Weekly Wrap-Up: Valentine's Dinner, Anthropologie, Deals & Patterns!

Finally a normal weekend!  It seems that as soon as I started these weekly wrap-ups, my life started to get more interesting!

Book events, celebrity run-ins (here and here), sporting events, concerts, trying out new sports, restaurants (1,2,3,4,5), warehouse sales, exploring around town, trips to New York and Nashville, planning a huge trip to Europe, and about a million donuts (1,2,3,4)!

Luckily, life is back to normal with just a few fun things along the way.  This week, the high points were Valentine's dinner with my man, shopping (Anthropologie, Off 5th, Banana Republic Factory), buying fun food items at Mitsuwa marketplace, cooking up three new recipes, pattern shopping, and getting a big chunk of travel planning done.

Wednesday

Valentine's Day was casual for my guy and me.  We decided that it is crazy to fight for a reservation at a fancy restaurant and be surrounded by tons of people who are doing the exact same thing, all in the name of a holiday that can tend to get out of control with decor, food, etc.  I'm not saying I'd turn away a pink cupcake though...

We went to Simmzy's, which I went to about a month ago for the first time.

To start we shared the Goat Cheese Tapas which doesn't look like much, but it was perfect!  Goat cheese with apricots and honey!  I'm in.  :)  I was majorly hungry and barely saved any for my guy, but then again he had his beer flight!

I got their Simmzy's Burger and added roasted Shiitakes.  So yummy!

The close-up shows off all the amazing goodies stuffed inside!

For dessert, we shared the apple pie donut which I ordered the first time around but he wanted to try.

Yep, just as good the second time around...  The slightly crunchy and tangy apples with the soft pillowy dough are perfect with the sweet vanilla ice cream.  The salty pistachios and salted caramel drizzle provide a perfect contrast to the whole thing!

And a complimentary chocolate covered strawberry for Valentine's Day.  Sweet!

Thursday - Friday

Finally a chance to catch up with my DVR!  I'm still behind on Downton Abbey so no spoilers please, and my guy is finally back on track with The Walking Dead so we could watch Sunday's episode together.  :)  And I don't care if it's passé, but I still love me some Project Runway.  A garden & hardware store challenge combined?  Awesome.

Saturday

I whipped out three recipes, as well as prepping the week's meals.  Busy, busy!  I'll blog about them later, but I made smitten kitchen's buttermilk roast chicken, Handle the Heat's Curried Red Lentil Soup, and modified a healthy banana bread recipe for some overripe bananas and leftover cream cheese frosting!

More travel planning and then early to bed.  I was pooped!

Sunday

First thing in the morning, I stopped by Anthropologie to return a gift.  I usually never return gifts, but I received the Sewing Basket apron below which wasn't my style.

It was $38, so I had time to poke around and find something new!  I was looking around when lo and behold, the same lace I used for my green lace UFO yesterday popped out at me!

 

In real life, it is a slightly darker shade of green, but exactly the same otherwise!

Then, I spotted a dress that slightly resembles the Colette Hazel in the front...

and has a surprise in the back!  I love the color, the fabric choice, and the back detail.  I'm not excited about the length, but otherwise this will be an inspiration piece soon.

A bit of inspiration for my upcoming trip.  :)

And then I found the apron I spotted a year ago sitting on the rack.  It was the last one, so I did an excited dance inside my head and got ready to exchange my present.

Then, I had a wonderful surprise.  It was on sale for $9.95, so I had $30 more to spend!  I could have easily bought something cute to wear or items for the kitchen, but I wisely put it away for the future.  It's burning a hole in my wallet as we speak!

I'm not even going to bore you with my purchases at Off 5th, just a winter hat and a French Connection dress both for 50% off and paid using a gift card.  Free!

Then, I met my man at the Banana Republic Factory Store.  Ironically, he walked out with nothing and I had a bag of goodies at the end.  :)

This dress was originally $140 and I got it for $20.99!  It fits perfectly because I actually found it in the petite section.

This dress was on sale for $10.47 from $109.99 in the factory store, so it was even more in the regular store!

Wrinkly (should have ironed it before photographing), but cute!

This textured skirt (which doesn't photograph well) was originally $64.99 at the factory store, and I scored it for $4.87!

Nubby, textured, and red!  Ooh la la!

Next, I headed to Mitsuwa marketplace to buy a couple of items.  I love a pickled cabbage salad, and these are the best!

Then, I bought a couple of fun items as well.  A package of strawberry Yan Yan for old time's sake (although I usually had Pocky growing up).

And a package of four fugetsu do mochigashi.  I forgot to snap a picture beforehand, but this package is pretty similar to what we got.  When people ask if I want mochi, this is what I want!  Not that ice-cream filled stuff.  It's okay, but this is so much better!

Credit

For dinner, we went out for sushi at our local place coincidentally.  The rest of my family had already decided, so it was an all Japanese cuisine kind of day!

Monday

We had the day off, so my friend and I planned a bit for our trip and actually booked our last accommodations!  Yes!

Then, we celebrated by heading off to Jo-Ann's for their Simplicity pattern sale.  I was initially just going to stay home or just help her out, but I couldn't resist a few cute ones!

*After writing this, I realized that I might sound like a Simplicity pitchwoman, but I'm really just sharing the patterns I loved and bought!*

I love the Peplum top from Simplicity 1699 and even when it goes out of style, it's still a classic silhouette that flatters me and I will continue to wear!

View E on Simplicity 1693 looks like such an easy top to wear in a 1960's-ish silhouette!

The flutter on the skirt of Simplicity 1697 is so pretty.  I'm not sure if it will be very flattering, but I'll give it a try!

Simplicity 1688 is such a simple dress, but going through my collection, I actually didn't have one similar to it!  I also have to give it to Cynthia Rowley for almost always having spot on fabrics and styling!

The full skirt, piping, and contrast welt pockets are just super sweet on Simplicity 1687!

Lastly, I bought Simplicity 2444 which I think has been out before, but didn't seem to notice.  Very retro-inspired and could do well with the right fabric!

Tuesday

I was going to catch up with my shows and catch my breath, but I spent nearly all of my free time yesterday putting together an awesome, awesome Excel spreadsheet for my travel budget and future travel expenses!  I will share it when I figure out the best way to do so because I'm sure someone will be able to benefit from it when planning a future vacation.  I know I will!

Does anyone have anything fun planned for this weekend?