This week has not been an easy one. The fires in Los Angeles still aren’t out (writing this before the weekend so crossing our fingers for the promised rain) and we’ve been so disheartened by the recent executive orders, which threaten both the citizenship and future employment prospects of an overwhelming majority of Americans. (And if your drug prices went back up this week, we’re thinking of you!). There’s of course more to be extremely concerned about but what we plan to do right now is support the communities that are most affected and not let the overwhelming amount of news hitting us every day make us shut down. We will be here to give resources when we learn about them and continue to be an escape/place of joy. So with that said here are this week’s links…
This week’s house tour is a hotel tour by the one and only Chzon, global French design firm founded by Dorothée Meilichzon. Their designs are beyond inspirational and this one, Experimental Chalet Val d’Isère, is a perfect example of that. Per usual the headboards are ICONIC but everything down to the bathroom vanities is just so thoughtful and interesting. Go check it out!
From Emily: Catie of Pen + Napkin fame is an angel and is dedicated to organizing help from designers (and anyone) to help furnish homes of fire victims. SHE IS AN ACTUAL ANGEL. If you can donate, know that Catie and her team are incredibly trustworthy and will use them directly to help the families. And if you are a local CA designer and want to help – they are desperate for more designers to volunteer to help furnish and enjoy these homes. No donation is too small (and when it’s our time to help a family with a home we’ll announce it here and see if we can get any local LA help in case you don’t want to run the project but want to volunteer your time). Too many families need our help. Thank you so much to Catie and Pen + Napkin for opening your doors and arms.
To Volunteer – https://www.penandnapkin.org/volunteer.html
To Give – https://givebutter.com/WILDFIRES
To Nominate a Family: Email Catie@penandnapkin.org the family’s story and photos and in the Subject put Family Nomination.
From Gretchen: I’ve had a curtain problem in my living room for quite some time now. When I moved in, my landlord (bless her heart) provided me with some very cheap-looking, slightly mismatched blackout curtains that only grazed the bottom of the window sill rather than the floor. Did they work? Sure. A little too well. They’d completely block out all the great natural light that should be streaming through my big, picture window. But they weren’t so hideous that I’ve forced myself to live with them for (gulp) a year. That is until Em needed some simple, linen sheer curtains for a recent makeover, and turned me onto these awesome ones from Target. They look a lot more expensive than they are and let the light through beautifully without being so sheer that you don’t also have privacy. I ran to the store and snagged the same ones for myself to swap with that landlord special, and I am so pleased with how they look in my living room! I no longer live in a cave and my curtains now kiss the floor, just the way I like it.
From Jess: It’s been a really hard week, as we already said in the intro, but one thing that has been helping me is music. That may seem like a no-brainer but I’m not always one to jump to music when I’m having a lot of feelings. However, both Bad Bunny’s new album, DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS and Naika’s music, an artist I just discovered, have brought me so much joy. Three of the songs off Bad Bunny’s album are currently in the top 5 songs in the world and I’m not surprised in the least. It’s been called a love letter to Puerto Rico and you can feel it from the moment you hit play. I loved watching this interview to get an even deeper look into his journey to make it. Now, Naika’s music is also full of love and passion. One of my favorites is For Gerard which is dedicated to her great uncle. This is the story about him and it makes me love this song even more.
From Mallory: I found the cutest Air Force 1s at a vintage store and was THRILLED when they happened to be my exact size!! They have the cutest green details but are mostly white and beige so they truly go with everything. Been living in these bad boys. They’re selling them at a few spots online (I also found them at KITH) but they’re mostly in the resale market I believe since they’re vintage. If you’re a Nike gal I highly recommend snagging a pair of airforce 1s I think they’re VERY comfy 🙂
From Caitlin: My favorite movie of 2024 nabbed a handful of Oscar nominations this week, including a well-earned nod for Best Picture! My boyfriend is a huge movie buff with great taste, so it wasn’t a surprise when he grabbed us two tickets to Anora back in October. It takes a classic Pretty Woman storyline (to keep it PG) and TOTALLY turns it upside down. I laughed out loud SO many times (the henchmen are perfectly cast!) and Mikey Madison is a REVELATION – she absolutely deserves to win Best Actress, IMO. (And they did it all for only $6 million dollars, no less! Compare that to over $190 million for Dune, $145 million for Wicked, and even ~10 million for The Brutalist.) They’re like the little engine that could! It’s a total blast to watch – highly recommend if you’re looking for an escape this weekend. (You might want to avoid if you’re sensitive to swearing, though!)
From Marlee: We were on a big big shoot this week which meant I was running around with my phone taking lots of videos and using LOTS of battery. Gretch grabbed 2 of these magnetic rechargeable batteries from Target and they were so good to have. They stick to the back of your phone (via magnet) and you don’t have to mess with a cord getting in the way (I will never understand how that works but I’ll take it). Definitely an essential to have on set, but since there’s also a little stand that pops out, I’ll definitely be using this to prop my phone up during dinner and scroll time.
From Arlyn: I’ve had the hardest time finding a sweatshirt that ticked all the boxes I wanted it to check. Prior to our end-of-year trip, I popped into Target in hopes of finding something I could have for the plane and every single thing in the women’s department was a let down. They were all either cropped and boxy, which NEWSFLASH does not work on every body, tight and “sexy” (why does a hoodie have to be sexy, exactly?) or made of a material akin to a scuba suit. It was awful and disheartening. Before giving up entirely, I checked the men’s department and found exactly what I was looking for! Soft, roomy, and long enough to cover at least the top part of the tush. It’s on clearance now and I’m tempted to buy another one (I got the light green color and it’s great).
Thank you for reading and see y’all tomorrow. xx
Opening Image Credits: Photo by Kaitlin Green | From: My First Time Installing Wallpaper! Spoonflower’s “Prepasted” Paper FTW (Introducing The Sweetest Laundry Closet Ever)
THIS POST WAS ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED HERE.
