My Baller Day (is this how the other side lives?)

Last Friday, Nick and I each took the day off work and got on an airplane to Chicago, to attend the wedding of our friends, Chris & Abby. We had a 7:30 am flight, and we landed in Chicago bright and early and took the L downtown to our hotel. While on the L, I was busy texting with friends, making plans for weekend brunch. Halfway through our ride, the following conversation occurred:

Nick: What time is the wedding tomorrow?
Me: Hang on let me check... I open up wedding website on my iPhone. CUE COLD SWEAT!!!!

Why, you might ask? Because we were in Chicago on the WRONG weekend!! *FACEPALM*

So there we were in Chicago; no hotel; no wedding. Thanks to some extremely efficient customer service from United, Nick and I were booked on the 5:30 pm flight back to Cleveland. But we had so much time to kill! So what did we do? We shopped, ate, and drank, and totally lived the baller lifestyle for the day!!

Lunch at Publican Quality Meats. The delicious Bloody Mary's come with a chaser of beer. The food was so so good! Reminded me a little of Market at Flying Fig. 

Drinks on the rooftop patio at Little Goat with the future newlyweds! 

Finishing up with the champagne of beers, because, why not?

Overall, a very unexpected day in Chicago, and all because of a silly mistake I made. Although to be honest, we had so much fun, that we may intentionally take a day-trip to a nearby city using our United miles next year! 

A Morning at the Western Reserve Historical Society

By the magic of twitter, this past weekend, Lisa and I found ourselves on a tour of The Western Reserve Historical Society(WRHS)! I am ashamed to admit that in almost 10 years of living in Cleveland, this was my first visit. I CANNOT BELIEVE ALL THE AWESOMENESS I HAVE BEEN MISSING!!

From the minute we walked in, my head was literally spinning trying to catch a glimpse of everything on display!

In the lobby of WRHS; GO TRIBE!!! 

Back in the days before I discovered the joys of jewelry, I used to LUUURVE cars. In fact, I was a little bit of a tomboy (shocking, I know!). WRHS has quite the extensive collection of vintage automobiles, and honestly, I wanted to climb inside very one!

Vintage cars are so much bigger than cars today, and yet they seem to be able to fit fewer people! Regardless, the details are breathtaking, and I almost wish that cars were designed with the same attention to detail and less plastic today! 

On the other end of the spectrum, WRHS also has an incredible collection of vintage dollhouses, and miniature displays that give you a sense of what it was like to live in the 1700s and 1800s! 

Can you imagine wearing white wigs and bonnets?

Of course the gardens are beautiful and a perfect location for a wedding, but if you decide to take your kids (or nieces or nephews), there's plenty for them to do too! There's an entire section called the KidZibits Family Education Center that allows kids to dress up and play with all sorts of toys. Even I got into the act, stirring up some fun!!

Lisa and I were primarily there to visit the Dior and More exhibit, and it certainly lived up to my expectations. WRHS has an extensive collection of designed apparel, originally worn by the high society women of Northeast Ohio, and this exhibit only scratches the surface of WRHS' entire collection.

Oh, what I wouldn't give to play dress up in WRHS' archives!! Look at all these fabulous outfits that represent so many decades!! My favorite looks came from the 20s and 60s. 

Did you know that the WRHS actually has two historical homes on its property? 

The Bingham Hanna house above has beautifully ornate ceilings and a MASSIVE fireplace (look at how little Lisa is compared to it!) 

The Hay-McKinney House below has beautifully ornate living rooms, dining rooms and a fully stocked kitchen! It totally reminded me of Downton Abbey! I could totally picture the Dowager Countess having afternoon tea with Cora while Mrs. Patmore and Daisy whip up some goodies down in the kitchen!

Did you also know that you can rent out all of the spaces shown in the two pictures above! I would LURVE to be invited to a fabulous cocktail party or dinner!!

So, if all of this WRHS talk has you wanting to visit, there are two FABULOUS fashion events that should consider attending. On October 4th and 5th, WRHS plays host to Dr. Valerie Steele, Director and Chief Curator at the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology. 

Her talk on October 4th, titled Fetish: Fashion, Sex & Power explores how choices about fashion relate to sex and power. The talk will be followed by cocktails. I will be attending this event, and I absolutely CANNOT wait!! Tickets for this event are available here. 

On October 5th, Valerie will be changing gears a little to discuss Chanel and Her Rivals. While I am sadly missing this event, tickets are available here.

What an incredible event, and once-in-a-lifetime opportunity at such a gem of a location!! I cannot wait to go back!!!

