Bergdorfs, Not Only a Mecca for Shoppers

Being from California, I am not very privy to what to wear in the cold. While it does get chilly in San Francisco, it rarely drops below mid-40’s in the winter. So in my best effort to stay warm while in NY, I decided layers would be my go to. On our second day, when temperatures dropped from a lovely 65 degrees to an arctic 34 degrees, I thought I would be able to handle it. Well I was very definitely NOT able to handle the cold, I layered on some fleece lined tights (which are amazing BTW), cargos, a tank, blouse, sweater, wool scarf, furry jacket, socks and boots and I was still FREEZING. While I kept my complaining to a minimum, I did make Marc leave the winter wonderland that was Central Park and let me "defrost" in Bergdorfs for an hour before heading back to our hotel to change for dinner.

While I thawed in Bergdorfs I tried on a pair of the Chloe Sevigny for Opening Ceremony clogs (which I cant seem to forget) as well as helped a lady in a purchasing dilemma. She didn't know which over the knee boots to buy -- the Stuart Weitzman black leather ones she wanted -- or a suede pair on sale. I assured her the Stuart Weitzman's were well worth it, having bought them myself back in August. I considered this my good deed for the day, it is always important to pay it forward in shopping karma.

Marc finally bribed me out of Bergdorfs with the promise of cupcakes from Magnolia Bakery. Which I ate before our lovely dinner at Rayuela. After dinner, suddenly the cold seemed to be bearable, and I proudly proclaimed "I could totally live here." My friend Jen let me know this was due to my tequila blanket which was keeping me warm. If all it takes is a tequila blanket to help cut the chill I could easily carry around a mini-bar size bottle of tequila and a snuggie in my purse. ;)

Jacket: Opening Ceremony, Sweater: Alexander Wang, Top: Topshop, Jeans: Vince, Scarf, Gloves, Tights: LF, Bag: Balenciaga

 

The shoes of my dreams

 

hello cupcake



Finally warm again in our hotel.

  Bisous,
-MSB

Margot Eats Eataly

As some of you may know I LOVE grocery stores. While a Trader Joe's or a Whole Foods can usually make me perk up, it is a specialty market that really does the trick. While in NYC, our good friends Evan and Kate were kind enough to point us in the direction of Eataly. The new Italian market/bazaar that Mario Batali has opened up.

This has got to be the most wonderful market/restaurant/coffee shop/bakery I have EVER been to. Not only is it HUGE, but it has a million products and mini-restaurants inside of it. There is a coffee section, a meat section a Palazzo where you can order cured meats and cheese with wine, a Pizza section, trust me I could go on and on. If  it from Italy they got it. Marc and I loved it so much, we went twice.

I am a fan of eating and while I do try and control myself, from time to time I slip up and eat my way through markets, restaurants, local shops, really life. So while at Eataly, I made sure to try anything that suited my fancy including eating just desserts for my lunch. Next time you are in NYC you must go. I promise it will be worth it.

Dessert always comes first

 

 

I never want to leave

 

 

Yum Focaccia

For my lunch I had a chocolate chip cannoli a candied orange cannoli, a apple tart and a caramel peanut tiramisu. There was only dessert for lunch. Just the way it should be.

 Bisous,
-MSB

New York, I Love You

This past weekend Marc and I ventured to New York for a mini vacay. After an incredibly delayed flight we finally arrived in my favorite city (well after Paris). On our first day, Marc and I headed to Soho and spent the morning walking in and out of shops and enjoying the surprisingly warm weather.

We had a late lunch at the Blue Ribbon Bakery with our good friend Nikki and spent the rest of the evening eating and shopping our way through the city. After $3 margaritas, we decided to visit the pet store and pick out our dream puppies. I am dying for a King Charles, I would name it Louis the Sun King. This is very befitting because the dog is already Royal. :)

For dinner we went to Shake Shack and had amazing burgers and frozen custard. The evening ended with drinks at the Spotted Pig. I could not have imagined a more wonderful way to spend our first day in NY. There is just some kind of electricity that runs through that city which makes you feel so happy to be there. It is days like this which make me wish we lived in NY. Hope you all had a fabulous weekend.

