Sassy Southern Blonde

A Fashion & Lifestyle Blog by Kelsie Bynum

Top 5 Favorite Podcasts + Why I LOVE Them

MY FAVORITE PODCASTSCrime Junkie

My #1 holy grail podcast is without a doubt Crime Junkie! I started listening to it over a year ago, and it’s become my favorite podcast for long car rides! I am such a scaredy cat, so playing it while I’m alone at night on a highway in another state probably isn’t the smartest! Lol. Once I caught up to the current episodes, I was actually sad because I loved binging them. My favorite ones are the cases classified as missing because they’re extra spooky since they’re unsolved!

Culpable

After Crime Junkie, Culpable easily takes the cake! If this podcast had more episodes, it would be a solid tie. Culpable hits very close to home, literally. The story is about a guy from Meridian, Mississippi (45 minutes up the Interstate from my hometown of Laurel) who was murdered, but the local law enforcement labeled it a suicide. This all happened back in 2014, but the story of Christian Andreacchio has only recently caught national attention because of Culpable podcast! I never knew any of this was going on until a few months ago, and it was happening so close to me. Insane!

Up & Vanished

I might need to clarify that my favorite Up & Vanished is the first season about Tara Grinstead! It was one of the first crime podcasts I ever listened to and still a favorite of mine. Payne Lindsay is the guy telling Tara’s story throughout the podcast, and I could listen to him all day. He has a great voice that makes you want to focus on the case! Lol. Tara’s story was super crazy with men coming out of the woodwork every episode. It’s a great one if you’re a newbie podcaster!

True Crime Obsessed

This is my lesser favorite of the crime podcasts I mentioned, but the two hosts are hilarious! The best episode from them is definitely their coverage of Fyre Festival. They were roasting all the people from the documentary! I also like that you don’t have to listen to the episodes in order because each one has a new case. I should mention they joke and laugh a lot, so I personally enjoy them making light of the situation/case! It could offend some, though. Lol!

The Viall Files

If I’m listening to podcasts, they’re 90% crime related. But, I also have a reality tv addiction so that’s where my low key love of The Viall Files comes in. It’s funny because Nick Viall was one of my least favorite bachelors of all time; however, I am such a fan of his podcast! He has made me totally change my opinion of him. I even listen to his podcast before Ben Higgins and Ashley I! That’s saying something! HA

XOXO

Kels

MIAMI TRAVEL GUIDE + OUTFIT RECAP

BIG PINK OUTFIT #1

BIG PINK OUTFIT #2

SOUTH BEACH SWIMSUIT #1

SOUTH BEACH SWIMSUIT #2

WYNWOOD OUTFIT #1

WYNWOOD OUTFIT #2

DRESS (Similar HERE and HERE)

ROOFTOP SWIMSUIT #1

ROOFTOP SWIMSUIT #2

DREAMER CAFE OUTFIT #1

DREAMER CAFE OUTFIT #2

ROMPER (Similar HERE)

I had so many great recommendations for Miami, and we tried to do as much as we could! Maxie and I flew in Thursday, Karli met us Friday morning, and we left Sunday. It was definitely a quick trip, but we got some amazing content! We stayed in an up and coming area called Wynwood, which I’m sure you guys know about if you’re familiar with Miami. I highly recommend Domio for a hotel because it has all the apartment vibes with the amenities of a hotel! It’s also a block from Wynwood Walls and other popular restaurants.

Maxie and I had a late lunch at Coyo Taco near there with some bomb guacamole! Dinner was my favorite, though. The restaurant was called Beaker & Gray and it was phenomenal! Since Portland, Maxie has me on such a tapas kick! I loved every dish she talked me into splitting with her. Lol!

On Friday, we had brunch at Big Pink! I’d be lying if I said the cute pink building didn’t play a part in our decision! Hahah. Luckily, the food tasted great too! I ordered the French toast, which is always a safe bet. Next, we headed to South Beach! We stayed there for a while snapping cute photos in front of the famous lifeguard stands. I thought the beach was pretty for a gloomy day in February!

I forgot to mention that there was an adorable mini pie shop called Pink Pie by our hotel! The red velvet and key lime were both delish. Maxie and I ended up going there twice! Lol. We had dinner at Swan Friday night. I was obsessed with this place because it was so chic and had lots of pink in the decor! 🙂

On Saturday, we shot at Domio most of the morning! The rooftop pool was beautiful. I had several people recommend we go to Dreamer at some point, and I’m glad we did. It’s such an Instagram spot, and the food was good! I think I need some flamingo wallpaper in my house! Haha. And we couldn’t go to Miami without visiting the Design District! We even went as far as ordering a $14 coffee with the Dior logo on it. No regrets! Lol.

Our last spot for dinner was Michael’s Genuine! It had great reviews, and the burger was perfect. The service wasn’t anything to write home about, though. It’s also located in the Design District! Such a cool area. You’re bound to see a Rolls Royce or two! 🙂

A few other recommendations that we didn’t get to were Prime 112, Mr. Chow, Joe’s Snow Crab, Yardbird Southern, Gianni Versace Mansion, Midtown Creamery, Pura Vida, Nikki Beach, and The Salty Donut to name a few!

