PlayLand Motel In Rockaway Beach: Why Not? Try It! You Might Like It!

Rockaway Beach got itself a brand-new boutique hotel -- it's already got a boutique taco stand and a boutique boutique, so clearly a boutique hotel wasn't far off. It's called PlayLand Motel, and from the few photos I've seen, it kind of looks like Sole East in the Hamptons or the Ace in Palm Springs, with a pizza joint, 12 small boutique rooms, two restaurants and a 7,000-square-foot indoor/outdoor bar. It looks very dried-palm-fronds/ faded-surf-photo, nautical-knots chic. In a pre-fab way designed to attract hipsters and people who swear they're not hipsters, of course but who even cares. Rockaway Beach needs your cash, and it's a $2.50 train ride/ extended Brooklyn staycay, so who wants to check it out? (There's a shuttle bus from Williamsburg, because OF COURSE.) 

The Meatpacking District doesn't need any more of your hard-earned dollar bills. Those two hours you spent standing in line trying to get into Roberta's could've been spent on the beach. Go support Rockaway. Until the cast of "Princesses Long Island" shows up, and we all need to just head down to Rehoboth or commit ritual group Seppuku instead.

PlayLand Motel: 9720 Rockaway Beach Blvd, Far Rockaway, New York 11693

Photo credit: Athena Calderone/ Refinery29

Cherry Bombe Is A Gorgeous New Magazine Celebrating Women And Food, Because Women Actually Eat And Even Enjoy It

I know that to some this may sound strange, but women like to eat (give us the right to vote and birth control and a few seats in the Senate, and we just end up getting totally carried away, amirite?) It may also come as a surprise to some that many women -- most, even! -- like to eat things richer and more exciting than salads or Lean Cuisines or highly processed, ersatz dairy products that reduce us to orgasmic moans, as most yogurt commercials would have you believe. (I know this may be a lot to take in -- if you need a moment to wipe your brow or steel yourself against the back of your chair, please pause to do so.)

And I swear I'm not even making this up: there's a brand-new biannual indie magazine called Cherry Bombe. (This magazine's not the swipey type. It's the old-fashioned parchment kind that used to live and breathe on the racks of all of those book stores that are mainly now either Starbucks, real estate offices, or hollowed-out, carpet-stained ghost boxes.)

Cherry Bombe is the brainchild of editorial and beauty/ fashion PR exec Kerry Diamond (she also owns Brooklyn restaurants Seersucker, Nightingale 9 and Smith Canteen with chef Rob Newton, who happens to be her boyfriend) and graphic designer Claudia Wu, and it celebrates women and food from a smart, stylish perspective and features a roster of (nearly) all-female contributors, chefs, artists, writers, entrepreneurs, photographers and culinary insiders and rebellious outsiders. (There's even an interview with a Harvard microbiologist because women! They're even allowed in labs!) It's an expertly curated food fantasia of guilty pleasures (Good Humor ice cream sandwiches!), aspirational alimentary experiences, recipes, reviews, and supermodels mixing cookie batter (that would be cover girl Karlie Kloss with Milk Bar's Christina Tossi), and it looks lovely on your coffee table, as I can attest.

Cherry Bombe is a 172-page (again, analog, print: weird!) all-girl jaunt around the food world, with stops in the East Village, Paris, Portland, Tennessee, and even a snow-covered seed repository in Norway. Think Love meets Bon Appetit meets National Geographic. Think you need to read Cherry Bombe? I think you're right.

Donate to the site's Kickstarter. $20 will get you the premiere issue, $35 will get you the issue and a cute canvas tote bag (love mine -- it's the extra roomy kind!), and if you've got 10 large to drop, you could add "Cherry Bombe Publisher" to your LinkedIn. And to your plate.

Where Brooklyn At? Sheepshead Bay & Far Rockaway, Post Sandy

WARNING: GUILT-DRIVEN RIGHTEOUS INDIGNATION AHEAD!

