monday motivation {5 things that get me up and going}

Sweater, Tank, Bra, Pants and Bag: Calia by Carrie Underwood; Shoes: Nike Free; Sunglasses: Ray-Ban; Headphones: Gift from ShopStyle (similar here); Fitness tracker: Jawbone Up3

Since we're hot off the heels of our first (of many) long holiday breaks, let's talk fitness again, shall we? 

But first: this is the part where I hang my head a bit.

If you recall, a few weeks back I confided in all of you that I would be running my second marathon in many, many, many years this April in Paris. And if you happen to follow me on Snapchat, you probably got annoyed with the amount of running updates I was posting over there. That is until about two weeks ago, when it hit me. 

The wintertime "nahhh."

Are you familiar with it? That feeling when you know you really should be heading out for a long run and/or workout but something just always seems to get in the way. "Oh, waiting for the FedEx guy to arrive." "Oh, I really should organize my magazines by color and issue date." "Oh, silly daylight savings! I should just wait until I get that extra hour back to the day."

I'm usually pretty good at shaking this feeling, but something about the past two weeks (between a lot of last minute projects and a darn cold), I just couldn't seem to rise above the wintertime "nahhh." I guess when it came down to it, #NetflixAndChill just sounded better (and warmer). Which then, of course, got me thinking, I should revisit some of my fool-proof ways to get motivated again because that marathon sure as hell isn't going to run itself.

So in no particular order, here's how I get my butt into gear:

1. Pick up new workout gear. This probably comes as no surprise to anyone -- pick up a few cute new bras and running pants and I get excited to sport them all. I was recently introduce to the line Calia by Carrie Underwood back in September during Fashion Week and have been loving all of her separates (which I'm wearing here). 

2. Playlists. Playlists. Playlists. Give a girl the right tunes (or at least this girl) and she can run for miles. Lately I've been jamming out to a lot of Billy Joel, Bowie and Bieber (I know, I know, but something about his last album is just too good!).

3. Try a new workout class with friends. Nothing gets you moving like a few good girlfriends pushing you. Lately, we've been hooked on Equinox's barre classes (great for toning and lengthening). And I may have picked up a few leotards just for the occasion. ;)

4. Treat myself to a new restaurant if I meet my running goal for the week. Up this week? If I crush my 12 mile run this Saturday, I have my sights set on The Waverly Inn (because it just looks so romantic every time I pass it while walking Elvis).

5. Pick out my marathon present. They say eye on the prize, right? Well, in this case, I'm keeping my eye on a little visit to Chanel when I'm in Paris post-marathon to scoop up a new bag baby. Until then, let's think about this as the Chanel carrot, forcing me to run just a bit faster and just a bit longer.  

Photos by Lydia Hudgens

This post was in collaboration with Equinox. As always, all opinions and styling are my own. Thank you for supporting all This Time Tomorrow collaborations! 

fall in washington square park {with EMU australia}

Jacket: Balenciaga (similar style here); Sweater: Everlane (from last year, similar style here); Jeans: Frame; Boots: EMU Australia; Sunglasses: Celine

If you happen to follow me on Instagram or SnapChat (username: krystalbick), you know I often end up in Washington Square Park for some reason or another. Besides being just about a 10 minute walk from my apartment and also Elvis' favorite dog run, I just love how the park makes me feel while I'm walking through it -- as if almost anything could happen to you while you're there. Musicians fill the air with trumpet flares and hearty bass beats, while street performers entertain crowds with their antics. Lovers hold hands and sit together closely on benches and countless others have their noses nestled deep in books about poetry, politics and pop culture.

And this time of year, the park is absolutely perfect, alive with fall colors and a briskness you can almost touch. Growing up, I always love raking up the leaves in our yard and jumping into the piles of goldenrod yellows, burnt oranges and amber-hued reds for long afternoon hours. But after having spent the past 5 or so years in San Francisco, I haven't had a chance to really enjoy this little childhood indulgence of mine in quite some time.

Granted, when I partnered up with EMU Australia to showcase their new waterproof boot line (which I'm looking forward to putting to the test come this winter!), I knew I wanted to hop over to my favorite park and finally play in the fresh fall leaves. For about the first 20 minutes of this shoot, I was pretty alone, as passerby stared a bit funny at this girl throwing around leaves and laughing at herself in the process. But you know what? Eventually, one by one, a few other folks joined into piles and tossed them around, snapping photos along the way, until before long, you could scan the park and see different patches of folks playing, leaves gently falling down around them. And for about 15 minutes or so, we all felt like kids again.

As for these boots? I love how they have a perfect fall nod to them with the suede detailing, making it extremely easy to incorporate into your go-to looks this season, without sacrificing some function for when the weather turns nasty and wet on us.

