Sep 27

Sep 27 1 Year in LA!

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And just like that we have lived in Los Angeles for a year. Why not celebrate with another move? No joke, we have spent the last week moving everything from our old apartment to our new apartment. It’s still on the same side of town and everything, just bigger! It has an extra bathroom, and is newly remodeled. It is so great and I swear the pets are happier here. Did In mention that we have air conditioning?! They are 2 window units, but still. Our old apartment did not have AC and we were told we couldn’t use a window unit or anything like that due to electrical wiring. Granted when we signed the lease, they told us they would put AC in, but never did. Going to get that in writing next time!! I think the whole AC thing was our biggest reason for moving. The sun hit our door and patio every morning and if it was hot, we felt it. I’m telling you my coconut oil has not been solid since May. Hah!

1 year la anniversary, los angeles, will roger state beach, moonbeams photo, couple beach photoshoot, fall style, lments of style

Everlane Turtleneck Bodysuit (c/o) | Madewell Blazer (old, similar here, here, and here) | Levi’s 501 Skinny Jeans | Uncommon James Criss Cross Earrings | Always Coco Necklace

Everlane Bomber Jacket | Everlane T-shirt | Mavi Jeans

Anyway, I cannot believe it has already been 365 days. Maybe the pandemic has something to do with that? We barely had 5 months to explore and then the last 7 months we have been in lockdown. That being said, we have had a blast and have felt so lucky to be able to live in a city that people from all over the world dream of visiting. Our favorite aspects of living here are being so close to the ocean with the ability to hike and explore new places all the time. Before moving here we didn’t realize just how big LA was and how many hidden gems there would be.

Of course there are the downsides of high cost of living, taxes, and natural disasters. We actually had to evacuate due to the Getty Fire exactly one month after moving to LA last year! Oh and of course being away from you mom, if you’re reading this ;) I’m still not sure if this will be a forever thing or not, but I do know that we are happy here right now!

To commemorate our year here, I asked our friend Melanie to take some photos of us at one of our favorite places… the beach! We try to spend every Sunday night at this beach. We watch the sun set, reflect on the previous week, and recharge for the week to come. It is definitely one of our favorite traditions and we have done it most weekends since we moved. You can see more photos of the shoot / learn more about Moonbeams Photo here. I’d highly recommend her if you need photos in the Los Angeles area. She travels too!

I had hoped to write a Favorites of Los Angeles post by now, but feel that COVID-19 has allowed us to only scratch the surface of what is around. That being said, here’s some of our favorite places!! I still have quite a few places that I want to visit, but these are places that have stood out to me and we frequent them as often as we can.

Sugarfish (Brentwood)
Goodboy Bob Coffee Roasters (Santa Monica)
Belcampo Meat Co. (Santa Monica)
Fia (Santa Monica)
Ashland Hill (Santa Monica)
Uovo (Santa Monica)
Felix (Venice)
Gjelina (Venice)
Salt and Straw (Venice)
Catch LA (WeHo)
Son of a Gun (WeHo)
Joan’s on 3rd (WeHo)
Republique (La Brea)
Burgers Never Say Die (Silver Lake)
Chori Man (San Pedro)
Lily’s (Malibu)
Nobu Malibu (Malibu)
John’s Garden (Malibu)

As far as things to do, we have done quite a few hikes. The Hollywood Sign hike is fun, but it is hard if you do the true hike. Los Leones is tried and true and a great hike if you have people on different levels / isn’t too hard. All Trails is a great app to use and can be used anywhere! We have also really enjoyed walking the Secret Stairs in Los Angeles. Our favorite beaches are Will Rogers State Beach near Santa Monica, in Pacific Palisades and Lechuza Beach in Malibu. I’ve only been to El Matador Beach once, but would love to go back and have a picnic! I think my favorite road trip is either Paso Robles or Ojai. I don’t consider Malibu a road trip since it is under an hour from where we live ;)

P.S. Can’t wait to use some of these images for our Christmas cards. Will be ordering from Minted soon!