Thursday, December 7, 2017

Travel Lovers Gift Guide That is Sure to Inspire Wanderlust

Image Map Bisous

Friday, October 13, 2017

Travel Diary- Chicago

This summer I took a quick 24 hour trip back to my old stomping grounds- Chicago!  God, how I  miss this city.  I stayed on Mag Mile and had an amazing day to myself.  I met so many inspiring and amazing people during my trip from photographers and writers to models and students.  I decided to spend my evening shooting on the Lake Michigan waterfront trail, where I met some amazing and inspiring photographers who I shot with all night!

These are a few of my favorite things to do in Chicago:

Take a selfie at The Bean
Sunset photos of the city skyline
Lake Michigan waterfront trail for running/biking
Shop along Michigan Avenue
Lunch/Drinks at Restoration Hardware- 3 Arts Club
Spa day at The Peninsula
Nighttime drinks with a view at the Signature Room
Rooftop views from the London House, the Terrace at Trump
Dinner at RPM Italian, Momotaro, RL Restaurant
Cubs game at Wrigley Field
Shopping at Nordstrom

Check out some of my favorite shots from that night below and let me know what you think!

Bisous


















Thursday, June 29, 2017

Travel Diary- Lake Massawippi, Quebec, Canada

Lake Massawippi is a fresh water lake in Quebec, Canada.  The lake is bordered by four townships: Ayers Cliff, North Hatley, Hatley Township and Sainte-Catherine-de-Hately.

Very close friends of mine have a house on the lake in Ayers Cliff, which has been in their family for four generations.  They invited me to spend the weekend with them in Quebec, my second time to the lake house.  Lake Massawippi is about a 7 hour drive from New York City, 6 if you live in the suburbs of Westchester or Connecticut.

We drove up on Friday morning and decided to stay until Tuesday since we were having such a great time and had some rain, so we wanted an extra day on the lake with nice weather.

When we arrived on Friday afternoon and went grocery shopping so we could have a relaxing bar-b-que at the house, have some rosé and sit on the porch gazing at the beautiful lake views. We also took a fun boat ride on the lake that evening, and of course brought along some of that rosé!

Saturday was another gorgeous day on Lake Massawippi.  We laid out on the dock to work on our tans and took another awesome boat ride, drinking rosé (as usual).  We hit a wake that sent the rosé flying EVERYWHERE, but nothing a little freshwater couldn't fix!

There is this cute restaurant, Pilsen, in North Hatley, where we went for dinner Saturday night.  You can take the boat there and dock right in front, but due to the impending rain, we decided to drive instead.  Well, it did start raining while we were eating outside, but then this awesome double rainbow appeared, so it was still worthwhile.

Sunday was supposed to be a rainy day, so since two of us had never been to Montreal, we decided to take the drive there for the day.  The drive from Ayers Cliff to Montreal is only about an hour a fifteen minutes.  It was a super easy and beautiful drive, well worth it if you have the time and have never been!

We started the day off in gorgeous Old Montreal, walking along the cobblestone streets and checking out the local shops and restaurants.  We visited Notre-Dame Basilica, which is absolutely breathtaking.  The amount of detail that went into the interior of this church is astonishing and stunning.  Notre-Dame is definitely a must visit when in Montreal, if anything to just admire the architecture and craftsmanship.

After, we had a snack down by the water in Old Montreal and decided to instead find a true french bistro and have an early dinner.  We drove around the city a bit as the rain was about to start, and we ended up in chinatown.  So, naturally we got soup dumplings and ate them out of the trunk of our suv.  Yes, we basically tailgated in Chinatown in Montreal!

We discovered this awesome french restaurant, L'Express in Plateau-Mont-Royal, which is also an adorable area of Montreal, with cute shops, restaurants, brownstones and alleyways.  At L'Express we had a fantastic bottle of Médoc and awesome skirt steak and fries.  They also give you a massive jar of cornichon's and spicy mustard! mmmm  Btw I ate way too many potatoes (in all forms) while in Quebec that I am now on a potato detox! Montreal is a really cool city that I can't wait to explore more.  I felt like we were in Europe, but we drove there!

On Monday, our last day, we decided that since we did our own little food tour of Montreal, that we would do a drinking tour around the lake, which did not last very long.  We started the day with a boat ride across the lake to Ripplecove Inn, where I had the most amazing scrambled eggs with black truffle, chives and toast!  I'm not kidding it was insane!  If you ever take a trip up, this is a MUST try.  We also had a few rounds of mimosas to compliment the eggs! ;)

We then decided to have lunch at the Relais & Chateaux on the lake, Hovey Manor.  It was quite the expensive day!  Although I was still so full from breakfast, we did order a bottle of wine and I did have the salmon tartare.  The views from both hotels are amazing.  The gardens alone are just breathtaking!

