Traveling with St. John

Less than 12 hours now - the counting down is getting slightly neurotic, I know, but with school out and only one consulting job what else can I think about but getting on that plane?!? Finished up the last of the packing this afternoon. This trip with be the inaugural voyage of my St. John weekender bag - a luscious carry-on gifted to me at the end of my internship in the St. John events department two-ish weeks ago.

Shockingly, I was able to fit 2 complete outfits, a pair of heels, pair of sandals, pajamas, drawing supplies and design sketch book, fashion textbook, all my cords, jewelry, Bible and toiletries in here without a problem! Definitely a good sign. Plus, it's nice to be carrying around a reminder of all the great times I had at St. John; what an incredible company! I can only hope that my time at Modus Dowal Walker is nearly as fabulous.

That's me dressing a mannequin for the Resort 2011 line sheets at St. John. The boots I'm wearing are Roberto Del Carlo - incredibly crafted Italian leather with line details around the leg. They're so comfortable I wear them obsessively which has caused a distressing amount of scuffing on the toes. The jacket is silk and was made for my grandmother 30 or 40 years ago in Thailand. When she gave it to me I wasn't sure about the color but now it's one of my favorites!

You can get a better idea of the jacket below - that's me and Saehee, one of the other interns and a whited out piece from the Resort collection. I don't know if St. John would be too thrilled with me posting pictures of their pieces before they show in stores! You can kind of see the earrings I'm wearing too. I picked them up from a street vendor in Rome. They're pretty and fun but super flimsy so I feel like I have to be careful wearing them.

Packing

Spent most of today packing for London. I never noticed that my professional wardrobe had such a decided color scheme until I pulled my favorite pieces to try to impress my new colleagues across the pond.
Skirts, pants, dresses, tops, layers and shoes. Wow. I ended up pulling a few of these when I couldn't fit everything in my suitcase but the idea remains the same. They say the French have perfected the art of the coordinated wardrobe but this picture makes me feel slightly ridiculous.

Packing has made me start to get really excited about the trip, especially the three nights I'll be spending in NYC with my friend Tina. She and I have had such crazy adventures already - I can't wait! I documented one of our exploits in a column for Chapman University's online magazine, the Chapman Prowl. Check it out here: http://www.prowlmagazine.com/article.php?id=128

A few friends and I decided to cruise all the way down to Chula Vista for dinner tonight just for kicks. Totally worth it. Los Arcos has THE BEST fish-ness I have ever tasted anywhere. I ordered the Dona Reyna fillet and ate the whole thing. Next time though we're going to the sister restaurant in Mexico. Again, just for kicks. :)

2.5 days and counting

In two and a half days I leave for a summer in Europe! 8 weeks interning in London for Fashion and Beauty PR heavy hitter, Modus Dowal Walker to be exact. Beyond psyched but I'm already starting to miss everyone back home.

A few notes from the past few weeks:

- Newport Landing is amazing. Eat upstairs and watch the sailboats race in the harbor.
- Get breakfast at Wilma's on Balboa Island - down the street there's a candy store from my childhood fantasies with like 18 barrels full of different flavors of taffy!
- The Filling Station in Orange has TERRIBLE SERVICE. Never eating there again.
- Haven in Orange still has the best fries. And the cutest servers. :)

My friend Stephen got me this amazing Stetson fedora from the Village Hat Shop in Long Beach.

I'm completely in love.

My parents cooked this incredible farewell dinner for me last night. SO amazing. The homemade pasta noodles were infused with marjoram from the herb garden and my dad made ravioli too! Wish I could post the recipe for his delish walnut sauce, but he's still perfecting it and won't let the secret out.


Oh! And one more thing! This year's Cecil Awards at Dodge College were a great success - despite being a bit on the unorganized side. Everyone had a great time - congrats to all of the hard workers who put a whole semester into this event!
Me and my fantastic roommate and Best Production Design nominee, Traci Hays.

The Jekowsky brothers. Jonas who?

Santa Monica

Lovely day in Santa Monica with an old friend. A few notes:

- NEVER take the 5. Always take the 405. Trust me.
- Buddy Belly one block west of the Promenade on Broadway=SO good. An cute - the water glasses are shaped like bamboo! But they card, even if you look 23 and your friend is 29...lame. I ordered the Spicy Thai Beef Salad which big and yummy and not too spicy - just enough kick to make it interesting and TONS of red onion which makes it an instant favorite with me.
- Menchi's on Lincoln and...and...hmm, forgot the other street but its the next street east of 7th? Anyways, it's like Cherry on Top but times 3 and all in the same spot! Just won #1 froyo place ever as far as I'm concerned.
- Great lady named Isabell teaches tango, salsa and pole dancing downtown. Met her on the beach, mental note to check it out at some point.

Thursday I went to the launch party for the Anaheim International Film Festival. Such a great event, great vibe, really great people. Pitched an idea to incorporate a fashion show and, thanks to Bruno Serato I think it might actually happen! Dinner at the White House - filet mignon in a Gorgonzola sauce - my stomach will be having happy dreams for weeks!

Formage Etc.

Cheese yum!

Bought as a present from Frog's Breath in the Orange Circle for half off because the store is closing.

Boschetto Truffle: AMAZING! sooo yummy...softish, white...expensive.

English Shropshire Blue: yummy, like a mix of blue and cheddar, but maybe I only think that because it's orange and blue, hardish, party in my mouth - the truffle is a better party I think, but this one is more exciting :)

Other stuff about life I should have recorded:
- you can cook on the engine of cars. See Manifold Destiny...
- Omlettes: Cafe Heidelburg in Laguna Beach (adds enough salt finally and best potatoes EVER), Omlette Parlor in Newport, Streetside Cafe in Newport
- XIV in LA is beautiful. White grapefruit cosmo. Come back for dinner.
- White House of Anaheim. Ginger dressing on the St. John Salad. Can't be beat. INSANELY delish creme brulee too.
- The Melting Pot. Ask for the Snickers. Not on the menu but BEYOND fantastic - the shot of Bailey's is probs what does it. Don't go near anything with dark chocolate here. Eat the marshmallows even if you're stuffed. Your tummy will be having happy dreams for weeks afterwards.
- Sushi. Albacore. Yellowtail. OMG.
- Mulholland Hwy. Do not take if you're scared of motorcycles and a bunch of people driving to fast. One trip=5 crashes, one involving a motorcycle fireball of death
- Cru=best vegan food in LA, pesto ravioli WOW
- Bloomingdales Beverly Hills - view from the roof is actually PRETTY LA. Didn't think it was possible.