Happy Halloween!

Hi Friends! If you are reading this, it means that my mom and I are still stuck in NYC thanks to Hurricane Sandy. We are due to fly out Wednesday evening, which is our third rebooked flight. Hopefully we will be back to Atlanta by late Wednesday night and I will can resume blogging on Thursday or Friday. Regardless, thank you for showing my lovely guest bloggers love while I have been traveling. I hope you found some new blogs to crush on! 

In case you missed it, I was happy to have these ladies on the blog:

Courtney from Following C's

Nicole from Probably Polka Dots

Andrea from Blonde Ambitions

Sarah from Simply Sarah Style

In the meantime, please enjoy your Halloween! I know I will be making the best of mine! :)

Guest Blogger : Sarah from Simply Sarah Style

Greetings from Simply Sarah Style!  I'm Sarah, a Kentucky blogger and a lover of all things southern chic, which, in my world, translates into a good party, monograms galore and fabulous interiors! Sara and I met during a blogger exchange earlier this year and instantly become friends. I was delighted when Sara asked me to guest post while she is out of town enjoying a vacation to the Hamptons.

Today, I'm sharing tips for hosting a Swap Party. This party concept is based on the idea that every guest brings five or more items they no longer use to swap with other guests. Essentially, everyone shops for free! As a guest, you are able to share items you longer use with others, while also coming home with fabulous new things. You can narrow the collection of items based on a category (e.g. clothing, books, accessories, home decor, etc.) or have a free for all with multiple categories.




Here are some quick tips for hosting: 

1. If a guest bring five items, she gets to shop for five items. Keep the number the same, so it is fair.

2. Provide fabulous refreshments! You can even ask guests to bring their favorite food to share. Cocktails and appetizers can help break the ice and get the party started. 

3. Send guests home with an extra treat. Party favors are always a nice way to end the evening!

4. If there are items left over, donate them to the local thrift store. Someone there will find the perfect home for these pieces.



Have you hosted a Swap Party of your own? I would love to hear about how others orchestrated this concept.

A special thanks to Sara for inviting me to join you today!

Guest Blogger : Andrea from Blonde Ambitions

Hello Social Sara friends! I am Andrea from blonde ambitions and I am beyond excited to be posting today for Sara while she is enjoying her much needed NYC vacay!
Sara & I became fast blog friends! I knew from the first time I read her blog how many similarities we share! We are trying to put together a fun trip to meet in person & I can't wait!
Today I thought I would share some of my Fall Must-Haves with you! 

I just love the pattern in this dress & especially for that price! Old Navy Crepe Shift Dress $29.94 {buy here}

another great ON piece! Perfect with skinnies & flats or riding boots Old Navy Mixed-Print Crepe blouse $29.94 {buy here}

Love this blouse with skinny jeans and riding boots! Loft exotic textured pintucked 3/4 sleeve blouse $54.50 {buy here}

Must get this dress! Could wear with flats, heels or riding boots. Fluid shirtdress from Gap $59.95 {buy here}

such a cute sweater! Love the navy! Dot pullover sweater from Gap $44.95 {buy here}

I L.O.V.E. anything Tory Burch so of course I must have a pair of her new flats! TB Caroline ballet flat $225.00 {buy here}

and a fabulous nail polish! Essie's Bobbing for Baubles $5-7 {buy here online or at Ulta stores}
So what are some of your Fall Must-Haves?
I would love for you to stop by my blog and say hi! Thanks so much for having me today Sara!

Guest Blogger : Nicole from Probably Polka Dots

Hi Friends! I'm Nicole and I blog over at Probably Polka Dots. I love polka dots (hence the name of my blog!) and all things Southern, especially sweet tea and monograms. I blog about Atlanta happenings, fashion and a few DIYs here and there. I'd love for you to stop by and say hello sometime! Sara and I are both Atlanta based bloggers and thanks to this great world of blogging, we became fast friends. Don't you just love it when that happens? Ahhh, the beauty of blogging! I'm so glad I was able to step in and do a guest post for her while she is vacationing in The Hamptons and NYC. We are working on some fun projects together so be sure to stay tuned!

Brooches are quickly becoming my favorite statement pieces. You can easily add one to your pea or trench coat during the frigid winter, place one on the knot of your scarf in the fall, or add one to a strand of beads just about any time you'd like! I like scouring flea markets and thrift stores for mine, but here are a few that you can have with a little less work.

green / colorful / gold & crystal / bow / starburst

A few days ago, I added one of mine to a necklace I already owned (hey, that counts as a DIY, right?). What do you think?

