hyannis

{slit maxi dress} ASTR from Nordstrom's New Savvy {leather jacket} Mackage Kenya from Aritzia here 

Over the weekend I had a conversation with one of the many Kates I know. Pastries may have been involved. Our talk somehow reminded me that sleepy seaside towns sprinkled along the eastern seaboard occupy a fairly schmaltzy place in my heart. Places like where Kate grew up. Places that are both evocative in the pop-culture mindset of "The Way Way Back" style coming-of-age summers, and on the creepier end of the spectrum "Jaws". Isn't it common knowledge that unassuming fishing villages always attract Croctopus type sea monsters? Regardless, there's something infinitely charming about schleping over to a tiny white-washed shack for a home-cooked lobster roll and a peek at some crashing waves.  

Since we're on the topic of sea monsters, I've always been intrigued by Inuit creation mythology. Recently I was reading about the legend of Sedna. She is a giant, who is thrown over a kayak for attacking her parents. As she clings to the side her fingers are chopped off and each finger becomes whales, walruses, or seals. She descends into the watery depths and becomes the ruler of marine life and goddess of the sea. She was pretty much the Jay-Z of the ocean, pretty cool, huh? Whale now I'm just blubbering on...

flotsam

{sweater} Étoile Isabel Marant Obira Cardigan here {tee} Rag & Bone {gray skinny jeans} J Brand {coffee} Peets {locations} California Science Center & Manhattan Beach

A lazy day look with a massive chunky knit from Étoile Isabel Marant and a super soft basic tee from Rag & Bone. Grabbed a coffee from Peets and took a stroll on Manhattan Beach. Have you tried their Vanilla Matcha Latte? It's kind of ridiculous. I'm kind of addicted. Earlier in the day I stopped by the California Science Center to watch the fish and catch a glimpse of the space shuttle Endeavour. Watching the video of the shuttle's arrival in LA was incredibly heartwarming. I was so verklempt! The comradery and excitement in the city was palpable. Standing beneath the wingspan of the Endeavour was one of those epic moments of great awe. This contraption had been into space! Few things can excite the imagination more than space travel, IMHO.  

a whale of a tale

{top} Wilfred Giulia Blouse from Aritzia {anorak} Talula Trooper Jacket from Aritzia {denim cut-offs} Current Elliott {metallic ballet flats} Marc by Marc Jacobs {sunglasses} House of Harlow 1960 {photographed at} Westport Maritime Museum

Part Two of my adventures in Westport.  Peering at giant monsters of the sea through glass windows at the Maritime Museum. Marveling at the enormity of nature's scale.  I'm pretty sure we're all tiny green peas.  Itty bitty miniscule specks of dust in the grander scope of the universe.  My day spent at the sea shore was all sheer floaty silk- in the incarnation of a perfectly drapey Wilfred blouse.  Balanced by lived-in denim cut-offs, and the only truly practical piece of the outfit- an army green anorak from Talula.  Brrrrr.  Staring at whale bones remind me of reading Moby Dick.  Queequeg! And that great Melville quote that always excites the imagination, "it is not down on any map; true places never are." 

the freezing pacific

{shawl cardigan} Wilfred Free {floral print blouse} Wilfred {scarf} Wilfred {denim cut-offs} Current Elliott {photographed at} Westport 

There's something about a good gray day.  The overcast is perfectly pensive and inspires brighter dressing.  Things like floral printed silk and an oversized scarf that sometimes resembles a blanket, tied together with the chunkiest of knit sweaters that somehow reminds me of Ernest Hemingway.  Blustery days like this spent at the sea shore are kind of my fave.  Someday I'll learn to surf those crashing waves, once I conquer my irrational fear of jellyfish and my own lack of equilibrium.  So meet me in Montauk...    

going graphic

{Molty Sweater} Diesel Black Gold FW12 {images via} Diesel & NYMAG

Witness the chill that tip-toes oh so quietly into the air, quietly signaling the arrival of autumn and the necessity of a cozy knit.  This fall the choices are anything but boring.  Graphic knits are all the rage and everything I want to be cuddling up with when the days get shorter.  Check out this Noir meets Lichtenstein, meets comic-book carbon-copy beauty from Diesel Black Gold.  It's got a pattern that's to die-for, and a damsel in distress for your secret emo side.  I'm scrawling this one on the want-list as we speak.    

indian summer

{jacket} Wilfred Le Fou Shambhala Robe from Aritzia {tank dress} Wilfred from Aritzia {cut-out heels} Tenoversix Kinski Bootie {necklace} Laura Lombardi {photographed at} Topanga Canyon {photos by} A.May

Silky bathrobe-like things appropriate for outdoor wear are typically one in a million.  Especially ones that hint at the trench coat, and whisper 1920's kimono, all the while conjuring something a bit wizardly.  Leave it to Aritzia to create something oh-so silky that feigns pajama dressing.  Perfect for a day in the canyons.

seeing the forest through the trees

{dress} Rachel Comey SS12 {necklace} Laura Lombardi from Totokaelo {shoes} Tenoversix {tie dye head scarf} Urban Outfitters {photos by} Tony

Not so long ago I was traipsing through the woods of Topanga Canyon. You know, burning under the California sun, befriending squirrels, secretly wanting to hot wire an El Camino- the usual. A bit over-dressed for treehouse tea parties with the woodland folk. The local hippie culture inspired the tie dye head scarf. Rachel Comey goes forrest gypsy? The Laura Lombardi trinket reminds me of a mix between bolo tie and oddly a clock pendulum. In this context it could be a magical medallion enchanted by the gnomes of the woods.