Downtown Denim & Graffiti

There's grit as much as glamour when it comes to New York City.  In my heart, my neighborhood is the East Village.  Whenever I come to town, the same thoughts float through my mind.  When you're not there that often, the terrible things can even evoke a feeling of nostalgia.  The acrid smell of piss on the streets below mix in with the sweet smells of marijuana from the windows above.  There's a dirty sense of home about it all.

Dress:  Yumi Kim Jayne Dress, Jacket:  True Religion Denim Jacket,  Necklace:  J. Crew (old), Purse:  Rebecca Minkoff Eggshell Watersnake Clutch, Shoes:  J. Crew (old)

I raided my sister's closet, as she played stylist to my climate-limiting clothing.  October in the Northeast is sort of bipolar in regards to weather.  It's been about 3 months since I've been to New York City last.  It amazes me how fast the city can change while remaining the same.  Down in my sister's neighborhood are buildings covered in graffiti at every which way -- from Banksy (which at this very moment, I realize I completely forgot to photograph in a somewhat inebriated state) to paper collage installations.  

In the spirit of the first afternoon in a while where neither of us have any work to do, Isabel and I soaked up the neighborhood sights, doing a graffiti walk from Clinton St. over to Prince St.  Some sights of note had to be the walls on Clinton and Houston and at Houston and Bowery.  Scattered in between were small community parks, boutiques, coffee shops and book stores to give the hipster in you shivers.  We managed to snap some less fashion oriented photos along the way, with a spontaneous meeting with a New York Times best selling author.  Being the tease that I am, you'll have to read about it a little later this week when I post.

Until then, sound off below if your heart should so desire!

The Ladies of Bean Town

To state the seemingly apparent, I collect cities.  Depending on my work location, I'll settle down in the nearest metropolis, make friends, start a life, and move on when the next job post comes.  Last year, my adopted city was New York City, and it's becoming more apparent that this year, it's Boston.

I've been to Boston probably as many times as I've been to New York in the last year... and sadly enough collectively, I've probably been to both places more than I have been in my own home.  Aside from that point, it's been a delicious change of scenery, and yet a major cultural shift.  As my friend Kalie described it, it's like Boston has a collective heart and its people operate on a similar wavelength of city pride that you don't often see in many cities.  In Atlanta, you'll see baseball caps representing the Braves, Yankees or Dodgers, but in Boston, it's a consistent trend of Red Sox, Bruins, Patriots, Celtics and the occasional Pawtucket PawSox.

A few of my good girl friends and I took Labor Day weekend to explore the city mostly by foot and subway.  There's a beat and beauty to this city that I love.  Walking around, Boston has all of the bustle of a major city from its skyscrapers to its hecklers, but it has a historic reverence to it, what with its ivy covered townhomes, gilded town halls, and brick-laden behemoth that is Fenway.  I had the supreme pleasure of getting a tour of the city from Dana, my best friend Anita's friend from college (yes, world, this is adulthood, where friend-of-friend-of-friends prevail), in which we walked post-White Sox game from Fenway over to North End and finally to Cambridge and were practically agog at every corner.  I think my propensity for photo-taking can speak for itself in this case. 

Put simply and in conversational Vivian terms, "GAHHH I WANT TO MOVE HERE."

(In case you were wondering, the Red Sox deftly beat the White Sox to day, 7 to 6).

Fresh, Fit and Fab: 3.1 Phillip Lim x Target Review

If there's a lesson to be learned from designer collaborations, it's that whatever your expectations built from pictures and previews online, should be lowered in store.  It comes to no surprise that while stylish, the product can often be lacking in fit, material or quality in real life.  Let me be clear, however, this is not the case with Phillip Lim.  This is not to say that the collection is perfect, but in the land of Target/Kohl's/H&M/etc. collaborations, it's damn near close.

The fit was nearly perfect on most of the clothes I tried on.  While quality at best is off (it's Target, what do you expect?), I think it goes without saying that this is something special given the amount of press and "prep" articles it received across the internet.  Fortunately, living in Atlanta, we get much less of the mayhem experienced in other cities.  I got to the Target at Atlantic Station a little past 11 a.m., right before a throng of people followed.  Since it was still rather stocked, I was able to snag pieces that I were right up my style and a some that I probably wouldn't have normally touched with a three foot pole.

Phillip Lim x Target Floral Peplum Tank

Imagine my surprise when the floral peplum tank not only fit me in all the right ways, but actually looked good.  The fit was perfect, hugging all the right curves.  This would in turn be indicative to most of tops of the collection.

Left to right:  Gray Sparkle Tank, Navy/Green Pullover, Boom French Terry Sweatshirt

The dresses of the collection were more hit or miss.  While it looks great on a say a 6 ft, size 0 model, on a normal person's body, the practicality of it was severely questioned.  Hence the facial expression in the photo below.  The fit for some lacked like the gray sweater dress, but was amazing for illogical buys such as the animal print knit dress.

Cruisin' down the coast, goin' 'bout 99

The longer I stay at this job, the more of a necessity vacations become to me.  I'm an absolute psycho when it comes to vacations.  Got a day and a half to spare?  Let's fly across the country.  It's indicative of the job.  In my line of work, it's a very work-hard-play-hard mentality.

Given that I'm on a bit of an insane work schedule right now that allows me only two days home, the trip to Indian Rocks, Florida proved to be a 36-hour trip.  Nonetheless, it was amazing and totally called for.  There's nothing like coming out of the airport and just feeling a wave of humidity hit you as the doors slide open.  I live for weekends, now-in-days, and going into Labor Day it's become an ever present reminder to treat yourself right whenever you can.

As such, have a great Labor Day.  If I can harass someone to take pictures, I'll write something a little more exciting next time.  In the mean time, I'll try to be a little less of a wreck... when it comes to work and everything else.

Snapshots from Boston

Ever taken a personality test?  Over the last week, I've noticed a good amount of Facebook posts about the myths to being an introvert.  For example, introverts don't like public speaking or being in crowded rooms.  It comes at a surprise to most people that I am an introvert, and if you've ever met me in person, you'd think differently.  However, I couldn't agree with my Myers-Briggs type more.  I think my favorite definition of an introvert is someone who draws energy from being alone.  There's something thrilling to me about being able to wander and explore by yourself.

Working full time has given me an appreciation for those stolen moments alone, as rare as they can be in my profession.  Last Friday, I had the opportunity of going to our company's office in Boston to have my computer fixed.  No computer meant no way of working, and with no way of working, that meant more time for exploration.  Our office is conveniently located in Back Bay, one of the oldest neighborhoods of the city and home to Copley Square (excellent shopping) and the Boston Public Library.  If you didn't know any better, you'd think I purposely brought my camera out for this.

Aside from the tourists, which for a Friday morning weren't too large in amount, the day proved to be a perfect source of creativity.  I'm one of those weird people (I think it comes from way one too many creative writing classes) who likes to write novels in their head when their alone.  I never actually write down anything, but it's fun to muse on for a bit.  With the Italian architecture and the coffered ceilings, it's really hard not to find inspiration there.