spring in the city with daphne
Hello! Spring has FINALLY sprung in Manhattan. Are there leaves on the trees? No. Is it warm enough to walk around without a coat? Not exactly. But, I didn't say spring has sprung in Acapulco? No, I said Manhattan. And I don't need a hat/earmuffs/gloves to go get a cup of coffee so we're all celebrating!
Especially Daphne. She is loving tax day. She's not exactly sure what tax day is. But she's loving it all the same. She's pretty sure it's similar to Boxing Day, or maybe to Bastille Day. Both are occasions she celebrates with rosé and paté eaten en plein air.
"But wait..." you're thinking, "isn't boxing day in December? Rosé outside, Daphne? Really"
Remember, Daphne probably IS in Acapulco on December 26th.
Today she and Doxie are trotting out in a light and airy Maison Kitsune shirt dress and a Belgian Bag to see what there is to see. They've decided to spend the afternoon in Central Park. She's barefoot today because, why not, right? But usually, her favorite motto of spring shopping is to invest in a great pair of new nude shoes/nude bag. The Belgian bag is the perfect neutral. Compact and ladylike, goes with everything from white jeans to cocktail dresses.
She's had a busy few weeks back in the city after her visit to Paris and her ashram (undisclosed location). Flitting from events to openings, seen several times in her new favorite nude heels from Alexandre Birman and an extra fluffy Prabal Gurung coat. She's just like the rest of us, if something fits just perfectly she wears it twice, or sometimes even a third time. This picture was snapped by paparazzi as she stepped into Gato on Lafayette where she's said to have ordered two gin martinis and an order of the harissa burrata with a friend. (Doxie joined and sipped ginger tea at their feet)
Another go-to look she's been rocking is the classic spring combination of a trench paired with white jeans and her OTHER new favorite shoes from Vince. She's thrilled circle sunglasses are back too. Of course, as far as she's concerned, they were never out. But The Row has done a fabulous job at celebrating them this season.
This is her outfit for stopping by to drop off last season's dresses for consignment - an activity the rest of us do about as regularly, and with as much joy, as going to the dry cleaners. It isn't fun, but it's the best way to care for beautiful things. By giving them to someone who can't buy them full price. Right? This trip she dropped off six pairs of Valentino Rock Stud heels and a Celine bag. She's feeling very put-off by brand names this week. Wants to only wear emerging designers with clean lines and no visible branding.
And when she's not bound by doing errands, which is most of the time, she's stepping out in her OTHER new favorite pair of nude shoes from Aquazzura. Ok so maybe you need a few pairs of new nudes for spring. Here she's spotted leaving her brownstone with Doxie in Cynthia Rowley. They're off to visit a farmers market. It's radish season! And she just brought back some authentic, eye-wateringly powerful French mustard to pair them with.
"What's this!" you say, "Daphne cooks too!? This is all too much!"
Why yes. She grew up summering with Ina Garten herself at their compound in the Hamptons. She learned to cook along side her as the barefoot contessa whipped up roasted chickens with morels and lemon butter for Jeffrey on lazy Sunday afternoons. The smell of honeysuckle and hydrangeas at the open window mingling with the buttery roasting aromas from the kitchen, set to the meditative sound of crickets chirping beyond the pool, and the sea crashing in the distance.
Ina once taught her that being close to the ocean awakens the culinary spirit within your heart because the salt calls to you on a primal level, stirring appetites that wax and wane with the tide, with the moon, with the season. Ina is said to listen to the rhythmic repeat of waves on the shore for several hours each day before baking her daily batch of perfect brownies for Jeffrey.
Daphne often does the same before preparing her signature truffled bolognese. She'll be sure to share the recipe for whatever she cooks with her farmers market finds.
You'll love it of course, but you probably won't cook it quite as perfectly as she does.