Speaking of, if you head over to EMU Australia's Instagram account now, you could snag a pair of their latest waterproof line for yourself! Simply follow EMU Australia on Instagram and like your favorite outfit posted -- one winner drawn at random will take home a new pair of boots! Good luck!

Photos by Lydia Hudgens

This post was in collaboration with EMU Australia. As always, all opinions and styling are my own. Thank you for supporting all This Time Tomorrow collaborations! 

the early bird {st. ives skincare}

Jacket: Eddie Bauer; Sweater: Everlane (from last year, similar style here); Jeans: Guess; Boots: Schutz; Bag: Chanel (obsessed with this similar version here); Sunglasses: Celine; Bracelet: Miansai

I keep saying that I would love to have one of those New York evenings where I stay out all night, hopping from restaurant to restaurant, bar to bar, club to fast food joint and then back to a bar again, all to see the sun come up over one of our many bridges. You know, like the Queensboro bridge scene from Manhattan. Precisely like that.

While all evening romps are certainly the norm still (and high on my list of things to accomplish here in NYC), I've been hearing more and more about 6am dance parties. The kind that literally kick off once the sun is coming up, instead of the other way around. (Let's see Woody Allen make a movie about that.)

As luck would have it, I recently was invited by St. Ives to a Morning Gloryville event just last week at Washington Square, where, you guessed it, before I even had my first cup of coffee, I was strapping glow sticks to my wrists and hopping around to a little EDM. Oh, there also may or may not have been tarot card readings, sunrise salutations and a little bathroom refresh station to spruce up before work, with some of St. Ives' skincare line (my personal favorite at the moment is their Blemish Control scrub, which is perfect for my oily, acne-prone skin).

Huge thanks to St. Ives for inviting me out last week and for helping me check the 6am dance party off my NYC bucket list!

Photos by Lydia Hudgens

This post was in collaboration with St. Ives. As always, all opinions and styling are my own. Thank you for supporting all This Time Tomorrow collaborations! 

the winter to-do list {with SOREL}

Coat: Zara (old, similar style here); Sweater: White House Black Market; Jeans: MiH; Boots: SOREL; Hat: Gap (old, obsessed with this fur pom beanie here); Sunglasses: Celine

I've joked quite a bit with my more seasoned New Yorker friends that as much as I love New York now, I haven't gone through my first real winter yet here on the East Coast -- so they might have to send reinforcements to my apartment come February when I refuse to leave my studio.

That said though, I'm actually really looking forward to winter here.

{CRICKETS}

I know, I know....said no New Yorker, EVER.

But hear me out.

I've gone through my fair share of Fashion Weeks here in February to know that it gets frigidly cold. Actually, scratch the adjective frigid. I'm not sure there's a good adjective that quite describes it. And granted, I'll more than likely go into hibernation and/or jetset mode when February and March roll around (summer in Australia is looking pretty good, if you ask me!). But there's really no season like winter in New York, especially when the holidays start to roll in. Now the only adjective I think is fitting there is: magical.

Those who know me, know I love a good list, especially when it comes to experiences or places I want to visit. And Christmas here in New York has made me one busy list lady. Between the tree lighting at Rockefeller Center, ice skating, the holiday window displays going up, and hopefully an upstate trip to Woodstock or the Catskills soon, I'm busy stocking up on a few winter essentials that can carry me through the season (and my list!).

One thing is for sure, SOREL boots have come highly recommended by almost every New Yorker I've talked to. And if there ever was a group of folks who knew a thing or two about those awful, nasty puddles that accumulate at every intersection corner, it's those guys.

So I say, winter, I'm ready for you. Just maybe go easy this year? Deal?

Photos by Christine Cameron

This post was in collaboration with SOREL. As always, all opinions and styling are my own. Thank you for supporting all This Time Tomorrow collaborations! 

funny face

First outfit: Jumpsuit: Self-Portrait; Heels: Steve Madden; Bag: Olympia Le-Tan; Sunglasses: Celine; Jacket: Alexander McQueen; Bracelet: Miansai; Earrings: Yvel

Second outfit: Dress: Self-Portrait; Heels: Steve Madden; Bag: Chanel; Sunglasses: Celine; Bracelet: Miansai; Earrings: Yvel

I recently went out to grab coffee with a friend visiting from San Francisco (hey, Roya!) and she happened to pay me the biggest compliment ever. Like ever. To the point it practically made my day, no, week probably.

We were talking about our personal style, how it's evolved over the years and whose style we absolutely admired. Offhandedly, she mentioned that my style reminded her of a modern day Audrey Hepburn.

A few things happened next. First, I practically spit out my coffee, blushed and told her she was crazy. Meanwhile, my inner 13-year old self who was obsessed with Breakfast at Tiffany's (and still am to this day!), wanted to jump up and down and hug her. (Roya, remind me, I still owe you a hug the next time I see you!)

This rambling story is all to say, that I, like pretty much every other girl with Netflix access in middle school, have always admired Audrey Hepburn. I've read numerous biographies about her, have dressed up as Holly Golightly for Halloween more times than I can count and I may have gone on a wild goose chase throughout New York when I first moved to find Embryo Concepts, the book store where Jo Stockton works in Funny Face (sadly, it's a fictional store).

Above all though, and again, like most other girls my age, her style is what remains timeless for me, both sartorially speaking and her energy as a person. Graceful, elegant and always classic -- her poise seemed to exude far beyond just a character in a movie. It was her.

Where am I going with this? Well, I like to think whenever I'm donning a little evening attire (like these two Self Portrait numbers I recently picked up thanks to Luisa Via Roma) and hopping around the Upper East Side, I should swing by Tiffany's on my way back home. And give Sally Tomato the weather report. Oh, and of course, make sure to feed Cat.

While we're on the subject of evening attire, if you scoot over to Luisa Via Roma now, they're offering 15% off side-wide with the code SHOP15. Some exclusions apply (but those included, are goodies -- Valentino, Givenchy, Marant -- the gang's all here!). Run, don't walk; sale ends on 11/26.

Photos by Lydia Hudgens

This post was in collaboration with Luisa Via Roma and ShopStyle. As always, all opinions and styling are my own. Thank you for supporting all This Time Tomorrow collaborations! 

a new york minute with mm.lafleur

First outfit for morning coffee: Coat: MM.LaFleur; Dress: MM.LaFleur; Boots: Stuart Weitzman; Bag: Olympia Le-Tan; Sunglasses: Celine; Hat: Jennifer Behr

Second outfit for afternoon meetings: Dress: MM.Fleur; Turtleneck: Ted Baker; Boots: Stuart Weitzman; Bag: Chanel; Sunglasses: Celine; Bracelet: Miansai

Third outfit for evening drinks: Top: MM.LaFleur; Skirt: MM.LaFleur; Shoes: Manolo Blahnik; Clutch: Kate Spade; Jacket: Alexander McQueen; Sunglasses: Celine; Lips: Stila "Beso"; Necklace: Yvel

Raise your hand if you appreciate the following adjectives: classic, effortless, elegant and machine-washable.

If you're waving your arms at this point for any of the above, (especially the last one!), let's talk. Specifically about MM.LaFleur.

I was first introduced to the brand back when I lived in San Francisco, thanks to my girl Anh of 9 to 5 Chic. I loved every last piece on her -- each one more timeless and fuss-free than the last. So why didn't I pull the trigger then?

Not entirely sure. But I think it might have something to do with the fact I tend to not believe brands when they say something is machine-washable. Let's face it -- it's a marketing buzz word that gets thrown out there a little too liberally, much like "organic" or "gluten-free" when in reality, it's not 100% the truth.

I've gone down the "we promise it's machine-washable" road before only to have clothes pill, lose their shape and generally tear after one wash. I'll admit it. I'm jaded. And therefore, have stuck to their dry-clean only counterparts, which comes at a pricey tradeoff.

Naturally, when MM.LaFleur approached me earlier this season to partner together, I was curious to see how their pieces really stand the test. First of all, it goes without saying, their designs are right up my alley. Their lead designer, Miyako Nakamura, hails from design houses like Jason Wu and Zac Posen, so girlfriend knows a thing or two about elegant design. And believe you me, I enjoyed styling each and every piece, especially with fall now upon us.

But then it came time to wash.

While each piece has the option to dry clean, I opted to include them all (with the exception of the coat, because coats always make me nervous) with my hand wash load in the delicate cycle. And then I waited with bated breath. 

Lo and behold, after each piece air dried, I was incredibly pleased with the shape and feel of the fabric afterward! Which means only one thing: I'm stocking up on more. 

If you're new to the brand (like me) you can try them out via their Bento Box service. Here's how it works: fill out a quick style survey and their team will then personalize one gift box with a handful of hand selected items. Each piece you love, keep. Each piece you don't. Send it right back with the return labels they include.

That's it! Commitment free and none of that awkward avoiding of texts when you'd rather just not see the other person. No questions asked. Plus, if you order now with the code MMTOMORROW, you'll receive a free copy of their book Wear to Work with your order.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm throwing on my Gramercy coat to walk Elvis around the West Village (but perhaps we'll head over to Gramercy instead). 

It's worth noting that not every piece from MM.LaFleur is machine-washable, although a majority of them are. Each item is labeled accordingly on their site though so you can easily double check!

This post was in collaboration with MM.LaFleur. As always, all opinions and styling are my own. Thank you for supporting all This Time Tomorrow collaborations!