It’s fall and officially October (!!!) , 31 Days of Halloween is on, I’ve purchased every pumpkin and butternut squash item at the grocery store and hit my max. limit of pumpkin muffins, but it still isn’t quite cool enough for jackets and scarves here in NC… although I’ve been living in them whenever I’m inside our igloo house (thanks, TJ). We’ve actually been mentally packing and planning for a trip to Canada next week where it is supposed to be 9 degrees and snowing so my mind has really been on winter coats, beanies, and snow boots. I can’t help but laugh when I look at the weather for this “fall” trip. Fall and winter have slowly become my favorite months for style though (and home decor)! Sweaters are, by far, my favorite type of clothing to shop for… along with casual and comfortable pullovers and jackets. In fact, one of my favorite ones from last year just came back in stores. While shopping for some outerwear for next week, I came across so many great finds so I put together a guide for fall outerwear… including options for wherever you might live, whether it’s North Carolina or Canada or somewhere in between. When it gets closer to winter, I’ll share even warmer options.
Last winter, TJ and I gave our fireplace a complete makeover and it got me so excited to decorate the mantle for each season, especially for fall and winter. There is nothing like the start of fall to get me in the spirit of decorating and, this year, I’ve decided to stick to a very muted, neutral fall theme throughout the house…. well, minus our Halloween porch (to come). TJ has been talking about decorating our house for Halloween since we bought it last December so we’ve accumulated quite the collection of random skeletons from various trips to Home Centric lately. We actually decorated most of our fireplace this year using all items from Home Centric, a home store located in Crossroads Plaza in Cary. The prices are incredible but the selection is even better, in my opinion. When decorating the perfect fall mantle, there are a few key ingredients….
Decorative or Real Pumpkins (or both) I went with both this time around and I’m so glad I did. Aside from the beautiful dark green and white pumpkins we picked up at a local farm, I found these little blue pumpkins in the fall section of Home Centric and knew they would tie in the green/blue/white look I was going for. They were under $12 and I also couldn’t pass up the larger glass white patterned pumpkin either. They had so many pumpkins to choose from- straw, different fabrics, pumpkins with words, everything. Whether you choose a orange/yellow theme, white, or blues/greens, you’re sure to find some really pretty and unique ones at Home Centric. I love the organic feel of the real pumpkins mixed with the textures of the faux ones.
Greenery No matter what season it is, you can never ever go wrong with simple greenery when decorating a space. Eucalyptus is one of my favorites this time of year before we shift to pines for the holiday season. My personal pick is baby blue or silver dollar eucalyptus. I love how silver dollar eucalyptus looks when spread out across the entire mantle but the store only had the baby blue kind so I filled a neutral-colored vase (also found at Home Centric) and set it on the side. Another pretty option would have been a wreath! There are so many pretty and colorful fall inspired wreaths that would have been a perfection addition.
Lanterns There were way too many lanterns to choose from so it was a tough decision but I love the semi-rustic feel of this wooden one and I love how it is the perfect size to stuff a bunch of mini white pumpkins in. I feel like I was conservative with my lantern size but I actually really love seeing gigantic lanterns on each side of fireplaces, which is also a good way to add height and dimension to the entire space. Even small lanterns on each side of the mantle would be gorgeous for a more symmetrical look. To add even more height, stack some big books underneath!
Letterboard I had a tiny little space to fill and this small letterboard was the perfect fit! I love how you can use these for birthdays, holidays, even just daily encouraging or funny phrases. Home Centric had some other sizes to choose from but this one was just perfect for the mantle since I knew I’d be keeping my regular sized frames for art.
Fall Inspired Art If you’re new to visiting my blog, I have to admit that I have a slight obsession with art and photography prints. I think it’s my favorite thing to decorate any space with and if I could be a professional gallery-wall designer, I think I would be. I stayed with a mountain theme for these and I love the cozy, fall feel it gives without being overly colorful or bright yet still adding color to the space. Other options of art I considered: greenery, stacks of wood, cabins, leaves, pumpkins.
Cozy Throws The complete the look, find a basket (Home Centric has an entire aisle dedicated to baskets) and put a cozy throw blanket or pillow in it to add some fabric texture for a warm and inviting touch.
Bonus: Colbie wanted to add her skeleton brother to the list….
With these fall mantle essentials, you’re sure to end up with a warm & festive fireplace and mantle in no time while staying on a budget! If you’re local to the Raleigh area, definitely stop by Home Centric next time you’re near Crossroads.. It’s located right beside Total Wine and you’ll be blown away by the prices.
