Ding!

That familiar email sound just got a little sweeter…it’s my favorite email of the day!  It arrives like clockwork every day around 11:50 am from the Gilt Groupe.  The Gilt Groupe provides instant access to top designer labels at up to 60% off retail if you’re a member!

Today’s bargains are Balenciaga, Rachel Zoe and accessories for under $75, among other name brand deliciousness.  This opportunity is the reason that I was awkwardly and anxiously backing away from a friendly colleague, trying to chat after our 11 am meeting.  With much excitement and great anticipation, I rush back to my desk to log on, and to my dismay EVERYTHING good is sold out already!  How could this be? I glance at my clock and of course, now it makes sense—it’s 12:10 pm. Those ten minutes trying to get away from my colleague have cost me the opportunity to snag the items I want. Grrr.

Have any of you ever experienced this problem?  Well, I can’t get those Chloe sunglasses from yesterday to magically reappear in your shopping cart, but I can offer some helpful tips on making the most of your Gilt experience. Here they are, give them a try and let me know if it improves your experience!

• Try to be at your computer, ready to shop, at 11:58 AM!
• Once you receive the email log on to the site and at exactly 11:59 am start refreshing the site. 
• Once all the boutiques open, quickly add everything available that you could POSSIBLY want in your size and put it in your shopping cart.   Do NOT waste time thinking about it at this stage–GET IT IN YOUR CART FIRST!
• You will then only have 10 minutes or less to evaluate the contents of your shopping cart and make the final decisions. 

The goal is to throw everything in your cart ASAP while they are still available and then to maximize your time deciding if you want what’s in your cart.  Whether you can afford it or not, that is a different problem that I can’t help you with! 

What I live for!

Jayden & Savyon 

It’s 10:30 am, what’s for lunch today?!!!

From the moment we all wake up to the moment we go to bed we are forced to constantly make decisions.  These decisions range in importance from small to great—for example what should we wear to work… all the way to how much insulin we should dispense to a diabetic child.  (Oh wait, that might just be me!)  One seemingly trivial yet suuuuper important decision that I eagerly anticipate is… what’s for lunch today??!?  The urge usually strikes around 10:30am and much to my colleagues' dismay, doesn’t go away until it’s resolved! 

For anyone in the vicinity of the West 50s, if you haven’t heard of Q2 Thai, then you should definitely check it out!  They have an endless selection of lunch options all for the low low (Manhattan) price of $8.95.  If you add an extra dollar you can add beef, shrimp, or squid.  I know all of you are probably thinking, “that’s pretty standard,” but the deal gets better!  (And no, I don’t work on commission.)   In addition, you get to choose from spring rolls, crab croquette, or steam dumplings, soda, and a small salad.  This girl chooses the Pad See-Ew with Shrimp and the Sprite and unbuttons her jeans while digesting.  Portions are healthy, delivery is fast, employees are friendly, and the packaging is great.  They are hooked up on Seamless and to those of you still with doubts, they get an A rating from the Health Board.  Boom!

Now, I have to admit that I am experiencing some angst about sharing with my readers this insider tip… Don’t all of you go out and take advantage of it at the same time please, because then we’d all be experiencing longer delivery times.  Don’t say I didn’t do anything for you!

F this, F that

Hello, Jenelle Frances here and I will be blogging about two of my biggest passions in life; food and fashion!

A little background on me… I am a wife and mother of two beautiful children, ages 5 and 7.  I was born in NYC and raised in Jackson Heights, Queens.  As you may or may not know, Jackson Heights is known as an actual representation of the “melting pot” because of the many cultures that comprise the neighborhood. Rumor has it that we have some of the best Indian and Latin restaurants in all of the five boroughs, which could explain why I turned out to be such a foodie!  In addition to having some amazing restaurants to satisfy my palate, my mother and father, a Dominican and Ecuadorian respectively, certainly know their way around the kitchen.

My second passion is fashion. Ever since I was a little girl I've always loved everything and anything that had to do with fashion.  Some of my fondest childhood memories (no laughing please) involved setting up a makeshift Macy’s in my childhood bedroom and scanning friends’ make-believe coupons for good deals, while wearing my mother’s high heels. My father knew right away that he was in trouble, since he saw I would be spending a lot of time at the local mall and his plastic was NOT make-believe!

This blog will be dedicated to sharing with you some of the amazing food from local joints in my ‘hood and throughout New York City, as well as an occasional home cooked meal that I've eaten during the day while looking for inspired pieces of clothing and sample sales in the place that is called the Big Apple. I hope you enjoy it!