Ditch the Flips

Ah, the quest for the perfect summer shoe.  Flip flops may be great for the beach, but after a day of prancing around a city that has all but turned rancid from the heat, check out the bottom of your feet.  Or don't.  It's quite disgusting.  I'm totally digging my Soludo espadrille flats I picked up at Oak a few months ago for $28.  Yep, $28.  Sure, I know in Spain these puppies are like 5 bucks, but unless you are planning a trip anytime soon and I can convince you to bring me back a few, this is what I have to work with.

Click here to check out the flat espadrille round up on New York Magazine's website

Here's a few places you can pick up a pair in person and online:

Soludos

Oak

Opening Ceremony

PS - I've been wearing them to death, and they still look great (the stripes do a great job of hiding anything that's come across them).

India Revisited

Sometimes you just need a hiatus.  Well, I'm back, dear readers, with what I imagine will be a more streamlined S*C experience.  To start, us on phase II of our journey, here are some of my favorite pictures from my trip to India and Nepal.  Enjoy!

Bon Voyage!

Off to India and Nepal for the next two weeks.  Wish me safe travels, as little #3 as humanly possible, and an adventure of a lifetime!

xo-

Babs

New Site Saturday: TV Food Maps

Ok, so I am a total foodie.  I love to eat, I love going out to eat, and I love to talk about anything involving food.  So one of my 'Things to do in 2011' is to explore new restaurants.  Sure, it's great to have your favorites, but in a city that has such an abundance of culinary delights one must branch out.  In addition to my beloved NYmag.com restaurant reviews, I find it really interesting to check out places recommended on cooking/food porn shows (basically, everything on the Food Network). TVFoodMaps.com lists out the restaurant recommendations from 14 different shows ranging from Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations to the anti-Anthony Bourdain--Rachel Ray's $40 a Day.  Sort by city and state or by your favorite show.  You can even type in your upcoming road trip (say from San Francisco to Chicago), and they tell you where to stop and nosh along the way.  So, stop furiously scribbling down notes during The Best Thing I Ever Ate and enjoy!  It's all here.

Noteable & Quotable: George Balanchine

"There are no new steps, only new combinations."

- George Balanchine, co-founder of New York City Ballet

Fleak Out at the Brooklyn Flea

Do you ever finally get around to doing something or going somewhere and think, "Why wasn't I doing this years ago?"  That is exactly how I feel about the Brooklyn Flea.  The 25th Street Garage flea market in Chelsea (which is for the most part way overpriced for the junk they peddle) doesn't hold a candle to the Flea, in my opinion.  While that market is like a garage sale on crack, the Brooklyn Flea houses some of the coolest little makers of treasures imaginable as well as the furnitury, vintagy, oldy stuff you expect.  Easy to get to by way of Manhattan, the flea is held every Saturday and Sunday in varying locations throughout the year: inside Skylight 1 Hansen in the winter and Dumbo, Williamsburg, and Fort Greene during warmer months.  And, be sure to come hungry because there are six or so vendors serving up delectable delights from artisan grilled cheeses, porchetta sandwiches, lobster rolls, to tacos.  Best weekend afternoon ever!

BrooklynFlea.com  

Lovely light!

Bits and bobs

Help!  I'm trapped in a terrarium!

Pendants made of typewriter keys

Images by Barbara K.

Send Your Valentine Sweet Nothings Via Paperless Post

Valentine's Day isn't just for lovers.  Think of all the people you love: family, friends, pets, frenemies (whom you love to hate), bosses, roommates, etc.  The past two years I have sent Valentine's Day cards to my friends and fam, but this year I decided to get with the times and use PaperlessPost.com.  Don't tell anyone I procrastinated and missed the V-Day window, but I actually sent a ton of Christmas cards this year so I don't feel too incredibly horrible.  Either way....who doesn't love to get a little love on Feb. 14th!  I sent 25 e-cards (first 25 'stamps' are free with signing up), and had to purchase about $10 worth of 'custom coins'.  They had lovey dovey, modern, and fun cards (oh the choices!), and once I got started the process was very easy: Pick a card, write a message, type your peeps' email addresses, and you're off!  They also have tons of options for birthday's, thank you's, invites, save the date cards, and even wedding invitations.  I also love how the envelope 'opens' so there is a tiny bit of suspense. 