I had been thinking about going to NYFW for a few years now but it wasn’t until this year that my schedule really allowed me the flexibility to do so. While it was a complete whirlwind, I had the best time with the best people, met so many new friends, and stayed at my new favorite NYC hotel, Park South Hotel, located in the NoMad neighborhood. Since this was my first time visiting NYC during Fashion Week, I didn’t totally know what to expect but I decided that I would just embrace all the craziness and look at this trip as a first-time experience. Although we barely had time to sleep or eat, I’m so happy I decided to go this year. I now know exactly what to expect and how to prepare ahead for the week and I already can’t wait to be back in the city!
In My Suitcase:
Where We Stayed
Just a few weeks prior to this trip, I visited NYC for a conference and stayed with TJ during one of his work trips but this time I was so happy to try out a new-to-me hotel, Park South Hotel. I actually decided to come a day early and spend an extra night at Park South and fell in love with the place immediately upon arriving. As chic and beautiful this boutique hotel is, the first thing that actually made me feel at home was the people… everyone was so helpful and made me feel so welcome right from the start. Being in New York by yourself can be so intimidating (but exhilarating) but I truly felt at home here. On the second night, my roommates finally arrived and we checked into our beautiful suite where we quickly made ourselves right at home. Back in February, I met my friends Bronwyn & Allison at a retreat in Kentucky and I am so thankful these two came into my life. If you’re not already following them, you should! Other favorite parts about Park South Hotel? The FOOD. We had the best dinner in their restaurant downstairs, Covina, (even while editing photos on our laptops late into the night) and found ourselves visiting their coffee shop whenever we could to escape the rain and refuel. It was raining throughout our entire trip so we didn’t get to experience the hotel’s rooftop bar although we did get a peek at it and the views were so good! Just another reason we’ll have to stay here again. Side note: If you’re in a hurry, the bagel shop next door is all the NYC bagel goals there ever were.
The Activities
I arrived to NYC on Friday evening (stayed through Tuesday morning) just in time to check in to Park South and meet up with my friend, Alicia, who invited me to come along with her to a few events hosted by Samsung and then Lulu’s. These events were the perfect start to the weekend because I got to meet a lot of friends I’ve been following on social media over the years. The next morning I met up with my account manager for rewardStyle (the affiliate company I have used for my blog for a while) and was so excited to finally meet her in person. Later this night, that same company hosted a really fun rooftop celebration where I was able to meet a lot more familiar faces. After our meeting, it was almost time for my roommates to arrive so I headed back to the hotel! As soon as everyone arrived, we moved into our suite, grabbed a bite to eat, and the whirlwind of events began!
For this first time fashion week, I wanted to experience a little bit of everything… shows, brand events, meet with PR/marketing reps, meet other people in my industry. A lot of bloggers will use this time while they’re in NYC to meet face-to-face with people who they email and speak to on a daily basis since most of these people are based there. It ended up being a pretty mixed-up and well-rounded itinerary and we even were able to try out a new restaurant one night and meet up with our friend, Caroline.
One of my favorite shows was Nonie (so chic) and, while I had seen way smaller (local) fashion shows before, this entire experience was so unreal. The music, the lights, the audience, everything. It was so cool to be able to be the first to see these designs that so much hard work has gone into and gain some inspiration for spring/summer ‘19. In between shows, we decided to fight the rain and squeeze in some photos!
On one of our last nights, we tried out Tartinery for happy hour and ended up staying for multiple hours with good company and good food! This was one of the few times we actually could sit and eat a meal without being on the go. We went to their 90 Park Ave. location but there are 2 other locations in NYC too. I wish I could have packed this place up and bring it back home with me… the food was right up my alley (cheese boards, avocado toast, butternut squash soup, burrata, hummus, all the best things) and not to mention their happy hour features half off beer, wine, and select cocktails from 4-7pm! I will certainly be back to Tartinery next time I’m visiting.
Park South Hotel’s lobby
Happy Hour at Tartinery
Overall, my first time fashion week experience was so so good… for my soul, for stepping outside of comfort zones, for trying new things, learning, spending time with great people, being back in NYC, and just soaking up every moment I could. I’m considering planning a November/December trip because I miss it so much. I’m not going to lie though, it was really exhausting. When I got home, it took me at least 3 days to get back to my normal sleep routine. I think NYFW is just what you make it… you can say yes and no to whatever you want, you can fill your schedule as much or little as you’d like, and you get out what you put into it in terms of prep work and reaching out to PR reps/etc. If you want to see more of NYC, you can read my last trip’s post here!
Thank you to Park South Hotel and Tartinery for partnering with us. All opinions are my own.
