Wait, It's May Already?

Life has been busy lately! I had so much fun on my little weekend solo jaunt to New York City last weekend. I survived a great barre class at Exhale Spa, did tons of walking around the city and through Central Park, and met up with a friend who recently moved from Chicago. Jessica's bridal shower was a great celebration and I loved being able to hang with her close girlfriends before the wedding next month (already!). The group ventured out to the Standard's biergarten on Saturday afternoon, where I could have continued people watching for daaaays. I was super diligent about packing my camera, but somehow forgot to put the battery back in it before heading out, so I was only able to snap some iPhone photos. Oops! I need to get better at remembering to actually use my real camera. 

This past weekend was spent enjoying a little Cinco de Mayo action, grilling on the porch (steak fajitas), and finally meeting up with Lauren (for mani/pedis + cocktails), who was in town from DC. I only wish the weather was warmer. I'm ready for more spring-like temps and less rain! 

What about you! How was your weekend?

favorite new polish combo: Chanel's nouvelle vague + gradient glitter

remnants from Saturday's homemade margaritas using this recipe (which was so good!)

late takeout sushi lunch on Friday (sashimi is my fav!)

pretty packaging + tape from Anthropologie

minty fresh watch and neon bracelets for warmer weather

Fells Point Exploring

Today was my last day at home with my family before I flew back to Providence. My mom and I spent some time wandering around Fells Point, a quirky neighborhood near the inner harbor in Baltimore. I loved all of the little clothing boutiques and antique stores. We capped off our afternoon with Pitango gelato and drinking chocolate. I definitely want to come back and do some more exploring when the weather is warm!

Cool Coal

I love when companies use creative details when marketing their products. I just bought this Coal hat when I was in Baltimore over the weekend and didn't realize until now that the inside tag was attached using a guitar pick. So clever!

Cocktail Bling

I finally found Essie's Cocktail Bling at my local Ulta. I have been looking for it everywhere and I scored the last bottle in stock. I also got a new topcoat that claims to dry in 30 seconds. We'll see about that.

Black Friday Purchase

The only thing I bought on Black Friday was online. I finally broke down and joined StyleMint and couldn't be happier with my striped tee. I'm looking forward to seeing the December styles later this week. I think a ShoeMint subscription might be soon to follow!

Sesame Soy Goodness

I'm currently just a little bit obsessed with this sauce. It's great as a marinade for chicken, a dipping sauce for dumplings, or even to flavor a stir fry. What would I do without Trader Joe's?

Wild Crew

I, like so many others out there, took advantage of the J. Crew 25% off online deal that was going on last week. Part of my order was this funky leopard iPhone case. I usually keep it simple with a solid color case in boring black, but couldn't resist this spotted number. I was so happy to see that half of my order had already arrived today when I got home from work. I feel like my phone is all dressed up now! Did any of you make a purchase last week?

I'm Not Ready!

I enjoyed having today off and made the most of it by waking up early and making pumpkin spiced pancakes, running errands, meeting a friend for a Pinkberry date, and catching up on Grey's Anatomy. I may have even snuck in a couple of work reports, too! I was so surprised to see a huge table of Christmas ornaments on display at Nordstrom. Usually, they wait until after Thanksgiving to put all of their decorations out. I spotted a few that I'd like to add to my tree this year, though! I can't believe the holidays are already upon us.

A special thank you to all of the veterans today, especially my Pop-Pop and good friends Bill and Devin.
Your service to our country is much appreciated.

Monday Unwind

I love when the holiday catalogs start pouring in, especially from Nordstrom! I'm curling up with this after a long Monday back at work. Luckily, it's a short week since I have Friday off.

Leather and Lace

Today I paired a feminine lace top with my favorite Vince leather jacket for a girlie-glam look while strolling outside of Boston. A good leather jacket is such a great closet staple!

Bad Luck Boots

I have the worst luck with Frye boots. This is the third pair I'm sending back (for various reasons). At least Zappos has free shipping both ways! Here's hoping the replacements work out.

Seasonal Cup of Joe

I'm in love with all things pumpkin, but I'm not sure about straight pumpkin-flavored brewed coffee. I asked at the checkout, and was told that the Trader Joe's blend is more 'pumpkin pie spice' than actual pumpkin. I think it might be worth trying, especially with the holidays around the corner and lots of cold mornings ahead!

