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mai tai-bip 4: episode 4

Posted in Television by

‘I’m over halfway done with the catch-up! Let’s get to Episode 4!

My Takeaways

BIP 4-4 - Sarah_Guacamole

We get to the action pretty quickly with Sarah’s arrival, and Raven instantly knows that she is going to go after Adam. During the shutdown, Raven and Sarah stayed at Adam’s place and Raven walked in on the two of them cuddling. Knowing that he and Raven had been on a date, Sarah checks with Adam about where they stand. He acknowledges that he and Raven had a great date but also says he would say yes if she asked him. During girl chat time, Raven gives her blessing for Sarah to go on the date with Adam but, all of the girls push Ben Z. After not being wowed by her conversation with Ben, Sarah asks Adam on the date.

BIP 4-4 - Lacey_Ben Z Bench Press

Sarah and Adam go to dinner and out dancing on their date, and Adam acknowledges that Sarah has an energy, or ‘something’ as he calls it, that Raven does not have. Sarah works to confirm that Adam would have asked her out on a date in the “real world” and they share some kisses. Overall, uneventful.

BIP 4-4 - Adam_Rachel

Back at the resort, Wells and Danielle are chatting at the bar. The friendship between these two is so endearing and they make a deal if they are both single in 5 years they are going to be together. Why wait the 5 years?

The next day, Lacey gets a date card. She is adamant that the person that she takes on the date wants to go because they are romantically interested in her, not because they just want to be friends. As discussed in earlier posts, if she wasn’t so brash and dismissive, I think the men would be much more interested. She’s talking to Ben Z. and says, “As of now it’s not you, but I’ll let you know.” What a way to a man’s heart. Matt plays it best by saying that if she asked him it would be a mostly friendship date because he thinks her and Diggy would have the best time together. Taking his advice, Lacey asks Diggy who accepts.

BIP 4-4 - Diggy_Lacey_Makeout

The two of them go on one of Jorge’s Tour-ges which involves riding horses to a beach where he was conceived. Diggy genuinely seems to be into Lacey, and the two of them have the romantic time that Lacey was looking for.

BIP 4-4 - Jorge_Champagne

Back at the resort, Danielle M and Raven are discussing Wells, while Wells and Jack Stone are shown discussing Danielle. Wells tells Jack that he and Danielle went on a date 4 years ago, but he has never wanted to throw away what they have as friends to pursue something more. He says that Danielle is out of his league and that she is one of the best people he’s ever met. Danielle tells Raven that Wells is such a good man, but that he isn’t able to date anyone here in his bartender role. Since that is the case, Danielle doesn’t feel like her ‘person’ is here. She tells Raven that during the filming stoppage she was given the opportunity to go work in Africa, and she doesn’t want to miss that opportunity simply to stay in Paradise for no reason.

Next to arrive in Paradise is Dominique, who tells the ladies that she was interested in Diggy. Lacey is worried about Taylor getting in Dominique’s ear because she doesn’t think that Taylor likes her very much. Taylor does get in Dom’s ear, telling her that she thinks her and Diggy would be a great match. It didn’t seem that Taylor did this with malicious intent, but who knows? Dom does ask Diggy on the date, upsetting Lacey.

Diggy goes on his second date of the day, and he is really into Dom. He tells her that he went on a date with Lacey but he thinks they are on different wavelengths (I guess I was wrong when I thought Diggy was into Lacey). Luckily, he also says that he wants to make sure that Lacey is ok, which keeps Diggy on the side of the good guys.

That night, Danielle is leaving Paradise and everyone is sad to see her go, especially Wells. Wells walks her out to the car AND GIVES HER A BIG KISS. Loving this, loving them. Get married, and have babies, please.

BIP 4-4 - Danielle_Wells_kisssource

Best Tweets

[It’s hard to find funny tweets two weeks late  – I’ll pick this section back up while recapping Week 3]

Best Dressed

BIP 4-4 - Raven Green Swimsuit

Raven’s swimsuits have been some of my favorite this season, and I thought this army green one was super sexy. I always love tasteful side boob. Raven seems to love the L*Space swimsuits this summer, the Pamela one-piece can be purchased here (just in time for that one Indian summer weekend we hopefully get!).

