{travel: 24 hours in temecula}

Last month two of my fave bloggers, Lauren of A Fabulous Fete & Sharon of Cupcakes & Cutlery, invited me to join them on a sleepover getaway to Temecula along with 5 other bloggers.  Um yes please- where do I sign up?!?  Temecula is a lot like Palm Springs since it's barely a two hour drive away from Los Angeles, but it feels like a whole different world (plus there are wineries there so you know... it's similar to heaven).  Here's the perfect little itinerary based on our fabulous 24 hours there (plus a few more fun shots from our trip at the bottom of the post!):

Stay at THE COACH HOUSE: We met up in Temecula early Saturday morning at our accommodations for the night, The Coach House at Lorimar Winery, which was an adorable house behind Lorimar's Winery.  You can rent it out through Lorimar Winery and it very comfortably slept all eight of us ladies- plus this mirror lives there.

Wine Taste at LORIMAR WINERY:  You are in Temecula to relax and to taste wine so get started on the wine drinking at Lorimar Winery.

Eat lunch at LEONESS CELLARS:  Leoness Cellars is a another beautiful winery down the road.  You can head here next for a fabulous lunch overlooking the vineyards (do not miss out on their famous fries!).  Then after lunch you can go for round 2 of wine-tasting in their tasting room.

More Wine Tasting at WEINS WINERY:  In my opinion three wineries is the perfect amount of a day of leisurely wine tasting so end your day with a tasting at Weins Winery then head home for a quick disco nap and freshen up for a dinner out!

Grab Dinner At BLACKBIRD:  During our trip we had a fabulous private dinner catered for us inside Lorimar Winery, but thats probably not a feasible option everytime you head out for a quick weekend get-a-away so make reservations for dinner at Blackbird in downtown Temecula.

Grab Brunch at EAT Marketplace:  Brunch.  You guys.  If you don't have brunch (or some other similarly decadent room service breakfast with champagne) while on vacation then you are doing it wrong.  EAT Marketplace is first of all totally adorable, but second of all they have a huge line up of fresh smoothies AND mimosas.  Get a green juice and a grapefruit mimosa and feel good about your choices in life.  The food is also insanely good, all sourced locally and organic - bonus points!!

Go Shopping at DOWNTOWN TEMECULA;  After overeating enjoying brunch, go a for a walk to nearby downtown Temecula and do a little shopping.  We stopped in this fabulous spice store where I picked up some sriracha salt (for margarita rims of course), this old school candy shop, and this quaint little lavender shop.  My favorite place that we popped into (and you simply cannot miss this one) was the Temecula Olive Oil company.  You can do an olive oil tasting of all of their different oils and vinegars and then take home your favorites!

Here's a few snaps from our trip:

 {image via Lauren}

{image via Sharon}

{image via Sharon}

  {image via Lauren}

 {image via Sharon}

{dress from here,  image via Lauren}

 {image via Sharon}

{image via Sharon}

{36 hours in florence}

stay at:  We got a great deal on a room at Hotel Isabella and the centrally located boutique hotel completed delighted us during our 3 nights there.  The hotel is impeccably decorated and the service level of the staff is on par with a 5-star resort - plus the breakfast included with the room is actually a tasty spread rather than the normal sad fruit and yogurt bar you might expect. 

grab lunch at:  After settling in, hop across the street to Procacci for a glass of wine and mini sandwiches.  Procacci usually has about 6 or 7 different types of two-bite sandwiches for about $1.50 a piece (don't miss the black truffle one!).

take a tour at:  Talk a short walk through the winding cobble-stoned streets over to Basilica Santa Maria Novella where you can tour the centuries old church.  Afterwards, walk around the corner to the Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella which is the pharmacy of the monastery- you can wander through various rooms browsing their selection of perfumes, beauty products, tea, liqueur, and old-school health remedies dating back to the 1600s.  I picked up a bottle of this perfume. 

grab an afternoon snack at:  You will need to have gelato as much as humanly possible while in Italy and the hand-made gelato from Il Carraia Gelataria blew my mind- definitely try the caramel flavor!