Disclosure: I was offered 1 ticket to October 4th event in exchange for helping spread the word about these fabulous events. As always, all opinions are 100% my own. Seriously, you MUST go visit the Western Reserve Historical Society! I regret all the exhibits I've missed in my 9+ years of ignorance!!! 

Clambake for a Cause

As you know, from time to time, I use my blog to advocate for an organization that is very near and dear to my heart, Secondhand Mutts. I have been a Board Member for Secondhand Mutts since 2011, but have been involved with the rescue as a volunteer essentially since we brought Otto home in 2008. Since that time, Secondhand Mutts has grown tremendously! What I am most proud of as Board Member is that Secondhand Mutts has never shied away from the difficult cases, the overlooked and unwanted dogs.  Ruby was one such story.

Ruby came to Secondhand Mutts blind from diabetes. Through our incredible foster network, we were able to find her a foster home while we assessed her medical issues. Once we found out that her vision-loss was reversible, we decided that we were absolutely going to do everything in our power to restore it! A few weeks ago, Ruby underwent eye surgery, and has now successfully regained vision. In even better news, her foster mom fell so in love that she decided to formally adopt Ruby. That said, Ruby must remain on a daily regimen of insulin and eye drops for the rest of her life. All told, Ruby's rescue cost over $3,500 and she is worth every. singly. penny. I mean, look at this face!

In any case, to defray some of the cost of Ruby's care, and to honor her restored eyesight, Secondhand Mutts is hosting a clambake on October 5th. A single ticket is $45 and includes a clam and chicken dinner, and unlimited beer, wine and soda. Couples can enjoy two tickets for $80! If you're not into clams and just want to drink, you can buy drink-only tickets for $20. To see all the ticket options, and to buy tickets, please go HERE. There will be no tickets sold on site, so these are presale only!

While this is not a dog-friendly event, Ruby will be making a guest appearance to say hello and give thank-you kisses. The clambake is being held at the Pavilion of the West Side Irish American Club which is a covered outdoor facility. So, dress appropriately!!

As a side note, one of my favorite things about clambakes is the opportunity to tap into my outdoor fall wardrobe: skinny jeans, boots, cozy sweater, maybe a puffy vest....

I hope you will attend. Nick and I will definitely be there to support the cause, and I would love to see you in person!! XO

Who will be moving at The Movement Factory?

DING DING DING DING!!! It is time for me to announce the winner for The Movement Factory giveaway! The giveaway is a 30-day unlimited pass worth $69.


AND THE WINNER,

AS CHOSEN BY RANDOM.ORG IS.....


(DRUMROLL PLEASE)



....
#25, Brittany Jones!!! Congratulations Brittany!!! Please email me at cleshopaholic@gmail.com by Monday September 23rd and I will let you know how you can get your pass!!

Listening Now: Matrix & Futurebound

I'm not entirely sure when I first discovered Matrix & Futurebound, but the first song I ever heard from them was Magnetic Eyes; a song that you will have listened to a lot if you've ever attended Jen's class at psycle.




Since then, I've also fallen in LURVE with two more singles

and
 

These are quickly becoming my go-to songs for my workouts!! What's your favorite workout song right now?

CLEshopaholic Eats: Stonetown and TownHall

What a beautiful weekend this was!! The weather was absolutely perfect, and Nick and I were lucky enough to spend a lot of it outdoors.

Clockwise from top left: The awesome sculpture garden at Edgewater, the awesome view of the city from Cove Ave, my relaxing afternoon, Otto exhausted after a vigorous game of soccer.

Saturday night, Nick and I decided to try out Stonetown in the 668 building. We are HUGE fans of their sister restaurant Jezebels Bayou (I recommend the blackened alligator and seafood etouffe), so we were very excited to see what Stonetown had to offer.  

The menu and my blackened catfish with caperberry sauce.

The good news: our food was delicious. The bad news: the service was SOOOOO slow. While the service was very pleasant and polite, I do wish that there was a little sense of urgency in getting us beverages.

Contrast that with TownHall, where we met up with the Harper's for some brunch, day drinking, and of course the Browns.  We took Otto and Clair up for brunch (yay for dog friendly locations!!), and were seated on the patio. As the game started, the manager noticed the boys straining to catch the score on TV, and promptly asked us if we wanted to move to the front patio where we could be outside with the dogs and still watch the game-- my idea of proactive customer service!! As much as I had initial misgivings about TownHall, I have to say that I really really enjoy it! Its probably not my scene on a Friday or Saturday night, but they have a really solid bar food menu, lots of beers on tap, yummy adult limeade, and great customer service!!

