Duplex Birthday Giveaway!

Do you know what today is?  Yes, you probably do because I gave it away in the title.  Today the Duplex is one year old.  One year ago, Whit and I started this virtual duplex because we missed the luxury of having readily available roommates advice.

In our very first post ever, I asked a question that I had been dying to know FOREVER.  Can professors wear leopard?  I actually still haven't had the guts to wear leopard to work.  But, I seemed pretty excited about it at the time.

I wish I could gather all of you e-roommates together for a Duplex party.  Wouldn't that be fun?  We could all show up wearing something that we had a question about and go around in a circle and critique one another's outfits.  Sounds like a party to me.

But since that isn't exactly possible-- HOW ABOUT A GIVEAWAY?? 

How about a 30 dollar gift card to Anthropologie?

To enter the $30 Anthro giveaway:

You must be a follower of Ask the Duplex via Google Friend Connect

{for 1 entry}

1. Like Ask the Duplex on Facebook 

(the top left hand corner of the blog) and leave a comment that you have done so.

{for an additional entry}

2. Share the giveaway on your Facebook account

Go to Ask the Duplex's Facebook account and click "share" on the Giveaway post and link it to your timeline
 then leave a comment on this post  that you have done so

*make sure you do TWO comments if you like us and link it on your account*

{The giveaway will close on April 13th)  

So like and link! Because who doesn't want 30 bucks to Anthropologie?

....or black and white stripes

A few months ago I pinned this top to my pinterest board...even though it was out of stock and I couldn't have it.  Though even if it had been in stock, it was 40 buck-a-roonies.  And who has 40 bucks to spend on a shirt?  Maybe some of you. But not this little cheapskate.  Only in my dreams do I buy expensive items.  But that is what pinning is all about, right?  Dreaming. 

But then sometimes dreams come true.  And sometimes the reality is a little bit different than the dream. Like this top, for instance.  Not quite as fabulous as the modcloth version but the same idea, nonetheless.  

The cut is a little bit different, the stripes are a little bit thinner, it was 70% cheaper, and it came with this belt-- that may or may not be placed in an awkward spot.  

I put it on my body and thought, "Are belts supposed to go right under your chest?"  I mean I know belts are used as accessories these days instead of for logical reasons--like holding up your pants.  

But, I can't tell how I feel about the belt.  It's not holding up anything...it's not really accentuating my waist..it's just kind of there- right under my chest.  

Belt:

No Belt:

Do you think I should get rid of the belt and cut off the little loops?

Or do you like it better with the belt?

Black and White Stripes or....Black and White Stripes

Did you guys like hanging out with the Candy Shoppe last week?  I know I sure did.  I can't wait for the day when we can all be reunited again.  

As you guys know so well by now, I have a problem making decisions.  What to order at a restaurant...what brand of milk to buy at the grocery store...what to eat for breakfast-- decisions haunt me all day.  Most of the time when I don't know what to eat for breakfast, I end up eating both options.  That way I don't have to make a decision.

Likewise, when I am at Marshalls and I can't decide which identical maxi skirt to buy-- I buy both so I don't have to decide right then and there.  

As spring is now here (hooray!), I am already planning and preparing for the ridiculous humidity here in the south.  Last summer, maxi skirts saved me.  It was like wearing a nightgown all day.  So, I am determined to find a couple more before summer hits.  

I found two VERY similar skirts at Marshalls.  They are the most comfortable things in the whole world.  But, I can only keep one.  

Option 1:

(does my left arm look like a dead fish to you?)

 A quick deck change...(blurry because I was moving SO fast)

 Hopefully nobody was watching me switch skirts....

... and take photos of myself...midday. 

Or Option 2:

Which skirt do you like better?  Option 1 or Option 2?

One needs to be returned to Marshalls ASAP.  

The Candy Shoppe loves you, Whit

Although we couldn't all be there with Whit during this difficult time, to dance on our porch.....

or cut straight-across bangs at 3 am.....

Or go to Walmart in ridiculous matching shirts....

