Betsey Johnson to Design an Eloise-Inspired Suite at the Plaza

When I was little, Eloise was one of my favorite books. I remember reading it with my mom and my grandma, and I loved how completely mischievous she was (in case you had a deprived childhood, or are a boy, Eloise is about a six-year-old girl who lives in the “room on the tippy-top floor” of the Plaza Hotel in New York with her Nanny, her pug dog Weenie, and her turtle Skipperdee. She wreaks havoc on the hotel and staff, and is basically awesome). The book was originally printed in 1955, and has the most amazing pink and black illustrations by Hilary Knight. These are not your typical illustrations…Eloise is kiiiind of unattractive, and the drawings have a slightly dark twist to them:

So ANYWAYS, hilarious and over-the-top fashion designer Betsey Johnson has been commissioned to, no joke, design a two-bedroom suite in the Plaza inspired by Eloise. If you’re at all familiar with Betsey Johnson, the  character’s hyper-girly signature pink-and-black palette should be no problem (take a look at Johnson’s own home, pictured on the left [click on the picture to enlarge it]). The suite is supposed to balance Johnson’s notoriously wild style with the Plaza’s brand of luxury, and should be a treat for adults and young guests alike. People who stay in the suite will recieve a copy of Eloise as well as postcards and a Super Duper Sundae to top off the night.  Rates start at $895 per night, or $3,595 per night for the “Live Like Eloise Slumber Party Package.”

Personally, I hope the suite ends up looking like this:

i like stitching photos.

Click on the photo above to see it full size. Zoom in too. Please.

I posted a bunch of photos that I recently took on my new camera, and I finally got around to stitching together this panorama from 4th of July. After hanging out in the Mission, we climbed up Bernal Hill to watch fireworks (here for you non-San Franciscans). It was a beast of a climb (do not attempt in flip flops…learned that the hard way) but it provides one of the coolest views of the city.  It was too foggy to see most of the big city-sponsored fireworks, but the little ones being set off in the street in the Mission were way cooler.

Anyway, I took a bunch of photos with the intention of stitching them together to hopefully convey how rad this view is, and I only now got around to doing it. Yeah, sorry about that. But instead of dwelling on my procrastination, can we focus on how much I like stitching photos? I didn’t spend any time adjusting the light and color to make this look like one image, but man…panoramas are cool. Even when they’re faked.

Credenza Hunt 2009 update, ftw

Credenza Hunt 2009 came to an end a little over a month ago thanks to boyfriend’s mad woodshop skillz. Since we coudn’t find/afford anything that would be juuust right for records, we decided to build one. I drew, he built. Luckily boyfriend is skilled with the jigsaw.

We also built a coffee table inspired by my intense feverish obsession with George Nakashima furniture, but about $24,900 cheaper. It’s a salvaged redwood slap and mid-century legs – handmade by us in our garage. But I refuse to post pictures of it until I make a slipcover for the lime green plaid couch that’s currently hovering behind it. Soon enough.

oh, and I know you love the floors.

art is the new CSA

Maybe I’ve been Northern California brainwashed, but I really like the idea of CSAs (Community Supported Agriculture). You pay a weekly or monthly fee, and local farmers create a box of delicious fruits and veggies and deliver it to your door every week. I haven’t signed up for one yet because I’m way too broke for luxuries such as this, but local, seasonal, fresh produce delivered to your door every week sounds pretty awesome.

So how about local, seasonal, fresh ART delivered to your door? The Compound Gallery in Oakland has a new service called Art In A Box, which follows that exact CSA model. Each month subscribers receive a new work of fine art by a different local artist, all in a variety of mediums (ceramic, printmaking, painting, collage, digital prints, etc.) and most of them live and work in Oakland or San Francisco.  AND it’s only $30-50 a month. Good luck finding cool art cheaper than that anywhere else.

