Winesdays at Whole Foods

A few weeks ago, I was scrolling through my Facebook news feed (per usual) and came across a giveaway from one of our local Whole Foods locations for two tickets to a concert. So I entered, of course (since I love free things), and later that day I got a message from their marketing team leader, Katie, saying that I WON! Crazy town. We had a great time at the concert, and a few days later, I got another message from Katie saying that she'd found my blog, really liked it, and wondered if I would be interested in covering an event they have on a weekly basis called "Winesdays." Umm, yes? So a friend and I went last week and I'm back to report on it!

{Whole Foods}

Winesdays (short for wine Wednesdays) is an event that happens weekly at many Whole Foods locations across the country. The basic idea is that you get five (generous) sips of wine that are each paired with five small plates of food for only $5. Yes, $5 y'all! It's a fantastic deal - I'd even call it a light dinner. My friend and I had a blast tasting the variety of food and wine pairings, and chatting with the different servers at each station. They're super friendly and eager to talk about what they've got on tap that night (punny!).

You start by "checking in" at one of the registers where you pay your $5 and they give you a glass (you get to keep it) and a menu with the wine and food pairings. Here's a look at our menu for the night:

Then you wander around to each of the five stations that are located all around the store, checking them off as you go. It sort of feels like a progressive dinner with a different "course" at each station. Be sure to take it slow though, not only because it's more fun that way, but also because they give generous pours of wine - drink slowly! By the end, you've basically had the equivalent of two glasses and if you're like me, you started on an empty stomach :).

Of course I had to take a photo at one of the stations, but man! so much awkwardness in this one...

All in all, we had a blast. My favorite wines out of the five were the Aveleda White from Portugal and the Begala Valpolicella Red from Italy. And I loved the veggie vegan rice delight from station one as well. So delicious (and vegan food usually scares me off!). They prepare all of the food items in-house using ingredients you can buy in the store. I think I'm going to try making that vegan dish for dinner one night soon.

I'm definitely planning to make another trip to Winesdays in the near future! Who's in? Check with your local Whole Foods and see if they do this event there - it's definitely a fun after-work activity for the middle of the week!

Many thanks to Whole Foods and Katie for inviting me cover this event. While they did provide two complimentary "tickets" for me and a friend, they did not otherwise compensate me or provide other incentives to write this review. The opinions are all mine!

May Project Round-Up

I feel like I say this every month, but man, May flew by in a flash. Welcome, June! I'm excited summer is here - are you?

Before May is a distant memory, let's take a few minutes to look back at the projects I posted about on the ole blog this past month, starting with this fun way to display printed Instagrams using pants hangers. (I print my Instagrams to Walgreen's One Hour Photo using an app called Printicular. It's so easy and inexpensive.)

My favorite project of the month (and the most popular one with y'all as well) was the wood shim pendant light. Though it ended up being a little more challenging than I anticipated, I love how it came together in the end, and seeing it hanging over our dining room table really makes me happy. If you missed any of the posts about it, you can catch up here: one, two, three.

I revamped the every-other-Friday Creative Bits Series a bit, and shared a really pretty office space and a beautiful living room this month. This has been a fun way to connect with other bloggers, so if you have a space you think has a few Creative Bits of its own, send a photo of it my way and I might use it in a future post!

Operation {Re}Organization continued this month. This time I tamed the chaos of the front hall closet in a series of three posts (inspiration, before/strategy and after). What was a disaster area is now sooo much more functional and even has secret storage for sporting equipment. Did any of y'all tackle an organizational project this month?

And of course you can't have "function" without "fun" (bad pun, sorry), so I added these blue watercolor-y/painterly labels to make sure things are easy to find and are returned to their proper homes. There's a link to download a free set of blank labels too if you need some!

I also took on a new cleaning plan in Operation {Re}Organization this month. The first week has gone pretty well so far. Since I technically implemented this plan last Tuesday, I technically have one more day to do my last weekly task...clean the bathroom...ugh. At least once it's done I'll have the satisfaction of checking that box once I'm done though - thanks to my handy list here :).

