Jun 28

Jun 28 The Huntington Gardens: Part 1

Travel with me to the divine Huntington Gardens in San Marino. On a sunny Spring afternoon in May, my photographer friend Kiley and I drove out to the gardens to shoot at a few of the amazing locations inside the garden grounds. Since the Huntington Gardens is so expansive, I decided to split up my blog posts into multiple parts. For Part 1, I wanted to highlight the beautiful European architecture, gardens, and landscaping.

These first few images feature the Huntington Art Gallery, an incredible mansion originally built as home for railroad tycoon, Mr. Henry Huntington and his second wife Arabella (source). The exquisite balcony and large sweeping terrace made me feel instantly transported into what I imagine a romantic Italian or French estate might look like. Standing in front of such a grand property only made me wonder what it must be like to live in such sublime luxury while being surrounded by such luscious natural beauty.

Since I wanted to immerse myself in the Huntington Garden’s romantic architecture, I decided to wear my For Love & Lemons ruffle dress to match the glamorous setting. I was so excited when I discovered this dress at a sample sale in Larchmont Village. It had a few holes in the skirt, but I managed to sew them shut.

As one of my favorite woman-founded brands, For Love & Lemons is the ultimate brand for all things feminine, floral, lacey, and flirty. Over the years, I’ve only been able to purchase a handful of FL&L pieces, but I treasure them dearly and only wear them on special occasions like this.

While I walked through the incredible estate, I started to dream about traveling to Europe again. For as long as I can remember, I’ve always been fascinated by Europe. There’s an ancient romanticism that exists there that I just don’t feel here in the States. Maybe it’s the decadent food or whispers of history kept in the architecture of cities like Paris or London that speak to my yearning for an aesthetically pleasing world accompanied by a love story. Europe is iconic for so many reasons but above all else, I feel like people go there searching for that feeling of romance and whimsy that only a charming Italian villa or Greek island can inspire.

At some point this year, I’d like to travel back to Europe and visit some new cities I’ve yet to explore. My European travel bucket list still includes a lot of touristy destinations, but I’m also willing to travel along the beaten path to discover underrated gems and experience the unexpected. Feel free to leave me any travel recommendations in the comments section down below!

To complete my look, I brought my vintage painted fan and thrifted handbag. Though the bag looks so small, it can actually fit everything from my wallet to my mini touch-up kit. For shoes, I’m wearing an old pair of lace up sandals from Urban Outfitters.