It's a Helluva Town

Alright, I'm finally starting my NYC weekend recap! Now I just have to remember what I did. I gotta warn, y'all, this is pretty picture-heavy.



My friends Erin, Kara and I came in at 9a, so tired, so we went our separate ways and Kara and I went to our friend Dani's place (who we were staying with) and hella napped.

Then we met Erin and her sister Shannon at a little French bakery near the met. Kind of expensive for the tiny portions, but it was good. And of course we got goodies from the sweets case on our way out...







We get to the Met, and the first thing I want to do is check out the Costume wing. But it's closed! BUT it's closed because they had an amazing special exhibit; "American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity." You can see the details on the website here. It was one of the best exhibits I've ever seen. Perfectly preserved clothing from the 1880s to the 1930s. I was in heaven! I could look at the gorgeous detailed beading on Victorian party gowns and flapper dresses, dreamily covet all the sailor suits and cotton blouses of the '10s, and stare at a case of Bohemian silk shoes! Even just being around everything made of natural fibers...it was so great, I'm becoming a big fabric snob. Here's a couple of images from the Met's Flickr stream since I was not able to photograph in there (probably a good thing):







It's running until August 15, so if you find yourself in New York at all between now and then you HAVE TO SEE THIS. One of the most interesting parts, for me, was learning about Suffragette fashion. It's usually passed over in the history of fashion, so it was the subject I learned the most about at this exhibit. There was a quote I'll add as soon as I find it (scribbled it down, it's in the bowels of my apartment somewhere right now) about how they wore the current fashions and how it helped with their stand because they were showing women deserved the right to vote because of, not in spite of, their status as a object of desire. I found that profoundly interesting, it was validation for the debate I often hear of women who wear vintage fashions today not being feminists because they are idealizing a time where feminism was rampant, when in fact we are just as feminist as any other. I, and many women I know, dress in feminine attire FOR OURSELVES. We like the way we look in these clothes, we respect our bodies enough to wear flattering clothing. It's great my boyfriend likes when I don a vintage hat and dress, but I do it for me. That's as feminist as it gets!

Anyway, sorry for the tangent/rant. Rantgent. Before we left the Met we also checked out the Art of Illumination exhibit, where they completely dismantled an amazingly illustrated book of hours made in the early 1400s. I loved the saints stories especially. Something you might not know about me is that I love patron saints and their stories. My favourite is St Lucia. I did write a little thing on this blog for her feast day back in December but many of you might not have been reading this blog then! They also included zodiac symbols on the calendar pages, which I also found neat since it's a Catholic book. I'm also a huge astrology nerd!



We checked out the armor and the instruments, too, and then headed to the rooftop garden! It was about 7 pm, still lots of light but it was starting to set. We took a lot of pictures, of course:







yours truly, Erin, Kara



Erin and Shannon

And Erin took this super cheesy one of me and Kara. It looks like a Suede single.



Later we went for dinner at Zarela, an excellent Mexican restaurant. They had really strong yet tasty margaritas (I got pomegranate!), the best fresh salsa I've ever had tableside, and the 5 of us split 6 entrees and sides. Highly recommended! We then headed over to Flatiron Lounge, which I also highly recommend. I think my drink was called Maxwell's Return, I can't remember what was in it but it was amazing. If I go back some time I'm gonna get what Kara had; it had peach and jasmine in it! I also finally met long-time internet friend (from Livejournal days, if you can imagine!) Stephanie, of the Girl Friday blog. We had a long, awesome conversation about travel and men and life. Unfortunately we were gabbing so much I didn't get a picture of us together. In fact, I only have one picture of the night (of me, Erin, Kara and Dani):



...and this was just day one! Stay tuned for future installments.