Packing for Five Weeks in Europe

So I have been a bit preoccupied with packing for my annual trip to Europe. I usually go for 3 to 4 weeks maximum but this year I wanted to spend a little bit more time with my parents in Milan so I am leaving earlier. I used to go for 6-8 weeks when my daughter was very little but there wasn't much travelling around involved and I was with my husband all the time so we could take more baggage (although we had to carry a lot more stuff for my daughter, of course). This year not only I am staying longer but as you know I am hitting three major cities (Milan, Paris and Athens) and also vacationing two weeks at the beach with my parents and my daughter. The good news is, this is the first time since my daughter was born that I am not taking any stroller or car seat, since she is old enough to wear a belt in the car, which is a big relief as I used to schlep around a giant bag with the car seat. Not that I am taking another suitcase instead but at least I have one of my two hands free and I can always pack an extra bag on my way back of needed.
So what to pack for 5 weeks involving going out a bit with my best friends in Milan, two weeks of beach, a week in Paris and five days of tourism and romantic dinners in Athens? I have learned a bit from my past mistakes, and especially from last year. If I look back at what I took with me last year, when I had a nearly identical itinerary except for Athens, my reaction is "What was I thinking?" I packed like a crazy woman. Not only I took a lot of stuff that I didn't need but I also took the HEAVIEST shoes and most voluminous skirts and dresses (and even a cover-up in terry cotton that took half suitcase on its own). Add to that a bit of shopping (especially in Paris) and you will understand why my suitcase was 10k (20 pounds) overweight when I checked into my flight back to NY at CDG. I actually have no idea how I managed to stuff all my purchases in one suitcase that was already ready to crack open. For example, while in Milan I bought a Zara dress to wear to our anniversary dinner in Paris. We went to the restaurant by Philippe Stark (whose name escapes me now) housed in the Baccarat house (a beautiful "hotel particulier" that also hosts the museum) and I think I looked very Parisian. However the dress (a summer tweed dress with a tiered skirt) weighs a ton and takes a lot of room. Since I never showed you the pictures, I think, here you go:

This year my motto is: lightweight, lightweight, lightweight. And the less voluminous the better. I am also banning anything silk (not because of the dry-cleaning, I can actually have things dry-cleaned in Italy before leaving for Paris-Athens, but because I have learned that I don't like to wear silk on vacation) and anything that requires a special pair of shoes. Most of the stuff must do double-duty, meaning that I cannot afford to take clothes that can only be worn once or, say, only in Milan and not in Paris or viceversa. I think I figured Milan and Athens out pretty well, I downsized my beach wardrobe and especially my evening wardrobe for my stay on the Riviera as I learned last year that the people at the hotel, mostly families and old retired couples, don't really dress up for dinner and the after-dinner "passeggiata". After all these years my biggest headache is still Paris because the weather can be unpredictable at the end of August. You cannot NOT take a jacket to Paris (double that, since I have to take a jacket for my daughter too) but last year I took too many "in cases". This year I am just going to assume that the weather is going to be mostly nice with chances of showers (I am just taking a few long-sleeve tops like the Saint James tees and my Zara windbreaker that I already had last year and proved itself a Godsend) and if not, I will wear the same outfit over and over, I don't care. If it is really cold, well it is Paris and they have stores there with Fall clothes, haven't they?

I am not good with counting items but this is what I plan to take (I am not a "pile maker", I tend to put everything I might think of in the suitcase and then empty it to purge the excess and the I put everything back again, orderly this time):

- 5 pair of casual pants because that's what I wear the most (one pair of jeans that I will probably wear on the plane, my Rag and Bone faux-camo skinnies that I wore to LA, a pair of leopard print AG black skinnies that I just bought for a song at Calypso, the thistle print toothpicks and a pair of white denim). Last year I also took a pair (or two???) of café capris that I never wore so this year they are not making the trip!
- the Calypso travelling pants that you have seen in my last post. I call them travelling pants because they are in a wrinkled silk that well, doesn't wrinkle more that it is already and they take the same room in a suitcase than a scarf. They have an elastic at the waist and a lower crotch (like harem pants, but not that low). When I tried them in store with a simple linen shirt I felt very much like the fashion editor of a French magazine, all understated elegance. The SA tried to push me to buy the shirt too but I have a Zara one (from eons ago) that is almost identical:

- 3 city skirts (my Philippe Lim structured black twill skirt; the JCrew neon embroidered mini and probably the JCrew white tiered one with the eyelets from two years ago) plus the Gap one for Athens. My Phillip Lim will be great in both Milan and Paris (weather permitting) and I just bought a top in a little neighborhood boutique that looks great with it. It is by Cacharel and was reduced by 70% off (the fabric looks like elastic silk but it is actually poly). This top is very Milanese, if you ask me (it looks more royal violet with black but more navy with white). I adore this Philip Lim skirt, I would have scooped it up in white too if it weren't for the price):

- 5-6 shorts (the scroll print ones, a pair of beach shorts, the Rag and Bone white cutoffs, the Calypso pom-poms and the H&M ones)
- 4 boho tops (including the pom-poms), the H&M white cotton shell with embroidery, a white top by Zara, the Cacharel of the pic above and my leopard tank from H&M
- 3 graphic tees and plenty of solid short-sleeve tee-shirts (I didn't bring enough last year and I live in tees when I am at my parents)
- 4 tanks (bananas, postcard and two solid ones)
- 4 cover-ups (but so lightweight that they take very little space). Buying cover-ups on the beach is part of the fun in Italy. Yes, I mean ON the beach. You have vendors that stroll along the beach all day with their merchandise and put up a stand every three "bagni" (concessions). I am not talking of the ones who sell counterfeit bags and can be very annoying, these vendors sell cheap clothes that are usually sold on the markets (they just come to you so you don't have to leave the beach).

Deciding what dresses to take was a real headache. In principle I don't wear dresses that much in the city, but I am going two weeks to the beach where a dress is the easiest thing you can throw on. Last year I took too many dresses that I ended up not wearing because they weren't easy enough to wear or too occasion-y. So this year I am leaving at home the really nice but too dressy stuff for the weareable ones. So I am taking:
- the two (navy and aqua) embossed Playa dresses from JCrew (oldies but goodies and they weigh like a plume); a Calypso white linen dress with a small flowery print (that I had last year already and loved to wear to breakfast at the hotel and to stroll after lunch); a Maje grey knit dress (very rock chic) for the evening in the cities; a Joe Fresh black knit dress with a crocheted neckline that can be worn as a cover-up but also to visit Athens (as it is not sheer at all); my Jcrew "backyard" dress (cover-up at the beach plus pool in Athens); the JCrew Roberta boho dress (for those who remember it), that is also very versatile. So nothing terribly fancy. However, since we are going to celebrate a special anniversary in Athens I am allowing myself a dress that is a bit more "special" and I actually bought for the occasion. I found it in a thrift store and it is by Versace. It is very summery though and not occasion-y per se (although a bit sexy), so should I need it I can wear it at the beach too.
This dress reminded me of the Emerson Fry mod top that I had a post about a while ago and was a disaster on me. A poster commented that I could let the them down and wear it as a dress but this is much better and in a similar print/colors. It is in linen so very breathable:

Since I am not a cardigan person, I am going to take my Nolita jacket to wear in the evening if breezy. I am still deciding if I should take a cashmere sweater for Paris (I am thinking of taking my Joe Fresh black cardi).

That's pretty much about it. What? The shoes, you say? Oh yeah, the shoes ;-). Besides my flip-flops, I am taking my Tory Burch Miller patent thongs (white), a pair of cork wedges by Jack Rogers that I wanted to show you but I am afraid I don't have enough time (did you know that cork is extremely lightweight?), the JCrew Allie gladiators (for the city) and a black pair of sandals (the ones that I am trying above with the dress). I have no idea what to wear to the sites in Athens, maybe I will buy a pair of Birkenstones in Paris (they are cheaper in Europe). But I know that while in Athens I am going to look for these:

Ikaria by Ancient Greek Sandals

I have been looking at these sandals for a long time (it is the only thing that I pinned in my Pinterest board!) but since they are made in Greece I am going to try to find them there and support the local economy. My old Ancient Greece lover self needs them!
I thought very hard about taking my Balenciagas with me but besides the fact that suitcases get lost and I would be heartbroken if that happened and I had my Balenciaga in it, I am afraid I wouldn't wear them enough to justify taking a third pair of black shoes.

