Happy Birthday Times in NYC

I got treated to a fun birthday gift - a trip to New York City. 

Time spent laughing with my beautiful friends, catching live music, browsing/touching/trying on fashion, savoring coffee, and eating delicious meals throughout Brooklyn and Manhattan, as well as checking out gallery openings and parties were highlights. Visiting new'ish gallery, 319 Scholes, for its JstChilln/READ/WRITE exhibition was worth the trek to Bushwick which, I clearly seem to be enjoying in the photo below!

But my favorite part of the trip was time spent wandering with the best company, discovering the tiny pieces of magic the usual hustle often hides. My tender toes had their bootcamp back into Spring with the sheer volume of walking I did. 

In my Master's thesis published a few years ago, I wrote a lot about the act of walking, and what subconscious desires and deliberate intentions comprise the simply-perceived, though actually quite complex, activity. I was reminded of this in New York where I must have spent 12-14 hours each day walking, playing the role of the flaneuse. The staccato rhythm of the city; a conveyer belt of fast ideas, commercial cacophony, and grand dreams in constant cyclical motion. 

Walking The Highline on the radiantly sunny afternoon on my birthday ad me glistening, and content with a very full heart.

Doc Martens (London), full-length printed jumpsuit (Glasgow), Rick Owens leather jacket (Paris), fur & feathers (Montreal), worn in NYC whilst galavanting the Highline on a chilly and sunny bday afternoon

A quick meeting with a possible collaborator at NPR, an interview with an artist for my Art21 column, and a snappy consulting session with a styling client allowed me to squeeze a bit of very fun work in to my leisurely vacay too.

For my fashion fiends: 

1) I was birthday-gifted the Junya Watanabe piece of my daydreams. (!) A navy and white striped dress/shirt/lifeline. 

2) Too bad for my pocket book, I discovered that silk, floor-length, jewel-toned FENDI gowns are my JOINT!!

3) I found out that Steven Alan designs are something to behold when you actually try them on. The fit is impeccable. 

4) I should give royalties to my dear friend whose custom furs which I wore in NYC were traffic stoppers; I got asked about them everywhere I went.
5) I think Opening Ceremony has always had it going on, and their website these days is a slick combination of inspiration, and convenience. But their actual NY stores these days? Dismal windows, oppressively hot temperatures and cluttered 'merchandising' complete with decrepit displays falling apart with nary a person to reassemble them. FAIL. However, mega customer service points to everyone at the Jil Sander, Alexander Wang, Zero and Prada boutiques for all their enthusiasm and help when I visited. (I'm writing a piece for a publication right now on shopping high-end in NYC and so my radar for merchandising and customer service was particularly sensitive!)

6) I got picture taken by "Babes at the Museum" style blog! I lamented to the lovely photographer, Xavier, that I may not be 'babe enough' the day he asked to take my photo at PS1 but he reassured me with subtle flattery and you will find my awkwardness evidenced here in the result:

And in these two photos (above and below), I'm caught by my photographer friend, while I was playing with my necklace at brunch in Brooklyn. The light captured here was too beautiful not to include some evidence of it! 

SO much love. A perfect birthday. With every passing year, life keeps getting better and for this, I am truly thankful.

- - Et aussi un grand 'merçi' a tous mes amis a New York qui m'a montré des temps merveilleux. 

xo

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