Having always been a Brooklyn-girl, I always forget how nice it is on the West side on Manhattan, down by Battery Park.

After a matinee movie screening the other day, we walked over toward the water and discovered this lovely oasis — the Irish Hunger Memorial Garden.

I wore my new pair of pink pants, scored at (second hand store) Beacon’s Closet for $24.95. They’re so hot pink the camera doesn’t know what to do with them. This is sort of the true color, even though they look salmon-colored in the other shots.

What I love most about New York is that you can still discover new things, even after living here for so long. I’d never seen this part of Battery Park before. Beauteous…

/// tee, old H&M / pink jeans, vintage Diesel, Beacon’s Closet / wedges, DSW / tote, Pia Anjou / necklace, Efva Attling ///

I love bracelets and tend to pile them on without abandon. Two of my current favorites aren’t just pretty to look at, they also carry a powerful message. The Peace Cord bracelet is hand woven in Afghanistan, using authentic military materials, and the peaceBOMB bracelet is made in Laos, using melted fragments of scrap metal from bombs. By wearing these, we can protest war while helping people in war-torn areas of the world earn a living wage.

Get the full story here.

Last Saturday was so nice and sunny. I got to don my leather jacket (without another one on top!) for the first time this year. I was supposed to go to a Japan benefit sale one of my friends had organized at the Bowery Hotel, but when I got there the line was around the block, so I left. I don’t queue for fashion. I will donate my money to Japan in a different way. Instead, I walked down to Whole Foods, spent way too much money on good food and went home to cook for some friends. I will choose good organic food over new clothes any day. Easy.

/// vintage leather jacket, Screaming Mimi’s / vintage fur vest, eBay / white Tee & knit cap, Marc‘s / jeans, H&M / boots, vintage / faux fringe bag, Lindex / sunnies, Florida drugstore / arm warmers, 15 years old / necklace, Brooklyn Charm ///

If you want to read about How I Wear Eco Fashion, check out the brilliant Starre Vartan‘s interview with me on Eco-Chick. Lots of vintage, really old stuff and digging through racks at discount retailers…

I’ve never been called a Maverick Eye before, but I quite love that.

This is one of the featured outfits, from a sunny day a few weeks ago (where did that sun go?).

“I love shirt dresses, they fit my body really well and they’ll never go out of style. This one is from H&M. The shoes are from Pjux, a really great sustainable shoe company from Denmark. The fur coat is vintage, I bought it at a Salvation Army in Sweden over 10 years ago. I still love it. I would never buy anything new made from fur, but I think vintage is OK. The belt is also really old, rescued from my sister’s closet, she wore it when she was in 5th grade or something like that.”

Short-sleeve knit from H&M, $17.95 (I think).

Vintage Wrangler denim vest from Beacon’s Closet, $15.95 (but really free since I had sold stuff and had store credit).

Vintage safari-style shirt from a Williamsburg thrift shop, $10.

Last weekend, being silly while waiting for a car inspection at Pep Boys in Park Slope.

This weekend, heading upstate for some fresh air, food straight from farmers and good times.

///leather jacket, fur vest & velvet bag, vintage / hat, really old H&M / shoes, clothing swap / have no idea where I got the scarf ///

I have too many clothes, yet often feel like I have nothing to wear. Sound familiar? Most of us would like to simplify our lives (and our wardrobes) yet, Americans own more stuff per capita than ever before and storage companies across the country are banking heavily on our hoarding-tendencies.

On my recent trip to Palm Springs I started think about how I always tend to travel with the same key pieces and wondered it I could live with them and only them. Maybe? Read all about my Travel Wardrobe Philosophy here.

I love the desert. It seems to bring out the crazy in people (which is usually a good thing). Never thought a city girl like me would like it so much. Maybe I’m really a desert girl…

Lots of Angelenos come to Palm Springs to get away from the city, and I love seeing how they dress for the occasion, it’s like LA-eclecticism on steroids. You’d have to go and see for yourself…

This outfit was my interpretation of city girl in the desert. Dark and basic, yet very comfy and casual.

/// tank, Marshalls / denim flares, thrift store / Havaianas flip flops from The Standard Miami / very old hat from H&M / faux leather fringe bag, Lindex / necklace, Brooklyn Charm ///

I buy a lot of stuff in second hand stores, but sometimes I come across something that just immediately falls into my group of closet faves. This sleeveless white shirt has turned out to be such a thing. I was going to leave it in the store, but am so happy I decided to get it.

Now, if only the weather could get nicer so I can wear it in NYC…

This Saturday offered some really nice early-spring weather, hopefully an indicator of what is soon (!) to come. I had a particular spring in my step because of these Lacoste leather sneakers that I scored at a clothing swap this week. Fits me like a glove.

A few blocks down from my house, there is a really nice riverside park that very few people seem to know about.

We stayed until the sun started coming down above downtown Manhattan and the chill set in once again.

/// leather jacket, family heirloom / zip-up sweater, Free People / jeans, Levi’s / tote bag, Fjällräven / leather sneakers, Lacoste, from a clothing swap ///