windy city

The past week has been a bit of a whirlwind. In fact, this whole summer has been nothing short of chaotic so far. After I graduated in May I immediately began preparing to start my new job as Area Director for N2 Publishing. Last week I traveled to Chicago for job training and it was a truly an informative and inspirational experience. In a time of economic turmoil, I feel very fortunate to have a job (especially in the field I went to school for!) Anyway, while the conference was a huge success, I really enjoyed just exploring the beautiful city and I got in touch with a feeling I’ve rarely been comfortable with in the past; independence. Traveling alone is always a bit challenging and sometimes even scary, but this trip was the first time I’ve actually felt safe and even content.

I couldn’t quite put my finger on why my experience was so positive, but after I thought about it, I came up with a number of reasons on how to efficiently travel alone. First, learn the public transportation system. While in the past, I’ve tagged along with my friends when we took the Subway in New York or the Metro in D.C., I never actually had to figure out a train system on my own. A few days before I left, I looked up maps of all the “L” train routes and mapped out exactly what trains to take during each part of my trip. Second, create an itinerary for yourself. Since I knew in advance what times I had to be at my conference, I figured out which tourist spots would be my priority and I set a schedule for myself to make time to sight-see.

The next thing I did was ask people who live there (or have lived there) what are some must-see sights, restaurants, stores, etc. Obviously this is one that can’t be done everywhere, but there are a ton of online resources as well that give user reviews and ratings on almost anything in a given city. For me, I have a few friends that have lived in the Chicago area that gave me a number of places that I couldn’t miss. Since I had never been to Chicago before, I created a note in my Blackberry so I could easily refer to it as I explored.   The final way I had a successful solo trip was to not splurge. Splurging can relate to almost any area – spending money, eating too much food, not managing time effectively, staying up too late and not making time for exercise. Yes, I was technically on a vacation of sorts BUT in my opinion, a vacation is not an excuse to completely go off-track and drastically change your lifestyle. I’ve often found that in the past that after I’ve spent a few days drinking heavily, eating greasy food and getting little sleep, I always return home feeling lethargic and completely beat. One wayI kept on track while in Chicago was to make a daily budget and stick to it! I took out cash from the ATM before I left, so I wouldn’t be tempted to swipe my credit card at every turn. As far as being healthy, I did an insane amount of walking while I was there. (In fact, I actually over did it a few days). But walking is literally the easiest and most practical type of exercise. Most of the time I was exploring a beautiful park, perusing the Magnificent Mile, or just trying my best to read a HUGE tourist map to find certain locations. In addition to the walking, I squeezed in a few runs along Lake Michigan and stocked up on healthy snacks like fruit and nuts to keep in my bag to prevent food splurges.

Ok, so I know this was a different sort of post for me. Less fashion, more personal. I’ve decided to implement more of my personal experiences and insights into my blog. I find the content flows to me much more naturally when I just write about what I know or how I’m feeling. That doesn’t mean I’m NEVER going to write about fashion, food or beauty products again – but I just plan on broadening my content and not feeling forced to find things to write about. Alright, well have a great week and hopefully some of you found this helpful!

One.

Today marks the one year anniversary for champayne wishes. The past year has been an incredible learning experience for me. Blogging has quickly became a huge passion of mine, both writing my own and reading others.  It’s funny that not too long ago I was completely intimidated with the idea of having a blog because I’m the furthest thing from being technologically savvy. However, literally every post has been a tutorial and tool to help improve both my writing and blogging skills.

Though it’s been awesome learning the ins and outs of blogging, I’m not proud to admit that I have had a number of dry spells. In my defense, there have been times when I became busy, distracted and stressed. And while creating a post typically doesn’t take very long, I would never want to post anything because I felt obligated to. I am honestly passionate about every post and wouldn’t feel true to my writing if I threw something together just for the sake of having a post that day.

On the other hand, I can admit many days have gone by when I simply didn’t feel like blogging. Either I was busy, uninspired or just plain lazy. This is something I strive to improve as I continue with champayne wishes. I’m excited as spring approaches that I can break out of my winter hibernation. I’m anticipating spring fashion, traveling, exploring Baltimore and challenging myself with a lot of delicious recipes. So, thanks to those of you who read often. Here are a few of my favorite photos over the past year.

my happy place

There are some things in life that instantly put a smile on your face. For me, it may be obvious that I have a bit of an obsession with Wilmington, North Carolina. Somehow, every time I visit I have a sort-of magical calming feeling and a soothing sense of nostalgia. This past weekend marked my EIGHTH time visiting the coastal town, so I decided to shed light on my happy place. Embarrassingly enough, my love for Wilmington can be directly tied to my love for sappy teen dramas. Screen Gems studios is located in Wilmington, and gave life to two of my favorite TV shows: One Tree Hill and Dawson’s Creek. I first visited Wilmington to be an extra on One Tree Hill, but some time during the trip I became completely enamored with the sleepy southern town.

The town of Wilmington is a piece of land wedged between two bodies of water; the Cape Fear river and the Atlantic ocean. The historic downtown area is picturesque with cobblestone streets, palm trees and vintage shops. Every time I visit, I find more reasons to keep coming back. Between the beautiful gardens, lakes, and the ocean, Wilmington can appeal to almost anyone. It was hard to narrow down my favorite pictures from my trips, but below are many of the highlights: