dude, sweet - north shore, oahu

i scored the deal of the year this winter: bellingham to honolulu for $200 return. coupled with hotel deals, it was a cheap getaway and my first trip to hawaii. but i must confess something. whenever anyone asked me where i was going, i told them "oh, just oahu." i had this idea that it was the lamest and most commercial island. but let me tell you what i learned: it's beautiful and if you get away from waikiki, you can find a true hawaiian experience.

just over an hour up island is the lush and scarcely commercialized north shore, where the bohemian heart of oahu beats. north shore culture is surf culture. it's the breeding and stomping ground of some of the world's best surfers. a place where you can find 30-foot swells and fit in a surf before and after work; where you can mingle with pro surfers, colourful characters and barefoot, wet-haired locals fresh off their boards in the grocery store; and where dressing up literally means throwing a dress over your swimsuit.

here are a few suggestions for a trip to hawaiian hippie heaven...

sample roadside delights
it's worth pulling over for the food stands along kamehameha highway. from haleiwa to kahuku, you'll find family fruit stands, acai bowl shacks, shrimp trucks, shave ice and haupia pie. it's not fancy, but it's delicious. must stops: ted's bakery at sunset beach for bbq chicken plate lunch and chocolate haupia or banana cream pie, matsumoto for guava, pineapple and lilikoi shave ice, fumi's for garlic or coconut shrimp plate and cholo's for mexican.

visit hawaiian green sea turtles
a couple miles north of haleiwa on kamehameha highway, pull over at laniakea beach and see the basking turtles who crawl up on shore daily. you'll also meet volunteers from save the sea turtles international, who protect the turtles from ... tourists. stroll along the beach and try to catch sight of a few more turtles, minus the tour bus passengers.

watch surfers in action
the best workout on the island has got to be a walk on the beach, where the quicksand-like pebbles not only make your legs burn, but also give you a killer pedicure. my favourite activity was strolling on the beach, flip flops in hand, stopping along the way to watch throngs of surfers paddling out in the late afternoon. check out pipeline, sunset beach and the break off turtle bay. visit between late november and early december to catch the vans triple crown of surfing. if you'd prefer to get out there yourself, rent a board in haleiwa, where you'll also find surf schools and calmer waves.

fall asleep to the sound of crashing waves
there is one major hotel on the north shore: turtle bay resort. despite this, you'll still see a hand-painted sign on the side of the highway that reads "no more hotels!" the resort sits on the northern tip of oahu. you may remember it from forgetting sarah marshall. while the property is beautiful, it looks much nicer in the film thanks to the magical wizards of production design. the hotel has multiple restaurants---including one on the beach, golf courses, stables, pools, and a surf school on site. stay in the beach bungalows if you can, but if you leave the lanai door open, the soothing sound of crashing waves means any room will do. i booked turtle bay on hotwire for a discounted rate. if you see a four-star beachfront hotel on the north shore, it's turtle bay. if you'd prefer to stay in a house, try the basic ke iki beach bungalows or one of the many homes rented out by owners. 

ride the pineapple express
it only takes an hour to drive from honolulu to the north shore, but you'll probably want to stop and ride the pineapple express along the way. not that pineapple express ... this is a train at the dole plantation. it's a total tourist trap, but worth stopping for a cone of delicious pineapple dole whip.

this post was originally featured on tripstyler.com

très cool

i'm travelling to europe this spring and i've been using blogs as my go-to travel guides for what's cool beyond the getting there's and must do's of a traditional travel guide. this kind of exhaustive research is a lot of work, but it pays off by directing you to all the local favourites and hippest neighbourhoods. i recently discovered some travel guides that speak to me on an aesthetic and cultural level, combining both substance and style.

this independent, barcelona-based company has published european city guides for amsterdam, barcelona, lisbon, london and madrid. their books have been called "guidebooks for people who hate guidebooks" (the guardian) and "your hippest good friend" (the independent). they're suitable for locals who want to rediscover their city and tourists who wish they were locals. buy them online or in shops across europe.

this series-in-the-making of american guidebooks, launched last fall, has captured my attention with its choice of cities to cover -- nashville and austin -- and its clean look. each pocket-sized guide is "equal parts travel guide and tribute" and is packed with best-of lists, hand-drawn maps and interviews with locals. watch for upcoming guides on all your favourite american cities: seattle, new orleans, san francisco and brooklyn are in the works. buy them online or in shops across nashville (the austin field guide publishes next month).

[images via le cool and wildsam]

in print :: kelli murray

san diego illustrator kelli murray is hands down one of the cutest gals on the internet. she's got killer california style, an adorable family and great platinum locks. plus she's super talented and seems as nice as can be. 

go buy her prints via her etsy store or society6. the hardest part will be choosing your favourite...

bonus jonas! some prints are available as iphone cases, laptop skins, stationary and more. #imean #comeon #girlcrush

don't forget to follow her blog for gorgeous photos of her personal style, family and work, as well as sweet DIY projects and printable cards.

[all images via kelli's blog and online stores]

stylish snaps

over the past few years, i've almost exclusively used my iphone as my camera. whether using it to snap pics of recipes in magazines or gorgeous hawaiian sunsets or obnoxious latte art, i've neglected my digital SLR in favour of my apple device [which i hear you can also use for phone calls? probably just a crazy rumour, though].

lately, i've been wanting something better than an iphone but smaller than an SLR. good timing because there are tons of options on the market right now: medium-sized cameras with retro or holga toy camera styling. here are just a few of my favourites...

1. leica M9 hermes  2. leica X2 paul smith  3. pentax Q kit black  4. pentax Q10 zoom lens kit white  5. fuji X100S
6. fuji X10  7. fuji XF1

PS. i just had to post the first camera...but it costs $50,000, so unless you're married to a saudi prince, you're better off setting your sights on the rest of these stylish snappers!

supercalifragilisticexpialidocious

i bought my first pair of prescription glasses this week.

they're not my first pair of glasses; i like fashion way too much to let a little 20/20 vision stop me from wearing faux frames every once in a while. which, in my relatively conservative office, is apparently hilarious. glasses without a prescription? you crazy, gurrrl.

the sales people at every optical store i visited all said the same thing: "congratulations!" i felt like i was joining a club with a corneacopia of options {haaaa, sorry}.

trying on glasses is tricky. a pair may look good, but you have to tell the sales people that they're not you {without hurting their feelings}. you keep looking until you find a pair that makes you ... you, so that when you look in the mirror you'll recognize yourself. with all that in mind, it took me a few days. i ended up buying a pair of acetate frames by super by retrosuperfuture, an italian manufacturer whose sunglasses i've loved for years. 

in honour of my new supers, and to drag me away from this rainy late fall day and get me dreaming of sunshine and hot weather, here are a few fabulous sunglasses by super.