WILW: Bless Her Heart Edition

Beach Weather

Le sigh...I miss being tan.

The first thing I'm loving (and cannot stop thinking about) is that it looks like we'll finally have some beach weather this weekend! I have some super pale skin that needs a little color and some new bathing suits that need to be broken in. I'm really, really, really looking forward to a fun day on Sullivan's this Saturday. Bout time!

Bless Her Heart T-Shirt

I'm completely smitten with my new t-shirt from Bourbon Built. Bourbon Built "offers dry goods for wet counties" and makes some of the most fantastic t-shirts and drinking accessories. I fell for the Bless Her Heart, but am pretty sure the Bourbon and Bad Decisions shirt will soon be in my dresser. Also, my friend Katie is one of the co-owners and I love her - so buy her stuff. ;)

Map My State

I think it's well documented how much I love coffee, but I don't know if y'all know how much I love coffee mugs. I ran across these state mugs and will now have to make one mine. Question is - South Carolina Mug or Kentucky?

MapMyState.com also has great state and city prints. I love the idea of highlighting your hometown and choose your map color.

Girls Trip to Atlanta

This past weekend my roommates and I made the trek to Atlanta for a little shopping trip. We did a little bit of damage at H&M, C.Wonder, Sephora, Ikea, Nordstrom Rack, etc., etc., etc. Here are a couple of my favorite purchases from the trip:

Fine-One-One

I'm a sucker for Benefit packaging and this all-in-one blush and illuminator is no exception. Glowing cheeks, please! I also love that the blush isn't messy and it great for throwing in purse when I'm on the road.

C.Wonder Tote

I'm too cheap for a Longchamp, so this simple tote from C.Wonder is the next best thing. I also really love the C monogram, I like to pretend it's for Carly. Good news, too - all the totes are on sale online right now.

H&M is coming to Charleston!

Finally! That's all I have to say about that.

WILW: Mint Julep Edition

A Trip Back to KY

Our engagement party is this weekend! We haven't been home since the proposal so I'm very excited to get to see family and friends and celebrate! It's also an added bonus that this weekend is the Kentucky Derby. I look forward to many mint juleps and lots of horse racing. ;)

Speaking of mint juleps, I'm a fan of the traditional recipe. My perfect portion is 3 tablespoons bourbon (1 shot), 1 & 1/2 tablespoon mint simple syrup, and crushed ice.

Derby Hats

I'm still looking for something to wear on Saturday (coming down to the wire) and I'm debating a big ole Derby hat or fascinator. Here are a few that have caught my eye:

Via Headcandy

Via Headcandy

Hats and Fascinators via Gold Coast Couture

Online Food Ordering

I often get super lazy at work and don't even want to walk across the street to order food. Pathetic, I know. This has made me seek out all online ordering systems to make my lunch as simple and easy as possible. Jimmy Johns is hands-down my favorite. I have an addiction and order Jimmy Johns online with delivery probably once a week. It's so easy, they store your CC info so all I have to do is login and enter my verification code. Dangerous.

Other online ordering systems I love belong to Black Bean Co. and The Bagel Shop. Black Bean Co. recently moved right across the street from our office. It's fantastic. Only issue is that they regularly have 15 people in line to order lunch. I simply order online, run across the street 10 minutes later, and my order is ready. Bam. The Bagel Shop on George Street has a similar system. I'm partial to the bacon, egg, and cheese breakfast sandwich - always a favorite. Online ordering makes it much easier to order and pay, especially for my lazy butt.

Warby Parker Aviators

I made the switch to prescription sunglasses last summer, which means that I only have one pair of sunglasses to wear. Boring. Lately I've been eyeing a few aviator choices from Warby Parker. I love a good pair of aviators and I love WP. Do you have a favorite?

Mad Style Recaps from TLO

Every Wednesday I love checking in on Tom and Lorenzo to read their weekly analysis of the Mad Men costuming. Between the pictures and the commentary, the posts are a great way to get a new insight into all of the work that goes into the show. Check out this week's post.

suki's Renewal Bio-Resurfacing Facial Peel

Sounds scary. Is awesome. I've been using this peel about once every two weeks and have been loving it. The peel is strong enough to create a little tingle (and a bit of red skin) but is still gentle enough for my slightly sensitive skin. The peel enhances skin cell turnover and accelerates collagen production. I've also noticed the peel has also been great at cleaning up any trouble (acne) areas I'm having. I'm not too crazy about anti-aging products or avoiding wrinkles just yet, but I figure I might as well start this process early and hold off skin aging as long as possible.

Psst.., Charleston Naturally is having a Mother's Day Sale. Save 25% on any products within the Mother's Day category with code MDAY.

Dad's Trip, Softies, and Wiggin' Out

It's been a couple weeks since I've last blogged, so this post is going to be all over the place.