XOXO

Kels

AMAZON HAUL FOR FEBRUARY

SWEATSHIRT *SIMILAR* (Size: SM)

TOP *BACK IN STOCK* (Size: SM) | SKIRT (Size: SM)

TOP *BACK IN STOCK* (Size: SM) | SKIRT (Size: XS)

DRESS (Size: SM)

DRESS (Size: SM)

DRESS (Size: XS)

SWIMSUIT (Size: SM)

CHRISTMAS IN NEW YORK CITY (2 MONTHS LATER LOL)

Always, ALWAYS late to the party! Lol. After we returned from our trip to NYC in December, I hit the ground running with Christmas content. Somehow, I totally forgot to recap everything in a blog post! Most of the places we ate and things we did are available year round in New York City, so that’s why I decided to go ahead and publish this two months later! I promise I’ll do better with my Miami travel guide. Haha!

We arrived in the city at 11am on Tuesday, and flew out Friday night. I highly recommend this because we had Tuesday afternoon and essentially all of Friday but only paid for a 3 night stay! Another helpful tip is having an itinerary. I don’t think you need one for every trip/city, but NYC is a MUST in my opinion! Most restaurants require a reservation, and they fill up quickly. There’s so much to do, and you will waste a lot of time trying to create a game plan!

Our itinerary was pretty incredible, and ended up working perfectly! (Thanks Meag lol) The three of us on the trip each chose our favorite NYC spots, and then Meagan created our schedule from there!

After we checked into our hotel, we went to Pietro Nolita in Soho! I have only taken photos at this famous spot, but we decided to try out the food too. Very delicious! Next was Grand Central Station. Mainly to pretend I was Serena van der Woodsen at the top of the stairs! 🙂 We also snagged some banana pudding at Magnolia Bakery and red velvet doughnuts at Doughnut Plant! Did I eat these both within 10 minutes? Absolutely! Lol. We ended the night with reservations at Beauty & Essex! It was my first time and such a cool vibe!

I really wanted to do things in NYC that I hadn’t before, so we started day 2 at the Cartier building for photos! They turned out great with patience from all the pedestrians! Once we were done, we visited the New York Public Library before our lunch reservation at Serra Alphina in the Flatiron District. Somehow, we scored Jimmy Fallon tickets (another thanks to Meag) and it was cool even though I kept getting him and Jimmy Kimmel mixed up. Oops! Hahaha.

Once we finished with Jimmy, we headed to my #1 request. Mean Girls on Broadway! It was SO worth it. The current cast is amazing! I’d literally go watch it again! And even though we were so tired from the busy day, we ended the night with a late reservation at Tavern on the Green. All I remember is that we ordered the birthday cake dessert at like 11pm, and it was fantastic! 🙂

Day 3 started a little later to recoup from the previous day’s activities! We had brunch at Sarabeth’s, which is a restaurant I have to go to every time I’m in the city! My order was loaded in carbs but worth every bite. Truffle fries for an appetizer and French toast! So dang delicious. We shopped and wandered around Central Park until our next reservation at Blue Box Cafe aka Breakfast at Tiffany’s!

This was my second time to go, and it’s just a magical experience! Unfortunately, Tiffany’s is relocating while their flagship store is renovated, so the cafe is now closed until 2021. How sad! We ended the day at the Rosè Mansion and Top of the Rock. It was so neat to see the city at night, but I recommend going during the day if you want a good photo!

Our last day in NYC was more low key than the others since we had flights to catch that night. We were all dying to go to Rolf’s and knew we needed to go early for a better chance at getting a table! A few takeaways here. The Christmas decorations are incredible, but the food is horrible! Just being honest. If you land a table, they require you to order a meal! I do think we got better photos having a table versus just standing at the bar for a drink, but I don’t know if my $60 tab was worth it. Lol! Bottom line, just order a drink!

Before grabbing our luggage from the hotel, we wandered around Soho eating truffles at Milk Bar and visiting the Stoney Clover pop-up. This was really the only time we didn’t have solid plans, but I was very grateful for our stacked itinerary throughout the trip! We were able to do so much in a short amount of time. New York City is just so magical at Christmas, although I love visiting anytime of the year! 🙂

PS: My other New York City travel guides are HERE and HERE (NYFW)!

XOXO

Kels

WEDDING GUEST INSPO UNDER $100

DRESS | HEELS

Today’s post will be short and sweet, but I wanted to round up some Spring wedding guest inspo + last minute Valentine’s Day outfit ideas on the blog today! (More Valentine’s Day options HERE) The dress I’m wearing above is by far my favorite, and I actually didn’t realize just how much I’d love it. You might be seeing this cute piece more than once! 🙂 I recommend sizing up because it is tight, but the fabric is thick and holds everything in. Lol!

I leave for Miami Thursday morning, and I’m SO excited! I’ve never been before, so please leave me your recommendations! I normally have the entire schedule planned, but this trip snuck up quick. I’ll be recapping everything on the blog in the upcoming weeks!

XOXO

Kels