Joe and I recently escaped to California for eleven days to take an adventurous road trip down the coast from San Francisco to Santa Monica in a convertible. He perfectly planned stops all along the way and left room for spontaneous activity in-between. It was fun, healing and exactly what we needed. Many of you asked for our itinerary over on Instagram so here it is! Safe travels!
When I first moved from the city to Hoboken a little over four years ago, I was convinced that I was going to hate it. A typical New York attitude. Today, I can't express how much I absolutely love this little city and am so proud to call it home. Of course, I did my fair share of exploring and testing out all of the beauty and wellness offerings the town has to offer. While I still go to NYC for many of my services (see my round up of the best salons and spas in NYC here), I found some real talent in Hoboken. Here's my edit of the best of beauty and wellness in Hoboken.
I'm extremely grateful that part of my job as a beauty editor is to visit new salons and spas to test their hottest treatments. In New York City, it seems there's a new, clever concept salon opening up almost every month. Many of you ask for recommendations on where to go for hair cuts, facials, brows and more so I decided to write a guide of tried-and-true favorites. And yes, as a Hoboken girl now I can tell you, they're worth commuting for.
It was January of 2016 when I first heard of Skylands Animal Sanctuary in Wantage, NJ and visiting has been on my bucket list ever since. This past weekend, Joe and I had the opportunity to take a tour of the sanctuary given by the Founder, Mike, who's one of my heroes. You can only imagine how excited I was as he began to tell his story and the stories of all of the rescued animals that he treats as children. Founded in January 2015, the 232 acre property is now home to animals he personally rescued including cows, goats, pigs, chickens, even a bull and more.
For the past two weeks, Joe and I ate our way through Italy. Literally. We visited Sorrento, Capri, Florence, Rome and everywhere in between – eating. As a gluten-free vegan, eating in Italy is always challenging. My coveted smoothies, acaí bowls and salads are nowhere to be found abroad. Here, I share the challenges I faced when flirting with gluten and some go-to Italian meals that I put together off of restaurant menus. While it's not easy for me to eat anywhere but in NYC or LA (they just get me!), it's doable. If I can do it in Italy, you can do it anywhere.
Two years ago, I had the opportunity to visit Canyon Ranch in Lenox, Massachusetts for the first time. My best friend, Adrienne, and I found the experience exceeded our expectations and we came back to NYC energized, restored and inspired. If you follow me or Canyon Ranch on Instagram (I took over their account), then you saw that I had the recent opportunity to go back for round two. With work out clothes and notebooks, Adrienne and I eagerly hopped in the car.
The more I visit Newport, Rhode Island, the more I fall in love with the coastal city. The past three summers, I've found myself there for family vacations, weddings and bachelorette parties and always stayed at the same hotel on Goat Island, the Hyatt. It's the only hotel on the tiny island, has a pool and is walking distance to downtown. The location alone is worth it's price tag. However, this year Gurneys (yes, Hampton's icon) took over and gave it a $18 million dollar makeover. The results were jaw dropping.
Last Friday I had the pleasure of sharing my summer travel must haves on NBC's New York Live TV. It's always so much fun to work with Jacque Reid and Joelle Garguilo. I've been a beauty contributor to the show now for over seven years, so it's fun, comfortable and the NY Live team feels like family. These are the items I've been toting around to Key West and the Jersey Shore this summer. The hair sheets smell as good as we say! Click here to watch.