Are you a Kate Spade fan? If so, you'll want to check out the Kate Spade Style Soiree hosted by Jenna and others last month. I joined their party and created a Kate Spade-inspired gold zig zag pitcher. Who doesn't need a little gold in their lives?

To celebrate my mom this month on Mother's Day, I took some photos with my brother, Instagrammed them, and created a photo strip style card for her. It was a fun project for me, and she loved it! Win win.

Another one of my favorite projects this month was this DIY iPhone speaker made out of...a toilet paper roll. Talk about doing a project "on the cheap" :). I use it all the time!

Last but not least, I shared a recipe for banana avocado bread. Head on over to the post to see why I used avocados, of all things, in this delicious quick bread.

That about wraps it up for May! Thanks, as always, for reading. I'm so grateful to each of you for stopping by my little corner of the blogging world.

And thanks to these wonderful blogs for featuring my posts this month:

Tatertots and Jello

IHeart Organizing

Rain on a Tin Roof

Simply Dream and Create

Sarah Lynn's Sweets

DIY Showoff

Suburbs Mama

If It's Not Baroque
First Home...Love Life

Come on back tomorrow for a fun project I did over the weekend. Want to know what it is? Go back to this post from last week for a hint!

Union Market {Weekend Adventure}

This weekend (finally!) brought a taste of glorious spring weather to DC. On Sunday, we were eager to be out and about so we could enjoy the sunshine and warmer temperatures. We met my parents for lunch for a fun spot called Union Market. I've been dying to go there for awhile now, based on rave reviews I've heard from my parents and lots of other folks. Let me tell you, this place did not disappoint - it's a feast for the stomach as well as the eyes! And although I wish y'all could have been there to taste some of the food with us, I think the photos will give you an idea of why I loved this place from the moment I laid eyes on it.

Union Market is an actual market - there are open-air food booths, farmer's market goods, a few lunch-counter style restaurants, artisinal specialty shops, and even a boutique. It's an eclectic mix that hearkens back to the days of authentic markets, but it has a gourmet twist thanks to the atmosphere, types of vendors, and design of the space. 

For example, this cheese vendor. They've got a counter where you can sample cheese (and sip your beverage of choice), as well as a case where you can pick some out to take home with you. Have I mentioned how much I love cheese? And they had some delicious ones...

This space has a rich history as an open-air market destination for the surrounding neighborhood (and really, the whole city). You can read more about its fascinating history on Union Market's website, but to summarize, the market originated way back in 1871 as "Centre Market." Over time, it went through several evolutions, and in the 1980s, as the demand for wholesale goods declined in the nearby area and vendors moved to larger commercial spaces, the market basically shut down. In the fall of 2012, after a massive renovation and revitalization, the market reopened in its shiny new form, becoming an instant destination in a (mostly) run-down area of the city. In a weird way, this place kind of reminds me of Anthropologie mixed with a farmer's market. Go with me on this one. I think it'll make more sense once you see some pictures...

I love this sign they have hanging in the back of the market. I'm not sure if it's original or not, but it definitely gives you a feel for what the original market was like:

One of my favorite vendors in the market was a boutique called Salt & Sundry:

Their collection of home furnishings, linens, paper goods, etc. was so fun to browse. Take a look at all their pretty things:

Lovely, right? They had a little bit of everything, and I was so tempted to take a few things home myself :). 

Even the lighting was amazing:

I really loved this vintage-y looking sign for a butcher/restaurant called Red Apron:

And the design of this "soda shop" (Buffalo & Bergen):

{I'm drooling over the sign, pendants and ceiling!}

Oh, and you've got to see this chandelier. (I'm a little obsessed with light fixtures right now...) If you look real close, you can see that it's made out of recycled, smushed plastic water bottles! What? Brilliance, I tell you.

Needless to say, I loved this place. I could've wandered around for hours sampling food, sipping wine, and staring at everything in the beautiful space. I think I'll be making many return trips in the future - even if it's just to gaze at that chandelier :). 

Hope you enjoyed being a part of my weekend adventure today!