Far Rockaway, Brooklyn, via Facebook

I don't usually get too soapbox-y or preachy, especially on this site, which is supposed to be an escapist retreat about fun, and shopping, and cats. But you know what? Fuck those things right now (except for cats). I'm sitting comfortably in my apartment in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn. I, like most of the "South Brooklyn" area, got extremely lucky. We never even lost power. Red Hook is another story. It's like a third-world country. And so is Sea Gate, Far Rockaway, Manhattan Beach, and Sheepshead Bay. This post by Robicellis on the state of Sheepshead Bay is terrifying. This unending tragedy is far from over. In fact, it looks like it's just beginning in that community. I talked to one Brooklyn woman, like me, untouched by the storm, and sadly she put it best: "It happened right down the street, and I watched it on TV like it was happening in Missouri."

This Breakfast Club Storefront Window At Video Free Brooklyn Is Life-Affirming

This is the Breakfast Club storefront window at Video Free Brooklyn on Smith Street in Carroll Gardens. The owner designed it. Yes, that's fake sushi on the plaid blanket. And it's blowing my mind. I pray there's a new window every month so I can dorkily worship at its altar. 

Sorrelli Jewelry's Pinkberry Collection Makes Me Happier Than A Medium Peach Pinkberry With Mochi And Honey

This Sorrelli ring is FOUR rings in one, and THEY'RE ALL INSPIRED BY PINKBERRY!

There are few things on this planet that make me happier on a very primal, feeding-my-hungry-id level than Pinkberry. I will go several train stops out of my way for a cup of their tart, refreshing cups of frozen crack, and I have carefully crafted, intricately researched opinions (as in, I thought about it a lot) on various Pinkberry locations throughout the city (my favorites: Spring Street and the "secret" Pinkberry in Hell's Kitchen, because it's nearly hidden). I love it with a fury and a passion with which most people love their own children.

One of the other things (besides cats and the kind of carbs that involve pasta) that makes me happy on such a base, primitive level that only operant conditioning can thoroughly explain is sparkly jewelry.

So, when I heard that Sorrelli jewelry created a collection INSPIRED BY PINKBERRY AND that PINKBERRY WAS OPENING THEIR FIRST BROOKLYN LOCATION, I was pretty much like: 

I got a chance to check out the collection IN REAL LIFE at a preview event, and it is sparkle nirvana for just the price of a week's worth of Pinkberry. (The average piece is around $40, and nothing is over $100.)

Check out photos of Sorrelli's Pinkberry collection after the jump:

Pangea Organics' Japanese Machta Tea With Acai and Gogi Berry Is A Magic Eraser For Your Face

Real talk: After a few glasses of Pinot Grigio this past Saturday night (MAN, do I sound like a Real Housewives cast member in training -- Quick! Someone make me rich so I can make that nightmare of a dream a reality. Look at Bethenney! She's doing great!), my face looked and felt like one of those bumpy piles of joke barf. Not a good look.

I have stacks on stacks on stacks of mask samples to try, and I decided to try Pangea Organics' Japanese Machta Tea With Acai and Gogi Berry Mask. Phew! That's a mouthful, but it's penance for the mouthfuls of wine I chugged (at the peerless Seersucker Brooklyn, one of my favorite restaurants in Brooklyn, if you'll allow the tangent).

Anyway, the mask smells like a mix between the paint section of a hardware store and a very expensive spa, two harmonious qualities I insist upon in a mask. It's got a sod-like consistency (I'd post a photo of myself wearing the mask, but a.) I don't want any asshole who can't read assuming I'm in blackface, God forbid, and b.) I think you probably know what a mask looks like), and it immediately tingles, which I assume means it's working, but it was super gentle and not terrifyingly intense.

The mask contains very few chemicals, which is a selling point for me, anyway, since I refuse to get within a nautical mile of a chemical peel. And matcha, by the way, is fancy name for green tea, and Pangea is a Boulder-based upstart with an owner who looks kinda hot.

When I cleaned it all off, my skin looked completely evened out and refreshed, and all of that wine-y redness had magically disappeared, leaving me to hereby declare this mask a magic eraser. When I looked at my totally rejuvenated face in the mirror, I apologized to myself for party rocking, and then I purchased the full-size mask (apparently you can make your own mask at home, but, like, come on. No.), which is $40, which is coincidentally the price of that bottle of Pinot. Full circle.

