The fantastic floats of Mardi Gras World

by Sarah Z. Wexler (Portland)

The warehouse is filled with heads of the likes of Princess Jasmine, Medusa and Salvador Dalí.

I’ve never been too interested in going to Mardi Gras, but I’ve always wanted to see the floats in person—in all their glorious artistry and weirdness. So when I visited New Orleans recently, I knew I had to check out Blaine Kern’s Mardi Gras World, the vast warehouse where nearly every parade float has been designed, constructed and stored by the Kern family since 1947.

How it works: Kern’s artists spend an entire year sculpting the figures out of fiberglass and Styrofoam, re-purposing pieces from floats past, while tourists (like me) get to watch the process. The warehouse (which spans more than a dozen football fields!) is the coolest, most eccentric place I’ve ever been. Plus, they hand out slices of traditional New Orleans King Cake—and you can’t argue with a museum that provides free dessert, can you?

Nailspiration: The Great Gatsby moon manicure

by Sarah Z. Wexler (Portland)

I’ve been obsessively watching the trailer for the new Great Gatsby movie, and it’s inspired me to bring out some roaring ’20s style—namely drop-waist dresses and moon manicures. What’s a moon manicure, you ask? Well, back in the ’20s and ’30s, when fashionable ladies painted their nails, they left the moon part natural. So I figured metallic would be a cool modern update. Here’s how to do it yourself:

1. Paint on a clear base coat, then paint the whole nail with two coats of the color of your choice (I picked black).

2. Once completely dry, take a paper-hole reinforcement sticker and cut it in half to make a moon shape.

3. Stick one above the center of each cuticle, then apply two coats of metallic-silver polish.

4. Once completely dry, peel off the sticker and apply a super-thin layer of topcoat to smooth the ridge where the colors meet.

Voilà: You’ll find yourself feeling like a regular Daisy Buchanan.

Perfect summer jaunt: New York Botanical Garden

by Sarah Z. Wexler (Brooklyn)

There isn’t much green space in New York City, so every now and again I’m struck with a case of pavement fever. And this time around, I headed to the 50-acre New York Botanical Garden for an immediate cure. There was a lot to behold, but ever since I read The Orchid Thief, Susan Orlean’s nonfiction account of the weird world of flower poaching, I’ve been obsessed with all the different shapes and colors orchids come in. (Apparently they were so suggestive-looking they were banned in Victorian England!) Needless to say, a few hours amid all the sprawling greenery worked wonders for this New Yorker.

Nostalgic treat: PB & J squares

by Sarah Z. Wexler (Brooklyn)

Admit it: PB & J is just about the best combo ever. That’s especially the case with my new obsession, the featured flavor at New York City’s Doughnut Plant: a blackberry jam–filled doughnut covered in a peanut butter glaze. It’s so good, in fact, that I almost brought some to a friend’s birthday party—but, let’s be honest, a pile of purchased doughnuts doesn’t give quite the same love. So I set out looking for alternatives that would be slightly healthier but just as tasty. The holy grail: Rachael Ray’s Nutty Peanut Butter & Jelly Squares. They only took half an hour to make and the results actually rivaled their doughnut inspiration. (Plus, the childhood-flashback taste was amazing.)

Easy apartment therapy: Peonies

by Sarah Z. Wexler (Brooklyn)

If you ask me, there’s nothing prettier or more fragrant than peonies—and lucky for us, they’re in season! I snipped this one from my mom’s garden and the scent is already filling up my living room. Buy a bouquet or even a single stem to transform your home (and when they’re not in season, try Thierry Mugler’s Angel Peony perfume, which comes seriously close to the real thing).