Jetset Style :: Everyday Travel Totes

[trip style = any]

I've mastered the art of carry-on travel with one simple trick: maximizing my personal item size. I push the limits on dimensions and place my heaviest items, like shoes and toiletries, inside my tote, and I stash a clutch inside for evenings and small outings.

But this column isn't just about function; it's also about fashion. And a beautiful, well-made black tote will never go out of style. Consider bag features like inside/outside pockets, zipper, handle length, cross-body strap, flat bottom and type of leather. Remember to spray the bag before use, condition it annually and store it in its dust bag when not in use.

GUYS :: This trick isn't just for women; men should travel with a versatile—and hands-free—canvas messenger case or small backpack. 

I've selected six black leather bags that are versatile enough to take you from plane to promenade in any city and climate. Chief Trip Stylist Trish recently purchased the Clare Vivier tote above in Los Angeles and I have my eye on the handmade kenza tote by Montreal-based The Stowe.

1/ Clare V. simple coated-leather tote, 2/ The Stowe kenza tote, 3/ Madewell glasgow satchel, 4/ Building Block business bag, 5/ Ampersand as Apostrophe sideways tote, 6/ Mansur Gavriel large tote

This post is written by Trip Styler's Assistant Wayfarer/Editor Heather.

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Top 10 Travel Essentials :: Fall Weekend Edition

That Travel Meal :: Pok Pok Som Thai Basil Gin Rickey

[trip style = food + wine]

Editor's Note: In our "That Travel Meal" series, we recreate memorable dishes or drinks we've tasted while trip styling around the globe. Don't miss our previous posts with recipes for burrata and chèvre-prosciutto-pear-arugula pizza. 

Whenever I'm in Portland, I have to stop by one of Andy Ricker's restaurants for two things: Fish sauce chicken wings and drinking vinegar cocktails. Even if the idea of drinking vinegar makes you pucker your lips and say "heckkkkk no" you must try it—I've changed the tune of many skeptics with this creative cocktail.

Also known as shrubs, drinking vinegars have been around this continent since colonial times as a health tonic and form of fruit preservation. They've been around Europe even longer; Hippocrates prescribed apple cider vinegar with water and honey to cure coughs and Roman soldiers drank sour wine or vinegar with honey as a daily indulgence. These days drinking vinegars have regained popularity as craft cocktail mixers.

Pok Pok Som drinking vinegars, inspired by Southeast Asian street drinks, can be purchased online or in local specialty grocers. My favorite flavour, Thai Basil, is tart, sweet and peppery, and pairs well with cucumber gin and soda. This cocktail, inspired by my visits to Pok Pok, will make you dream of Phuket—or maybe just Portland.

Pok Pok Som Thai Basil Gin Rickey
- 1 oz Pok Pok Som Thai Basil Drinking Vinegar
- 2 oz Hendrick's Gin
- Squeeze of lime
- Ice cubes
- 4 oz soda 
- Cucumber slices
- Lime slices
- Fresh mint

Instructions
- Combine drinking vinegar, gin, lime and ice cubes in a cocktail shaker.
- Shake until chilled and well mixed.
- Pour into glass, top with soda and stir.
- Garnish with cucumber slices, lime slices, mint sprigs and extra ice as desired.

Trip Styler Tip: Forget the gin for an almost-as-amazing mocktail or swap gin for whiskey or mezcal for a smokier spritzer. Play with the drink; you really can't go wrong!

This post is written by Trip Styler's Assistant Wayfarer/Editor Heather.

Related
That Travel Meal :: Best-in-Show Burrata at Ava Gene's
That Travel Meal :: Chevre-Prosciutto-Pear-Arugula Pizza

[photos by @heatherlovesit]

LA, Seriously

[trip style = urban + food+wine]

I take Los Angeles very seriously—possibly even more seriously than it takes itself.

When I descend upon the City of Angels, very little is left up to chance. While I'm all for discovery and strolling through a destination like a bon vivant unhindered by time or money, LA demands a plan. There's too much to see. Too much to do. Too much to take in. {Mostly because the sprawling city surrounded by hills, dusted in glitter and sprayed by the Pacific Ocean offers every trip style in one stay.} 

And so, instead of becoming overwhelmed by its never-ending neighborhoods and revolving door of what's new, I choose to embrace its spirit of re-invention, keeping a growing list on my iPhone of all the hotels, restaurants and shops I want to make part of my {ongoing} LA Story.

Because seriously, I don't want to leave a visit up to chance. Here are the standouts from my December 2014 LA-tinerary:

Eat

Superba Food + Bread: Because is there anything better than bread on a board {and a treat spread so tempting you have to order one of everything}?

LAMILL COFFEE: A reccurring stop on my long-time LA hit list. Think coffee so good you want to stick around for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

The Hart and the Hunter: Simple, everyday food "updid" with a Southern twang. 

