Summer in the Garment District

July 17, 2018 by Patricia Chang in Fashion, Food, Travel

Culture Espresso, Image via Instagram @jourdanhull_

The Garment District is near and dear to my heart, because this is where I spent the bulk of my time as a young designer - sourcing not only fabrics and trims, but the production of my ready-to-wear line as well. It's made up of hardworking, friendly people I will never forget, some even treated me like their own daughter.

Today, I can go back for leisure and though the Garment District is always changing, it's nice to see the familiar "classics" stay the same.

Nestled between Bryant Park and Herald Square, its in the heart of the city: 6th to 9th Ave, and 35th to 40th St. This small area is bustling with life, tons of shops big and small, but let's start with first things first: Eats!

This summer of 2018, the Garment District closed two blocks of traffic from 39th - 41st streets, and created an Urban Garden. Going on now until Sept 1! You can see photos from my stroll here and the endless temptations for a cheat meal ;)

There is still plenty to eat outside of the Urban Garden area from delis to coffee shops. The next time I am there in the morning, I'm going to skip Starbucks and try Culture Espresso on 38th st and 6th Ave.

Next stop, Shops.

Well, it is the Garment District after all! Note: most of the shops here are open Monday~Saturday, and normally close at 5pm. The general vicinity of the shops are located around 37th through 39th Streets, between 7th and 8th Ave.

Mood Fabrics
225 West 37th Street, 3rd floor

B&J Fabrics
525 Seventh Avenue, 2nd floor

New York Elegant Fabrics
222 West 40th Street

Mokuba
137 W. 38th Street

M&J Trimming - pictured
1008 6th Avenue

Pacific Trimming
220 West 38th Street

Now finally, off to my favorite part of the day, rooftop bars!! Man, a refreshing cocktail with friends, paired with a view of my favorite city never gets old.

If you're traveling or getting off work early, Spyglass rooftop opens earliest so I would start there to grab some snacks and drinks, and then bar hop over to the Refinery Rooftop. There, you can catch one of the endless stunning sunsets the city has to offer with an Espresso Martini in hand, to carry on through the rest of the night.

For a more intimate vibe in this touristy area, continue downstairs of the Refinery Hotel to Winnie’s Jazz Bar. I need to check this place out myself, for an easy night out of live jazz. I imagine sitting back and just melting the stimulating day in the city away.

Lastly, while researching the Garment District, I discovered OM Factory! They hold anti-gravity Yoga classes there - I would definitely like to check it out sometime. Would you?

Thank you to the Garment District for sponsoring this post and sharing it's gems with us.

A day in Dumbo

July 11, 2016 by Patricia Chang in Family, Fashion, Food

Fun Fact: Hank and I had our first date in Dumbo Brooklyn - we went to the art fair in 2010!

Over the long weekend earlier this month I spent a fun-filled family day in Dumbo Brooklyn with my husband, son and sister. We left the house without eating breakfast so I quickly yelped brunch spots, and came across AlMar. The Egg in a Cloud dish sparked my interest, but being a family friendly restaurant solidified our decision. The restaurant has high ceilings and the food was as tasty as it looks. It was an ideal brunch! Next time I'd love to try Atrium.

After lunch we wanted Chase to run around so we headed to the nearest playground which was at Pier 5. He loved the sandbox shaped like a boat. Dumbo is a residential neighborhood so here is an extensive list of playgrounds in the area~

Then to relax, we picked up some snacks at Peas & Pickles for a picnic at Brooklyn Bridge Park. The views are beautiful right by the river and the iconic bridges. We strolled to Jane's Carousel and Chase (finally) fell asleep in his stroller (he was too excited and stayed up way past his usual naptime).

We figured it's a good time to grab an early dinner with Chase napping, and it's not often we come to Brooklyn so we headed for their famous pizza! We figured the lines wouldn't be too bad considering it's a holiday weekend and everyone was out of town, but both Juliana's and Grimaldi's lines were still too long. So we headed closer to the water where we can always rely on Luke's Lobster. We ate outside and I love that you feel a bit like you're on vacation.

When Chase woke up, we needed to find a bathroom so we got some treats from One Girl Cookies. We got a sample of flavors though Chase ate most of them. It was right by the park so we picnicked again to change his diaper. It didn't feel right to leave without checking out the shops so we went to a bookstore we saw across the street from the cookie store called Powerhouse and then Shibu, a Japanese furniture store. Sadly, both were going out of business.. and almost everything was on sale. I got a blank textbook from Powerhouse to use as a sketchbook which I'm excited to fill with designs and ideas.

We grabbed one last strawberry smoothie for the subway ride back home. It's unfortunate that none of the subway stops in Brooklyn have elevators! I suggested walking over the Brooklyn Bridge but by the end of the day we were all pretty pooped!

Outfits wise - I wasn't planning on blogging the day when we left, so it's simply weekend casual in a white top, denim shorts, and my most comfortable sneakers.

P.S. We stumbled upon this amazing flower garden! It is located by River Cafe between Luke's Lobster. Nothing is more soothing to me than the sound of trickling water and there is a lovely little stream by the entrance to the garden. It's a sweet spot from the urban environment when the flowers are in full bloom!

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Photography by Deborah Chang and myself

Post cards from Barcelona, Part 1

May 13, 2016 by Patricia Chang in Fashion, Food, Travel

Mini Croissant, Hot Dog by Patricia Chang

Hotel El Palace, Jacket by Patricia Chang

El Nacional, black squid ink paella tapas

On our first day we did a tour of Palau de la Música Catalana soon after we landed. We went during the day to see the light flood in through the incredible stained glass ceiling in the most beautiful theater you'll ever step foot in! Though not by Gaudi, it was a taste of the unique architecture we would see in Barcelona. I was especially happy to see mosaics and colorful tiles all throughout the city.

The food was just as vibrant as the surroundings. Mercat de la Boqueria is a must - there are many repeating stands, one of them being fresh juices displayed on ice with pretty and enticing colors. I tried as many flavors as I could, one of my favorites being 'Mint Coconut' - yum!! A restaurant you must try is Tapas 24 - sadly we never made it to lunch or dinner. So on one of our last days we tried to go early to beat the crowds and ended up trying their breakfast menu. It was one of the most memorable meals I've ever had! The fried calamari baguette - please order this and thank me later.

Packing wise, the weather is pretty much spot on to New York so I brought layers for early May. We had a range of chilly to very warm days during the first week. One piece I packed and loved were these denim shorts from Shopbop. They are meant to be casual so they are baggy and super soft, making them the most comfortable denim in the world. I always like playing with looking a bit dressed up, but having that element of bringing it back to casual and easy.

This was Part 1 so stay tuned for more recommendations!