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Style Travel

“Snapchat” Beach Chic in Clearwater

July 22, 2016

I spotted this headband at Walmart in Clearwater and gravitated toward it for some reason. When my sister saw it she said it looks like the Snapchat filter. Now that I’ve finally caved and joined Snapchat (check me out: abitofchi), I must say I agree.

Snapchat Filter

It fit perfectly with my bathing suit and cover up. I loved this look. I felt like the ultimate 70’s beach, flower child. All that was missing was a tambourine:)

Beach Cover Up

Cover up: Nordstrom, Bikini: Asos, Headband: Walmart

Clearwater

It was so relaxing watching the sunset. There was a nice breeze, the temperature was perfect, and there weren’t many people out there at all. It was so hard to pull ourselves away.

Take me back!

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Style Travel

Clearwater Outfit Day 1

July 20, 2016

To say Clearwater was humid would be an understatement! I’ve never done bikram yoga before, but I think I’m much better prepared for it after having gone to Clearwater. The air was dense. Fortunately when I was packing I figured as much and opted for loose, flowy, and breathable clothing.

Clearwater Florida

For the first day I wore this sheer leopard dress that I got from TJ Maxx a few years ago. Usually I wear the dress buttoned up with the belt it came with and a black bodysuit underneath. Well this time I forgot to pack the belt. I didn’t like it buttoned up without the belt, so I opted to leave it open. I ended up loving the look. Happy fashion accident.

Clearwater Florida
I felt so beachy!

Check back throughout the week to see what else I wore:)

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Food Travel

Clearwater Eats

July 17, 2016

I had some really (really) good food in Clearwater. Check out some of the food highlights below:)

Maggie Mae’s
Thanks to Comedians in Cars Getting coffee (if you haven’t heard of it check it out, it’s genius), my sister had a hankering for some good ol’ fashioned diner breakfast food. Since I am by default always game for breakfast food, diner food it was. Maggie Mae’s fit the bill. It’s waterfront location meant we could enjoy the view as we dined on pancakes, sausages, eggs, and biscuits. Any restaurant that has several people waiting outside is typically a good sign, so by all accounts our expectations were high. It took us about 45 minutes to get a table. In the end, the food was yummy and super affordable. About $20 for all the food pictured (minus tip). They only serve pancakes until 12 though (don’t ask me why), so if you have a hankering for some hotcakes you need to get there early!

Maggie Mae's

Cristino’s Coal Brick Oven Pizza

For dinner one night we ended up trying this pizza spot called Cristino’s. Everything about this place was perfect – from the decor and vibe, to the service, and best of all the food.

Oh my goodness. Best pizza I’ve had to date. We’ll get there in a second though. Let’s talk about appetizers first. My sister ordered the calamari because she’d been having a hankering for some and I got the pan tossed crispy garlic wings served with a bed of caramelized onions on top and a blue “cheesy” type dressing.

They bring out samples of some of their gelato for you to taste, which was a great marketing ploy because as soon as we tasted it we knew we wanted some. I got the cheesecake and almond gelato and my sister got strawberry and almond.

Rumba Island Grill

My food was delicious at Rumba Island Grill (although the service left much to be desired). Usually when you tell your server you need a minute to decide, oh I don’t know, they actually give you a minute to decide. Every 30 seconds he kept popping back over to our table asking us if we knew what we wanted. Really? Maybe we would be further along in deciding if you didn’t interrupt our thought process every two seconds.

Rumba Island Bar & Grill

Anyhow, I knew of at least one thing I would definitely be getting. In fact, I had known before we even got to the restaurant. It was their Jamaican jerk grilled chicken wings with cranberry jerk and mango bbq sauces. The sauces had me sold. The big question was what sides would I get to go with the wings.

I ended up going for their cranberry cornbread stuffing and the crab mac n cheese. While I had high hopes for the mac n cheese, it wasn’t my favorite. The cranberry cornbread stuffing was delicious though.

Typically if I have leftovers when I travel, I’ll just throw them away before I leave, but the wings were too good to waste. I traveled back with them and had them for dinner the next evening. Now that’s commitment.

Clearwater outfits up next!

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Travel

Chi Travels to Clearwater

July 11, 2016

A few weeks back I was in Clearwater, Florida for a social marketing conference. Can we pause for a moment and celebrate the genius of choosing a beach front location for a conference? Why isn’t everybody doing this?? I must admit though that it made it hard to focus on the presentations knowing that the beach was literally just a few steps away. As I caught a shuttle to the hotel on the first day I saw a sign that said Clearwater is the #1 beach in the US. Whether it still holds that title I don’t know, but the gorgeous views were undeniable.

