Home away from home: Ruthy Ruby on leaving Monkstown for a new life in New York

She’s in a New York state of mind.
Ruth Walsh has become one of our favourite people to follow on Instagram because of her down-to-earth personality, mad-as-hell sense of humour and seriously killer sense of style.
Just last year, Ruth packed up and moved to New York City.
Now we can’t get enough of the 25-year-old Cork native’s Instagram feed, live from the Big Apple’s best sights, from Central Park to the Lower East Side.
Williamsburg, Brooklyn is the backdrop to many popular TV shows like 2 Broke Girls and Younger, but to Ruth, it’s simply the neighbourhood she now calls home.
Born and raised in Monkstown, she describes her hometown as a ‘heavenly place to grow up’ but says her new address has ‘all the charm of a small town’ – just a short subway ride from Manhattan.
A graduate of journalism and PR, Ruth’s day-to-day is the same as the majority of us – a cup of Barry’s tea first thing before a quick dash to work.
Once she’s finished, it’s off to the gym and then home for some relaxation before bed. But the weekend is when she really makes use of her new postcode.
“Weekends are where the fun is,” she tells us. “I get up early to seize the day and all that jazz. It usually consists of heading out exploring Williamsburg with whoever is around.”
“I love to enjoy the lovely coffee shops and thrift stores in the area and just soak it all up.”
As well as her 9-5, Ruth is the creative assistant to fellow Corkonian, Tara Marzuki. Her side hustle tends to keep her busy, but it’s a passion project, she says.
“When I’m not working my day job, I work with Tara of TarMarz. We usually scope out cool workspace coffee shops in the area and spend our weekends creating fresh content.
“On our breaks, we head out around the city to shoot different looks for her social media and blog. It’s a great time and we love working together.
“I’m so happy to be a part of her vision.”
The woman who works behind-the-scenes at Tar Mar is slowly growing her own following with her increasingly popular Instagram, an ever-expanding blog and now, a YouTube channel, bringing viewers along on her day-to-day life in NYC.
“There are so many advantages to being here,” she says.
“The accessibility to everything and anything you could possibly want is definitely one of the biggest. You can really make New York what you want it to be, you just have to be careful you don’t burn out.
“It can be crazy and everyone seems to be exhausted, always rushing about. And being away from my family and friends can be hard but it makes it easier to remember it’s not a permanent move.”
It’s not all glamour; Ruth admits there’s plenty she misses about the People’s Republic.
“Obviously I miss my family and friends the most but on a much deeper level I miss KC’s chipper and, dare I say it, the queue for it! I can’t describe the cravings for a creole on a hangover Sunday.
“I also miss feeling in control over certain things. Over here, nothing is permanent and everyone is so focused on their own stuff that you can easily feel a bit lost.”
Ruth says she loves city living but there’s just something about country life that will always lure her home.
“The sea breeze – I miss it so much! And being able to hop in the car and drive to nature.”
But there’s one thing in particular she is proud of – she hasn’t lost her Cork twang.
“I miss the Cork accent. I was in a bar recently and a guy asked if I was from Cork – I screamed with excitement! People usually think I’m from England so I was delighted that someone could hear my Cork roots.”