Off to Round Top

I'm headed to Round Top today with two of my loveliest friends to sleuth out some treasures and enjoy a little (much needed) girl bonding. Last year's trip netted some pretty stellar finds, so hoping for more of the same this time around ;-)

Have a splendid weekend friends!

Scenes from The Woodland Fairy Weekend...

Millie's party with all its glitter and garland and sparkle and wee fairies running about was just the sort of joyous mayhem we needed to offset the intensity of the previous days...

The girlies had a blast making fairy huts, playing "pin the tail on the squirrel" and stuffing themselves with little chocolate stars and mini-cupcakes and rock candy and other assorted sugar-laden goodness. Suffice to say, it was a day filled with happy makers.

But the very best part came midway through the festivities when Millie looked up at me, grabbed my cheeks and breathlessly yelled "thank you for my beautiful party".

That was, for sure, the ultimate happy maker.





The five snaps above were taken by our friend Russ Aman to capture a little of the calm before the storm.

Scenes from Marfa -- Part Two

As promised, I’m going to share a little guide to visiting Marfa for those of you that might be considering a trek…

I’m a big believer that one of the things that makes a trip somewhere new most special is what you unearth and discover on your own… But it’s always helpful to go into the “unearthing” with a little head-start, yes? I also feel compelled to mention that Marfa isn’t obvious or slick in any way; rather it’s sleepy and subtle, and, if you're willing to sort of “go with it”, it will completely blow you away. Here goes…


STAY:

• El Cosmico – Liz Lambert’s latest genius project is (in the words of Austin architect and El Cosmico Project Manager, Jack Sanders) “part yurt and hammock hotel, part residential living, part art-house, greenhouse and amphitheater" … It was too hot to stay there in August (at least for us), but I think it would be total magic for a spring or fall visit.


• The Thunderbird – Probably the most oft-recommended place to stay in Marfa, The Thunderbird is a revamped motor-court similar in aesthetic to one of my all-time favorite spots, Austin's Hotel San Jose.


• El Sueno – We opted to rent a house on our visits to Marfa to allow more room for spreading out with the girlies, and El Sueno was our go-to for both trips. It consists of a large main house which we comfortably shared with another family on our first trip and a cozy casita where just the four of us stayed this time.
  


• Hotel Paisano – Most well-known as the place that Rock Hudson and Elizabeth Taylor called home during the filming of Giant, The Paisano is old-school in the best possible way. Even if you don’t stay here, you’ll want to hit up the bar at least once for the stellar margaritas and Shirley Temples (which, much to the girlies’ immense delight, were heavy on the cherries).

EAT:

• The Get Go – By far our most frequently visited spot in Marfa…It’s like a perfect über miniature gourmet store meets Whole Foods. It’s a bit pricey, but being able to get organic plums, good wine + cheese, homemade bread and (the almost impossible to find) Dr. Bronner’s Rose soap in the middle of the West Texas dessert makes it more than worth it.
  


• Cochineal – Beautiful, simple, spare and really, really excellent food. (It’s sort of the culinary equivalent of Donald Judd’s art.) You have to make a reservation for dinner, but the equally excellent breakfast is a pretty low-key affair. We rode our bikes over there for big plates of French toast, breakfast tacos and eggs benedict both mornings of our stay.


• The Pizza Foundation – Maybe the best pizza I’ve ever eaten…Truly.


• Food Shark – A mobile operation that serves (a fantastic) lunch a few days a week in the pavilion in the center of town... Each day we were there, we witnessed a crowd form promptly at 11:30 when the truck opened and the pavilion stayed packed with locals until the truck pulled away a few hours later.


• The Miniature Rooster – An artful "diner" that serves interesting, “elevated” Southern food infused with some Indian influences…(trust me it works). I had a crazy good trio of beet and arugula salad, roasted cauliflower with capers, and shrimp and grits topped with a poached egg. As a side-note, I caught a glimpse of the contents of their glass-front, walk-in refrigerator on the way to the restroom and it was as beautiful as a Flemish still-life.

