Our hearts remain with this tough, beautiful city.

It’s crazy how comfortable we are in our everyday norm. The simple two-week changeup from my work/gym/dinner routine (peppered by a three-day cleanse and bout of the flu, mind you) has left me asking myself in earnest – do I really have to try something new today? Can’t I just cuddle up at home and watch a new TV show?

So I’ve consoled myself: trying something new doesn’t have to mean scaling a mountain, blindfolded (you know, since that was totally on my “try something new every day in January” list…). It can be as simple as wearing a bold new lipstick. Or sating flu symptoms with a first attempt at home-brewed loose-leaf tea. Or setting my alarm an hour early to see the sunrise on my walk to work. (Check, check, and check.)

Below, peep some highs – and lows – from Week Two:

Sea Urchin. Mixed with heirloom egg at Inman’s new (and totally worth visiting) Puritan & Co., this unusual little sea creature honestly didn’t taste like much of anything. It tasted runny. It tasted like texture. But it looked like a trip to the Maldives – right down to the driftwood serving board.

Coffee Detox. I said no to coffee – for three days. Actually, I did a “smoothie cleanse,” three days of drinking concoctions of kale, flax, cayenne, spinach, berries, and the like – all whipped up and primed to banish supposed toxins (read: bloody Marys) in the system of yours truly. Overall impression: drinking only smoothies for three days? Easy. Giving up coffee? So. Expletive. Hard.

Brow Threading. Using simple cotton thread and an age-old technique, my stalwart Newbury Street thread master cleaned my brows up in under five minutes. The fleeting feeling of a bajillion imaginary pinpricks aside, they’ve seriously never looked better.

Bone Marrow. On a random Sunday evening at Back Bay’s The Salty Pig, I did the unthinkable – I asked the waiter to bring me absolutely anything weird, chef’s choice. The surprise? Tiny melt-in-your-mouth nuggets of deep-fried bone marrow. (Bonus: they were gratis!)

High Tea. High Tea at BOND in The Langham hotel – a three-course affair of crustless sandwiches, sweets, and, of course, tea – was so much less Samantha the American Girl than I’d hoped. Where are the petits fours? Flowery china teacups? Next overindulgent girls’ afternoon, I vote brunch.

By Joanna Berliner, Editor 

Have a suggestion for something new I should try in January? Share it in the comments below or tweet us @ruelala. 

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Last week marked the opening of not one, but two, retrospectives at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston devoted to the 30-year career of photographer Mario Testino. The event brought the likes of Anna Wintour, Olivia Palermo, Erin Wasson, Gisele Bündchen, Alessandra Ambrosio, and Karlie Kloss to Beantown – which is not at all surprising, given the diversity of Mario’s images and his unique relationship to his subjects.

The first exhibit, Mario Testino: British Royal Portraits, showcases the Peruvian-born lensman’s candid and formal portraits of England’s royal family – from an impromptu 1976 shot of the Queen Mother and her grandson Prince Edward to Mario’s gorgeous photos of Princess Diana and recent engagement portraits of Buckingham Palace’s newest glamour couple, Prince William and Kate Middleton. This is the first U.S. showing of many of these images, which Mario handpicked for the retrospective.

“To be honest,” Mario says, “the only thing I wanted to do when I captured the Royal Family was to show how I see them at that moment. Having lived in England for 30 years the perception we get of them is very different to the reality of them. I was very moved by Prince Charles and his relationship with his children. Because you imagine there is a certain formality between them but their relationship is so intimate that I wanted to show that.”

The companion exhibit, Mario Testino: In Your Face, is a collection of 125 iconic photographs (many of them published in Vogue and Vanity Fair) featuring supermodels and celebrities in a variety of poses, ranging from the classically pretty (Gwyneth Paltrow jumping for the camera in a Paris hotel room and a fur-clad Gisele Bündchen emerging from a white limo) to the perverse (Jennifer Lopez styled like a gender-bending boxer and Tom Brady captured mid-scream beside a snarling Doberman Pinscher). In your face, indeed.

