I was determined to see the exhibit Yves Saint Laurent: The Perfection of Style at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. I’m still kicking myself for missing the Georgia O’Keefe: Living Modern exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum of Art, and didn’t want to also let the YSL exhibit pass me by. When I told Mr. Real Life Style how badly I wanted to go, he did what he always does for me and made it happen! Not only did I get to see my exhibit, but he also planned out the rest of the day AND did all of the driving. Not to mention that neither kid got car sick, which is always my fear with any car trip over 30 minutes. Boy, was I lucky!
I highly recommend that you steal our itinerary, just not when it is 98 degrees please! The kids melted literally and figuratively…
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p.s. The exhibit is open until August 27th!
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The Quirk Hotel
We had a fabulous brunch at Maple and Pine, the restaurant at the totally fashionable Quirk Hotel. As you can see from the pictures below, Max LOVED his french toast. The wait staff also could not have been more patient and understanding with our fidgety, starving children who had been trapped in the car for waaay too long. If you need something to do beside staring at the gorgeous interiors while you wait for your food, the hotel has a charming, all-encompassing shop, as well as an art gallery downstairs. Seriously, an art gallery and awesome shopping. I was pretty much in heaven. There was even a super cool jewelry pop up happening that day! It was kismet, I tell you…
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Jewelry at Quirk Hotel
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An Amazing Brunch at Maple and Pine
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Maymont
Maymont was the 100 acre Gilded Age country estate of Richmond-born financier James Dooley, which he eventually left as a museum to the City of Richmond. There is a mansion (which I did not get to unfortunately!), Japanese Gardens, Italian Gardens, a Nature Center, and a Children’s Farm. Max and James loved the waterfalls in both gardens and the Nature Center. We did not make it over to the Children’s Farm because they were losing it from the heat by that point, but it is nice to know we have more to see on another trip. If you go in the summer, carry plenty of water with you and take advantage of the many ice cream and popsicle stands around the estate!
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Yves Saint Laurent Exhibition
Finally, the main event! I got a blissful hour and a half in the museum before they closed at 5pm, which was just enough time to take in the YSL exhibit and hang out in the very cool sculpture garden. The exhibit was one of the best fashion exhibits I’ve seen. They had the house’s collection boards for over 40 years displayed! Did you know that Yves Saint Laurent used to make paper doll fashion shows, and even create invitations to them, which he sent to his sisters? The original paper dolls were on display. (See the RLS Instagram this week for more!) Did you also know that he was the first designer to put models of color in his shows, make the safari jacket and trench coat fashion items, and put women in pantsuits? If you are able, you really must make your way to Richmond to see this once in a lifetime exhibit!
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A Delicious Dinner at Metzger Bar & Butchery
Rustic, seasonal, German-influenced food, wine and cocktails, is how Metzger Bar & Butchery describes itself. Umm…how could this possibly be bad? It was more than good, made even more fun by getting to watch what the kids did and didn’t like. For appetizers, Max was very into the confit pork belly with pickled peaches (as seen on the board below), James the beet pierogies with ricotta salata. Neither of them wanted to touch the kale part of the kale salad, although Max was nice enough to steal all of the grapefruit for himself . And it is a good thing the schnitzel we ordered was the largest piece of schnitzel I’ve ever seen, because we each only got a bite or two of the roast chicken once James was done with it.
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The Ride Home
The kids were so exhausted from the day that they actually fell asleep in about 10 minutes – shockingly, at their actual bed time, which of course never happens at home. You can see James below with my Architectural Digest open on his lap and glasses askew. Although we had gotten stuck in traffic on the way down, we zipped home, giving me a chance to catch up on work emails while Michael listened to his book. Victory!
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Have you been to Richmond for the day or weekend? Did you take the kids? I can’t wait to go again so let me know!
Lani Inlander is a personal stylist who has been working with clients who want to feel their best and look put-together every day for over 15 years. You can find her in the Washington, D.C. and New York metropolitan areas. Are you looking for professional training to be a personal stylist? Click here to learn how you can train with Lani at The Stylist Studio.
You can find Lani Inlander and Real Life Style on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram.
