I Make Party
Among the many benefits of doing wardrobe for Feeding Mr. Baldwin (check out this post of you have no idea to what I am referring and stay tuned for updates on that project!), a major one was meeting such talented folks. I got the opportunity recently to work with two of them again as I assisted dressing a house in mid-century fashion for a private party. Our amazing art director from the film was Allison and I had let her know I’d be interested in helping out on a job sometime to see what production design was all about. When one of the producers and actors of Feeding Mr. Baldwin, Anil Margsahayam, hired Allison to design for a party hosted by his supper club/event planning/catering company Stag Dining Group, it seemed like the perfect opportunity. Here are a few shots from of the space (pre-guest arrival!) which took place at the Fitzpatrick/Leland House in Laurel Canyon (designed by acclaimed mid-century architect Rudolph Schindler) and used some gorgeous furniture rented from Silver Lake’s The Living Room. The theme of the party was inspired by LACMA’s current California Design, 1930-1965: “Living in a Modern Way” exhibition. Check out this incredible collection if you are able and give Stag Dining Group a holler for all your LA/SF party planning needs!
Birthday Letters
Thanks to the creative writing course I recently started, I’ve been experiencing a tremendous surge of inspiration as well as a greater confidence with my own writing. Thus, it seems only apropo to devote a post to the literary arts. My current read is Ted Hughes’ Birthday Letters, which a friend gave me on my birthday a few years ago. Hughes was both the poet laureate of England from 1984 until his death in 1998, and the former husband of iconic poet/author Sylvia Plath and Birthday Letters is a collection of poems devoted to Plath, mostly written in the twenty-five years following her death. So much has been said about their tumultuous relationship, and some even hold Hughes (who left Plath for another woman) responsible for her death, but this collection proves that her place in his memory was unshakable. Hughes describes their young wedding (“In that echo-gaunt, weekday chancel/ I see you/ Wrestling to contain your flames/ In your pink wool knitted dress/ And in your eye-pupils– great cut jewels/ Jostling their tear-flames, truly like big jewels/ Shaken in a dice cup and held up to me”), their first kiss (“You meant to knock me out/ With your vivacity. I remember/ Little rest of that evening…/ Nothing/ Except…/ your blue headscarf from my pocket/ And the swelling ring-moat of tooth-marks/ That was to brand my face for the next month./ The me beneath it for good.”), and details about her bouts with depression but uses the book more as a love letter than a discussion about her controversial death. The author doesn’t try to depict her as idealized, but as he actually saw her to be: alternatingly headstrong, glamorous, whip-smart, fragile, and flawed. I have to admit that I find Birthday Letters to be lovely and romantic as an ode to someone who served as such a muse and I admire Hughes’ ability to share such intimacies. I can only aspire to do the same myself. Below I transcribed one of my favorite poems from the book for your enjoyment. I hope you find Hughes’ words and intent as inspiring as I do.
The Machine
The dark ate at you. And the fear
Of being crushed. ‘A huge dark machine’,
‘The grinding indifferent
Millstone of circumstance’. After
Watching the orange sunset, these were the words
You put on a page. They had come to you
When I did not. When you tried
To will me up the stair, this terror
Arrived instead. While I
Most likely was just sitting,
Maybe with Lucas, no more purpose in me
Than in my own dog
That I did not have. A real dog
Might have stared at nothing
Hair on end
While the grotesque mask of your Mummy-Daddy
Half-quarry, half-hospital, whole
Juggernaut stuffed with your unwritten poems,
Ground invisibly without a ripple
Towards me with the unstirred willows,
Through the wall of The Anchor,
Drained my Guinness at a gulp
Blackly yawned me
Into its otherworld interior
Where I would find my home. My children. And my life
Forever trying to climb the steps now stone
Towards the door now red
Which you, in your own likeness, would open
with still time to talk.
Making Movies!
As you may know, I’ve been doing more and more wardrobe styling and recently got the amazing opportunity to style for the feature film, Feeding Mister Baldwin. The dark comedy, directed by Will Prescott, features a ton of quirky characters so I got to play with wardrobe a good bit. A foul-mouthed door-to-door knife salesman in a pastel argyle sweater and polo shirt, a dead woman wrapped in increasingly unraveling gauze, twin Ladybirds (think girl scouts) selling cookies in full uniform, a creepy neighbor in a turtleneck and tweed, elbow-patched jacket, and an agent investigating human trafficking in an outdated (but sooooo awesome) 1970′s navy suit are just some of the characters with whom I got to play dress up. Utilizing a combination of rentals from a studio costume house, vintage and thrift shopping, borrowing from very generous friends’ closets, and a few off the rack items from department and chain stores, I assembled the variety of different looks.
