Pop-up: Liberty for Target

Today I was walking through Bryant Park after buying a new BlackBerry and noticed the bright patterned signs for Liberty of London's collaboration with Target. I decided to check it out and managed to be close to the front of the line.

I emailed my editor at W magazine and ended up writing a brief post for their Editors' Blog. The fanciful event, designed by the incredible David Stark, felt like walking into a spring rain shower. Lovely patterns covered everything, and the surfaces not covered in florals were covered in actual flowers. Here are some of the rest of the shots (taken with my new BlackBerry!) 

Apple Picking

J and I got out of the city last weekend to go apple picking. I haven't been since childhood trips to the Louisburg Cider Mill, home of the best cider donuts I have ever eaten. Period. I've tried at farmer's markets throughout NYC but never found one that compared. Louisburg's are barely fried so they're still soft and moist, with so much cinnamon and flavor. I'm getting hungry just thinking about them...

But we journeyed up to Lyman Orchards in Middlefield. 

Man Shops Globe. Girl Shops Her Closet.

Tonight, there's an event at the store for our buyer-at-large, who has a show launching on the Sundance Channel next week. It's called Man Shops Globe and follows the adventures of Keith Johnson. Just imagine: he gets paid to poke through dusty bazaars, tucked away antique shops, discover indigenous artisans, and travel around the world. Tunisia, Turkey, Holland, the UK, India, etc, etc. SO jealous.

I'm skipping the party for birthday dinner with J, but that's probably best, because seething with envy is never very attractive at work. ;)

Enjoy the drool-worthy images of his trips!

All photos © Sundance Channel

Fireworks and Rooftops

My Independence weekend started in Connecticut, at the beach near where J grew up. The Friday before July 4th, people start staking out their places on the beach from mid-afternoon on, and the fireworks start at sundown. I had work off that day, so we went up early and spent the day swimming and laying out, in preparation for the fireworks that night. His parents and several family friends joined us around dinnertime, and we sat in lounge chairs and enjoyed the lovely evening. It's a really relaxing way to start the long weekend.

Growing up, we would always go to one of the city parks, like Leawood or Shawnee Mission parks, to watch the fireworks. I remember many hot summer nights of playing football or running around with church friends while we waited for the show to start. Then, it was always back to our driveway to do sparklers and fountains and throw pop-pops. (I was never a big fan of the screamers of bottle-rockets.) Always such a fun holiday!

Quote: Belongs

(Photo via Britannica Image Quest)

"All good books are alike in that they are truer than if they had really happened and after you are finished reading one you will feel that all that happened to you and afterwards it all belongs to you; the good and the bad, the ecstasy, the remorse, and sorrow, the people and the places and how the weather was."

- Ernest Hemingway, "Old Newsman Writes: A Letter from Cuba," Esquire (New York, Dec. 1934).