My sister met me there so once my presentation was done, we made a mini vacay out of it and it was exactly what I needed. We had such a good time laughing, eating, and hanging out by the beach. Comps preparation have been extremely stressful and I was feeling so burned out. This trip really helped me recharge. Ever since I got back I’ve been more productive, more focused, and more optimistic. Note to self: beach trips are good for your health. I ended up taking tons of pics of the views, the delicious food we ate, and my outfits.

Check out some of the beautiful views below.
Sheraton Hotel & Resort Clearwater

Clearwater Florida

Stay tuned for a food and style recap!

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Style Travel

Savannah Style: Day 2

May 20, 2016

Here’s a look at what I wore for day 2 of sightseeing around Savannah.

Olde Harbour Inn The Olde Harbour Inn

Funny story about these last few pics. We were walking past this gated building and my sister mentioned that it would be a nice backdrop for some pictures. Totally. Only one problem – it’s gated. Feeling adventurous, I’m like what the heck, I’ll hop the gate. I manage to wedge my foot into one of the holes and get over. Great. We get some cool shots and the mini photoshoot is a wrap.

Now it’s time to hop back over the gate. As I plant my feet into one of the holes, just as I had done before, the gate quickly parts open and I almost bust my behind on the cobblestone.

There was a brief pause to make sure nothing other than my pride was bruised, and then my sisters and I burst into laughter. It never occurred to me to check to see if the gate would open. It was like a scene straight out of a movie (think Bridesmaids when she climbs the fence and as she’s straddling it the gate slowly starts to open). Life lesson – sometimes life is simple.

Anyway, I loved this look. It felt nice and breezy as we walked around, but still put together. Adult onesies for the win!

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Style Travel

Savannah Style: Day 1

May 19, 2016

I thought about combining the two outfits into one post, but I loved these looks so much that I wanted to give each one its time to shine. Both outfits came from Target and were under $30 a piece. #Targetforthewin:)

The Olde Harbour Inn Dress: Target, Shoes: Steve Madden via Macy’s, Bag: Ralph Lauren via Macy’s, Bangle: Thrifted, Assorted Rings: Old Navy, Fan: World Market

Outfit 2 coming soon!

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Food Travel

Sister Summit in Savannah!

May 16, 2016

Last weekend my sisters and I went down to Savannah to celebrate my oldest sister’s birthday. It was the first trip that just the three of us had taken (I think ever) so I dubbed it our “Sister Summit in Savannah.” It was nice for us to be in a different space, just the three of us, and relax. We’re at a stage now where we hang out because we genuinely like each other – who knew?! I’m so grateful for the relationship we have now. It takes work, and we definitely still fight, but my sisters are my day ones:)

Where we stayed

Our accommodations were top notch. We stayed at the Olde Harbour Inn in the Riverview suite. Every afternoon hotel staff came around and brought an ice cream treat for the guests, in the evening there was a wine and cheese reception in the hotel lobby, and they offered a breakfast buffet each morning. It’s not your big box hotel, so it has a cozy and charming feel to it which I loved. As far as location, it’s right in the heart of things, so we were able to do a good bit of exploring without having to move our car. This turned out to be a good thing as the streets were completely lined with cobblestone – great for taking pictures, not so great for driving or walking in heels. We actually saw one girl in heels who took two steps from her car and then immediately turned right back around.

The View
We were right by the water and it was beautiful. As the sun set you could see headlights from cars illuminate the bridge off in the distance.

The Shops
When we went exploring around the hotel there were a bunch of little touristy and specialty shops selling food and other trinkets. I picked up a couple incredible smelling soaps, some jams, two fans, a brass minute glass with pink sand, and a shirt that changes colors in the sun:) I wore it yesterday and couldn’t stop grinning while I was out running errands. I felt like a secret agent sitting on classified information that no one around me knew. (yes, I’m a dork – I own it).

The Food
I filled my belly with some delicious food during our trip. For my sister’s birthday dinner, we ended up going to a restaurant called the Olde Pink House, which is an actual old pink house. It was walking distance from the hotel which was perfect.

Caramelized vidalia onion sweet potato ravioli with oyster mushrooms and a savory pecan cream sauce.

I love going to restaurants in the South because “bread basket” means biscuits and corn muffins. They were honey biscuits guys. The kind that you would pay for on their own and they were giving them away for free. The corn muffins were literally knock your socks off good. The food would have been amazing if it ended there but it got even better. We all sampled each other’s dishes and between the three of us we ordered the crispy fried lobster tails, a sweet potato ravioli, and some pork chops. The MVP of the night in my opinion was the fried lobster tails. I could tell it was masterfully seasoned before I even started chewing the lobster. A runner up was definitely the mac and cheese. They had to have gotten the recipe from someone’s big mama. This is the type of restaurant that I’ll have to hit up anytime I’m in the area. There were a bunch of other items on their menu that I must try like the “Southern sushi” and goat cheese fritters.

We also hit up a couple of Asian and Asian fusion spots that did not disappoint:)