Shen Opens On Court Street: Brooklyn Gets More Beautiful

Beautiful news for Brooklyn! Shen, a new beauty boutique, just opened on Court Street, in the former Ola Baby space. Now no disrespect to the hardworking, always-shlepping (strollers, grocery bags, babies) moms of Brooklyn, but we needed another kids and baby store like Manhattan needs another Starbucks: to say we needed a cosmetics shop is a pretty little understatement.

I stopped by today and learned that Shen is owned by a former Vogue staffer and a former beauty editor, and clearly they know what they're doing, because the bright, airy, welcoming shop stocks hard-to-find beauty products like Melange solid perfumes, Lipstick Queen, Roullier White's Mrs. White's products (Mrs White's Classic Cold Cream is on my must-try list), Becca Cosmetics, Kate Logan skincare, and Lafco Candles.

Shen also has a cute little kid-beauty section in the back, and they'll soon have makeup applications.

Follow Shen on Twitter at @ShenBeauty, and, most importantly, welcome Shen to Brooklyn!

The Total Franklin Street Immersion, Y'all

I am somewhat weirdly excited about what's in store (pun intended!) for me this afternoon. My friend Amy and I, and with any luck our man-friends, will be hitting Greenpoint for the Total Franklin Street Immersion, a come-to-the-neighborhood push that involves a punch card, store discounts, and drink specials.



Drinking and shopping on a sunny Saturday! What could be better? I'm psyched. Read all about it at Brooklyn Based, who planned the whole shebang.



I'm hoping Dalaga has these cute swingy shorts, $58 (with 10 percent off today) and that they look cute on me. (UPDATE: They did, and they do.) I'm also looking for a change purse (didn't find), some new sunglasses (ditto), and maybe a new book at Word (I got Let the Great World Spin and The Girl Who Played With Fire). And it's 30 percent off at Binge enabler Hayden-Harnett (I got a skirt and a dress from their Cheap Thrills Pop-up Shop or whatever it's called for a grand total of $70...cheap thrills indeed!). Wish me luck!

I'm also hoping they don't run out of beer (I only got one mini beer, and even though I filled out my entire card, I didn't get a tote bag of gifts because they ran out.) Free Brooklyn Summer Ale!

See you on Franklin Street! (I'll totally be back.)

Cute New Brooklyn Store Alert! Black Bear Vintage & Handmade

Guys! Yay! Listen, listen! There's a brand-new vintage boutique that just opened in Windsor Terrace. (That's in Brooklyn.) It's called Black Bear, and it's adorable. Now I'm not just writing about it because it's my best friend's store (but it helps). I'm writing about it because it's awesome and it's worth going to Brooklyn for if you don't already live there. (And if you don't live in Brooklyn, you really should). And it's even right off the train! And there's an ice cream place next door! See how easy they make it for you?

Anyway, Black Bear is a brand-new vintage boutique that sells vintage clothes, shoes and accessories at prices that are totally fair and reasonable since someone has actually WORN said clothes before. In other words, it's a great vintage selection at prices that aren't Manhattan's idea of vintage. So most everything's around $20. (!!!)

To prove to you that I'm not making this up, here's what I bought last Sunday on the first day they opened (because I like to stay on top of my vintage):


I got these two tops, a cute little handmade soap (more on that in a second), and a vintage mood ring, and it all came to just under $40.

AND they have super cuters little handmade pillows made by Black Bear's co-owner, Julia. Pillows of dachshunds with cones on their necks! And pillows with centaurs on them. And more locally sourced handmade goods. Like sweet little soaps in the shape of GUINEA PIGS! They're scented (but not like guinea pigs)! Can you even? I'd go on but I'm like braying with excitement and I'm starting to embarrass myself. Oh yeah. And the store, which occupies what used to be an old liquor store, feels like the basement from "That '70s Show." In the good way. (In the no-Ashton-Kutcher way.) And, they buy vintage too! Again, making things easy for you.

Come for the great vintage selection, stay for the bear wearing a party hat in the window.

Black Bear is located at:
469 16th Street @ Prospect Park West
Brooklyn, NY, 11215

Phone: 718.768.0250

Tues - Sun: 11:00 am - 7:00 pm

Closed Monday

Black Bear on Facebook.

Seriously.

