My First NYFW As a Blogger

The past few months have been a whirlwind, y’all! The fact that I’m even speaking from the frame of “blogger,” is still so surreal to me! I just want to pause and thank every single one of you for giving me so much love and grace in this new season of my life!

Just recently, I returned from a trip of a lifetime! NEW YORK CITY, BABY! Now if you know me, you’d know that nothing makes me happier than the Big Apple! In fact, that’s where I plan to move next! So when I was invited to my first show, three weeks before NYFW, it had me thinking. I am not as well versed in the fashion world as others in my industry are, I’d never been to fashion week… how freaking intimidating, and OMG, it’s like three weeks away…I’M NOT READY! But then I had a change of heart. How amazing would it be just being in the city that brings me so much life, surrounded by fellow creators from all around the globe! PLUS, I would take full advantage while we were there and begin apartment hunting! SO, all this to say, the decision to attend became fairly easy as more thought went into it!

Next, we had to search for hotel stays! Since, I am the last person knowledgable about NYC lodging, I went about asking all my NYC gals for fun, hip, and central accommodations in the city. I may have asked, 20 girls and the one common denominator between them all was YOTEL New York .

If you are into views beyond your wildest expectations, modern design, and affordability, Yotel is THE place to look into! So once we finalize our stay with the lovely staff at Yotel, we could breathe a bit, because we knew we’d be taken care of with their more than helpful staff. Questions I had: “how close are you guys to the shows?” “Do you have views of the Empire State? “Will there be enough room for me to hang up all my lewks for the week?” They left me feeling more than confident, that our stay would be 10/10.

*HINT: IT WAS BEYOND AMAZE!!*

Then we moved onto outfits. Since the decision to attend was sooo last minute, I decided to attempt to thrift all my lewks in efforts to save some $$$ and for sustainability, hunniee. 5 thrift visits later, I had about 12 outfits solidified and ready to go!

So many thoughts raced through my head the night before as I had absolutely no idea what to expect but I was beyond excited! I knew I had to go in with a few intentions, however. 1) I would not compare myself or my outfits to the other babes’ attending, 2) I would be less critical during our shoots around the city, and 3) I would soak it all in! Every. single. moment. And that’s EXACTLY what I did, hunaay!

WELCOME TO NEW YORK:

When we arrived, it was pouring rain but honestly I couldn’t have asked for a warmer welcome! Only a few minutes drive away from the iconic Empire State Building, our exciting NYFW adventures were about to begin, starting at Yotel.

When we first walked in, we were greeted with the option of checking in swiftly with a seamless airline styled self-service check-in or of course, the friendly concierge…modern AF. During our time there, we coordinated to stay in different rooms so that we could experience all that Yotel had to offer! 

Upon our initial check-in, we arrived in our King Junior Suite with views that left us speechless. As a west-coaster, you only dream of views this stunning!

The entire room was Smart Equipped. Interchangeable touch LED lights, adjustable Serta SmartBeds, and fully stocked body & skincare products.

The next day, we headed to some NYFW events and of course, shot throughout the city, along the way!

We then headed back to Yotel to experience some R+R in their King Jr Suite with Terrace. I mean, come on…a freaking terrace in a hotel room…but not just any terrace, one with a private jacuzzi!!

INSANE! After some much needed down time, we headed off to a few more events to close the night.

As an creative, the most exciting part of the job, is being able to connect with so many people from around the world. As soon as we headed into our first event, it was as if I reuniting with old friends. I mean, I literally met IRL like 10-15 girls right off the bat whom I’d been chatting with for years. It was amazing! The energy in those rooms were electric!

That next day, we headed back out on the town for another full day of festivities. So many meet ups, events, pop-up shops, etc etc.

The girls had us catching trains to the hidden gems of the city. Adventuring across town was maybe one of the top 3 highlights of my trip!

We made our way back to Manhattan to check-in to my favorite room of the trip, Yotel’s Penthouse King Suite. I MEAN, I BASICALLY CRIED WALKING INTO THIS ROOM.

THESE VIEWS MADE IT SO HARD FOR US TO WANT TO LEAVE OUR ROOM!

That following morning, we decided to take it easy and spend most of the day at Yotel. We headed to the rooftop bar to enjoy some, “Social, Drink, and Food”!

After a few hours of enjoying the views, we checked-in to our newest room, the Corner Queen.

Once you walk in, you have direct views of the Hudson River and on the right, you have ongoing views of Midtown.

We soaked in the views until the evening, ate close-by in Time’s Square and ended the night back on the rooftop.

My face knowing our trip was coming to an end! LOL, TEARS.

We woke up early, and DUN, DUN, DUN…DID OUR FIRST WAVE OF APARTMENT HUNTING. SO EXCITING! Later in the day, we planned for a series of shows. But of course, on the way, we shot some content.

Unfortunately, we got lost for several hours along the subway and missed all of the shows for the day 😦 LIKE WHAT A FAIL! It was def a huge bummer but at the end of the day, I was still so overwhelmed with gratitude and joy from the past few days. We went with the intentions of experiencing NYFW but actually gained so much more! That night, we stared out at our views, in absolute awe.

In awe of the city, we will soon call home. In awe of the city where we fell in love. In awe of a week that gave us so much conviction of where we want to go. A place that connected so many souls and established friendships and reunited old ones. A place that nowhere else compares.

If you are wanting to attend NYFW next year: my advice is to go for it! Even if you are not invited to shows, still buy that plane ticket, sis! Just being apart of the energy, where you’ll bump into likeminded creatives at every corner, the inspo and zest of the city, and going out of your comfort zone to even attend, will be THE experience in itself. The shows and events are just the cherry on top. So hopefully next year, you’ll be able to call me a New Yorker, and I’ll know the subway system well enough to not get lost during the shows, hehe!

Thank you, Yotel, for making our stay feel like home; An Instagrammer’s dream, for sure! Til’ next time, NYC! XO