NYC in a Day


(Apollo Theater)
I took a day trip to Manhattan this week to attend the DG Expo at the Hotel Pennsylvania in Midtown.  I’ve been to New York City several times, but decided to do things a little different this time.  Instead of just hopping in a taxi from the airport like usual for a $45 fare, I took a friend’s advice and used the much much cheaper public transportation.  I took the M60 bus from LaGuardia Airport to Harlem for a mere $2.50.  There are different routes and combinations of bus and train you can take, but this one suited me the best and allowed me to see some familiar sights in Harlem, including the world famous Apollo Theater.

From there, I jumped on the subway and took the D train.  It took me all the way into Manhattan just steps away from my final destination which was across the street from Madison Square Garden.  The total cost of the trip one-way was $5.00 as opposed to taking a taxi which is almost 10 times as expensive!

(Madison Square Garden)

Once I got to the Hotel Pennsylvania, I check into the DG Expo which is a two day Textile & Trimmings exhibit for Designers, Small Manufacturers (producing Apparel, Accessories, Homefurnishings, other Sewn Products), plus Private Label Retailers, Fabric Stores, Event/Party Planners. Exhibitors are Wholesale Suppliers (including Mills, Converters, Importers, and Distributors.)  Also, there were Seminars focused on Business Growth & Profitability, plus Textile Classes!  This show was for the trade only.

I attended the Building a Company, Branding a Line and Sourcing Tips for Designers & Buyers seminars which were led by industry experts and were very informative. There was a lot of good information that I also plan to share with local designers.  I also spent a lot of time on the exhibit floor speaking with fabric vendors from around the country to source wholesale fabric for my retail outlet dxn couture fabrics.

(DG Expo - Exhibit Floor)

(DG Exhibit - Seminar led by Francis Harder)

Between seminars I still had time to venture back into the Manhattan for some food and sight-seeing.  I tried one of the many pizza shops in Midtown that offer $1.00 slices of NYC style pizza.  I had a $1.00 slice of cheese, but also had a bacon and chicken slice which is one of the best slices of pizza I can ever remember having (and I've had a lot!)  I took the pizza right next door to Bryan Park which features a carousel ride and a wine bar and sat and ate under the trees.  Thanks goodness, those 90 degrees days had passed before I got there because the weather was near perfect.

(Joey Pepperoni's Pizza)
(Bryant Park)






























After lunch, I went back to the hotel and hit the exhibit floor one more time before stopping at a place which is very familiar to fans of the hit BRAVO channel show Project Runway.  Mood Fabrics is featured during Project Runway often as a place designers procure the fabric they need for their challenges on the show. Trust me, this is a store that fashion designers dream about.  Wall to wall fabric in every fiber type and every color and style.  I've even seen Dayton's own Althea Harper on the show running around in there on more than one occasion!

(Mood Fabrics)


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After my last stop, a quick Guinness at Féile, I tried yet another mode of transportation back to LaGuardia. I took a NYC Airporter shuttle from Grand Central Station (there are vans that will get you to one of these shuttle locations.)  At $13 one-way, it was kind of compromise on price and convenience between riding the bus/train and taking a taxi. I think its a good option if you have a lot of luggage. Being it was just a day trip, I only had a back pack with me, but if I were carrying around 2 to 3 bags of luggage, the bus and train option wouldn't have felt like such a good deal to me.  The shuttle bus however made it simple to load and keep up with several bags as well as be pretty affordable.  Ultimately, it comes down to your preference, but now you may know of a couple of options that you may not have thought of before.

If you haven't been or haven't been in a while, get to one or all of New York City's five boroughs soon!  There's no place in the world like it!

  NY!!!

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