Get the Blues

While in college, I had the great opportunity to study abroad for a summer in Madrid, Spain. It was July, which is Rebajas month there (or at least was. Economies were a lot different then!), which meant "Sales" - the whole country was literally on sale. Forget the Banana Republic sale one weekend, JCrew the next. All month, all stores, all on sale with massive discounts. I was in HEAVEN.

It was there that my H&M affair began. Within the city limits of Madrid alone, there were 2 or 3 H&M stores within walking distance to our dorm. And not the little one-floor things we see in malls in the States. The three story Fifth Ave-type stores. Love!

H&M stores are all a bit different in what they carry. Here in the US, this was most obvious to me when I saw the vast amounts of thick, furry leggings in the Fashion Ave H&M in NYC, but then ours in Atlanta was focused on lighter mini-dresses at the same time. And H&M's here carry mostly work-appropriate clothes, while the Spain ones were all club clothes with see-through parts and sparkles.

The hardest part about H&M's offerings, though, is that you have to be willing to dig around a bit for things you might like. I know a lot of my friends aren't big fans of H&M, but I think it's because they see some of the bigger display racks, don't see things they want, and then don't go through the other racks. The other racks are where the real gems lie. None of the racks hold just one item. What might look like all black shirts from a distance could actually be 4 different types of black shirts, all on one rack. It takes some patience, and a lot of trying things on, but H&M always, always has things that I lust over. And you just can't beat the price. Trendy items at a fabulous low cost = perfection.

Their newest line comes out today. It's called The Blues and is focused around jeans material. Their Facebook shots caught my eye, some because I liked them, others not:


Ok seriously? This looks like The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air all over again. Jeggings, AND an elastic waist? No thank you.


This one is adorable. I hope our H&M here has it - it'd be perfect over leggings with some flats and a big bag once the weather warms up.


I love this dress's print. The geometric blue diamonds would look fantastic dressed up or down, for work or play.


I think I liked this one mostly because I already own this type of jacket - and its from Apple Bottom Jeans circa 2005 haha! Good thing I kept it in the closet, proof that most trends come around again.

But jeggings - sorry. Your trend will never come around again. Just die, please.

Some Actually Relevant Ads

A friend of mine asked me the other day, "You are making money off your blog, right?"

Haha. No. This is actually a pretty common misconception. There are some blogs that make money, sure! Some of them review products, some of them just have particularly ad-loving audiences. But for most of us? We are just blogging away, and making money from my blog isn't a goal really at all. I just like to chatter with you all online :)

Still, there's the option to have ads on my site, and I figure, why not? Maybe the ads will be perfectly suited to what I am writing about, and thus maybe perfect ads for my readers, too.

But I have not been a fan of the Google ads that AdSense has been serving up to you all. For one, I know most of you, and we just don't click through on Google Ads anyways. And honestly, if I am going to put ads up at all on here, I want them to be ones you can actually USE!

Enter Shop Style. You'll notice some cute new ads on the mid-left and very bottom of the page. They come directly from Shop Style, which is a fun and fab place to do some online shopping. Soon we all (hopefully) will have some extra funds from tax returns, and there's some hot new clothes out there online on which to spend some of those funds. I personally would be clicking these ads since they are all stores I love anyways, so hopefully you find them fun, too.

Plus, they let me build these fantabulous (clickable) layouts like the one below for future posts! How cool is that!

So I hope you enjoy these new ads. There are different versions I might swap in and out. And who knows what else is out there to spice this site up. I will research and get back to you :)

Being Cosmopolitan... on a Budget

Since taking on a number of New Year's Resolutions and also sticking with WW, I have cut back on one of my most favorite weekend treats - the martini. Actually, even more specifically, cosmopolitans. Not those syrupy ones out at restaurants, but ones made with only a spalsh of cranberry and a splash of cointreau, just enough to make the vodka slightly pink. Ahh, the joys. It's so very cosmopolitan to drink a cosmopolitan!

Honestly, cutting back on the "The V" was also a good budgetary call, too. Martinis are awesome in that you only need vodka to make one, so you don't need to buy a whole bunch of bar items. But then you can easily roll through that bottle quickly since its the solo ingredient, so it can be pricey if you are like me and prefer upper-end vodkas.

I promised myself a cosmo for V-day (conveniently enough, that would also then mean it was Vodka-Day for me ha!), and it was SO worth the wait! It's amazing how 6 weeks without one made that one (ok, two) cosmo taste so perfect. I dare you to try this technique with your favorite adult beverage - maybe hold out until St. Patrick's Day, or that day after your big road race this spring?

PS. Check out the cute new party dress I wore that evening, the cosmo was a perfect accessory!

Anyways, this post wasn't even going to be about my love of The V (which sounds so sad, but whatever. It's my favorite drink!). It is about the next event where I plan on having The V! This one is courtesy of my coworker Ana, who thought this event sounded right up my alley, and it so is!

Mondays in March 2010, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.
Grey Goose Presents Mondays in March: Martinis with Matisse
View the current exhibition, "Henri Matisse, A Celebration of French Poets and Poetry" while sipping on a Grey Goose Martini and enjoying hors d'oeuvres from:

March 8: Brookhaven Bistro
March 15: Two Urban Licks
March 22: FAB
March 29: Eclipse de Luna

$15 includes two drink tickets and hors d'oeuvres from those fab places above. The event takes place at Oglethorpe University, just up the street from us in Buckhead.

Who wants to go with me one Monday next month, maybe for a mini girls night? You can't beat that price for drinks AND food AND art!