Outfits

Hello March: A transitional Winter to Spring outfit

If you are anything like me, there is a good chance you are kind of sick of Winter at this point. (And by that I mean if Winter was a person, I would probably punch him on the face.)

First, January lasted approximately 200,546,181 eons and then February was colder than a witch’s tit. In all honesty, at the time writing these words it is a gloomy Sunday morning and the prospect of yet another freezing walk is threatening my sanity. Suddenly, I find myself googling how many weekends in a row is it socially acceptable to stay indoors in pajamas. (Answer: as many as you wish, as long as you don’t admit it in public, duh…) But seriously, there is a point in which all the cozy and nice jumpers are not attractive anymore and you simply wish you could leave the house on a nice Summer dress.

And then, the city welcomed the arrival of March with a local festival last weekend. FINALLY! Oh boy, I was over the moon. I started anticipating the whole flowers blooming, Spring picnics and all the sunny outings… So of course, our friend Murphy’s law had different plans.

I must admit I was naively expecting about 15-20 degrees and a gloriously sunny day when I woke up on Saturday morning. And we actually got the nice sunlight. But that’s all it was, really. Temperatures, on the other hand, decided to fluctuate between 15 and about -1 million ℃ which made outfit planning, well… sort of interesting, indeed. But hey, sometimes you need to pick your battles so I thought I could make use of a transitional Winter to Spring outfit and get my way. As a matter of fact, I purchased these trousers back in the January sales and since then they have been sadly hanging in my closet, waiting for Spring to come. I felt bad for them, poor things, and decided to wear them at once.

Just to let you know, our first Spring weekend plans sounded great on my head. “Let’s play in the sun”, I said, “We will grab some coffee to-go or sit on a terrace sipping prosecco the whole afternoon, watching people pass by. Just the Parisian style”. Guys, I would slap myself on the face. I can tell you, there was nothing even remotely bohemian on the atmosphere of the day. One minute it was excruciatingly hot, and the next bone-chilling. Plus, it was windy. And I don’t mean the kind of breezy weather that you can easily transform into a stylish Nouvelle Vague-inspired photoshoot. No, I am referring to the kind that will transform you in a hot mess in about five minutes. Oh, and maybe make you get a cold too. Any fantasies of playing Anna Karina in a Godard film? Yeah, forget about it. At some point, I pretty much looked like a hangover version of Eliza Doolittle in the very beginning of My Fair Lady… Only with a BAD hair day. But I digress here.

By the time we arrived in downtown, it was crystal clear any terrace-related plans were out of the question. And after a quick cappuccino to-go and a very brief walk, we quickly moved on to the closest coffee place where we could stop fighting the elements and actually start enjoying ourselves.

“Wouldn’t it be nice to live in a place where we had the chance to enjoy a proper Spring beginning?” I asked Sebastian with dreamy eyes, “You know? To enjoy the cherry blossom blooming and all that jazz?”

“Well”, he replied, “You would get the hay fever, anyway. Why worry then?”

And damn, he was right, guys. I guess it is not about living in a postcard, after all. Sometimes, you need to stop and smell the flowers (even if, like me, you get the hay fever…) So instead of feeling miserable, we went outside again and had some good laugh taking a few pictures. Then visited the closest bookstore and spent some time there, choosing our next read.

And you know what? It actually felt great.
After all, people at Nouvelle Vague films looked like a hot mess too and that’s totally fine.

Blouse: Metamorphose Japan (sold out, similar here)

Trousers: Zara (sold out, similar here and here)

Tote Bag: Ted Baker/ Sunglasses: Vintage / Shoes: Top Shop

Coat: Zara (old)

March 5, 2019March 24, 2019

Allegra Caro14 Comments

Why Bucharest is the coolest city in Europe

There are a few images I link to Winter-time — the smell of a log fire at my grandma’s place, the taste of herbal tea on a rainy evening, a cat purring on my lap while reading a book.

