Time time time time

Excuse me, do you have the time?

Latest victim of my obsessive obsessing? Gold "boyfriend" watches.

My office is much different than my previous one. Where as I used to be the "young, trendy 20-something," I am now just a mildly stylish minion in a see of fashionable, attractive, and creative young people, the majority of whom have much better stylistic judgment (and presumably deeper pockets) than myself.

But, I'm a manifestor, and go' damnit, I will be stylish if it kills me. There are some great trends I see running around the office. Namely, neutrals (champagnes, sands, cloudy greys), bare nails (light or no polish), tunic dresses, and gold jewelry and accessories. Just picturing all these together sends me into a bliss of spring tones, shapes, and accoutrements...*sigh*

I have been hitting on all of these a little bit, but one that I'm really trying to focus on is the gold accessories, specifically, a gold "boyfriend watch." I love gold on any skin tone, as long as it doesn't turn into a rusted, blueish grey "brassy" color. This can be avoided by either (a) buying expensive shizz or (b) avoiding water and cleaning regularly those of your accessories which might be a little bit "lower brow"...

I found my dream watch courtesy of coquette (a fashion blog), and said dream watch is a Marc by Marc Jacobs "Henry" watch, ranging in price form $175-$225. Sadly, I don't got that kind of green, what with the grad school and the payments for the Mazaratti...

However, I did find these great alternatives via BleuDame.com (a great site for cheap shades, jewelry, leggings, etc) and endless.com (a catch-all site featuring men's and women's shoes):

Henry from Marc Jacobs, $200

"Golden Classic" from endless.com, $23

Menswear inspired from bluedame.com, $16

I think I will be purchasing the model from endless upon pay day (my first one from the new job!)...right after I make a student loan payment and contribute to my measly savings account :(


"Time" by Pink Floyd...

On a tangent, but still equally as important for looking fabulous at the office, have you ever accidentally rubbed your eyes while forgetting that you had eyeshadow on? Not only does it make your eyes look like crap, but it also makes your hands all dirty--yuck! Gosh, I can't wait for Spring and warm weather when I can add a little flair to my look with cropped bottoms, undone hair, and light tops. But for now, shimmery makeup will have to do.

On my way to Iowa

To see many people who are dear to me, including these two little cutie-pa-tooties. Seriously, whenever I'm mad at either of them, I just look at this picture and all bad feelings magically melt away...

HEAVEN

Welcome to Chicago.

Hennepin Belgian Wheat, Fried Pickles, a burger so mean it would make your grandmother cry, and shoestring-truffle oil fries. Enjoy.

Photos courtesy of me and my Droid. Grub courtesy of Burger Bar on North and Clybourn. Yummm.

Great outfit for under $50

Well I don't know exactly how much my friend's outfitt cost,  but doesn't this approachable Forever 21 dress look amazing on her?! The purse is also from Forever. Its so slimming yet still really trendy. She wore it when we went out to minibar this weekend in Boystown: a great gay bar on Halstead that makes an amazing ginger-infused gimlet. So much fun!!

Southport Grocery

An amazing brunch with friends at Lakeview's Southport Grocery. I had a brie grilled cheese with a side of quinoa butternut squash. Other hilites included cupcake pancakes, bread pudding cupcakes, and finding a $400 North Face jacket at Uncle Dan's for more than half off. Success!

Big BIG things are happening over here in Lexi's little corner of the world.

First off, the job the JOB! Working at a major e-commerce company (if you really don't know already, look at my LinkedIn profile). Things are crazy at the office--people coming in an out, a constant flood of tasks to get done, and the constant hum of people, copy machines, and computers. I love the energy; it makes the day fly by.

Two, one of my best friends got engaged, and today she asked me to be in her wedding! I was so honored, and I'm so excited to be part of such a momentous event in someone's life. And this friend of mine is notorious for throwing a mean party, so I know it's going to be a very festive celebration.

And finally, my sister and I enjoyed an amazing weekend together, one of the first where I got to treat and host her. It was wonderful. We didn't do too much in terms of variety. It was mostly just a lot a lot a lot of shopping. We hit up Armitage (couture consignment shops, LUSH, Beneton), Lincoln Park (Sweet Mandy B's), State St. (TJ Maxx, Macy's and Dylan's Candy Bar, and Forever 21). We also went to the top of the Sears (ok Willis) Tower--beautiful views no doubt, but I'm still debating whether or not it was worth the 2 hour wait, even though I had prepurchased our tickets! We also ate tapas at Cafe Iberico, cinnamon rolls at Ann Sather, sandwiches at Michelin-rated Graham Elliott's Grahamwich, and Mexican at Angela's. Food and wallet hangover for sure...

Audrey trying on a weird old lady funeral hat at Akira. 

Inside Grahamwich. Modern, yet shabby-chic.

                               

View from the top of the Willis (formerly Sears) Tower. $15 per person to get to the top. Not sure if the looooong wait was worth it. But definitely glad I can say I seen it.

My pork belly 'wich from Grahamwich. Pricey, but delicious. 
We also order truffle oil popcorn. Heaven.

Cinnamon rolls at Ann Sather on Belmont. Best cream cheese frosting--tangy but not too tangy to be nauseating.

