Snapshots from NYC

January 3, 2017 Julien Garman

*Wearing Tibi skirt via Rent the Runway, Filson sweater, Mansur Gavriel bag*

I’ve been spending the last few days reflecting on last year and how I want things to change in the coming year. I’ll admit, I’m not sure what that’ll look like QUITE yet but I do know I want to continue bringing you high-quality posts that are useful and fun! And I also know I want to do a lot more with travel in 2017 so here are some snaps from last weekend’s trip to NYC and the places we visited!

Saturday
We arrived in NYC early Saturday morning and quickly rushed to Time Square to we could do the whole, been there, done that before the crowds got crazy. We saw the Christmas tree (so tall!!), visited the NBC studios, got royally lost multiple times within the building, and then immediately rushed OUT of that area to pick up our keys from our Airbnb rental in Chelsea.

When we arrived at our Airbnb, I was blown away It was on THE cutest street, super accessibly to Chelsea Market and right around the corner from the spot I'd booked for brunch. We figured we'd be hopping around the downtown area for drinks and such all evening, so it was central to everything we wanted. PLUS inside was so dreamy...high ceilings, brick walls, and two great sized rooms for our guests and us. If you ever go to NYC and want to stay in the Chelsea area, I'd highly recommend the place we stayed, which you can find here!

Next we set off to Chelsea Market for some lunch. It was terribly crowded but the food was 1000% worth it. The hubby grabbed tacos from Bienvenidos, while I couldn't resist the ramen at Mok Bar. Then we got Halva treats from Seed + Mill afterwards which was SUCH a treat!

Next up was coffee - of course. Luckily, Blue Bottle was right across from Chelsea Market so we fueled up on caffeine before heading back to our Airbnb for a bit of R&R before dinner.

After resting for a bit, we got all gussied up for our night out. I wore this gorgeous Alexis jumpsuit with a Shinola cross body, bracelet and matching hoop earrings, all from Rent the Runway.

Around happy hour, we set out for an the Italian dinner! It was nestled in East Village called Misirizzi! It's pretty new to the area and it's cozy, intimate setting was perfect. I had the Tris Di Canederli, which is apparently becoming QUITE THE THING in the food world. While it used to be a ‘poor man’s dish,’ today, chefs around the country are giving it a major makeover for the masses.

After dinner, we hit up The Standard for drinks right around the corner. The cocktails were great. The people watching was better.

We finished off the evening watching fireworks from the Brooklyn Bridge at midnight...although I'll admit - it was not the BEST spot. I definitely wish we had gone down to Battery Park instead. Although...you certainly can't beat this view.

Sunday
Even though we went to bed at an astonishing 1 AM (those who know me know I am NOT a night owl), I woke up bright and early to get ready for brunch...and to catch the morning light through out windows, of course. ;)

We arrived for brunch at Tipsy Parson (just a couple blocks from our Airbnb) around 10:30. It was relatively empty by then which had me a tad nervous, but within a half hour, the place was bustling! Everyone in our little group agreed that this was our FAVORITE part of the trip - the food was THAT good. I took some fancy photos with my actual camera because the space was SO CUTE - and I'll be sharing those later! But in the meantime...

After brunch, we waddled back to our Airbnb, packed up and went down to the 9/11 Memorial to do a little reflecting...It was quite humbling to be at Ground Zero. I spotted a rose on one of the names, indicating that today would have been their birthday, and said a prayer for his family. I honestly can't imagine.

Before heading out of town, we stopped for one last coffee at Cafe Grumpy (which I kept accidentally calling Grumpy Cat Cafe much to the chagrin of my coffee-snob hubby.

SO there you have it! What did you do for New Year's? Also let me know if you like posts like this and I'll work on getting some more destinations on the travel calendar! (Any excuse to travel is good enough for me!) Xx!

7 REASONS TO VISIT QUIRK HOTEL in Richmond

November 18, 2016 Julien Garman

A few months ago we had the opportunity to visit Richmond, Virginia for my sister-in-law’s birthday! It was going to be one of those weekends where driving home after her party wasn’t going to be an option, so we started on the hunt for a cute hotel.

I hate to admit this, but I’m a bit picky when it comes to where we stay. Some people feel that they don’t really care about where they stay; that it’s just a bed to sleep in on a trip. That’s never really resonated with me. I’m more the type where I enjoy slow mornings waking up early after a good night’s sleep in a comfortable bed, getting ready in a cute bathroom, and having plenty of space to sprawl out my outfit options for the day. Starting the day on a positive note is key when I’m traveling, and so what if I want it to be an Instagram-Worthy diggs? The heart wants what the heart wants.

So when we stepped into Quirk Hotel, I knew I’d hit a goldmine of inspiring spaces. Here’s why you need to check it out:

1. They have the comfiest beds.
No joke, friends…I had a GOOD night’s sleep here. Plus, bonus points for the super cute pillow on our bed.

2. All the featured art
Don’t have enough time to hit up a museum while in Richmond? No worries - they have tons of gorgeous art throughout the hotel. My favorite pieces were done by local DC-area resident Elizabeth Graber, who also painted the dressing rooms at the Alice + Olivia in Georgetown. I have one of her smaller paintings in our home and it’s one of my favorites!

