SHADES OF PINK AT IMAGERY ESTATE WINERY

Nothing is more depressing than weeding through Sonoma photos when you are freezing your ass off in this cold Chicago weather.  I can barely remember what this day felt like... probably because The Hubster and I got so wasteypants this day and passed out on the grass under the sun.  This was the day we went to Imagery Estate Winery, which is a spin off from the Benziger Family Winery.  One of the brothers of the second generation decided to start his own winery to venture off of the classic wines that Benziger produces.  Imagery experiments with different flavors and wines which are equally as yummy.  The best part about going to Benziger for a wine tour is that they give you a free voucher for a tasting at Imagery.  And the tasting at Imagery was amazing!  The girl helping us just kept pouring wine after wine after wine.  BEST EVER!  After procuring a hefty buzz, we each purchased a glass of our faves, grabbed some salami, cheese, and crackers, and proceeded to the outdoor seating area on the lawn of the estate.  What happens next is a pretty classic DOS and Hubster moment and one that I crack up about in my head sometimes. 

How gorgeous is this dog?!  Thanks for posing for the camera!

Gawd I feel like this was all I ate every day!

This is the exact spot where we fell asleep.  I remember sitting and being silly drunk with the hubs and wanting to take a picture of him lying down next to the metal balls.  Yes, I am THAT immature.  When I crawled up to him to show him the picture, I realized that he was already snoozing.  Then I tried to take selfies of us as he was sleeping because I just found that soooooo amusing.  The whole time I was trying to take selfies, I was actually in video mode.  Resulting in some super awkward video clips of me just staring into the camera in various selfie face poses.  Once I realized what I did, I proceeded to crack up at myself TO myself for about 10 minutes.  Then, I too, passed out on the grass.  Luckily we woke up right before the sun went down and before the winery closed.  I gotta say, it was a pretty awesome day.

Tee - Juicy Couture  |  Shorts - Brandy Melville  |  Shoes - Converse  |  Hat - DA BULLS!  Sunnies - Marc by Marc Jacobs  |  Bag - Michelle Tan

Photos by The Hubster

xoxo,

DOS

SHOULDER ACTION

Finally, a little fashion fix!  Sorry it took so long to get an outfit post up.  The Hubster injured himself and has been out of commission as my photographer lately.  Even this shoot was a bit of a struggle but he is a champ for trying.  And he did a mighty fine job if you ask me.  By the way, his real name is Tek.  One of my readers caught my woopsie of writing down his name on the last post.  Hahaha.  I'm pretty sure he doesn't care if his name is revealed.  By the way, are there any Chicago photogs that wants to help me out with some shoots.  Just for funsies.  =)

This particular day was super fun because we met up my bestie and her sis at Fireplace Inn for their Tuesday special of 1/2 off appetizers from 5-7pm and 1/2 off bottles of wine ALL NIGHT.  That last part being the most dangerous on a Tuesday night.  I will suggest that they specify that the King Crab Legs that are on the "Appetizer" section is NOT included in this special.  That was a huge "womp womp" moment for us when we found out.  It would have been worse if we found out when we got there but me and my infinite wisdom called to ask because it just sounded too good to be true.  And yea, it was.  But everything else was delish!  Especially the 5 bottles of wine.  Yikes.  We took full on advantage of their special and pretty much ordered the whole appetizer side of the menu like total champs.  And we got to do it while sitting in their outdoor area and enjoying the last bits of summer.

In honor of the last bits of summer, I decided to rock a shoulder cut out blazer.  It's such a fun and sexy design and hellooooooo, love the color!  Hehehe... there is still time to rock the neons everyone!  The weather was perfect for this top and I was really glad it had the sleeves when the sun came down.  I'm trying really hard not to get depressed that the sun is setting sooner and sooner.  It's the most depressing scene working a full work day and then stepping out of the office into darkness.  I plan to savor as much sun as I have left and I hope everyone else is too.  So back to the outfit.  I love this tank that I got from Edith Hart on sizzzaale during their style gif event!  Woot!  It makes me feel very slinky and delicate.  Does that make sense?  And the jeans.  Wow, I was immediately drawn to the bleached look and random color stains.  They of course are too long and I will eventually get them altered.  There was just way too much material so the rolled up part looks super thick.  Me no likie that.  I also finally found a chunky chain necklace that fits well on me.  Woot!  It was one of my awesome finds at the Vintage Garage this summer.  I got a bunch of gold pieces for a total of $30.  Digital high five!  Anyhoozah, thanks for reading!  Let me know what you think of the look.