Or go to Provo Bakery for a doughnut......

or go play a ridiculous game of intramural basketball in matching camo....

or go on a tandem bike ride...

or play the drums in matching onesie pajamas.....

...we're all with you via Duplex, Whit.  We love you. 

Ask the Candy Shoppe (Part III), Shannon Edition

Hello, Duplex world. My name is Shannon and I spent four years in college eating cadbury mini-eggs and discussing important boy and hair matters with my roommates Whitney and Monica.

Unfortunately, we all live in opposite corners of the nation now so it is not as easy to walk to the 7-11 and grab 32 oz. of aspartame joy while we discuss important life matters such as what to do when a boy doesn't feed you on an 8-hour long date (true Monica/me double date story). So, I turn to you with a question of UTMOST importance. I need your most brutal, most truthful opinion. Otherwise, I may make a mistake of catastrophic proportions.

You see, I have a little bit of an obsession with Florence, from Florence + the Machine.

I lovelovelove her intense emotions and insanely great style. And because of this undying love, recently I've developed a secret burning desire to become a redhead.

I've never, ever considered this idea before, but all of a sudden it won't go away. But is dying your hair red always a catastrophic idea? Doesn't it fade fast to a blah brown? Won't it be hard if I want to go back to blonde? Shouldn't red only be the color of your hair if you were born with it sprouting from your scalp?

My husband says that it would be the worst decision I've ever made, but I need estrogen-filled opinions.  Is dying my tresses fiery red a terrible idea (along with wearing matching footie pajamas to every party in college with Monica and Whitney)?

I'm the one on the left below...try to visualize that face with Florence red locks and then lay the truth on me.

So, what do you think: to become a redhead or not to become a redhead?

Ask the Candy Shoppe (part II), Laura Edition

I was lucky enough to be a bridesmaid at Monica’s wedding a few years ago in California.  After checking the weather (and realized it was going to over 100 degrees all weekend!  In May!!), I started my packing list - bridesmaid dress, pink v neck tee, grey tee, pink tank, white jeans, and a tide pen.

Upon arriving in California, Jana and I stayed at Whitney’s house for few days before heading down to the wedding.  After wearing my white jeans on the airplane and again the next day exploring San Fran, Jana asked if I had brought other pants.  Why would I bring other pants??? I had my white jeans!  She was astonished and couldn’t believe I would go out of town for 5 days and only bring white jeans.  What if I spilled or they got dirty?

I don’t spill and I don’t get dirty.  And I had my tide pen just in case.

So after that pointless story (that still gets told almost every time I go on a trip or wear white jeans), would you only travel in white jeans? 

What’s your best kept secret for keeping white jeans nice and white?

Ask the Candy Shoppe (part I), Kat Edition

Once upon a time, Whitney, Monica and I were wee little freshman. Wee little 18 year olds who decided to embark on a late night escapade off campus wearing assorted dresses from Monica's closet for absolutely no reason whatsoever. This sort of activity is normal, right? So we gathered around Monica's teeny closet and begin trying on dresses. Several half zipped dresses later, and the frustrated YKK's speak for themselves: I have a deceptively wide back. A back so wide, it earned me the nickname WBK. Yes, Wide Back Kat. And yes, I'm at peace with it.

Now this sort of structural issue doesn't just go away. The wide back thwarted me again three years later when Whitney and I decided to sneak in to the nearby high school's prom. Trust me, it wasn't easy to find a dress this hideous that could zip up my back while still fitting.

Years have passed, but my rib cage remains. In fact, I'm pretty sure that rib cage is the reason this dress has gone unworn for longer than I'd like to admit.

WBK view:

See, those structured shoulders? You know, the kind reminiscent of shoulder pads? 

Must you have a supremely narrow frame to successfully wear such a thing? 

Is this dress doing a disservice to my shoulder girth?

Can it be worn in real life or is it better left for the next time I attend a costume party as 1984s Superbowl quarterback dressed in drag?

PS- if you think this dress is too 80's housewife you can say so too.

