ATSC Travel Edition: livin' the dream like a London queen

INSIDE: shop the look in Geneva, London, and Edinburgh :)

Hello hello! It’s been a hot sec since I sent a newsletter… so thank you for bearing with me! :)

For this week, I want to do a lil special travel edition of places I went to during my OOO hiatus AND try to share some good thrifts/shops that are inspired by what I saw people wearing in each of these places!!

(AND as a quick aside, if you are following ATSC on the ‘gram… make sure you stay tuned, I did a lil giveaway haul abroad and am hoping to post ASAP!)

Without further ado… onto to good stuff!

GENEVA

OH my god, y’all, Geneva was not on my radar at all until I went there… and it is a STUNNING place. This was a moment where we were getting off the ferry to go to a chocolate shop and like 15 swans showed up… simply not sure how this is real lol.

SPOTS:

• Domaine de le Crauzax – this winery is a quick train ride away… but truly might have been the most beautiful meal and glass of wine I’ve ever had. SO worth it!!

• Bains de Paquis – bring your swimsuit if it’s warm and make sure to grab some pics at the beautiful lighthouse at the end of the beach. and I think this was my fave fondue of the trip!

• Le Plongeoir – this was the only thrift spot of the whole trip where every one of us who walked in walked out with something! HIGHLY recommend and the people who own/run the store are the nicest :)

• Chocolats Rohr – home of the iconic chocolates that are shaped like Geneva’s trashcans that are, in fact, so delicious and worth the hype, I would say

SHOPS:

Ok, the Swiss girlies + pals were doing EURO SUMMER to the max. Like I maybe saw 200 white maxi skirts and all the gold chunky jewelry. Brand-wise, I would say Arket seemed to be a favorite.

• i feel like if there was one classic Arket summer item that was EVERYWHERE… it was the stripey woven tote! I personally LOVE the red one.

• ofc, ofc, throwing a simple white tiered maxi skirt in and I think (and hope) they won’t leave us anytime soon

• it was HOT there and I think we’re still in the heat wave zone til the end of September pretty much everywhere 🫠 but they were all wearing some stunning, good-quality, simple jewel tone bikini tops (like these ones from Quince) to beat the heat.

• i saw someone wearing some raw gem gold stud earrings like these ones that i thought were literally perfect

EDINBURGH

Full disclosure, Edinburgh is where I studied abroad, and it is my FAVORITE city in the whole wide world. If you haven’t been yet, I can’t recommend it enough!

SPOTS:

• On Princes Street: Primark, Marks & Spencer, and Boots – these are essentially kinda like Target and Ulta but the UK, and in my opinion, SO much better (and more sustainable in their production, I believe). Great for basics and for trying out new fun products and styles!

• Fruitmarket is a bookstore AND gallery that is perfect – but truly recommend walking into every bookstore in Edinburgh you see.

• The Stockbridge market is a MUST if you’re there on a Sunday

• For food, Makars Mash Bar for the vegan haggis (trust me!!) and Dishoom for a truly mind-blowing meal – there is also a Dishoom in London + other cities, but this one is much easier to get into!

• Tron Kirk Market for local artisans and some stellar knick-knacks

SHOPS:

I feel like the Edinburgh style is kinda London style but a little cooler and a little more dark academia, I think? It’s definitely very fall-coded, which was a helpful sneak-peek. I would say the big brand I saw there might have been Urban Outfitter’s new stuff, which does kinda pop off.

• Ok, this gorgeous, dark wash, baggy (but not too baggy) jean with the belt is what I definitely saw a lot of!

• often paired with that black vest, button-up silhouette that is everywhere!! (y’all know the one!)

• definitely saw some fun and funky stripey tops like this one that I think will also have some big moments this fall

• also saw some micro minis in khaki and denim which i also think will work in the fall (maybe with some tights when it gets colder!)

LONDON

If Edinburgh is #1, London is probably #2 for me :) I feel like you can’t really pin down one “London girl” style – and that’s the beauty of it.

SPOTS:

• i unfortunately must report back that the viral chocolate-covered strawberries at Borough Market are in fact so delicious and worth the line!

• ok, this was HUGE news: the Uniqlo store at Covent Garden does CUSTOM EMBROIDERY for like $15!!!! i bought so many customized things oopsie

• i also purchased FAR too many quilted bags like these ones at Portobello Market in Notting Hill

• for snacks, i simply cannot recommend the banana or dulce de leche bun from Buns From Home enough

SHOPS:

One thing I will say about London style, however, is that inspired by the Sheer Lux team, I absolutely lost my mind at the COS, Uniqlo, and Mango sales in this city lol.

• this Uniqlo sweater is wool, washable, and somehow the softest, lightest sweater I own, it’s truly magic (and yes, i did get one customized!)

• the Londonites really love COS and i entirely understand why but i do NOT love the price or paying for shipping here… so it’s a good thing we can thrift things like this stunner blue mock neck COS sweater for fall!

• another brand like that (AMAZING, but $$$ especially to get to the US) is Damson Madder – and one of y’all has to thrift this red printed Damson dress before i do!

• i think i’ve mentioned this before, but I will say it again… the London friends are all in on leopard denim like these – is it our time to join them?

And I’ll end this with a few random fits I wore! As you can prob see, I went for full capsule/basics for packing this time around oops

Let me know if you guys like travel content like this!! I have a few more trips coming up this year 😈

And we’ll be back to our regularly scheduled programming next week. Missed you guys <3