One Week In New York: What I Did & What I Wore

Remixing a suitcase of spring basics.

This post is unlocked for all thanks to ARKET*. You can shop their new spring drop here*.

It goes without saying that these are my favourite posts to put together. You know by now that New York has my heart (The City really did imprint on me at a very impressionable age). But this trip was a little different, as I visited for meetings, which teenage me is beyond freaking out to type. A Monday to Friday trip where I walked a solid 20k steps a day, met a whole host of people from the marketing teams of some of my dream brands, to my favourite NY-based style writers on here and still managed to squeeze in some shopping because it would be rude not to, right?! Here’s what I got up to…

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MONDAY

Don’t judge the size of my suitcase!!! It was full of gifts!! Outfit-wise, everything was elasticised: Grey Jumper* / Zebra Print Bag*

We did the classic post-lunch flight out of London, which meant that we hit New York just in time to tuck ourselves into bed. I went for the knitwear-on-knitwear approach; layering a white tee under a black jumper and black boiled wool trousers (these* although they are currently sold out), so it looked a little like a matching set. Then I wore my largest piece of clothing - this GIGANTIC wool coat - onto the plane so I didn’t have to stuff it in my bag, because quite frankly, I would have no chance of getting it in there.

I cannot sing the praises of this bag high enough*. I mean, you’ll see - I wore it allllll week long.

I used to pack the kitchen sink with me on flights, but now I go for less is more. I pack my electronics that I don’t fancy putting in my checked bag, AirPods, mints, passport, sunglasses, a little pouch of essentials and reading material. I purchase snacks at the airport - one salty, one fruity, one chocolate.

I somehow managed to score an upgrade to business for a STEAL when I was checking in online, and I don’t think I’ll ever have this sort of luck again. Alas, I did not have the same luck on the way home.

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TUESDAY

GUYS. The weather was unreal. Flippin’ freezing, but unreal.

Yes, I wore my thermals all week, but this Wool Jumper* kept me toasty too. With knits, I always opt for my usual size, even though it’s menswear, for a slightly oversized fit.

We hit the ground running on Tuesday with a day of back-to-back meetings and events, and I somehow miraculously managed to keep my New York good-weather streak intact. It might have been grim when we landed on Monday, but by Tuesday the sun was out, the thermals were on, and we spent the day galivanting round town and sneaking in a bit of shopping where we could. I was very grateful to my past self for remembering to pack cosy accessories; this scarf* was lush.

Goofing around the lobby of the hotel. We stayed at Public, and I’d recommend (although it gets a little noisy towards the end of the week, thanks to the downstairs club!).

Very large wool coat, my usual sunglasses, scarf* and bag*.

Got to love an early morning walk through Soho.

Sant Ambroeus is single-handedly keeping the NY fashion crowd FED. I think we had five meetings here over three days. 10/10 interiors.

Our dinner reservations were fully in my hands - the pressure! For our first night, I went for Jean’s. I’d visited before and had fond memories of the fries, plus it was a short walk from our hotel through the Lower East Side to get there. We both ended up eating the epitome of girl dinner - Spaghetti Pomodoro, fries and a Diet Coke.

I hadn’t really thought too much about dinner outfits, but I’d made the last-minute addition of a blazer in my suitcase and ended up just throwing that on with my vintage jeans to add a bit of polish.

Jean’s in a VIBE, and yes, you need to get the cookie for dessert.

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WEDNESDAY

Blue Jumper* / Grey Jumper* / Black Trench* / Zebra Print Bag*

There was a switch-up in the schedule on Wednesday, so it meant I had a bit of time in the morning to SHOP! I started the day at breakfast with the utterly delightful Erika Veurink - San Ambroeus, obvs - we could have been there HOURS. Then I set off on a vintage clothing walking tour (I’ll do a post soon because I have some new stops to add!), where I bizarrely came back empty-handed. Is this…. growth?!

POST. COMING. SOON. Find my latest NYC Shopping Guide here.

We mooned at the garlic knots so much that the guy gave us some for free after our meal!! I HEART NY!!!

Risking it all for The Shot™️.

For dinner, we did Bubby’s (TIP: Skip the breakfast lines and go for dinner - the pancakes are still on and you can reserve a table!). Don’t worry, I had the apple pie for dessert. I also came back and snapped a picture of this jumper* before bed because the colour is TOO GOOD (again it’s menswear, I went for a small - one size down - for a closer fit).

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THURSDAY

Another day, another epic sunrise.

Back at Sant Ambroeus, just remixing yesterday’s outfit by swapping back to my blue jeans and adding a vintage necklace. I love how the blue jumper* gives an almost denim-on-denim appearance.

We wandered down to Brookfield Place first thing for breakfast and ended up staying there for most of the day because there’s a ton of space upstairs that’s ideal if you need an hour or two of laptop time. By this point in our trip, I was rewearing pieces I’d already worn and just changing up my thermal layer or white T-shirt underneath. But I have to give some love to the ARKET Oversized Trench Coat* - you can afford to size down in it, I’m wearing a medium here, but I think a small would have worked as well. It’s unfussy and isn’t super thick, so it bundles well into your bag if you find yourself overheating. Clean lines, but weighty enough to elevate whatever you pair with it.

Dare I say my favourite outfit of the week? Jumper* / Trench* / Bag*.

See? What a view!

When the light looks like this down Mercer Street, you BET I’m taking a photo.

Not only is this bag* the ultimate compliment magnet, but it also fits a laptop too.

My OOTN: back to my blazer (I just wore it alone this time), my vintage jeans, and an animal-print pouch.

In the evening, I went to Estelle’s, the newly opened restaurant at the Gansevoort, to meet with some of my favourite NYC Substack fashion writers. Big love to Lindsay, Emily, Kendall, Angie, Alex, Jennifer, Joyce and Libby for making it so special!

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FRIDAY

Sweatshirt* / Trousers* / Bag*

We were up bright and early on Friday (4:45 am!!). But for what we lacked in sleep, we made up for with a super speedy cab ride to JFK. Silver linings and all that. There really wasn’t much thought that went into my travel outfit, except for this sweatshirt* and a fresh T-shirt that I’ve saved specifically for the journey home because it’s nice to feel baseline clean, you know? The flight flew by thanks to in-flight WiFi and a juicy Substack inbox to dig into, and I was back in my own bed by the end of the day. BLISS.

Not a bad spot to write a newsletter!

I made a big error by not filling my suitcase entirely with these for the return trip.

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