NYC Recap

 

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I can’t believe its’ been a month since I was in New York. Time definitely flies by…

I checked into the Q&A Residential Hotel on the Saturday evening to be welcomed to one of the largest hotel suites I have ever stayed in the city. The last time I stayed in the quiet financial district area was 5 years ago, so I was curious to see how the area changed. That night, I settled in by walking around the area – the subway and the huge Duane Reade was across the street. I can’t sing the praises of free strong Wi-Fi and fridge that could hold my Invo Coconut Water for the Sunday morning shoot.

Read my article for RESIDENT Magazine on Q&A Residential Hotel here.

Sunday morning, I had a great time with Bianca Bruno and Nicky Styles (editor from The Trend’n Female) shooting a how-to braiding guide complete with Victoria Hair clip on extensions. I’ve never had extensions before so I was quite curious to see how well they would blend into my own hair. It turned out perfect! They were not heavy at all and easy to take out at the end of the day.

Stay tuned for the How-To Braid guide in BELLA LA and BELLA NYC coming out soon.

After the video shoot, we met up with some friends and had brunch at Gentilly, a new spot in the West Village. I had a great tofu scramble and got schooled on three different ways on how to drink rose courtesy of Maison Marcel. It was great reuniting with Caitlyn from Tease Tea and picking up my favourite Earl Grey tea. My plans fell through for Burger & Lobster that night as well as my attempt to have chicken wings at Pok Pok – so I’ll have to put that on the list for next time.

The next two days were FULL of meetings:

I surprised myself not taking a cab even once! Google Maps is my new favorite friend. The biggest surprise of Monday was meeting Britney Spears’ first tour manager tied with being asked to write a pro Trump article for a magazine for $200 later that night.

Tuesday’s meetings were scheduled back-to-back and being caught in the rain was an unwelcomed surprise. I stopped by CINER to check out some new fashion jewelry and visit the lovely ladies. My friend, Lexicon of Style introduced me to a café called Culture Espresso that had cute wallpaper and fabulous décor. Rare for Midtown. Tuesday night ended by meeting Susan Mallery, NY Times #1 Best–Seller who was launching a romance novel entitled, Best of My Love.

I had two impromptu meetings on Wednesday, pre flight home. I had the pleasure of visiting the beautiful shared working space of Neuehouse. I loved the Restoration Hardware meets NYPL vibe. Such an inspiring space. I grabbed a quick lunch with a friend at Back Forty West before heading back to the hotel to grab my luggage and a package that had arrived in the nick of time before my Luxury Car Ride swept me off to LGA.

ELENA:)

ps: To find out what the package was… scroll to my next post.

 

Book Review: Goddess of Love Incarnate

After finishing the book last night, I thought it was due time to get rolling with my late review. (I have a new respect for Kindles’ though – the book was heavy to cart around on transit). All the stories and the photographs included in the book made for an interesting read. Lili had lived and Leslie Zemeckis did a fantastic job capturing her roller coaster of a life.

Before the book, I had never heard of Lili St. Cyr and the differences between us are obvious. But after reading Lili’s bio I couldn’t help but to pull some similarities:

  • We both have affection for white roses, pearls, and champagne. I know Instagram accounts built on this love.
  • Fans of great fashion designers like Balenciaga and Dior (Although my goal is to actually wear the clothes one day like Lili – My Dior espadrilles are magnificent. The perfume they sprayed on them at Le Bon Marche in Paris lingered all the way home).
  • We like to keep busy, are disciplined and are always working on something. Lili was continually trying to improve and worked hard to be stand out.
  • We don’t like the feeling of being claustrophobic or tied down. Lili did have 5 or 6 marriages by the time she was my age, which seems like a lot – but I figured she was into the euphoria of romance rather than a lifelong commitment.
  • We like adventure. I seem to enjoy international travel more than Lili did but then again I’m also not carting around vintage trunks when travel either.
  • We both have been to the Roosevelt Hotel, Hollywood and the St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco (it’s now the Westin St. Francis – but it’s kept it’s charm) and Bergdorf Goodman.
  • She spent a large amount of time in Canada – Montreal to be exact. I’m from the west coast of Canada.
  • Lili made a Love List (sort of)! On page 329, I was delighted to read that for an interview she broke down her lovers/friends and the qualities she admired about them such as wit, sex appeal and generosity.

At the high point in her career, Lili was pulling a 6-figure salary (maybe the equivalent of almost a million now?) but sadly spending through all her earnings at a rapid rate. Like a bad business case, if she only invested a small portion of her millions she wouldn’t have to sell her beloved house. A collaboration with a company like Agent Provocateur or Dom Pérignon would have been a lucrative deal (this is easy to propose as an outsider!). She did have her own lingerie line at one point. It’s a shame her club in NYC, Boudoir never made it. I’m sure the décor and design was amazing. Many opportunities sadly lost.

I enjoyed reading this well written biography full of details and packed with research. And although her demise was tragic and unpleasant, the story of the stripteuse can live on in The Goddess of Love Incarnate, as glamorous, passionate and full of joie de vivre as Lili St. Cyr herself.

ELENA:) ps: I had a short 5 minute 5 question interview with author, Leslie Zemeckis posted on my News & Events page.

 

LeslieFinalKelly Rutherford, Leslie Zemeckis, Susan RockefellerBook cover

Orox Leather Co. Review

When I finished grad school, I vowed to
upgrade certain well-utilized belongings that screamed undergrad/high school
student. My laptop sleeve was one of these items. Months passed as I searched
for something that was C-suite worthy and combined both fashion and function.
Alas, I could not find anything that I loved without breaking the bank (Chanel
came out with a great notepad holder which I thought could serve dual purpose –
but the price tag made me feel queasy).

