The Cape...'08 - YouLookFab Forum

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The Cape...'08

Nicole

Veteran

OK, I'm well rested and ready for my own bed tonight! (My biggest problem with vacations is missing my awesome bed--if you're ever in the market for a new mattress--talk to me about my bed before you buy.)

If anyone has ever been to the Cape, you know that it's not a fashion mecca. It's all about beachwear, and not much else. I did see a very stylish woman walking along the beach with a scarf draped over her shoulders for sun protection. I'm not sure how much protection she was actually getting--it looked pretty sheer to me. But it was a very stylish option. The one rainy day brought us to the movies and a mall (while we waited for the movie to start). I saw a lot of jeans--mostly skinnies with tunics. There is still a sweatshirt hoodie phenomenon going on around here, especially with the teenage crowd. I'd say 99% of the shoes I saw that day were flip flops....both nicer versions and the rubber beach kind.

So, I mostly have rants about what I saw...but since I mostly sit and people watch for the week, it's easy to do....

First of all...what is up with men wearing shirts they receive free from tee shirt cannons at baseball games, or for submitting 17 upc symbols of gatorade, or buying 1700 packs of cigarettes? I swear if I see one more man wearing a "free" tee shirt, I'm going kick him in the shins.

Second of all....coverups are NOT meant to be worn as day dresses. We were having an icecream cone and 3 girls (20 somethings) stepped out of their car--all wearing a terry cloth tube dress and nothing else. (they were clearly not coming from the beach). One of these girls was a little big, and she had to keep hiking the dress up over her ta-tas. Which of course, made the length disgustingly short. Thank GOD she didn't drop her napkin! It was bad enough that the three of them headed out in matching outfits.

Thirdly, bathing suits come with shoulder straps for a reason...If you want to avoid tan lines, look for a strapless bathing suit--do not just pull the straps under your armpits and hope to defy gravity. Better yet, avoid the tan all together.

Fourth, men, back waxing is your friend.

Fifth, maybe the mean wear Speedos in Europe--but this is not Europe.

Sixth, (and my final rant incase I sound like an insane b**ch)--Just because you are at the beach, does not mean you have to wear nautical themed shirts--especially horizontal stripes. I saw an extended family in the mall--it looked like 3 siblings, with their spouses, children and one set of grand parents---a total of 15 or 16 people...and 8-10 of them had on some type of horizontal striped top. I wanted to take a photo to show you, but my husband wouldn't give me the camera. It was an insane amount of stripes.

Glad to be back! Missed you all!

General

25 replies

Latest reply was from Nicole

Anonymous

LOL! Loved your rants.

Ana

(website)

Veteran

Well...Patience, Sarah and I always plan ahead to have matching outfits when we go out together.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Ha Ana and Nicole *chuckle*

It’s good to have naughty Nicole back. We missed you too!

The scene you’re describing is almost identical to what I saw in our “beach-y” neigbourhood nearby. Hilarious! Men wear Speedos in Europe all the time and I can’t bare it. Blokes look so much better in boxy surfer shorts. I want to know more about the cozzie fashion. What did that scene look like?

Sihaya

Veteran

Nicole- welcome back. I missed you and your awesome sense of humor. How's your dad? While you were gone we have planned our first annual YLF get together. It's going to be on the beach and we're all showing up in horizontally striped swim suits

marianne

LOL Nicole! I definitely don't miss the speedo look.

Becky

Veteran

Glad you had a great vacation, Nicole, and we're so glad you're back! Had a good chuckle over your rants...I can picture it!

Ana

(website)

Veteran

Angie, I had to ask Brendan for a translation of cozzie, lol. Sometimes, it's so convenient having him around.

Nicole

Veteran

Oh right...the bathingsuits....

The youngest of the women (it's so hard to tell if some of these girls were 14 or 18) wore string bikinis. Mismatched tops and bottoms and some matched sets too. (Personally, I love the look of a mismatched 2 piece.) I hate to admit this, but I am one of those horrid people who don't think heavy women should wear bikinis. I know...I know...I'm terrible, but I'm being honest here. There is ALWAYS one chubby girl in the group who wants so badly to wear the same things her skinny friends are wearing. If she could just learn to accept her body the way it is, and wear an appropriate suit, she'd look so much better. But it's all part of growing up. I just hope I wasn't the chubby girl wearing things I had no business wearing--but I probably was! And while I'm ranting about it...my husband and I noticed that a lot of big people drink diet coke on the beach. What is wrong with water?? I couldn't imagine drinking soda to quench my thirst.

