We’re plotting and planning our time in NYC for February fashion week festivities and we know we’re not prepared being from LA and all we need coats! We’ve got the classic black (Jil Sander we’ll have for the rest of our lives…) checked off the list but need something a bit less heavy and more playful. Here are a few under consideration. Carven, Carven, Carven Carven…we’re in LOVE!
Taking stock of the year past and celebrating the year not yet lived deserves a special moment. Champagne is always a part of it for me. I also have an everyday policy of always having a good if not great bottle of champagne chilled in my refrigerator at home. The idea behind this is that I never know what day will be the day that deserves to be celebrated, it’s also an optimistic way for me to open the refrigerator after a particularly punishing day and instantly change my attitude. When I see the bottle reserved for the next great celebration it reminds me that tomorrow might just be that day even if today wasn’t. There have been big and small celebrations for me over the years since I’ve begun to stock a chilled bottle. The most memorable was when I headed home before a celebration on the eve of the 2008 election results. En route I realized that Obama would win and that if nothing else i was about to witness a great deal of change while getting to participate in the most energized election of my lifetime. It brought America back together again. Lucky me, I had a bottle of Dom chilled. It was grabbed and shared when Obama won as we toasted what might be possible.
HAVE A VERY HAPPY NEW YEARS EVE & the best 2012 that the world has to offer!
Two great places to snag some small batch and mainstream champers.
The camera not the dog, while we love us some Quinn, These shots are fro my new favorite toy in action…..the new Olympus E-P3
If you’re lucky enough to stay at The Berkeley in london ring ahead and request the fashion trunk. it’s full of vintage designer treasure, and yes you get to actually wear the treasure.
This video makes me want to hop in the Rover and drive straight to the Parker in Palm Springs….click below to view….
Our good friend and amazing LA based artist Sage Vaughn has a show up in London and he was wonderful enough to send us some pics that he took at the gallery. We’re really bummed that we missed the show, but here’s some info on it from his London gallery http://www.lazinc.com/artists/sage-vaughn/
how to get there,
where to stay,
what to eat,
and what to do.
Ojai charmed me this weekend.
The landscape combined with the people makes it one of the most enchanting places I’ve been.
It’s the best of America’s small towns combined with the beauty of being connected to a larger world.
I’d go back next weekend if I could.
•
TRANSPORT
Ojai is a very beautiful and easy 90 min drive from LA.
2 days is enough to feel like you’ve truly had a holiday.
I’m distraught that I didn’t figure this out 10 years ago!
•
•
STAY
There are 2 great places to stay in Ojai,
Ojai Valley Inn & Spa or The Lavander Inn
We chose the Ojai Valley Inn & Spa and it was as close to perfection as any hotel I’ve stayed at. It’s not cheap but it’s worth it. They’re extremely pet friendly as well, which made Quinn very happy!
•
•
EAT
Day 1
Lunch – Knead
The mother and daughter that run this lovely spot take great pride in their thoughtful treats. We saw them both days and quite possibly spent more time and money with them than anyone else. 5 packs of handmade crackers are a must, right? Now I’ve got to throw a cocktail party now just to use them!
Dinner – Azu
•
Day 2
Breakfast – Ojai Farmers Market
Lunch – Boccali’s
•
•
DO
Day 1
Muffler Art
This is on the side of the road and isn’t really a site, but it did provide a first Ojai smile at the idea of art meeting small town America. It was perfection.
Ron is amazing; he walked us through the entire process of importing, grafting, and growing the trees. Then sorted through the process of picking, packing, processing, finishing, and bottling. It was a treat to hear about his adventures with Olives. The oil itself is wonderful and worthy of the best from Italy and Spain.
Vista Point
Normally I find these corny, and living off Mulholland in the Hollywood Hills leaves me navigating tourists on a daily basis. You should stop here, climb onto the stone pillar holding the explanatory plaque and you’ll see the whole valley laid out in front of you. It’s magical.
6 weeks a year you can go harvest your own lavender. I chose the cooking variety. In the coming days will attempt to re-create the only pudding on the planet that I can’t get enough of. The chocolate pudding at Perry Street, with crystallized lavender on top…wish me luck!
Visit Larry Carnes – Master Potter
We were headed to lunch when we saw the sign, “the pottery studio” and a quick u-turn later we were back spending the good part of an hour with Larry Carnes. He’s a master potter who knows more about clay than I’m going to guess just about anyone on the planet. His work is entertaining and the vessels are addictive, I walked away with 5. If you’re lucky enough to get to spend 8 weeks in Ojai you can have Larry teach you his secrets.
Bike
There are wonderful trails in Ojai, and bikes can be rented. It’s well worth it!
•
Day 2
Hike
The trails in Ojai are many and fine. This is a great way to start your morning.
Farmers Market
The farmers market in Ojai is of very high standards; there are no fakers here. The market is very well thought out and quite diverse, every stall I stopped at was directly farm owned and staffed. I resisted the bounty of beautiful perishable items due to the impending drive back to LA, but still managed to walk away with a good bit of loot….local honey, the best market basket ever from Ghana, more treats from Knead, Sugar Scrub, Organic Herbal Teas and Persimmon Walnut Nougat. Ron is at the farmers market on Sunday’s with his oils, we got the pleasure of sharing a photo with Ron that we’d taken while at Larry’s Pottery studio the day before. It was of some lovely dipping plates that Larry had fashioned for Ron to sell at the olive oil farm. Larry was wickedly proud when he shared his secret. “Ron doesn’t know yet but I’ve got dipping plates for him.” we loved getting to break the surprise to Ron the next day, and hopefully help the venture along with our enthusiastic delivery.
Wander
It’s worth a no destination meander through the downtown area, you won’t get lost and you may just find a wonderful surprise…
This place is fab, it’s an open-air bookstore, how impractical. I love it! There’s a sign on the door about how to pay for the books permanently installed on the outside, yes outside of the building. This is a theme in Ojai, there are produce stands spattered about with the honor system for payment, it’s refreshing to think that this is still possible in America in 2010. Bart’s is the best used bookstore I’ve seen, it’s huge since it covers the whole property including the small house that I am guessing was the original structure on the property. There are rows and rows of books on almost any subject you can imagine, I picked up a book I’d never seen before on hand tufted rugs. Tip…if you go, buy the tote that is pictured below. It’s perfect, and I resisted. I’m still kicking myself! I’ll just have to use it as an excuse to visit again very soon!
•
We have a passion for fashion documentaries…here are our 10 favorites.
Worth watching over and over and over again.
The movie titles click through to their listings on Netflix, they’re all on there….
Yves Saint Laurent: His Life and Times
Viktor & Rolf: Because We’re worth it!
Ultrasuede: In search for Halston
Yesterday evening we began pulling down the stash to send to the sample sale today, and as you can see below there was a bit of a delay in the process…
Every box was neatly packed and stored away over the last 6 months, 2500 units and no chaos.
Yisbel had a GENIUS idea….sometimes the runt of the litter is the most dangerous.
The crew politely picked thorough a few boxes searching for gems they may have missed over the years…
As the process continued, the polite picking turned into ravaged hunting, the crew began diving and contorting to snag their loot. In the end every box was opened and raided.
It’s wonderful for me to see that the people who work so hard to bring the collections to market in this crazy world of fashion are still this excited about what we do.
We’ve repacked the boxes and are on our way to the sample sale venue now….we expect a repeat performance later today and tomorrow and we’re a little scared…