My sister

Here is a picture of my lovely younger sister Audrey with our cupcakes from Sweet Mandy B's in Lincoln Park this Saturday. Audy had the red velvet (cream cheese frosting was WAY better, less sour, than Molly's) and I had a yellow cake with chocolate buttercream. The perfect lunch! More pics to come soon.

Celebratin'

Hello All.

Yesterday was a very strange day. To those of you who don't know, I quit my job. Well, actually, I found a new one, which necessitated the quitting of the first one. And yesterday was my last day at the old one. It was confusing: part of me was so happy, the other part a little sad. But I think the most confusing sentiment of them all was that I just don't feel old enough to have the skeletal of a Career by which you quit jobs when more appealing ones come along.

Feels really strange to say I have a career, or at least the beginnings of one, and the new position that I will be starting next week is so oddly directed and on-point with what I want to be doing. It's very weird. I can't help but think, "How did that happen?" It's so rare that I feel so targeted when I make a move or a decision. But this one just makes so much sense, and it's so logical and calculated. In essence, it's so unlike the rest of my life!

When I began the interview process, I told myself that if I got the job, I would celebrate by ordering a deep dish pizza for me and my roomies. So, um, that's exactly what I did. I got a spinach and onion pie from Lou Malnati's in Lincoln Park. We opened a couple bottles of wine, and when all that was finished, we hustled to Molly's Cupcakes for some desert (we opted for sweets instead of more booze; a wise decision I think).

Molly's happens to be my preferred Chicago cupcake, but many opt for Sweet Mandy B's. Below are our cupcakes: Red Velvet, Peanut Butter with Nutella frosting (woulda gotten that one, doi, 'cept I don't really like PB), and Cake Batter (mine). Molly's is so much fun: they play great music (last night was Passion Pit; in the past it's been Cutting Crew), there are swings (seriously), and board games. I just think it's a great vibe--a little more "funky" than Mandy B's.

When my friends come to visit in two weekends, we are going to have a taste test and settle the Mandy's versus Molly's score once and for all...

Tuesday

So, today is kind of a momentous day in my life, but I'll explain more as to why a little later.

Right now, I just wanted to share this (I think) cute picture of me and one of my great friends Kate. We were able to get together this past Saturday because she and her boyfriend were in town from Des Moines for a going away party in Wicker Park. We hadn't seen each other since Christmas, and we had A LOT to catch up on, and it was great to do all of this over some yummy Hoegarden (easily my favorite beer next to Leffe).

Our group of friends has made some big changes--we've lost some, made others, and have all had major life events happen to us. And really, we've all evolved so much that we're all so so different. Even Kate and I! But something I love about her, and all my great friends, is that I could possibly go 5 years without seeing them, but when I do, I'm met with a big hug, loud laughter, and much love. And beer, which is seriously Kate and my favorite past time--not too many "girlie girls" who love beer :)

 We're at Easy Bar in Wicker Park--a dark but spacious joint with a decent beer list. Great find!

Picture from Kate's Facebook.

Life on Diversey

Life in the Lakeview/Lincoln Park area of Chicago is much different from the Loop. There are coffee shops everywhere, families with children, and morning commutes filled with car-sickness-inducing bus rides. I'm lovin' it...

On my way home from River North, I hopped on the #8 bus. As we came up Lincoln Ave., we passed this La Bamba where my boy told me he loved me for the first time. It was after a Pixies concert and we had just had some burritos that were as big as our head. I love being in a city that's a scrapbook of memories.

This is what I wore today. Black jersey long sleeve tee, LOFT skirt, black tights, and Anne Klein flats. I like the stark contrast of this outfit, but I wish that the skirt was better tailored to fit higher on my waist.

This is so unlike me but I got fast-food tonight for dinner. YUMMY!! Nothin' beats a hamburger...

Life so far has been pretty good to me. I'm tired as all hell, but I really don't have much room to complain. I live in an amazing city and have great friends and family and I have a goal. So excited to see what turns up this spring...

Sylvia

Hi All.

So it's been a busy past couple of days. I had school on Friday AND Saturday (and Friday night I had a teeny bit too much fun, so Saturday was rough) and then I moved on Sunday with the help of two great friends (who shall remain nameless--you know who you are!!). But, unfortunately, these exciting and tiring things don't compare to what my family experienced today: the loss of our kitty Sylvia.

I always hate when people talk about their pets like they're humans or like their pets are so unique. I mean, I get it, the dog/cat is cute, but so is every stinkin' pet out there that is well-loved by a family! And so I'm gonna refrain from telling you that kind of mundane crap about Sylvia like how she would lick everyone's face 'til her heart's content or that she would go ballistic when my dad would cook salmon because the smell was so intoxicating or where her sweet-spot for being petted was (on the side of her under-chin and cheek).

I guess if anything, I just want to take a moment to think about how lucky we all are to have those pets, people, or experiences in our lives that kind of hold your family together. For my clan, Sylvia was our glue, our common denominator, that we all had. We could be pissed at each other, contemplating running away, or lying to get out of family functions, but we all always loved Sylvia and had her love in return; we always had her in common when we all seemed to be so different from each other. She didn't care about our dramas; all she wanted to do was to love us and be loved in return.

So thanks Sylvie. You were the best dern kitty a gal, or a family, could ask for. I'm sorry for all those times I would hold you upside down and then drop you to see if you'd land on your feet. You usually did. And I'll see ya soon, baby girl.