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Hi Fam bam, Checking in here with another TIL (Things I'm Loving)! If you missed my first TIL post all about Fashion Pass, you can check that out here. In the meantime, I wanted to share my latest obsession with you all -- Silk + Sonder. If you guys know me at all you know I'm a huge planner addict (as in, actually putting pen to paper to track things, vs. doing it on my phone), so when I stumbled upon this monthly planner subscription service on IG, I was hooked. I told you guys I have a thing for subscription services going on rn.
Essentially every month, you receive a cute spiral planner that has everything in it from daily, weekly and monthly planning, to goal tracking and inspirational quotes. Basically, it was made for me, you know? I love that I finally have one single place where I can track my work to-dos, life goals, and personal check-lists all at once. I'm currently on the monthly plan, where I get sent a new planner for $18 each month. P R O S
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This is my first month trying it out, so I'll let you know more about how I like it over the coming months! So far, it's definitely keeping me more organized and inspired during my day-to-day. I'm excited to see how the planners look from month to month. Are you a digital or physical planner type of person? Curious to hear your thoughts! Until next time, xoxo, Lara
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Two blog posts in a row, who is she??? I told you guys I was serious about this whole getting-back-into-blogging thing, so here we go. There are a few new discoveries I've been really loving lately, so I figured I'd start a new series here to go more in-depth about some of the things you might have seen on my Instagram over the past few weeks. Again, all about providing attainable inspiration here! I've been randomly getting into subscription services over the past couple months, probably thanks to my hectic NYC lifestyle (gotta love it). Most recently, I've discovered Fashion Pass -- which has quickly become the answer to all my "tired wardrobe" problems.  I've been curious about fashion subscription / rental services for quite a while now, but have always felt like Rent the Runway was a bit too stiff and/or high-fashion for me. Enter Fashion Pass, an unlimited clothing rental service that features younger, trendier brands that perfectly fit my style (but are more expensive than items I'd normally buy on my own). Think For Love & Lemons, Lovers + Friends, Rebecca Minkoff, and more. It's the perfect thing for vacation wardrobes, client meeting outfits, and even just switching up your day-to-day attire. I recently used it for a trip to Palm Springs (which you guys know is my favorite place, outside of New York), and have found the whole process easy and amazing so far. I'm currently subscribed to the VIP service for reference, which allows me to check out 2 clothing items and 1 accessory at a time (though I did check out an extra item ahead of my trip to PS).
PROS:
FYI - this post is not sponsored, I just am genuinely obsessed with the service! Though if Fashion Pass wanted to hit yo gurl up, I wouldn't be mad about it.  If you want to join me on the fun, you can sign up with my code LARA2 to save $35 on the VIP waitlist!
Would you guys be interested in seeing a Fashion Pass try-on haul in the coming weeks, maybe on IG Stories or IGTV? Let me know in the comments below, and be sure to tag me if you sign up! xoxo, Lara Hi babes! It's been a minute since I've been able to sit down and write on here, so I'm trying to get back into the swing of things more this summer. I had a pretty eventful weekend, so I thought I'd start off with a good old weekend recap. One of my goals with blogging/Instagramming is to inspire my local NY fam with fun things to do around the city, so hopefully this will serve as a tool for that!
F R I D A Y Friday was a great day at work where I accomplished a lot of goals, so we ended the day with a champagne pop which was a great way to start the weekend. After that, I headed to my fave tapas restaurant in the city - Boqueria - for a much-needed BFF date. It's honestly my #1 favorite restaurant of all time, probably. It's that good. I highly recommend going during Happy Hour (varies by location so be sure to check), where you can get everything from discounted tapas to $37 pitchers of sangria. You read that right -- $37 pitchers. of. sangria. in the heart of New York City. My fave dishes/drinks include the Rosé sangria (it's made with tequila so you know it's good), the patatas bravas (who doesn't love a good potato/aioli combo), the classic pan con tomate, and the shishito peppers, because duh. Two sangria pitchers and many tapas later, we made our way up the UES and stopped by a few of our favorite watering holes. First up was Five Mile Stone, which has a mean craft beer & cider list and a cute outdoor balcony that is perfect for people watching. After that, we headed across the street to explore a new bar, The Daisy, which has that quintessential prohibition-era feel to it that I love. Pro-Tip: If you head past the main bar and walk past the red curtain in the back, you'll find yourself inside the bar's "speakeasy", The Dealer, which has amazing vibes, especially on a nice summer night when the windows are letting in a cool breeze. Dink-wise, highly recommend their "Aperol Twist", which combines both of my favorite things -- Aperol and tequila. End scene.