But Winter (and by that, I mean real Winter) was a notion I only understood when my husband and I arrived in Bucharest five years ago. That was when we first became familiar with snow and long dark evenings and started seeing through the eyes of all those classic Russian writers we love. I vividly remember the first time we saw people skating on a frozen lake, Shostakóvich Jazz Suite № 2 flowing on the crisp morning air, and came to the conclusion we were now living on our own version of Anna Karenina (well, maybe without the wonderful costumes and all the drama, but you get the idea, don’t you?)

We started spending every spare hour outdoors, wandering, discovering the beauty of all those abandoned white marble palaces shinning under the golden rose light, like a million candles, asking ourselves why barely anyone knew there is another Paris hiding in East Europe. Because the truth is only a few outside Romania knows Bucharest nickname is Little Paris.

And it is not only about the incredible French architecture they imported, or the joie de vivre you can experience on a sunny afternoon sitting in any downtown terrace, it is about that catchy spirit which seems to infuse every aspect of the city: From the delicious food (some more notes on that very soon) to the awesome underground music scene; From the city art galleries to the countless tea rooms, second-hand shops and antiques markets — the Romanian capital never stops shocking you.

So, when last month Sebastian asked me how would I feel about having some days off for a city break there (we are currently living in Timișoara), I could only paraphrase Hepburn by claiming that ~~Paris~~ Bucharest is always a good idea (also, I might have danced Don’t Stop Me Now around the house, but that’s another story for a different time…)

And finally, last Thursday we took a train in the early hours and arrived just on time for lunch. That was on Valentines Day, so on our first stop, we granted a visit to our favourite tea house. Bernschutz & Co. is based on a tiny Victorian house, located in one of the most beautiful neighborhoods.

In Bucharest, it is not unusual to find the most charming and cozy restaurants inside renovated Art Noveau and Belle Époque buildings. It is awesome. Actually, scratch that. I mean AWESOME. Just imagine yourself having afternoon tea on the 19th-century old manor. You feel pretty much like a Downton Abbey character and that’s an experience I cannot recommend enough.

As I said, Bernschutz is my favorite, but options are countless: Casa Oamenilor de Stiinta (which used to be the home of the first worldwide traveler, the local Phileas Fogg, if you please) is an amazing Victorian house in the heart of the city, Hotel Continental offers a lovely afternoon tea with the same high quality standards The Ritz Carlton does.

Of course, we also spent some time visiting old town. The place is packed with some of the most beautiful buildings you can imagine, such as the National Bank or the National History Museum (in these pictures). Another national treasure can be found at Piata Victoriei, and it is the famous Romanian Atheneum (but do not worry, I am writing a little city guide and I will share it very soon).

Unfortunately, by the time we took these pictures it was kind of cold (and by that I mean it was about -5°C which made our hands to feel numb enough to finish the shoot abruptly and to run for our lives), so we decided to enter to the closest mall to warm up for a while. Probably, you are now thinking: “What! So, you are visiting the coolest city in Europe and you simply pop up to any mall? What is wrong with you?” And this is actually my next argument in favour of Bucharest — even the malls can be cool. We visited Victoria Shopping Center, a wonderful time capsule offering all kind of vintage goods: tailored clothes, new and second-hand jewellery, artisan gloves and hats… anything.

Now, I don’t need to tell you about how much I love vintage shopping again.

Bucharest might not be as crazy in shopping standards as Budapest is, but the wide variety of shops and markets is still quite amazing. So every time we visit the city, Sebastian is required to play his personal shopper/style consultant role so I manage to establish priorities and not to get aaaaall the goods… (Thanks, hun! You are so far the most patient of all my friends.)

So, long story short: If you are into beautiful architecture, awesome food, vintage and arts, please book your next holiday in Bucharest.

Now, tell me a bit about your last holiday.