One of the rooms (pretty high) on our to-fix up list is the guest bedroom. We plan to rip out the carpet, replace with flooring, paint the walls, and make it a welcoming and peaceful space for family to visit. The tricky part is that we plan to have this all complete by the beginning of December when my mother-in-law comes to town. I’ve been trying to figure out an overall theme or color scheme at least and haven’t quite been able to settle on one yet. I usually love neutrals with pops of color, especially colors that you can switch up every so often. I also love the idea of an all neutral room though because you can’t really go wrong with it and the pieces would probably be more practical and classic. I did come across a teal bed though and had a tough time not going in that direction but we’ll see what happens! To help visualize my neutral guest bedroom ideas, I put together a mood board below (clickable to shop) to get a better idea of how everything could tie in together.
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One of my favorite go-to sites for furniture and decor is Joss & Main so you’ll see some of my finds below. The main pieces of furniture I’m looking at are this tufted upholstered panel bed, this 9 drawer chest, and some white nightstands. I love the idea of chunky knit throws and pillows as we approach the cooler seasons and you just can’t go wrong with this rug. I also brought in some greenery for a tiny bit of color but kept things really simple and minimal with this round accent mirror, a white table lamp, and this set of white baskets. I’ll keep you updated on IG on what we decide to do! Are you more into neutrals, colors, or a bit of both?
When it comes to hair products, I’ve tried many… expensive brands, drugstore brands, clean beauty brands, many. While I have loved some more than others, it’s always nice to have a good go-to you can easily pick up from your local drugstore. Whether you are going back to school or just wanting to switch up your beauty routine, I’m excited to share a few Garnier beauty products that I would 100% recommend and I’ll tell you why!
Micellar Cleansing Water for All Skin Types For the longest time I was set on using coconut oil to remove my makeup every night… until I started experiencing little red bumps and irritation around my eyes. While coconut oil did a great job of removing the makeup, I am not sure it was the best makeup remover option for me. About a month ago, I started using Micellar Cleansing Water and now I don’t see how I’ll ever use anything else! Micellar Cleansing Water is a beauty secret of the French and now I can totally see why. I squirt some on a cotton ball and gently wipe my eye area and it takes off everything! I haven’t experienced any of those irritations since the switch. Plus, it comes in a huge container compared to most make-up removers and it leaves my skin feeling clean, refreshed, and soothed with no rinsing needed.
Sleek and Shine Shampoo and Conditioner When it comes to hair, I tend to feel the need to spend a lot on hair-products for good results so I’ve been very impressed with the results of this drugstore shampoo and conditioner. This paraben free formula includes citrus protein, Vitamins B3 and B6, fruit and plant-derived extracts and makes my hair feel strong, healthy, and clean for days! I’ve also noticed way less frizz since using this and I think it has something to do with the Argan Oil from Morocco. Not only is this shampoo and conditioner combo ideal for managing frizzy and dry hair, but Garnier has also made some serious moves toward helping the environment with their more sustainable & eco-friendly packaging. You don’t always see huge beauty brands being environmentally responsible but they want you to recycle these bottles and have partnered with companies like TerraCycle, DoSomething, and Unicef to help keep their products out of landfills. So, if you are struggling with frizzy hair after every wash, definitely try out this shampoo and conditioner.
1 Minute Hair Mask + Avocado Extract Another product that I believe has made a big difference in my frizziness… this hair mask made with avocado extract! You can use it as a mask after shampooing by leaving on for 1 minute, as a conditioner after shampoo, or as a leave-in for frizz control. This hair mask doesn’t weigh down your hair, has no parabens or silicones, artificial colors, or animal-derived ingredients or by-products.
Soothing Facial Mist made with Rose Water I’ve been spraying this on my face throughout the day and it’s seriously refreshing and soothing. There are so many benefits of rose water such as balancing the pH of the skin, hydrating the skin, and curbing acne. Not to mention, it smells like a fresh bouquet of flowers when misted. The ingredients are 99% naturally-derived and I will definitely be bringing this into my fall and winter beauty routine as my skin becomes more dry with the seasons.
Have you tried any of these or do you have any drugstore hair or skin products you can’t get enough of? If you try any of these, let me know how you like them! Thanks for reading and remember to Beauty Responsibly.
Thank you to Garnier and Her Campus Media for sponsoring this post.
