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    The Broad Museum

    March 9, 2016
    The Broad Museum
    After months of waiting, I was fortunate enough to finally visit The Broad Museum with my sisters Ale and Sarah while I was in LA last December. The Broad was one of those places that I kept enviously seeing pop up all over my Facebook and Instagram feeds since it first opened its doors back in September of last year, which is why I was so anxious to visit. The new contemporary art museum, located in Downtown Los Angeles, includes two floors filled with a wide and notable selection of contemporary art, making it a lovely addition to L.A.’s already amazing art scene. Even more exciting is that admission to the museum is free to the public, so all you have to do is make sure you reserve your tickets ahead of time to avoid waiting for hours in the long standby line.
    Although it was The Broad’s amazing art collection that first inspired me to visit, I was equally impressed by the design of the space. As if the white honeycomb-like exterior of The Broad weren’t gorgeous enough,  the interior design of the building is also very interesting. The curved cement walls give visitors the sense that they’re walking through a cave. There are also windows located throughout the building, allowing visitors to peek into the museum’s art vaults.
    As soon as we stepped through the doors of the museum, Ale, Sarah and I ran straight to artist Yayoi Kusama’s ‘Infinity Mirrored Room’ instillation. You have to make a reservation to go in and the wait can take a while, but it is definitely worth it. Besides having the opportunity to take a very awesome Instagram-worthy picture, the instillation is pretty breathtaking. The surrounding mirrors and water create the appearance that you’re floating on air and surrounded by never-ending light, which makes for a very unique experience if you ask me.

     

    I had a blast visiting The Broad and am looking forward to visiting again next time in LA. There’s so much to see and experience that one trip to the museum doesn’t suffice. I hope that you enjoyed these pictures from my trip and that they motivate you to pay a visit to this amazing space if you’re ever in the LA area. Let me know if you do visit!
    xoxo,
    Helen
    Food & DIY, Outfit

    Downtown Adventure

    January 7, 2015
    Photos by Carly Stevens and Me
    My friend Carly who lives in Austin is in town for the month, and on one of the first few days that she was here we decided to go on a metro adventure to Downtown L.A. We had originally planned to spend a day hopping from one coffee shop to another, but we didn’t want to deal with parking and LA traffic. Instead, we decided to take it easy and take the metro gold line into Downtown. During our outing, I got to try out a couple of places that I had been wanting to visit for a while and also had the opportunity to visit some old favorites, all which I’m sharing with you today.

     

    GRAND CENTRAL MARKET
    The first stop for Carly and I was Grand Central Market in Downtown LA. I used to work only a couple of blocks away from Grand Central Market, and I’m so astonished at how much it has changed in just two years. There are so many new restaurants and shops that have opened alongside establishments that have been there for years. On this particular day, Carly and I were on a mission to get egg sandwiches from Eggslut. The restaurant is very popular, so we had to wait in a very long line before we ordered our sandwiches, but they were well worth the wait. Carly and I both got the Fairfax which I have to say was really, really delicious, if you can’t already tell from the picture. We also ordered lattes at G&B Coffee at the other end of the market. G&B was less busy than Eggslut, and I felt awkward taking pictures of the baristas while they were trying to do their job. But, trust me when I say that you don’t need a photo for me to prove how delicious the coffee is. You have to stop by G&B if you’re ever in the mood for a caffeinated drink while at Grand Central Market.

    THE LAST BOOKSTORE
    Since Carly had never been to the Last Book Store and it is only a couple of blocks from Grand Central Market, we made our way over there. The bookstore is my favorite place to take friends who are visiting from out of town because it’s such a sight to see. If you’re a book lover, such as myself, you’ll appreciate the nice selection of new and used books available in the store. If you’re not that into books, you’ll still enjoy just walking around. Every corner of the bookstore is decorated in a fun way, and the second floor is also home to other shops and art studios which are usually open during the day. In addition, the bookstore also hosts several events, so you should check their calendar if you’re in town.