 

As an avid traveller, I find myself appreciating
the dual function of items; like a laptop sleeve that could also serve as a
clutch. If you’re a shopper like myself, you know that having extra room in
your luggage for new purchases is key. In the case of my Paris trip – this
meant my new jacket, shoes, sunglasses and gifts for colleagues/friends could
easily fit in my luggage and I did not have to say a small prayer when my
luggage was placed on the scale at Charles de Gaulle.

 

Orox Leather Co., owned and operated
by the Martinez family in Portland, Oregon handcrafts beautiful leather goods. The
name Orox, is derived from the fusion of the Martinez family’s origin from
Oaxaca, Mexico to Oregon. I had the opportunity to take an Orox laptop sleeve
and a couple cord minders on my recent trip to test out the quality
craftsmanship first hand.

 

When the products arrived at
my house pre trip, I was blown away at the oil tanned tan leather. To say it is
beautiful is definitely an understatement and like most things, I expect it to
get better with age.  There is something
to be said when your flight neighbour in 14C asks you, “Where did you get
that?!?”

 

Classic and elegant, the
style of the laptop sleeve is so timeless and clean – I couldn’t help but to
double it as my clutch as I roamed the streets of Montmartre. It served well,
both protecting my laptop throughout the trip and giving my shoulders a rest
from my cross body bag. I was so impressed that when I got home, I immediately
checked out the belts and other fabulous accessories.

 

Speaking of accessories, the
cord minders proved to have multiple uses as well.  A solution for those unruly computer/phone
chargers; the cord minders are so strong you can even secure a dress or pants
to hanger (using the clothing straps) after a steam. Brilliant.

 

It’s safe to say the Orox
Leather Co. offers something rare in the mass production of leather goods –
quality products perfected with rich traditional techniques, which will, just
like the Martinez family last for generations to come.

 

Be sure to follow Orox Leather Co. on Instagram/Twitter/Tumblr: oroxleatherco and ‘Like’ them on Facebook.

ELENA:)

C+C Lifestyles by Design Interview

I find that some things cannot be taught in school. Inspiration, being one of them. You can learn different skills/tools and the history that have inspired others – but your own inspiration is usually mesh between your reality and fantasy with a healthy dose of experience.

I had the wonderful opportunity to spend time with Chrissy, a Vancouver Interior designer and Cory (and their cute poodle Buttons) from C+C Lifestyles by Design to understand their inspiration behind their beautiful timepiece collection.

1) Why did you launch a luxury timepiece collection?

It all began while watch shopping; Cory and I were in the market for a new timepiece. I was sick of seeing everyone sporting the same Michael Kors watch that I had and I didn’t want another mainstream piece. I wanted something that was higher quality and stylish with a vintage appeal. Everything that I fell in love with was well past the 5K mark and I didn’t want to buy something just for name brand sake. Our date night conversations turned into watch design conversations and so we decided to take the budget that we planned on spending on a watch and put it towards designing our very own line.

2) What was your inspiration for the C+C logo?

Cory and I wanted to create a brand that really resonated with our values. We love the finer things, not the pretentious things; we wanted beautiful design, high quality with equally high ethics. C+C seemed fitting as it represents our love story in both romance and business. The name C+C was named after us… Chrissy and Cory. We wanted to create something that was meaningful, elegant, sophisticated and slightly whimsical. The crown represents a dream to build our own legacy and the two birds represent our love story. Our first collection, the Meraki series truly embodies our brand, as Meraki by definition is to create something with creativity and love, to put the essence of yourself into your work. That’s where Lifestyle By Design comes in.

3) Dream collaborations in the future?

For us, our collaborative ambitions are geared towards concepts rather than individuals. I think it’s so important to align oneself with others who share the same values. We are all about building something of integrity and beauty. To us Luxury is measured by time, taste and ethics and so we are looking to see C+C in circles where people echo the same values. There are a lot of amazing artists and designers out there that we would love to one day have the opportunity to work along side with but for now we are having fun just dreaming up and developing our next beautiful design.

To purchase your own timepiece, visit C+C Lifestyles by Design. A % of proceeds from each watch sold goes to the Paws for Hope Animal Foundation.

Be sure to follow C+C Lifestyles by Design on Instagram: @CCLifestyles as well as Chrissy’s design adventures, also on Instagram: @ChrissyCoDesign

ELENA:)

Dolch Designs aka IMPAPER.CO

There is a definite theme emerging on my blog right now….art. Coming up in the next few weeks, I’ll be showcasing some great artists (emerging and established) and I can’t wait (there is something that makes me smile about great design)! Plus, it will give you the excuse to exchange those tacky office prints (or dated Children’s artwork)  for something modern and inspirational.

Dolch Designs is a company created by two current university students specializing in typography and graphic art prints. First of all, they are in school. I know I wasn’t running my own business while studying – I was folding jeans at the Gap.

And second – it’s great art. Sure you can get something massed produced  at your local Chapters or IKEA, but it’s always nice to know that you are purchasing something unique/limited (custom orders are available). As an aside – you get the prints in the mail (I love getting mail!) which is always a nice treat.

Here is a promo code so you can get 20% off your entire purchase: elenam

Don’t forget to follow Dolch Designs on twitter/instagram: @DolchDesigns and ‘Like’ them on Facebook too!

ELENA:)

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