6.11.2014

Under Construction


After nearly 6 years of using blogspot and trying to find my identity on the internet, I've finally settled on a niche. That niche is being an honest, educated, and constantly inspired Sarah Mendelsohn, who has changed quite a bit from the 16 year old blogger who founded A Hit of Sarah amidst the Ugg boots and Northface jackets of American suburbia. My voice and taste has evolved as has the content I want to publish with my name on it. So, I want a new platform to reflect that.

I'm excited to share the outcome mid June. Stay tuned and many thanks for supporting this platform for so many years despite it's change with my coming of age. 

6.09.2014

Summer Shoes

As I'm sure most of us have sadly come to realize, spring time weather does not last long in New York City. What this means is that the footwear transition from heavy boots to light sandals needs to happen quite quickly. So, while we're all heading to get our toes pedicure perfect for the impending heat, I thought it beneficial to share some of my favorite summer footwear from Jones Bootmaker.
Jones Bootmaker provides a wide selection of shoes, not just for summer, but all year round. The easy to navigate website makes it less of a hassle to prepare your wardrobe for the new season. Click through on your laptop or cellphone and get the pair you want delivered right to your door step. It's as easy as a lazy day on the beach!
Check out the Jones Bootmaker for more amazing shoes!

4.07.2014

Drinking Your Colors; The Juice Feast


It has definitely been a cruel winter for us New Yorkers. Widely referred to as the "Polar Vortex", it seemed that between obscene blizzards and excruciatingly cold winds, we could never really catch a break. With the start of Spring, one could only hope that the above freezing temperatures we've recently been graced with are not just an elongated April Fools joke. Although, warm weather does come with  some sacrifice. Specifically, the necessary abandonment of our comfortable, heavy jackets, thick tights, and snow boots. Soon enough it will be time to show off our pale arms and legs again. The thought scares me and I know I'm not the only girl worrying about what happened to her former bikini body during the Snowpocalypse. So, while the weather is still cool enough I contacted my friend Terri Green, who lives in the always warm and sunny, Los Angeles, and begged her for diet advice.

For as long as I've known her, Terri has always taken great care of her health. She would share her diet and work out tips via social media, her friends taking note and eventually seeking her advice. After what felt like the saddest weigh in after the holidays, I spoke with her on the phone and for about an hour she bestowed upon me much of her health knowledge. Having a genuine interest in health and fitness, Terri has self educated herself and along the way has been able to stay on a healthy vegan diet. After much of her friends like me, have insisted she started a blog The Banana Chronicles were born. Although she shares a variety of different recipes, her most popular happen to be of the healthy juices she makes.

Inspired by her flavorful and colorful juices, I took it upon myself to try it out. I got a brand new Juicepresso, which I believe is perfect for anyone new to juicing. It's incredibly easy to put together and clean, works quietly, and effectively. My first juice was a mixture of watermelon, apples, oranges and strawberries. Like Terri often does, I took some of the resulting pulp and mixed it into the juice for a hearty and filling beverage. If you're not so tech/machine savvy like me, I think the Juicepresso would be the best machine for you to use. Your roommates will also be grateful for it's lack of noise and mess making. It's an overall win.

After my first juicing experience I still felt like needed to know more. Luckily, Terri agreed to share some of her wisdom with me and A Hit of Sarah readers. See the post below and make sure to check out The Banana Chronicles and follow on facebook, instagram, and twitter.


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When I first decided to start blogging, my friend Sarah was the first person I reached out to for advice. Although we talk about separate topics, coming together in the blogging community to collaborate is always fun and I am very happy to write this post for A Hit of Sarah! One of my biggest passions is juicing and I honestly feel that it has changed my life in such positive ways both physically and mentally.

For me, drinking fresh organic juices is like taking a daily multivitamin. I feel no need to take over the counter supplements. I mix and match different fruits and vegetables to ensure I get a well-rounded spectrum of nutrients, which I like to call “drinking your colors”. Every color that you see on fruits and vegetables are different essential nutrients that your body needs, so it’s important to change it up every couple of days.

Let’s talk about the benefits of juicing: clearer skin, mental clarity, brighter eyes, stronger nails and hair, and the added bonus: dropping a few pounds, as I did on my 21 day juice cleanse. Juicing is therapeutic and very rewarding for me – I love when friends reach out to me for advice and successfully start a juice journey of their own!

