Jul 25, 2013

Bits + Pieces

Madeline Beard Fashion, Food, Music, Other Adventures, Photography baking, hugo, NYC, sara bareilles, Share Some Style, stylist, The Met, yoga 1 Comment

Right now, there are so many little things that are adding brightness to my life. The last two weekends have been spent doing relatively low-key activities: baking, brunch, a trip to the Met and a walk through Central Park (not to mention a casual photo shoot for my Share Some Style profile). While these things individually are simple, strung together they have given me so much to smile about. Add a couple of songs, a new habit and a few harebrained ideas for the rest of my time in the city and life is starting to feel pretty damn close to… ~~perfect~~ p e a c h y.

1. “Treasure” by Bruno Mars

I dare you to listen to this and not feel like breaking out in a nice strut down the sidewalk. It is my “rise and shine” song of the moment.

2. Baking in Brooklyn

Last weekend, I escaped the hustle and bustle of Manhattan for the tree-lined streets of Flatbush, Brooklyn. Awaiting me there was one of my closest friends, Phoebe, a kitchen equipped with every baking ingredient imaginable (vanilla paste! peppermint extract! so many possibilities!) and a bookshelf made up only of cookbooks. Needless to say, we indulged our inner gourmands and whipped up some decadent treats: Caramel Banana Pudding and Dark Chocolate Mint Sandwich Cookies.

3. Yoga, yoga, yoga

My new favorite way to work out. Ever since I started taking yoga classes in the mornings, I feel more strong, focused and alert throughout the day. It has been such a restorative routine, and I actually look forward to my early morning wake up call now because it means I get to go to a class and give myself a little TLC for the mind, body and soul.

4. My Share Some Style ensemble

I was invited to take part in a photo shoot by the founders of a really cool up-and-coming website, Share Some Style. Share Some Style sets up clients with stylists and after registering myself as a stylist a couple months ago, I got in touch with Diane, one of the co-founders of the site. At the beginning of the summer, Diane invited me to take part in a photo shoot for the NYC stylists to help them build their online portfolios on the site. I got to wear one of my very favorite outfits for the shoot, including a coveted DeadBuryDead tshirt picked up at that Brooklyn craft fair: Feel free to check out my stylist profile and the rest of the pictures that were snapped (and of course, if you know of anyone looking for styling help, don’t hesitate to send them my way!)

5. A new album

Sara Bareilles, the singer/songwriter famous for her bubbly “Love Song” diddy, just released her new album and it is phenomenal. While I could go on about my personal takeaway from the album, I’ll let you form an opinion for yourself. Here are two of my favorite tracks, but I promise it will be worth your while to listen to the whole thing.

6. Museums + Parks

This past Sunday had all the makings for a purely wonderful day. I met up with Bailey, good old friend from high school, grabbed brunch, then meandered up to the Upper East Side for a bit of cultural enlightenment. We spent the afternoon at the Met, and I have already promised myself I will go again before my time in the city is up. Although we explored the museum for nearly 3 hours, there were still so many exhibits that I still need to see. After, we headed to Central Park to enjoy the fabulous weather (finally!), lounge and people watch. While an afternoon of museum and park visiting doesn’t sound particularly extraordinary, the excursion truly made me feel like a New Yorker. All that was needed was tickets to an Off-Broadway play that evening and I would have had no choice but to stake my claim here immediately.

7. Changes

Finally, I am contemplating some sort of change before I leave the city. I’m not really sure what this will be yet (I’m not really one for tattoos or piercings) but Pinterest has allowed my imagination to run a bit wild with ideas… Will keep you all posted on hair changes, as well as life changes over the next few weeks! I will end this post with yet another musical contribution for your listening pleasure: Stay cool, folks. Even more summertime city adventures to come. ♥

Jul 8, 2013

With Arms Outstretched

Madeline Beard Fashion, Food, Music, Other Adventures, Photography baking, Balcony, Brooklyn Renegade Craft Festival, Brownies, fashion, John Mayer, Paper Dolls, Rilo Kiley 1 Comment

So I am going to be 100% honest; my absence these past couple of weeks on SLB is not due to my usual reason for falling off the blog wagon in the past — you know, the “I’m too busy, I’ve got so much going on, blah dee blah” excuse. I have sat down to write this post probably at least seven times in the past two weeks but seem to have fallen ill with an unfamiliar case of writer’s block.

I have no one to blame but a feline companion and myself for the lack of inspiration, but let me rewind. Shortly after writing my last post, I was asked to cat sit in a town house on the Upper East Side. Up until this afternoon, I had been living in shangri-la enjoying all of the amenities (the space! the kitchen! a bathroom to call my own!) that the home and the neighborhood had to offer.

While this whole set up felt something like serious good fortune, I was subconsciously affected by my new surroundings. Although I have been consistently filling my days to the brim with adventures, I lost the ability to write about these experiences the way I wanted to. I have no explanation for this except that not being in “my element” (even if that element is a tiny apartment in Chinatown) caused me to lose the words that usually come so easily when I’m writing a post on SLB.

It actually feels like a funny joke when I think about it: of course I am more excited and inspired to be in this postage stamp apartment located in the quirkiest of neighborhoods than living the life of luxury on the UES. It’s just something about being in your place, your space, where you have finally developed a familiarity with the setting and the people around you. Losing this, even if just temporarily, can make the brain do a complete 180.

But enough of the psychobabble. As mentioned, these last few weeks have been wild and wonderful filled with trips to hip craft fairs in Brooklyn, inception brownies and some brand new jam-worthy tunes. Idea: how about I stop writing and start showing? Good? Good.

So you guys might be wondering about the title; it comes from a song by Rilo Kiley that reminds me of summers past and makes me think towards the future. In this moment, I am working on perfecting the balancing act that is me running towards my future and staying very still as I am right here, right now. The rest is yet to be determined, but what I know for certain is this: I am thoroughly enjoying the ride.

More late night ramblings and tales to come.

♥

Jun 9, 2013

Endless

Madeline Beard Fashion, Food, Other Adventures, Photography buildings, friends, inspiration, momofuku milk bar, New York City, photography, the high line 0 Comments

Today I went exploring with two dear DC friends of mine, Aliya and Josh. Without a plan for the day, I decided to take them to some of New York’s best; a mix of places I’ve been meaning to see (The High Line) and personal favorites I’ve been wanting to revisit (Momofuku Milk Bar from last summer’s NYC excursion). Our time was open-ended, the weather was perfect and today, New York felt endless but not overwhelming.

My favorite part about living here so far is how visually stimulating the city is. Every new neighborhood means a new chance to see something inspiring, and that inspiration comes in all shapes and forms: paintings on buildings, the installation art in shop windows, a street performer’s costume, even the way the skyline looks from different vantage points.

We finished the day off eating dim sum in Chinatown, a neighborhood that I now fondly refer to as home. While nothing of great importance happened today, I feel like our adventure will be a memory I cherish for a very long time. There’s something to be said for simply enjoying the company of good friends, with zero agenda but to make the moments you have together wonderful.

When life hands you lemonade, sometimes you’ve just gotta smile and say “thanks”.

More adventures to come.

♥