If I had to choose a favorite part of every day, it would probably be dinner time with my husband and catching up with each other about our days after an evening walk with Colbie (our dog). With how nice the weather has been lately, we’ve been eating outside any chance we can and winding down the day with a glass of one of our favorite Chardonnays… J. Lohr Estates Riverstone Chardonnay, paired best with good company and even better food. My wine-expert parents turned me on to J. Lohr Vineyards & Wines and I’ve been a fan ever since. Out of all the different kinds of wine, I often find myself choosing Chardonnay mainly because it goes well with so many different types of food. Speaking of different types of food, there have been a few staple dinners in our home for the past few months and I’m excited to share them all below! Most days I’m working before and after dinner or TJ is off to a class or on a run so we like to keep the recipes quick and healthy as often as possible. When we do have a night where we’re not on the go, we like to celebrate, spend quality time out on the patio, and open up a bottle of our favorite J. Lohr wine. Most of what we eat can be described as “pescatarian”. The first recipe we love to make on the grill is Grilled Salmon and Asparagus. The way we marinate the salmon is what makes it so good!
Brown Sugar and Soy Sauce Grilled Salmon In a large plastic bag, we add: ⅓ cup soy sauce ⅓ cup brown sugar ⅓ cup water The salmon is also seasoned with garlic, salt, and pepper. For the sides, we’ll usually have some sort of orzo (this time we added tomatoes, basil, lemon w/ olive oil and red wine vinegar) or rice and grilled asparagus (with lemon and butter). Once you create the marinade, you can let the salmon sit in the bag for as long as you want (ideally, 2 hours) until it’s time to go on the grill.
Our second go-to recipe is a simple brown rice/black bean/avocado bowl and the ingredients are:
Brown Rice/Avocado Bowl Brown Rice Black Beans Avocado Slices Corn Cherry Tomatoes Cheese, optional Lime juice on top
You just put them all in a bowl and voila! Super simple and quick plus it’s full of nutrients.
Our third on-repeat meal each week is a greek salad: Greek Salad Romaine lettuce chopped Tomatoes Red Pepper Garbanzo Beans Feta Cheese Red Onion Cucumber Dressing: ¼ Cup Olive Oil ½ a Lemon, juiced 2 tablespoons of Red Wine Vinegar 1 teaspoon of Italian Seasoning We’ll usually have home-made sweet potato fries with this one and it’s so delicious!
Those are a few of our weekly meals! We haven’t gotten sick of them yet and they’re all so easy to make and have us feeling healthy in no time. Once the temperatures change up a bit, I’m sure we’ll switch these all out for some more fall appropriate ones so check back to see what those are! Either way, we’ll be keeping stock of our favorite Chardonnay year-round.
Thank you to J. Lohr Wines for sponsoring this post.
While I might not go into an office every day, I still have days where I have to look put together and somewhat business-casual. I was going through my closet the other day and came across this pair of pleated pants (these used to be my favorite for the office) which inspired me to share a post all about work pants to add into your wardrobe! Work pants used to be the hardest thing for me to find… I wanted them to be comfortable (priority) but also chic. My work outfits gave me that added boost of confidence that helped me get excited for work each day. I’m not saying my pants made me want to go to work but having an outfit I felt confident in really made a big difference in my outlook on my job.
I put together a few of the cutest ones I could find below! I’ll try to do a try-on of a few of my favorites on my Instagram stories later too.
Happy Friday! Today’s originally planned Q&A turned into a novel about buying our first home. One of the questions asked last night was about our experience with buying a house for the first time, which is something that I’ve been meaning to share for a while, but knew it would be a lot of info and not relate to everyone. This post will probably only be interesting to those who have not purchased a house before but I think it will be helpful reading a first time home buyer’s experience before you jump into the process.
When We Decided We Were Ready To Buy TJ and I had rented apartments for 5 years before deciding it was time to buy our house. We wanted to help pay for our wedding first and the time just felt right about 6 months after our wedding! I think TJ wanted it more than me at first, but once I saw how excited he was about the possibility of owning our own home it got me excited as well. Our monthly rent payments kept getting higher and higher each year and I started to notice that we could have monthly mortgage payments for even less. We knew we wanted to stay in this area for a while, we wanted more space (our apartment had no storage space), we wanted a yard, and we wanted to build equity. Before we started the process, we didn’t know much about buying a house so this was all brand new to us.
We assessed any debt and our credit scores.
Before you even start the house hunting process, you need to have pretty decent credit and a low debt to income ratio. If you do not have a good credit score or if you have too much debt, you won’t get approved for a loan. Even if you do get approved, it could potentially be lower than what most houses cost. To calculate the debt to income ratio, you take your revolving debt (credit cards, car loans, personal loans, etc.) as well as the potential mortgage payment you would obtain, and divide it by your monthly income. That will give you a percentage that lenders use to determine if you have enough income to pay your mortgage. Before we even looked at houses, TJ and I both had credit score goals. In fact, most first time home buyer loan programs have requirements for credit scores. For a few months, I put any extra money I had toward paying credit cards. A great tool we found was Credit Karma which gives you an updated score weekly. The score that they give you may not be used by all lenders, but it is a great tool to keep you on track. I checked Credit Karma religiously during this whole process.
