With hectic jobs, relationships and hobbies, it seems these days it’s extra hard for my girlfriends and I to get together for some girls-only time. I’m always looking for unique ideas that will be fun for my friends and also not break the bank.

A friend of mine recently invited my to attend a clothing swap party hosted by Little Black Dress Wines. A group of 12-15 ladies “shopped” in our closets and then brought our best underutilized clothes, bags and accessories to “swap” with each other- all while sipping on some LBD wines of course. =)

Ms. Career Girl and Mary Massey from Next Gen joined me at the event. Aren’t we cute?

The party’s hostess, former bachelorette Jen Schefft, was gracious enough to chat with me about the clothing swap party. She even gave me her prediction for the winner of “On the Wings of Love.”

If you’re looking to host your own clothing swap party, check out Little Black Dress Wine’s website. They have everything you’ll need from invites to party tips.

Enjoy!

If you’re reading this blog post, you’re probably someone who’s hip to social media. You’re likely on Facebook, you have your favorite blogs and you may even be on LinkedIn. The question is, are you on Twitter?

Since I work in social media, I am proud of the fact that I was an “early adopter” of Twitter. However, many of my friends and family still aren’t convinced the world of 140 characters is worth their time.

Instead of going into the reasons why I love Twitter and why I think you will too, I’m simply going to tell you about how I got an amazing multi-course steak dinner at N9NE Steakhouse for FREE because I use Twitter.

Taste and Tweet is a company that brings the cities hottest restaurants and most-popular local Twitter users together for a night of delicious food and tweeting. I recently was invited to attend their inaugural Chicago event at N9NE Steakhouse, and let me tell you, it was a night to remember!

We were treated to a tasting of their new Winter menu complete with appetizers, two types of steak, side dishes, three (yes three!) desserts as well as cocktail pairings for each course. The only catch? We had to tweet about our experiences using the hashtag #N9NE. How easy is that?

Here are some highlights from our meal:

Are you drooling yet?

So how can you take advantage of the next Taste and Tweet event happening in Chicago?

1. Make sure you’re signed up for Twitter! Come on…all the cool kids are doing it.
2. Start following people (like @Cicagonista and me @elizcron)
3. Build your own following by tweeting interesting articles, questions and blog posts
4. Apply to be a taster at Taste and Tweet Chicago’s website: http://www.tasteandtweet.com/

Not quite ready to tackling Twitter? That’s ok! Just for reading about Taste and Tweet here on Next Gen Chicagonista you print this coupon to get $25 off $50 at N9NE Steakhouse until Feb. 11!  http://bit.ly/N9NEdeal

Happy Tweeting and tasting!