My 'Sex and the City tour' of New York

One of the highlights of my trip to New York was the 'Sex and The City hotspots'  tour I did with the 'On Location Tour company. I would highly recommend this tour, it was great fun. Our tour guide was clearly a big fan of the series and so knew it inside and out. It was great as we were shown snippets of the series in the bus as we went around the city and after we visited the various landmarks.

First up was the 'Pleasure Chest' where the gang all buy their 'rabbits'. I may, or may not, have bought one of my very own (that is between me and my rabbit!). It was really funny as the guide got the whole bus laughing and cheering about all the various naughty sex things on the series before our visit, but as soon as we got into the shop, they all went very quiet and shy (although I have to say there were a few things there that surprised even me in there!). Next stop was Buddakan Bar and Restaurant, which is featured in the first Sex and the City movie. It is where Carrie and Big's pre-wedding dinner is held. I am sooo not a fan of the SATC movies, but this restaurant was glorious and absolutely HUGE. It was reasonably priced as well, so it would be great to come back and pay it a visit if I come back to NY. I understand that it is only open for dinner so bear that in mind if you want to go.

Buddakan Restaurant NY. Above is the spectacular function room where Carrie and Big held their bid pre-wedding dinner. The restaurant was closed to the public when we made our visit (at lunch time).

Next stop was one of the sights I was dying to visit - The Magnolia Bakery. It didn't disappoint. It is tiny inside so there is no room to sit down, so you get your cupcakes to go. Their coffee is very nice too. The cupcakes and coffee are very reasonably priced and I have to say that the cupcakes were the BEST I have eaten. 

Magnolia Bakery NY.

 Apparently the store started as a 'Mom and Pop' operation but it was so popular it was bought up and now there are franchises all over America. The original store still retains charm and the staff were friendly.

The most delicious cupcakes - yuumm!

The icing was amazing. Being a home baker myself, I am fussy. But I thought these were pretty much perfect.

Some of the houses near Magnolia. I love the exteriors of these buildings and the iconic fire escapes.

Next stop was the bar owned by Aidan and Steve in the series, Scout (really a bar called O'Neals).

There we all enjoyed a nice Cosmo with the other lovely ladies from the tour . .

I have to say, as a big fan of the series, I really enjoyed this tour. It goes for 3 and a half hours, so you get to see many more sights than I have shown here. The above just really shows the main spots were the bus stops and you can get off to walk around.

I would have also have loved to have done the Seinfeld tour, but that does not start until the warmer weather in late May, so I just missed out. I am HUGE Seinfeld fan so that is another one for the wish book (and I good reason to save up to go back to my beloved New York!)

Bus tour: On Location Tour company (they also do other tours, like the Sopranos)

Duration: 3.5 hours

Price: $46 plus gratuity. Cupcake is free, Cosmo is $9.

A night out at the Carlyle NYC in a Houndstooth capelet

One of the best nights of my life was spent at the Carlyle Hotel during my recent stay in New York. For those who are not familiar with this beautiful hotel, it is a very understated, historic hotel in the 'Upper East Side' of New York (the fancy schmancy area).

But first of all, my hubby and I started the day with a bike ride through Central Park . . .

The Reservoir, Central Park NYC

I thought the above photo, whilst obviously not chic, was a funny way to illustrate what difference a nice hairdo, make up and vintage clothes make. I do not always dress up, particularly if I am going to be out and about exercising on a bike. My only concern in these cases is that I put lots of sunscreen on and have a hat. So it was nice in the evening to get dressed up for our trip to the Carlyle . . .

Pictured on the steps of the Post Office, New York

I look a little different here than the first picture, no?! Navy and red are one of my favourite colour combinations, the effect is striking and seems to suit my very fair complexion. I would like to get a pair of vintage red gloves to match, I think they would look better than the navy, but red vintage gloves are actually difficult to find (? not sure why?). I like capelets because they don't overpower my fairly petite frame (I am only 5 feet and a half so I have to be careful with full size capes).

Hailing a cab in true New York style. Did I mention how much I love New York??

Before I get to my night out, I'd better mention my outfit details before I forget . . .

