atl-in-the-car-0021 Ha. I hate to admit it, but it takes a while to look half way normal for a party. My biggest issue is my insane hair which never really looks right unless it's totally blown out. Armed with this knowledge, the lovely peeps at the W Buckhead ("whatever, whenever" is their motto) booked me an appt at the cheapest place they could find. $20 at a place that was sort of like a Supercuts. Hello- it's a recession, people. Paying $80 for a blow out is just not acceptable any more!
Yay Atlanta!
Truth be told, I haven't been to Atlanta since my father lived there for a brief two years in 1996. From what I remember, Buckhead wasn't that fun but I was also a kid back then, so hanging out with ballers and finding the coolest party really wasn't on my "list of things to do." Right after the frenzy of inauguration, I hopped on a Delta flight to ATL. Upon arrival I went straight to my hotel, the W Buckhead and never really left. There was no reason to. This hotel is the newest property to open in the W/ Starwood empire and it was just as great as all the rest of the hotels. Actually, I take that back- this one was a little cooler because interior designer Thom Felicia put his magical design touch into all the rooms and common spaces (known as the "living rooms").
The bed really was as comfortable as it looks! How cute are the monogrammed pillows?
A close up view of the pillows.
Working meal #1: tuna burger with a garlic aioli (no bun), fries (I just wanted a taste), earl grey tea with soy milk, and of course my blackberry. All of my meals came from the incredible kitchen of Jean-Georges' restaurant, Market. If I wasn't ordering room service, I would wander downstairs to have this incredible steamed shrimp salad, that to this day I can't stop thinking about.
Working meal #2: A chocolate mousse with whipped cream and tea.
One of my favorite shows to be on is Eric Bolling's ADD hour on "The Strategy Room" ( www.foxnews.com/strategyroom). Since I was in ATL, I obviously couldn't be there, but I could watch it, which was the next best thing!
It's truly amazing to think about the reach of this show...
W Buckhead.
I had every intention of live blogging while in Atlanta, I really did. But there is only so much you can do in 36 hours when you are in back to back interviews and trying to orchestrate coverage of a party for the four magazines I write for. Anyway, for all of you wondering where I was after inauguration, here is the full story...
Everybody get Rowdy.
No, seriously. Dallas Austin's new-ish/re-launched collection "Rowdy" definitely makes you want to scream in good and bad ways. Rowdy is hitting stores just before the x-mas retail non rush and it's sort of forward thinking for someone whose roots aren't really in fashion. I spent a lot of time talking with Dallas about why he decided to re-launch Rowdy and why in the world he decided to open up a retail store when retail is suffering so badly and his response was "because my gut was telling me to do it." Okay. While I'm not sure if opening a store and launching a collection is necessarily the best thing to do in this economic environment, I do admire Dallas for his drive and his unconventional way of doing things. Hello-he's a music and business genius! He must be doing something right. Also, did you know his musical influences are mostly in rock and alternative? Think Bauhaus (shout out to Peter Murphy) The Cure, The Smiths, Joy Division, Sisters of Mercy and of course Alice and Chains? I almost fell over when he told me that. This collection, according to Dallas embraces all of that. Hmm.
OK I know what you are thinking. How can this POSSIBLY encompass anything 120 minutes-esque? Well, to be honest it doesn't. But there is a sort of ZZ Top/"Diddy runs the City" look and feel to it. I liked it.
My personal favorite- men's underwear with a pocket for God knows what on them. I'll leave it up to your imaginations.
Sneakers with instructions on how to roll a "blunt" on the side (Mom, if you are reading this I will explain what a blunt is later.)
I kind of dig the lightning bolt t-shirts. I wonder if Dallas will let me design lightning bolt headbands for him...
Yay Dallas!
Yay Jen!!