Both Dominique and Sarah chose floral printed Show Me Your Mumu for their arrival outfits.

BIP 4-4 - Sarah Arrival Outfit

I knew as soon as I saw it that Sarah was wearing a Show Me Your Mumu set. I’m a big fan of the brand, and it seems like the ladies of Bachelor Nation are as well (Carly’s bridesmaids’ dresses were also by the brand as well). Sarah’s top can be found here and the bottoms here.  Lucky for us, both pieces are on sale!

BIP 4-4 - Dom Arrival Outfit

Dom’s romper can be purchased here and is unfortunately not on sale. Boo!

Two days until the next episode and two episodes left to recap. I think I can do it!

firework-nick:week 9

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Short episode last week, hella long episode this week. Most of this post is going to focus on the actual episode (both parts), and then I’ll cover some of the outfits from the Women Tell All. I really don’t want to write about that, as it’s just a bunch of people trying to talk over each other.

Nick Chambongo.gif

My Takeaways

The episode starts with the Andi/Nick “confrontation” that was teased at the end of the last episode. I know you were all shocked to discover that this confrontation was really just Andi giving Nick advice as he heads into the Fantasy Suites. I question the choice of the producers to bring Andi back, as she didn’t have the kindest words to say about her personal Fantasy Suite experience with Nick in her book. That being said, we did get to see Andi bring up Nick’s infamous, “if you weren’t in love with me why did you make love to me?” quote which makes me laugh every time I hear it. Sorry, Nick.

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The rose ceremony had very little drama for me. With Rachel being announced as the Bachelorette so long ago, I didn’t have any doubts that she made it to the top 3.

Nick’s goodbye to Corinne was kind of bizarre. He seemed to really like her, but know that she was not ready to be married, but simultaneously seemed happy to send her packing. In her exit interview, Corinne went on a rant about how she no longer is going to try and act a certain way to impress a man. Take your own advice Corinne, and we’ll see you in Paradise!

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Vanessa, Raven, Rachel and Nick are heading to Finland, somewhere I personally have always wanted to go.  Seeing the Northern Lights is definitely on my bucket list. Raven has the first Fantasy Suite date, and I really love her and Nick together. Their conversation seems so natural, and I think the two of them could really build a life together. I also like that Raven is not afraid to give Nick some of her sass.

Raven Folding Clothes Gif

As much as I love Raven, I really wish we hadn’t spent such a long time hearing about how she had never had an orgasm. I have to believe there were a few too many alcoholic beverages and a bit of producer goading that got her to admit that on camera. Although this is the girl who admitted to beating an ex with a stiletto so maybe she truly has no filter. The first half of the episode ends with Nick and Raven cuddling in this ah-mazing skylit room, so we had to wait a whole week to see how Nick stacked up to Raven’s ex.

raven wine gif

The next morning, Raven gives the impression that Nick really satisfied her needs. I’m a little sad that that was the least gross way that I could put that. Kudos to the producers for the extended montage of Raven skipping through Finland after her night with Nick.

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The next date is Rachel, and SPOILER ALERT she’s the new Bachelorette. So I had to imagine this would be her and Nick’s last date. As much as the Bachelor producers don’t mind spoiling part of their show, I don’t think they would want to spoil the final rose.

Nick and Rachel go cross-country skiing, and I was LOL-ing at Rachel’s ineptitude at this activity. As she is my ultimate girl crush I imagine she is good at everything, but apparently she is good at everything but cross-country skiing. They ski into a lodge where they have their heart-to-heart which is always about Rachel’s fear of being rejected and opening up.

