A Day in LA

Waiting for breakfast outside of Blu Jam, in sunny LA, with my Mickey sweatshirt

On our last day in California, we ‘checked out’ of our rental house Friday morning to spend the whole day/evening in LA. My plan was to get my hair done by Denis (my main man) (about a 3 hour process), while Alex and his parents went to The Getty. I made the appointment for 12 noon, since it’s a 2 hour drive from Palm Springs, so we figured it would be perfect to hit the road at 8, get in around 10, grab breakfast together, and then drop me off at the salon while he met his parents at The Getty (we had our own rental car).

We thought LONG and hard about where we wanted to spend our only free-choice breakfast in LA, and decided without question to go back to Blu Jam– a place we ate on our trip in February that was INCREDIBLE. I wrote a literal novel on how much I loved Blu Jam in this post. Best french toast ever, best eggs, best drinks, just amazing. I got the same exact french toast, and the best chai latte I’ve ever had. It replaces my two chai latte “bests” from DC (Tryst and Busboys and Poets). Then Alex dropped me off at the Andy Lecompte Salon for my epic hair appointment, and his parents actually met him there so he switched cars and I got to keep the car to go shopping by myself after the hair was done, since it was going to be done sooner than they’d be done at The Getty.

He’s like…..so hot. What a beautiful man. He’s Adam Levine but MORE gorgeous, x a million.

I don’t even have the words for how much I love Denis. He is the greatest/nicest/humblest/sweetest/most generous person, and is a man (the man) who was nominated Top Colorist by Vogue, has been written up in EVERY magazine– Allure, Marie Claire, Harper’s Bazaar, In Style; does major celebrity hair; and is just as down to earth as they COME. He’s a fucking GENIUS at his work and the color he started giving me 3 years ago is a part of my identity and self esteem (as I wrote about in THIS fun little personal story I got to publish for Refinery). He is the reason that I feel pretty when I feel pretty. I look at my hair in the mirror and I’m like “omfgjesusfuckingchrist MY HAIR LOOKS SO GOOD.” And I’m not referring to me, I am referring to MY HAIR. The hair’s COLOR. The way it LOOKS. It’s not complimenting me, it’s complimenting DENIS’S WORK. People stop me ALL THE TIME to say how much they love my hair color and I’m like, IT WAS DONE 6 MONTHS AGO BITCH! By a Brazilian god. I don’t know HOW he makes it look so good. And get better WITH time. I’ve had people ask me if I just got it colored and say it looks amazing, when it’s been 14 MONTHS since he last did it. I would marry him if he weren’t gay.

So while we were still in Palm Springs, I stopped into a fun-looking party store and bought a GIANT sparkly bow tie to tie to a bottle of Bollinger champagne to give him (just in time for New Year’s!)

See the champagne/bow-tie in the picture right there at Denis’s station? His assistant Serge was the bomb too. Posed in all my pictures and gave me a sick blowout. I am kind of only 30 percent kidding when I say that my first job when I move to LA will probably be taking Serge’s place as Denis’s assistant. After I go to hair school.

I have as much fun sitting in that chair and getting my hair foiled as I do…. anything that I have the most fun doing. We chat about life and career and goals and men and I drink an iced latte and count down the seconds until the color is revealed. He’s super smart about the world and relationships and humanity. Every time he says something, it’s well-put and poignant, and hysterical and outrageous. He’s a Pisces, what can I say. I wrote him this little note after the hair was done, and and he put it on facebook/instagram alongside another sweet note a client had left him and said:  “Notes like this make me love my job more every day. #grateful #love.”

awww I died when I saw that, I thought it was so sweet. I never though that ‘lil note would go anywhere but his pocket and his heart.  I got a tag on facebook and was like AWWWWWWWWWW!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Talk about #grateful and #love. If you are a guest at my wedding, you will meet Denis. So you have that to look forward to. I’m always like, “Denis……..(really long dramatic pause)…. you’re a celeb.” and in his adorably exotic Brazilian accent he matter-of-factly says, “please. I am not a celebrity at all. I have some CLIENTS who are celebrities. It is they who are famous, not I.  I am nothing but someone who loves their work, and works hard to do a good job.  Do good work and make yourself and others happy and that’s all you can do in life.” #love