The experience so far has been incredible and I am so proud to say I got to do costumes for such a hilarious movie with such a talented cast and crew. I can’t wait to give all you guys more details about the movie, but for now here are some shots from the set! Hope you love. 
Cookin’ Pretty
My regular readers will know of my quest for lovely vintage cookware, and I’m here to update you on my latest kitchen acquisitions. For Christmas, my thoughtful Mama and stepdad Gary found me this 2-quart, vintage Le Creuset dutch oven. Last year, I got my sister and her husband a similar one from the flea market and I have been kicking myself for parting with it ever since! Well, now Jessica and I can both cook in style! The flame-colored, cast iron pot is small, but convenient for cooking petite portions for one or two. There are a few chips in the enamel, but that’s to be expected for older cookware. How cute will it be when I show up with this little beauty at a dinner party, filled with Israeli couscous or some other yummy thing?!
You already know about my love for Dansk Kobenstyle stuff, so imagine my excitement when I found this bright red, large dutch oven at the Rose Bowl Flea Market for $15! A steal! The only catch is that it looks like it was a little aggressively scraped at the bottom, exposing some of the metal. After some practice boiling water in it, it seems like no enamel is chipping off, and it should be safe to cook with. Notice how the lid becomes the perfect trivet for when you want to take your dish from the stovetop straight to the table!
Now on my wishlist, a vintage Le Creuset grill pan, a great teak salad bowl set, and a cast-iron terrine. Wish me happy hunting!
Meet Maya Deren
She was a dancer, a performer. She dressed like a gypsy even in the 1940′s, decades before the bohemian style was made fashionable. She was an author, an artist, a recipient of a Guggenheim fellowship, and although she is now best known for her innovation in avant garde filmmaking, more than anything Maya Deren was a woman fascinated with exploring and exposing human emotion.
You might not have ever heard of Maya, but the influence of her work has surely touched things with which you are familiar. Her films are Surrealist and Symbolist, playing with concepts of reality and time, but they are also just so damned beautiful in their progressive cinematography, dreamy imagery, and haunting, personal subject matter.
Below I have included her best known short film, Meshes of the Afternoon, which was shot here in Los Angeles in 1943! It’s insane to see how ahead of her time she was. If you’re thirsty for more of Ms. Deren and live in the L.A. vicinity, the Los Angeles County Art Museum is offering a viewing of all her completed shorts tomorrow night (March 23rd) in conjunction with their current In Wonderland: The Surrealist Adventures of Women Artists in Mexico and the United States. Click HERE for details on the event. If you’re not in the neighborhood, you can always rent the 2002 documentary In the Mirror of Maya (check out the trailer below). And as if her work wasn’t enough inspiration, her physical beauty and style is totally worth noting, so I’ve sweetened the pot and included some images of Maya to boot. :)
LA Stories
Los Angeles is like a candy store for photographers. I never cease to be inspired by the visuals around here, whether it be the urban landscape, the parade of people, or the natural wonders. I thought I’d take a look back at some work I’ve done around town, as both beautiful friends and fantastic backdrops served as my muses.
At the Movies: The Classics
I have this friend, whose name I’ll spare, who has incredible taste in many things, is a lover of the arts, and an all-around amazing guy…but as I’ve recently come to discover, has managed to exist 24 years without seeing some of the greatest movies ever to exist. I felt compelled as his friend to amend this situation at once, and was faced with the task to give him a list of the five films he absolutely had to see to function properly in the world. As you can imagine, this was an incredibly daunting task.
After working on this list, I realized that many people might be in the same boat as my friend (after all, at one point I hadn’t seen these either!) and thought I might share this information with all of you. I stand by the fact that if you see at least the following five movies, you can get along pretty well at parties, in an interview, on a blind date, and most other social situations. A lot of these are also the inspiration of many contemporary movies, so it’s important to know the references. Also, keep in mind, these are only five and there are certainly many other truly great and important films…but let’s start with these and maybe I’ll keep the suggestions coming. Consider this your 101.