At night, Rachel finally drops the bomb that she is falling in love with Nick….uh duh. Nick is giggling like a school girl at this news and I still can not for the life of me figure out how she is not the one. The two spend the night in the fantasy suite and then spend an adorable morning making breakfast together. Rachel’s penguin onesie just makes me love her even more.

rachel onesie gif

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Vanessa and Nick spend their date jumping from an ice bath into a sauna. Nick seems to be a bit of a baby and unable to stay in the ice bath for more than .5 seconds, while Vanessa is ready to set up camp.

Vanessa Ice Bath gif

Luckily for Nick, the Bachelor producers have blessed him with a hot tub, so that he can have a heart to heart with Vanessa about their futures. I found it weird Nick kept calling Vanessa’s family traditional….as in they just had a lot of family traditions. To me, traditional harkens back to more of traditional family values aka June Cleaver and the families of the 50’s. Am I the only one?

For some reason, Nick and Vanessa’s relationship seems combative to me. They always seem to be arguing, which I think Nick likes because it keeps him on his toes. However, their arguments never have a resolution. For example, they talk about the fact that they currently live in different countries and where they would live if they got engaged, but never actually come to any type of decision or meeting of the minds. It’s very odd to me.

That being said, Vanessa is obviously in love with Nick (I don’t see it, but of course she is, it’s the Bachelor). She tells him at dinner, and he has a seriously odd look on his face. I’m not sure if it is the camera angle, but it seems like he’s not even looking at her. It could be producer manipulation of the actual conversation or Nick is just a weirdo, I wouldn’t be surprised either way.

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At the rose ceremony, we know Rachel is going home but that doesn’t make it any less hard to see her go. Nick seemed really broken up about it, mentioning that he selfishly hopes that this isn’t the end of their relationship. Uhmm, maybe don’t break up with her then Nick? He really missed out on a good one with her.

rachel kickoff gif

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Best Tweets

Best Dressed

Danielle M Women Tell All Jumpsuit

I am obsessed with the jumpsuit that Danielle M. wore to the Women Tell All, as well as her new platinum hair color. She looks amazing. Unfortunately for us, Danielle’s jumpsuit was custom made by Cavanagh Baker, who made her jumpsuit that I loved in this episode. I found a few that were comparable here and here.

Sarah Vendal Romper Women Tell All.jpg

Sarah has been a style favorite of mine throughout the entire season, and she didn’t disappoint at the Women Tell All. She looked adorable in a lace Stylestalker romper, which can be purchased on their website here. If the price point isn’t for you (don’t worry, me either), this romper can be rented through the Stylist LA, which works a lot like Rent the Runway. I liked how she paired it with a criss-cross undershirt to amp up the deep v-neck.

Rachel Women Tell All.jpg

When Rachel came out for her time as the Bachelorette, we knew she was going to be looking great, she’s got that Bachelorette budget now. Rachel’s dress is by Dion Lee and can be found here. I found a few more cost effective options here and here.

The next episode is the finale, and we will finally find out who Nick has decided to break up with in a few months….I mean get engaged to. Who do you think it is, Raven or Vanessa? Let me know!

xo
Em

source for gifs not made by me

harvest time-nick:week 4

Posted in Television by

I feel like a broken record, but this week’s episode seemed all about Corinne once again. It’s becoming a little frustrating, because I feel like we’re being robbed of getting to know so many other interesting women.  Have we heard Whitney speak yet? Did you guys even know there was a Whitney? I’m going to try and minimize the Corinne discussion, in an effort to give the spotlight to the women who actually have a chance of winning Nick’s heart.

plane-gifsource

My Takeaways

After our cliffhanger from last week’s episode, we start this episode with Corinne pool party drama. The end of Vanessa’s confrontation of Nick turned out to be anti-climactic, he just asked her to be patient with him when it comes to Corinne. What that says to me is, “please be patient, because she’s reality TV gold, and the producers want to keep her around a little bit.”

