Swagga like Us

If you follow the latest fashion trends (which the majority of you does) you have most likely heard of  the "SWAG style" - the amazingly cool, laid-back, extraordinary mix of Sexy With A bit of Gangster!
The look is mostly defined by cool hats, bold jewelry, extravagant combinations of clothes, popping colors, eccentric sneakers, extreme low cut denim, statement shirts, unusual make up and of course hot looking chicks and guys. Some fashionable people might see it as an excuse used by thugs and hipsters to justify their unique style and messed up color matching they wear. I personally adore this look, I wish I was a little bit cooler aka "gangsta", you know - walking in a swaying motion, wearing those crappy hats sideways, partying hard every single night and wearing my pants half way down - but I am just an ordinary girl, boohoo!
But what does SWAG exactly mean?
Let me quote one of my good friends who defines swag as follows: "I think swag is the expression of the 'inner you' through your external appearance. Some people dress because it looks good on them or it's expensive or because others do it... that's style. Swag (for me at least) is the ability to express who you are through your clothes and your appearance. If you are a lazy person and you go clubbing and people still perceive you as a lazy person because you're wearing a simple black v-neck half destroyed t-shirt but you look better in it than some guy in suit or shirt, then you got swag. For me: swag is not a lifestyle... your lifestyle has swag."
Nowadays you can literally use this word in any way you want: 'I just fell down, lol, SWAG.' 'I live in swagtown' 'Hey guys, just woke up, SWAG.' 'That movie was so SWAG.' 'I just finished brushing my teeth, SWAG.' 'Turn my SWAG on' 'Lol, I got kicked out of class, SWAG.' - what a 'SWAGNIFICENT' overused word!
You see, SWAG is not only a look, it also defines a lifestyle! Listening to ultra tight rap, hanging out with the most beautiful and cool people in town, driving the car of your dreams, bottle poppin and doing the Dougie at the hottest clubs, getting a tattoo (or 5, or 10) - I guess you can say this lifestyle has swag. So today you get to see exactly ten things that add a little swagga to my life.

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 All pictures taken by me except for the first pic (via supersayinswag)

Fashionable Brooklyn People

Dear readers, this post is mostly for all the Vintage-lovers and flea market-fans out there - today you get to see some shots of the famous Brooklyn Flea!
A couple weeks ago I visited the unique flea market in Williamsburg, perfectly located on the waterfront, which features hundreds of top vendors of antique furniture, extravagant collectibles, vintage clothing, as well as a marvelous selection of fine jewelry, art, and crafts created by local artists and designers, let's not forget the delicious fresh food. On top of all that you meet the most fashionable people in this part of Brooklyn, a true paradise for street style photographers! I really loved the exceptional pieces the vendors sold, it is amazing what creative heads are able to fabricate, plus everyone was in a joyful mood on this sunny day which even reinforced the sense of community amongst creative people, vendors and customers!

Turn your Body to the Flow

Happy Birthday Tenjune, one of the former hottest clubs in the Meatpacking District, turned six years old a couple weeks ago - time to celebrate!
In retrospect I have the craziest memories of this club because this is where it all started! Tenjune was one of the first clubs in Manhattan we used to celebrate at, we had the most unforgettable and epic nights at this spot (ok, well except for the ones at the Thirsty Turtle) and met wonderful people here who also enriched our life besides the clubbing scene, some of them became our best friends. So today you get to see some photos of my last night with my sister at Tenjune (she left New York the week after). A triumphant finale, guest DJ Lil Jon rocked the house with an eclectic mix of house and hip hop, the underground club was brilliantly decorated with hundreds of balloons hovering above the partygoers and all our friends got back together to say goodbye (of course a lot of crying was involved, dammit!).
I also included some pictures of last year, when my other best friends were still living in New York - Gosh, how I miss these times - Yea Nina, Eva and Yasemin, it's not really fun without you and I also haven't been back to Penn Station since you've been gone! So after Nina left I went back to Tenjune, but you know... without the girls it's not the same ;-)

Lil Jon performing for the birthday party

Tenjune one year ago

Pictures 4 and 9 via kirillwashere.com

Do you ever wonder what your Life looks like through someone else's Eyes??

Dear readers, I have been crazy busy lately with packing for my flight back to Germany (so much stuff I have at home after two years in the USA), organizing my life and spending time with my boyfriend who's trying to show me as many wonderful things in NewYork as he can before I leave the Big Apple, therefore I didn't find the time to post much the last couple days. Don't get me wrong, I love this blog and working on it is one of the most relaxing moments in my life. Whenever I find the time to sit down and write or look at the all the marvelous pictures I take in New York City I reminisce about all the fantastic I have experienced during the last two years that I have lived in the city that never sleeps. Tonight I even took an hour just for myself to write a longer post!
So a couple days ago this question popped up in my mind: Do you ever wonder what your life looks like through someone else's eyes?
Well, I do! I care a lot about the way other people see me (to be honest, I care about it way too much)!
So I guess this is what my life might look like to my readers... I am a young girl who dared to leave her family, friends and her home country to change her life by moving to the USA, more precisely New York City, a girl who is living life to the fullest since then - including shopping, clubbing, dining at the fanciest restaurants, seeing the most fantastic New Yorker sights, vacationing in longed-for destinations like Miami, Los Angeles or Vegas and being happy all the time. I think this is pretty much what I reveal about myself. And I do agree, I have seen more amazing things, met more interesting people and experienced greater things than ever before - in short, my life has definitely been more exciting than ever before since I came to New York!
But still, there are a lot of moments when I doubt myself, when I question the sense of my life, when I ask myself if I do everything right and when I think I do not have enough - I could be richer, prettier, happier and smarter.
Now stop! You all must think "Whaaat, now this girl should go see a therapist"! And you know what, sometimes this is exactly what I'm thinking!
There are millions of people out there who don't care about having the latest iPad or where they should dine with their friends tonight (either the hot Sushi place or the cozy French restaurant) or whether they should rather buy the Michael Kors coat instead of the fabulous Yves Saint Laurent manteau - simply because they don't know if they will survive today!
These people are worried about starving or dying of thirst, some of them have to escape from rebels who are after them to take their kids and rape them, some people have been sitting in cells, getting tortured every single day for no reason, without having seen anything but the inside of their prison in years, some others don't even have the right to receive education or express their opinion unless they don't mind getting the death penalty. So many things that are unusual and extraordinary to them, things we take for granted every day, that we sometimes don't even appreciate!
Now how would my complaints look to them? My hair isn't shiny enough, my stomach could be flatter, I could speak five languages instead of only three, I need to save money for the Miu Miu bag I always wanted, why couldn't I attend this year's Victoria's Secret Fashion Show just like last year? (Note: I just named the most superficial problems I have, I don't occupy myself with these things every day, I also have "real" problems) Conclusion: My problems must seem insanely ridiculous to those people, persons who don't have anything and are left behind.
Moral of this post: SHUT UP, Laura! Your life is pretty much phenomenal and even if there are hard times, there is really nothing to complain about! Go out, see those countries and people who struggle with their life every day, go out and help them or write about them so other (more educated, wealthier and responsible) people learn about their issues. 
So I don't know if you ever wonder what your life looks like through someone else's eyes but after I asked myself this question I realized that I should be more than happy with everything I have and appreciate even the tiniest things that most often count the most!
...Now that was a whole lotta text tonight - now it's time for you to lean back and (hopefully) enjoy these pictures of Williamsburg, taken in Brooklyn with my fantastic new DSLR camera (yes, I AM lucky and grateful - thank you my lovely boyfriend for this awesome birthday present)! See, nothing to complain about!

The fabulous Rita Ora