{Pardon the seatbelt!}

So what are your thoughts? Do you brooch or not so much? 

Here's wishing you a fabulous Friday and a great weekend!

Thanks again for having me, Sara!

Guest Blogger : Courtney from FollowingC's

Hi Social Sara readers! I'm Courtney from FollowingC's and I'm so happy to be here today!  Sara's blog is a favorite of mine and I think she's such a classy gal.  I love seeing the cute looks she puts together and following what she's been up to, it's always something fun and fabulous:)  A bit about me:  I am a happy momma of 2 little boys, a pinterest addict, a runner, a food lover, a wannabe photographer, and a shopaholic.  I blog about a little bit of everything and 

I love anything pretty; stop by sometime!

Since we all love shopping and looking at pretty things I wanted to share 

a few things I'm loving this month.

Outfit inspiration...

sweater // earrings // jeans // booties

I'm seeing dark green jeans everywhere and I love them!  Also loving big cozy sweaters, Stella & Dot earrings, and booties (I still need a pair, maybe these will jump into my closet:)

And a little recipe inspiration.  One can never go wrong with Martha!  I love any kind of bread but right now I can't get enough pumpkin.  This is a yummy fall recipe.

{Find it here}

Hope you have a wonderful Thursday everyone!  Thank you again for having me Sara!

New York State of Mind

Hi Friends! I can hardly believe that my beautiful mother and I are jet setting tomorrow morning. Finally, a girl's trip! As I mentioned yesterday, I have several guest posts lined up for you so don't forget to check back everyday and show these ladies some love.

In the meantime, here are a few things I am packing in my suitcase...

{via}

My new pair of skinny jeans from Gap!

{via}

A faux fur vest

{via}

Flats for cruising the city

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

{via}

Something fancy

 

 

 

 

 

{via}

And something fun!

 

 

{via}

A small bag

 

 

 

{via}

And a big bag

 

 

Of course I'll have plenty of fashion magazines, my laptop, flashy jewels, fun makeup and hair essentials in tow as well. I have some new hair accessories I'm dying to try!

Don't forget to follow along on instagram @social_sara.

Have a wonderful Wednesday! :)

Cheers!

Tuesday Randomness

Today is one of those days. You know the days where a ton of thoughts are running around in your head and it's hard to focus? That's what my Tuesday morning looks like and unfortunately, that translates right on over to the blog. Sorry, friends. Hopefully I can settle down and concentrate because I have several things to accomplish today. 

In the meantime, here is some randomness I thought I would share...

Remember a while back when I told you how much I love the Bath and Body Works Autumn candle? Well, I have a new scent to crush on. Please meet Cinnamon Sugared Donut. This scent makes your entire home smell down right delicious!

{Warning: this candle may induce faux hunger pangs. Just thought I'd mention that... :) }

You may recall that I've referenced gluten free food a time or two here on the blog and on instagram. About a month and a half ago, I decided to eliminate wheat and gluten from my diet. No, I'm not allergic but thought I would give it a try. So far, so good! It's crazy how much stuff has wheat or gluten in it and many times, both. I stumbled upon these wheat and gluten free snacks and I'm in love. They are so darn good and there's nothing fake in them. Score! 

I've found these at both Publix and Kroger. 

These K-cups have 100% changed my mornings for the better. 

Thank you, Dunkin' Donuts. America really does run on you! :)

Did you notice the box states "limited time" at the top? 

Part of me wants to stock pile for the months to come. K-cups don't go bad, right?!?

Over the weekend, I discovered an app that I can't get enough of. It's called Song Pop and it's very addicting. Guessing song titles and artists in record time, sign me up!
You gotta check this one out. I know you will love it too! 

Today is Piperlime's birthday and they are offering some special surprises.

Click on over and join in the celebration!

{via}

It's no secret that I adore Bauble Bar. I'm obsessed, really. So you can imagine how I excited I was to learn last week that they have opened a storefront in NYC. Fifth Avenue here I come!

{via}

Which brings me to my last thought for today's post...my mom and I are headed to NYC on Thursday! That's right...a girls trip that is long overdue! We will be attending a wedding in the Hampton's on Friday and then spending the rest of our time in the city. I cannot wait! I've been busy putting our plans together and tying up all the loose ends. It should be a fabulous time! You can follow along via instagram...find me @social_sara. I have some lovely guest bloggers lined up while I'm gone so be sure to come back each day to meet these fabulous ladies!

Have a wonderful Tuesday, friends! 

Weekend Update

It happened again. The weekend came and went before I could even blink my tired eyes. I'm not sure how or why this keeps happening but it really needs to stop! We had a fantastic weekend. 