 

Sweater, tank, tights: LF, Skirt: ASOS, Boots: Vera Wang Lavender Label, Bag: Balenciaga, Necklace: Vintage, Rings and Bracelet, David Yurman, Agate Ring: Dara Ettinger

 

 

 

Doesn't Louis look lovely, one day he will be mine

 

 

 Bisous,
-MSB

Bijoux Box

This weekend, Marc and I ventured to the Mission for a little shopping and Mexican food. I was dying to go to BellJar and Candystore Collective to see if they had any necessary items I needed for our trip to New York. While I did not come across any gloves, coats or scarves, I did see some book ends I may need to head back for at BellJar as well as some lovely necklaces.


Speaking of necklaces, I have been obsessed with my new necklace made by Kelly Framel of The Glamourai. I had ordered the original piece the second I saw her wearing it in this post. The Jazz Age Carcanet necklace seemed to be the statement piece I had been looking for. I LOVE Kelly's jewelry and have been lusting over the items in her online shop for some time. Unfortunately, her pieces usually sell out before I even get through her posts. So, when I saw that this GORGEOUS necklace was still available, I jumped at the opportunity to buy it.

As luck would have it, the necklace is really versatile and has easily slipped into my regular jewelry rotation. I suggest you check out her site to find some AMAZING one-of-a-kind pieces. Hope you all had a fabulous weekend and Valentine's Day.

Top: Wilfred, Sweater Vest: LF, Belt: Nordstrom, Pants: BCBG, Shoes: Surface to Air, Sunnies: Chloe, Necklace: Kelly Framel, Bag: Balenciaga

Bisous,
-MSB

My Favorite Color is Sparkly

For some time now I have wanted to try out the Sally Hansen Nail Polish Strips. I was first introduced to this glorious product by Maria, from the Art of Style San Francisco. After seeing how fabulous the pink glitter looked on her nails I decided I needed to pick some up. While at my local Walgreens I saw a huge selection of these nail strips and purchased a multi-color sparkly set to try out.

A few days later, Amber from Amber's Notebook tweeted about the "manicure helper," and I was determined to try them. My only problem at this point was I had just gotten a very nice manicure and was not interested in ruining my perfectly polished nails. Now, almost 3 weeks after my original purchase, I finally have had a chance to give this glitter explosion a try. So on Sunday night while watching the Grammy's I applied my lovely glitter "nail polish." Not only were the strips incredibly EASY to put on, they actually look really good! The big question now is if the polish will actually last the full 10 days it advertises on the package. While I am a huge fan of new polish trends, I have to admit my true love will always be OPI.

Bisous,
-MSB

Into the Blue

The weather in San Francisco has been so wonderful. This weekend I soaked up all the sunlight I could. I had been dying to wear this blue midi skirt from Topshop, which I posted on a few weeks ago here. And the weather finally gave me reason to pretend it was spring, so I jumped at the opportunity.

LF was having a huge sale this weekend and I picked up some wonderful basics to help keep me warm when the cold weather returns. After a nice walk in the Marina, Marc and I ventured down to the wharf and walked along the pier. As it started to cool down, I pulled out one of the sweaters I picked up and slipped it on.

This sweater seems to be quite the popular item, not only were two girls at LF wearing it when I popped in, but I also spotted it on Laura from On The Racks. :) It's nice to see that it is so versatile in styling. Happy Wednesday!

Skirt and Striped Top: Topshop, Shoes: Opening Ceremony, Sweater (below) and Stone Necklace: LF, Gold Necklace Vintage, Sunglasses: UO, Watch:  MIMCO, Bag: Balenciaga

Bisous,
-MSB

Cupcake Cookie Magic

Last time we were in Los Angeles, a friend introduced us to a cupcake flavor I had never had before, cookies and cream. After much oohing and ahhing over this delicious new flavor of cupcake I decided I needed to try them out as soon as we got home. Since I forgot to secure the recipe before we came back to San Francisco I decided to look it up online this weekend. While I came across quite a few cupcake recipes that included Oreo cookies, none of them quite had what I was looking for. Instead of giving up on my dream of Oreo cupcakes, I made a hybrid recipe to satisfy my craving. Now these may look like regular cupcakes at first glance, but once you cut them open you find an amazing surprise: an Oreo cookie lines the bottom of the cake giving them a delicious crunch.  My hybrid recipe came from here and here if you want to give them a try.

Obviosuly butter was a main ingredient since Paula Deen was responsible for part of the recipe

Bisous,
-MSB