We saved money. We knew we did not have enough in savings for a conventional 20% down payment, but there are options for people in our shoes. We looked at FHA, USDA, and no down payment loans while searching for our lender. They all have different requirements, but the higher the down payment, the lower the monthly payment will be. We ultimately settled on getting our mortgage through Coastal Federal Credit Union’s First Time Homebuyer Program (if you want the contact of who we used, email me!). This allowed us the option to put 0% down, if we wanted, and use our savings toward other aspects of the home buying process. Another reason we went with Coastal Federal was the rates always seem to be better with credit unions than conventional banks or prime lenders. FYI, even if you do a program where 0% down payment is an option, you will still need to have a significant amount of cash throughout the process. More on that later.
We found a lender and got a pre-approval letter. I honestly think this choosing-a-lender step is as important of a decision as choosing a family doctor. You should feel comfortable talking to this person because they’ll ask for your entire life story in documentation. They took 2 years of tax returns, pay stubs, 401k statements, rent payments, credit card statement, car loans, as well as any other income that was being brought in (thanks blog!). I know I am missing something, but be prepared to give your lender every personal financial document you own. Your lender will compile all this information, along with your credit score and debt to income ratio to determine if you meet all the requirements. Luckily we did!
At that point the lender will give you a Pre-Approval letter, which basically lets the sellers and real estate agent know that you are a serious buyer. It shows how much house you can afford and how much money the lender will approve to loan. At that point, I think TJ and I started to feel like the idea of owning a home was real! Definitely try to get pre-approved before looking at houses because the pre-approval letter is part of the offer to purchase contract, so not having that at the time could put you behind other buyers who do have their letter.
We did research and kept close watch of the areas we were interested in months ahead. When you’re actually ready to buy a house, the process will (sometimes) go really fast.. or it could go really slow. We originally were looking in the Cary, Apex, Morrisville area, which was in about a 5 mile radius of where we were already living. It was close to our jobs and is a consistent area that goes up in value, which would make it a good investment. Looking at the housing market ahead of time can really give you a sense of the prices for houses in the area, making you ready to make a competitive offer. We only looked at 5 houses total and this house (our current home) was the first and only one we put an offer on. At first, TJ kept sending me houses out in Garner and Wake Forest but I didn’t really look at those seriously. I was set on Cary or Apex for some reason and I occasionally thought about Holly Springs being an option. For some reason, I just never really had the desire to live in Raleigh (I know… so weird, but I really like feeling like I live in a small town and away from traffic/out in the suburbs). The first house we ever looked at was one TJ found on Realtor.com. It was in Cary and in a great location but honestly seemed really overpriced for something I would want to change so much. Realtor.com is great because it matches you up with a real estate agent who can show you the property if you haven’t committed to anyone else yet (if you need a realtor rec, let me know!). I updated realtor.com every hour at least for days, which is what lead us to our home!
We put an offer on our home! When I saw our house posted on a Friday afternoon in October, within the first hour of it being posted, I contacted our realtor to set up a showing for the following day (Saturday). We put an offer in later that day after seeing it, and found out on Sunday night that the sellers accepted our offer! I couldn’t believe we went from seeing the house on Saturday morning to being under contract Sunday evening. It moved so quickly! We settled on a 30 day closing date, and believe me when I tell you, the next 30 days were the longest 30 days of our lives. One thing to note is that we wrote the sellers a really nice letter, which we had heard was a good idea if it is a competitive market. I’ll share the letter we wrote below:
After our offer was accepted, we had 3 days to pay our due diligence and earnest money. These amounts were also part of our offer so our realtor helped guide us with how much we should include. Due Diligence is essentially a fee you give to the sellers to take the house off the market. A good rule of thumb is a 1/10th of a percent of the sales price (e.g. $200,000 house would equate to $200 in due diligence money). This is money that goes directly to the seller and you will never see again, but it gives you time to investigate the property. The due diligence period usually lasts about 14-21 days, but can be negotiated in the contract. This is when your inspections, appraisal, and surveys of the property are done. Earnest Money is a good faith payment that goes into an escrow (all escrow means is bank account or fund that sits and waits for a given period of time) account during the contract process. This is money to show the seller that you are committed to buying the house and getting to the closing table. Typically, a competitive earnest deposit is 1% of the sale price. A good thing about the earnest money is that you can potentially get it back if something comes up in the due diligence process and you decide to walk away from the home.