Here's the recap...

One of our dear friends came to visit and when I say we partied down, trust that that's an understatement. We kicked off the weekend with The Lumineers concert. If you don't know this band, you should. They are seconds from hitting it big. This Colorado band will start opening for The Dave Matthews Band in December, after a whirlwind tour of Europe. I didn't snap any pics of our pre-concert dinner and drinks but here are a few pics from the show...

 We had so much fun! It was a crisp evening, perfect for an outdoor concert. 

 As you can see, the sling didn't hold him back from enjoying some adult beverages! :)

Best Buddies! 

On Saturday the boys visited with friends, watched football and chowed down on some BBQ while I did a little shopping. I must admit, my shopping trip was a bust. Sad, but true. I went to a few of my fave places, trying to spend some moolah but I just couldn't find anything worth buying. Really disappointing. Are retailers in a pre-holiday slump?

I was ready to do some serious shopping. I even wore flats for efficiency and comfort. :)

Saturday night we had dinner at Atlanta's hottest restaurant, The Optimist. You may remember me posting about this fabulous dining establishment here and here. This restaurant (currently my fave for obvious reasons) was just named Esquire Magazine's Best New Restaurant of the Year for 2012. Yep, you read that right. So move over NYC, LA, Boston and all other cities with great dining...ATL has this one in the bag. For starters, we had the charred octopus along with a dozen of the east coast oysters from Rhode Island. The guys had the swordfish and I had the Maine scallops. It was all delish but I have to say, my dish won hands down. :)

Charred octopus with roasted peppers and kalamata olives. SO good! 

After dinner, we hit another ATL favorite (and destination of my BIG Birthday Bash last year), Ormsby's. We indulged in after dinner drinks (probably too many!) and saddled up for a friendly game or two (or three) of shuffleboard and bocce ball. Before we knew it, it was 2:30am and clearly time to head home. (Side note: I can't party like I used to. What's that about?) Once home, we decided to have Dance Party USA (totally the norm for this crew) as we channeled our college identities. We stayed up entirely too late but it was 100% worth it. I for one, had not laughed this hard in months.

I love shuffleboard! 

Hopefully one day we will have a house large enough for a shuffleboard table. 

Sunday was all about recounting the activities from the night before, coupled with football and Five Guys burgers. And just like that, in the blink of an eye, the weekend was over and we were driving our dear friend to the airport. Such an awesome weekend.

So Monday is here and it's back to real life. 

The silver lining: only four more days until it's the weekend again! 

I hope y'all had a nice weekend, too.

I'm linking up with Join the Gossip, five30three and Sami's Shenanigans for the Weekend Update. Be sure to hop on over and catch up on everyone's weekend! 

Fashion Friday : Halloween Costume Prep

Happy Friday! I'm not sure about you but it seems like the weeks are getting longer and longer these days. Geez...this girl needs a break! Today's Fashion Friday theme is Halloween costumes. I've had a few goodies in my day...pageant queen, Catholic school girl, etc. but unless we have a party to attend, I typically don't dress up. Here's a simple outfit I put together, which looks eerily similar to last year's outfit! It's fun but not over the top and most items you probably already have in your closet. 

headband / dress / earrings / heels / falsies 

What do you do for Halloween? Any fun costumes/outfits up your sleeve? 

Here's wishing you a wicked good weekend! Cheers! 

I'm linking up with Blonde Episodes and Long Distance Loving

for Fashion Friday. Be sure to hop over and check out the link ups!

 

Fall Blogger Exchange

Last week I participated in a Fall Blogger Exchange organized by my dear friend Sarah at Simply Sarah Style. Sarah and I were swap partners back in February and through the swap and many emails, a friendship was born. Don't you just love that? One of the many awesome things about blogging! When Sarah blogged about hosting her own fall themed exchange, I was happy to participate. As luck would have it, I was partnered up with another Sarah. Sarah blogs at Love the Little. What can I say? We Sara(h)'s stick together! Here's a peek at what Sarah sent me in the exchange...

Sarah put together a very thoughtful gift with a little something for every part of a girl's life. My care package included a beautiful essie nail polish, an accent kitchen towel, a wonderful smelling pumpkin bath bar, a heavenly home spray and some goodies for my sweet tooth. 

It was so nice to receive such thoughtful gifts in my mailbox! 

Now I am 100% ready for fall! Have you ever participated in a blogger swap or exchange? If not, you totally should. It's so much fun! 

Here's wishing you a lovely Friday Eve! The weekend is at our doorstep!