Sarah and Taylor confront Corinne after her post-bounce house nap, trying to explain to her why her actions are rubbing people the wrong way. Sarah gives it to her straight, telling her that she needs to pull it together, and that the other girls think she is acting entitled. Corinne denies that she is privileged, and says that she is annoyed and wants everyone to stop being so obsessed with her.

corinne-ima-do-me-gif

After an extended shot of Corinne rubbing her eyes like she just got up from a nap, we get to the rose ceremony. Unfortunately, Corinne gets the last rose, leaving Christen and Brittany to go home. At the post-rose ceremony toast, Corinne gives a super awkward toast, and none of the women want to hear it.  Even Nick seems a little confused by her in this moment.

vanessa-reaction-week-4-gif

The next morning, Chris harrison tells the women the exciting news that they are going to…..Wisconsin? I can tell you that none of these girls have ever wanted to go to Wisconsin before, except maybe Danielle M., who is from there. (PSA: I’ve been to Milwaukee, and it’s awesome. So they should be excited.) Before we get to the dates, Nick meets his parents at a coffee shop for a Viall family cry-fest. After, he meets up with the girls and decides to take Danielle L. on the first one-on-one date.

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This date is one of the “day in the life” dates, meant to show what a life with Nick would be like. They walk around the town: stopping in a bakery where they have Nick-er-doodles, sitting in a park and hearing about Nick’s adolescence, and running into an ex-girlfriend. What a coincidence! The ex tells Danielle that Nick is heart driven, and he’s just waiting to find the girl that he feels is the one in his heart. Throughout the day, Nick and Danielle seem to have a great time, as Danielle is one of those girls that giggles constantly.  Personal pet peeve for me, but it probably just means that Danielle is a nice person who loves life and I have a dark and twisty soul.

nickerdoodle-cookie-gifsource

At night, they go to a jazz bar, where for once they don’t seem to be the only people there. I guess Milwaukee does not bend to the whims of The Bachelor producers as easily as Los Angeles does. Danielle tells Nick about her parents’ divorce, and how that experience has made her more guarded in relationships. Nick sees a lot of the qualities he would like in a wife in her, and gives her the rose. They have another “surprise” after the date, and Nick leads her into a Chris Lane concert where they get the spotlight slow-dance treatment. Danielle is pretty lucky to get to go to all these concerts for free.  Country is cool again guys, and ‘For Her’ is a jam.

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The group date is set on a farm, the perfect place for Corinne and her non-entitled , nanny having self. She wastes no time telling the camera that she would rather be at a spa eating a taco than to be here.  The girls are going to be helping around the farm on the date, feeding and cleaning up after the cows. Obviously, Corinne doesn’t know how to do chores, she has a nanny to do that for her. So once again, she is going to remove herself from something she doesn’t know how to do, (this time citing the excuse that her hands were too cold).

I loved Jaimi’s attitude during this date, who went right in when they were milking the cows. The girls on this show have so many amazing opportunities, and to not take full advantage of all of them is a waste.

At night, Corinne goes on a sarcastic rant about how she respects everyone for shoveling the “poopy” (I really can’t even get over her saying that, or that I had to type that). It makes me so mad how she seems so disrespectful to the people who do that everyday and work hard in order to put food on their families tables. Plus, where does Corinne think the cheese from her beloved cheese pasta comes from? I’m so over her.

corinne-poop-week-4source

We finally get to hear from a few other girls. First, Kristina tells Nick that she hasn’t had an easy childhood, and wants to tell Nick more of her story. Vanessa gives Nick a book that her coworkers and students put together for him, sharing all of the great things about her. Then….back to Corinne. She addresses the women telling them that she wants the women to address her directly if they have an issue because she hasn’t been feeling very welcome. Sarah asks her if she thinks she is ready to marry a 36-year old man, citing her continuing to fall asleep at rose ceremonies as a sign of not being mature. Corinne only hears the fact that she is talking about the naps again, and goes off on a rant about Abraham Lincoln taking naps. I keep trying to not address her, but she is so absurd, seemingly drunk 95% of the time, and so unprepared for a husband that it is mind blowing to me. I understand that she is just acting her age, but someone who loved her should have told her that it would not be a good look going on this show.

jaimi-shut-upJaime says what everyone is thinking.

