Everyday would be a holiday from real

Cardigan - Target, dress - H&M, cuff - antique, shoes - Keds, bag - Lulu's

I wore this on my second to last day in Los Angeles, during which I ended up doing one of the stereotypical bus tours. I generally hate acting like a tourist, but I figured it was my only opportunity to actually see Hollywood, Beverly Hills, etc. because neither of my travel companions cared to do so. After a long day of sightseeing I headed back to Venice, where I came across a parking lot full of food trucks... which was the obvious choice for dinner, given my companions' and my varying tastes and dietary habits. I had an interesting - in a good way - veggie sushi burrito, which was essentially a big sushi roll wrapped in rice paper. For dessert, Sweet E's Bakeshop was offering miniature vegan chocolate cupcakes with the best, fudgiest icing ever. It gives me something to aspire to in the realm of baking!



We walked back along Main Street, which is filled with colorful boutiques, shops selling local artisans' work, natural food markets and various eateries. The atmosphere of Venice/Santa Monica is so different from most cities I'm familiar with; if anything, the streets, plants and weather are vaguely reminiscent of my brief stay in Barcelona. But seeing such a popular place - on a Tuesday night, no less - is not something I'm used to. Philly has its own merits, but I fell in love with the little bit of Los Angeles I did see.

xox Catherine

Some people wear their history like a map on their face

Top - Madewell, shorts - Cheap Monday (available at Karmaloop), shoes - Madewell

I'm not so thrilled with the quality of these photos, but life goes on, yeah? I wore this last Monday for a bike ride from Venice to Santa Monica, which was my first time riding a bicycle in years. And it was actually quite fun! If I lived out there, I would most definitely own a bike...



I like that these shorts are more skirt-like than shorts. I saved them a while ago on Pinterest and finally ended up buying them from Wasteland's brick and mortar Santa Monica location. They're probably going to be worn to death this summer, since they're so comfy - almost to the extent of most pajamas - and flowy and nonconstricting and everything desired for hot weather attire. Also worth mentioning is this top that I'd stalked on Madewell's website for some time before it sold out. It's kind of a modified version of the classic Breton stripes, which is quite nice.

After returning from Santa Monica, I headed to Seed Kitchen - a vegan restaurant in Venice - for seitan pepper steak and their amazing pomme fries. They are literally the best french fries I've ever had, and the restaurant is like a vegan fast food joint which is really cool. In Philly we have Blackbird Pizzeria and a few other vegetarian/vegan spots, but there's so much variety in the Venice area. Fresh veggie tacos, tofu scramble, endless varieties of sorbetto and even gelato, food trucks offering veggie sushi burritos and miniature cupcakes with decadent, fudgy chocolate icing... amazing.

xox Catherine

Santa Monica

Cardigan - my sister's, shirt - H&M, jeans - Madewell, bag - LuLu's, shoes - Marais USA via ModCloth

I wore this yesterday after walking around in Venice all day... during which I came across Seed Kitchen, which is a vegan cafe, maker of the best french fries ever, and where I discovered the glory of blueberry scones. Seriously, why have I never tried them before? I bought three. That's how good they were. My sister and her boyfriend wanted to go to the Santa Monica Pier, so I put jeans on - it's a little chilly at night here - and watched the solar eclipse. I took a few cool photos... maybe I'll post them soon. I then went to the Third Street Promenade and other surrounding areas. I had a scoop of strawberry sorbet and proceeded to wander in and out of shops, including Wasteland, which is very superb.



I've been conjuring plans in my head to live out here. I figure they're probably not going to work out, but with my dream school still out of reach, I have no qualms about transferring to a school here. Or perhaps trying to get an internship/job and living here next summer...



xox Catherine

Greetings from Venice

Cardigan - my sister's, top - Madewell, cuff - antique, shorts - American Apparel, shoes - Marais USA (via ModCloth)

I mentioned upcoming travels to Los Angeles... and here I am. I'll be in Venice (and wherever else in the vicinity!) for the next few days. We arrived at LAX Friday morning, then visited my uncle's apartment before heading over to Malibu for the afternoon. I wanted to swim, but as it turns out, it is quite chilly and windy. I left the beach shivering and hung out in the area for a while. Later on we finally made it to our hotel, which is actually quite nice. There's a small gallery in the lobby; I'm sold. We went over to the Venice Ale House (with huge appetites) and all left incredibly satisfied. I ordered a veggie taco - my first taco ever - and it was very, very delicious. I spotted an moon-like orb in the sky, which turned out to be part of the set of an indie film. Upon asking an observer, we also discovered Californication was shooting just two blocks away.


Today we ate brunch while sitting in the sun at a small cafe (Figtree Cafe) and ended up slightly sunburned. Oh well, the food was delicious - I had a tofu scramble and what was easily the best green tea I've ever drank. We walked along the Venice boardwalk, wandering in and out of shops and passing numerous herbal medical healing centers - only in California, right? I was pleased to find an American Apparel Outlet store... normally I'm not a huge fan of the brand for its questionable CEO and overpriced items, but I did walk out with this pair of shorts. They're significantly shorter than what I'd normally wear, but the high waist keeps it a little less denim underwear-esque. Or so I like to think.

After laying on the beach, we cleaned ourselves up and walked along Abbot Kinney Boulevard, where we ate (Abbot's Habit), browsed shops and galleries (Very Venice Art Gallery) and discussed wishful plans to move to Venice. I'm quite satisfied with the day, and I can't say I really want to return home... it's so beautiful and dream-like here. It's essentially everything I imagined California to be - endless beaches with palm trees, organic cafes scattered about, sky-high rent prices, chain-link fences covered in desert flowers, the dodgy nighttime surroundings with questionable characters.

xox Catherine

I can't resist...

I can't resist any spread that has a California setting, especially when it's still cold here and probably getting warm out there. I think I'm going to visit some schools there if I ever have the opportunity, I know everyone disses the whole LA thing but I can't tolerate cold. But luckily it's a mild 55 degrees today, and it's supposed to be nicer tomorrow!

Just one of the photos from the Go West spread in Nylon March 09:

Looook at those leggings! Amazing.

And I'm listening to No Doubt right now. I've been meaning to download some of their songs for an unknown reason for the past week or so, and I finally got to it.

Oh, and I think I want a tattoo inspired by this eventually:


And, for my last "oh, and": I finally finished sewing this skirt that I've been meaning to work on for the past month, but the sides got all screwed up somehow. So I have to fix that little bit before I wear it.