S A T U R D A Y On Saturday I slept in (clearly), before E and I whipped up some breakfast burritos (TY, Trader Joe's, for inventing Habeñero Lime tortillas... I mean come on) and then headed out to run some errands. And by errands, I obviously mean buying too many candles from TJ Maxx. Later that night, we met up with another one of my BFFs for a classic NY night of comedy + drinking. I'd been meaning to catch a show at the Comic Strip Live in UES for quite some time, so we decided to give it a shot -- and you GUYS. The comedians were hilarious (there are usually a few famous names on the roster each night, but even the lesser-known acts were pretty good), and they even had a food & beverage list that I was pretty impressed by (hello, frozen rum & Koolaid drinks). We had so much fun and I highly recommend. We went to the 10:30pm show, which went until around 12:30, and hopped around at some fave bars in the area afterwards.
S U N D A Y
Sunday was one of the best kinds of days, because it involved spontaneous and unexpected date night plans. After spending the first half of my day nursing my hangover and binging the latest cooking shows on Netflix (I'm a sucker for them, most recently The Chef Show), I motivated to whip up some more breakfast burritos, and get some work done around the apartment (cleaning, hanging decor that's been sitting around, etc.) which all felt really good and productive, especially for a Sunday. Later that night, E and I decided to try a new-to-us neighborhood Asian Fusion spot (their duck fried rice was to DIE for, and of course I always recommend a Thai Iced Tea, too). After dinner we walked across the city to walk along the Hudson River before catching a screening of John Wick 3 which was... interesting. I won't give anything away but will say don't watch it if you have a weak stomach, but as a reward we're going to finally see The Secret Life of Pets 2 next weekend, so I consider that a win. --- That's about it for this weekend - hoping to bring some of that fun and sunshine into this week, which is already sadly starting off with some rain. Let me know what you're up to, and what kind of NYC recs you'd like to see here in the future. Until next time, xoxo, Lara
This post is sponsored by my friends art Bioré but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.
Hi Fam,
Happy Sunday! I'm all about self-care this year as you know, and what better way to make sure I get enough of it in than by starting a new weekly blog series, aptly titled "self-care Sundays"? Each week, I'm going to do my best to come at you with helpful tips, tricks and recommendations for living your best life. 
To kick things off, I've partnered once again with my good friends at Bioré to show you how I relax at the end of a long day / week / month / year with a soothing skincare routine. This time, I'm using their new Blue Agave + Baking Soda Balancing Pore Cleanser + Whipped Nourishing Detox Mask - follow along!
There's truly nothing better than taking off your makeup and washing your face at the end of a long day, and as you can see, these products enhance that experience even further! These products include both baking soda (known for its ability to deep-clean) as well as Blue Agave (known to soothe and nourish) to simultaneously detox your pores while leaving skin plump, happy, and ready for more.
Would you try these products? Let me know your thoughts in the comments & shop them both below!
Balancing Pore Cleanser Whipped Nourishing Detox Mask xoxo, Lara  Hi Blog Fam, I've been thinking (and re-thinking) about my fashion identity a lot lately as I switch up my wardrobe for the new year, so I wanted to hop on and talk a little bit about staying true to your personal style in a world where Instagram tells us (or shows us, rather) how to fit in. While I definitely have a goal of exuding that "Cool NYC Girl™" style, I also want to put my unique twist on what that means to me -- after all, fashion is one of the most visible ways we have to express ourselves, our true selves, visually. Recently, I partnered with ASOS to promote their fashion-forward (but budget-friendly) ASOS Design line, which was created to help wearers live boldly through their clothing. Through this line, they carry such a wide range of styles for every occasion, mood, and body type. From music festivals to everyday life, I find myself testing out and lusting after new styles daily, so I love that attainable brands like ASOS help me update my looks as needed.
While it can be easy to stick to the same "safe" fashion uniform -- especially in NYC when you're constantly surrounding by a sea of black -- I'm all about playing with off-the-beaten-path patterns, designs and colors to stay true to who I am. So of course I said "yes" to exciting colors and beaded fringe details when picking out pieces for this partnership!
