Monday, June 20, 2011

Girls' Night Out Idea: Shopping "Social" and Dessert

This time of the year can be rough because my MOPS group doesn't hold meetings during the summer, and I miss the connections I made. My friend Christy and I signed up to plan "Outside Events" for the 2011-2012 year; which means we'll be in charge of directing Moms' Nights Out and also coming up with a fun Mom/Kid Event each month. We thought it would be a great idea to host events over the summer to keep the moms connected, and we started June off with a bang!

Our local Charming Charlie store agreed to host an after-hours "shopping social" for our group last Sunday evening, and we had an absolute ball wandering the store (kid free!) for a glorious hour or so. The manager had a small table with refreshments set up, but I was we were so excited by all of the sparkly jewelry and the knowledge that we'd get 20% off our purchases that we scarcely noticed the cookies and water bottles at first!

I've talked about my own Charming Charlie experience before, but if you've never been to one, it's like walking into a small and very sparkly corner of heaven. The feeling I get when walking in can only be described as a cross between giddiness and the Hallelujah chorus.

What? You don't feel that way about shopping?


























I love that everything is arranged by color, so you don't have to cross the store three times in order to find the perfect turquoise necklace to match those earrings. Even better, the jewelry is so affordable (most sets run around $15) that you don't feel bad for picking up a couple of pairs of earrings and you don't have to tell T your husband that everything was on sale and you only spent "like maybe $12."


We had the best time browsing, but also just trying out accessories and being silly, because Christy and I never do stuff like that. (If you believe that, please don't read any of the other posts detailing our Lucy and Ethel-like hijinks)



Other people, like my sister-in-law (SuSu), managed to be mature and shop without acting like a pair of twelve year olds dropped off at the mall by their moms.



























When we almost dropped from all the shopping, we headed down the sidewalk to a nice little Italian restaurant for dessert. The lighting was dim, so please forgive the pics with my old point and shoot, but I so enjoyed relaxed conversation and getting to know some ladies I don't always have a chance to chat with. We had about 16 ladies attend, which is not a lot for a group of 80, but a pretty good turnout for a Sunday evening during the summer break!


























If you think I ordered anything other than the lone chocolate dish on the dessert menu, then you are sorely mistaken, and I'm not sure we can be friends.


























If you also think I was able to shop without resisting the lure of the sparkles or the 20% off, you are dead wrong.

Charming Charlie usually has a "clearance wall," and adding my 20% off to the clearance prices ensured some great deals. I got a couple of really nice earring/necklace sets that I'll be saving for Christmas gifts, but I can't show you those because the recipients may or may not read this post and also I didn't take pictures of the buy.

For moi, I chose some super shiny things that called my name:

As I've said before, the pieces you can pick up at Charming Charlie are not heirloom pieces. They are trendy and I wouldn't expect them to last beyond a season or two...but if you keep that in mind when shopping, you can have some fun!

I think that regardless of whether you are a mom or a wife or a single girl, spending time with girlfriends is important and necessary...we all need social time!

{What do you like to do for Girls' Night Out?}

22 comments:

  1. It looks like you had a fabulous time, and you had chocolate. Glad to see so many of you were able to make the dinner.

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  2. Went in my first Charming Charlie while attendning a wedding in Dallas in April. We don't have it here in Michigan. It was seriously amazing. I had like 10 minutes to grab something to match my wedding ensemble, and there is no way to scour that place in 10 minutes! Too big! Sounds like a fun girl's night out! I need one of those soon.

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  3. I've only been to Charming Charlie once, but my reaction was similar to yours--giddy with delight. That sounds like SUCH a fun time with your friends!!

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  4. How fun! I should think about doing something like this for the ladies at my church. Did you have to pay a fee? I love the sets you got! Looks like you scored some cute things :-)

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  5. How did I not know I had one of these stores in my town? I googled it, and I do! I will have to be checking that out for sure! Of course, school's out, so this will involve eye rolls from my 9-yr-old son while my daughter and I have fun browsing the sparkly stuff! I also just noticed you live in VA too. Are you by any chance near Richmond? Looks like you girls had fun!