go shopping at:  Wander your way back through the city until you reach the street Lungarno Degli Accaiuoli which runs along the river.  On this street are a handful of artisanal paper shops and leather goods boutiques.  

grab cocktails at:  After freshening up for a night out, head over to Fusion Bar for some pre-dinner cocktails- I highly recommend their Negroni as Florence is the birthplace of this classic drink. 

get dinner at:  You absolutely must book yourself a table at Il Santo Bevitore and come hungry!  Chris and I dined here on our first night in Florence, we loved it so much that we debated coming back the next night in order to sample more of their menu!

go dancing at:  Rivalta Bar is a newly opened restaurant that also has what they refer to as an "american dj set" after hours- it's a great place to grab a nightcap, have a drink and people watch. 

get breakfast at:  On your way out grab breakfast or weekend brunch at Il Rifrullo. 

{36 hours in Barcelona}

Last week, we hopped on a plane and spent 3 days in sunny Barcelona staying in an awesome Airbnb apartment and soaking up all the Catalonian flair the city has to offer especially the tapas and breathtaking architecture!  If you are ever on a trip through Europe then you absolutely must carve out time to experience Spain.  While we spent a nice long weekend in Barcelona, you could definitely get all the major sites into a 36 hour trip.  Here is a little itinerary I put together based on activities we did on this trip as well as the time we visited almost 10 years ago.

STAY AT:  We shopped around on Airbnb in Barcelona and ended up with a huge apartment with a lot of modern Spanish charm and the price was cheaper than a mediocre hotel.  If you are going with a group I would recommend this one or this one!

GRAB LUNCH AT:  After settling into your place and freshening up head out for some tacos, chips/salsa and refreshing tequila palomas at La Taqueria (in case you were wondering- a lot of restaurants in Europe don't have real websites and opt to use Facebook instead- I don't really get it.)

TAKE A TOUR AT:  Right around the corner from La Taqueria is the crown jewel of Barcelona, La Sagrada Familia.  The Gaudi-designed church is still in the process of being built, but the breathtaking inside is complete and you can freely wander around.  This place is one of the top 5 sights I have ever experienced and it is absolutely not to be missed.

GO SHOPPING AT:  Head over to Las Ramblas to wander around the little boutiques and stop in at the famous covered Boqueria St. Joseph where you can grab some street food.

GRAB COCKTAILS AT:  Freshen up for dinner and head out for cocktails around 9pm at Old Fashioned where you will find an extensive menu of hand-crafted cocktails including an entire page dedicated to specialized Gin & Tonics which are crazy popular all around Barcelona.

GRAB DINNER AT:  Make a reservation for 10pm at Bambarol (any earlier is the senior special in this town) and enjoy one of the most amazing meals we had while visiting.  The service in Bambarol is top notch and they will happily guide you through their delicious tapas menus (both chefs here previously worked aty El Bulli).  Our total bill for 4 people that ate like kings and ordered a bottle of Cava along with a bottle of wine was only 110Euro!

GO OUT DANCING AT:  The W Hotel in Barcelona is set out on it's own along the coast with unobstructed views in every direction with their Eclipse Bar (its really more of a club) situated up near the top floor.  Clubbing is like a second job for people in Barcelona so you should definitely work in a night out for your itinerary.

GET BRUNCH AT:  Recover from your night out with breakfast at Brunch & Cake which is an adorable little cafe near the upscale shopping district.  I had a french toast here that almost made me cry it was so good.

ON YOUR WAY OUT:  Spain is the mothership of Zara (basically my favorite store) so you simply have to stop into one of the huge flagships here before leaving!