That's it (really), I think I am good ;-). I will be back on Labor Day so you won't hear from me in a while. But I am still here until tomorrow if you want to leave a comment. Take care!

Pom-Poms

What a nice coincidence that the Collection pom-pom top got marked down today, right when I was ready to write this post. As you remember I really liked this top when I tried it on but the initial price, coupled with the fact that it is a dry-clean only blouse made me "sale wishlist" it. I did buy it the minute it went on sale (in store) a couple of weeks ago (same sale price). The only thing that made me hesitate a bit is that I also have the Baja top in the same colors (that I wore quite a lot BTW) but I though I would wear them in different occasions anyway as the pom-pom is more elegant, while the Baja is more of a casual, just-throw-on-and-go kind of top.
I had tried a 00 the first time around but I ultimately bought a 0 as I didn't want it to be tight in the chest/shoulders area. It is a bit more relaxed in the body but not boxy. I LOVE the mirrors around the neckline and the pom-pom trim (BTW something that I didn't notice when I tried it on in store is that the sleeve opening with the pom-pom trim is quite small, the pom=poms tend to turn into the inside and the arm get stuck in the sleeve. I am saying this to warn those of you who might have sculpted triceps or don't want to be extra careful with their clothes).

Speaking of pom-poms, do you remember that I was looking for a pair of shorts to wear in Athens and that I had bought the roller-girl ones but wasn't so sure about them? Well, I ended up returning them because in the meanwhile a pair of shorts that I was eyeing at Calypso and were awfully expensive went on sale and with the current extra 50% on sale items they came down to the same price than the JCrew ones. The shorts have a boho vibe that goes perfectly with my boho tops and they also have pom-poms! They are made in a double layer of cotton voile, so more lightweight than chinos and not as wrinkly as linen. I won't lie, they are short and almost obscenely short if worn at the waist but because they have an elasticated waistband I can wear them lower, like in the pics below (yes, that' lower). I bought an XS and could have gone with a S probably (but I tried a M and they were GIANT on the leg, they fit like a skirt) but there wasn't much of a difference between the two of them. In any case they look great with both the pom-pom and the Baja tops:

I have decided to take the pom-pom top on vacation with me even if I have strict rules that all I am bringing this year must obey to, I love it too much and since summer is going to be over when I am back I have no choice but to wear it on vacation. If it is too hot or I am too fussy to wear it during the day, I can wear it in the evening with my "travelling pants", also by Calypso (they are on sale as well and are called "Vanna"). I am going a bit ahead of myself here because I had planned to show you these pants in my packing post but since today we are talking about the pom-pom top and I took pics with the pants this morning, here you go:

I will be back with my packing rules. What do you think of the pom-pom top?

The Gap Utility Linen Skirt, aka the Perfect Bottom for the Linen Botanical Tank

I am back, even if not for a very long time. We had a wonderful time in the Hamptons and it looks like it was the good week to be away from the city because temperatures neared the 100 degrees around here. I started a post yesterday with a few vacation pics that you might enjoy but my Internet connection has been intermittent (my phone line is down, not sure if it's the heat from last week or what else) and eventually I gave up. If I have time I will post it later this week but today I wanted to show you a Gap great find because it is the last day to take advantage of their 30% off promo.

As you might remember I bought the linen botanical tank (aka the banana tank) at JCrew when it came out. However, I was a little bit undecided about it, especially after seeing this ad for the El Museo del Barrio (Museum dedicated to the Caribbean, Latino and Latin American arts, located on Fifth at 104th), in a street of the Carnagie Hill neighborhood:

Could this be the source that the JCrew in-house graphic guru
 (Grace, for the friends  and everybody else who reads the descriptions of CFS)
found and put on the tank?

