Near Mid-West Report

Yeah, yeah, yeah, so I'm a bit of a slacker. Pardon me for working.

I have a quick report on the Near-Mid-West (yes, MotorCityGirl, I know it's not really the Mid-West)...

Pittsburgh - in love. Not NYC-in-love, but Pittsburgh is really a great city. Other than being a place where they apparently breed gorgeous people (H & I both have whiplash - I'm not kidding...and they grow 'em big & strong out there), highlights are a home-grown body care shop (I'll share the link shortly) with fresh-made scrubs & lotions, dinner at Lidia's, a South Side bar crawl (Elixir & Town Tavern), and Saddle Ridge (I finally dragged H into a country bar!). We weren't there long enough or during regular shopping hours, so I can't give a style shopping review, but there were several potential spots on the South Side. Babsie D? Any tips for the Pittsburg-bound?

Cleveland - No shopping to report, but we did have a wonderful dinner on Lake Erie at Pier W. H remembers it as an old-school lakeside restaurant complete with rustic ship paraphanalia. No longer. It's a sleek, warm, elegant way to do fish & seafood. Live jazz doesn't hurt either. Cleveland's (crap! I can't remember the name of the 'hood! I'll have to ask H & let you know) neighborhood has 100s of little galleries, but I didn't spot much in the way of clothing, shoes, or accessories.

Cincinnati - Mother load. Again, we were on the interstate during regular shopping hours, but our friends' nearby "main street" area had 3-5 boutiques on its own, not to mention the other 'hoods they showed us. SkatingMom swears by a couple of the nearby consignment shops for dresses, in particular. And since since Princess Ellie (all of us girls were dubbed princesses by the cutest nearly 3-year old in the entire world) is, in fact, the cutest nearly 3-year-old in the world, we'll be back to visit. What could be better than combining a weekend of playing princess with shopping?

And as far as the on-the-street fashion, I'm sorry to report that it's nothing to write home about - hence the lack of mobile blogging last weekend. Predictable, but not nearly as drab as "they" say the middle of our country is. Tunics & long, layered Ts were all over, to the point where I nearly asked someone if they all go shopping in the exact. same. store. Jeans were boot- or straight-cut, not skinny, and jeans skirts were de rigueur.

Of all the nightspots, Elixir boasted the most interesting choices, including a pair of white pants on a very tiny (read: short and very skinny) woman cuffed long & unevenly. It caught my eye (she also happened to be stunning, and apparently was sporting a new 'do, based on the way her friends were hugging her and patting her head), and I first thought it was accidental and to prevent white pants from getting muddy on the rainy night. Maybe that was part of it, but she was otherwise well-clad (brown & white pop-arty-patterned top, sleek, choppy 'do), so it made me think she might have been purposeful in her asymmetrical folds. Gutsy, at any rate.