Last week I was lucky enough to tag along with John on a trip to Austin, TX! He was attending SXSW EDU, and I have been wanting to visit Austin for quite a while so I jumped at the chance to join him.  Ok, I was also easily convinced because he booked his stay at Four Seasons Austin and it’s impossible to say no to FS.

Unfortunately, we were there during the only days that the temp was in the 30s and 40s so lots of the recommendations we got were not ideal, but we still got to hit some really great spots! Aside from staying at the Four Seasons, the highlights of the trip were having lunch (twice) at Joann’s Fine Foods, shooting with Divina Stennfeld, having burgers at Dean’s One Trick Pony and catching up with a few friends that we have in Austin!

Each of my looks from Austin deserves its own post (aka my black and white suit shoot and layering with Gucci tights), but I also figured it would be fun to put together a little photo journal with some favorite snaps in a separate post! SO, here we are!

Dean’s One Trick Pony is located inside the Line Hotel and when we first arrived in Austin we were looking for something quick and delicious, so we decided to walk down a few blocks to grab a burger! It did not disappoint.  The restaurant located in the Lobby was also gorgeous (pictured below) and the bathroom definitely made a statement.  If you love hotels as much as I do, it’s definitely worth checking out.

Joann’s Fine Foods is connected to the Austin Motel, and I decided to venture here on my second day in Austin for lunch before I cruised around South Congress.  On Tuesday I got the Huevos Rancheros which was DELISH and when I brought John back on Thursday, I had the Bodega Sando (pictured) which was postively divine. Probably the best breakfast sandwich I’ve ever had.   I loveeee the diner vibes at Joann’s and highlyyyyyyy recommend to anyone looking for a great lunch on South Congress.

Every time we go to a new city, I always intend on meeting other creatives, setting up shoots and the like, but I rarely follow through.  Knowing I had three full days in Austin, I decided to reach out to Divina and set up a shoot while I was there and I am so so glad that I did! We had so much fun shooting around the Austin Motel, chatting about photo + blogger life and getting to know each other! If I could just get her to appear here in RVA like once a month, I would be oh so happy! I love the way she pushed me to be more creative with our photos and am obsessed with how the photos turned out.

Had to get Divina to take some pix in front of the iconic Austin i love you so much mural at Jo’s Coffee!

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{ In honor of International Women’s Day last week, Amour Vert is donating 20% off the proceeds from this special edition sweatshirt to women’s charities Casa Do Rio & Ancient Song.  Its so comfy, was designed by San Francisco native Buckley and it’s hard to turn down a good cause – so getcha one! }

We got to catch up with my long lost pal Tucker, who took us to drinks at a secret speakeasy and dinner at Olamaie.  Dinner was positively divine.  If you’re looking for an intimate dining experience, I highlyyyyy recommend Olamaie.  Ask for the biscuits and definitely get the hushpuppies!

The Four Seasons is located right on the lake, a few blocks from Congress which was ideal! The conference center was just a block away for John, we were able to explore downtown easily and then hop on a scooter to explore the other areas of town. I was pretttttty bummed about the weather, as I was hoping to be able to sit out by the pool and enjoy the lake view, but alas, things happen!

Of course it was 70+ and sunny on our last day which made it even harder than usual to leave!!

A few other faves in Austin were:

Perla (seafood, extensive wine list)
Whislers (cocktails)
Milk & Honey (for all the spa services you could want!)

Unfortunately we didn’t get to explore Rainey Street because the weather was BLAH but we’re already looking forward to going back next year!