How would you describe your personal style? Do you think social media expands your style interests, or do you tend to stick to the same uniform? Let me know in the comments below! xoxo, Lara Skirt + jacket gifted by ASOS. This post is sponsored by Bioré, but the content and opinions expressed here are my own.  There's no way around it -- Winter in New York is a beautiful but terrifying thing. One day it's sunny and 45, the next it's snowing with a negative 10 windchill. And don't get me wrong -- I LOVE a good Instagrammable snow moment (see above...), but it can really take a toll on your skin. As you all know by now, 2019 is my year for #SkincareGoals, so I'm constantly on the hunt for products that will help me achieve those goals.   You all know how much I love Bioré now that I've partnered with them a few times, and I'm so excited to be working with them again to show you their latest Witch Hazel line! Witch Hazel is one of the latest beauty "buzz terms" popping up on the Internet right now, but it's actually been a hidden kitchen gem for decades. It has so many properties that are amazing for your skin - from tightening your pores and clearing up blackheads, to refining your pores to prevent breakouts in the future. Enter Bioré's Witch Hazel Ultra Deep Cleansing Pore Strips and Witch Hazel Pore Clarifying Toner!  First off, let's talk about this toner. I'm a big fan of starting my morning skincare routine with a lightweight toner, and this one is amazing because it has a powerful combination of Witch Hazel and Salicylic Acid that works wonders for your skin. While the idea of literally putting acid on your face can be intimidating -- don't stress! The exfoliating properties of the acid along with the classically astringent properties of Witch Hazel creates a natural, skin-healing toning product.  Next up, we have everyone's favorite Bioré product -- their famous pore strips! These ones are unique because they have everything you love from Bioré, but with -- you guessed it -- Witch Hazel included. These strips use a special blend of C-bond technology that safely removes dirt, oil, and blackheads from your pores, and of course, they're dermatologist tested and approved as well. And there's nothing better than taking one of these bad boys off and seeing all of the dirt that was removed from your skin!
---- I love using both of these products on their own, but they also work great together to create a power-packed Winter skincare regime - perfect for waking your skin up when it's so cold out in the mornings that you barely made it out of bed. What do you think of the Witch Hazel trend - would you try these products? Head to your local Walmart to pick these beauties up, and let me know your thoughts in the comments below! xoxo, Lara  Happy Friday, everyone! It's been a hot minute here on the blog, but I'm back in action to talk about a topic that you all know is very important to me -- skincare. Now that it's winter, it's more important than ever to keep your skin in check... but with it being the busiest time of the year at work and otherwise (anyone else feeling the Q4 crazies?!), it's becoming harder than ever. BUT, thanks to my amazing partner Clarisonic, I can now take care of my skin with or without my busy schedule -- whether I'm on the road on a work trip, at home or staying the night at the boyfriend's.  No matter where I am, I make sure to stick with my skincare regimen at all times -- if anything, having this little routine helps me feel like I know what I'm doing, even when my life is all over the place. Check out my nighttime routine below! Step 1: Remove Makeup There is NOTHING better than the feeling of taking your makeup off at the end of a long day. I typically use a micellar water with cotton rounds to take it off easily, and to ensure my skin is clean and ready for the rest of my skincare routine. Step 2: Apply Kiehl's Ultra Facial Cleanser This Kiehl's cleanser is an absolute godsend. Once my face is clear of makeup, I take a small amount of the cleanser and spread it across my face, so that I can get to work with Clarisonic's Mia Prima Sonic Facial Cleansing Brush. Step 3: Massage Into Skin w/ Clarisonic's Mia Prima Sonic Facial Cleansing Brush This step is my absolute FAVORITE. It's so relaxing and almost therapeutic, cleansing away any remaining makeup, dirt & debris. And the best part? It's gentle enough that you can use it up to twice per day -- and if you'd like, you can even use it to remove your makeup (sometimes I even like taking it with me in the shower!). Once I'm done, I rinse my face with cold water to clear off the suds + close my pores. Step 4: Moisturize! With temps lingering around freezing here in NYC, moisturizer is more important than ever. Once I've completed the above, I apply my favorite night cream or moisturizer and roll it in with a quartz roller (both stored in my fridge!) to soak it in and give my skin a nice cooling effect.    And that's it! Want to give the gift of happy skin this year? This Clarisonic + Kiehl's duo is honestly the best gift for anyone on your list this holiday season, whether it's your Mom, your SO or your BFF. Have you tried one of Clarisonic's brushes yet?! Let me know in the comments below! xoxo, Lara  This post is sponsored by Clarisonic, Kiehl’s, and Her Campus Media. All opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that make this blog possible!