Puppy kisses on the patio

Nick and Wes watching the game. This was in the first half. They looked infinitely more annoyed as the game progressed.

Last but not least, I wanted to show you this awesome scarf that Nick got me as a "just because" gift from R/S Cleveland. It is possibly my most favorite scarf ever: perfect length, super super soft, and has a really fun city scene print!! Absolutely perfect for fall!! 

What's your favorite dog friendly eatery in Cleveland?

The 30-day unlimited pass to The Movement Factory giveaway ends tomorrow, so enter here! 

The Weekender

REMINDER: If you haven't entered the GIVEAWAY for The Movement Factory, you should definitely do so here!

I've been on a lot of short trips lately, both for work and pleasure. And while a roll-y bag is all well and good, I sometimes want something I can just throw over my shoulder. I recently purchased The Weekender Bag at Saturday, and I have to say, this is probably THE best designed weekend bag EVER!!

photo credit

Why do I LURVE this bag?
1. It has a separate section on the bottom that fits 2-3 pairs of shoes! No more having to wrap your shoes separately
2. An outside pocket to stick your boarding pass/phone while you're in the airport
3. A removable interior pocket (I use it to store my mini flat iron)
4. Two interior drawstring pockets.
5. Shoulder strap in addition to handles
6. You can also design your very own Weekender if you're looking for a more unique look!!

The standard size bag (not the small one) fits a pair of pajamas, a set of gym clothes, a dress, a suit, toiletries, and there's still room to spare! I could comfortably fit in another outfit if I wanted to!

What do you use when you travel for a weekend trip? Do you have a bag you LURVE?

The Movement Factory and a GIVEAWAY!!

If you've noticed my foursquare check-in's lately, you may have noticed that I've been doing a lot of Zumba lately. I tried Zumba over a year ago, and didn't like it. Turned out, it wasn't actually the workout that I didn't like, it was the instructor!! As with so many music-based workout, the instructor is really everything, and now that I've found the right one, I'm all aboard the booty-shaking train!!

So where have I been Zumba-ing? The Movement Factory! Based in Lakewood, I originally discovered The Movement Factory via a groupon that allowed me try out a number of classes for 30 days. My very first Zumba class with Bill, and I was hooked!! Now, if you're worried about your lack of coordination or rhythm, don't be!! While Zumba has some dance elements, it is more of an aerobic dance type workout. You may be a little lost in your first class, but you will definitely pick it up, and if you focus, you may even pick it up by the end of the first class!

Bill is in the red shorts in the top panel. His energy is absolutely contagious!! 

Besides Zumba, I also tried LaBlast, which is based on Dancing With The Stars. Its a slower pace than Zumba, so if you're intimated by trying a Zumba class, LaBlast may be a great place to start.

Since professing my LUUUURVVEEE for The Movement Factory, owner Alyssa was kind enough to sponsor a giveaway for my readers!! She is offering ONE LUCKY READER a 30-day unlimited class, valued at $69, which will give you access to all the following classes for 30 days!

- Co-Ed Yoga Stretch

- ZUMBA

- Pilates Mat

- Vinyasa Yoga

- LaBlast

- Masala Bhangra

- Ladies Booty Camp

- Dance Classes

In addition, The Movement Factory also offers Pilates Springboard and Barre classes, available for an additional fee. In more awesome news, The Movement Factory is expanding its space in October, and will have even MORE class offerings starting next month!!

So here's how you enter (you can do any or ALL of these):

1. Leave a comment letting me know which class you would like to try (1 entry)

2. Follow @TheMvmtFactory on twitter and leave me a comment letting me know you did so (1 entry)

3. Follow The Movement Factory on Facebook and leave me a comment letting me know you did so (1 entry)

4. Tweet "I want to win an unlimited pass to @TheMvmtFactory via @cleshopaholic http://goo.gl/kz39VI" and leave me a comment saying you did so (1 entry for each tweet, you can tweet this once a day!)

5. Update your Facebook Status with "I want to win an unlimited pass to The Movement Factory via cleshopaholic" and leave me a comment saying you did so (1 entry for each update, you can do this once a day). Please make sure you tag The Movement Factory in your update

The winner will be announced on Wednesday, September 18, 2013. 

Good luck!!

Disclosure: I received a 10% discount on my 10-class pass to The Movement Factory as a thank-you for spreading the word about this great gym. Needless to say, I am happy to do it, discount or not, because I LURVE the classes so much!! The Movement Factory has also provided the 30-day unlimited pass valued at $69 for this giveaway. 