We scheduled an inspection and appraisal. Once you go under contract your lender or real estate agent will help you have the property inspected. This includes having a general contractor come to the home and check out everything about it. A typical home inspection costs anywhere from $450-$550 in our area. This included a radon test and termite test. One reason you have this due diligence period is to make sure any major issues (foundation issues, wood rot internally, etc.) are known about before closing.
Your lender will usually have a company that comes out and performs an appraisal on the property. The appraisal is to ensure the sales price is consistent with what the house is worth. The lender doesn’t want to give a loan that may be more than the value of the house. We paid $550 for our appraisal and, luckily, the house appraised for a little bit more than what we paid. One thing to note: if the house appraises below the sale price there are a couple options. You can renegotiate with the seller to lower the price or you can pay the difference at closing.
All in all, we paid about $4,000 for all of these things to get done (we haven’t gotten to closing costs yet). Don’t forget about movers too… which adds up quickly. One great thing about due diligence and earnest money is it gets credited to the buyer at closing! Which means you have to bring less money that day for closing costs. Speaking of closing costs… That is where things get expensive! Closing costs include loan origination fees, attorney fees, upfront payment of property taxes for the year, interim interest, a years worth of insurance, and whole lot of other things. Pro-tip: we were able to negotiate that the seller pay part of the closing costs. We went a little bit above asking price to make this option more appealing to the seller, and it worked! This could be a helpful tactic to those who may not have as much cash on hand. In our situation, closing costs were about $7,000 total for us, but will vary based on your lender. You should get an estimate as to how much all this will be from your lender as soon as you go under contract, which is helpful in knowing just how much money is needed. Our lender was seriously so helpful in informing us of every little piece of information.
Closing Day Closing Day was THE most exciting and long-awaited day of our lives (besides the wedding!). You will typically spend 20-30 minutes just signing documents with your closing attorney and real estate agent. The hardest part about this whole process, especially on TJ, was waiting and counting down the days until closing. TJ was constantly checking in with our mortgage officer on how every little process was going, if they needed more information for the underwriters, or if we had to pay more money for something. Fortunately, with the money we got from the sellers and the credits from the due diligence and earnest deposits, we actually got money BACK at closing.
I hope this information was helpful to any future first time home buyers and if you are looking to buy or sell a home soon and need a realtor, I know a guy! His name is TJ :)…. he’ll have his real estate license in a couple of weeks and would be more than happy to help you along in this process! That was a lot but if you have any other questions let me know!
Last week I shared a few of my favorite things I packed for New York but I didn’t share all the details about where we ate/what we did. Incase you don’t follow along on Instagram, I posted an IGTV video sharing our full 24 hours in NYC but today I’ll go into detail about each place. TJ and I both had one full day open to explore (he went up there for his work and I went up there for a conference) so we started Thursday evening for dinner. If you’re more of a visual person, click here to watch the video. We honestly didn’t take a ton of photos but got almost everything on video.
Wearing:
Thursday 5pm We were staying at the Hilton Midtown which was very close to Central Park so we decided to take a walk to Central Park followed by an Italian meal. I honestly just googled closest Italian restaurant to Central Park and this one popped up which was actually located within a museum, New York Historical Society, in a really quiet area. The restaurant is called Storico and it is located in the Upper West Side. It was decorated to perfection and I strongly suggest ordering the crab spaghetti if you’re ever in the area! Walking through Central Park to get there was one of my favorite parts about it. After dinner, we had plans to meet up for drinks with our friends who live there so we got a ride down to Chelsea where we would later find the coolest spot.
Thursday 8pm We had some extra time when we got there so we explored Chelsea Market for a little bit before meeting our friends at The Park, a restaurant that has a glassed-in garden, a penthouse and rooftop that overlooks the High Line, and so many other spaces. We didn’t order food but their margaritas were delicious and the atmosphere definitely did not disappoint. We took the subway back to our hotel to rest up for a busy next day.
Friday 8am We had to do at least one “touristy” thing while visiting so I bought 2 tickets for Top of the Rock where you basically go up to the top of Rockefeller Plaza for 360 degree insane views of New York. If you’ve never been up there before, I’d say it’s probably worth it to try once. We got there at about 7:45 and there was a small line waiting in front of us to buy tickets so I’d highly recommend buying them online ahead of time. After we took in the incredible views, we were in need of some coffee, so we headed to a coffee shop after stumbling upon a Jason Mraz concert on The Today Show.
