Weekend Rewind: Halloween, Brunch At Clever Rabbit, Some Unreal Churros

Cable Crewneck Sweater // Teddy Bomber Jacket (similar) // Glasses: See Eyewear

Hey my peeps! Happy Sunday! I hope you all had an awesome weekend. Mine was super jam packed, filled with some super yummy eats, exploring a few different Chicago neighborhoods, signing a lease on a new apartment (!!!), and some much needed Netflix & candles time.

Friday, I ended a super crazy work week; I was on a call essentially all day every day, and I had been feeling a little sick, so it was just overall a tough hustle. We had tickets to the Blackhawks game with Fran’s dad and his girlfriend, followed by our one and only Halloween event of the weekend. In past years I’ve gone soo all out for Halloween; in college I would start planning weeks in advance, and would always have multiple costumes. This year, I literally didn’t think about it until about four hours before the party, and neither did Francis— we decided on a really easy, DIY couple’s costume to make things easy.

We recently have really gotten into the CW show Riverdale, (it’s a live action, modern take on the Archie comic characters, with a murder mystery subplot, and a bunch of insanely good looking high-schoolers), and decided to go as one of show’s couples— Jughead Jones and Betty Cooper (their “couple name” is Bughead). Francis kept saying how no one at the party knew what we were, but severaaal people knew exactly who we were and said they were big fans of the show). I just bought some construction paper and cut out a yellow crown I taped onto a plain grey sweater, and cut out a subtle black crown that I tucked in Francis’ beanie, to make it look like Jughead’s.

I have been dying to check out this Wicker Park restaurant called Clever Rabbit, and Saturday we finally went for brunch! It’s a farm to table spot with a majority vegetarian menu; everything on the brunch menu sounded unreal good, and it had been at the top of my list for weeks. It absolutely lived up to hype, and I would highly recommend! It has a super cute interior, and the coolest bar. They made a mean bloody mary (with house made pickles… ugh, to die), as well as a surprisingly refreshing carrot margarita. For food, I ordered the “Rabbit Breakfast,” which was a plate of scrambled eggs, hashbrowns, maple roasted carrots, and sourdough toast. It was so simple, but had really awsome flavors and complexities. Not too heavy too, so 10/10 brunch pick for me! Francis got sweet potato pecan pancakes, and my parents got french toast and the smoked salmon benedict.

Considering this weekend is essentially the grande finale of the Halloween season, I have been making the most of all my Halloween decor, putting all my coffee and tea in my fave little mug from my local Whole Foods, lighting all the pumpkin spice candles, and enjoying all the cute little finds I got over the last few weeks. Target ended up having the cutest stuff (if there was a Michael’s nearby me, I would have gone and gotten some fun fall-esque DIY materials!). The studded black and white plastic pumpkins were by far my favorite thing; they’re a little Valentino Rockstud, aren’t they? Ha!

Alexander McQueen Coffee Table Book

Fall Candle Holders (Target, similar here)

Coffee Table

Couch

Faux Fur Blanket

“Lovely” Pullover // Fleece Lined Leggings // Studio Sweden Wireless Headphones

Some cozy day essentials I’ve been loving lately… These fleece lined leggings are from Abercombie and the absolute comfiest!! I love the velvety red slogan on this fleece pullover sweatshirt; I feel like you can never have too many of these. During a lazy Sunday, I’m always dressed like this, and I love getting to just focus on myself, totally relax, maybe go through my Spotify Discover weekly playlist, which these rose gold earbuds have been perfect for. They’re really high sound quality, and having them be wireless and work through bluetooth is sooo convenient, especially for when I need to charge my phone. You can use the code “theblondeinpink” to take 15% off if you want to order a pair!

Sunday, I started my day with a Pure Barre class, and wore this cute little Halloween tank!! I got it at Target for under $15; I think it’s sooo funny haha. I also wore my favorite go-to black Alo Yoga leggings, which are the most flattering, comfortable, and highest quality pair that I own. Recently with all the craziness at work, it has been sooo hard to get my butt to the studio. I do a ton of Pure Barre OnDemand videos to compensate; they are identical to a class you would take in person, except you can do them right at home on your own schedule. I really want to get in the habit of going in the morning before I start work at 8 (anyone have any good tips?!), because I definitely prefer it when I can get my workouts out of the way early.

As hard as it might be to get off the couch and go after a long day at work, it always makes me feel SO much better mentally and physically, and I genuinely enjoy being there. It’s the only true “me time” I get. I really need to start making it a priority, even when things in my life get hectic. On a sleepy Sunday morning, going today after a bunch of days off was the absolute best.

Later in the day, we went to Lincoln Park to hang with Fran’s sister and brother-in-law and their pupper Sammy (the Samoyed!) to watch the Bears game. Is he not the cutest in his little Halloween bandana?! It was soo icy outside, and we had a nice, toasty fire going— so ideal!

Francis and I had been wanting to check out this cute little coffee shop in River North called La Bodega del Barrio, for the longest time, and finally decided to go. They’re known for their quirky tile floor, fruity pebbles covered churros, and fun latte art. We both ordered plain lattes and an oreo churro, a s’mores, a nutella, and of course the fruity pebbles (which was our fave!). As usual, our eyes are bigger than our stomachs and it was impossible to finish them all… Really delicious, but incredibly sweet!

Watch (MVMT)

A few weeks back we discovered this pop up pumpkin patch smack in the middle of the city by where we live; I’ve gotten quite a few pumpkins from them, and it always makes for the perfect backdrop. I wore a jacket over this thick crewneck sweater (it’s seriously starting to feel like winter already…) but wanted to show off how cute it is! It comes in a ton of colors, and is currently only $35. I love the darker oatmeal color; it goes with seriously everything. I love it styled with an all black look.

Oatmeal Crewneck Sweater // Black Coated Pants // Leopard Booties // Teddy Bomber Jacket (similar) // Lipstick (MAC Mehr)

Okay so I just HAD to share these pictures of this little section of walk ups I saw in Old Town. They were giving me total Notting Hill meets Chicago vibes! I mean, how adorable are these pastel colored doors with the brick!? And the buildings themselves are just stunning. I love coming across this kind of Chicago charm; there is a ton of it, and it makes me so obsessed with getting to live here! If you’ve never been, I highly suggest you come for a visit to see for yourself. Exploring Chicago neighborhoods and finding new coffee shops, boutiques, restaurants, and the best Instagram backdrops is one of my favorite things to do 🙂 Anyway, we were stopped at a red light in an Uber when I took these; it took every inch of my will power to not jump out for a photo-op. Definitely coming back!