People tend to picture L.A. or San Francisco when they think of California, but one of my favorite things about living in this vast state is that there are a bunch of quirky, singular towns. Carmel, Mendocino, and Big Sur are several of my favorites, and the longer I live here, the more I realize there are so many more to see. I had only been to Palm Springs once before—in 2006, years before I lived here—but when a friend mentioned he was going to Modernism Week this year, we decided to make a long weekend out of it and join him. There’s plenty to do in Palm Springs when there’s not a festival or big event happening, but if you’re at all interested in architecture or design—particularly midcentury modern—I’d highly recommend going. It was also a completely different experience being in Palm Springs in the winter versus the summer, when I’d been there before. The weather was kind of all over the place, but I went with it. Here’s what I wore in Palm Springs.
Thursday dinner at Mr. Lyons
Palm Springs is the high desert, so even if it’s super hot during the day (which it was not while we were there), it gets chillly at night. Our first day was on the cool side, so I was glad I packed this alpaca cardigan from Quince—it’s somehow lightweight and super warm at the same time (and majorly soft too). This is a very mellow color scheme for Palm Springs—as you’ll see, my outfits got more colorful as the trip went on—but I’ve found myself gravitating toward neutrals during the week and brighter, happier colors on the weekend.
Friday architectural bus tour
If you’ve never been to Palm Springs, I highly recommend taking a tour—there are a bunch of buildings on the national register of historic places, as well as celebrity homes and just straight-up cool architecture. It’s also a great way to orient yourself and get the lay of the land. This outfit was kind of my way of easing into the weekend—the blazer (which I just featured) is all business, but the La DoubleJ skirt, which you last saw in NYC, is a complete party.
Saturday house tour
On Friday’s tour I determined that Indian Canyons was one of my favorite neighborhoods, and luckily we had booked a house tour there the next day. (You can rent the house, btw, on VRBO.) My Rhode Resort dress (last seen in Napa) got a bunch of compliments and the bright pink color just made me so happy. One thing to note: this dress is not the most packable if you plan to travel with it, and it wrinkles like a mother. But it’s cute (and comfy) AF.
Sunday pool day
There are many photogenic hotels in Palm Springs, but I’d say ours was one of the most ‘grammable. We stayed at the Saguaro, which we were warned was a party hotel, but we found it to be pretty mellow, especially in the morning. I thought its rainbow color scheme went very well with my new Change of Scenery swimsuit and matching skirt. I absolutely love this brand—their suits are incredibly flattering, the fabrics are super high-quality, and the prints are just so good.