I mean, if you start to see bananas everywhere, it becomes less fun. But, it turned out that it isn't a trend after all so I still find it amusing.
Anyway, a couple of weeks ago or more I was at the Gap (not sure what I was doing at the Gap exactly, since I have been completely disinterested in their offerings, even for my daughter) and I saw this linen skirt in the sale section that made me think immediately of the banana tank because the color was an olive green that I knew for sure would look great with it. There was only one on the floor and it was a 0 so I tried it on and I loved it. I took it to the register but it turned out that it was an online-only style and it was still full price ($59). Since I didn't need it that minute I decided to wait for it to go on sale, which it did before I left for the Hamptons and I ordered it with an additional 30% off that brought down the price to $25. Much better! I would have ordered two sizes , as I am usually a 2 in Gap bottoms but it is a "return by mail only" style (is this new? I never noticed before, even for online-only styles), so since I had tried the 0 and it fit I decided to stick with it.
I can't say there is room to grow (so to speak) but because I plan to wear it mostly on vacation to visit sites I am OK with it as I like the look and length a lot. It is also very soft and extremely comfortable. If you are interested it also comes in white and navy and you can order it here. Here is on me with the banana tank:

This is exactly what I was looking for to climb ruins in Athens (I know, the Acropolis can hardly be called a ruin but you know what I mean) and it also looks great with the Madewell mountain flower tank (and a lot of other things). I think the length is perfect on me (utilitarian skirts are often too long and don't look good on me) but you can go up a size and wear it lower. I highly recommend this skirt, especially if you have this tank.

So at this point I am almost ready to pack again (laundry has been laundered and things have been ironed at record speed). I will have an extensive post about my packing for my next 5 weeks in Europe as I needed a plan this time. Thanks for followings and stay tuned (maybe I will be able to squeeze in a post on the new arrivals too!)

Packing the Sheer Cotton Crossback Dress

Quick post today as I am packing for our one-week vacation in the Hamptons. By the way, I have to rectify something that I wrote a few posts ago and could have been misunderstood: when I said that we were headed to our Hamptons residence I meant it like in "residence inn". In Italian we use the English word "residence" to indicate a particular type of hotel with mini-apartments for extended stays (basically a short term rental) so that was an interference of the Italian meaning. In any case I don't have a house in the Hamptons, let alone a mansion, and I actually wouldn't know what I would do with it, I am not a "house" person. So every year we rent in the same place (different apartments) which is right on the beach. Alright, I just wanted to get things straight!

I am packing the usual suspects but I wanted to show you the sheer cotton crossback dress in black. I bought this in white first because it was dirty cheap ($20) and I wasn't sure I would still find the black, but it looked very night-gowny. A few days later I found the black at the Collection store (not marked down of course so as not to risk selling it) so I returned the white and ended up keeping the black. This is the perfect backyard dress as it is too sheer to wear out. Some would say it is a cover-up but personally I don't like to wear dresses like this one as cover-ups (it is too low cut and that's where I usually need protection, not to mention that it is going to fall below the top of your bikini). I don't have a house so I don't have a backyard  but we spend a fair amount of time in the mornings and late afternoons on the large terrace of our the apartment, so I would say this is going to be my "terrace" dress. Who knew I needed  one ;-).

Anyway, I tried both the XS and XXS back in the day and the XS was very unflattering. The XXS fits much better but I think it needs a belt to keep the nightgowny look at bay. This raffia one is perfect for the vacation feel of the dress:

I am only going to pack very casual stuff this time. We almost never stroll in town (where people tend to be more dressed up) except in Montauk, which is very low key anyway. We are going to celebrate officially our 15th anniversary while are there and we are probably going to have a date night in a nice restaurant (probably Shelter Island) but I don't feel like taking anything dressy. I am undecided about which dress to take because I didn't buy any new casual dress this year (except for the one above, which is even too casual, and the H&M leopard one that I think is not my husband's style). To those of you who know my closet well, any suggestions are welcome!

OK, talk to you in 9-10 days (as I already said I have very little reception there so it is unlikely that I will comment during my stay)!