Ok back to cozzies...ok so the next age group of wome (I'd say mid 20's to mid 40's) wore a lot of tankinis. I saw a few nicely shaped women who were hiding behind ugly bathingsuits...the kind that old ladies wear that look like tennis dresses. There were a few people in this age group wearing bikinis--some who had the bodies for it, and some who didn't. But as long as their shoulders were back and they owned it, they could carry it off. Precious Mia asked me why I never wear a bikini and at that point my mother decided to possess my mouth. I had to go back and apologize to Mia and tell her that I didn't wear bikinis because it's a personal preference and by no means reflects on the person wearing the bikini. Oh, there was a large number of WHITE bathing suits this week--I can't remember the last time I saw a white bathing suit. There was one that had one arm strap and a cutout around the side....very 80's. My husband did not approve.

There were ladies in the 50+ crowd who looke fantabulous! I'd say that age group was the best dressed on the beach. Tasteful, appropriate, and confident. It really is amazing what happens when a women pulls her shoulders back and loves her body. The best suit based on body type went to a woman who wore one of those tennis dress looking bathing suits...but it was the perfect suit for her 60+ self. My one rant about women's suits in general--there were a lot of hater styles...and I never noticed until this year--how wide they make a woman's back look. Even small statured women looked wide shouldered...and wide shouldered women (like me) looked like men in women's bathing suits. Not a good look, needless to say.

For the most part, the suits were all colorful, not a lot of black (except for me, I own 2 black b'suits, along with turquois, and chocolate--and I mostly mix and match).

The majority of men wore long surfer type bathing suits. A few guys wore tighter shorts, but not cut off like a Speedo--more like a pair of boxer briefs. I think if you MUST wear a tight suit, then that's the way to go. Not as offensive as a meathanger.

Oh, this reminds me of the books I read over vacation...I'll start a new thread about it...:)

Anonymous

Thanks Nicole. Very interesting.
Welcome back, we missed you.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Brendan earns his keep Ana

Thanks Nicole. A great insight to the Cape Cod cozzie world! I loved hearing how the most stylish women were older. Confidence and grace can’t be bought. It just is.

Dani

Veteran

Great report, Nicole, and very interesting. Glad you had a nice time. It's good to have you back

Anonymous

Nicole tell us what kind of bed it is that you say is awesome. Is it a memory foam mattress? I have some friends who got one and have been considering one also. I think it is called Posture Pedic.

Inge

(website)

Still laughing about the napkin:-))
Welcome back Nicole, good to hear you had a great holiday and thank you for insights. I've never been to the Cape but now I can picture it in my head.

Tanya

Veteran

I am glad you had a great time Nicole. It's nice to have you back! I truly enjoyed reading your notions on the Cape.

Please, do share about the bed. My BF is on a hunt for one for his new place in Abq.

Nicole

Veteran

Hey Tanya...welcome back!

Ok here's what I learned about mattresses and what worked for me.

Pillowtop mattresses will break down over time. I don't care what brand you buy, the padding is soft and it will squish from years of pressure. But they are very comfortable until the padding flattens.

A firm mattress is really good for your back, but it's not very comfortable to most people. The ideal set up is a firm mattress with pillowtop...but then you run into problems with the pillowtop compressing.

A lot of people swear by memory foam mattresses. But the memory foam will compress over time and you will end up with a very uncomfortable ridge in the middle of the mattress. Also, the extreme softness of these mattresses can cause back pain to people who need more firm support.

So...after years of researching, talking to people, trying out different mattresses, even calling hotels that had very comfy mattresses I came to what I beleive is the best mattress combination.

I have a Simmons Beautrest Black Firm Mattress---with a 2" Tempurpedic mattress topper. The firm mattress underneath gives us the support, but the topper gives us that "sink in" softness. Now I know this topper will eventually compress--but it was under $200 for a king size--so when it's done, I throw it out, and keep my mattress and just replace the topper. I think the combination of having a good quality firm mattress and a mid quality topper makes this the most comfortable bed I've ever slept in. It took my body about a week to adjust to the softness of the topper--meaning, I'd wake up with a stiff back. We've had this mattress and topper for a little over a year now--and I have no regrets.