Outfit details:

Pussy bow blouse ebay

Houndstooth capelet etsy - seller: Chiffonier

skirt: Vintage Lilli Ann ebay

Gloves Love Vintage fair, Australia

Shoes: Novo (an Australian store, bought 2 years ago so prob no longer in stock)

Handbag: etsy PhotographicAmy

hat: etsy VintageVoyce

Now on to my night out at the Carlyle . . . We went to see the most fabulous jazz trio led by the composer/pianist Earl Rose (called, funnily enough, the Earl Rose Trio). I would highly recommend this performance if you go to New York. At the time of writing, the trio had a permanent booking there each Sunday and Monday nights at 9/9.30. We hadn't actually heard of Earl Rose before, but he is actually quite a well-known composer of film and TV music. He is quite simply an astounding pianist. Both my husband and I play the piano and we were amazed by his piano playing. The other musicians were great as well. Together with a few great cocktails, we had one of the best nights of our life.

As you can see, the Carlyle is a lovely, understated hotel (which is how I like 'em). If you have been watching Season 5 of Mad Men, you may remember that when the Jaguar guy gets 'entertained' by the Mad Men regulars (Don, Pete and Roger), and the Jaguar guy drops the hint that he is in the mood for a little 'excitement', Pete Campbell says 'Well, we can go to the Carlyle, it always gets a bit crazy there' (or words to that effect). Soooo not what the Jaguar man had in mind (Roger, a little more astute and wordly, took him to a high class brothel!. The Carlyle just oozes class. Real old world class. I loved it.

Photo courtesy of http://www.carlyle.com/

Photo courtesy of http://www.carlyle.com/

I couldn't get a photo of Bemelman's bar, which is where the Earl Rose trio plays, but I got a photo of Cafe Carlyle, which is a 'rung above' Bemelman's Bar. Woody Allen plays regular gigs here, so check out the entertainment calendar on the Carlyle website if you would like to see him play (he plays with a band). I will warn you that tickets to this venue are much more expensive than Bemelman's Bar - I am BIG fan of Woody Allen but bar tickets were $135 and premium seating (at a table) $185. This doesn't include drinks or tips. So I decided not to do that in the end (!). Still, if you have the money, it would be a memorable night and I may try to do it if I go back to NYC.

Above photo courtesy of the JFK digital library

Lastly, I couldn't finish this post without mentioning the Kennedy connection. The Carlyle Hotel is actually a very historic venue. JFK and Jacqui were regular patrons, in fact JFK had an apartment in the hotel for a number of years. In the lobby there are photos of Jacqui and JFK coming out of the hotel through the revolving doors. The facade looks a bit different in the photo above as they have an awning over it for the visit. It is truly a classy place.

Details:

The Carlyle Hotel, 35 E. 76th Street at Madison Avenue, New York NY 10021

http://www.thecarlyle.com/
Look on their website for the entertainment calendar so you can plan your trip.

The Hell's Kitchen Flea Market, New York

I recently spent 6 fantastic days in New York - a city I absolutely love. It rained quite a bit whilst we were there (I went with my hubby), but fortunately there are heaps of things to do in NYC when the weather is bad.

On our first day it was sunny and quite warm so I decided to pay a visit to the Hell's Kitchen Flea Market.  It is an open air market which runs every weekend - weather permitting (see further details at the end of the post).

The market is has an interesting mix of vintage clothes, bric a brac and memorabilia. When we went (at about 11am on a Sunday in May) it wasn't too crowded which was nice.

The market had lots of second hand, 80s and 90s clothes and a small-ish selection of what I call 'true vintage' - 50's and 60s stuff in particular. There were a few stalls which had a very nice collection of furs and I tried on a very nice brown fox fur capelet, but it was $125 and I didn't have that sort of cash on me (and I also thought that was quite steep for a flea market!), so I let that one go. I think that price wise, it is probably a bit more than I would like to pay for flea market goods, but it is stil fun to go and browe.

As you will see above, one stall had a very good selection of vintage wicker bags, which are a favourite of mine. As I already own about 8 of these (!) I didn't purchase any, but I thought they looked great and were in good condition. I am not sure how much they were, as when I looked inside some of them, there were no price tags.

Apart from vintage clothing, there were stalls with bric a brac.

There were some also very quirky things on sale - including a stall solely comprised of boxes of people's old photos. It was funny as there was a sign at that stall saying 'No photos permitted of the photos' (!).

