Chic Places

Well we found the countryside…  the Los Angeles countryside that is, and no, I am not referring to the valley. A friend of mine who was also raised somewhere with real seasons suggested a day of apple picking a few hours outside Los Angeles, so naturally I said YES and immediately started planning my little autumn outing to a special little place called Riley’s Farm . And yes, there’s a cheese plate; there will always be a cheese plate, even on the farm. Enjoy.  I’ll admit th

I have very little words… and many great facial expressions, remembering this special very place. In the simplest of terms, this place is what I imagine Mars to look like, as it was truly out of this world. Perhaps that’s why the sun bleached, volcanic features are often referred to as moonscapes; a term that literally just means its characteristic of the moon. Outside of a Dr. Seuss story, I have not been privy to too many places as unique as this one yet, therefore I was be

We stumbled into this darling little place for lunch, before our afternoon exploration of Hora on Kythnos island. Kythnos was not originally on our itinerary but fortunately we had wifi strong enough to find this super shabby chic place for a midday snack. I had found the restaurant’s name in English, Psipsína, but when we were walking down a side street from the center to find it, we had some difficulty as none of the sinage was in legible for us. Eventually, the few people

We loved Syros so much… so of course I needed yet another post about this magical island. We didn’t have much time here to explore but our last morning  here captured my favorite part of all, the beautiful sunrise at the very tip top city in Syros, before we took off for the next island. As I have mentioned before, most islands in Greece have small, historical city centers at the very highest point, likely created to protect them from invaders. This one on Syros is called Ano

I’ve really been extending my summer… after a whirlwind trip to Greece for my honeymoon and now a little weekend getaway in Palm Springs, the warmer temps having been ruling my content this September. As much as I love summer, I couldn’t be more excited for Fall and all the fun that comes along with it. But before we get too deep into sweaters, I needed just one last adventure in the sun. The HOT desert sun.    I went to Palm Springs for a good friend’s bachelorette weekend

Syros, the Nice of Greece… Perhaps even better since I didn’t think Nice, France was that great to be honest. But with a glistening coastline, pastel shaded architecture and a vibrant and fresh energy, Syros stood out from the majority of the sleepy islands we visited on our sail through the Greek Isles. The capitol city in Syros, Ermoupoli, also serves as the capitol of the Cyclades region, where most of the islands we visited lie. We hadn’t originally planned on coming here

We had about five real hours in Santorini, the volcanic island remnant from what was originally a big island of Thira, now the absolute center of tourism in Greece. Since the ocean floor is so deep our captain was unable to anchor at sea, and the port was too full for us to dock, so we took a ferry for a super quick day trip from Milos, a nearby, amazing island. As originally planned our first stop on my mini agenda was this charming and beautiful restaurant called Botargo,

When my husband … (still getting used to that) came up with an idea to sail the Greek isles for our honeymoon, I was immediately in; 100%.  Sailing the Greek Isles:  can a trip sound more chic than that? But aside from all the nautical imagery and Jackie on holiday inspired ensembles I drummed up in my mind, was the slightly less glamorous reality of a long trip at sea. An adventure, would be a more realistic way to frame it— and trust me, it was. Anyone who’s had experience

An afternoon in Hora… Greece is a magical place, known mainly for tourism on the very popular islands of Mykonos and Santorini, which are beautiful but extremely over crowded with Americans. Even though I made a full effort to visit both, I am so glad we had the opportunity to spend the majority of our honeymoon on smaller, less populated islands. And although the cyclidic island of Kythnos was not in our original spreadsheet itinerary, thus was not privy to my extensive pre-

Beautiful cocktails, bougainvillea and picture perfect sunsets— what more could anyone ask for? The second I knew we were going to Greece for our honeymoon, I had pictured a romantic place to sit and watch the sunset on the water (I know so basic right) Even though I live in Los Angeles, where there’s ample access to oceanside drinks and dinner (and amazing people watching), this charming little cocktail bar in the Little Venice area of Mykonos delivered something even more s