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Last week my dad visited Charleston and I got to play tourist with him. I think I am especially good at the food and restaurant aspect of Charleston exploring, but I'm a pretty terrible sightseer. It's a little embarrassing that after living here for five years, there are plenty of museums, plantations, and other various attractions I haven't been to.

Dad checking out the cannons on Fort Sumter

When friends and family come to visit, I use their trips as my own little opportunity to explore some of Charleston's gems. During my Dad's trip we made our way out to Fort Sumter, enjoyed some delicious food (Green Door, Pearlz, Five Loaves, Home Team BBQ) and also made a trip out to Dataw Island to visit my aunt. I'm so happy he was able to visit and relax for a few days.

On the boat ride out to Sumter we passed about 100 sailboats since it was Raceweek. Such a cool sight!

Visitor in town? Oyster shots are a must.

The Marsh Life on Dataw Island

It's soft shell crab season in Charleston! During the spring there's a very brief period where you can catch softies (in the phase where they've shed their shell and have yet to grow it back). Soft shell crabs are a wonderfully decadent seasonal food that you can find in most restaurants this time of year, but they are also very easy to make at home. After cleaning the crabs, I simply fry up the little guys and serve on sandwich bread po' boy style. Adam and I are making a trip back to Kentucky next weekend and I'm tempted to try and transfer some crabs!

This weekend my roommates and I went to an event at Midtown to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. The party was a Wiggin' Out theme, so we all took the opportunity to dress up in our goofiest wigs. I loved rocking an afro for the night.

#selfie

Roommates before the party!

I don't think long hair is Adam's thing.

My wig made for a great glow stick receptacle.

Also fun - Friday Adam and I took engagement photos at Cypress Gardens. I can't wait to see the end result!

Hope you all have a great week!

WILW: Fresh Perspectives

Fresh Perspectives



I'm sure you all have seen the AT&T commercials with the adorable little kids. If you couldn't get enough of the children's answers and the host's deadpan responses, you're in luck! The "host" had his own YouTube show, Fresh Perspectives. The YouTube videos are hilarious. I have a soft spot for bad boy Nathan. Watch and giggle.



Real Housewives of Charleston?

Not quite, but apparently Bravo has a Charleston reality show in the works. Via BravoTV:

Southern Charm
The notoriously closed society of Charleston, South Carolina unlocks the gates of their centuries-old plantation homes for a real-life look at how modern-day Southern aristocracy lives. Get charmed by the social scene which is bound by tradition and ostentation unlike any other culture in America, through a group of the city’s most charismatic gentlemen and their Southern belle equals.

I'm already obsessed with all Bravo shows, so clearly Southern Charm will find it's way in my TV rotation. I'm really curious to see who they cast. This is a fairly small town, so it'll be interesting.

Warmer Weather!

It's coming! It's coming! Spring is coming. ;) I feel like we're so close to getting over that hump of actually having warmer weather every day. I am so ready to be able to wear sandals and sundresses again. Not to mention bust out a few of my new bathing suits from ASOS. Which brings me to ...


ASOS

 

I love, love, love buying bathing suits from ASOS. If you look in the clearance section, you can find some great deals. Above are some of the suits that I can't wait to wear!

Hope you all are having a great week!

Weekend Update: Buddy's Back!

This post is pretty random. Enjoy!

Last Friday a group of us surprised my friend Amber for her birthday. Happy belated, Amber! We went to Barsa and I binged on a cheese plate and olives. It was almost enough to get me to speak Spanish. I love a good cheese plate. I am now on the hunt for a good cheese board.

On Saturday, Adam and I got our hands dirty and started working on my Buddy scooter to get it up and running. I only live 1/2 mile from work, so I haven't driven my scooter in a long time. We became scooter tune-up experts while switching out spark plugs, draining the carburator, and de-gunking the fuel. I was more of an assistant (thank goodness for iphones and Google) and Adam was my full-fledged handyman. Now that we've put a little bit of love in Buddy, I'm not so sure I'm going to sell it. I might be back on those streets with my pink helmet in no time.

One thing I am selling, however, is a 2011 Fat Tire New Belgium Bike. If you have any interest, check out my Craigslist post.

I've been on a bit of a baking roll this last week. I don't know what hit me, but anything that consists of flour, sugar, and eggs has sounded delicious to me. Luckily I have roommates (ignore your warning signs, Jen), so I don't end up eating a whole cake...just most of it.

Over the weekend, I made Janetha's Carrot Cake and Christina's Banana Bread. Both were hits. The carrot cake was incredibly moist (I suspect due to a can of crushed pineapple) and the banana bread has been the perfect snack at work this week.

Hope y'all are having a great week!