My hubby spotted this interesting item at one stall - A Calibrated Absorber Set. What is that, you well may ask. My hubby did tell me on the day, but now I sort of forget. But from memory, it is a set of medical/scientific instruments that are used to do radiation treatment. By the look of it, it is from the 50s or 60s (?). It is amazing to see some of things which survive all these years.

Details

Hell's Kichen Flea Market is located on West 39th Street between 9th & 10th Avenues and open 9 AM – 5 PM every Saturday and Sunday all year long (weather pending).

Please see their website here for further details

Honest Ed's Famous Bargain Store in Toronto

The skyline of Toronto

I have just come back from two weeks in Toronto and New York. I had a fabulous time. It was my first time in Toronto and I really loved it. It has a great vibe and a great theatre precinct. I will be posting about my trip to New York in the next few weeks (including my review of the Sex and the City tour!), but for now, let me share with you one of the quirky shops in Toronto - 'Ed's Famous Bargains' . . .

I stumbled upon this store by accident, walking from my B&B one day in search for pho (the area is called Korea Town, and is full of great Asian restaurants). Its the type of store you don't see anymore (at least not in Australia). I love these old fashioned stores and this is one of the best I have ever seen.

Honest Ed's is actually named after the original owner, Ed Mirvish. He opened the store in 1948 and it was a huge success. You can read all about the history of the store on their website here.

As you can probably tell, it is a really quirky store - look at some of these slogans on the building - 'Honest Ed's repulsive, but his bargains are appealing!'. Classic. A bit more imaginative than 'Myer, My Store' (which is a department store in Australia).

The inside of the store is full of movie memorabilia and photos of famous people who have come into the store. It is a really fun place to shop. . . as the next photo reflects: 'Wasn't that fun!'.

It is a discount store, so it is definitely not the place to go for designer/high end merchandise, but it is great for toiletries (like sunscreen etc) and really good if you were furnishing a flat on a budget (lots of cheap china), but not great for clothes I would say. But who cares, it is chock-a-block full of character and well worth a visit if you are in Toronto. It is located close to a subway stop, not far from the city. Directions are here.

Stay tuned for some posts on New York next week!

A pussy bow blouse in France

I am having a lovely time living in France. The weather is still a little cold here (even though technically its Spring!). So last night when we went to a party I made sure I was warm and wore a cream pussy bow blouse and a wool jacket with a nice fur collar . . .

Photo taken on the balcony of our apartment in Grenoble, in the French Alps. My little 3 year old (actually almost 4 year old) boy is pictured to the right. He is a real handful but a very affectionate and loving little boy.

The food in France is, as you would imagine, absolutely fantastic. There is a boulangerie/pattisserie only 5 minutes walk away from me which sells the most amazing baguettes and desserts. Pictured above is my favourite dessert from the store - chocolate tart. I have taken up bike riding to help me compensate for all the calories I am having every day. Although many French woman do eat alot of carbs as they have baguettes every day, they also eat a lot of fruit, vegetables and salads so I think this is why it is said that 'French women do not get fat'. I noticed also that there are far less processed foods in the supermarkets - so not as many pre-prepared meals and far fewer snacks and crisps. The food here is also quite reasonably priced (at least compared to Australia) so it is possible to eat very well for not a lot of money.  I love food and wine so it is like paradise to me!

Au revoir for the moment from France.

Outfit details

cream pussy bow (from the 70's I would say?) - Thrifted/Op shop in Melbourne

1960's wool jacket with fur collar (I bought this thinking it was fake fur as I do not normally buy furs, but I have since been told it is real) - Ebay Australia

Skirt Sussan's, a women's shop in Australia purchased many years ago (the shop now only sells cheap, ill-fitting clothes)

Shoes - Homy Peds from Chemist in Glen Waverley, Melbourne (they are orthopaedic ones for 'elderly ladies' but they are so comfortable!)

Bonjour from the French Alps!

So this explains why I haven't posted on my blog for (cough) some time. Its because my family and I moved to France - yay! (sort of). Now, let me fill you in about why I say 'sort of'. In the past 3 months not only have I been trying (and I stress the word 'trying') to complete my PhD, but I also had to pack and store three wardrobes of vintage clothes and organise everything associated with moving a husband and two young children to Europe from Australia. To say it was stressful is an understatement.