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  6. Ok dont gasp out loud when I tell you Ive never heard of that store before. We just dont have them here. But wow, it looks like a great place(esp for finding gifts!) so Im very jealous.
    And I dont know if Ive suggested this to you yet or not. I used to lead my local MOPS group here and early on we set up a yahoo groups site so we could stay in touch in between our bi-monthly meetings, including the summer when there were no meetings at all. We were such a close knit group and we needed each other all the time. So someone sets up the group and then others go in and sign up also(you can also make it by invite only, which keeps spammers and perverts outta the loop as to where you're gonna be for your next playdate,BTW!). It couldnt have been a better idea and to this day they still have the groups site. When I send out an email to the mops group, everyone in the group sets the email at the same time. Talk about an amazing resource! We post playdates, MOms night out, great yard sales we find or ones we're having, MOPS events, swimming parties,etc... Im tellin ya...you're missing out if you havent done this yet! And you hvae a big group(ours was only about 20 moms when we started, now theyre nearing 40) so it would be really helpful for your group I think. Just my two cents:)
    xo,
    Sarah

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  7. That looks like such a fun time Amanda! I love the purple set you bought. I don't think there is a store like that around here, but I'm heading over to make sure...it looks like the perfect place to hit up after a girls trip for pedicures:)

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  8. I love that store! The color coordination is a huge appeal to me too although sometimes I get totally overwhelmed in there and can only look in awe.

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  9. O'ma goodness girl! I'm IN LOVE with Charming Charlie. Never heard of them before now but I MUST find one!! Looks like you had a great girls night out Amanda! xoxo

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  10. that looks like so much fun, and LOTS of sparkly treasures. your new earrings are fab!

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  11. This looks like the perfect girls night out! I've never heard of Charming Charlie, but it looks fabulous!! It looks like you girls had a lot of fun. :)

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  12. looks like you ladies had a great time--that store looks amazing! and those desserts..oh my..i think it's time for my afternoon "treat" i mean "snack" :)

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  13. Fun fun! CC always overwhelms me, it is too hard to choose! lol

    You got some pretty things, I love those earrings!!

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  14. That store looks so fun - and I don't mind trendy fashion jewelry - if my taste/trends change, I enjoy taking it apart and making new stuff with the beads. I *love* all the chandeliers hanging in the store...wish there was one near me so I could check it out in person.

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  15. What a great idea for a mamas' night out! We have a CC by us, too, so I'm going to keep that in mind. My mama friends and I make it top priority to go out once a month for our own sanity! We usually choose a local restaurant that has gotten good reviews (no chain restaurants usually), have a few drinks, and laugh like high school girls again. Last month the manager came to our table and said that a few tables complained that we were being too loud so she asked us to move to the patio. It was really hilarious. It's definitely a highlight of my month.

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  16. Fun, fun, fun!
    I think I heard that we are getting our first Charming Charlie soon...can't wait!

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  17. That sounds like a blast!! How cool of the store to host that for you ladies!!! Right now our girls nights are wedding focused... but always super fun!

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  18. I discovered the wonder that is Charming Charlie's just a few weeks ago. I would be embarrassed to admit how much I spent in there if not for the fact that I've done next to nothing for myself since my injury.

    Let's just say, I am now WELL accessorized! :-D

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  19. This looks like so much fun. I miss my MOPS over the summer too. I'll have to find a way to get the girls together soon.

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  20. this loos amazing!! we don't have that store!! i have a girls night out EVERY week! my husband is great! we usuallyshop a little an EAT a lot!!!
    www.moddybee.blogspot.com

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  21. This looks like such a fun night--y'all were so smart to approach the store with this idea! I'm sure the manager was delighted to have a bunch of you girls in for a special time of shopping. I wish there were one of those stores around here! Maybe I need to plan a trip to northern VA. :)

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  22. Glad you had such a fun night out! You found some really cute things. I'm loving the colorful, chunky jewelry that is so popular now. I'll have to admit that the best thing about your post was the picture of the dessert. Boy, that looks so very good.

    I haven't had a girls night out in a while. The last one was bargain Margarita night at the local mexican restaurant. A tableful of ladies enjoying good conversation and a tasty Margarita makes for a fun time.

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