DO:

• Art -- Part of what makes Marfa so special is the ability to view high art in the middle of a such a vast and rural place (and decidedly outside of its typical urban environs). It’s startling to move between the stark desert landscape and the series of six army barracks that have been renovated to house Dan Flavin’s giant fluorescent light sculptures or the huge space filled with rows of Judd’s aluminum boxes all reflecting an ever-changing sky. Ultimately it’s this hugely beautiful mash-up that makes Chinati different from anywhere else I’ve ever been. The girls are completely mesmerized by this place.
  
  Unlike traditional “museums” you can’t just visit Chinati and walk around on your own, rather you’ll need to book a guided tour in advance. They have several options, from hour-long sessions focused on a single artist to a full-day tour that takes you through the entire property. You can also book tours of Judd’s personal studios, libraries and his former home through the Judd Foundation. We’ve yet to do this for fear that the girls are a bit young, but it’s at the top of our list for our next visit. In addition to the profusion of Judd’s work in town, there’s also Ballroom Marfa as well as a number of small galleries.


• Nature – One of my most blissful moments of our trip was riding our bikes home in the dark after dinner and pausing to gaze up at the star-filled sky (there’s really nothing quite like the majesty of a star- filled west Texas sky). In my core I am drawn to loamy, misty environments rife with fog and towering trees, but somehow Marfa just rocks me in the best possible way. It is achingly beautiful. I would highly recommend carving out an afternoon to drive to Balmorhea State Park for the scenery alone, but, especially in the summer, swimming in the icy cold springs is a must.


• Shops -- Similar to the restaurant situation, there are just a handful of shops in town, but each one is artful and special (there’s no schlocky pandering to tourists). Don’t miss Buck Johnson and Camp Bosworth’s brilliant art shop, Wrong, Marfa Book Co. (which is unsurprisingly heavy on gorgeous art and architecture tomes), Fancy Pony Land studio and store and Tienda M for beautiful Mexican pottery, textiles and ethereal Dosa dresses. In addition, JM Dry Goods and the tiny gift shops at El Cosmico and The Thunderbird all boast a nicely edited selection of treasures (Bolivian rugs, Turkish towels, candles, cowhides, peasant tops, straw bags, found items, etc…) that feel totally reflective of the region.

NYC...Some Highlights

the lovely Molly at dinner...










the awe-inspiring shop Maryam Nassir Zadeh


I never fail to have a sort of topsy-turvy, "through the looking glass" experience when I visit NYC... It's one of the rare places where in one moment you can be ensconced in throngs of people all purposefully striding down the street toward some important unknown and in the next you could turn a corner and be totally alone on a leafy side-street, all sleepy and picturesque. It's total magic.

This time, the "magic moment" occurred when I found myself crammed into a cab with two complete strangers after the sky sort of cracked open out of nowhere and produced an awe-inspiring mini-monsoon. In what could have been an “every man for yourself" scenairo, the kindness of strangers prevailed, and the three of us bonded over our collective drowned rat state.

I also had the opportunity to be in the city completely solo for the first time, which may have added to the Alice-like sense of wonder. As much as I love experiencing things with Bryan and the girlies, there is something essential in occasionally embarking on adventures alone. There's an immense amount of luxury in being able to just meander at whim. The lack of wrangling or accommodating or compromising creates a sort of elastic energy... a sense of adventure and possibility. My (albeit brief) solo meandering resulted in a pretty excellent Monday afternoon, consisting of the ability to slowly observe every. single. item. in Canvas, No. 6, Sweet William, Creatures of Comfort and Maryam Nassir Zadeh, some highly satisfying people watching in Nolita and an immense amount of walking...

When I wasn't alone, I was counteracting any health benefits of the aforementioned walking by (literally) eating my way through the city with some of my favorite ladies... there was warm hummus with beet chips, duck pasta and bread and butter pudding with blueberries and grilled peaches with Molly at The Fat Radish, pizza, pasta and gelato with Erin at Eataly, and omelets served with thick wedges of toast (which I slathered with some immensely good jam and honey butter) with Joanna and Toby at Snack Taverna.

All in all I walked away feeling hugely inspired and (despite the whirlwind nature of the whole endeavor) a bit restored at a time when I’ve been especially needing some inspiration and restorative moments…don’t you love it when that happens!?


lovely cousin Erin before we (literally) ate our body weight in pizza and pasta


gorgeous confetti system curtain at creatures of comfort








joanna and toby rockin' the stripes...