Moving on up to Elan

With the engagement, things have amped up pretty quickly around these parts. I haven't wanted to go too crazy with wedding planning, but I knew it would be important to at least book up a church and reception venue before all the good dates get taken. I am very excited to announce that Adam and I will be getting married May 31, 2014! Haha, it feels so far away, but I'm glad it's booked. That big stress is over with.

Another very exciting development is that Adam and I will soon be living together too! My lease ends at the end of September (he doesn't have one) so it makes sense for us to begin our living arrangements sooner rather than later. I'll be living in sin for a few months (does it count if you're engaged?), but am so excited to finally live with him!

I'm also very excited about where we'll be living. We've signed a lease with a new downtown development, Elan Midtown.

Elan Midtown is located on Meeting Street in the hub of new complexes and hotels. I think it will be so much fun to live downtown with Adam and be able to be in a brand new place. The location is perfect because it's near all the bars and restaurants we frequent, only 1/2 a mile from my office (I can keep walking!) and it's close the bridge, making it easy for Adam to get to work. Also, Elan Midtown will have a pool!

Check out this pool rendition -- hello!!

The only challenge to Elan is the size of our space. We'll be in one of the studio apartments, so it'll be interesting to see how we deal with storage and organization. I predict at least one trip to Ikea! ;)

Now that some of our big ticket items have been checked off, I'm ready to take some time and plan the smaller, fun elements of the wedding. My Pinterest board is already getting a bit of a workout.

Have a great weekend!

Proposal!!!

Oh hey, remember when I promised a proposal story about two and a half weeks ago? Well, it's here! Albeit, late - but it's here.

I honestly don't have too much to add to my weekend post and the events that led up to the proposal. It really was a gorgeous day, perfect for a picnic. Since it was Second Sunday we got to see a lot friends before the proposal happened, so it was really fun to just be mostly-oblivious and walk down King saying hello to everyone we knew.

I put together a make-shift picnic using a few things at my house (brie, pickles, wine) and then we added some bread and more cheese after a quick pop in Bull Street Gourmet. I actually posted this photo on Facebook and Instagram before the proposal even happened.

The question people ask me most - did I know it was going to happen? Well, I wasn't completely surprised it happened that day, but in the actual moment I was very surprised. I can read Adam pretty well, and was able to pick up a couple of clues that meant it could have been happening. I wouldn't have been upset, or had necessarily remembered if he didn't propose, but that day it felt like it was possible.

The clues ranged from 1) the picnic in general - it was actually my idea, but he kept reminding me that we were going to do it. We do a lot of outdoor activities, but we haven't had a real picnic. His insistence that pack up a picnic basket definitely set off my nose. 2) I saw that he was texting my friend Amber the night before. He brushed it off as Amber asking about brunch the next day (which we did go to), but it furthered my suspicions. Amber was a friend I always said to reach out to if he had questions about rings. (She did end up helping him find the ring.) 3) The morning we left for brunch, Adam ran back upstairs because he "forgot his keys". This is a small, small hint - but I thought maybe he was grabbing the ring. (He was. I was right.)

Writing that paragraph it almost makes it seem like I was searching for clues. I wasn't actively trying to find anything, I never went through his pockets or brought my suspicions to his attention. They were just hints that were a little hard to ignore.

Back to the picnic. We were there for maybe an hour before the proposal happened. I think I thought about it when we first sat down, but it didn't cross my mind again. We were really just relaxing and enjoying the pretty day. I didn't know it at the time, but Adam said he was super quiet because he was really nervous. I thought we were just lounging, ha!

At a certain point, Adam asked me to stand up. I knew what was happening right away. "Stand up, stand up!" Hahah, I stood up and he immediately got down on one knee. He said a few things (I love you, want to marry you) that I can't 100% remember, it was all a bit of a blur. I actually got a lot more overwhelmed than I expected. I don't think I said yes right away, I went in for a big hug. He asked if it was a yes and I said, "of course!"

I honestly didn't even look at the ring at first. He had to remind me to look at it after I sat back down. My hand was really shaky, and the ring was big - so I didn't even put it on for maybe 20 minutes.

After lots of hugging and kissing we just sat and enjoyed the moment for maybe 20-30 minutes. We wanted to let it sink in a little bit before we started calling family. The sneaky bugger was able to hide a mini-champagne bottle in the picnic basket, so we popped some bubbly to celebrate. He legit almost hit me in the forehead with the cork. Haha, it would have been awful and fantastic if that's how our engagement began.

Adam said he waited the hour-plus that we were at White Point to make sure no one was close when he proposed. I had always told him I didn't want a public proposal, so he wanted to make sure that there wasn't a carriage ride rounding the corner when he got down on one-knee.

Once we had calmed down a little, we got excited again when we started calling family and friends! It was so much fun to tell everyone! I loved hearing everyone's reactions and well wishes.

The last couple weeks have been a little wild, the planning started quick. But I am so, so happy to be engaged and be able to get to marry Adam!