Dress: H&M (sold out, similar here)

Scarf: Meli Meló (sold out, similar here)

Bag: Pinko/ Bracelets: Meli Meló / Boots: Deichmann

February 19, 2019February 19, 2019

Allegra Caro16 Comments

A Winter holiday outfit: homeland

Last Christmas, my wish list was slightly different than usual – forget about Dolce & Gabbana, Miu Miu or YSL: I did not ask for the usual suspects, but a nice warm Winter holiday in the north of Spain. In other words, I only wished to go home for Christmas (sorry about the cheesy cliché, but that’s the raw truth.)

All I dreamed about was some quality time with my family and friends (logging off almost completely), and a bit of old good sunlight. As an expat, one of the things I frequently miss is the privilege of warm weather during the coldest months. Don’t get me wrong: I do appreciate a lovely white landscape in the late December days, but there is something charming in the eternal promise of a golden Winter evening. The little corner of the world I was born in can be kind of rainy. Like, The Universal Flood kind of rainy. (Actually, while writing this I am not in our cozy family house anymore, but counting animal couples in a boat. Now, if you excuse me, I must chase an inattentive racoon…) But the point is that, even under all this rain, you can still see the sun once in a while.

Last week and after a couple of stormy days, the glorious sun raised and we took the chance to go for a walk. It is worth mentioning that our homeland is crowded by ancestral stately houses, where the local nobility established their homes centuries ago, surrounded by miles and miles of wild forest, carefully crafted gardens, and hunting parks. The general vibe is quite similar to the Scottish landscape, filled with beautiful castles made of stone. This may look like some random coincidence, but it is due to the ancient connection between the Celtic culture and the North of Spain (we are proud to be one of the five Celtic nations.)

The property in these pictures is a 17th century castle, rebuilt in the XIX and early XX fashion. The original tower was burnt down after a long war conflict with Portugal started in 1641. The new castle was finished in 1670 and named Pazo de Castrelos (Castrelos Palace.) As a result, the architecture is an interesting mixture of different European styles.

When wandering through the gardens Sebastian and I experienced the feeling of time travel – the silence and peace, only interrupted by the birds singing. At some point, we even started thinking we would cross our paths with Jaime Fraser any time since this place gave us such a huge Lallybroch atmosphere. And YES, in case you are wondering, we have been binge-watching Outlander season four ever since we started our holiday two weeks ago. I will neither confirm nor deny we are calling each other Sassenach these days…)

There is something unfamiliar about visiting homeland when you are an expat, as you begin looking at it through foreigner eyes. To us, this beautiful little corner of Spain magically turned into a greenery paradise, whose stunning landscape packed with mountains, rivers, woods and a wild seaside looks now a bit more like an exotic postcard – a bit less like home.

Fashion-wise, I should probably clarify I am very far from proficient when it comes to dressing up for the countryside. In my too-long-recorded-history-of-dressing-for-the-secenery-mistakes, I have frequently found myself wearing slip dresses on a farm, and knit on a warm July morning, and mortified myself afterwards. However, I like to think I am a bit wiser these days. Usually, I would choose some comfy boots or wellies, but the place is just ten minutes drive from the city centre, which made unnecessary any special arrangements. So instead, I went for a nice skirt and wool shawl to keep me warm ( I swear any reference to Scottish tartan was merely accidental.)

Also, as you might have noticed, red and black is one of my favourite colour combos. By adding a bit of tartan and a touch of gold I felt the outfit was slightly more festive, but still comfortable. This was quite convenient if you take into account we foolishly ignored the Winter schedules and had to rush in order to avoid getting trapped in the park lands but still practical enough to make it through the remotest garden paths.

Our Holiday is over now and it feels a bit too short, but I guess that is the signature of a truly relaxing break. After all, as they say time goes by fast when you are having fun.

Skirt: Steady Clothing

Turtleneck: Zara/ Shawl: Natura (similar model in Burberry)

Bag and cuff: Chanel / Necklace: BB (similar one at Missoma)

January 8, 2019February 4, 2019

Allegra Caro16 Comments