On our last night we picked up a few lanterns and lit and released them over the lake at night.  It was beautiful to watch them disappear as we wished away our troubles.

If you are looking for a long weekend getaway, I highly reccommend Lake Massawippi, they even have camping grounds, if you're into that sort of thing!

Below are a bunch of my long exposure shots on the lake from the house.  The fog rolled in the first night and unexpectedly made for the best shot of the weekend!

Bisous

























Thursday, June 15, 2017

Rodan + Fields #RFGoNaked Day

Change a life all by your selfie!

On June 21st be sure to post a public makeup free selfie using #RFGoNaked and Rodan + Fields will donate $1 to the Prescription for Change Foundation.  So why not help support an amazing cause by shedding your foundation?!  #RFNation #RodanandFields



PLOTAGRAPH

I recently discovered the Plotagraph app and I am obsessed!  I don't know how I didn't know about this before, but it really adds something special to your digital photos.  It is great for social media posts and website/blog posts. It is used to add movement to your photos, such as clouds and water,  but can be used for so much more.  It definitely takes a few times to get the hang out of how to use it and what you need to do to make sure your entire image doesn't move, but once you figure it out, it's so cool!  I am still playing with the app, but below are two of the first images I created with it.  Have a look and let me know what you think or if you have any tips on how to use Plotagraph.

Bisous

https://www.plotagraphs.com









Friday, May 26, 2017

Travel Diary- St. Barths

If you know me then you know St. Barths is one of my favorite places on Earth!  I recently had the chance to visit a friend who lives on the island while her husband was out of town, so I naturally jumped at the opportunity!

I stayed in Corossol at her apartment, a quaint local fishing village close to downtown Gustavia and right near Corossol beach. While my friend had to work, I rented a car to traipse around the island, explore, take photos and visit many of my favorite beaches on St. Barths.

If you are looking for some of the best beaches on St. Barths here are a list of my favorites:

1. Saline Beach- Absolutely gorgeous and my favorite on the island. Be prepared to hike over a few small rocks and up a hill to get there, but it is totally worth it!

2. St. Jean- St. Jean has two beaches, separated by Eden Rock.  If you stay on the beach by La Plage/Tom Beach Hotel, you have great views of planes taking off right above you.  The other side of the beach is where Nikki Beach is, where you can drink, eat and party on the beach and dance on tables!

3. Flamands Beach- Stunning views, but be prepared for the wind and rolling surf on that side of the Island.  Cheval Blanc hotel is on the beach, an AMAZING spot for lunch!

4. Gouverneur- It is a bit of a drive to get there, but the remote and private feel is well worth it, not to mention the views!

5. Shell Beach-  Just above Gustavia, this beach is well known for being covered in, well, sea shells.  Although the famous Do Brasil restaurant has been taken over, the new jaunt, Shellona (see what they did there) has a great beach vibe, greek food and the great sunset and beach views.

6. Grand Cul de Sac- The water is warm and relatively calm and is bordered by a shallow bay.  There are some great hotels and restaurants on this beach- Hotel Le Toiny, Le Barthelemy Hotel and O'Corail beach restaurant. You can also hike through paths behind the beach to the other side, with some great views across to the beach and hotels.

Bisous

St. Jean Beach

St. Jean Beach

Gustavia Light House

View above Gustavia Harbor

View above Gustavia Harbor

View above Gustavia Harbor

Gustavia Harbor at Nightfall 

Gustavia Harbor at Blue Hour

Gouverneur Beach

Gustavia Harbor

Gustavia Harbor

Corossol Beach

Corossol Beach


Somewhere in St. Barths

Driving around the island

Grand Cul de Sac

Hike to the other side of Grand Cul de Sac

Gouverneur Beach
Corossol Beach

Saline Beach

Shell Beach

Happy place- Saline Beach

Corossol Beach

View from O'Corail- Grand Cul de Sac

Nikki Beach- St. Jean

Flying in on St. Barths Commuter

Saline Beach Entrance

Nikki Beach

La Plage Bikini Brunch + Rodan + Fields Lash Boost- St. Jean

Eden Rock, St. Jean

Saline
Gouverneur
Gustavia Harbor


Overlooking Gustavia harbor