There is more confrontation. Kristina gets the group date rose. I’m done with this date.

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The one-on-one date with Raven proves to be a breath of fresh air. She is so positive and lovely, and I’m jumping on the Raven-train. They go to Nick’s sister Bella’s soccer game, and meet Nick’s parents. Nick’s dad has a super awkward interaction regarding her name, mentioning that it was “unusual”, and secretly hoping it was a family name. Raven follows up the awkwardness, asking if Nick had to be spanked a lot.

Bella invites Raven and Nick to Skateland, leading to the second part of the date. Raven has some cute one-on-one time with Bella, while Nick shows off his skating moves on the rink.  The Viall clan is proven to have excellent parenting skills, when Bella confirms that she was not allowed to watch Bachelor in Paradise.  They cap off the skate date by a couple’s skate to Sixpence None the Richer’s “Kiss Me.”

skate-gifsource

During dinner, Raven gets real about her past relationships, and quickly becomes one of my favorite people ever. Apparently, Raven found out from one of her ex’s coworkers that he was at a bar with another woman, and sped to his house. She jiggled the handle of the bedroom, which was locked and therefore needed to be kicked open. She caught them in the act, or as she says “thrusting her”. In that moment, Raven picks up her stiletto and beats him in the head with it. I’m not a proponent of domestic violence, but scum bags get what is coming to them. Raven gets the rose, because she is a(n) (awesome) bad ass.

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We get to the rose ceremony and Corinne is still having an issue with Taylor, or if you ask Corinne – Taylor has the issue with her. Danielle steals Nick first, annoying Taylor, who lurks creepily nearby until Danielle finishes her conversation. Corinne and Josephine have a sh*t-talking session about Taylor, while they eat some pigs in a blanket and Josephine is clearly #TeamCorinne. Corinne confronts Taylor about how she has hurt her feelings, while Taylor tries to explain that she doesn’t think that Corinne has the emotional intelligence to deal with this process. Corinne tells Taylor that she is treating her like an idiot, and that Taylor thinks she is above each other. Taylor tries to explain that she just thinks that they are different. Corinne brings up once again that she runs (works for) a multi-million dollar company, but Taylor sticks by her idea that she is not ready for this process. And Corinne ‘literally can’t even’.

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So I tried a fun exercise where I deleted everything I wrote about Corinne. Pre-deletion we were at 1400 words. Post deletion, 880. So, I apologize for the 520 words you were subject to about Corinne. Lord help us!

Best Tweets

https://twitter.com/benhiggi/status/823741287685832704

Best Dressed

sarah-week-4-group-date-outfit

Sarah’s jumpsuit is elegant and those strappy stilettos notch up the sexy factor. I’m not sure where Sarah got her exact jumpsuit, but you can find similar versions here and here.

danielle-week-4-group-date-outfit

I loved Danielle’s casual look for the date on the dairy farm, and she was one of the only women who was dressed for the date. Similar sweaters to Danielle’s can be found here and here, and here and here are some similar jackets.

rachel-week-4-rose-ceremony-outfit

Saving my favorite girl for last! Rachel looked great in her embellished mini-dress, classy and stunning, just like her! Similar here and here.

 

What did you guys think about this episode? Are you like Alexis and scared of Nicholas Cage, or do you have an even more bizarre fear? Let me know!

xo
Em

red dress-nick:week 1

Posted in Television by

We’re back Bachelor Nation! It’s a new year and we’ve got a new Bachelor! My New Years Resolution is to actually recap an entire season of The Bachelor, so let’s get started!

My Takeaways

The first week doesn’t have much of a story, so we can kick off this season with the three girls who stood out the most to me.

nickviall_chrissoulesChris Soules starting the night off with that Iowa humor we’ve come to know and love.

