I'm Off to NYFW!

Britney Spears Femme Fatale Tour Shirt, Club Monaco Trousers, Clark's Desert Boot
I leave for New York Fashion Week tonight. AND I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT TO WEAR. As of late, work has been stressful. Planning for this trip has also been all time consuming, hence my lack of posts and lazy attire. But there is nothing quite like a concert tee and a good pair of comfy slacks to help you through it. I am cramming everything I own into my suitcase finishing up packing and headed out to NYC - my future home come March. Wish me luck, and send me invites!!

- jerome

New Orleans

Last week I returned from a wonderful trip to New Orleans, Louisiana. This was my first time in the South and it was a pleasure and privilege to experience Mardi Gras with locals. The vacation was part of an epic birthday celebration for one of my best friends, Nida. She was a California transplant by way of Hurricane Katrina, so going back to New Orleans with her was a humbling experience. There is nothing quite like New Orleans in my opinion: the people are well mannered, the food is prepared with real butter and more salt tastes better, and life is lived on a slower clock. Of course my city-folk-self felt like I was on an intense caffeine binge in the beginning, but by the end of the trip I was calmed down by peeling crawfish and taking my time with some amazing beignets. Louisiana has a rich history and it was fun to hear it unfold via Ghost Tour. I don't understand what it is about the French and settling in uninhabitable swamps (Versailles anyone??), but there sure are a lot of ghosts in New Orleans. The French Quarter's architecture is a uniquely European and houses a variety of shops and galleries. It was strange to notice the lack of tall buildings. Oh yeah, and people drink a lot on Mardi Gras. Boobs, peepees, and beads, OH MY!! Unfortunately, Bourbon Street by night is not the safest place for a camera. Even the beautiful parades would have been awesome to photograph, but I saw a couple people injured from flying beads and the like, so I kept my camera in my bag. Documentation might have been a total fail, but I think I was pretty successful in really living the experience. Southern hospitality truly does exist, and I was fortunate enough to meet some wonderful people during my stay.

Top to Bottom: Dream House Inspiration #1/ Beignets courtesy of Cafe du Monde/ Bourbon Street by night/ Crawfish pre-boil/ Nida and I at MRB

As much as I love going on vacation, it is always refreshing to come back to the city. Sometimes you have to leave somewhere to fully appreciate it. It feels good to be home. I missed you, San Francisco.

- jerome

Vacation Motivation

I had mentioned earlier that my trip was inspirational. The original plan for this post was to give y'all a blow by blow, but the more and more I recapped I realized my favorite moments were pretty much "had to be there." Let me instead explain the nature of my trip to Munich, Oberammergau, Salzburg, Vienna, and Prague.

This family vacation (starring my entire family including significant others) was a 10 day long Catholic Pilgrimage to holy places around Eastern Europe. My parents love to travel around the world to see sacred sites where miraculous things happened according to their faith. I was raised Catholic, but my partner wasn't so we were a little nervous going into the trip. However, going to church for the first time in a grandiose and famous cathedral in Germany has to be more interesting than anything else. The cathedrals and architecture we saw were pretty much what any regular tourist would see, only our group got to see extra chapels behind the scenes with beautiful murals and statues. This was my second time seeing these cities but I think I was able to learn and absorb more this time around. The days consisted of visiting church, celebrating mass, then loads of eating and SHOPPING.

I found it amazing/necessary that many of the places we went to were located approximately 4 blocks from a Louis Vuitton. Our tour bus was not allowed in many of the narrow streets, so walking was mandatory. There was a lot of cardio to even out all the bratwurst and the rest of the local food that got to be way too rich for me. Imagine everything fried and/or drenched in tons of butter and oil - sounds amazing, but it gets old fast. Going to any country with a long, rich history is so visually stimulating. The architecture and cobblestone really add to the experience for Americans (or me anyway) since we don't see classic design as much here. Travel is the best reset button when you are in any sort of slump. Check out some of the pictures from my trip.



1.Beautiful gardens in Salzburg 2.Private chapel in Melk Abbey 3.A mummy 4.A stray cat 5.Try picking this ancient lock/ 6.Modern art meets religious artifacts (a common theme in these parts) 7.The most beautiful library EVER that holds one of Eastern Europe's oldest texts - Beauty and the Beast status 8.A view of the house tops of Salzburg 9.Sweet statues 10.Market finds at the Getreidergasse 11.Red door realness 12.Alphonse Mucha's stained glass window at St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague 13.The Astronomical Clock

See the rest here.

- jerome

I'm Stickin' To It

Reminiscing of a tweet by Harper's Bazaar Accessories Editor, David Thielebule
When someone asks what I do, I am not so sure what the answer is. Maybe it is because I refuse to let retail define me, but saying I am a blogger (which is the only other thing I am actually committed to) sounds a little pretentious gay premature. But I am enjoying sharing things with all of you, so I am stickin' to it. My recent vacation has been a large source of inspiration. Somehow, I managed to capture so many shots that are perfect for mood boards. Here is a link to the pictures if you can't wait. I'll break it down for you later.

- jerome