Friday 9:30am After walking west of Rockefeller Plaza, we found the cutest coffee and flower shop called Remi. I ordered the strangest thing on the menu… a Rose Berry Tea Latte (so delicious) and we split a giant almond croissant. We had a big day of food planned so this was just a snack before heading off to Central Park which would be our last stop before heading downtown for the rest of the day.
Friday 10:30am Our original plan was to rent a boat on The Lake at Central Park but we went not knowing they only took cash. Since we had a packed day planned, we decided to forego the boat riding and save that for next time. It was the prettiest day to spend time at Central Park and I could have spent hours there (if it weren’t for brunch).
For more of our visit in Central Park, watch this video at 3:15.
Friday 12:30pm By this time, we were starving and we grabbed brunch at While We Were Young (in West Village via an uber-ride). I ordered their epic avocado toast (can’t believe I didn’t take a pic but it’s on video) and a green juice cocktail while TJ ordered eggs benedict. This place is much smaller than it seems in photos… it only seats about 25 people max so I’d recommend getting their right after it opens if possible. The service was amazing and I wanted to be bff’s with the bartender.
Friday 1:30pm After the best meal at While We Were Young, we explored the West Village area and I loved it so much. We strolled through Washington Sq., walked into the tv show ‘God Friended Me’ filming, and finally made our way to the cutest coffee shop to take a break from all the walking! 3:00pm We somehow made it to Little Italy and ordered iced lattes from Urban Backyard, the tiniest coffee shop with the most character! Seriously, so good. You have to try and visit!
4:00pm Since we only had a couple of hours before we had to head to the airport, we decided to grab an early dinner at a highly recommended Italian restaurant, San Marzano, and it definitely did not disappoint. This was technically in East Village and offered $10 build your own pasta which honestly was some of the best Italian food I’ve ever had. I don’t think I can go back to NYC and NOT eat at this place. After we ate at San Marzano, it was time to head to the airport. We could have spent days exploring New York but we had to be back home for the weekend after a week away. While this wasn’t our first time visiting, it had been years so I had almost forgotten what it was like to be there.
Incase you missed it last week, Sprouts Farmers Market is opening up a new location next week in Durham (near Southpoint meaning another stop to add to my Nordstrom trips). I recently visited the North Raleigh location and loved everything about it – the healthy and organic options, the prices, the Sprouts Brand products, the atmosphere in general, as well as the fact that they carried a lot of my favorite brands like Kashi, Califia Farms, Earth Balance, and more. Sprouts makes healthy living for less even more easy with so many ways to save like their Deals of the Month, Weekly e-circular, and special sales. They even post a variety of recipes and tips featuring Sprouts Brand products at SproutsBrand.com. I highly recommend the Pink Himalayan Sea Salt Popcorn with Coconut Oil, by the way. I’ve been snacking on that all week. In fact, I’ve loved all of the Sprouts Brand products I’ve tried. We packed up a bunch of them on our picnic a couple of weekends ago.
Last weekend, TJ and I had a couple of our best friends over for dinner outside on our patio (right before a huge rain storm came) and the entire dinner included foods we picked out at Sprouts… fresh vegetable and chicken kabobs, jalapeño poppers, pasta salad, cheese/crackers, and more. With the upcoming opening (August 22nd which is next Wednesday), there are a lot of easy ways to save on groceries and today I’m talking about them all! If you do go shopping at the new location on August 22nd, the first 200 shoppers in line with receive 20% off their first total purchase (the doors open at 7am). If you’re unable to shop that day, the following weekend of the 25th and 26th will provide more weekend deals. First of all, if you don’t have the Sprouts app, you can download that for easier planning and saving with their exclusive mobile coupons. When you’re checking out, simply scan your custom barcode in the app during checkout for instant savings. The older I get, the more aware I become of our finances and where all of our money goes. After looking it over a few months ago, I realized I spent way too much on food. Going out to eat, getting coffee at a coffee shop, ordering take-out… I realized it was time to start eating at home a lot more often so I was really interested in learning about these extra ways to save on groceries.
Another way to save is on Double Ad Wednesday. Basically, the weekly ad prices run from Wednesday to Wednesday leaving an overlap period happening on… Wednesday! There are also always ‘Deals of the Month’ (easily found online) which highlights over 2,000 products on sale at Sprouts. If you want to stay in the know even more about the deals, you can subscribe to the Weekly e-circular showcasing hundreds of items on sale each week. I love that there are so many ways to save even more money on healthy food… especially after how shocked I was with the prices in the first place! Look out for 72-Hour Sales like their Vitamin Extravaganza where everything in the Vitamins and Body Care section is 25%.