 Happy Monday, everyone! I hope your week is off to an awesome start. Last week turned out to be quite the adventure-packed week with a ton of fun new experiences, so I thought I'd recap it all here. Keep reading below to see what I was up to, and hopefully get inspired for your own NYC adventures -- enjoy! MONDAY, JULY 23RD Monday is Bachelorette night (duh), but it's also Lara-Get-Your-Life-Together day in general. I successfully completed my routine of picking up my weekly groceries at Trader Joe's (see here for one of my grocery hauls), doing laundry, cleaning my room and making dinner, all while squeezing in our typical Bach viewing party / cheese and wine night. Successful night all around if you ask me.  TUESDAY, JULY 24TH On Tuesday, the girls and I went to the Rooftop Cinema Club for the first time to watch one of my all-time favorite movies, Ferris Bueller's Day Off. If you haven't seen it yet, I'm seriously questioning whether or not you're human. Overall, the experience was amazing -- we got to relax on lawn chairs, eat bottomless popcorn, and sip on movie-themed cocktails all night long, while perched atop a cute little midtown rooftop. They also give you headphones to listen to the movie, which is actually a brilliant idea because people were then free to mix, mingle and order food without disturbing those who were watching the film. All around an A+ evening. There's limited seating on the rooftop, so I'd grab your tickets before they sell out if you're thinking about seeing a film there later this Summer! They have everything from new hits to old classics. WEDNESDAY, JULY 25TH Wednesday was my day off amongst the crazy, so I spent it eating in and binge watching The Office. Typical, but quite soothing.  THURSDAY, JULY 26TH It's Restaurant Week here in NYC, which means you can get some amazing deals at hot spots all over the city (for three whole weeks, not one, as the name might suggest). I took advantage of that on Thursday, which involved date night at Untitled at the Whitney. As a former Meatpacking District regular, I'd often walked by the museum without having gone in, and I had no idea the ground floor contained this cute little restaurant. The venue itself was absolutely stunning, with floor-to-ceiling windows that made the space feel open and inviting, especially with the beautiful Summer weather filtering in from outside. The pre-fixe menu options were curated with care, and everything I tried was absolutely delicious. One of my favorite things about Restaurant Week is that it allows you to try new things that you might not try otherwise (whether due to price or just general I-Always-Order-The-Same-Thing syndrome, which I suffer from greatly). This time, I started with the Baby Lettuce Salad (which had the most incredible buttermilk dressing), the Crispy Duck Confit (because A) why not?! and B) it contained my all time fave Shishito peppers), and finally the Caramel Mousse for dessert (which literally melted in my mouth). I paired this all with a few Aperol Spritzes, which added to the Summer ambiance perfectly. After dinner, we walked along the waterfront and enjoyed the sunset, which was the perfect ending to the night. If you're thinking about taking advantage of Restaurant Week (which again, I highly recommend), go online and book your faves early! FRIDAY, JULY 27TH We had some of our West Coast team members visit us in NY this week, which of course called for Happy Hour. After work, we all convened at our fave local wine bar Compagnie (which is literally right underneath our office) for some sips and charcuterie. You can never go wrong with the Cacio e Popcorn (covered in the most amazing black pepper and pecorino) or the chef-curated cheese & meat board, and the on-site sommeliers always have the best wine recs. After Happy Hour, I jetted uptown to view some apartments (it was raining, and I was leaving free alcohol, so this was quite the feat). More to come on that later!  SATURDAY, JULY 28TH The weather finally cleared up again on Saturday, so I tried to spend some more time outside. I allowed myself to sleep in, before getting up and heading out to some more apartment showings. After that, I headed home for a mid-day Office binge-fest before getting ready for a night out. I had tickets to see Jon Batiste (you may know him from the Late Show with Stephen Colbert) at the brand new Pier 17 rooftop, and it was the perfect Summer night for an outdoor show. This was the first performance to have taken place at the rooftop, so it was cool to get in at the ground level. Everything was put together really well, from the show lights and food/bar carts to the general aesthetic of the venue. There's also a sister bar on the ground level that is right out by the docks! If you need me this Summer, you can find me at Pier 17, cocktail and tacos in hand. I had an early and jam-packed day planned for Sunday, so I called it a night right after the show.  SUNDAY, JULY 29TH One of my friends recently celebrated a birthday, so my friend group planned a trip upstate to go rafting along the Delaware River (we rented through Kittatinny). I hadn't been tubing/rafting since college, so I was super excited to get back on the water! The starting location was about a 2 hour drive outside of the City, so we all met up in the morning to road trip up there together. Cue collaborative playlist making and Dunkin' Donuts to go. Once we were finally there, it was a pretty easy process of signing wavers, shuttling to the start of the route, and picking up our life vests, oars and raft. The route we went on lasted for about 5 hours, and it was the perfect mix of soaring over exciting rapids and floating around in calmer waters where we could hop off and swim for a bit. We even found a spot that we could cliff jump off of, which was a first for me! Hopefully you got to enjoy that little number on my Stories this weekend. All in all, it was the most relaxing + incredible way to spend the day (cellphone free, natch), and I'm already looking forward to doing it again. Preferably, with a floating cooler full of beer, cider and snacks. We ended the night with a semi-spontaneous trip to the Sugar Factory for dinner and their famous Goblet drinks, which was a fun way to end the day and overall weekend (even though, it wasn't so much fun when I had to get up early for work this morning, slightly hungover).  That's it! I hope you enjoyed following along this week, and I'm excited to see what my new week has in store for me. I hope your week is just as exciting!
