Category: Travel

NYC Blogger Boo Staycation: Day 1 Recap

1 Comment

Since starting this blog 3 years ago I have been very blessed to meet some pretty awesome people including fellow bloggers and models. As influencers we do get the chance to spend time together at events, however rarely does that leave us much time for much of anything else so I was excited when stylist and blogger, Nanthale of N.E.C. Style, getting inspiration from the newly released film, Girls Trip, came up with the idea of a staycation.

We decided to take advantage of just a bit of what the city we call home has to offer, creating a weekend itinerary of activities for ourselves and set off to have a great time.  Our group consisted of model and blogger, Brooke of Madame Finehouse, Fabiola of Fabiola Michelle, body positive fashion illustrator, Jonquel of Jonquel Art , Marcy of Fearlessly Just Me and of course, Nanthale. It was a great change of pace to just enjoy each others company for a full weekend even more so since the weekend we chose even fell in line with Marcy’s birthday.

Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post; clothes and tour tickets were gifted for feature, but all opinions are my own.

Continue reading →

Fall Weekend Getaway (feat. Gwynnie Bee)

3 Comments

Last weekend I got to head over to Lancaster, Pennsylvania with two friends and my mother. A retreat of sorts, it was a trip I wasn’t expecting to go on until my mentor casually mentioned that she had purchased my ticket because I deserved to take some time to unwind. (I truly really am blessed with some great friends.) I had to travel light so I looked to Gwynnie Bee to help me make a decision as to what to pack. Gwynnie Bee is a subscription box service that allows you to try different styles and brands for an affordable rental fee.  For my first box I got these two beautiful printed dresses that were just perfect for the occasion especially since they both go well with my favorite crossbody satchel.

Day 1-  Pennsylvania Dutch Country Sightseeing and Shopping

One we entered Pennsylvania our first stop was Kitchen Kettle Village. A very picturesque countryside attraction with small shops and restaurants,  I got to sample authentic Amish jams, and window shop scented candles, soap, hand-carved signs, handmade quilts, and leather goods. I totally missed my chance to take a buggy ride tour of the nearby Amish farms, but I guess there’s always next time.

20160930_130044This Hemant & Nandita print A-line dress is meant to be worn in the summer yet when paired with a turtleneck or denim jacket, can easily be worn during these early fall days when the temps are just beginning to drop into the mid-60s.  The pattern and colors are stunning in person so I highlighted this with black tights and boots. (Style notes: I would suggest either sizing down or wearing this dress with a belt because it runs a bit large. As it is not lined I wore a slip underneath, this helped with the static, but it did cause the dress to twist on occasion.) Continue reading →

24 Hours In Queens, New York with Eventbrite

3 Comments

New York City. The so called “center of the world” is the place I call home.  As much as I love “the city” (aka Manhattan), Queens has my heart, having been born and raised in this borough. Queens truly is the unsung part of the city though parts of it is now being developed into hipster-villes much like Williamsburg in Brooklyn. Nevertheless,  Queens has a lot to offer, you just have to take a closer look. Here is just one way that you can spend a day in my fair hometown. On this list of recommendations you will find places that are both enjoyable and affordable so that you can get the most out of your visit. Continue reading →

Blue and White Boho Summer

1 Comment

Ever since high school I developed this habit of avoiding shops that cater more to straight sizes, mostly because I figure since my size and shape is obviously not taken into account in the design of their offered pieces, I would only be wasting my time by looking there. Of course this mode of thinking is false, as evident from this outfit made up entirely of straight size pieces.

Back in late May I ventured into Forever 21 to do some shopping recon and my eye was immediately lead to this navy blue and cream bandana skirt. I scanned the racks for my size and I was not surprised to find that it wasn’t available in plus. Not to be defeated so easily, I found the skirt in a large (their largest offering of this piece) and went to try it on. I fell in love as you may have seen on Instagram:

instagram shop post

Continue reading →

PCA/ACA National Conference 2015

3 Comments

In addition to this blog, I am actually a design and art history historian as well as a cultural anthropologist. It’s a quite a mouthful I know.  Though much of my academic writing and research has taken a back seat since receiving my masters last spring, I have made some efforts in the final months of last year to expand on some projects I had started in graduate school, including my paper on Target, its designer collaboration collections and plus size blogging– a paper I submitted last October  to be considered as a possible presentation for the Fashion, Style, Appearance, Consumption and Design area of the 2015 Popular Culture Association and American Culture Association’s National Conference.

I was told that once you send in your abstract for consideration it takes approximately  a minimum of two weeks to hear back from the area chair, I heard back in two days. From that day I was in crowd-funding and paper editing mode. It was an intensely stressful time given the the other responsibilities I had to deal with such as work, looking for another job, apartment hunting, eventually moving, and starting this blog. It should come to no surprise then that I did my final edits to the paper and accompanying PowerPoint the week before I was set to present. Yet even with all the anxiety fueled by the craziness that is my life, I was very excited to spend Easter weekend in New Orleans for my first (national) conference.

I think my abstract is the longest in history; there was so much to cover in such a little space.

I arrived the day before I was scheduled to present which gave me a chance to sit in other panels for different academic areas, such as Film Adaption, Fat Studies, Tolkien Studies, Material Culture, as well as Libraries, Archives and Museums, to name a few. Admittedly the experience did shake my confidence as I started to question the significance of my paper as the work by my fellow scholars was not only impressive, but presented in such a way that kept the audience engaged for the entire panel. I was in awe of these scholars who clearly have had much more practice than I. Continue reading →