3. THE BRUNCH
Sorry but this totally deserved all caps. Because I am shouting and singing for happiness over how incredible it was. They have killer brunch cocktails and their french toast was on point/fleek/whatever the kids are saying these days. We ate so much great food we practically rolled out of the Gossip-girl’esk dining area. (In the most graceful way of course!)

4. A Killer Coffee Bar
If you can’t make time for a brunch, their coffee bar is equally as adorable, complete with really, really good lattes and marble tables to sit at (and take a like-worthy Instagram shot.)

5. A Drool-Worthy Rooftop View
Rooftop bars are becoming quite a thing in Richmond, but this is one of the best I’ve been to. With multiple levels of rooftop, you get a great view from just about anywhere.

6. The Cutest Gift Shop of All Time
This is not an exaggeration. It is the absolute cutest. I bought a keychain that says OH HEY (best $8 I’ve ever spent) and a stuffed animal rabbit for our new niece! If you’re looking for a one-stop shop for great, unique and adorable holiday gifts, this is your place.

7. You’ll Be Constantly Inspired
Sometimes the best thing you can do for your creative self is to get away from your everyday surroundings and visit someplace new. And let me just say - I’ve visited a lot of area hotels having written a ton of travel articles when I worked in the magazine industry - and Quirk Hotel is definitely one of my favorites…

Escaping Town with Getaround

November 4, 2016 Julien Garman

As many of you know, I live out in wine country…yes, I commute daily into the city and yes, it’s a nightmare. However, I truly love where we live and to me, it’s worth it…especially this time of year.

While we’re only about a 5-10 minute drive to many of Loudoun’s top wineries, pumpkin patches and apple orchards, it’s about an hour for my friends who live in Arlington or DC. And many of them don’t own a car - they just take the metro or uber everywhere they need to go. However, this time of year, everyone’s itching to get out of the city and truly get into the Fall spirit!

Now even the saviest of my city friends can explore everything Fall has to offer outside the city with Getaround, a rent-a-car on-demand service that let’s you borrow people’s cars by the hour. They’ve just arrived in Washington, D.C. so when they offered to let me take a spin in the new Tesla Model X (available to rent here!), I couldn’t miss the opportunity!

We picked up the car at the owner’s property in DC after seeing The Head and The Heart in concert (one of the best shows I’ve ever been to.) Using Getaround was quite easy actually - although I wasn’t initially so familiar with how a Tesla operates, the owner was so helpful in helping out, texting me as I picked it up and even unlocked it for me from the house.

Gonna take a quick detour to talk about this car for a moment. I’m not a “car girl” per se, however, this was definitely the coolest car I’ve ever driven. I felt like I was on an episode of Top Gear, driving down the road talking about all the cool features I had never experienced before…and it’s SO quiet and the extended windshield made me feel like I was driving a convertible without all the wind in my face.

The next morning, we woke up bright and early to visit Great Country Farms to really get a feel for Fall. I’d read about their apple cider donuts and wanted to make sure I’d be first in line. Let me just say - they’re SO worth the hype. I ate a few before realizing MAYBE I should slow down a bit. They’re that good.

I remember visiting Great Country Farms when I was younger, but now that I’m an adult, I had no idea there were so many things to do there. First, there’s the cutest market ever right inside the barn with kettle corn, hot apple cider and lots of cute old timey treats. Before be-lining straight to donuts, we passed a few of the super adorable farm animals (this is why I’m a vegetarian, friends!)

After picking the perfect pumpkin and getting a few dozen apple cider donuts, we admired the foliage as we drove back into DC for brunch. Returning the car was as seamless as picking it up. We had our scheduled time to drop off, and the owner even came outside to chat with us about the experience driving the Model X (which was, of course, phenomenal!)

If you’re interested in getting out of the city to explore all things Fall in the country or perhaps wanting to go home for the holidays and looking for an affordable solution, definitely check out Getaround. From $5/hour, you can choose form thousands of cars nearby. I’ll be honest - at first I was nervous about the insurance portion - what if someone rear ended me? Would I be liable for that? Luckily - their coverage includes primary liability, collision, comprehensive, theft, and uninsured motorist protection…so you can rent without worrying.

Maybe you’re interested in earning a little extra money instead of having your car sit idle while you’re at work? Check out their article on the benefits of car sharing here. For more questions, be sure to check out their FAQ page online.

This post was done in partnership with Getaround. All opinions are my own.

Leather Midi Skirt - NYFW

October 31, 2016 Julien Garman

It's been a crazy Fall so far, but in the most wonderful way. Between NYFW, special holiday projects and just daily life at the 9-5, I'm doing my very best to just keep my head above water. The great news is - I have so many exciting posts to share with you...the problem is finding the time to get them all up on here! But don't fret - I promise they're coming. ;)

How great is this midi skirt from Rent the Runway? I rented it for NYFW and wore it to a ton of events. (Even if it was over 90 degrees outside - the things we do for fashion!) This would be perfect for an upcoming holiday party with a chunky sweater or silky blouse too.

I'll let you in on a little secret - this outfit has been sitting on my camera since NYFW for a while, so rather than go into the nitty gritty of why I wore the outfit, I thought I'd just share the photos with you. I mean, THE VIEW. Do I really need to say anything else?