Well the time has come! This wonderful honeymoon my fiancé (now husband o.m.g.) and I planned is finally here! I am obviously writing this ahead of time in great anticipation of our wedding day and big adventure in Greece to come, but I wanted everyone to get a little taste in real time. I can’t wait wait to share all the details when we return about the places and things we are planning to see and do in a full Greece Travel Guide, but until then let’s get to the most excitin

The dressing room of my dreams… would most certainly include all of the above elements. An ornate, vintage like folding screen, one of a kind hand painted chinoiserie florals by de Gournay , a plush colorful sofa with piping and the most beautiful floral arrangement in a lovely shade of pink. Fortunately, the new Capitol store at the Brentwood Country Mart has delivered all my design goals, in addition to my aspirational wardrobe ones as well. A friend of mine from North

Ever since the Palisades Village first opened last year…  I have become a full on regular. Living in Santa Monica makes the drive up PCH to this quaint little oceanside suburban oasis we call the Pacific Palisades, just that more inviting, and this charming shopping center has become the crown jewel of the tiny coastal town. The village isn’t a massive mall but carries a lot of well known brands like Alo Yoga , Chanel Beauté , Serena & Lily , Sephora and Zimmerman . Ther

There’s nothing easier than a tunic… They are festive, colorful and easy; my instant wardrobe staple in warmer temps. I have always loved the silhouette; timeless, flattering on everyone. I’ve worn them as coverups, tops and dresses to the beach, barbecues, on boats and cocktail parties. I just can’t seem to get enough! Tunics were considered fairly exotic before  Tory Burch  became one of the first designers to bring the tunic into western mainstream fashion. Since then, th

Italy will always hold a special place  in my heart. I studied the Italian language and culture for three years in high school and it was my minor as an ungraduate in college. I spent a semester abroad living and “studying” in Verona, Italy; which will forever remain my favorite place in Italy. Obviously my love affair started with the food, I could live on pasta, bread and cheese for the rest of my life if it didn’t kill me and it’s no surprise my love for  Spritz , a drink

This past weekend some of my closest friends in Los Angeles threw me the sweetest lunch at one of my favorite restaurants, Ivy at the Shore . I can’t imagine a more beautiful setting, the facade alone is enough to steal my heart, the abundance of pink bougainvillea spilling over a pretty pale pink and green trimmed Spanish style building. It was a perfect backdrop for the millions of pictures we took and coordinated well with my unintentional, but very Carrie Bradshaw -esque,

As you already know, I just can’t  resist a pretty bow. Add lace- white lace- and DONE! I’ll admit, I was slightly skeptical about purchasing this top  as I hadn’t ordered anything from this shop  before. But once it arrived, I was in a complete bow-mance, as I like to call it. I wore it with a high waisted skirt, which I think is the best route, especially if you’re like me and don’t like super fitted tops! Some things to keep in mind, the sizing runs super small. I ordered

Charleston was one of the most beautiful places… I have ever visited and it’s certainly somewhere I would return in a heartbeat. It also made me eager to visit more of the American South, an opportunity to connect with the other half of the country I am much less familiar with. Of course I only spent a weekend here with my sister, so I am by no means creating this guide with much expertise, but I am sharing what we did and loved most during our very short stay. Aside from so

Pretty, pretty pleats… I will admit, I have never been a long skirt wearer, most likely because of my short height and the fact that higher hemlines have always been much more flattering on me. Let’s blame Fran Fine for all her fabulous jackets and mini skirt sets I saw growing up watching The Nanny . But since I was visiting the South, a place I always imagine is a bit more in touch with the past, when women wore full long skirts and seem to float around so gracefully, like

Exploring the restaurant and food scene… has become one of my favorite parts of traveling to new places and perhaps the best part for me is doing all the research beforehand, which of course I did for this trip. Thanks to Instagram, it’s fairly easy to find pictures of delicious food and beautiful restaurants to venture to. I love using the save tool in order to keep track of all the great spots that come up on my feed and my Charleston section was completely full well before