I know that it’s been a month since I actually went to Chicago. That whole Christmas break thing got in the way of a timely post!!

I had an amazing time in Chicago last month for my sister’s bachelorette party. We got facials, did yoga, had our hair done, ate delicious food, and went to an amazing restaurant/club for the actual party. A couple of quick reviews:

Imagine, A Yoga Studio. You may remember when I first discovered these guys over the summer. They play the coolest music, employ knowledgeable instructors, and have challenging yet accessible classes, all in a lovely setting. Highly recommend!!

Continuum. My younger sister managed to snag Groupons for facials at this place, and it was fantastic. My skin felt amazing, and it was great to get pampered before our night on the town!!

Robert Jeffrey Salon. We all got blowouts for our big night, and I have to say we looked pretty darn good. My sister used to be a stylist, and she thought these guys did a great job on us.

Nacional 27. This place was AMAZING. The food is fantastic–a mix of Mexican, Caribbean, and South American. The drinks are delicious. Not only was my caipirinha great, but the margarita was also incredibly good. And I live in Texas, and am a bit of a margarita snob. High praise from me. Then, at 11pm, the music gets louder, the waiters come and move tables out of the way, and it is turned into a Latin dance club!! We had so much fun dancing the night away. If you’re ever in Chicago, you have to go here!! You will not regret it. Make a reservation if you’re going on a Saturday.

You may be wondering how I handled the cold. Well, I’m not going to lie. It was COLD. Super duper cold. I did not end up purchasing a puffy coat (although I am definitely getting one during the end of the season sales). Here is how I survived:

• Layers. I had no less than three layers on at all times. A long sleeve tee-shirt, a sweater, and my wool coat on top with long johns, jeans, and knee-length socks on the bottom. It was a bit cumbersome at times, for sure. And the long johns kept making my jeans slip down. But I was relatively warm!
• Doubling up. At all times I had on two scarves, two hats, two pairs of gloves, and two pairs of socks. That way there was no skin ever exposed to that nasty wind except for my face. Both scarves I wore were knitted, but I had on fleece gloves under my knitted fingerless gloves and a fleece hat under my knitted hat. I was as protected as I could be!
• Cross-body purse. There was no way I could have fit my normal purse over all of my layers, so I traveled light used a small cross body clutch for my phone, keys, chapstick, money, and ID.

Yes, it took me three times to get ready as my sisters. They would have to give me a fifteen minute warning any time we left, because it literally took me that long to prepare myself for the outdoors. But I was reasonably comfortable the entire time, which I was very grateful for. Even though the high on the day that I left was 14. The only time I was every really cold was when we were actually going to bachelorette dinner, and I had on one layer (tights, boots, dress, sweater) plus my coat. The van cab that was supposed to come get us never came (jerks), and we had to walk down to Clark to hail two cabs. But that was not very long, and then I certainly warmed up at Nacional 27. Overall, a great weekend! I can’t wait to go back.

PS: For those of you who have asked what dress I wore to the actual wedding, here it is! Destined for Stardom from ModCloth. It was amazingly beautiful.