Happy Valentine's Day everyone, and be sure to eat a cupcake today!  I will definitely be hitting up Magnolia or Billy's. ;-)

xo- 

Babs

Free and Discounted Museum Days in New York City

Want to become the most cultured New Yorker ever?  Unemployed and looking for ways to spend these cold February days while your friends are at work?  Think it is highway robbery that museums have admission prices of $20?  Oh wait, this is ME!!!  Here is a shameless pick-up straight from about.com on everyday deals, free days, and discounted rates to the city's top museums.  I guess you now have your Friday night planned out 'till after the thaw.

Enjoy, and huge thanks to Heather's NYC Travel Blog!

Everyday Deals

• Forbes Magazine Galleries
  Admission is always free to this interesting museum featuring collectibles such as toy soldiers, Monopoly games and more.
  62 Fifth Avenue (at 12th Street)
  212-206-5548
• Museum at Fashion Institute of Technology
  Admission to the museum displaying articles from the permanent collection, as well as changing exhibits on fashion, is always free.
  Seventh Avenue at 27 Street
  Phone: 212-217-5970
• National Museum of the American Indian
  Admission to the the sixteenth museum in the Smithsonian Institution is always free.
  1 Bowling Green, George Gustave Heye Center
  Phone: 212-668-6624
• Goethe Institut
  Weekdays you can experience German language and culture exhibits for free at the Goethe Institut, which is conveniently located across from the Met.
  1014 Fifth Ave
  Phone: 212-439-8700
• Sony Wonder Technology Lab
  Admission is always free to this entertainment and technology museum located in Midtown.
  Sony Plaza Public Arcade at 56th Street and Madison Avenue
  Phone:212-833-5414

Museums With Suggested Admission
In order to make museums affordable for all, these museums have "suggested" admissions. That means you can pay the amount of admission that you can afford and still enjoy access to the museum.

• Metropolitan Museum of Art Although they raised the "suggested" admission to $20, you can pay what you can afford to see one of the greatest art museums in New York City.
  Address: 1000 Fifth Avenue
  Phone: 212-535-7710
• American Museum of Natural History
  The "suggested" admission at the American Museum of Natural History is $15, you can make whatever contribution you see as appropriate to enter the museum (though you'll have to pay full price for planetarium shows, etc.).
  Address: Central Park West at West 79th Street
  Phone: 212-769-5000

Desire/Acquire: The Perfect Day/Weekend/Office/Anytime Look

There is something about the outfit Marina Larroude, Style.com Senior Market Editor, is wearing in her Spring 2011 Shopping Guide profile that I am completely drawn to.  Maybe it's the easy-breezy casual, yet pulled together vibe.  Or maybe it's that I think those are fancy sweat pants.  Either way, it is most definitely that I can pull off this pairing with items I already own.  Though I love the blue and gray tones with wild shoes, you could pull this look off with any spectrum of colors: black and gray, brown and cream, or red and orange if you are Viviana Volpicella.

So, let's break it down:

- Nubby knit sweater.

- Ankle length trousers, jeans, or lounge pants in this case.

- Bag in same color family as your pants and top but not matching.  I think if you go with black pants and black bag you kind of miss the look.

- Chunky watch or a wrist full of bracelets to fem it up a bit.

- Shoes with a clean silhouette but an interesting print.  Strappy evening sandals with flouncies would not work here. 

Other than the Celine bag I am salivating over, I don't know much about the other pieces.  But, for a similar look,I think the items below would be perfecto!

PS - If you are heels adverse (which I am during the day) or want to tone the shoe portion down a bit pair with brogues, loafer, or driving mocs.

J. Crew Chalet Zip Sweater in Heather Dove - $39.99

J. Crew Merino Un-Sweatpant in Heather Carbon - $49.99

Parentesi leather tote in Slate Blue - $229 @ yoox.com

Yaneli by Nina Cheetah Wedge - $110 @ dnafootwear.com

Carolina Herrera's 10 Style Rules

Carolina Herrera is basically the classiest woman on the planet.  Please pay attention and take notes.  

1.  A full-length mirror is the most important accessory a woman can own.

2.  Do not be afraid to wear color.  A woman who walks into a room full of black dresses wearing red, pink or orange is stunning and everyone turns to look.

3.  Trends make everyone look as though they are wearing a uniform. It is best to wear what is most individually flattering and appropriate for the occasion.

4.  A crisp white shirt looks wonderful for the day or evening; every woman should have one they love in their closet.

5.  It’s important to dress for your age. What looked good at 15 will not look good at 40.

6.  Don’t forget to be feminine. Glamour and elegance are always something that attracts attention.

7.  Dress according to your personality.

8.  Your hair and makeup are very important. Women over 40 should maintain short hair.

9.  If you don’t have taste, you will never be stylish. Style is a state of mind. It is how you live, how you wear your clothes, what you read and what you love. It has nothing to do with money.