Some basic tips on how to start juicing:

• Learn your produce – always try to shop organic
• Less is more – although an acquired taste, use more vegetables over fruits with a 70:30 ratio
• Thoroughly wash your produce
• Save time by preparing your fruit and vegetables the night before
• Depending on the juicer, juices can last up to 24 hours when sealed
• Try to drink one green juice daily

Basic Green Juice
Always try to cover the areas of sweet, neutral and bold:
    • 2 gala apples
    • 3 Persian cucumbers
    • 1 Romaine head
    • 3-4 stalks of celery
    • Thumb of ginger
    • Squeeze lemon juice
Taking care of your body by providing it with the best quality fuel is essential to leading a healthy life. I encourage you to try juicing and incorporating more live, water dense foods into your diet. Juicing questions or comments? Connect with me via social media or at www.thebananachronicles.com!

Photos via: Terri Green & Juicepresso

2.24.2014

Athletic Appeal


I'm happy to announce that A Hit of Sarah exclusive editorials are back with an amazing sports inspired spread envisioned and styled by my good friend, Jillian Amos. Jillian worked with a great team including photographer, Anthony Friend, make-up artist, Liz Olivier, hair stylist, Takayuki Shibata and model, Natalia Lalonde to produce an intense black and white series of photographs depicting the chic, sexiness athletic wear can provide. Jillian created these looks with a mixture of young high end designers, established names, and some special vintage pieces. Scroll through the looks and find the fashion credits at the bottom of this post.


Look 1: En Noir leather crop top, Alon Livne white chiffon pant, 3rd Crown thick gold bangle.
Look 2: Herve Leger bandage dress, W. Britt silver bangle with bolt closure
Look 3: Norma Kamali mesh crop top, En Noir leather sweat pants
Look 4: Her Majesty's Vintage Cashmere open knit sweater, Her Majesty's Vintage Diamond chain choker
Look 5: En Noir color block leather button up
Look 6: En Noir laser cut leather tank dress
Look 7: Herve Leger bandage bandeau top, En Noir laser cut leather varsity jacket, Herve Leger high waisted black pant, Her Majesty's Vintage silver necklace, W. Britt rings

2.21.2014

The Weirdest & Worst Fashion Show Ever



I walk in mid-presentation of what looks like a filthy-rich, newly sexually active, 16-year-old ice-skater's wet dream of a clothing line. Hesitating, I take out my phone and start snapping some photos. I turn to my boyfriend, Steve, and whisper, "they're not all like this." He doesn't know that I'm referring to how strangely set up this party and/or '"fashion show" is. All he sees are some very made-up women in very skimpy clothing, so he's all set. The presentation ends and I sprint to the open bar.

"What are you guys serving?"
"We have rum, vodka, coke, Beauty Water, and sparkling apple cider."
"He'll have a rum and coke... what are people mixing the vodka with?"
"I don't know."
"Has anyone tried mixing it with the 'Beauty Water'?" 
"No."
"I'll have a vodka and 'Beauty Water'."

For the most part, it ends up just tasting like water. We gulp down a few drinks to make the most out of the night and start to explore the space a bit more. My eye quickly catches the free bags of skin care, making a note to myself: grab two on the way out. Steve and I eventually, kind of find the food. The "hors d'oeuvres" served at this particular function consisted of two plastic (like take-out, throw-away-after-one-use kind of plastic) bowls of popcorn and about three small plastic bowls of Jelly Belly jelly beans. A man stands behind the gorgeous array of corn and beans, and guests seem to assume that's a sign not to take too many of the covetable treats? So no one tries to steal the high-end serving bowls? Who knows.

The second designer's presentation begins and, though I claim to be a writer, I am sure I could never put into words the level of awkwardness during said presentation. Not only does the introduction take about ten minutes and make very little sense, but this designer shows only three pieces of clothing. The models walk up and down the non-runway about five times each, showing off the eco-friendly line of Renaissance-fair-meets-Xena-Warrior-Princess dresses. Then the designer, with her three models, dances around for about five minutes, throwing and kicking colorful trash-bags into the air. What also strikes me is how this woman who spoke only of "our mother" (i.e. Earth) and how we must take care of her, how trash is art (biting my tongue), and how we must live eco-friendly during her introduction is presenting this collection in a venue that is entirely littered with plastic cups and bottles. Not to mention, the purses on display throughout the space are made entirely of leather. Nothing is making any sense.

