Archive for June, 2009
Not-So-Plain Jane
- The Jane’s Bar and Ballroom spaces- shabby chic throwback to the days of its history
The Jane Hotel, located in the West Village, has more going for it than just a cool website. It’s part of a re-emerging trend of micro hotels, primarily single occupancy rooms that are compared more closely to ship’s cabins than to the supersized suites in much of the rest of Manhattan. The hotel was built in 1908 and has lived several lives already, but has now been refurbished and reintroduced to the hip WV crowd as an inexpensive crash pad, and probably a great place to meet other adventuresome types.
- The rooms resemble ship’s cabins or train berths, and it seems you get what you pay for- not much!
For the low low price of around $80 on a weeknight, you can have a 50 square-foot room with a twin bed, luggage rack, wireless internet, ipod docking and a tiny TV. Bathrooms are communal, and located at the end of each hall. There is a slightly larger room option for couples with a queen or king bed, for which prices have not yet been listed. Families might have fun staying here just for kicks, but it’s aimed as an upscale version of a youth hostel, with great built-in nightlife.
The crowd in the ballroom area is all young and fairly good-looking. There was a higher than usual quotient of euro guys with ponytails, but the space is very cool. Reminiscent of a mix of The Box for the old-school burlesque feel (but sorry, no sex shows here), the Rose Bar for the lounge atmosphere and some aspects of the owners’ other venture, The Bowery Hotel, the space was packed and everyone was having a good time. The DJ there this weekend was doing little more than playing on an iPod, and it seemed that Michael Jackson was nearly the only order of the day but due to MJ mania this week, I’d let that slide and see what’s being played another week.
I myself have not had a chance to check out the rooms here, but it seems like if you need a place to stash some friends when they come visit for the weekend and your one-bedroom is already full, or if you’re looking for a spot to tryst with this month’s secret someone, this could be a fun place to visit. Don’t expect luxury- they list air conditioning as an “amenity” that you should feel privileged to recieve- and don’t pack heavy, since there’s nowhere to put anything. Try to put aside your notions of what you think a hotel should be, just bring yourself and your party shoes and come hang out- that’s what everyone else is doing!
Giant Man Eating Tomato Plants Attack
Yikes! When I planted a few tiny heirloom tomato plants in my flower pots who knew they were going to get as big as me? And if you did why didn’t you speak up?
It’s all going to be okay. I now know I need to support them with stakes and that my four little plants (procured at the NP price of a total of $10) will most likely produce HUNDREDS of tomatoes!
Holy buckets. I’m a farmer.
Summer in the City
A summer weekend in Manhattan makes you feel as though you’ve been given the keys to the city. As mentioned in a previous entry, the multitudes depart for the Hamptons, Connecticut, and other waterfront locales, leaving the gates to the city unguarded, and the cost of admission vastly reduced.
Hotels run weekend specials during the summer. Rooftop bars and sidewalk seating abound- and you might get in!
You can not only drive anywhere during the weekend, but you can actually park! We drove from Brooklyn to Harlem and back to MOMA where we parked across the street from the entrance. Unheard of!
Let the others fight the LI express way to Montauk while you savor the delights of the city with little competition.
How to Avoid Looking Like a Cougar
NP Girls of all ages can be overwhelmed by the prospect of putting together age and location appropriate outfits that reflect the current fashions.
The lines are blurred and we are as terrified of looking like our mothers as they are of being mistaken for us from behind.
Herewith a few tips for all ages:
1. Create a personal profile in your mind of who you are and what you stand for and always stay true to that image. Ask a good friend to describe your style and see if you’re projecting what you intend.
2. Envision the occasion at which an outfit will be worn. Run through the demographic of other attendees and decide whether your clothing would blend in or stand out- in a bad way.
3. Stay away from the most attention getting get-ups. Avoid loud patterns and colors that can easily strike the wrong chord and will be remembered vividly impairing your ability to wear again with the same group.
4. No matter how toned and fit your body, don’t overexpose it other than when you are seriously clubbing, or lounging poolside in Martinique.