OOTD: The Birthday Girl Wears Prada

On Tuesday I had lunch with my dear friend to celebrate (again!) my birthday, as she had missed the pre-birthday dinner that I had with my other girlfriends last week and she insisted to invite me to lunch.
We went to Sfoglia which is probably my favorite Italian restaurant in the neighborhood if not in the city. It is a bit out of hand for anyone who lives below 79th St so it hasn't "destination" status but it truly is a wonderful restaurant. Not only the food is excellent but the décor is elegant without being pretentious and you really feel like you are in a villa in Tuscany.
My girlfriend always dresses up, especially when we go out to celebrate something, so I thought it was the perfect occasion to break out a sheath dress that I had since my vacation in Italy last year. This is a "runaway" Prada dress that I got for 50 Euros (no typos). In the little beach town on the Riviera where we vacationed last year (Alassio) they have this big clearance sale at the end of the summer where all the stores put out little stands in the streets and sell the odd ends of the season and season pasts. It is actually a lot of fun and I took pictures but they are prints (we had to buy a disposable camera as we forgot it at home in Milan) so I cannot post them as I don't have a scanner.
Anyway, the only problem is that you can't try on (because there is no store to speak of) or, if you are brave enough, you are allowed to try in the streets. There was this stand with very high end Italian brands (Miu Miu, Prada, Dolce and Gabbana) and the prices were crazy (all the dresses were 50 EU, skirts and pants were 30 EU and tops 20 EU). I immediately noticed this and another Prada dress (a sundress with a sailboat print) but they were both a size 38 and I couldn't even button the sundress.
I really liked this sheath but it was a smidge small around the hips and I couldn't even look at myself in a mirror so I put it back on the rack. Another woman immediately picked it up and tried it on. She was trying to make it work as well but this woman was at least two sizes bigger than me and seeing it on her (it didn't look bad at all) I regretted letting it go and though "If she can wear it, I certainly could have!" Luckily for me she couldn't zip it up, so she didn't buy it and it came home with me (I also bought a Fendi skirt that I wore a lot this year and you will see in another post).
What I like in this dress are the colors that really suit me. It is a tribal print that doesn't go out of style or if it does, it comes back. I think I lost a bit of weight since I bought it so it isn't as tight around the hips as it was when I tried it on. In fact it isn't tight at all. Granted, it isn't probably the most flattering dress ever on me but it looks good enough and you don't walk away from an original Prada dress at that price unless it is three sizes smaller than you are. I think it would look better if I removed the silk lining (so as to have a bit more room) but it feels almost like a sacrilege to remove a luxurious silk slip from a Prada dress (it is sewn into the zipper so I couldn't recycle it as slip). What do you think?
I accessorized it with my resin necklace and a resin bracelet that my girlfriend gave me last year for my birthday (it's from Brazil and I luuuuuuuurv it):

My friend not only invited me (BTW, I had the most delicious Rossini cocktail that I ever had) but she also had a gift! And the gift came in a JCrew bag! It IS actually a bag, the Bamboula for JCrew market tote for my trip to Greece, as the accompanying card said.
Now I would really like to keep it (even if I have an entire department of straw totes) because I thought it was so nice of her and in general I don't like to return gifts but after trying to carry it at home, I find it very uncomfortable, plus you can only carry it in your hand or the crotch of the elbow, since the handles are too small to be carried on the shoulder AND they didn't cover the handles with leather, so it is very scratchy on the skin. Those of you who have this, do you like it?
Too bad because I have the perfect top for it ;-). Look how nice it looks with my old Calypso crochet-trim top in the same colors (BTW, I am totally taking this top with me to Greece):

There is actually nothing that I vaguely want at JCrew right now so I might as well keep it. I am going to share my other presents in the next post, then I will be in the Hamptons again for a week and come back just in time to pack for Europe. I can't believe I have only a week left to spend in NYC this summer. Stay tuned!

About Before Midnight and Feeling Old

I have plenty of outfits and birthday presents to show you (I have been spoiled in the end) but I HAVE to talk about Before Midnight first. I apologize to the fashion-minded readers.

