Dress: Cha Cha Dress in Magical Mushrooms by
NooworksTights: Snag
Sandals: Fluevog, F-Trip: Bridget
Shoes: Fluevog, Go Groovy: Aubrey
Earring: Wendy Baker
Rest of Jewelry: Vintage
Stats: 5'7" 38-32-42
I got this dress a few years ago from Nooworks...I guessed on what size I'd end up & I did well. It's a medium, but it's a tight medium...which surprised me as they are a small woman owned company that makes clothes up to size 5x...so if anything, I thought their medium would be generous. It's not that it feels tight, but the print stretches more than I would like. But, mushrooms! This is a fabulously fun print & I'm pleased I have it in my mushroom dress collection. *Much* shorter dress than I'm comfortable with with bare legs & my lipedema. These 60s inspired sandals were a great match for the vibe of this outfit.This might be the first time I'm wearing this necklace & bracelet set we found at Midwest Vintage Flea...or was it Elkhorn?The second time I wore this in Asheville, I added tights, a cardigan, & closed toe shoes. These shoes remind me of mushrooms...My make-up with this outfit included...NYX eyeliner in Jet Black, Clinique liquid liner in black, NYX lipliner in Pumpkin, Flamepoint eyeshadow by Sugarpill Cosmetics, Urban Decay lipstick in Heat, Clockwork lipstick from Sugarpill, & ILNP nail polish in Atomic Sherbet. I first wore this dress on the last day of September. We got an early start & went kayaking...I was hoping David would enjoy it as much as I do...but water related activities just aren't his thing. Farmers' market! Then home to shower, change, & drive to Spring Green. Dessert before dinner...why not?! We love this homemade ice cream at Wander Provisions. I had a scoop each of pumpkin spice & caramel apple chèvre...David chose chocolate & rum raisin. For our picnic, I made us Cumin Roasted Salmon with Cilantro Sauce Salad with lots of veg. We enjoyed the pretty sunset as we finished our meal...ending with watermelon with balsamic vinegar & basil...YUM...I'm excited for next year's watermelon season. A walk up the hill in the dark to see Anton's Shorts. I adored these little velvet pumpkins...aren't they sweet?!Cocktails in cans. We had a lovely evening, but I think we left this play at intermission. The second time I wore this dress was the day we left Asheville to drive to my parents' house. We hadn't gone to any strictly antique shops despite there being so many...so I picked one & we headed for it...where I promptly fell in love with this brown lounger...it would have been right at home in our wreck room, but it was quite pricey...but comfortable! We didn't find anything we needed...except for a few items of vintage clothing that were too cheap to pass up. One last stop, Battery Park Book Exchange & Champagne Bar...there were just so many places we didn't make it to in Asheville...we didn't want to ever leave. They have our vote for best bookstore in Asheville...what a charming place...you could spend hours here...& they have food too...so you really could just idle away the day...so many comfy spots to relax in. I overheard the best/most terrible short exchange by the dog pillows between a father & son...mom walked away for a moment & dad says...your mother, she does that...she likes to stomp on your dreams. Art & antiques decorated this inviting space...we came home with a stack of books. The bookstore was part of the historic Grove Arcade, built in 1928...it was America's first indoor shopping mall...we stepped inside briefly...& were immediately drawn into this hat shop...Where we both found some hats...David got the blue one he's wearing behind me above & I decided on the last one below...green & orange with autumn leaves. The woman who made them checked us out...We really have to go...oh, ice cream! Gelato. I got a dish of salted caramel, butter pecan, & rum raisin. It was luxuriously delicious. The man who served us was the owner & he's the third generation of gelato makers. Yay! Ice cream for breakfast. I blame the dress...I don't eat ice cream very often, but I did both times while wearing this dress. Finally on the road to Tennessee...we had to take the back way because of the wildfire we'd seen coming into Asheville. Such a gorgeous drive surrounded by mountains...but extremely foggy at times as we got closer to my parents' house. We arrived just in time for cocktails...Moscow Mule for me & an Old-Fashioned for David, with homemade cherries.
My mom made a fantastic Caesar salad (with anchovies!) & seafood lasagna, & we opened a couple of bottles of Hunt that we picked up at Biltmore...& ended the meal with some French Broad chocolate.
For our final cocktails (we still had a long drive ahead of us), The Choke Artist (Appleton estate signature rum, cynar, green chartreuse, mint) & High Fashion (Old Grand Dad 114, Belle de Brillet, Giffard ginger, yuzu bitters, Pernod spritz), which wasn't for me & I traded for a Snake in the Grass (Teremana resposada, Lucid absinthe, naranja, carpano antica, fresh sour). I'd been eager to try their Local Catfish (braised greens, sweet potato, coconut, peanut, chili oil) since we just couldn't fit it in our stomachs last time. 
And finally, Shrimp & Grits (spicy pork shank, button mushrooms, New Orleans bbq sauce, pimento cheese grits). We skipped dessert this time so we'd have more room for savory. I enjoyed looking through this collection of cookbooks behind me. We're so happy we came here again...everyone remembered us & was so nice...& the food here is amazing...the perfect sweet/savory balance in every dish. Sara wasn't my favorite contestant during her time on Top Chef, but boy was I wrong. I wish we could come here every week. Driving home...this came up in my Facebook feed...this red velvet playpen is *just* what our wreck room needs...isn't it spectacular?! There's room for me, David, & the dogs. About an hour outside of Madison...it began snowing...welcome home to Wisconsin. 