Ask the Candy Shoppe

Meet the Candy Shoppe:

(and our roommate laura..I couldn't find a picture of just the house)

This is where Whitney and I spent one of the best years of our lives.  The Candy Shoppe.  Right there in that little house.  And yes, we named our house.  After our favorite thing in the whole world.. candy.  And then we made it a little more home-y with Hilary Duff in the window...and a nasty free couch that we found on the road.

Distance and proximity can be a very frustrating thing.  When Whitney told me about her devastating news, all I wanted to do was bring her a Diet Coke and give her a hug.

I sat there wishing that I could gather up all of our real-life roommates and take Whit to Chevron to get a 44 oz of Diet Dr. Pepper-- just like the good ol' days. 

In college, whenever we had a bad day (e.g., we bombed a test or had some type of boy problem) we would all pile in the car and go get a large soda and a frozen yogurt from Maverick.

Then we would sit around and take our minds off of our (what seemed to be) very awful problems.  We would just sit there and talk about ridiculous things and laugh so hard that we would coughing up our diet beverage.

Sometimes we would even dance on the streets to lift our spirits.  

Since, all of us real-life-roommates can't be with Whitney during this difficult time, I decided to bring the real-life roommates to the Duplex.

Throughout the next week, some of our college roommates will be here asking about some very important things.  We'll be pretending we're all just sitting around at the Candy Shoppe talking about unimportant things while we sip on our soda.

So grab a Diet Coke, sit back and get ready to meet the real-life roommates of Monica and Whitney.  

Accquainted with the Night*

I was so happy to receive such kind and wonderful advice after announcing my pregnancy. I waited a long time to tell my parents, family, friends, internet world, etc. but once I did the excitement poured over me like nothing I had ever experienced.

We went to find out the gender of the baby this week where we learned that our little baby's heart had stopped beating.

I tell you dear roommates, and internet world, this personal note as I try to relieve some of the sadness that has filled my body. I am fortunate to have a support network of people that have showed me such tender kindness and I feel forever grateful.

I will be taking a few weeks off the internet, and the duplex, to spend time trying to move forward and most likely doing many odd tasks, as I have found myself in complete task-mode trying to occupy my mind. I feel confident that sometime in the future I will return to feeling like myself, and that one day my home will be filled with baking bread and baby bums, but for now that will wait.

* the title is from a poem by Robert Frost

Last Cruise Question...maybe

Well, folks.  We have a cruise shoes winner.  I love it so much when there is one clear option that everyone prefers.  Now I know exactly what shoes to pack.  Also, I was so glad to see that the shoes that I wore with this dress for my friend's wedding were the shoes you picked! 

Light gray it is.  

Ok, but on to more cruise questions.  

Almost a year ago I took these pictures:

I was wondering about the gold belt and gray shoe combination.  Sometimes all you need is to take a picture of something to find the answer.  After I took these pics I thought, nah, that doesn't work, so I never actually asked you guys about it.

But today I am wondering something else about this dress.  

I have two questions

1. Is this dress ugly?  I can't really tell.

There was a time when 50% of the women in Provo, Utah owned this dress.  I'm serious.  And I was one of them.  I am pretty sure it was 2007 or 2008.  But, I haven't seen anyone wear it since then.

2.  If your answer is "no, it is not ugly"-- then, do you think it is appropriate for a formal night on the cruise?  Or is it more of a sun dress?

READER SUBMISSION

We were so happy when Ashley agreed to do a reader submission. You guys, she's a real life but younger Tami Taylor (and who doesn't LOOVEEE tami taylor?!?!) She is married to a HS football coach, mother of three, and just really wonderful. She blogs about all types of things from fashion and recipes, to life with her three cute children. I have really enjoyed reading her blog, and now she is here on ours!

Hello! I'm Ashley from The Vanilla Tulip and I am in need of your input!

I love wearing bright colors...especially pinks, corals and reds.

I put this outfit together for church a few weeks ago but ended up taking it off.

I loved it but couldn't decide if it was too much pink and red?

I put the belt with it in hopes of breaking it up a bit.

