Road Trip to Nashville

I just spent the weekend in Nashville with some of my girlfriends and I am in love with the city! There is so much to do, see, and eat in Nashville that one weekend was just not enough. We seemed to have lucked out on this trip. We had originally made reservations for Sheraton, but there was a maintenance issue and we got reassigned to the Omni. Sheraton also took care of the cost and all we paid was for parking. How awesome was that?! Thanks Sheraton! The trip was amazing all around. Check out some of the places I visited...

This is the itinerary. There was a lot that we wanted to do and having a schedule made us much more time efficient. I love spreadsheets!

Did you know you can plot all your destinations in Google Maps and share the page via a URL? This is a must for all future trips!

This was my lunch at the Southern, burger and shrimp and grits. This was my first time trying grits and I am a fan! Tip #1: Make reservations #2: Take advantage of the free valet.

Broadway Street is a large tourist area and a great place head for a night out in the town.

Next are few pictures of a replica of the Parthenon. It was beautiful and I loved it's random location in the middle of Nashville.

This my pork tenderloin from Etch. It was one of the best meals I've had in a while and there was not so much as a drop of sauce left on the plate when I was done. A-MAZING!

I found this beautfiul gem in Germantown next to Monelle's. There was something very serene about this house. And look, a pretty cat!

This is inside the lounge of the Icon apartment building in the Gulch area. If anyone is familiar with the show Nashville, you might recognize this in show.

Nashville is quickly growing and I can see why. I can't wait to return!

Travel Laundry Bag (Basic Drawstring Bag)

I'm a bit of a clean freak, so when I travel I always make sure to bring extra grocery bags to keep my dirty clothes separate from my clean clothes. I recently bought some nylon travel bags for my shoes and that gave me the idea to make a large travel laundry bag for my clothes. I have a mini road trip coming up at the end of the month, so it would be a perfect time to use it. It is basically just a large drawstring bag that fits a weekend's worth of bags. The drawstring is continuous, so it does not need to be tied on each side. Just pull from the sides and the bag will scrunch close. This also makes it fold away nicely. Alternatively, you can use this tutorial to make bags for any use and any size.

Materials:

• (1) 28x18" lightweight fabric with short end cut on the fold (will measure 56x18") - body
• (1) 1.5x36" strip of fabric - drawstring

Instructions:

• Fold the strip in half long wise with right sides together and press.
• Sew the long side together and turn right side out.

• Fold the bag piece right side together. Iron down 1" of the tops for the drawstring casing (wrong sides together).
• Fold in 1/4" of the casing openings to prevent frays, press, and sew. You need to just hem enough to cover the area used for the casing.

• Sew the casings in place. Be sure to leave enough room for the drawstring to go through.

• Sew the sides of the bag together. (I used pinking shears on all exposed edges.) 

• Attach a safety pin to one of the drawstring and use it to push the drawstring through both casings. You should end up with the both ends of the drawstring next to each other.
• Sew the ends of the drawstring together by inserting one end inside the opening of the other. Tuck 1/4" of outer piece under and sew in place. (I was a little eager and had already closed the ends of my string in the picture above.) 

• Turn the bag right side out and pack in your luggage for your next trip!