10.  Be mysterious. Mystery is the most important quality for a woman. Elegance is an attitude.

Image and text courtesy of SaksPOV.com

New Site Saturday: Into the Gloss

This is my new favorite blog.  Seriously.  Must read.  I guess I just love those 'favorite things' style articles and posts, and I can't get enough of IntoTheGloss.com.  I have never been much of a beauty products person, so this is a real eye opener for me, and I love how her subjects range from the simplistic to the beauty-maven.  Add this to your rss immediately.

IntoTheGloss.com is a blog dedicated to Beauty, from the Inside. No, not from within, although that’s great too—Inside in this case means Inside the fashion industry and on the street. You’ll find influencers from editors to stylists and models divulging their carefully curated products, routines and inspirations. You’ll find makeup artists, hair stylists and myriad other specialists talking about what makes them tick, their top tools, and their visions of what’s to come. You’ll see backstage. You’ll see product highlights. And you’ll see the new kids on the block— the assistants, the up-and-comers—along with the intriguing characters out and about, who are shaping our idea of modern Beauty.

—Emily Weiss

Editor, IntoTheGloss.com
September 10, 2010

 Image and above text courtesy of IntoTheGloss.com

Best Shady Chinese Massage Place in NYC

 Living in New York, I walk past Asian body work places all the time.  I find that they provide the perfect fix for a serious get-the-kinks-out massage after a stressful week and are a good in-between to the $150 hour-long massage at the luxurious spa of your choice and the 10 minute chair massage after your mani-pedi.  Granted, some places look totally shady, and in my opinion, are possibly more in the business of money laundering, human trafficking, or happy endings than reflexology and massage so you need to trust your gut.  I'll also put it out there that you shouldn't expect scented candles, plush robes, or ginger tea après massage either.  This is a service for when your back feels like a pretzel, and the only remedy is going to be a tiny Asian woman digging her elbow into your shoulder blade.

So after a healthy search on Yelp! for a highly rated body work place I came across Taiji Body Work in Greenwich Village.  Why not give it a whirl?  I was completely impressed with this place.  It was very clean and the staff was so incredibly friendly.  My treatment room (which had a movable curtain for couples massage) had nice little touches like hooks and hangers for me to put my clothes and a nice little side-table with lamp for some homey ambiance.  There was even spa music playing, though I could slightly hear some clubby music from next door, but whatevs.  So, for 30 minutes I was completely worked out by my gal.  This is definitely on the 'deep tissue' side of the spectrum as opposed to Swedish, and I am usually a little sore the next day but in my book that means we made some progress.  So, in a nutshell, I think this place is pretty legit, and I will definitely be going back!

Taiji Bodywork

Location: 45 West 8th Street between 6th Ave. and MacDougal

Hours: 10:30 - 12am

Special: $48 for 1-hour massage

PS - I chose the above image only because these places always seem to do the karate chops at the end of massages!  So funny! 

New Site Saturday: The Coveted

TheCoveted.com

Think The Selby for the fashion set.  Explore their closets, wardrobes, nooks and crannies .  I love how all the images have a little story to tell when you mouse over them, and the photography c'est magnifique! 

Enjoy, stay warm, and happy Saturday!

xo

Tonne Goodman is My Style Sister

I was having dinner a few weeks ago with a friend who is a blogger at a prominent fashion website, and she was telling me what the other editors in the office wear.  In a nutshell, she described it as so over the top with prints layered with stripes layered with bold colors and big accessories on top of that, and we collectively decided that it was completely over-styled and worn to say 'look at how fashionable I am' as opposed to looking great.  Basically style amateur hour. 

I guess this is why I love Tonne Goodman's style so much.  She favors classically understated pieces, a neutral color pallet, flats, straight hair, white jeans, minimal makeup, and I could go on and on.  I cannot deny my inherent love of black turtleneck sweaters, and you will never see me layer garments in a dizzying spectacle.  She is one of my favorite editors at Vogue, and I took it as a huge compliment when my friend J said I was 'totally giving him Tonne right now' when I layered black and gray turtleneck s (two of my favorite colors and one of my favorite winter looks).  So, every time I am feeling the 'dressing room dumps' that I just don't feel like myself in a of-the-moment leather jacket, sky-high platform heels, or a flouncy dress, I channel Tonne and say to hell with them all.  I am dressing for me.

PS - check out Tonne's inspirations for the month in Vogue's February issue (page 142).