     

    ARTS DISTRICT
    Lastly, Carly and I headed down to the Arts District, which I won’t talk too much about since I already shared some of my favorites in the area here and here. Poketo is one of Carly’s favorite shops, but they were closed on that particular day due to the holidays. Since it was closed, Carly and I walked over to Blacktop and enjoyed another cup of delicious coffee–do you all notice a pattern here? It wasn’t too busy, probably because it was a Friday, but we did manage to catch a glimpse of Skrillex. Neither Carly nor I are necessarily fans, but it was still a fun sighting. I have to say that even though I visit the Arts District often, it’s always a cute place to walk around. It’s also nice that this area is easily accessible through metro and other forms of public transportation. The metro gold line is only about two blocks away.
    Carly and I found this cute scene outside a hidden vintage shop in the Arts District. While we didn’t check out the vintage shop, we couldn’t resist taking photos of this area.

     

    Outfit Details:
    Madewell Shirt (Similar) | Urban Outfitters Sweater (Similar) | Madewell Skinny Skinny Crop Jeans in Tempest Wash | Piperlime Suede
    Booties (Similar) | Crocheted Bag (Handmade by my Grandmother)

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    I hope you enjoyed this post. As you may already have read in my last post, one of my resolutions is to put together more travel/adventure posts. Even though I don’t see myself traveling out of the state this year, I do want to try to explore more places in California that are outside of Los Angeles. Even though I visited some new places during this Downtown outing, I realize that I need to get out of my bubble. I have a list of places that I want to visit, so we’ll see where I actually end up going in 2015.

    xoxo,
    Helen
    Outfit, Travel

    Lazy Weekend in Boyfriend Jeans

    September 15, 2014
    Photos by Sara Hatakeyama
    Outfit Details:
    H&M Tee (Old)
    Old Navy Boyfriend Jeans
    Lotta from Stockholm Peeptoe Clogs in Tan
    Straw Tote bag (Gift from my Dad from his trip to Mexico)
    This weekend, I definitely made an effort to get out of my neighborhood of Pasadena, and spent some time in other parts of town. L.A. is such a big city, that sometimes it is easy for me to get lazy and stuck in a routine, and frequent the same places week after week. But I need to remember that having access to so many cool places is why I love living here. My friend Sara and I tried to do some exploring on Saturday–I use the word “tried” because the 100 degree weather this weekend drained us of our energy before we could even accomplish much. However, we did manage to have a delicious brunch at Auntie Em’s Kitchen in Eagle Rock, and then made our way over to Highland Park for some refreshing horchata lattes at Café de Leche. Caffeinated drinks and a good meal always make for a successful outing, if you ask me!
    My outfit definitely reflected my lazy mood, in a good way. I got these boyfriend jeans from Old Navy last month, right before I embarked on my 6-month shopping cleanse, and they are super comfortable. The loose fit makes them appropriate for hot weather, since the don’t stick to your body like skinny jeans do. I’m really looking forward to transitioning these into fall and winter, because I think they will look great with oversized sweaters and coats.
    If you’re ever looking for a place to eat brunch in the L.A. area, you should definitely head over to Auntie Em’s Kitchen, which is one of my favorite spots. I wish I had taken more pictures of the place to show you how adorable it is inside. The restaurant has a very cute bakery and shop at the entrance, and I love how homey it feels.I decided to venture out and try something other than my usual order of french toast during this trip, and instead I ordered some delicious pancakes with a peach and whiskey glaze. I’m glad I did, because they were delicious! Sara ordered a Caprese sandwich, which also looked amazing.
    Café de Leche is definitely one of those coffee shops that I need to visit more often. It’s really cute inside, and it seems like a great place to read a book or spend some time studying. More importantly, they also make really delicious drinks. I usually don’t like flavored coffee drinks, but I love their iced horchata espresso. Sara got their iced horchata chai, which she said was also really good.
    I hope you enjoyed reading about my weekend adventure. I need to remember that I started this blog as a way to motivate myself to get out of the house, and not just post my outfits. I’m hoping to have more energy to run around town once this heat wave disappears.
    xoxo,
    Helen Grace