2014 Brooklyn Trends About to Hit the Rest of the World

Well, they should, because whether or not New York City is the center of the universe, our borough is the brainchild and birthplace of many of the country's trends.

From Swedish clogs making it back into haute fashion, to 90s nostalgia and #longhairdontcare, lets take a look at what was big in 2013 and what The Drift thinks will be the big trends in Brooklyn in 2104.

Into fashion? Check out the top trends for 2014!

Black Magic Desert Gypsy
Have you walked down Grand Ave. in Williamsburg recently and seen a girl—or several—looking like a cross between a gypsy and a witch, with some Navajo thrown in for good measure?

There's a reason for that, and dressing like Stevie Nicks is just the tip of the iceberg with this trend. From succulents, to kilim rugs and turquoise jewelry everything, this hybrid of southwest aesthetics and dark magic is now being seen in middle America and West Elm, thanks to Instagram and Pinterest. Get your pentagrams out from middle school and start rocking them again.

Head of the Class: Pamela Love, Ariel Alasko, The Stone Cold Fox, Stella Dallas Home, Bona Drag

Genius Tips For Any New Yorker to Follow

Nathan W. Pyle's NYC Basic Tips and Etiquette is making the rounds this week on the blogosphere and we would be remiss if The Drift didn't share this list of do's and don'ts with all of you!

Join The Drift In Celebrating All the Food at Taste of Williamsburg

We sure do love our little corner of this city! And it seems like a lot of people, especially those amazing food people who bring us wonderful food, do too.

On September 22, 2013, the lovely East River Park on Kent Avenue in Williamsburg will turn into a variable feast of all things north Brooklyn! Taste Williamsburg Greenpoint proceeds will go to build the Northside Town Hall Community and Cultural Center and the renovation of the historic Engine 212 Firehouse on Wythe Ave. There will be over 40 vendors from the area serving speciality dishes for the event.

Tickets are from $25 to $50 and can be bought online in advance! Volunteers are still needed and get a free taste pass the day of the event, so email The Drift if you are interested in volunteering your time.

See you next weekend for some sips and noshing in our beloved north Brooklyn! Spread the neighborhood love and get your friends out to support the cultural growth of the area.

Meet the Inspiring Brooklyn Ladies of PLAYGROUND DETROIT!

New York City is a breeding ground for smart, successful people. The women especially in this city are some of the most inspiring we've come across.

Driven, creative and interesting, women in our fair city work hard and are constantly supporting each other in their personal and professional endeavors.

Paulina Petkoski and Isabella Bruno are part of this upswing of talent and ambition. We met them at a summertime backyard party and knew we wanted to share their amazing organization, PLAYGROUND DETROIT.

The organization was started after Paulina, a Detroit native and current designer at RACHEL Rachel Roy, spent time in the city in 2011 and realized the potential, but limitations, of the art community there. That's why PLAYGROUND DETROIT aims to connect incredible artistic talent in Detroit with opportunities in New York City.

Paulina Petkoski
"After growing up in Detroit then moving to NYC in order to pursue my chosen career [fashion], I returned to Detroit for a few months in 2011 and was very inspired by my experience. Noticeably, the city seemed to have an exciting new energy downtown; an increase in DIY music events and venues, artist visits from international artist coming to make their 'mark' in Detroit, new galleries popping up, and a increasing growing young, creative population under 30 years old moving to the downtown or city limits of Detroit (opposed to the suburbs or 'Metro Detroit,' which has been majority of the case for years."

"Our mission is to enhance Detroit's artistic reputation by connecting artists, entrepreneurs, and influencers to opportunities," says Paulina. "New York is our base currently, but Detroit is our home."

Local Business Spotlight: Fort Defiance

Straddling the line between bar-cafe-restaurant and neighborhood-gathering-spot, lies Fort Defiance in Red Hook, Brooklyn.

(Fort Defiance's Huevos rancheros: tostada, pork chili, cheddar, sour cream, and two eggs over easy, Cheddar Biscuit Egg Sandwich: with ham, jalapeno jam, and fried egg, a fizzy cucumber Tom Collins, and the Breuckelen Corpse Reviver, photo copyright TheDrift 2013)

New Feature: The Drift's Guide to Local NYC Businesses

We're interrupting this week's coverage of the Flower Power trend to bring you a new feature; The Drift's Guide to Local NYC Businesses.

Memorial Day Weekend Means Surfing Season in the Rockaways

Surfer guys, micheladas and tan lines from your backpack only mean one thing... you're biking down to the Rockaways this weekend—and almost every weekend after—to soak up the rays and support our amazing business owners rallying hard after Hurricane Sandy nearly eight months ago.

One way to get you ready to beach it is some lo-fi surfer rock, preferably of the Australian persuasion. Well, we've got you covered with Dune Rats.

After two well-received EPs released in 2011 and a single in 2012, the feel-good, high times surfer rock group performed shows at SXSW, only making their next release even more anticipated. 

Danny Beusa and BC Michaels released a new EP called Smile on their home turf in Brisbane a couple weeks ago and will hopefully be performing it sometime soon stateside.

In the meantime, kick back, chill out and finish that Michelada!

To Make Your Friday Move a Little Faster.... Ryan Gosling Won't Eat His Cereal

People are going crazy on the blogosphere right now about Ryan McHenry's Vine series, Ryan Gosling Won't Eat His Cereal.

The Scottish writer and director struck gold with this and has been featured on every Best of list out there.

The sun is shining and it's a beautiful day. For those of us inside at work, this will hopefully make the weekend come a little bit sooner.

Here's one for a taste. Visit the link above to see the rest of the hilarious Vine shorts:

Micro Trend: The Simpsons

Back in February of 2012, Jeremy Scott included a handful of Simpsons pieces in his Fall/Winter 2012 presentation. Here we are, just over a year later, and The Simpsons have hit the streets.

(left, a look from the Jeremy Scott fw12 show, on the right, samplings from around the internet)

Beckerman Bite Plate has a great DIY post up for making your own Simpsons jeans.

You can also satisfy your nostalgia cravings locally at Simpsons Club on Monday Nights at 10pm when Nitehawk Cinema projects four episodes of the show on their downstairs bar screen.

Welcome to The Drift

Thank you for visiting our website! After much discussion, searching and brainstorming/dreaming, we are excited to launch The Drift!

We spend a lot of time in real life and online searching for and noticing trends in fashion, music, pop culture, food and local events in New York City. But, even with so many sites out there, we couldn't find what we really wanted; a one-stop place to see what's new, what's coming up and what's cool right now in Brooklyn, New York City, and beyond.

With all of this in mind, we started The Drift, a place to find what's cool now, what to watch out for in the upcoming seasons and what to do in our beautiful city. We'll feature ourselves, the girls of The Drift, from time to time, as well as our amazing friends who inspire us daily.

And for all of you online-shopping lovers, we are starting Shop the Drift this summer! After years of finding the coolest, most unique businesses, products, and items in our beloved city, we've decided to share some of our carefully curated favorites with the rest of the world. Check back later this summer for updates on Shop the Drift.

So... Add us. Follow us. Love us. Tell us what you want to know about. Live with us in this crazy, grand city and experience all it has to offer.

Until then,

Allison and Jenn, the Girls at The Drift