Jonathan Adler Interviewed By Simon Doonan

Yesterday, on one of my mini, teeny tiny "training" walks for the Avon 3-Day Walk For Breast Cancer, which I'm doing in a few weeks (Wanna sponsor me?), I ended up at the Jonathan Adler store on Atlantic Ave in Brooklyn. Please, just bury me there. It's the greatest store in this entire country. It makes me glad capitalism was created and currency was printed so I can spend it there. And, I'm not bullshitting you -- you can get a ton of great stuff there for under $100.

Anyway, watch this hilarious video (boo won't embed) of Jonathan Adler making pots while Simon Doonan asks him questions and discusses poo and fudge. Love.


my musing #3

Posted using ShareThis

Also, PLEASE to enjoy ALL OF THIS AMAZING Jonathan Adler Barbie stuff!!!!!! I die!

I Bought It Files: Pade Vavra Cat Stud Earrings, Other Stuff I'm Wearing In A Weddng This Weekend

($138, Pade Vavre, BlueLuxe.com)

Oops. Accidentally bought these: 22KT gold plated cat stud earrings with sapphire eyeballs. I may or may not wear them to the wedding I'm in this weekend. I WILL not, however, wear them with THIS belt, if I wear it at/ in the wedding:

($136, Moss Mills)

I got it on sale at Epaulet. (Remember when I was losing my mind over this Moss Mills horse bracelet? And, speaking of horses, RIP TRAGIC FLORIDA HORSES!)

BTW, the dress I'm wearing in the wedding is...
... A Christiane Celle fuchsia satin dress -- the bride found it for me on eBay for a song! Can you BELIEVE how great that is! I actually factually WILL wear this again. And I'm wearing these vintage gold heels from Olive's Very Vintage in Brooklyn -- Gorgeous, perfectly curated and preserved dresses, skirts, tops, shoes and jewelry. Definitely vintage and not thrift. you should go. It's great.


That's new kitty, Sim. I adopted her from Beauty Blogging Junkie's Amber! BTW, this completely out-of-sequence, highly unedited post brought to you by Gruner Veltliner!1!!

Stuart & Wright Sample Sale: Feb. 4 - 8

New Yorky-ers, stop by the Stuart & Wright sample sale in beautiful Ft. Greene.

Some of the designers on sale are NO joke -- Shipley & Halmos, Isabel Marant, 3.1 Philip Lim, Loeffler Randall... ROP (as in "read on please...)

WHERE: Stuart & Wright
85 Lafayette Avenue, Fort Greene Brooklyn, (bwn South Elliott Place & South Portland Avenue)
718.797.0011
C train to Lafayette or G train to Fulton

WHEN: Wednesday, February 4, 10:00am-8pm
Thursday, February 5, 10:00am-8pm
Friday, February 6, 10:00am-8pm
Saturday, February 7, 10:00pm-8:00pm
Sunday, February 8 12:00-6:00


WHAT: 30%-75% OFF
Women: Isabel Marant, Vanessa Bruno, A.P.C., 3.1 Philip Lim, Loeffler Randall, Jeffrey Monteiro, Shipley & Halmos, Inhabit, Ulla Johnson, In God We Trust, Le Mont St. Michel, Borne, Mina Stone, Samantha Pleet, Myth & Ritual A. Cheng, Lewis Cho, Valentine, A. Lawless, M. Carter, Doucette Duvall

Men: Shipley & Halmos, Engineered Garments, A.P.C., Noah, Gilded Age, wings + horns, Unis, YMC, Obedient Sons, Rogues Gallery, Robert Geller, Chimala, M. Carter

Callalilai By Aoyama Itchome Sale ... Dresses From Mr. Rogers' Land Of Make-Believe!

Good news, all you fans of Callalilai (by Aoyama Itchome). First of all, the shop has finally gone online, so even if you can't hit up the Brooklyn Heights store, you can buy online! Also, they're having a stooooopendioso sale!

A few ejemplos, clase:

($125, Callalilai By Aoyama Itchome)


($71, Callalilai by Aoyama Itchome)


($71, Callalilai By Aoyama Itchome)


($71, Callalilai By Aoyama Itchome)


($159, Callalilai By Aoyama Itchome)

This could actually look really hot with some opaque black tights, black booties, a few long layered chains, and a black blazer.