1. Liz is probably the girl with the most press before the season began. She met Nick at Jade and Tanner’s wedding, where she served as the maid-of-honor and he was a guest. However, Liz likes to keep her private life private. When a producer asks her if they spent the night together she “pleads the fifth”. That is, until a few minutes later when an ITM voiceover confirms that they have had sex. It’s a mystery no more!

Upon meeting, Nick looks at Liz a bit confusedly, and Liz takes this to mean he doesn’t remember her.  Say what you will about Nick as the Bachelor, but I would hope that he would at least recognize a girl with whom he has a mutual friend and has had sex with.  C’mon Liz, give the guy some credit! Nick confirms to Chris Harrison that he is 99% sure that the girl he met was Liz, so Liz’s hypothesis is officially debunked. Kudos to Chris Harrison for playing the shocked host card when this information was presented to him.

During their one-on-one time, Liz really shoots herself in the foot. First, she admits she didn’t think he would remember. Then, she tells him that she’s didn’t want him to think she was there just because he was the Bachelor (so she’s just there to get on TV?).  Nick questions why if she was interested in him, she didn’t just reach out to Jade and ask her for his number.  To top it all off, she says she had a stereotype of him until she watched him on Bachelor in Paradise, which aired AFTER she actually met him in person. Not great Liz, not great.

All that being said, I really like her.

sarah_omg-food
Sarah is my spirit animal.

2. If anyone picked Corrine on their Bachelor Fantasy teams, I think you can rest assured that you’ve got a big point earner. In her intro package we learn that she “runs” a multi-million dollar company (aka she works for a company owned by her dad). She also is a 24 year-old with a nanny, who she describes as someone who does “everything for her”.

Upon her entrance, Corinne earns bonus points with the producers for calling the show a “journey”, and gives Nick a hug token to be redeemed inside. During their one-on-one time she gives him a whole bag of tokens, I guess for a whole lot of hugs?

During the cocktail party we learn, Corinne always goes after what she wants. So, she interrupts Vanessa’s time in order to make out with Nick.  Guess those tokens are for more than hugs.

nick_sharkconcern
I wasn’t going to let the dolphin/shark go unaddressed.

3. There are a lot of great girls vying for Nick’s heart, but my absolute favorite is Rachel.  She is a 31 year-old attorney, and is so intelligent and confident.  Through all of her interactions with Nick, she carries herself with a grace that doesn’t show any of her night one nerves.  I was impressed by their conversation, where they both discover they have ties to Wisconsin (him growing up, her attending law school), and agree to disagree about their favorite sports team (I have to go with Nick on this one, Packers > Cowboys). Nick and Rachel’s interaction seems so natural, like the kind of conversation you would have on a first date and not the gimmicky conversation we’ve come to expect from The Bachelor.

In his opening speech, Nick says that he is looking for a woman with a strong personality who feels empowered. Of the women we met tonight, Rachel seems to me like she fits that description to a tee. Nick must agree with me because he gives Rachel the first impression rose.

Best Tweets

https://twitter.com/Whoredan_Chap/status/816179712623939585

https://twitter.com/PrincessProbz/status/816101347355480065

Best Dressed

danielle-night-one-red-dressDanielle’s dress was sexy and tasteful, balancing the side and back cut outs with a modest silhouette. Her dress can be found at LuLu’s for a very reasonable $74!

sarah-night-one-pink-dressUnfortunately, I wasn’t able to get a good screen shot of the front of Sarah’s dress.  It was fun and flirty in a feminine color, and looked great on her.  Her dress is by a new-to-me brand, Privacy Please, and is no longer available online.  Lucky for you, Revolve carries many of their pieces, and they are all amazing.  Some of my favorites are this, this and this.

josephine-night-one-red-dressJosephine’s dress was simple in the front, but brought the drama in the back.  I’m a sucker for a low back, and this dress stole my heart the minute she walked into the mansion.  Her dress is by Gemeli Power, and can be found at Revolve.

What did you guys think of the premiere? I think my favorites to get Nick’s final rose are Rachel, Sarah, and Vanessa. Let me know yours in the comments, or @third_and_girl.