A Weekend in NYC

Having wanted to go to NYC for the longest time (I haven't been since I was 4 years ago!), I finally went this weekend. And let me say, it is more awesome than I remember! Besides the usual Times Square, Saks Fifth and Madison, I also managed to visit Barneys, Carnegie Deli's, Korean town, W Hotel and a few other more interesting places....
Interesting place no. 1, the New York Palace hotel where Serena lives and Chuck owns in Gossip Girl. When we were planning it, we imagined lots of gossip girl-esque pictures- which we realized in the end. The place is as luxe as it looks, except for one thing- it has more traffic than one would imagine from the show. But oh well, it IS a hotel. Oh and behold the picture above of the courtyard- it is not the official xmas decorations for the hotel but for filming purposes only- expect to see this scene on GG. Next place I visited was Soho. First my friend took me to Le Pain Quotidien, a Belgium chain cafe (also available in the upper east side, amongst other places) which served the most delicious Belgium waffle I've tasted this side of the Atlantic. If you have a sweet tooth- you must try this place!
Then, I finally got to visit the Prada store in Soho. It is like the fashion mecca that I forgot to visit last time I was there. Interestingly, outside, it completely blends with the rest of Soho and doesn't look like a Prada store at all. We nearly missed it, if we didn't have the address (that is ONE good thing about blackberries)! And I find it fascinating how such small entrances can enclose such large spaces in NYC, because inside it was HUGE. And the stairs down.... it was just incredible. Definitely a fashionista's stop when in NYC.
Another highlight for me on this trip was the fact that it was SAMPLE SALE SEASON in NYC. So I visited one random sample sale in Soho on Greene St (one of the reasons I went to Soho actually), where I FINALLY found wide legged jeans which I liked! They are from Rich & Skinny and they were only $75! Score! I also went to the Helmut Lang and Rags and Bones sample sale on 32nd St. I was in heaven. Besides the already cheaper prices, there was an extra 25% off everything. In the end, I got a classic white dress shirt and black dress pants from Helmut Lang for $160 in total. I DO need more office clothes after all. And the material and cutting for these two is amazing- smooth and not wrinkly at all (which is SO important for office wear). My white dress shirt is actually slightly different from the one above. It has a slightly asymmetrical cutting, which makes it interesting and at the same time subtle enough for interview purposes. So I thought that was pretty good for HL. There were more stuff too, like HL jeans and this Rag & Bones dress shirt that I liked.... I had to restrain myself!

I can't wait to go back to NYC! I still haven't covered the Met, Magnolia Bakery, Serenpidity.......

Image Source: ShopBop