Callalilai styles definitely aren't for all of you, but they've got a really nice, ethereal feel and their use of bold color and pretty piping kinda remind of the royal garb Queen Sara Saturday and other inhabitants of Mr. Rogers' Land of Make-Believe wore:
Also, not even kidding, you can BUY Land of Make-Believe handpuppets!!!

($12.95, Holgate Toys)

($12.95, Holgate Toys)

Um, this guy had a dream/ fan fic that Barack Obama was Mr. Rogers... It happens.

FashionBinge's News You Can Use: eLuxury Folds, Cavalli Gets His Own Credit Card, Olivia Palmero Still Exists

Fashion news -- and vyoos -- you can USE, y'all!

+ LVMH's eLuxury will be shutting dat shit down sometime within the next six month. My fingers are crossed for a big-ass sale. I will of course then UNcross them and buy the SHIT out of some shit -- specifically this Maison Martin Margiela bracelet that Eye4Style turned me onto and/or some Golden Goose boots. (Racked)

+ Moar Urbn, pls! Urban Outfitters is opening their seventh location in New York -- in an old Deco theater at 99th and Broadway. At least it's not an American Apparel. God knows we need more crotch. (Metromix NY)

+ Brooklyn Flea moved INdoors and to DUMBO -- specifically to 76 Front St., corner of Washington St. from this Saturday, January 10 through the next 13 weekends. (Brownstoner)

+ Olivia Palmero: Oy! STILL SO zaftig! (WWWD)

+ I kinda love how Twilight's Kristen Stewart often looks like she just rolled outta bed (espesh the hairs) but still lands best-dressed list: She's #2 on Teen Vogue's Best Dressed of December 2008.

+ Jack Ryan, dude who designed Barbie, was derty DURRRRRDY! (Page Six)

+ Got a gift card you don't want anymore? Cash that sucker in for... CASH at Giftcardrescue.com. Or... sell it on eBay -- I've had lotsa luck there.

+ Speaking of cash, looks like I accidentally left my ATM receipt in the machine! Silly me, silly me! (Consumerist)

+ Samantha Droke is 21 years old and has a clothing line (read: a couple tee-shirts) and you (and I) don't. (JustJaredJr)

+ Roberto Cavalli has his OWN credit card. And you don't. Unless you're Roberto Cavalli and you're reading this, in which case, WHAT UP? WHAT HAPPNIN'? (FabSugar)

T.I. - New Music - More Music Videos

Beach Towel Most Foul + Cute Mocs!

So, we're off to the beach tomorrow for a whole week! I needed beach towels, so, despite the fact that it was raining like the end of days, I went to the haven of schlocky closeouts that is Conway (it's like a dollar store went on a crazy meth binge and robbed a Sears). I knew I'd find some delightfully tacky misprints, but I had NO clue I'd find something so deliciously foul... Observe:


Go ahead -- click on that shit. The dude's cut-offs are SLIDING OFF, and it looks like he stuffed a potato down what's left of them.

I bought four.

This dude's like a cross between early '80s Michael Jackson and the Unabomber. Amazing. (And speaking of bombs, please try to disregard the fact that my bedroom looks like one detonated seconds before this photo was taken. I think my room couldn't handle the gravity of the towel and shit just started flying toward the door in an attempt to escape.)

On the reals, on my way home, I also bought myself an early birthday present:

($55, Minnetonka, Epaulet)

I'd been wanting a pair of mocs for forEVER, so I stopped in Epaulet on Court Street, where MK got her Melissa + Campana rubber shoes last month. I'd wanted a white pair, but the natural flavor in the middle appealed to me the most, so I went with those. I'd been into Epaulet before, but this is the first time I'd purchased anything. I chatted with the owner, Mike, who's super nice. Great great shop -- you must go!

And speaking of go, so must I! To the gym. Gotta look HOT when draping myself across my King of Pop/ Ted Kaczynski towel. HEEE HEEE!

Totes Purchased!

Thank you, Bunnyshop. Because of you, I bought this Brooklyn map tote. For $12 plus $3 shipping. Seems like the perfect thing when you're wearing a floral printed dress and have no acceptably matching-ish handbags, as befell me yesterday. Comes in lots of cities/boroughs for you nonBrooklynites, too. I kind of want to buy the Portland one, too, in case I move there one day. But maybe I'll just plan a visit instead....