The Graduate
If for some reason this one has managed to slip you by…run, don’t walk, to the video store (or Netflix queue or whatever) and grab this at once! Listen, you’ve got Dustin Hoffman, Anne Bancroft and her incredible fashions in the 1960′s, a killer soundtrack, the amazing Mike Nichols directing, and possibly the best final scene a movie has ever had. SPOILER ALERT! Here’s the aforementioned finale, so don’t watch if you haven’t seen the movie, unless you are just a surprise ruiner like that.
Harold and Maude
I honestly cannot think of a better unconventional love story than this one. It’s dark and weird and sad and romantic, and was so totally ahead of its time. Also…Cat Stevens. Period.
Breakfast at Tiffany’s
This one is a no-brainer. Who doesn’t like Audrey Hepburn? As Holly Golightly, she plays such a cool, independent, stylish woman…a truly groundbreaking character during that time. This also could be the ultimate fashion movie, if you ask me. I will never forget this amazing scene where she effortlessly puts on a peach robe in one swift motion and it looks like the chicest outfit of all times.
Tootsie
I know, I know. Another Dustin Hoffman movie? The answer is YES! As an out-of-work actor who cross-dresses to win a part in a soap opera only to fall for the leading lady (Jessica Lange, hotter than ever before), he showed his incredible comedic chops and charm. From Dorothy to Rain Man? This dude has range.
Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
If there’s anything Mike Nichols can do, it’s showing drama in subtleties. He manages to get such incredible, honest, and intense performances out of his actors and create such intimate moments, and this movie, starring Elizabeth Taylor and her former husband Richard Burton, is no exception. If you’re an actor, you absolutely cannot miss this movie. The performances are incredibly inspiring.
Recently Acquired…
Dear Dark Red Faux Leather 1970′s Chair:
I remember when I first bought you from that dude off Craigslist for $40. I thought I totally scored even though pretty much no one has ever sat in you because you’re kind of stiff and uncomfortable. What can I say? You’re totally great looking! You’ve also provided the cats with a lot of entertainment, as evidenced by the many, many claw marks all over you, thus the reason it’s time for you to go. It’s truly the end of an era…if a couple of years can be considered an era. Robot and Sancha will miss you terribly.
Best,
Ashley
But seriously…I have tried to find a replacement for my old red chair for a while now. Not only is it clawed to hell, but it feels really bulky in the space. I was looking for something smaller, with cleaner lines and an open frame to make the living room feel bigger and lighter. I picked up my new chair this past weekend and the trusty Rose Bowl Flea Market. It’s a Dansk rosewood armchair with a (clearly reupholstered) tweed seat and back, a Danish, midcentury piece. The catch was that I couldn’t just swap it out, but instead had to rearrange the whole room a bit to find a good spot for it. I’m not totally sure this works, but we’ll see how it goes!
And even though I swore I wouldn’t get any more framed needlepoint/crewel, I couldn’t help but grab this giant, stylized tree piece. It was only $15! Let me know what you think of the switched-up space! I still need to find a solution to these hideous blinds….
Roy G. Biv
Even if you aren’t familiar with the name Pantone, your world is inevitably colored (pun intended) by the company’s work. Their “Color Matching System” is a standardized guide of colors for designers and manufacturers all over the world. Though the Pantone system was largely started for the printing industry in the 1950s and 1960s, its effect on the design world has led to the creation of dozens of products borrowing the saturated colors and minimalist, utilitarian look of the swatches. From coffee mugs to toothbrushes, and more recently iPhone and iPad covers, Pantone stuff is everywhere. In fact, I didn’t even know I was into color until I started perusing some of these adorable products! I must get my hands on them immediately! All you fellow design geeks totally get it, right?
Stylin’ & Profilin’
This weekend I got the opportunity to help my friend and talented wardrobe stylist Jade (of Fauna Vintage) pull some clothes for an upcoming video for British band, Dry the River. Jade has been showing me the ropes and I have assisted her on a few gigs lately. For this video we had the task of finding 1950′s garden party dresses, Eskimo gear, prep school boy uniforms, and other kooky getups. I can’t divulge much about the video, directed by the very talented Raul B. Fernandez, but suffice it to say I’ll be looking forward to sharing the end result with you when it’s complete! Below are a few shots from our day at the costume house and one from my visit to the set.
And speaking of music videos…remember my post about working on wardrobe for Noah and the Megafauna‘s “Liquid Modernity”? Well now you can see Jade and my handiwork! Everyone on this shoot was so talented and fantastic to work with, it really shows in the end result. Props to Travis Knight and his directorial skills! And please check out Noah and the Megafauna for more sweet tunes.