Listening Now: The September Issue err Playlist

I cannot believe we're into September already!! WHERE DID THIS YEAR GO?!  The good news is that I've been busy and having a lot of fun, so I guess I really can't complain about time flying by...

In any case, here is the playlist for September!
1. Right Here (feat. Foxes) - Rudimental (This is a really enjoyable album by Rudimental. No Lie)
2. She Wants to Know - Half Moon Run
3. Fragile (feat. Kendrick Lamar) - Tech N9ne (Tech N9ne will be at the Agora 10/18)
4. Wasting My Young Years - London Grammar
5. Hearts Like Ours - The Naked and Famous
6. The Wire - Haim
7. Applause - Lady Gaga
8. Glowing - Nikki Williams
9. Daddy (feat. Naughty Boy) - Emeli Sande
10. No Way - The Naked and Famous
11. We Own The Night - The Wanted
12. Remain Nameless - Florence & the Machine
13. Tennis Court - Lorde
14. All I Know - Fenech Soler
15. Learn to Love Again - Lawson

ENJOY!
XO

Since I Last Saw You

... I've had a mixed weekend. Some really fun stuff, some relaxation, all good!

Friday, N and I made our way over to the Goodtime III for the Third Annual Roar Along The Shore. We've gone each year since its inception, and each year, it just gets bigger and bigger! The line up of bands was absolutely the best so far, and everyone seemed to be having a really fun time; a testament to Danielle's abilities as a kick-ass party planner!!

Saturday was really low key: Otto had surgery to remove a small tumor on his back. While he's going to be just fine, I was feeling exceptionally maternal so besides a morning walk with Clair, we stayed home and mostly cuddled the pups.

My favorite spot at Edgewater Park! 

Sunday, believe it or not, I did not partake in anything Cleveland Browns. And I can't say I was unhappy about it because I used the time to get ready for this week. 

This evening, Nick and I made the impromptu decision to take Otto and Clair to Puppypalooza. The Cleveland Indians started this summertime tradition a few years ago, and I absolutely LUUUURRVVEEE this event! It raises money for a great cause, and really, what can be better than catching a baseball game with your best friend right by your side?! It was like a mini boxer-party tonight; there were seriously boxers EVERYWHERE! Clair is probably going to end up on local TV because she walked right up to a camera man and stuck her muzzle RIGHT into this camera! 

A great start to the week so far, and its only going to get better!!

And All Good Things Come To An End

When it comes to jewelry, I have a few motto's:

Bigger is Better

More is More

That said, I can always appreciate the beauty of a delicate piece: of course there is the option to stack them, but sometimes a single piece of delicate jewelry can convey endless elegance.

The Atlas Pierced Bar Pendant in rose gold

P.S. Orchids don't smell like anything. I did not know that until I actually tried to sniff them.

Sipping on a margarita at Luxe while wearing Atlas Bar Bracelets in sterling silver and rose gold. 

A closer look at those Bar Bracelets. The rose gold version even has tiny diamonds in it!

And with that, as with all good things, my time with my Tiffany & Co. treasures has come to an end. 

A huge thank you to Tiffany & Co. and their PR representatives for allowing my this truly amazing opportunity. Also, a great big thank you to N and my dear friend Melissa for being my photographers. And last, but certainly not least, thank you to YOU, my readers, for joining me on this adventure. I had an absolute BLAST doing it, and I hope you enjoyed reading it!

We'll be back to our regularly scheduled programming next week!! 

XOXOXO

Disclosure: Tiffany & Co. lent me a number of pieces from their 2013 Atlas Collection and asked me to blog about how I would incorporate these pieces in my daily wardrobe. I have received no other compensation other than the ability to wear these pieces for the allocated time period. As always, all opinions are 100% my own.  

Celebrate EVERY Day with Tiffany & Co

I used to be the kind of person that used to save all my "treasures" for special occasions. Then earlier this year, I read a quote (and I wish I remembered who said it) that essentially advocated (and I'm paraphrasing here): Stop saving your beautiful things for special occasions because LIFE is a special occasion.

In the spirit of this very wise saying, here's me wearing my most FAVORITE Tiffany piece!! It is the Atlas Hinged Bangle in rose gold, and lets just say that if I owned this, I would wear it ABSOLUTELY EVERYWHERE!!

My dress is the Gemma wrap dress from Banana Republic, shoes from Nine West (discontinued but similar to this). And in keeping with high-lo, the chunky resin necklace is from Francesca's 

As you can see above, I stacked the Atlas bangle with a cuff bracelet from my personal collection. I'm also mixing metals with some rose, gold and silver!! 

