Snapshots from NYC

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!

Leather Midi Skirt - NYFW

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?

Wearing Harvey Faircloth midi skirt via Rent the Runway, Tibi blouse (love this similar one on sale!), Banana Republic heels, The Scarf Shop silk scarf c/o, Sophie Blake earrings, H&M sunnies (avail in-store only), Chanel bag via Bag, Borrow or Steal.

Month in Review

Whoa, it's been quite some time before we did a Week in Review (due to September being my Month of Madness), so let's catch up over a cup of coffee, shall we? Here's what's been going on lately:

Diner en Blanc
Alicia and I attended this year's Diner en Blanc and we had THE. BEST. TIME. If you haven't been before or don't know what this crazy event is, check out my recap post of Diner en Blanc here! (I rented this Alexis dress from Rent the Runway if you're curious!)

Bought my first designer bag
IT HAPPENED, friends. I've been eying this Mansur Gavriel bucket bag for about year, and finally decided to pull the trigger. I couldn't be happier, especially since it holds everything I could ever want. 

Traveled to New York for Fashion Week
It was crazy, amazing, stressful, and insane...and I'll be telling you all about it on the blog soon! (Did you catch my first NYFW look here?)

Got to meet Erin Fetherston
I got to meet one of my favorite designers, Erin Fetherston, at her 10 year anniversary party! It was so surreal to even stand next to her, let alone have a conversation with her. She's so sweet, and if you haven't seen her home tour on Domino, what are you waiting for?

Splurged on a Self Portrait dress
This is something else I've been dying to get my hands on for ages...I'd sort of been looking around on consignment sites, but when I was invited to my cousin's Greek wedding, I put finding one at the top of my to-do list. I landed on this brand new Self Portrait dress from The Outnet that was on MAJOR sale. It's my favorite dress I own. 

Finally bought the Morphe 350 Eyeshadow Palette
Can't wait to share more about this steal-of-a-deal kit 

Had my 5 minutes of fame on a promo billboard
It's still up if you find yourself at Mosaic! Loved being a part of their Fall Campaign!

I visited the new Grace Street Coffee shop - a lot
If you haven't stopped into this cute place on Grace Street in Georgetown, be sure to do so before it becomes the next hot-spot destination (a la Georgetown Cupcake) - there's also a South Block Juice Co. inside so prepare for epic-ness.

The hubby was featured on Huffington Post in an article about Instagram Husbands!
If you want to get a real-life, no frills, honest view on what it means to have your significant other shoot some of your photos, don't miss this piece. 

We ate our way through Chicago
Again, more on this very, very soon. I'll share all the places we went (and of course, all the things we ate.)

That's it for me! HOW HAVE YOU BEEN? It's been too long. Catch me up in the comments below! Xx!

Happiness

I read something inspiring the other day and I wanted to share it with you…

It was all about how comparison steals our joy. I don’t know about you, but I struggle with this every day. Wanting the latest this or that, comparing Instagram followers, wanting to be bigger and smaller at the same time.

Don’t get me wrong - having goals is great, and there’s something magical about having well-made clothing that you truly love. But please, let’s stop tying those things to self-worth. YOU ARE WONDERFUL just the way you are. And just because something looks glossy on Instagram, doesn’t always mean that’s REALITY. Often times, it’s not.

So here’s to living your best life, your best day, your best moment now. Let's take note of the things we do have and let’s stop focusing on the things that are missing. Because only then can we find true happiness.

Wearing top via Anthom (almost identical from Cuyana), Lucky Brand jeans, Clare Vivier clutch, Sophie Blake bracelet, Matt Bernson leather sneakers (on sale!), red bandana

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