Happy Black Friday

Pin It now! I planned on waking up "early" today and will do a little shopping before heading into work. Wish me luck! Go stimulate the economy!

 

Our Weekends....Lately

Pin It now! Driving under gorgeous skies to NJ to celebrate Pete's 40th birthday. His sister added a few signs on his lawn to make sure everyone knew it was his birthday.

The dumpling eating contest was in our hood this year.  The men's winner ate 74 and the women's 46.  Gross!

Bellydancing with neighbors.  Neighbors opening a new Italian cafe with coffee and delicious pastries.  It was a soft opening this weekend and the official opening day is coming really soon.

Spending a beautiful afternoon brunching and shopping with my sister.

Our Weekends....Lately

Pin It now! Driving under gorgeous skies to NJ to celebrate Pete's 40th birthday. His sister added a few signs on his lawn to make sure everyone knew it was his birthday.

The dumpling eating contest was in our hood this year.  The men's winner ate 74 and the women's 46.  Gross!

Bellydancing with neighbors.  Neighbors opening a new Italian cafe with coffee and delicious pastries.  It was a soft opening this weekend and the official opening day is coming really soon.

Spending a beautiful afternoon brunching and shopping with my sister.

May - Just a Few Things on My List

Pin It now! The weather is getting warmer and our patio and grill will be open on Friday.  I can't wait to BBQ, drink sangria and lay out in the sun by the pool all summer.  So on this month's wish list are summer party accessories, pretty lemony scents, and feminine outdoor party dresses.  My favorite are the Pottery Barn drink dispensers - they have some fabulous ones and perfect for spiked lemonade or that sangria I keep talking about.  I'm also hoping I can find a dress similar to the Jason Wu below - I absolutely adore it (although not the price tag).

Pottery Barn; Pier 1; Phillip Lim; Jason Wu; Diptyque in Verveine;  

Save or Splurge: Recent Buys

Pin It now! I love being able to find beautiful things for much less on sale or as compared to more luxurious choices.  A Banana Republic bracelet I just bought (which I spied sitting by the register when I was returning something...that's how they always get you!) as compared to a similar CC Style cuff bracelet.  I also bought a pair of Guess suede peep-toe cork heels that are certainly less expensive than their comparable Louboutins. And this H&M bird blouse is a great knock-off of Daniel Rainn's Take Flight blouse. So the question is, how would you spend...a little less or a lot more?

1-Banana Republic ($18); 2-CC Skye ($173); 3-Guess ($39)
4-Christian Louboutin ($670); 5-H&M ($25); 6-Daniel Rainn ($69)

April...Just A Few Things On My List

Pin It now! I've been eyeing a few things lately and thought it would be a great idea to start a monthly wish list so I can keep track of all the things I want to probably shouldn't buy.  Plus, as of yesterday, NY state smartened up again and gone back to implementing a sales tax exemption for clothing and footwear under $110, which doesn't help my wallet, but does wonders for my shopping addiction.  For April, it seems like it's all about Spring...bright colors, peplum, flats, flowers....

1. Madewell Suede Sidewalk Skimmers; 2. Crossover Bag 3. Dorothy Perkins dress;

4. Craspadia flowers; 5. Immersion Blender

Spending Hiatus - Week 2

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Another week successfully bringing breakfast and lunch from home (for the most part).  Em bought me a can of Financier coffee (people actually read my blog!) which comes in the cutest tin can.  This baby will be properly reused after the coffee is all gone.  I've also been having Trader Joe's frozen pasta for lunch.  Affordable and delicious.  You can usually get two servings from each bag but lately I've been having the entire bag in one sitting.

My "bad" day was Tuesday. I was lazy in the morning and didn't prepare lunch.  Luckily, Cafe Metro had a 25% off discount if you ordered online (use the code 25OFF).  I had to buy but I bought it on sale.  Tuesday night I also went out with my neighbor Annie to trivia night at the Brooklyn Winery.  No discount on the wine or food but I did get the fig crostini that was to die for.  Roasted figs with honey, cheese and a balsamic reduction. 

M and I had to buy some toiletries and took advantage of CVS' coupons and sales, although one of the allergy medicine boxes we bought BOGO 50% off only had half the packs inside.  Not worth the sale!  This weekend we had a family BBQ so again we did big bags of food shopping, but for the most part, we cooked meals at home the rest of the weekend.  Otherwise, I'm feeling good.  I realized that even if I didn't freeze all spending, I'm taking baby steps with bringing breakfast and lunch to work, which will make that much of a difference.  On to the next week.... 

New Additions

Pin It now! I can't to live without the two new things I bought and I can't believe I didn't get them sooner.  The first is a satchel bag from H&M.  My right shoulder has been aching from carry too many things in my shoulder bag.  I needed to downsize and to get a bag that went across the body without putting all the weight and pressure on one shoulder.  Ideally, I was eyeing this gorgeous bag from Coach, but I think I would have to save a few more pennies to buy it.  In the meantime, this new addition is making me feel much better and forces me to fit only the things I really need.

My other new addition...these boots from Naturalizer (purchased through Zappos)...I LOVE Zappos because they make wide (W and WW) size shoes. This lady has tiny feet but boy are they wide! It's genetics - my mom has bunions (gross word) and my aunt had surgery years ago to get rid of hers. Surgery is not an option so Zappos has saved the day. I tried on many (many, many) pairs and after taking advantage of the online store's free shipping and returns, I ended up with the perfect pair. They're so comfortable and my wide feet fit so well without my toes getting squished. I've been wearing them al the time and have just left them on all day at work.