5. Consider even perhaps appropriately bare areas and ask yourself honestly if anyone else wants to look at them. Even if skin is twenty and taut large expanses of it may not be the most appealing at the dinner table.
6. At some level ask yourself if you look your age. Today that should mean look REALLY good for your age, but not as though you’re trying to look a decade younger, or older and more sophisticated. It’s just as much of a turn off to see a fifty year old woman wearing Uggs as it is to see a twenty year old wearing St. John.
7. Research the prevailing color palette and style of a given area when traveling. While this is no time to buy a completely new wardrobe for a weekend if you’re lucky enough to be going away, you do want to look like you belong. Is it Pucci or Pulitzer- wouldn’t want to get that one wrong.
8. Seasonless is safest. A quick turn of weather could make white linen disastrous whereas taupe will go with the flow.
9. Look at your rear view and decide whether someone looking at you from behind would be surprised by what they see when you turn around. A great term for this is the 16/60. You may have a great body and look like a young woman from behind but you don’t want to dress in such a way that seeing a sixty year old face attached to the great butt is a shock.
10. Never look like you’re trying- at anything. If you don’t look like you’re trying to dress your hippest, sexiest, richest, chicest- and you will be 10 times hotter!
How VF Does NP
Vanity Fair July 2009 Issue
NP Girls love this nouveau guide to 2009 luxury living from this month’s Vanity Fair!
Cruise into the Fourth of July
The Best View of NYC Fireworks
If you are staying in NYC this Fourth of July you need to find a good spot to view the fireworks. It can be diffucult to locate an unobstructed view where you can relax with your friends and watch the show.
NP Girls recommend checking out the NY Water Taxi’s Fourth of July Fireworks Cruise. Think of it as the Nouveau Poor version of a private yacht party in the Hamptons.
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Thrilling views of New York City’s famous Fourth of July fireworks spectacular. Departing from historic South Street Seaport, the cruise will take you past the landmarks of the New York City skyline. As the city lights up for the night, you’ll celebrate Independence Day side by side with Lady Liberty herself, as the Macy’s Fireworks Display explodes in bursts of color above you. Includes boxed snack and a cash bar (choice of beer and wine). 6:30-10:00 PM
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Clothing That Suits You
Great for college Halloween frat parties, not as much for the real world..
Welcome to the world of work, new college grads. Perhaps you’re not in your final career yet, but now that you’ve had a month out of school your parents are probably sick of handing you hundreds every time you want to go out, and have suggested that you either get a job or do SOMETHING worthwhile with your time. Be it an internship or an office job, you will need some appropriate clothing. No longer can you roll in at 11am still wearing your sweats, sans undies or (like some friends I know) having thrown on a sweatshirt without actually putting a shirt layer on beforehand! We’ve previously discussed how to dress comfortably while still looking appropriate, but this time I’m talking about when you need to look great.
What to do, what to do? Need a new suit, pair of slacks, closed-toe dress shoes? Check out the department store clearance centers (think Saks off Fifth, Neiman’s Last Call, occasionally Nordstrom Rack). These are like the department stores’ answers to sample sales. This will require premeditation. Write down what you need, and sizes, and don’t be afraid to ask for help, or bring some along with you. Some of these stores are well organized, others just throw things on any old rack and wish you good luck. Aside from sample sales (only really useful in LA/NYC anyway) these are the best places to find Theory, Tahari, Nanette Lepore, Laundry, and other great brands for both basic and fun workwear. You probably don’t want to invest too much of that graduation money in clothing since you don’t really know what job you’ll move on to in the fall, and you wouldn’t want to end up with a mess of skirt suits when pants are really the key to your career! Happy Shopping!
Only Blondes Need Apply (Liberally)
Green isn't your best color? Fight it with Purple Power!
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Kristie Huang is a recent college grad, attempting to find a solid career in the recession, while remaining as put-together and on top of trends as always.
www.facebook.com/kristiehuang
