European Holiday crazy

[DeeEast]

Ok, for someone who said that she didn't really like EH, I sure changed my mind yesterday. We went to a store near us and here's what we got:

http://img24.photobucket.com/albums/v73/DeeEast/poodlecardigan.jpg
http://img24.photobucket.com/albums/v73/DeeEast/sleeveless.jpg
http://img24.photobucket.com/albums/v73/DeeEast/poodleskirt.jpg
http://img24.photobucket.com/albums/v73/DeeEast/poodletee.jpg
http://img24.photobucket.com/albums/v73/DeeEast/poodlepant.jpg
http://img24.photobucket.com/albums/v73/DeeEast/beret.jpg
http://img24.photobucket.com/albums/v73/DeeEast/poodlesock.jpg

For the record, it was a LOT cuter in person. Plus DH liked it too so I was sunk without him discouraging me. Two more Gymbucks for a total of 3. That's enough!

Now for redemption. I have a question. Do you think the cardigan goes with the sweater dress? I'd like to get the sweater dress for fall/winter with the tights but it needs a cardigan with long sleeves to be practical.

Also a sizing question. The bloomers swim on DD so I got her the 6-12 instead of the usual 12-18 in the little skirt. I also got her the 6-12 in the cardigan and sleeveless sweater because the Gymbo stuff seems to run a little big in some ways. DD just needs the length in the torso for one piecers like rompers and jumpers. The question though is that I went ahead and got the 12-18 in the pants because I figured she'd need them more for the fall. Do these things run WAY big in the waist and should I have gotten the 6-12 because they stretch?

By the way, the clerk REALLY did not want to show me the look book. Even when I asked to see the pic of the sweater beret I ordered sight unseen. When I asked to see the new Sunflowers line, she just ran the page by me really fast. She also told me there was no other new line until the other woman corrected her about the Daisy the Cow line. Is there something wrong with the clerks showing this book? Could she have gotten into trouble? She also didn't seem too eager to order the stuff on-line for me that they didn't have in the store. I thought you always got free shipping if they were out of your size and they ordered it for you in the store? Is that not true? Did she miss out on a commission because I ordered on-line or something? She seemed kind of pissed.

Oh well, I'm already dreaming about the jeans and the sweater dress. I wanted to use a Gymbuck to buy a gift for the baby boy of a friend of mine but after looking at the boy's stuff, I can't find a single thing I'd like to give her. Maybe Gap is a better idea?

I'll share pics of Sophia in her stuff as soon as I can. I can't wait to try them on her but we have to wait to get the on-line order.

[stella]

I have to say that the photos of your babies in EH really make the clothes look cuter than the pictures on the Gymboree website. So I look forward to seeing these clothes IRL in a couple of weeks.

The cutest thing I have seen so far is the little white dress with the box pleat. It looked precious on whoever's little girl that was (I can't remember!).

I don't have a gymboree close by, so I don't know anything about the service questions you asked, but I do seem to read a lot of posts regarding unhelpful staff. That's too bad. It reminds me of those clerks in high-end boutiques who make you feel less-than when shopping in their stores.

I hope that you were able to order what you wanted. I think your picks are really cute!

[urbanmama]

Sophia,

Welcome to the world of Gymboree addiction! The items you chose are beautiful! (I chose some of the same myself and will probably end up without about everything if it is all still available at redemption time.)

To answer some of your questions:
Yes, I think that the cardigan looks good with the sweater dress. I bought it and the tights and plan to put it all together with the sweater beret. BTW, speculation is that the sweater dress might be one of the first things to sell out, so it may or may not still be around for Gymbuck redemption. If you have your heart set on it, you might want to buy it before then.

As for sizing, I don't know your daughter's "stats", but I do have a couple of comments about sizing in general at Gymboree. I do think that their bloomers run big but I don't think that their skirted bloomers (like the navy print twirl skirt you bought) necessarily fit nearly as big. So, unless your DD is very small, you might want a 12-18. Also, both of my girls always seem to outgrow their tops way before their bottoms. According to the Gymboree girls, it is fairly common for people to buy one size bigger in tops than in bottoms. So, I'm thinking that unless your daughter is really tiny, you will probably want 12-18 month size in your tops. Also, I think that the sleeveless sweater top runs kind of small anyway. As for the pants, that is trickier. My girls must have longer torsos than legs because they outgrow pants last.