And yeah, ok, art is totally subjective and what if you get something crazy one month that you just can’t justify putting up on your walls? You could give it away as a totally passive-aggressive gift, OR Compound Gallery will be sponsoring subscriber events where participants can get together and exchange artworks. Phew.

the ocean might eat me

I just moved to a great house right across the street from Ocean Beach. All is awesome, except that it looks as though now, in addition to living in perpetual fear of earthquakes, I should be prepared for a giant TSUNAMI to hit my house. This sign, about 100 feet from my front door:

I’m from New Jersey. The worst natural disasters we had to worry about were sometimes it snows kinda hard and there are lots of mosquitoes in the summer. This tsunami situation is very reminiscent of the Wisconsin Tornado Traumatization of my college years.

Apparently San Francisco has become certified as a ‘Tsunami Ready’ city. Phew! According to the city

“Phase I involves the installation of signs to indicate the inundation zone and evacuation routes.”

Despite the fact that death by tsunami is now a fear that will keep me up at night…as I listen through my open window to the apparently deadly waves crashing a few hundred yards away…these are pretty neat signs, graphically. The dude from the men’s bathroom sign is racing up a cliff, running away from one giant wave and three baby waves. I like.

But don’t worry, if a big tsunami comes, San Francisco won’t just tell you to run and wish you good luck. Additional (equally cool) signs dot the streets indicating safe tsunami evacuation routes:

All in all, if my house is going to be swept away by a giant evil wave, at least I can be comforted by these hip signs on my way “to high ground or inland”.

Time out.

I know this has nothing to do with design at all, but honestly, if you are going to complain about this video then there is something seriously wrong with you.

Sporting a preppy blond ‘do, white hightops and acid-washed jeans and toting his huge cell phone, it was Zack Morris from Saved by the Bell who showed up to promote his alter ego Mark-Paul’s TNT show, Raising the Bar—often by addressing the camera directly like a certain Bayside student we used to know and love.

“I had to change my name to Mark-Paul Gosselaar because there was already a Zack Morris in SAG,” Zack explained to Fallon, who strove to find out more about his guest’s summer working at the Malibu Sands and his ill-fated marriage to Kelly Kapowski.

Then the actor committed to a class reununion (as did Jessie, via big, huge cell phone) and joined house band the Roots for a rendition of the Zack Attack classic “Friends Forever.”
(source)

Credenza Hunt 2009

I want a credenza. I want a Danish modern credenza with short tapered legs and no drawers so we can store lots of records in it. I want to put the record player on top of it and have it sit next to the fireplace. This has launched into a full-fledged hunt since the only ones readily available on Craigslist/EBay/vintage stores are hundreds upon hundreds of dollars.

After one particular Craigslist stakeout, I noticed that people use the term “credenza” pretty loosely. Sometimes it’ll look more like a buffet, or even a dresser. Basically, if it’s big and rectangular, people will call it a credenza. Wiki says a credenza is a “sideboard used in domestic or restaurant situations”. Thanks, that’s helpful. Nonetheless, these are more what I’m looking for:

via Design*Sponge, Bohemian Vintage, and Design*Sponge, respectively.

And then last night it was proposed, and decided, to build one ourselves, based off this one:

“Ferris, he never drives it! He just rubs it with a diaper!”

Normally, I really hate it when people post IM conversations on blogs, but this exchange I had with my mom the other day was too awesome to ignore:

3:09 PM mom: so if you have a couple of mil lying around you can buy the highlands park house that was in ferris bueller’s day off. http://www.cinemaspy.com/article.php?id=2466

me: i saw that!

it’s a pretty neat place

3:13 PM mom: just thought i’d check with you to see if you’d be interested

me: haha you gonna pick it up for me, an early christmas present?

mom: right

 

She was of course referencing Cameron’s house from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (which, really, if you had to follow that link to figure out what movie I’m talking about, I’m very disappointed). The two steel and glass buildings cantilever over the ravine, with views of the surrounding woods.  Unfortunately, at $2.3 million, I will not be relocating anytime soon. Unless, of course, my mom follows through and gives it to me for Christmas. Fingers crossed!

these were just invisible posts!

Sorry for the tragic delay in updating lately. real life unleashed a billion new things to tackle, so the blog has sadly been neglected. but no more! frequent posting will resume…NOW.

“maybe i was doing things….maybe i come on too strong. it was lonely”