“I have always been obsessed with people who look like they are having more fun than me,” says Mario. “They are my muses.”

With these exhibits, they become our muses, too.

Mario Testino: In Your Face will be on view at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, through February 3, 2013. Mario Testino: British Royal Portraits will be on view at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, through June 16, 2013.

Get ready for the ultimate shop crawl. We’re talking all-night shopping in Boston, an A-plus roster of our favorite designers, exclusive discounts, and a great cause – what could be better than that? (The answer is nothing.) Join us this Thursday, October 18, from 5PM–9PM ET in our home city for Shop The Night Away, a swoon-worthy shopping event produced by OO.com featuring discounts at some of the most stylish retailers in the industry (think Michael Kors, kate spade, DVF, and more).

Need another reason to shop? Add yourself to the RSVP list to become a member of OO.com, a funding platform that provides educational opportunities to students all over the country. It’s a fashion no-brainer.

Now, all you have to do is click the link below, check off the stores you want to visit, and well, shop the night away.

Stay ahead of all the Shop The Night Away action on October 18 by following us @ruelala. Don’t forget to add yourself to the list (RSVP is required).

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You heard it here first: Style is alive and well in Boston’s clubby, white-shoe financial world, and we’ve met a man who proves it. In a city that some would say “plays it safe” when it comes to fashion, it was refreshing to find someone who isn’t afraid to push the envelope. Here, our favorite financial planner dishes on his style dos and don’ts.

Rue La La: You work in a very conservative town in an uber conservative profession - how do you incorporate some risks into your style?
Andrew: I wear pocket squares that match my ties, I incorporate a ton of pink, and I also wear argyle or colored socks that work with my tie’s color scheme.

Rue La La: What are some of your workday style “rules” - we know you financial types have them!
Andrew: Belt must always match shoes (a no-brainer in my book), suit and tie Tuesday through Thursday, I never wear a blazer with slacks and a tie (always a suit), and my shoes must always be shined. And never, ever square-toe shoes, black suits, button-down collars with a tie. And no jewelry.

Rue La La: What about non-business days? Do you have a weekend uniform?
Andrew: Usually golf attire as I play every weekend (shorts and a polo), sweats when relaxing, jeans, blazer, and shirt at night and loafers with no socks.

Rue La La: Tell us about your signature style elements.
Andrew: Pocket squares, the color pink, and “different” socks. Sean John or Dolce&Gabbana Light Blue for fragrance. And I have three pairs of monogrammed cufflinks, all from Brooks Brothers. One is plain silver with old English script initials, another plain silver with block initials, and lastly and most importantly there is a silver and blue handpainted enamel pair with white block initials - I’d definitely grab those first in a fire.

Rue La La: Do you shop vintage?
Andrew: Yes, I have two vintage blazers from the Garment District - solid tan and tweed. I also have two V-neck Lacoste sweaters (one yellow and one red), and one navy cardigan. Actually reminds me, I should go search for more!

Rue La La: Who are your style icons?
Andrew: Rick Fox, Sean “Puffy” Combs, André 3000, Terrence Howard, and Kanye West.

Rue La La: What’s your dream vacation, and what would you pack for it?
Andrew: St Tropez - because I rarely relax and it seems like such a relaxing place. I would do nothing but hang out and relax! All white. White linen pants, shirts, and bathing suit along with a pair of flip-flops and sunglasses.

Rue La La: What’s something style-related you’ve been coveting for a long time?
Andrew: A tan seersucker suit. A summer essential!

Rue La La: Now it’s time to dish. Embarrassing fashion moment?
Andrew: I wore a shirt a couple months back that I’d had handmade when I first got out of college. I hadn’t noticed the back collar was frayed. A stylish woman in my office pointed it out to me one day, and I threw it away on the spot.

Rue La La: What inspires you to dress up every day?
Andrew: My dad always had his clothes custom made and he always would say, “You never know who you’re going to meet.” Every morning, I approach the day that way - because you never know who you’ll run into.