For the full press release for the Durham grand opening on August 22nd, click here. Thank you to Sprouts Farmers Market for sponsoring this post! Follow along with Sprouts on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
After spending the majority of last week in New York City, I had to share a few items that I packed that I probably would have been lost without. I wouldn’t call myself a city girl at all (quite the opposite, actually) but with a well packed bag, I felt like I could’ve been one. I originally went for a conference and to see a friend but TJ’s work meetings coordinated perfectly with the trip and we had one full day to explore the city together. I’ll hopefully share our “day in NYC” itinerary later this week. This entire trip was an experience that was completely out of my comfort zone from riding with strangers across the city by myself to going to events not knowing a single person. It was such a great week though and I can’t wait to be back.
other items in my suitcase:
Here are the 5 items that I would 110% recommend if you have a trip coming up to any big city!
1. Cole Haan GrandPro Sneaker I picked these sneakers up last minute and am so glad I did. They are as light as a feather and look pretty good with just about everything. I took two pairs of shoes with me: these sneakers and these booties. The sneakers were comfortable enough to walk all day in but I loved how they could be worn with dresses and dressier pants.
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2. Franco Sarto Lowe Bootie The second pair of shoes I brought with my were these booties, which you’ve probably seen my wear a lot on Instagram. I actually walked miles in these and they never hurt my feet. They’re casual enough to wear with jeans but dressy enough to wear with work attire (love that pointy toe and low heel). The best part of these (besides being so comfortable) is the versatility. The neutral color makes them a perfect fit for practically any outfit.
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3. LBD (little black [casual] dress) There’s nothing that made me fit in more than a simple black dress in NYC. Plus, it looked so good with both shoe options mentioned above. I’d highly recommend this one and this one for any upcoming trips. Simple, chic, and all you need! Especially for days when it’s super humid.
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4. Urban Originals Vegan Leather Backpack One of my favorite and most used items on the trip… this little backpack. It’s pricey but so worth it and I will get so much use out of it. Being hands free the whole time was so necessary and it is the perfect size for the necessities. There are zip up compartments inside and pockets on the outside leaving room for a good amount…. Phone, lip balm, wallet, notebook, makeup, all the things.
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5. Compact Portable Charger We brought the “big camera” up there but honestly barely used it… It was much quicker and easier to just whip out the phone for photos. This meant I was on my phone… a lot. Luckily, I had a compact portable charger with me because I needed to book rides, look at maps, take photos and notes, text people, everything. I put this inside of my backpack each day (after charging it at night) and was good to go.
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Of course there are plenty of other packing essentials (phone, umbrella, sunglasses, dry shampoo) but these are the main things that I thought multiple times to myself “Wow, I am SO glad I brought this”. Thanks for stopping by! I’ll be posting more details of the trip later this week. We went to a lot of restaurants that I fell in love with and I can’t wait to share pics of everything.
Have you ever thought “I love healthy food but it’s way more expensive” or “all of the organic brands are too pricey”. I’ve thought the same until I recently discovered a new grocery store that has the best of both worlds. Introducing… Sprouts Farmers Market. Have you all ever shopped at one?! Apparently it’s pretty popular in other areas across the country (they just opened their 300th location) but there is a new one coming to Durham on August 22nd and I am SO excited! I’m usually over near the Southpoint area once a week so I was super happy to learn about this healthy grocery store that offers fresh, organic food at really great prices. I was too excited to wait until the 22nd so I stopped in to the Raleigh location (off Falls of Neuse) last weekend and was amazed by the selection of brands they offered. They even had my favorite (Kashi Heart to Heart) cereal for the lowest price I’d ever seen it.
I especially loved the Market Corner Deli where you can find prepared entrees and sides, soup, salad bar, sushi, and so much more fresh and healthy options. TJ and I stocked up on this section and decided to have a picnic at the lake by our house. Pasta salad, wraps, juice and I really loved all of their snack containers with cheese, crackers, grapes, and vegetables/hummus. If you’re more of an on-the-go shopper, you’ll love this part about Sprouts.
Sprouts believes that healthy living shouldn’t be a luxury and I honestly couldn’t believe some of the prices we saw. I liked how there were some generic ‘Sprouts’ products (like the sea salt potato chips and mini chocolate chip cookies) but we could also pick up some of our favorite brand name products like Chobani, Kashi, Boars Head, Califia Farms, Earth Balance and so much more.
If you’ve never shopped at Sprouts before, you have to stop by after August 22nd if you’re in the Durham area or if you’re ever doing some shopping around Southpoint. Overall, we loved the whole atmosphere, the prices, and the selection.
Thank you to Sprouts Farmers Market for sponsoring this post.