xoxo, Lara  Happy almost-weekend, fam! I spent the majority of last weekend watching movies, shopping, and aimlessly meandering around the city, which means I didn't snap too many photos. So I figured that in lieu of my typical Weekend Recap post, I'd share the what I picked up at Trader Joe's this week. I get a lot of questions about how I manage to cook dinners and lunches at home when I live in a city filled with endless amazing food options, so hopefully this will start to inspire your own home cooking, too! Read on to see what I picked up this week:
 Total for the week = $49.37
One of my favorite things about Trader Joe's is how they get new items in every week, so there's always something new to try! Pro Tip: In general, I tend to heavy-up in the freezer aisle so that I can stock up on items that won't go bad if I eat out more than usual during the week. Some of my other staples from them include:
That's all from me! Leave a comment if you have any fave TJ's products or recipes to share, and have an amazing weekend! xoxo, Lara  Hello loves! I'm a little late this week, but it's better late than never... right? I tried to keep this weekend pretty chill since it was following a basically 2-week long OOO spree, but I still managed to pack in a ton of fun + adventures in along with some downtime. FRIDAY Being the end of a week that felt like a weekend, but also like a game of post-holiday catch up with work, I took Friday night off for some much needed me-time. I went grocery shopping when the Trader Joe's line wasn't insane (gotta love TJ's, but not on a Monday evening), took a stroll through the park, and cooked dinner at home. I followed this by re-starting The Office for the billionth time, and tbh it was the best decision I've ever made. I needed to rest up, because the next day was quite the adventure.  SATURDAY On Saturday, I got up bright and early to take the ferry out to New Jersey to see one of my BFFs, Alexis, who also happens to be a coworker (aren't they the best that way?!). I hadn't taken the ferry out to deep NJ before, so it was a fun and refreshing way to spend a Summer morning. If you're looking to take a trip from the city out to the shore, I took the Seastreak ferry. When I got there, we were STARVING, mainly because Alexis insisted I waited to eat until I could try NJ's signature pork roll. I'm not sure how I would describe it, other than a very thin version of SPAM. It was good, but I wouldn't give up my baconeggncheese for it ;). After that, we explored her favorite neighborhood haunts, including a stop by the Asbury Biergarten, which has the cutest little rooftop patio that was perfect for soaking up rays while knocking back a cold one. I highly recommend the Schofferhoffer, which is a delectable sparkling grapefruit beer that they have on tap. After a TV / nap break, we headed to Lighthouse for some cool Summery treats. The Italian Ices looked amazing, but I opted for a classic mixed cone. After taking the ferry home I was ready for bed (the last ferry leaves NJ around 7:30, but it was late so I didn't get back to the city until 9pm), but I decided to rally and see what my friends were up to. I ended the night bar hopping on the Upper East Side, which never disappoints.  SUNDAY
After basically two weeks OOO, I was really starting to feel the Sunday Scaries, so I was looking forward to a chill Sunday to end my extended weekend. I started off by walking to Strand Books, arguably the best bookstore in NYC. I had just finished the previous book I was reading (The Futures by Anna Pitoniak), so I was in the market for a new casual reading book. After scouring the discount racks outside (at $1-$5 you have to check!), I meandered around inside and settled upon Neon in Daylight by Hermione Hoby, which I've just started but am already quite enjoying. Can you tell I have a thing for books about people who change their lives by moving to NYC? I took my new book out to the park, and read while I laid out in the sun with a friend, which was exactly what I needed. As Summer progresses in NYC, I have lots of exciting things planned including concerts, day trips and more! Stay tuned for my next adventures, and as always, leave a comment below if you have any recommendations or questions regarding things to do around the city :). xoxo, Lara |
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