Is there a rule I'm missing on wearing bright colors together?

You know when you love an outfit and desperately want it to work...

then you end up justifying that it looks great even if it doesnt.

I just can't decide if that's the case here or not!

My questions for you duplex girls is...

Does this outfit work?

Is a red top and pink skirt a bad combo?

An Apartment Question for the Duplex

I've tried to make it a habit not to post crappy pictures on this blog... I mean like crappy phone quality, however today is different. Remember the great couch search? Well, it has come to an end! We ended up with this beauty (which is a true beauty in real life, but hard to tell over the phone/bad angle).

I now need to add some throw pillows, but I'm at a lost. I feel like I should invest in something that I'll keep around for a little bit. How do you guys feel about these two, are they too girly??

World Market

In real life it is more of a mustard

I feel like I'm the alone in saying this, but pinterest kind of overwhelms me. Is there any specific place you go for home design inspiration? Have you gotten pillows anywhere good? I've never really made a purchase like this.

Also, what colors would you do throw pillows with?

Cruise Shoes

A little over a year ago I scoured every dress shop known to man in search of a blue dress for one of my best friend's weddings.  Man, how I could have used the Duplex then.  I actually ended up finding this little number and I've been looking for another fancy occasion to wear it to.

And, as I've already told you guys about twelve times-- I'm going on a cruise!  And as I've heard from some friends and from some of my e-roommates, there are formal nights on the cruise.

So, I'm going to pull out my little bridesmaid dress for the cruise.  Sound good?  Good.

For some reason, I think because of the kind of blue, I can never tell what shoe would look best.  

And this, my dearest e-roommates, is where I need your help.

Black

White

Dark Gray

Or... Light Gray

Which Cruise Shoes should I pack?

What do you guys think?  Cast your vote below, please?

And as always...if you have any other ideas, like- "Go get some bright red shoes!"-let me know in a comment!

TGIF

 I really appreciate all the feedback I got about the stretch cream, especially since most of you said none of it works! This is a relief because I don't have to spend money and I can just let mother nature run her course.

IT'S FRIIIIIIIDDDDDDDDDDAAYYYYYYYYY. It's amazing how I have lived thousands of Fridays but every week when it comes around it feels like the greatest thing in the whole world, the weekend possibilities are endless! I'm going to eat pizza! I can stay up past 8:30! I can watch 3 episodes of 30 Rock! (I know, my life is crazy exciting).

Anyway, just had to get that excitement out of my system. On to more important things, like pleated pants. I bought these pants that have weird pleats at the top of them. When I have my hands in my pockets, I don't think you can really tell:

But when my hands are not in my pockets:

I can't tell if they are unflattering or if I'm just being self conscious. And since we're all good friends, you can be really honest with me. Are they unflattering? I will still wear them to work, even if they're unflattering but I can't ever decide if I should wear them to non-work things. Like costco to eat pizza.

And since I'm talking about Friday too, anybody have any fun (or mundane) plans?

A Seasick Bookworm

I know that you guys are probably getting sick about hearing about my cruise.  I'm sorry.  I'm just so excited!  And as my e-roommates you can just smile and nod as I continue to ask you cruise questions.

I have two more questions for you about my cruise.  One question that anyone can answer and one question that cruise-goers can answer.

1.  Do you have any great book recommendations?

I have this vision in my mind of laying out on the boat deck reading a great book.  I have already vowed to myself that I WILL NOT bring any school reading (which is a big step for me) so I am in need of a good page turner.  

Yes, I have read Hunger Games.  And no, I will not be reading Twilight.  

I have had these three recommended to me already:

Have you read any of these? Would you recommend them?

2. Do people often get seasick on cruises?  If so, do you know of any remedies for counteracting the sickness?

I am starting to feel a little bit nervous.  I get carsick pretty easily so I am wondering if I am a good candidate for seasickness.  And I really don't want to be nauseous while I'm downing free food. 

PLEASE! I need help.  I really want to find a great book.  

And I really don't want to be sick while I'm reading it on the deck.