For those of us who are avid bargain hunters there’s a new travel site just for us. Voyij (pronounced “voyage”) comes from the creators of SideStep and scours the web for the best travel deals. Other sites send out travel deal alerts but most don’t tell you what days you need to travel to actually get the advertised specials.

I tried out Voyij by looking for all the roundtrip flights for the next 2 weeks that originated from my home airport and cost less than $200.

After I used the filtering options to indicate the most I wanted to pay, it quickly filtered thousands of initial deal results down to 11 sales that fit what I was looking for. Seattle, San Diego, Las Vegas, and Chicago were some of the destinations – so many fun places to visit! With each sale I could see the dates I would need to travel to qualify for the deal. Voyij is free, easy to use and includes deals and specials on airfares, hotels and vacation packages.

See: Voyij.com

Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day – one of the great holidays featuring two of my favorite things in this world – flowers and chocolate! 

As tradition goes for this romantic holiday, many of you lucky ones will be receiving flowers from an admirer.  To help you understand the symbolism and meaning of the flowers you receive, here’s a guide to the language of flowers.

Ever wish your travel outfit could look as good when you disembark from the plane as when you boarded?  Well, here are some wrinkle resistant travel dresses which are versatile, comfortable and most importantly look good on!  You can wear the same outfit on the plane, at the beach and even out to dinner.   To dress up, just add jewelry or a scarf.

For one option, check out SkirtSports’ Footloose Dress.  This sporty dress has a built-in shelf bra, V-neck and flattering empire waistband.  SkirtSports was founded by Nicole DeBoom, who has won several triathlons across the country.  Wanting to look good even during her work outs, Nicole created a whole line a sporty tanks, skirts and swim suits that are both functional and stylish.

Another great travel outfit option is Patagonia’s Morning Glory dress.  This dress is made of jersey knit that feels great on and doesn’t wrinkle.  With a flattering cut and halter-style neck, this dress can be easily adjusted to different bust sizes.

For a couple of other options check out The Territory Ahead site.  Their Sojourner Dress and the Vintage Moderne Dress are also resistant to wrinkles.  The Vintage Moderne dress is made of Tencel – a fairly new natural fiber which feels and drapes like silk but is actually made of wood pulp cellulose.   Glad they’re putting that wood pulp to good use!

Links:  SkirtSports  |  Patagonia   |  The Territory Ahead

Planning a trip in the next few weeks?  You may or may not enjoy going where the crowds are.  Before you decide, check out this year’s top ten Spring Break destinations:

1. Destin, Florida
2. Disney World
3. Myrtle Beach
4. South Padre Island
5. Cancun
6. Key West
7. Gulf Shores, Alabama
8. Lake Tahoe
9. Outer Banks of North Carolina
10. Honolulu

via weather.com

Valentines Day is right around the corner – which of course brings to mind some of my favorite things: flowers and chocolate! 

The red rose, which in flower language means true love, is the most popular flower bought by men on Valentine’s Day. I was recently told about some roses that claim to be the world’s tallest at over 5 feet.  Grown near volcanoes in Ecuador, the climate is apparently ideal for these organic roses.  Even at $250 per dozen, the roses are sold out for the month of February.  For details see Organic Bouquet. 

One of the most striking boxes of chocolates I’ve seen recently is from Godiva’s jewel-toned G Hearts collection. Not only are these hearts gorgeous, they also come in flavors like Passion orange, Tahitian vanilla, Lemon Drop, Mexican hot chocolate and Bananas foster.  Yum! 

If you’re looking for a local chocolate maker to buy something for your valentine, check out this handy chocolate finding site.

Links:  Godiva   |   Language of flowers  

Thanksgiving is just a few days away and is the perfect opportunity for those of you who aspire to be a pastry queen.  Pie, the traditional dessert for Thanksgiving, is probably the easiest pastry you can make.

For pie purists, the crust is a key element, so whatever you do, don’t start with a frozen pie crust.  If you don’t want to hunt for a rolling pin, use what other pastry chefs use in a pinch. The refrigerated Pillsbury all-ready pie crust is about as close as you can get to homemade with a store bought crust.

Here are some of my favorite pie and tart recipes – most have been served in our family for years.  Try these out and you’re sure to move one step closer to being the pastry queen in your circle of family and friends. (more…)

Recently I read a book that made me think of vacations in a brand new way.  Most of my vacations in the past have focused on family and relaxation. The vacations described in the book, The 100 Best Vacations to Enrich Your Life, focus on improving yourself and the world.  Author Pam Grout describes arts & crafts getaways, volunteer vacations, learning retreats and wellness escapes designed to give you an expanded perspective on life. 

If you’re looking to become more creative, you could paint at Georgia O’Keeffe’s ranch, make a film in New York City, or design your dream home in Frank Lloyd Wright’s studio.  These are just a small sampling of the creative opportunities listed in the book.

For volunteer vacations, you could pick orchids or harvest coffee beans at an organic farm in Hawaii, protect loggerhead sea turtles on Georgia’s sea coast, or help unearth history at Mount Vernon.

For an educational retreat, you could learn about marine science and bird life at a remote research island in Maine, learn Spanish in a quaint village in Mexico, or choose from over 1200 summer seminars at an idyllic New York learning institution.

There are several options listed in the wellness escapes section – yoga retreat destinations and historic spas being among them.

According to Pam, most people want “to contribute, to create and to grow”.  If that’s true for you, this book will give you a wealth of ideas for your next vacation.

Amazon link

Are you curious about which cocktails are popular with celebs this season?  InStyle magazine did some research and created a photo gallery of some of the celebrity favorites, along with drink recipes. 

Try one of these fun cocktails at your next summer get together and dazzle your friends with your mixology skills!

• Angry Dragon - Jessica Biel
• Pomegranate Martini - Madonna
• Red Pearl - Rebecca Romijn
• Peach Passion - Gisele Bündchen
• Demeter - Teri Hatcher
• Raspberry Cheesecake - George Clooney
• Pomegranate Blossom - Charlize Theron
• Pink Elephant - Eva Mendes
• Passionate Saketini - Kate Hudson

[via InStyle Magazine]