bear hug. I thought, “OMG, NOOO! I don’t want to have to return these!” And then I remembered that I could go to LensCrafters and have them adjust the glasses for me, and for free nonetheless. Crisis averted! I’m over the moon about these glasses, and I loooove the fact that they have semicolons and colons on them. It’s a subtle detail, but as someone who majored in Creative Writing I can’t help but be super excited about it. Haha! If you haven’t checked out Coastal.com, they have smorgasbord of fantastically wonderful frames and first-time customers get their first pair of glasses for free. Well, you pay for shipping, but other than that they’re FREE!

And don’t my new glasses look just dandy with my The Great Gatsby pullover?  😉

Cheers,
Nina

geek style

A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes

Nina Penalosa7 Comments

outfit details – pullover: Forever 21 // dress: BCX (buy here) // ring + earrings: Once Upon a Smorgasbord (buy here and here) // glasses: Derek Cardigan (buy here) // shoes: Mossimo

I was looking through my wallet the other day and noticed that I never took out my Annual Pass to Disneyland despite the fact that it expired two months ago. *cries* A key to happiness with an expiration date is the saddest thing ever! Wah wah wah. #firstworldproblems

So today’s outfit is a “what I’d wear to Disneyland” kind of a thing, but really — I’d wear Disney related clothing ANYWHERE. 😀

I actually wore this lacey navy blue dress on my last trip to Disneyland (seen here). Annnd, this is the dress’ third appearance in an outfit post (seen here). Sorry I’m not sorry for recycling! I got my lavender Cinderella pullover a couple years ago when Forever 21 first started selling them. Naturally, I went ape sh!t and bought almost every friggin’ one they had, except for yellow Lion King pullover which they never had in my size every time I stumbled upon it. RUGH!

The jewelry I’m wearing is made by yours truly and I just put them up on Once Upon a Smorgasbord! Don’t worry, I’m just wearing them for show in this outfit. I didn’t actually go out and about wearing them! And with Mother’s Day coming closer and closer, it’s too late for me to have a sale like I originally intended. Mah bad.

So bad news: if you want to buy something for your mama from Once Upon a Smorgasbord, it won’t ship out on time.

Good news: I’m going to start a sale ON Mother’s Day! I’ll be adding more things to the store, so be on the lookout for more info on that and a code to use at checkout 😀

Cheers,
Nina