So I went last Sunday and I have mixed feelings about it. I would love to say that I loved it but I have to admit I found it a bit boring at times and I even found myself thinking about my day in at least one occasion. Don't get me wrong, I love the idea of two people talking non-stop for an hour and  half but I found that in this case the talking felt sometimes forced (like they were trying to find topics) and was missing that something that kept your interest alert.
However, Richard Linklater has a real gift for endings and while the ending of "Before Sunset" is probably one of the best ending of a movie EVER (I just watched it again because I didn't remember much of it and I was in awe) the ending of Before Midnight, if not as sexually and emotionally charged, at least saved the movie for me. I think that the big difference in this third installment is that Jesse, the character played by Ethan Hawke, is way more charming than his female counterpart. The character played by Julie Delpy on the other end, went all neurotic since the last time we saw her. But it might be me, as I tend to identify with the male characters in movies about married couples (or people in a relationship) because I AM the passive-aggressive one in the couple (usually the man). I am kind of curious to see if I am the only one to have almost hated Celine in Before Midnight (I was like "Please, give the guy a break") or it is just that I AM the teenager my husband is stuck with (to quote a line from the movie). I am not idealizing Jesse, I know he has his flaws but it seemed to me that all along the movie he was the one who was really making the romantic effort to keep the flame alive and that Celine was the one always ruining the moment. Ok, I know, it is called being realistic and having to deal with daily problem, still I couldn't help rolling my eyes at her being so aggressive (angry?) and taking things too seriously. It doesn't help that while her outfit in Before Sunset was really flattering and a big component of her Parisian charm, I found that the dress that she was wearing in Before Midnight (the one in the pic above) wasn't doing her any justice. I wonder if it was a directorial choice (to make her look more womanly than girly) or if she chose the dress (I couldn't find any detail about the dress, except for an interview where she says that she loves vintage and that it is a vintage dress. Maybe the famous top that she was wearing in Before Sunset was vintage too? Even if it looks a lot to me like a Isabel Marant from the same era. Again, I couldn't find anything on the top or the jacket, except for another interview where she said that she has kept both. The journalist, probably a man, didn't jump on the occasion to ask her the question that we all want to know the answer to: WHO MADE IT?). Ethan Hawke on the other side has more physical presence in this movie than before, I guess pre-middle age suits him well. He looks (and even his voice sounds) like a young Nick Nolte (but not like the REAL young Nick Nolte, more like I would have imagined Nick Nolte to be when he was young by watching him old). In any case, when at some point he tells her that she is "crazy nuts", I couldn't agree more.

Anyway, for any of you who haven't watched any movie of the "Before" saga, I recommend to see the previous ones first. At this point it has really become a trilogy so it doesn't make sense to see this one without seeing at least Before Sunset first (there are also a lot of recurring themes in the dialogues that you will savor more if you have watched the other two). As I said before I just watched Before Sunset again and I actually encourage those of you who watched the whole thing once already, to start from the end if you are planning to do a marathon, because the characters become more endearing if you know where they end up (this "backwards" take on a love story has actually been attempted in a movie by French director Ozon, the movie being "5x2" that I recommend but can be a bit depressing). The power of the movies is that, unlike in real life, characters can go back in time and you can actually watch them being young again. Their youth is what the character have lost in Before Midnight. I was shocked to see how young they were in Before Sunset, after watching them in Before Midnight.

Before Sunset and the iconic top that Julie wears in the movie
 

Maybe I am overly sensitive because we are going to celebrate our 15th anniversary next week and last week I did something that I almost never do: I looked at old (digital) pictures of me and my husband when we were younger. I was looking for a picture of me years ago in Siena that I wanted to show to my daughter and I went back in time year by year and saw myself and my husband get younger and younger and I was literally mesmerized by those young people who were looking back at me from the past. It can seem a bit cliché but I actually wanted to ask those two questions like "Were you really happy back then?" We did seem happy and in love and I wanted to crack that secret but it's lost in time. We are as happy and in love now as Jesse and Celine in Before Midnight but there was a time when we were as happy as Jesse and Celine in Vienna and YOU know the difference. That's probably the real reason why I didn't like "Before midnight": I was mourning my youth and my lost love.
In any case "Before Sunset" is definitely my favorite out of the three, it is an almost perfect movie from a cinematographic point of view and when the end credits started I couldn't believe that an hour and half had just gone by. BTW, I am now obsessed with the song that Julie Delpy sings over the credits (that you can hear here and buy here. I didn't know she could also compose music and sing.