The night goest on and gets weirder. In the corner of the room, a little bald man in a Loony Tunes tie is having party guests fill out forms then wait their turn to lay in a reclining chair before he places futuristic glasses on their faces, enormous headphones over their ears, and covers them in fleece blankets. We decide that we have to partake in whatever the hell this is so Steve and I fill out the form (rating from 1 to 10 our levels of stress, anxiety, depression, discomfort in our neck AT THIS VERY MOMENT) and wait. Soon, it is our turn. We know this is supposed to be some sort of relaxation deal, but really have no clue what we're in for. The old loony tune gets me all set up. A deep-relaxation-type sound turns on then, suddenly, mini multi-colored strobe-lights flash inside of my space-glasses (we had to close our eyes of course) as the old man lifts my right earphone and whispers, "Enjoy your voyage...", and it begins. What "it" is, I'm not entirely sure; but my seat becomes some kind of very complex vibrating machine and the sound of shooting off into space rings throughout my ears as the strobes continue to flash. For the first ten minutes of this "voyage", I focus only on trying not to laugh. Eventually it does become quite relaxing (OK. I didn't find it all that spectacular, but I understood that I was supposed to and I could appreciate it). I do feel completely out of touch with every thing around me and with time, in general. This is because, when the voyage ends - and the little bald scientist once again lifted my earphones and spoke, "Welcome back." - everyone is gone. The party is over. The DJ had packed up and people are sweeping the floors.

Steve and I look at one another and immediately have to look away so as not to show fear, but more predominantly not to laugh in this man's face. Where had we just gone? Had he sucked out a part of our souls? What year was it? I look at my watch; 45 minutes have gone by. We missed the party, completely. Loony Tunes is hyper and tells us to stay put as he shoves comment cards in our faces. "I have to add money to my parking meter! I'll be right back! Don't leave!" He disappears. We fill out our comment cards and try to book it out of there as quickly as possible. Then I realize: there are no more bags of free skin care... no. No, no, no. That's why I came here, for the free skin care! I ask around then find the short Asian woman who had been handing out the goodie bags all night. She is standing by a box filled to the brim with the gift bags' fixings: moisturizer, sunscreen, cleanser, toner, eye cream, and the bags themselves. 

"Oh, would I be able to put a bag together before I leave?" I ask.
"Let me see..." as she crouches down and simply stares into the box, pretending to dig around inside of it. Does she not realize that I can see all the contents of this box, as well? It's just another odd cherry on top of the odd sundae.
"No... there are no more," she lies. "So sorry."
"But, couldn't I just -" I point to the box, desperate.
"No, so sorry, all out." She closes up the box and walks away. Whatever. 

Steve and I turn and leave with the DJ who is still enjoying a drink, in the elevator. "That was weird." I say aloud.
"You should've just taken it," says the DJ, motioning to his large suitcase, "this thing is full of stolen booze. They'll never know." Noted. So, thus we end our oh so fancy night stepping out into the freezing-cold and trying to make sense of everything that just happened. We never make sense of it. Who could? 

Written by: Delaney Yeager 

2.19.2014

CHIC NYFW Closing Party


With the rise and growing popularity of blogging and celebrity, fashion week's exclusivity has recently been up for debate. Years ago the only people invited to attend fashion shows and their after parties were editors of major publications, buyers, designers and models. New York Fashion Week was reserved for the industry's professionals and occasionally the designer's muse- a well known, stylish celebrity. Other than that, access was limited to outsiders and for them, only available in the pages of a fashion glossy. With time and technology, we now see D list celebrities and self made fashion bloggers sitting in the front row. Designers have also moved on to bigger venues to maximize seating and also allow many to squeeze behind the back row, standing and thrusting their iPhones into the limited space available to snap a photo that says "I got in."

As a teenager who often buried her nose into the pages of Vogue, I'm happy that blogging has enabled me to have access to an event I wouldn't have been able to go otherwise. I like that fashion week's exclusivity has been more lenient in recent years and that the industry has become more understanding of the fact that fashion is for everyone. Unfortunately, there are still some limitations; specifically- the after parties. After the show designers invite everyone involved to have a drink, dance, and have a good time. These collections take nearly six months to produce, and these shows involve an immense amount of work. It's almost an honor to be able to celebrate the brand's accomplishment with them. However, those guest list's tend to me even tighter than the actual shows. 

My good friend, stylist, Jillian Amos, and I noticed this industry void. We thought that if fashion is for everyone, the parties should be too. Elaborating on this idea we also began to believe that fashion parties shouldn't just be limited to fashion week. We love the talented DJs, the stylish people, and all the fun that comes with those events so why not make them happen all year long? So, together we developed CHIC, a new exclusive series of events produced with tasteful curation of entertainment, talent and guests invited. Our mission is to bring together a group of like minded creatives who appreciate passion and excellence in all facets of life. Chic is a collective of influential individuals who represent fashion, art, and music in style and good taste.

To launch CHIC, Jillian and I put together a special event celebrating the last day of New York Fashion Week. We held it at Chicane, a new french restaurant in SoHo, that like our new business is incredibly chic and stylish. Amazing music was provided by DJs Sophia Chumburidze and Misha, who had everyone smiling and dancing all night long. Most importantly, we were grateful to work with some amazing sponsors. Partida Tequila, Lotus Vodka, Fat Trout Whiskey and Passion XO Liqueur generously provided our event with some delicious drinks for a successful happy hour. Despite being held during the worst snow storm of the season, the event was an incredibly good time for everyone invited. We're thankful for everyone who joined us at our launch! Jillian and I are excited to continue throwing these events. Stay tuned, more information will be announced on A Hit of Sarah as it comes!