My younger DD (born 4/03) is on the small side. At her 12 month appt., she weighed 18 lbs. 5 oz. (10th percentile) and was 28.5 inches long (25th percentile). I weighed her on my scale the other day and she is now 19 lbs. She is currently fitting perfectly into 6-12 month clothes although I do have some 12-18 month outfits that fit her okay (just differently than intended). For her, I bought everything in 12-18 months from the EH line. You can see how it fits her by looking at my post called "Posts of EH on a baby" (scroll down to the post entitled "Denise"). Hope this info helps you on your sizing decisions.

As for whether you should be able to see the look book-- according to a manager at my store who I know really well, the answer is no. She said that they could get in trouble for showing you the look book. However, they do it all the time (just not in front of their DM or corporate visitors). There is no reason why they shouldn't want to let you do save a sale. I've found that some Gymboree clerks just have an attitude. It seems that some only treat you well if you are a "regular". If she continues to treat you poorly, I would report her. In the meantime, just insist that she does the things that she is supposed to do (get you free shipping from the store, etc.).

HTH,

Marie

[DeeEast]

Thanks. Sophia is 10 months old right now but LONG in the torso. I think I'll wait until the internet order gets here on Wednesday or Thursday, try them on (again) and maybe return them for 12-18 months. I'm really unsure at this point because I have the lavender bouquet sweater for her in 12-18 months and it still swims on her. But I want this stuff for the fall too so ????? Ugh.

The stores are an hour away each way so its not a quick jaunt down to Gymboree. If I'm there I'm afraid I may have to get the sweater dress but there won't be anymore Gymbucks then and go 25% off sale, so ugh again. I'll have to wait for redemtpion and hit the 3 stores in my radius looking for that dress! How are they for letting you know what's on the racks over the phone? It seems to be hit or miss with the clerks I've dealt with. Either they are super nice or super not so nice IYKWIM.

[Imperia]

Hmmmm let's see Marie answered everything pretty well for you, but I will just chime in a bit...

1) A lot of people are pairing the sweater dress with the cardigan (either one the white or the lavender) and the tights. I think it looks fine. I warn you though: the sweater dress and both the berets are the most popular pieces and the most likely to sell out. If you have you heart set on it don't wait.


2)I actually think the twirl skirt with attatched bloomer is running a tad small, just my opinion. When we say the bloomers run big, in general we are talking about the plain summer bloomer shorts for babies. Those run MASSIVE. I never size down on Gymboree tops because I think they run pretty true to size, and I seriously feel the sleeveless sweater top is running very short. I am about to take it back for a 6-12, but I worry that will be too big heh.
The pants (especially jeans, but not leggings) tend to run fairly large, if your daughter has long legs this is okay. I always find the waists to be huge (but, mind my DD is a slender little reed). I would try it all on sp you can see what you think.


3)I have never heard what MArie's store manager said about not showing you the LB because they could get in trouble. My Store mananger actually BRINGS it over to me when they get a new one and we go through it togther, but my store is also very cool. In my opinion some store employees at certain stores are snobby, b ut not all. It could be the snob factor to some degree.

4) The online order is called "Save the sale" and she should have done it without question. Sometimes, some people won't do it for you if the items are on sale marked down more than 20% off. My store did it for me yesterday though so I know it can be done. I wouldn't expect to be able to do it during Gymbucks or HUGE sales though as it's time consuming and they are just too busy. I don't know that they loose "commission" I don't think they get commission per se but I am sure they keep track of each employees sales. The store does get dinged though if you return items from online at their store. She shouldn't hav ebeen pissed it's part of her job, though her store will not get credit for that sale, no. If she was really busy I can see how she might have been put out, but she shouldn't have been rude!

5)The jeans by the way are huge, I tried the 3-6 on my DD and they ran much larger than the other pants from this line (waist and lengthwise).

Can't wait to see pics!

Imperia