As many other fans of the trilogy, I wonder if we will see another Jesse and Celine movie in another nine years and so on (I think it is going to be a "After" if any). Being almost the same age than the two characters I hope for them but also for me and my husband that they will find a way to somehow reconnect to those young people who fell in love on a train again. Maybe there is a third age of love (I guess I should probably watch "Amour", the Haneke movie, but I think I am not ready yet) and that's the secret. Or maybe perspective is the secret and in twenty years I will look at the pictures of my husband and myself and we will seem as happy as we were in our twenties. But wait, that's what Jesse tells Celine at the end of the movie, in his charming way. See, the ending saves the day (let's hope).




Jesse and Celine at the end of Before midnight.
 I have actually been there, on that same dock, eons ago (it is in Pylos, in Greece)

OK, sorry for the rambling, I will be back to the usual stuff soon but in the meanwhile I would love if those who have seen the movie (or the other two) could leave a comment and share their thoughts. Well, just share even if you haven't seen them...

I am back (and older)

I am back from our short vacation in the Hamptons and I am one year older (thank you for your birthday wishes, BTW). Of course I am just a few days older than when I left, isn't it funny how we are tricked into thinking that we actually get older on our birthdays? My daughter said something very wise to me after turning 6. She said "Mommy, it wasn't such a long time ago that I was a baby. It seems longer because of all the birthdays, but it was fast". I know, I have a natural born philosopher under my roof! I wanted to tell her "You have no idea how true it is" but of course I shut up for her sake.

Anyway the good news is I am also more tan than when I left as we had great weather for the entire stay. I wanted to post something on the 4th of July but I had ZERO reception there, which always comes to me as a big surprise. This is what I had planned to wear and actually wore on the beach that day, a subtle version of the American flag (cover-up by Joe Fresh, belt by Calypso):

We celebrated my birthday one day early, on Friday night (because yesterday night we were to take the road again to come back to NY). I made a reservation at one of my favorite places in the Hamptons, Navy Beach, which is basically a bar-restaurant on the beach with sunset view. That turned almost into a disaster because it is one of those places where even if you have a reservation you wait for hours to be seated outside (and all the point was to be seated outside on the beach, where they have literally 4 tables). My MIL was loosing her patience and my husband wasn't cooperating either (he wanted to go to another restaurant from the beginning) but luckily I managed to get my hands on a table right before everybody got too upset (after 45 minutes). From there on we had a wonderful evening, the food was delicious and the summer atmosphere is priceless (especially when you know that you are going to be back in the city soon). These are a few picture where you can see what I am talking about:

But I have to say, it is good to be back too, I love the city in the summer. This afternoon I am going to try to go to the movies and see "Before midnight", the third episode of the Ethan Hawke-Julie Delpy saga that started with "Before Sunrise". I wanted to go last Sunday already but then I got lazy and watched another movie starring Julie Delpy on Netflix (that I had already seen and I found hilarious), "Two Days in Paris" (much better in my opinion than the sequel "Two Days in New York").
So in honor of miss Delpy and her boho style, I am wearing an old dress that I bought when I still lived in Paris and miraculously still fits me well (in fact, when MIL saw it this morning she said that it is a dress made for me. And she usually spares her compliments):

And speaking of Julie Delpy, I have to share this Madewell tank, because it totally reminds me of something that she would wear in one of her movies (actually I blame the purchase on Wendy and her obsession with Miss Delpy!!!) It is called Linen tank in mountain flower and it was on sale for $34.99 plus 40% off last week (currently soldout on the website but I love all the "mountain flower" collection):

I also want to apologize for my lack of comments on other blogs. Since I switched to Freely I am unable to leave comments from my phone (not sure what I am doing wrong but I hadn't time to really look into it). In particular I want to wish a happy belated bday to GiGi and the other bloggers, like Audreybella, who share my "birthday week".
Have a great Sunday!