{24 hours in...Palm Springs for two}

Next up in the 24 Hours series is our favorite getaway from Los Angeles, Palm Springs.  For this 24 hour trip I geared the activities towards a weekend for two, but I promise to follow it up with a itinerary for a girl's trip!

 stay at: The Parker

This hotel is by far one of the nicest hotels I have ever stayed at- we celebrated my bachelorette party there, our one year anniversary & even spent our wedding night in one of their villas.  The property is insanely lush and gorgeous with endless areas of interest to discover.  Not to mention the entire place including the fabulous rooms was decorated by Jonathan Adler!

grab brunch at: Normas

Norma's is the restaurant on the property of The Parker, but the food is spectacular compared to normal hotel food-especially for breakfast!  They have an adorable patio that is usually pleasant to sit on in the morning before it gets too hot. 

take a ride: Aerial Tramway

Palm Springs is nestled right behind a small mountain range and there is an Aerial Tramway you can ride up to a viewing deck at the very top (sometimes there is even snow up there!).  It's a quick romantic activity to start your day. 

shop at: The Estate Sale Company

Palm Springs is vintage shopping heaven and one of the best kept secrets is the four-building Estate Sale Company conveniently located right across from the Parker!  While they specialize mostly in bigger pieces like furniture, there are definitely some finds to be had!

hang out: Poolside at the Parker

The pool at the Parker fills up quickly throughout the day and for good reason since its a great place to hang out in the hot afternoon weather.  Order drinks from the Lemonade Stand, play petanque or croquet and just generally lay around the way you are supposed to in Palm Springs. 

dinner at: Workshop

Workshop is a newly opened restaurant new the beginning of Palm Spring's downtown "strip."  The food is seriously tasty and they have an extensive cocktail list to chose from -plus the custom poured concrete booths are pretty amazing to sit in. 

grab: Date Shakes at Hadleys

Assuming you have driven into Palm Springs, you will pass the infamous Morongo Casino on your way out and right next to it is a little unassuming "fruit stand" where you can order an ostrich burger and a life-changing date shake for the ride home.

{24 hours in: downtown los angeles}

Inspired by the 36 Hours books by the New York Times, I thought it would be fun to start a new series on the blog called "24 Hours In" where I give you a day's itinerary in some of my favorite cities/neighborhoods.  It felt only natural start with our favorite neighborhood in our favorite city: downtown Los Angeles.  Chris and I lived in this neighborhood for two years right before we moved to Chicago and always try to take a trip to one of our favorite spots in downtown whenever we are in California. Hope you enjoy this new series!

stay at: The Standard

It's swanky, modern and until the new Ace Hotel opens it's still the most hipster hotel in downtown. Plus it has an amazing rooftop pool complete with Biergarten and a full on Ping Pong lounge.

brunch at: Bottega Louie

My favorite restaurant of all time (famous for their fabulous desserts). You could actually eat every meal of the day here, but for purposes of particular this itinerary I prefer it for their brunch spread- especially their classic eggs benedict. 

check out: MOCA

Nestled right near the breathtaking Disney Concert Hall, downtown's famous modern art museum is not to be missed.

grab lunch at: Mendocino Farms

I don't want to claim that these sandwiches could change your life, but they are pretty mind-blowing. My go to is the roasted proscuitto chicken and a short walk over to Bunker Hill Park (aka the 500 days of Summer park) is the perfect place to enjoy it! update: Apparently they just closed this park last month (so sad!), so another favorite place of mine is the water fall plaza next to the Four Arches Statue under the Bank of America building. 

shop in: The Fashion District

Home to more fabric stores than you can handle in a day- my favorites are The Loft at Michael Levine (for discount fabric), Target Trim (for amazing lace and ribbon) and Fabrics & Fabrics (for unique silks.) Also take a stop at Shareen Vintage for a warehouse full of one of kinds finds. 

cocktails at: The Varnish

This speakeasy in the back of Cole's has won numerous awards for best cocktails in the country and it will live up to those accolades every time. Make sure to order a "bartenders choice"

dinner at: Rivera

One of the best dinners I ever had in my life was at Rivera.  You could go there only for the interesting interior of the restaurant and be happy, but the menu is so amazing I recommend you actually stay for a meal.  Definitely don't miss their cocktail line up here either- its where this one is from!

Late night at: Perch

Two gorgeous levels of rooftop space decked out in French inspired vintage furniture is perfect for lounging the rest of the night away under the buildings of downtown.