Link Love

I started getting the feeling I'm turning into the girl that only posts links to share, but after going through a few old Facebook messages turns out I am that girl. Maybe I just like a good/interesting read? The past couple weeks have been busy but have also drug on, and winter really just needs to leave New York. Have I mentioned how much I hate the cold? Anyway, have a great weekend! 'Til next time. xxoo.

1) Open Letter from Your Facebook Friends.

2) Get Inspiralized

3) How to look like a J.Crew model

4) I'm over winter, but these squirrels obviously can't get enough.

5) Have a drink because...

6) Coloring books for adults

7) A good pair of d'orsay flats + oversized sunnies.

Outsourcing Life

Remember when the App Store came out? You couldn't walk down the street without hearing there's an app for that! But let's face reality, there really is an app for that - food, beauty, flowers, you name it. I joke about outsourcing my life with family and friends back in Georgia. They still can't believe I get groceries delivered (grocery shopping in the city is hard, okay?!). If money wasn't an issue you bet your bottom dollar I'd be using these more often. But here's a list of just a few services you can get:

Fresh Direct, Instacart, and Good Eggs for grocery shopping.

Seamless for food delivery.

Kitchensurfing for a private chef.

Blue Apron and Plated for meal prep. (Also see my previous post on Plated here.)

Glamsquad for at-home blowouts. 

Stylelisted for an in-home makeup sesh.

Priv for a mani-pedi.

FlyCleaners for laundry.

Shyp for sending packages.

Parcel for receiving packages when you're actually home.

Drizly and Minibar for alcohol.

BloomThat for flowers on demand.

Homepolish for decorating.

TaskRabbit for assistance.

Gyft for sending gift cards.

Handy for those honey-do items and cleaning.

Halio for catching cabs.

Bandwagon for sharing cabs.

Dolly for moving big/heavy items around the city.

Ghostruck for moving.

Provita for yoga.

Soothe for at-home massages.

Uh...and Eaze if you're into taking off the edge (if you're into that kind of thing).

And Postmates for pretty much anything in between.

Is your mind blown? Because mine was when I first ordered groceries straight to my door! Have you used any of these services? Thumbs up or down? What are more of your favorite outsourcing apps/websites?

Flashback Friday: Rumba

I was looking through the archives of my old blog, Aimless Reverie, this morning and I started getting super nostalgic. I want to say it brought me back to the best year of college ever (because it was in it's own way), but in reality all four years were the best years I've ever had! I also started to reminisce at my thought process over certain posts. I put so much thought into each post and they were actually pretty personal - which I really want to get back to. 

There are a couple posts I don't want to lose so I'm going to bring a couple back, starting with my first journey with the Guide Dog Foundation. You may remember I spoke briefly about her when I wrote about Mambo, but I want to share my story of Rumba.

Now, a quick update before we get to the story: Rumba moved up to New York shortly after this post. She moved in with a wonderful family, and has already had a litter of beautiful babies. Some are even in New York City being trained!! I'll be going to a meeting or two with GDF later this month, so I'll get to see the little munchkins. I'm beyond overjoyed. Maybe I'll even be able to take a short day trip to Long Island to see my sweet girl. 

11.15.13 | Growing Up Guide Dog:

Dine-In: Bluestone Lane Collective Cafe

The Dine-In series is back!! After lots of slacking and being begged for restaurant suggestions from friends (and now living in the culinary capital of the world!) I figured it was time to bring it back...with brunch!

In love with their bright colored tables outside! (image via)

(image via)

Bluestone Lane Collective Cafe: 22 Greenwich Ave., New York, NY 10004

My first Saturday in the city I decided to do a little exploring in the West Village and take myself to brunch because you can only rely on yourself sometimes to explore, right? Bluestone Lane Collective Cafe seemed to be a fun, popular place to go from what I've seen/heard, and to be honest, their avocado toast looked hella-amazing in pictures.

Like many restaurant spaces in New York, it was a tiny, intimate, and a tad bit claustrophobic. But I think I determined it was a- crowded considering the time and b- part of the restaurant's charming personality. Now, if you know me I have a weird anxiety about eating alone. However, for this I decided to suck it up, read a book, and eavesdrop to the two hungover girls sitting next to me. 

Being my first brunch in the city, I didn't want to drop over $10 for avocado toast just yet (toast really shouldn't be that expensive, but I've found most are worth it), so I just settled with a de-licious pastry and a cappuccino at a reasonable price and swore I'd return in a couple weeks time.

(image via)

Bluestone Lane also has three other coffee shops (not to be confused with the cafe in the West Village) in Manhattan. One just happens to be in my neighborhood, so if you ever find yourself in the Financial District give me a call!

Midtown East | Financial District | Bryant Park