L.A. Chapter: A breakfast, lunch, dinner and drinks brasserie bringing a dose of Brooklyn to the Ace Hotel Downtown LA. 

Moon Juice: With juice so good {for you}, you'll make Jim Carrey faces as you sip.

eggslut: Once a food truck {I visited three years ago}, it's now a brick and mortar serving breakfast-fabulous food all day long. Visit early or in off-hours to avoid the line.

Breakfast at eggslut

DTLA Cheese at Grand Central Market: A 1917-built ode to food in the heart of downtown LA featuring a smorgasbord of hip chow from eggslut to bakeries and taco shops to pizzerias.  

Bottega Louie: It's rare for me to visit LA without making a stop at Bottega because of their macarons, impeccable marble-clad environs and Italy-meets-West-Coast cuisine.

TERRONI Downtown LA: Born in Italy, based in Toronto and bre{a}d in LA. 

Commissary: Where a veggie garden had a baby with old-school comfort food at The Line Hotel.

A portion of my dinner at Commissary

*You may notice many of the restaurants above appear empty... That's because I went midweek during off-hours to avoid waiting because I was traveling with Baby Styler. 

Stay

Ace Hotel Downtown Los Angeles: My stay for part one of my LA-tinerary. With cool restaurants, a rooftop pool and bar, included WiFi and rooms with their own guitars, how could I refuse? 

Ace lobby

Ace room

Ace room

The Line Hotel: Koreatown's hippest hotel

The Line

The Line room

Shop

There is soooo much shopping I could have done in LA, but my time was tight so I focused on my first love: Purses from Clare V. I've worn one of her bags for the past five years and since it held its shape and looks near-new after a half-decade, I decided to add to my collection.   

Related
Spotlight :: LA Food + Fun
Spotlight :: LA Shop + Stay
LA in a Flash
LA Stories
The Savvy Traveler :: Leighann

[photos by @tripstyler]

Real-Time Translation

[trip style = any]

This is big news, huge news, mega news involving the ability to break language barriers and change travel forever.

As of yesterday, Google released an update to their Google Translate app {iOS // Android} that allows for real-time translation in a conversation.  

Just THINK of the space-age ramifications. Ordering a Bordeaux in Bordeaux just got way easier. Finding un baño in Barcelona just got way easier. Buying a train ticket from Monterosso to Riomaggiore in Italy's Cinque Terre just got way easier.

Video
Curious how well real-time translation actually works, Mr. Trip Styler and I took it for a test drive in Spanish/English. The results are a mishmash of funny, accurate and awkward!

{Can't view this video?}

Details
- For real-time translation, you'll need a data connection, such as WiFi. Available in English to/from French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish and Russian.
- You can also type in a translation query.
- Did you know that app also can translate images? Through Word Lens, point your camera at a sign or text block and the app will translate without a data connection. 

[photos and video via @TripStyler]

Roll-On Essential Oils for Travel

[trip style = any]

In my restorative yoga class last week, the instructor came around and offered each class member a pump of lavender lotion for our hands, which we raised up to our noses in prayer position and breathed in the floral aroma to prepare ourselves for class. While this practice scored a little too patchouli for comfort on my new-age-o-meter—well, that and the eight minutes of shanti chants—the lavender had a calming effect over me and helped me leave behind outside distractions and focus on my breathing.

Aromas trigger emotional and physiological responses in our bodies and our brains, making them therapeutic problems solvers instead of simply pleasant scents. Essential oils are concentrated liquids distilled from plants, and while they may be trendy, they're also lifesavers for travelers. To ease stress, try lavender or frankincense. For energy and balance, try grapefruit and lemon. For jet lag and motion sickness, try peppermint and ginger. If these don't work, you could always work on your eight-minute shanti chants, but I think I'll explore aromatherapy instead.

I've assembled a small list of easy-to-pack rollerball oils for travel. To use, roll a little on your temples, wrists, neck and pressure points behind your ears. When flying or traveling in close quarters, be mindful of others and their scent sensitivity.

Aesop Ginger Flight Therapy
- Ginger Root, Lavender, Geranium
- For stress, nausea or weariness

Aveda Stress-Fix Concentrate
- Lavender, Lavandin, Clary Sage
- For stress

H. Gillerman Organics Travel Remedy
- Lemon Balm, Lavender, Orange, Palmarosa, Cedar
- For jet lag or discomfort with sitting

Silk Road Happy Wellness Remedy
- Lemon Balm, Grapefruit, Lavender, Tropical Verbena
- For energy and mood enhancement
- Love this one! I purchased it on a recent trip to this shop and spa in Victoria, BC.

Trip Styler Tip: These oils are safe to use topically, but if you have individual pure essential oils, combine them with a carrier oil like jojoba or almond to avoid skin burns. Or, as an alternative, place a drop of oil on a cotton cloth, raise it to your face and breathe in deeply.