DETROIT: GREEN DOT STABLES & ASTRO COFFEE

Detroit does have quite a few really unique restaurants and coffee/bakery shops, but unfortunately they are peppered all around the city and not really concentrated in any one area or neighborhood. If you're from (I use this term loosely) Detroit then it goes without saying, but the areas surrounding all of these places are usually not the greatest, sadly. Next up on our list of places to try was Green Dot Stables, which we heard about from Under The Radar Michigan, and Astro Coffee (via LMA).

We started our day off with lunch at Green Dot Stables. When walking into the restaurant we passed through a saloon style door which added to the western vibe of the restaurant. Usually I'm not a big fan of sliders, but we sampled six different varieties and thought that five of them were winners. My favorite was the buffalo chicken slider and Tom liked the chicken salad slider. The truffle fries were really good, too. Our waitress was friendly and very attentive and the restaurant overall had a good vibe to it. The menu is easy to navigate and pretty much everything on it is under $5 which makes it easy to try out new things without the worry of not liking it. We are definitely adding this to our list of Detroit restaurants that we will come back to in the future!

After lunch, we headed to Astro Coffee for desert. The coffee shop was small, blaring Black Sabbath music, and had a fairly impressive chalkboard wall. It had the typical Detroit hipster vibe to it, but I liked the coffee. Overall it was a nice place and I'm glad that we tried it, but I wouldn't make a special trip to go back. 

Michigan/Detroit Natives: what are your favorite places in the city?

 

LIQUID LEATHER

"Liquid" Leggings can be a controversial topic. Generally, I prefer to wear these with boots because I feel like it tones down the sexy factor, but every now and again I'll be brave and wear them with flats or heels. Everyone likes to feel a little bit like Sandy from Grease (post make-over) sometimes!

At the moment I'm pretty sick of my entire wardrobe. Two years of not shopping aside from necessities and the occasional "weak moment" purchase are taking a toll on me. I've been thinking a lot about the pieces in my wardrobe that I do still love and what makes them relevant today. I think a trap that I fall into is buying cheap (Forever 21, Old Navy, etc.) clothes that are not sustainable over a long period of time. After a few wears the clothing does not retain it's shape or falls apart. I'm left with a closet full of clothing that doesn't make me feel good and the typical I have nothing to wear! frustration.

In the future I am really going to try to evaluate each purchase (it only took being broke for nearly two years to teach me this) and it's "place" in my closet. Investing in quality pieces will yield a more versatile wardrobe in the long run. Of course there are times that "cheap" is good, especially for trendier items that probably won't last more than one season, but in the future I am going to focus on quality over quantity (although I must admit I've had neither as of late!).

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Sweater: American Apparel + Leggings: American Apparel + Shoes: Aldo + Jewelry: Tiffany & Co., Pandora, Etsy, Ann Taylor {necklace}    

AUDREY HEPBURN-ESQUE

When I saw this dress at White House | Black Market, I immediately thought of Audrey Hepburn (this particular picture). I was drawn to the structured look of the dress and the belt which gives it that extra element of class and keeps the eyelet trim at the bottom from making it look too much like a sundress. It also has "secret" pockets, which is always a fun little added detail.

Believe it or not, I actually went through two rounds of self tanner to look this level of pale. My vitamin-D deprived skin really needs to start seeing the sun (protected with SPF, of course) ASAP! I included that last photo of my wedding arm candy for your enjoyment! ;)

Hope you all had a lovely weekend!

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Dress: WHBM + Shoes: Clarks USA {old} + Bracelet: Tiffany & Co.  

LATELY

Since time seems to be getting the best of me (and that darn weather, too!) I haven't been able to post as much as I'd like to. Here are a few things that I have been obsessing over lately:

+ this new blog I discovered

+ the most amazing, healthy, creamy, guilt-free soup you could imagine (1 cauliflower + 1 leek + 1 onion sauteed, blend in a blender with some vegetable stock & sprinkle your favorite cheese on top)

+ netflix documentaries - any recommendations?

+ this tea shop I will be visiting in June

+ "training" for my 5K that I signed up for (i.e. trying not to die while running)

+ my new favorite YouTuber, Jenn

+ blogilates!

Now you tell me something that you've been loving! xx

HOW TO MAKE A MANICURE LAST ALL WEEK

One of the most frustrating things for me is having chipped nail polish. As a "peeler" (think nail biting, but instead peeling nail polish/layers of nail instead. I know, it's gross) having chipped nails is a for sure temptation to peel or pick off the rest of nail polish. It is essential that my manicure is firmly connected to my nail to reduce the urge to peel. I have tried so many different nail polishes that claim to prevent chips but oddly seem to cause chipped nails (Sally Hansen No Chip, I'm talkin' to you!). My winning combination is slightly on the pricy side, but so worth it in order to make my manicures last chip free for 5+ days.

I first start my manicures with a layer of Essie Millionails as a base coat. I've only been able to find this particular Essie polish at Ulta. Even though Essie can now be purchased at the drugstore, I've yet to see the nail treatments being sold there as well. This gives the polish something to adhere to and helps strengthen your nails as well. After using one coat of Millionails I follow up with my choice of polish (every brand I've tried has worked well with Millionails). After letting that dry for about 3 minutes, I apply one coat of Butter London's P.D. Quick Topcoat which increases dry time and leaves the nails looking super shiny, as if they have been professionally manicured. Within one minute of applying the P.D. Quick the nails are completely dry to the touch.

You could stop there, but I've found that taking one extra step really secures the manicure to my nails and really does provide at least five days (hey, that's the whole work week!) of chip free nails. I let the nails continue to dry for another hour or so and then apply a second coat of the Essie Millionails. This literally "glues" the polish to your nails. I've yet to have significant chipping or peeling by using this procedure.

The downside, as I mentioned earlier, is the the price point of these two polishes. The Essie Millionails retails for around $12.00 and the P.D. Quick retails for $19.00. I realize that both of those cost the same as a traditional shellac manicure, but I am able to get around 4 months of weekly manicures from the two, so I think it's a fair trade off.

What are your favorite tricks to make a manicure last?