NYC with H&M and Bloglovin’

Where do I even begin?!

This weekend, Josh and I were flown to New York City for my mentorship with Vanessa Hong with The Haute Pursuit. I was selected from 1 of 3 finalist to be nominated for Breakthrough Fashion Blogger of the Year by Bloglovin’ and H&M!

Here’s a recap of our trip…

NYC with H&M and Bloglovin’

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First off, I want to praise myself for only backing my purse for this trip!! Nope, not even my bulky DSLR Camera! Bringing only one pair of shoes (these sandals from Zara were troopers and oh so comfy! AND they’re on sale!!), toiletries, 2 outfits and my makeup made it a weekend of comfort! No hassles at the airport; no stress. And I gotta say, wearing my hair pulled back the entire trip, made it easy for me to avoid hair going limp, packing more hair supplies than needed, and I just felt more polished and chic! Without Madewell’s Transport Tote, this would not have been possible!

You’ve probably already seen most of these pictures on my Instagram, but have no fear! I’m getting to the good stuff 😉

I LOVE plane rides!! It’s one of my favorite parts about traveling (crazy I know) But I loved my makeup for the plane and galavanting around New York. It was picture perfect, but not over the top for what we were doing.

TIP: Apply liner to the upper water line only and just apply mascara to the roots on the the upper lash line for a “no-makeup” look 😉

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Before check-in, Josh and I wanted to pay our respects to Ground Zero.

Then Josh and I started hitting up breweries and bars like we always do. If I hadn’t told you, Josh is a home brewer and beer judge.. Incase that helps justify our drinking habits 😉

Clinton Hall had a wonderful atmosphere with an outdoor area full of games, great staff (who let us charge our phones behind the bar!) and a great selection of beer. No sours, but the ciders were a great substitute.

So, how awkward are my legs? Right?! lol I had to post this, not only because it was the best out of the bunch, but because it was a great representation of how awkward I can be at first encounters. That’s reality! And now I had proof that I’m not always on point 🙂

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Checking in..The Marcel at Gramercy!

The room was fantastic!

Emily at Bloglovin’ hooked us up. It’s like she new what we liked in a hotel and a rooftop lounge area with a view is always a plus for us! ::applause::

 

After we changed for dinner, we scoped out some of my favorite movie locations! First stop Carrie Bradshaw’s neighborhood in Sex in The City..

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Then we “popped a squat” in Central Park, from Pretty Women! I almost had to chuck Josh’s phone like Julia Roberts did to Richard Gere. It was so crazy to not see a single person on there phone-in New York of all places!!! (At least from where we were) I loved people watching. Seeing couples lay with their heads in each others laps, friends tossing frispies and playing cards, kids laughing with their parents..the interaction and undivided attention people had towards one another was so beautiful to me. It seemed so uncommon to me these days with all the distractions.

Next up was dinner! ..And more beer 🙂

I would have gone to this place for breakfast, lunch AND dinner. Would have stayed at this place all day! The atmosphere, the FOOD, everything. It was perfect. They had an outdoor cafe area with industrial string lights, vines and our Ikea bistro table and chairs! Even the front man checking IDs went to College of Charleston! It was meant to be 🙂

 

Then we decided, we couldn’t visit to New York without seeing Time Square!

Of course, I had to snap a picture of the reason I was there 😉

 

Day 2 – Mentorship Session!

We started our day with this delicious breakfast from BlueBell Cafe! This french toast was insane! Ain’t no Wonderbread here y’all.

Here’s the outfit I chose to wear to my mentorship session with Vanessa! I’m not going to lie, a pair of heels and a structured dress would have made me feel like a boss! But not only did I feel more approachable and comfortable in this, but it was more realistic to me to wear since I would be walking around New York in the Summer! It was my everyday style.

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And here we were, saying cheers to a fabulous weekend and experience with H&M, Bloglovin’ and Vanessa! We can’t wait to come back in September!!

Stay tuned for my next post with behind the scene photos from the session at H&M’s showroom, what I learned from Vanessa and what’s to come in preparation for my next trip for the Bloglovin’ Awards Show in September!!