I like to think that this print is what would have happened if Vincent Van Gogh had lived in Williamsburg. The mere thought of all the monstera-and-vase portraits we have been deprived of brings a lone shaky tear to my eye. Luckily, everyone's favorite diet prada has made those dreams a reality- Zara just restocked this bomb t-shirt, which I bought as a gift to myself after finishing up my first round of grad school applications. The follow-up question, of course, is what I'll have to dangle in front of me as a future reward to make me finish the last leg of this whole thing. I'm thinking either a luxurious weekend in Paris or a highly illegal Kinder egg.
When I was 7 years old, my parents befriended a family during one of our camping trips at El Bolson in Patagonia. The patriarch was an architect named Victor (which is a perfect architect name, by the way). They lived on the outskirts of Buenos Aires, in this open-plan modernist house with a courtyard and a banana-yellow hammock. They would often invite us to dinner, where we would play with their kids for hours. This house made a significant impression on me for two reasons: 1) it was the place I first saw Yellow Submarine, and 2) it was the first house I ever wanted to move into.
I haven't seen Victor or his family in ages, but I still find myself thinking about that house and its colorful nooks and cranies. I didn't think I would ever find its equal... and then I stumbled into Paloma Lana's house.
Some context: Paloma Lana is the founder of the creative project Paloma Wool, a project about getting dressed and about space or ideas that are created around the act of getting dressed. Basically, they make really excellent linen outfits, leather shoes, and puffers. Fun! Fact! Paloma Lana translates to Paloma Wool in Spanish! Wooooahhh.
Located in Bar-the-lona, Paloma's house is exactly what Victor's house was to me as a kid: colorful but minimalist, airy but cramped, artistic but minimalist. It's ripe for creative activities, because if there's anything that screams Iberian Creative, it's an aggressively colorful floor tile situation.
Honestly, I could stand here and tell you all the reasons why I want to wear nothing but Paloma Wool for the rest of my life, but I think that is best left for another post. Instead, here are a few pictures of Paloma's house, which I found on My Scandanavian Home (natch) and promptly saved on my laptop. If there is any justice in the world, I will also end up in a house with half as many rubber plants someday.
-M
Like a fine wine, it seems like the more time passes the more expensive I get. The other day I found an old (old, like, ooooold) Delia's catalog stuffed in the bottom of my closet. One of the pages I had circled as a potential buy was a pleated skirt that cost $35. And then I remembered how my mom refused to buy anything from Delia's for us because, at >$30, it was too expensive. Fast forward to today, when I'll fork up $30 for a fucking hair ribbon (note: I have a pixie cut).
Money management, like math skills and far-sightedness, does not appear to have been genetically bestowed upon me. Suffice it to say, this makes Black Friday + Cyber Monday a bit of a deathtrap for someone who loves brands that never go on sale because they're "high quality" and "ethical" and "pay their workers". Still, though I was certainly tempted, there were some things that I was able to resist buying. Here they are, from the ridiculously expensive to the kinda-affordable-but-totally-unnecessary.
Marni Embellished Sandal from Totokaelo
Nothing screams opulence like glueing gemstones into your most disgusting outer facing body part (and source of perverse fascination for a select few). Perfect if you ever wanted to recreate that scene in Ducktales when Scrooge McDuck straight-up dives into that pool of money, except instead of diving you resign yourself to dipping your toes (get it?) in the jewel kiddie pool.
Original Price: $1260 (*sob*)
Sale Price: $757 (*sob*)
Lizzie Fortunato Belt from Need Supply
I'm immediately drawn to anything that would make me look like an Italian surrealist. This belt is both completely unnecessary and 100% indispensable to my intellectual self-esteem. I
Original Price: $265
Sale Price: $198 (ANYTHING ABOVE $10 IS TOO MUCH FOR A BELT!)
Maryam Nassir Zadeh Slides from The Garmentory
The thing that kills me about this is that it falls in the heart-breakingly anxious category of This Is Probably The Cheapest I Will Ever Find Any Nassir Zadeh Shoes At And I Can Technically Afford Them But Who Am I Kidding I Still Need To Pay Rent *sob*.
Original Price: like $300 or something
Sale Price: $178
Mari Giudicelli Mules from Vestige
Same.
Original Price: straight up this shit was $600 or something
Sale Price: $300
Black Crane Pleated Dress from Need Supply
Not to sound like my mom here but I was temped to buy this before realizing that I could probably just make it for myself with some mint fabric and some strategically placed elastic. I mean, come on. It doesn't even have finished hems! Cute pleat job tho.
Original Price: $235
Sale Price: $190.99
Yellow U Pouch from Baggu
Look at this lil pouch. It is like a minion for your purse.
Original Price: $28
Sale Price: $21
Things I did buy: This Baggu bag, a set of Glossier serums (winter is coming, I think?), and a lot of Zara. Keeping my eye on that lil purse minion, too.
-M
Oh, happy day!!
- M
As a career Armie Hammer enthusiast, you can pretty much count on me to see any movie he's in (tolerated the Lone Ranger, hated J. Hoover). This was not the sole reason for my Thanksgiving deep-dive into Luca Guadagnino's upcoming "Call Me By Your Name" , but it was a welcome plus. If you haven't heard about it, the film is set in the 80s in Crema, Italy, where a teenager and his dad's grad student fall in deep, beautiful homosexual love to the sweet sounds of original Sufjan Stevens compositions. Everything about this movie looks gorgeous. Between this film and Stranger Things, 2017 is the year of 80s nostalgia felt by kids born in the 90s. It's a beautiful thing to behold.
Graduate school apps are keeping me from seeing the light of day and I haven't been able to watch more than a few trailers, but this in no way confines my ability to form an opinion out of thin air. Here are six things I'm looking forward to seeing in this film as soon as possible.
1. Setting. Did you know that Crema (the film's setting) is the only place you can get sweet tortelli (tortelli cremaschi)? That's about the only fun fact I could find on Crema, which tells me that the place must be so beautiful that it doesn't need to whore itself out to UNESCO. Hear that UNESCO? NOBODY NEEDS YOU.
2. Soundtrack. I will listen to any movie where the main characters dance to Psychedelic Furs or take long bike rides in the country to the tune of sensual piano music. This one has both.
3. A Picture of Academic Paradise. I'm actually 90% sure a summer villa in Italy outfitted with antique furniture, the bank account to actually pay for it, and a son who can speak three languages is what every liberal arts grad student envisions when they look into the mirror of Erised.
4. Reviews. The last time a movie was so universally beloved by critics was, like, "Thor: Ragnarok", and even they were a little surprised about that. NPR has a really beautiful review where Glen Wheldon points out how refreshing it is to have a movie about two gay men falling in love that doesn't end with one of them getting AIDs or withstanding a beating by a passing witness, even though the movie is set in deeply Catholic 80s Italy. Vanity Fair called it a "heavily decorated classic in the making". My favorite, of course, is Vulture's, which said, "It's always a sign when guys are really into the Greeks"
5. Supporting Cast. Maybe I can't have everything I want and Louis Garrel isn't in this movie but his sister is and that's good enough for me.
6. This still, which is 1000% something I would do if I were in the vicinity of my crush while simultaneously holding a priceless artifact of ancient history.