Blazer - Nasty Gal  |  Tank Top - Paper Crown (purchased at Edith Hart)  |  Jeans - Blank NYC (sale!)  |  Shoes - Nasty Gal  |  Necklace - Vintage (similar)  |  Bag - Stella McCartney  |  Bracelets - Stella & Dot, broken House of Harlow Cuff, Express  |  Earrings - Top Shop

UPDATE:
Please visit my bestie and her sis' blog DEUX CHICAGO
She managed to keep this blog a secret from me for an entire year!  What the crap is THAT about!?!  She outed her blog to me on a drunken night out and I wish I had a video of how she said it.  These two are not only a beautiful sister duo, they are witty as hell.  Give them lots o' love!

UPDATE #2:
For all the Instagram followers who left me comments asking about the shoes =)
I originally got them from NastyGal.  I think they sold out a while ago.  I hunted for them online for you guys!  Here are the different sites I found and in different colors and styles!  I will tell you, these shoes are comfortable because of the very minimal arch and high front platform.  YAY!

SHOP THIS SHOE

xoxo,

DOS

WRAP AND TIE AND WINE

Hey y'all!  I'm back from Texas.  Feels good to be home.  Texas was really really hot but the wedding was entirely indoors so it worked out.  The ceremony was very touching.  I couldn't help but admire the way the groom was looking at the bride.  He was cheesing the entire time.  LOVES IT!  Hahahaha...

These photos were from about a week and a half ago when I attended an event held at the James Hotel that was so perfect for me for three big reasons.  One, it was to benefit Hubbard Street Dance, which is an amazing dance company that performs contemporary dance shows in Chicago.  (Show your support by attending a show or two!)  Two, it was also a wine tasting event hosting many different wine makers from all over the country.  You all know how much I LOOOOOOOVE wine.  Three, The Hubster won the tickets to the event!  I'm not quite sure why we are winning things lately, but I really hope our lucky streak continues.  Thanks so much to Cheeky Chicago for being a part of this event and giving us a chance to win these amazing event tickets.  If you want to know where all the fun events are and just anything Chicago related, visit their website and follow them on twitter @cheekychicago.

This particular event was on a weekday right after work which is always a little challenging because I don't want to be in my stuffy work gear at a fun wine tasting event.  So I just whipped out my amazing Calvin Tran piece.  This "dress" can also be worn low as a skirt.  You can also change up where you want the pleats and bow to be.  There are no rules with this one.  If you are in the Chicago Lincoln Park area, stop by his store on Halsted.  Maybe you'll run into him and he'll dress you.  It's pretty fun and he is hilarious.

OH!  And I also rolled up to the event in an UBER SUV.  If you don't know what UBER is, well then, educate yoself!  UBER is a great way to get around the city if you are just not in the mood to hail a cab and also get yelled at for wanting to use a credit card.  With UBER, you just use your phone to order your ride.  It comes to you and you get charged via your account so there is no mess about having to have cash or even a credit card.  This particular week, they were giving out free rides for new members.  It was the perfect time for me to use it because I needed to get to the James Hotel from my office.  The driver was there within 2 minutes and I hopped into an SUV with black tinted windows.  I kind of felt like a Kardashian.  They are always in an SUV with black tinted windows no?  Either way, I felt so BOSS!  I suggest everyone take an UBER ride.  Like, NOW!

Excuse the glow in the dark bracelet.  Lol.  It was what they gave us to wear as VIP guests.  Woot!  You know we VIPs, we love to glow.  Bwahahaha.

Dress - Calvin Tran  |  Shoes - Shoemint  |  Earrings - House of Harlow  |  Cuff - Forever 21  |  Bag - Rebecca Minkoff

Okay, no joke.  I sampled almost every wine in the room and ended up here for the rest of the night.  Nello Olivo had tastings of some of the best red wines I've ever had.  It was so smooth and didn't have that minor bite you sometimes get when the wine hits the back of your throat.  Once I had his wines, I couldn't go back to any other table.  Which ones were my favorites?  Why I am glad you asked:  2007 Toscanello, 2008 Petite Syrah, 2007 Sangiovese and a secret one not yet available for sale which I think was a Sagrantino.  I hope I remembered all of them correctly.  I was super wobbly by the end of the night.  Hahaha.  I encourage you to join their wine club or order a few bottles to try.  You will NOT be disappointed.  His wines make me want to sit out in the open air on a nice 75 degree day with a book and just ignore the world.  

Here is Nello himself along with his beautiful daughter and her husband.  Thanks for showing us a fabulous time and sharing your amazing wines!  I will be placing a large order very soon!

-DOS