Weekend Snapshots: Visiting Home

My last true week of summer vacation in August was spent at home with family and friends. Even though it was a whirlwind trip, I feel like I was able to squeeze in lots of fun, including trying a new restaurant and hitting all of my favorite shopping destinations. I spent an afternoon in Georgetown and made a trip to the Maine Avenue seafood markets for crabs. My mom, sisters, and I went out for a fun night of Mediterranean tapas at Cava and my cousin Leslie squeezed a pound of key limes that we turned into pie. We stocked up and hunkered down with wine and movies while hurricane Irene pounded the coast. I had some relaxing downtime at the pool and enjoyed a big family dinner out. All in all, it was the perfect way to cap off an exciting summer. I can't wait to get home again, hopefully for a Redskins game in early December!

P.S. I finally got around to playing with Picasa to create a collage. So fun!

Peculiar Pumpkins

These decorative branches from Trader Joe's had the tiniest pumpkins growing on them--and they were real! The actual pumpkins were soft like a tomato (I had to squeeze one), but resembled the familiar orange squash. Anyone ever seen anything like these? I want to do some fall decorating with them!

Prep Me for Fall

I'll gladly take one of everything, please, especially the hacking jacket in flame.

Spike the Punch

I first saw these amazing necklaces popping up on Pinterest and then featured this past week on Cheetah is the New Black. It seems like I acted right in time by purchasing one of my own because now they're all on back order. My neon orange necklace arrived this weekend and I can't wait to use it to dress up basic tees or on its own as a statement piece. Half the fun of ordering on Etsy is the great packaging that accompanies the items. I hope Elizabeth adds bracelets to her shop soon!

Missoni Mayhem

I, like so many other women, ventured out to my local Target bright and early this morning to claim some of the highly anticipated Missoni pieces. I have to say, I was surprised that there weren't more people lined up. It seems like everyone just counted on being able to buy online, which resulted in the website crashing for most of the day (and even now as I type this). My sister went out to our Target in Northern Viginia, and the shelves were bare only a few minuted after the doors opened. I think a lot of people just grabbed handfuls of things to resell on eBay.

I wasn't overly impressed with many of the items in person, but did snag a cute fall sweater in their signature print and some bobby pins and notecards. I would have liked to have gotten one of the throws, but I didn't see any. They didn't have any bikes (that I know of) at my location, either. Part of the fun is getting out early and having the thrilling experience, though, right?! Did you shop the Missoni collection? What were you able to get your hands on?

Lusting for Fall

Is it too early to start my Christmas wish list? I already have quite a few pages in the Bloomies' catalogue marked. Hot items I'm craving for fall: oversized cashmere sweaters, riding boots, and silky blouses.

Weekend Snapshots: Parisian Invasion

Leslie getting ready to feast on sushi at Haruki.


Shared sushi-the Mexican roll with cilantro and fresh jalapeño.


Multicolored party.


George's at Salty Brine state beach.


Leslie in the surf.


Pre-dinner beach stroll.


Rocking the gingham and chambray.


Corona and seafood make the perfect pair.


Leslie + me out on George's deck.


Sunday morning Pinkberry run. Watermelon, please!


Neon nail polish at American Apparel. Their fall pencil skirts are perfect.


Souvenir shopping at Craftland.


Amazing grilled pizza with spinach + feta at Bob & Timmy's on Federal Hill.

As I said before, my cousin was in town for the weekend in mid-August. She goes to school and lives in Paris, but spends summers in the states. This was her third year visiting Providence and we had so much fun! It's great to have visitors, because we do lots of things that we wouldn't typically get around to doing.

Some highlights of our weekend:
sushi date at haruki. hope street farmers market. pb&j pinkberry. matching bracelets. clamcakes + chowder on the beach. live music out on the restaurant deck. putting our feet in the ocean. grilling up a breakfast pizza. silly photo shoots. iced coffee runs. shopping on westminster street. bob & timmy's grilled pizza. and most important = carrying on a fun summer tradition!

Can't wait to see you next summer, Les!

New Additions

I love these rhinestone bracelets from J. Crew. I found the bright yellow one back in May, but the color selection was limited. Fast forward to last weekend, when I was browsing the new fall collection (especially the adorable pencil skirts) and stumbled upon lots of new bracelet colors. I think the orange one is my new favorite!