Pencil-ing in Some Time With Usher

Last week, I got to mix business with pleasure when I covered the red carpet at the Pencils of Promise gala, where Usher was being honored. Pencils of Promise is an amazing charity that helps build schools for children in underprivilged areas and a few of my friends are personally involved in the organization. More on the charity in a minute, but this was my first time interviewing Usher and he was great.

He actually had no idea what designer made his suit so when a reporter asked what he was wearing, he had me check his tag for him! During our interview, Usher dished on his new gig as a judge on The Voice and who he thinks his biggest competition is. I tried to embed the video but the code isn't working, so click here to watch my chat with the R&B superstar.

I also interviewed Scooter Braun, Justin Bieber and Carly Rae Jepsen's master manager, who confimed to me that Justin is working on an acoustic album. Cue the screams from the Beliebers. Scooter was in attendance because his brother Adam is the CEO and founder of POP.

POP was founded in 2008 and they've already built 71 schools, with 20 other builds currently happening. Knowledge really is power and I believe in what their foundation is doing. Education is so important and something everyone should have access to.  It was great to be able to cover such a worthy event for Fuse, meet Usher and see some friends all in one night. Congratulations to the Pencils crew for an amazing event!

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The Thrill Of The Hunt

I've been majorly slacking on posting lately and I apologize for that, but The Hunt was last Saturday and it took me a bit to recover. As I previously wrote, this was my first time going to The Hunt (as an adult) and it was quite the experience. If you've never gone, here are my helpful tips for surviving your first Hunt.

1. Wear rainboots or shoes you don't care about ruining. The Far Hills fields where the steeplechase is held gets super muddy. I wanted to wear my favorite Tory Burch boots but a friend advised against it, and thank god she did because they would have been unwearable afterwards. Think rainboots. Either you need to be able wash them off or throw them out post-Hunt. Trust me.

2. Be adaptable. It's a long day. Chances are, you're getting on a bus bright and early in the city to head out and by the time you get to the Hunt, temps have risen.



I recommend wearing layers. Or you could get creative, like our friend Jeff, who fearlessly decided to convert his jeans to jorts (jean shorts) in the afternoon when it got warmer.



Fun fact: Jeff's jorts made it onto a best dressed of the Hunt style blog. See the final result of the jorts conversion here.



© Meg Lindsay Photography 2012

Also, your phone probably won't work so don't plan on meeting up with friends you didn't go there with. But don't sweat it. Consider it an opportunity to make new friends and expand your social circle!



© Meg Lindsay Photography 2012

 3. Eat something. This is a seriously boozy tailgate and people here are daydrinking like they're back in college. Think kegs, ice luges, etc. But consider The Hunt a marathon, not a sprint, and make sure to eat a solid breakfast and lunch if you plan to last throughout the day. Hydrate with things other than alcohol, such as water.

4. Have a safe haven. Partying with the muddy masses is fun...




 ...but it was so nice to have a tent in the civilized area as well, complete with our own bartender and catering and seats and people who were coherent. Highly recommend and big thank you to Adam for the amazing set up!


© Meg Lindsay Photography 2012

5. Two words: Hand sanitizer. They only have Port A Pots at the Hunt. Enough said.

6. See a race. One friend who shall remain nameless told me on the bus ride over that he's gone to The Hunt for four years and had never seen a horse. Unacceptable (in this horse lover's opinion, at least). Take a break from the boozing to actually watch at least one of the steeplechases.

© Meg Lindsay Photography 2012

7. Take photos. It's definitely a day to remember and one that is best shown rather than told, so play paparazzi. Props to Meg who took most of these amazing snaps.

© Meg Lindsay Photography 2012

I promise I'll update again sooner this time. I have red carpet tales from this week and our big Halloween bash is tonight, so check back again soon. Happy Halloween weekend!

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Fall-ing in Love With NYC All Over Again

Fall is one of my favorite times in New York City, and last weekend was a perfect example of why.

Photograph courtesy of Julia Fehrenbach

On Saturday, our lovely friend Shanel organized a super fun field trip upstate where we went apple picking and wine and cider tasting. We booked a bus (thanks BusRates.com) with a group of our friends and hit the road bright and early Saturday am. Our first stop was at Applewood Orchards, where they make their own cider.

Photos courtesy Julia Fehrenbach

 The Naked Flock pumpkin flavored cider was beyond good! Highly recommended if you can find it.

After a little liquid refreshment, it was time to hit the orchards. We boarded a haytruck and headed out to the fields. They had both apples and pumpkins available for the picking.

 Post-picking, we headed to Warwick Valley Winery for some wine tasting and live music courtesy of Uncle Shoehorn, a blues/rock band. They were actually out of apples there but we were fine with just hanging out and enjoying the fresh fair, fall foliage and nature. It sort of reminded me of my small town upbringing.

Photo courtesy of Julia Fehrenbach

 (Sidenote: I definitely recommend creating Instagram hashtags for group outings. We made Saturday's #shanapple and it was so fun to look at everyone's pics afterwards. 89 and counting!)

On Sunday, the nature kick continued with a Central Park excursion. I hadn't been in awhile but a friend was visiting from LA, and it was her idea to go up. Best.idea.ever. The weather was unseasonably warm for November and we had such a lovely Sunday.

After hanging at the fountain and people-watching, we went for drinks at Loeb Boathouse Cafe, which is absolutely adorable, and enjoyed the sunset and waterfront views over a bottle of wine.

Photo courtesy of Julia Fehrenbach

Hope you guys are loving fall so far, too. Halloween is just two weeks away and if you're in NYC, come celebrate with us on Oct. 26 at the Wooly. You can buy tickets here. Fun times ahead!

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Ready to Rocktober: Pumpkin, Ponies & Playing Dress Up

Fall is in full swing and October is already here! I know, I know, it's sort of sad that summer and Hamptons season is over but there's so much to look forward to this month. In no particular order, here are a few things I'm excited for:

1. All pumpkin everything: About this time of year, my kitchen becomes a pumpkin party. Over the weekend, I bought Dunkin Donuts pumpkin coffee, pumpkin pancake mix and even pumpkin flavored Greek yogurt at Trader Joe's. If fall had a flavor, it'd be pumpkin. (Winter would be peppermint.) I also enjoy carving pumpkins in October.

2. The Hunt: This will be my first time attending (as an adult that I can actually remember. Thanks to my mom who commented below that I went as a baby, who knew?) but basically the hunt is a horse racing steeplechase event in Far Hills, New Jersey. Their website promises "world-class tailgaiting" and "the social event of the season". I don't know about that but I do like horses and daydrinking so combining the two is a total win/win in my book. Although I'm a former equestrian myself and have been to many racetracks, this is my very first steeplechase as an adult. I'm already thinking about an outfit.



3. Halloween: I love Halloween for a few reasons. First of all, it's the one day a year when adults get to play dress up. It's so much fun seeing all of the creative and crazy costumes people come up with. Personally, I'm in a big believer in the power of the group costume. Any costume is automatically made better when worn by multiple people. Last year, my friends and I were hot nerds and it was a hit.

This year we have yet another group costume in the works with even more girls in the mix and it's gonna be awesome. I don't want to spoil the surpise but let's just say it's something colorful and creative  that's made a lot of headlines this year and recently got banned. Any guesses? Another reason to love Halloween: candy. And candy corn!

4. Fall fashion: I'm happy to say goodbye to the subway sweat of summer and hello to crisp mornings, cozy sweaters and chic coats.

Happy October!

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