In the past two weeks I have had A LOT of holiday festivities going on. Believe it or not, but this is the first year in a long time that I enjoyed more than the holiday shopping. All of the fun festivities really did help boost the holiday spirit.
Last weekend good friend Miss Print and I ventured out on the first ever Dash & Lily Day. Who are Dash and Lily? If you’re a reader of all things young adult then you’ll know the Dash and Lily I’m referring to are the main characters from David Levithan and Rachel Cohn’s awesome book Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares.
Set against the New York backdrop, two teens (Dash and Lily, obviously) are brought together by fate and by a book of dares that takes them both on a whirlwind adventure though New York City.
Having read (and LOVED ) this book, Miss Print and I decided to, in our own way, recreate Dash and Lily’s adventures.
Starting where the book started, Miss Print and I visited one of New York’s beloved book stores – the Strand. Chock full of books every readers thirst will be quenched there. While walking around we even stumbled upon the book that started it all.
We didn’t buy anything there. I can’t speak for anyone else, but I already own the book that started it all (and even have it signed by David Levithan) and already have enough books to go around – several times.
After wandering around the Strand we headed to the Union Square Holiday Market. Full of unique vendors and gifts Miss Print and I thought that visiting would be very Dash and Lily-esque.
The Union Square Market has some beautiful finds. From gourmet food to one of a kind NYC inspired Christmas ornaments there is a lot to see and buy. And buy we did! I bought a beautiful yellow colored ring.
Now, Lily didn’t buy any rings in the book, but I feel that the oddly colored ring I bought would have Lily’s stamp of approval.
After walking around the Market we decided to head to Max Brenner’s. Yes, Max Brenner’s. I for one was really excited about going there. I’ve passed by so many times, and always wanted to go, but never had a reason or occasion to go diner there. Unfortunately though we did not partake in any dining. Even though we planned on it, we did not plan on Max Brenner’s being packed to full capacity, with plenty waiting to be seated. Being that we had many other things planned that we wanted to fit it, we looked around the small (and overly crowed) gift shop, and took some awesome pictures!
Taken by Emma (Miss Print)
Taken by Emma (Miss Print)
I just have to add Max Brenner’s smells amazing. Even if it is too packed to actually eat there, it’s worth a wander in just to take in the smell. After leaving Max Brenner’s we decided to head uptown to take in a movie. Heading to what I’m sure is Lily’s favorite places in NY, or at least one of them, we went to see Hugo in Times Square.
Hugo really did take my breath away! This was one of my highly anticipated films of 2011. Being a HUGE fan of the book (The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick) I was excited to see how Martin Scorsese was going to bring this to life. I have to say it was long, longer than I anticipated, clocking in at two hours. Even though it was long I feel that that wasn’t a set back.
Recently, I had mentioned to a friend after seeing The Wizard of Oz in one of New Jersey’s most beautiful theaters, that movies today don’t instill that sense of awe and magic like movies of yesterday. For me, Hugo captured the spirit of movies long past. It was full of magic and wonder. And I loved every moment of it.
Like Hugo, Dash and Lily (the book and the characters) capture that same spirit and feeling. I think that’s why I loved it so much.
After a successful movie, we made our way to the Build – A – Bear store. Now I know what you’re thinking (well, those of you who have read Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares): they didn’t make bears they made muppets at F.A.O.. Since making muppets was out of our price range Miss Print and I decided on another muppet making like activity.
Now I’ve never made a Build -A- Bear before. I’ve seen others make one, but haven’t experienced the bear making fun myself. I was excited to say the least. The biggest challenge wasn’t picking out the name or the outfit (I knew them both before I knew the bear). Finding the right bear is a science. I learned quickly that you just can’t pick any ol’ bear. Oh no, you need to find the right bear, the one that speaks to you – not literally speaks.
Originally I had set out to make a Clarice (from the much beloved Rudolf movie). But finding the Clarice “bears” not available, I found a bear that suited me and my inner Lily. After much (mental) debate I found her – a dark/light blue snowflake bear! She captured the spirit of winter, Christmas, and of course Dash & Lily day.
Dressed in fancy Rudolph and Clarice pajamas, may I present: Lily!
With our new furry friends Miss Print and I popped into the Little Miss Match sock store, conveniently located right next door to Build -A- Bear. Little Miss Match is AWESOME. Every item them – mainly socks – is mismatched. I bought three pairs of mix and match mismatched socks, plus a pack of Alice in Wonderland themed mismatched socks. They’re super cute and super warm! And they have some fun (and creepy) hats.
Taken By Emma (Miss Print)
We were originally planning on going to F.A.O. Schwarz and making a trip to Dyker Heights to see all the twinkling Christmas lights. Unfortunately though we did not make it to either destination. Not because of not wanting to, but because it was late and steadily getting colder outside.
Even though our festivities were not strictly Dash & Lily, they embodied the spirit of the book and the characters! A fun day was had, and I hope that Dash & Lily Day 2011 will turn into a holiday season tradition!
(Any picture captioned with “Taken by Emma (Miss Print) indicates that I, the BookBandit, did not take these photos. Emma was kind enough to let me use her photos. To see them all head over to her blog – OR – her website Thanks Emma!)
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