Here's a closer look at my new obsession. Isn't she gorgeous?!

So what do you think of my new motto to Celebrate Every Day? Are you inspired to wear some of your "treasures" more frequently?

Disclosure: Tiffany & Co. lent me a number of pieces from their 2013 Atlas Collection and asked me to blog about how I would incorporate these pieces in my daily wardrobe. I have received no other compensation other than the ability to wear these pieces for the allocated time period. As always, all opinions are 100% my own.  

Tiffany & Co. at Work

While I work in a generally conservative field, I am lucky enough that my dress code is business casual on days that I'm not visiting clients. For me, business casual takes a few different forms: a dress + cardi/blazer, a skirt + knit top/blouse, or my new favorite, skinny pants + blouse/cardi. Between the J.Crew Minnie and the Gap Ultra Skinny, I have amassed quite the collection of black skinnies. 

When I'm looking to make my work wardrobe more "fun" I usually turn to the big 3: shoes, bags, jewelry. I think of them as a way to inject some personality into what might be an otherwise boring look. 

Gap Ultra Skinny Pants, Gap black tank, polka dot sweater from Marshalls, red Nine West peep-toes from years ago, but similar to these.

On days like this one, where my outfit may be veering a little toward casual, I like to dress things up with more sophisticated jewelry: diamonds or pearls are guaranteed to glamorize any outfit!!

Here I'm wearing the Tiffany Atlas Open Pendant with diamonds (note that this piece is bigger than the one I have linked to) and Atlas hoop earrings (note that the earrings I'm wearing are smaller than those in the link)

Here's a closer look at those earrings.... oooooh SHINY!!! 

While diamonds may not be realistic for every budget, I firmly believe that it is important to invest in a few classic, quality pieces. You can never go wrong with a pair of elegant pearl studs or a simple, understated necklace! What are your go-to pieces when you're trying to make an outfit more elegant or glamorous?

Disclosure: Tiffany & Co. lent me a number of pieces from their 2013 Atlas Collection and asked me to blog about how I would incorporate these pieces in my daily wardrobe. I have received no other compensation other than the ability to wear these pieces for the allocated time period. As always, all opinions are 100% my own.  

Wearing Tiffany To A County Fair

Each Labor Day Weekend, the Geauga County Fairgrounds host The Great Geauga County Fair. While a county fair is not typically my thing, we have a 3-year old nephew who really wanted to see barnyard animals, so off we went. I had two major concerns for the day: (1) What is the appropriate attire for a county fair, and (2) What sort of fried cheese would I want?

Knowing that it was going to be ridiculously hot and humid, and barnyard animals = barnyard animal poop, I decided to keep in casual and comfortable with shorts, a tee, ankle height boots, and of course, jewelry. While a county fair may not be the first place one might expect to see Tiffany jewelry, the beauty of the Tiffany silver jewelry pieces are that they are absolutely casual enough to wear anywhere, including The Great Geauga County Fair!!

The Tiffany Atlas bangle in medium and narrow

The bangles again, with the Atlas lariat in sterling silver

Tiffany would be perfect on a Harley too. 

A closer look at the bangles while I play tug with Clair

As far as the second question of the day: Fried swiss cheese on a stick was definitely the way to go!!

Disclosure: Tiffany & Co. lent me a number of pieces from their 2013 Atlas Collection and asked me to blog about how I would incorporate these pieces in my daily wardrobe. I have received no other compensation other than the ability to wear these pieces for the allocated time period. As always, all opinions are 100% my own. 

The Pinnacle of My Blogging Career

OMG! I HAVE REACHED THE PINNACLE OF MY BLOGGING CAREER!!!!

It is no secret that I'm a lover of sparkly things, particularly jewelry. So, you can only imagine my absolute JOY when I was contacted by representatives from Tiffany & Co. about a collaboration to celebrate the opening of their new store on Chagrin Boulevard. 

The collaboration is this: Tiffany has lent me pieces from their 2013 Atlas Collection to incorporate into my daily wardrobe. If you haven't seen it before, the Atlas Collection features classic Roman numerals, as shown below- 

So for this entire week, you will see posts of me wearing these incredible pieces of jewelry along with my normal wardrobe! CUE THE SQUEALING!!

Disclosure: Tiffany & Co. lent me a number of pieces from their 2013 Atlas Collection and asked me to blog about how I would incorporate these pieces in my daily wardrobe. I have received no other compensation other than the ability to wear these pieces for the allocated time period. As always, all opinions are 100% my own.