The Weekend

Pin It now! Having an extra day off today for MLK Jr. Day is fabulous.  The weekend felt extra long and we were able to get a lot done.  On Saturday, after doing loads of laundry, hubby and I made our way to Brooklyn Brewery to meet up with his co-worker.  The brewery is great - it holds tours and also has a bar area where you get all of their different beers.  (My favorite - the pilsner!)  We arrived there around 4pm, but it seemed that many of the people there had been there since the brewery opened at noon.  There were a few tables that were making pyramids out of the plastic cups they had from all the beer they drank.  We then met up with the French and a couple of other friends at Brooklyn Bowl around the corner from the brewery.  Have you been there?  It's a huge bowling alley with a concert stage, big bar and a restaurant with food by Blue Ribbon.  The waiting list for bowling was three hours long!  While we waited, we watched performers try to get through every Beatles song (over two days) performing with a guy on a ukulele and then grabbed dinner at Sea Thai.  Three hours later (literally!), we made it back to the bowling alley and finally bowled.  I did terrible (terrible!) our first two games - I bowled a 33 our second game!  I made a comeback in game three but of course we ran out of time and couldn't finish the entire game.  Hubby, with his hurling style beat, everyone each game and the other ladies bowled like champs.

We made it home in time to watch one of the funniest SNL digital shorts with Andy Samberg and Pee Wee Herman.


Yesterday, we went furniture shopping!  We're looking for the perfect couch, but choosing just one is not as easy as it seems.  Here's our first choice, the Greenwich Sofa from Pottery Barn:

I know I haven't posted any photos of the new apartment.  Patience my darlings.  They're coming.

Cacao Bar and Tea Salon at MarieBelle

Pin It now! My Mom, sister and I met up today for lunch, shopping and hot cocoa.  I had to go into work earlier in the day and had an early appointment, but it's great to be out and about shopping in the city on a weekday.  I love to be able to spend time just with the girls and I'm always reminded how lucky I am to have a sister.  I know I've said it tons of times, but even though she's much younger than me, she always tells it how it is and is the ultimate reality check.
Our shopping adventure today...We started out in Chinatown, did a little jewelry shopping for Christmas, headed north to Soho, and then ended our shopping with a delicious pitshop at MarieBelle's Cacao Bar and Tea Salon.  They don't have your normal Swiss Miss Hot Chocolate.  Their drinks are pure melted chocolate, and it was wonderful!

Holiday Dresses for Cheap

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Time Out NY featured 100 party dresses for this holiday season for less than $100. 

Some of my favorites (especially the ones from H&M and Forever 21 under $30!)....

Lulus ($48) & Revolved Clothing ($57)



Windsor Store ($100) & Spiegel ($45)



Karma Loop ($88)  & The Limited ($90)

Forever 21 ($25)



H&M ($20)

 

The Weekend Recap

Pin It now! I hope you had a wonderful holiday weekend.  It was nice to have a long weekend although I technically worked from home on Friday.  Thanksgiving Thursday was a full day of the Garden State.  The usual hour-long ride took us almost three hours from the city to hubby's cousins house - an hour from the parking lot to the Lincoln Tunnel alone.  When we finally got to their house, it was nonstop eating (thank goodness!).  After trays of stuffed mushrooms, proscuitto wrapped breadsticks, pulled pork and the first Thansgiving dinner of the night, we headed to my parents' house the next town over for our second dinner.  Don't judge!  My sister and her boyfriend did the same although they were in Philly first and had a few hours to digest on the way to my parents'.  My mom was amazing and made everything herself this year since we had our obligations earlier in the day.  She made some of the same (cream of mushroom soup, candied yams, garlic string beans) and a few new additions (a delicious new stuffing recipe, homemade cranberry sauce and chinese bbq spare-ribs).  I made smitten's spiced applesauce cake for dessert and took a horrible photo of the turkey...

Friday we took advantage of The Gap and Rite Aid's Black Friday sales (good basics and toilet paper, respectively).  It was a low key night and we stayed in to watch the original Swedish version of The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo.  I haven't read any of the books, but why didn't someone tell me the movie is not for the faint of heart.  I was expecting Borne Ultimatum, but instead (spoiler alert!) the movie is full of sexual violence and serial murders.  It was a good movie, but a little terrifying.

Saturday, while hubs was at the gym and taking his friend's Crossfit class, I was off to TJMaxx (again!).  I bought a couple more toys for my office holiday toy drive and then hovered over the Le Creuset table for a long time.  5-qt Oval French oven for $199 (retail $$225), 5.5-qt Round French oven for $159 (retail $235).  If I didn't have all the toys with me and didn't have to lug the heavy pot home, I would have rationalized buying one.  I imagine myself cooking roasts and stews like Giada de Laurentis in a gorgeous Le Creuset... Where the old Filene's Basement was on 6th Ave, they put in a new Marshalls.  The home section is fabulous and has great designer finds, something I didn't find at TJMaxx.  I saw a Vera Wang Wedgewood Sable Duchesse teapot for $99 (retail $216) and teacups for $11 (retail $30).

** Celeb alert!  We saw Harvey Keitel outside of Amity Hall last night.  Anyway, yay for four day weekends.  By the time Sunday arrived, it felt like I was on a mini-vacation.  Today was all about the chores though.  Laundry, supermarket, baking (smitten kitchen's pear bread) and cooking dinner.  Ahh, almost done, just need to do a little ironing and I'll be finally done.  I'm ready for Amazing Race and Walking Dead tonight and then back to work.

Hope you had a fabulous weekend too!