Photos by: Hanna Walkowaik and Kohl Murdock
Special thanks to Andrew Day and his team for partying with us! 

12.13.2013

The Hipster Boyfriend Gift Guide


Although I love the holidays, buying presents during them has become the bane of my existence. As soon as Thanksgiving ends stores are quickly over crowded and Christmas music infiltrates the radio. Luckily, technology has advanced so that you can avoid those annoyances and do all of your holiday shopping straight from your computer. Still, with anything you want at your fingertips it is difficult to decide what exactly to get, that being especially true if you happen to be dating someone who's cooler than cool. You know who I'm talking about. The guy in your life who sports skinny jeans in confidence, who makes amazing playlists from bands you've never heard of and has the dopest blog on the internet. Yes, this is about your hipster boyfriend.

VENQUE CRAFT CO.
This Toronto based bag company is so hip that you probably haven't even heard of yet. For just that reason you should definitely get one of these beautifuly designed bags before you start seeing them all over Williamsburg. Your boyfriend will be so impressed that you discovered this brand before he did and even more so that you understand his personal style. Although he loves basics, he appreciates high quality. Both of those attributes can be found in a Venque bag. Made for a man on the move, Venque bags are designed to compliment and serve a busy lifestyle, their timless style infused with contemporary sensibility. Comprised of slate gray Quanta fabric with tan leather trim and detailing, Venque bags are the epitome of cool. Get one today at Venque.com.
There are no other headphones like the ones Flips Audio makes, therefor you need to make sure your hipster boyfriend has a pair. With these he'll be able to jam to the great playlists he creates both while riding on the subway to meet up with you and also out loud while he's hanging out at his friend's Lower East Side apartment. How's that? When you flip the headphones outward they become speakers and great ones at that. He'll easily be able to share that cool new Mansions on the Moon cover with all of his friends in the best quality. Get a pair at FlipsAudio.com.


There is nothing a hipster appreciates more than analog film, especially when it's instant. Everyone knows that the coolest way to document anything is through polaroid film. So give your hipster boyfriend the gift of impossibly cool technology. The Impossible Project's new Instant Lab allows you to derive vintage looking polaroids straight from your iPhone. It sounds insane right? Select a picture, place your iPhone on the Instant Lab and within seconds it ejects your analog instant photo, ready to develop in the palm of your hand. It doesn't matter whether your digital image was shot with your phone or created in Adobe Photoshop – any image on your phone's display can be turned into a real analog instant photo. Get your Instant Lab now and discover a whole new world of artistic possibilities. More information on The Impossible Project at The-Impossible-Project.com.
Photos taken with Instant Lab by: Kazumi

This highly original brand of wooden menswear accessories will be the coolest addition to your hipster boyfriend's wadrobe. Trust me on this one. On a night out together my boyfriend paired a wooden bow tie with a sweater over a button down shirt. We party hopped downtown that night. Everywhere we went from a hip friend's apartment in the East Village to a party of young bankers in TriBeCa, he recieved compliements the entire evening. Everyone wanted to know where he got it and it was constantly a topic of conversation. Today, Two Guys Bow Ties makes more than just that, they've recently put out a line of lapel flowers, which are just cool as their bow tie counterparts. Laser cut and paired with fine fabrics, Two Guys Bow Ties exotic wood accessories are a sure hit within the hipster community. Your hipster boyfriend will be the best dressed man of the evening no matter where you go. Get Two Guys wooden bow ties and lapel flowers at twoguysbowties.com
First Photo by: Greg Jones


Launched only a few weeks ago, HANK is a new menswear accessory that adds functionality to a menswear favorite. The first of it's kind- HANK is a pocket square with a pocket! Yes, you can stuff it in your pocket to add flair to your blazer or use it to protect your phone and wallet. A simple, yet brilliant idea that your hipster boyfriend will be totally into. With many different prints to chose from you can find the perfect HANK for your guy. It's also an added bonus that their branding is super clean and as a man of the internet generation, he'll greatly appreciate that as well. Check out all of HANK's different variations and be the first to get one on MeetHank.com

Still unsure of what to get him? Well, I always find that simplicity is key. If you want to do something extra special for your hipster boyfriend buy some tickets to the next DFA Records concert for the two of you and preface it with dinner at a cool asian fusion restaurants (hipsters love fusion). All in all no one knows how cool he is as much as you do, so I'm sure you can figure it out! These gifts however, are guarenteed to win him over and gain you some cool points. I'm absolutely sure of it.