I hope this helps your BF in the search for a new mattress. Oh, and since you two will eventually be living together again--I suggest he get the biggest mattress he can fit in his apt, and the best quality one he can afford. No point in wasting money on a temporary mattress.

Kyle

Veteran

Don't think you need to apologize about issues re: women in bikinis. A bathing suit is just like any other type of fashion. Wear what is flattering. I know women my age (mid-40s) who think that just because they once could wear a bikini means that they still can (and will just to prove a point) and that's just not always true. If you have the body for it, then go for it, but if not, it may be time to reassess. Sounds as though the women you admired have come to terms with the way they look right now, and are dressing accordingly.

As for me, thank goodness for Miracle Suits!

Tanya

Veteran

Wow, thanks for the detailed mattress info Nicole! It shall be put to good use. You are absolutely right, he will be looking for a one that's going to be ours once I move there.

Nicole

Veteran

OK, I popped a few photos from the beach on my Photobucket account. I tried to pick photos that included some of the background, so those of you who have never been to Cape Cod, can see what the sand dunes look like.

The first photo is the way we get to the beach with all our gear. My husband is so proud of that bike and trailer. The bike is a 196something Schwinn bicycle that my husband has turned into a single speed. He refuses to change any parts, except for the wheels. Even the chain is original.

The next photo is how I spend my entire week--under an umbrella. You can see the dunes in the back ground. Some parts of the Cape have HUGE dunes..but this faces Nantucket Sound, so the dunes and waves are small.

The third one is just a really cute pix of my kids. There were quite a few kids who got stung by jellyfish this year--luckily my kids were not part of that.

And the final photo is one of my husband...but I picked it to share because of the background.

http://s289.photobucket.com/al.....Nichripar/

Anonymous

I enjoyed these pictures so much. How beautiful it is there at Cape Cod!
I love the picture of you in your hat. That's a classic. You're family is adorable.
What is the water temp there?

Nicole

Veteran

Sorry San, I didn't mean to ignore your question on the memory foam mattress. I hope my essay about my mattress was helpful. My best friend has tried and returned 3 different memory foam mattresses. All of them formed ridges in the center of the bed. My MIL has a Tempur Pedic--that she likes, but she had to put a second memory foam topper on top to deal with the center ridge. I hope you consider getting a traditional inner spring mattress and a decent quality memory foam topper.

As for the water temps at the Cape--it depends on what part you visit. The area we go to is South Yarmouth, which is considered "mid cape" and faces Nantucket Island. So the water is much warmer than the water that faces the bay side. There's a stretch of beaches called "The National Seashore" that is farther down towards the tip. The bayside waters are always colder. I've never actually heard any reports on water temperature--but I'd say the week we were there, the water was in the high 60's to low 70's. Being from Cali, that's probably not very warm, is it?

Dani

Veteran

Thanks for sharing your pictures Nicole. I love the dunes, they are so pretty! I want to go to the beach now

Sihaya

Veteran

What a beautiful family. I love miracle suits too. As for mattresses, this is one area where I am willing spend top dollar - we have never regretted it and I have yet to find another mattress that equals it in comfort - friends or 5 star hotels. We've had it for 5+ years and going strong. It's the Duxiana mattress. Simply wonderful. But very expensive. I would suggest you at least go to a store and lie down on it.

Becky

Veteran

Thanks for the pics, Nicole. You have a beautiful family and I know you all made some great memories on this trip.

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

Nicole! Your family is gorgeous and Cape Cod looks beautiful. Everyone is SO tanned. Love how you are protecting your pretty skin. Did the cozzie wraps work?

Nicole

Veteran

Thank you everyone for the compliments on my fam.

Yes, I only brought two coverups, the light blue and the printed one. I wore them daily. They were also great for going from the outdoor shower to the house. (of course there's an indoor shower, but I only used the outdoor one all week--actually come to think of it, no one in my family used the indoor shower.) I decided to save the brown one for actual clothing, instead of beach wear. The photo of me and Jason, I'm wearing a sweater because it was a chilly start to the day. I had my bathing suit on under my sweater and shorts. Once it warmed up, I was in my suit.