However, I am here! And I am glad to say I love it here in France. We are living in Grenoble, which is a lovely city three hours from Paris, at the foot of the alps. As you can see from the photo above, it is still a bit wintery here, but the sun still comes out during the day (I think technically-speaking it is Spring here in Europe?!). Whatever the season, it was great to bring my 60s hot pink Lilli Ann coat out for an airing in France.  That photo was taken right outside our apartment building. Coming from Australia, where large backyards are very common, I was a little concerned about living in an apartment with two small, very active children, but so far it has been great because this park is right outside and our neighbours have similarly-aged children who have already made friends with mine, so all is good (or I should say 'tres bon!)

Photos of Grenoble - Courtesy Grenoble Tourism

These are some photos from Grenoble, courtesy of the Grenoble Tourism office. The photos may not do the city/town justice, as it is very pretty. There are a few things which are striking about living here, and I am not sure whether it is just Grenoble or France in general, but everything is so clean and there is hardly any pollution. I think this is largely down to the absolutely fantastic public transport and cycle lanes here - everyone cycles and it is really safe as most roads have dedicated cycle lanes. The public transport (mainly trams, but also some buses) are super clean and super cheap. I always found driving in Melbourne incredibly stressful so I am just so happy not to have to drive here.

Overview of Grenoble, showing the mountains in the distance

I do hope to post much more often now I am in France (and once I finish my PhD, hopefully in 3 months time). I am going to Italy and New York in May so I will be posting lots of photos of fashion from those trips so stay tuned. I packed all my Dior New Look dresses and hats in my bag so I am hoping to get lots of outfit posts taken in front of lovely French sights.

Thank you all for being patient with my intermittent posts. I really appreciate it.

Au revoir for now from France! (if you couldn't tell by now, my French is shocking)

Outfit details

1960s vintage Lilli Ann trapeze coat in hot pink ebay UK

pink gloves Love Vintage fair, Sydney

scarf Myer Melbourne

Vintage Pretty in Pink

Pink is one of my favourite colours (along with royal blue and emerald green!). I particularly like a good hot pink, which seems to go well with my pale skin (after quite a few disastrous experiments with beige I have learnt that I look best with some strong colour). And of course, I loved Molly Ringwald in 'Pretty in Pink' - some of her outfits were fantastic.

This is one of my favourite dresses - being pink AND floral - my two favourite things together! The label is very cute - it reads 'Palm Island "Little Fittings" Specially proportioned American half sizes'. Like I need to be told I am short! (I am 5 foot and a half, 155 cm to those of us who are not familiar with feet and inches). Actually, I don't mind being 'petite' - particularly as I gives me access to lots and lots of vintage clothes (and its good on long haul flights)(gosh, I am really grasping at positives there aren't I!).  

Speaking of petite, these pink shoes are one of the few vintage shoes I own. I find it very difficult to buy shoes as, again, I am small (a US size 5). I did buy a few vintage shoes from ebay and etsy but found it difficult to get the size right. Often the length was OK, but the width not. And if the seller is not 100% accurate in measuring, the shoe won't fit. But anyway, these are one of my successful etsy shoe purchases. I have to say the vintage shoes are much longer lasting than contemporary shoes - I find modern shoes lose their shape very quickly. Vintage shoes can be a bit uncomfortable to start off with as the leather tends to be harder, but they do keep their shape beautifully. And you can get heels that are not dangerously high! (I can't wear platforms or the wedges in modern shops - have you seen Posh Beckham's heels - OMG!)

This fan is one of my best bargains ever - the grand sum of $4.80 from the Chinese junk shop in Oakleigh. Being made of wood it is very sturdy - quite important in the Melbourne winds.

And last but not least, one of my latest crazes - vintage sweater guards. If you haven't seen these before, do try them out, they really add a cuteness and unique factor to outfits. They simply clip onto your cardigan so are easy to use (called a sweater guard as they literally guard your cardie from falling off!).

Outfit details

dress ebay

cardigan Laura Ashley 2011

sweater guard Etsy Rose Acre Cottage
shoes etsy

handbag Frocks and Slacks, St Kilda