My hair took exxxxactly until 3:00 p.m. Literally at 3:00 ON THE DOT, I was done. I hopped in the car and went straight to….FRED SEGAL! On Melrose. The salon is literally 1 block from some of THE BESTTTTTT shopping. You pass Urth Cafe an then you’re on like the most central strip of Melrose, where the Marc Jacobs and Vivienne Westwood and Mcqueen and Kelly Wearstler and Reformation and a million other stores are. I had never been to Fred Segal even though it had been on my list of places to shop in LA for like 3 years. Interestingly enough, I ran into the most darling Dartmouth girl who I hadn’t seen in 4 years on the plane to LA, and we exchanged numbers, and she texted me the most adorable text, full of enthusiasm and exclamation points and amazing recs.  It said: “SO amazing seeing you and hope you + alex have a dreamy time together this week!!!!!!!!!! For pizza, get a reservation at mozza if you can. For sushi, one of the preset things at sugarfish (3 locations). For dessert, please try scoops. and shopping…Fred Segal is a California classic. <3! Merry Christmas!” What a SWEETheart. I love human beings. We weren’t even that close when we were in college, but she was always a ball of sweetness and energy and when I saw her at the airport that day, it felt so natural to give her the biggest hug and feel so happy that I was seeing a face I hadn’t seen for so long. I think it’s a really magical thing about going to a SMALL college. Eventually, (unless they were your enemy), it feels COMFORTING to see a face you used to see even if you barely knew each other, even 5 or 10 years after you graduate. The connection you feel to people you run into randomly…gets even stronger as time goes on….because you lived in the same isolated world for 4 years, and perhaps because they’re like a mirror straight back to a once-version of yourself. Seeing them feels familiar because just the sight of their face is a reminder of a younger, different, far-away-but-familiar version of yourself, with the powerful intoxicant of nostalgia. Their face, reminds you of and transports you to your college you, through rose-colored glasses. I felt like I was hugging an old, old, friend. And it was the cutest most exciting text to have in my back pocket all week as I looked forward to my day in LA.

SO, hit up Fred Segal I did. It was crazy. They just have like……all the best labels under one roof. Some “cheaper” ones like Splendid. Some medium ones like Vince and Rag & Bone and ALC, some hard-to-get-on-the-East-Coast ones like Mother denim, some hard-to-get-anywhere like Paper Crown (Sienna Miller’s sister’s line, that she created after they quit their joint line TwentyEightTwelve), and some INSANELY expensive ones like Carven, and this brand of sweaters that are like, hand-knit in Scottland and the pricetag was literally $4,000.00 for a sweater and I almost spit out the drink I wasn’t drinking. I bought two things—your basic, classic, simple white tank to wear under everything, which I needed. I buy a new white tank about once a year and my old one had bit the dust in terms of absorbing spray tans and getting thread-bare. It was Vince for only $40, which I was surprised by. I will not pay $96 dollars for a white tank top, T by Alexander Wang, sorry. And a pair of lighter-wash cropped-ankle skinny jeans by a brand called “Frame”, that I absolutely fell in love with. They were the wash I had been lacking in my closet and looking for for so long. I have black, dark wash, medium wash, and a million other colors/prints thanks to my ever-growing collection of amazing DL 1961s (oxblood, red, polka dot, green, brown, etc), but not the perfect pair of ALMOST washed-out jeans that weren’t distressed– just simple, clean, crisp, tailored, sexy, chic. Ask my friend Meg– she was with me at threeee different shopping events over the last month (one at South Moon Under; one at Intermix; and one and Wink), and I was just desperately trying to find a pair before we left on California trip.  Nobody is selling light-wash this time of year. I’d been looking everywhere. Of course, leave to it LA to have what I’m looking for. I chatted with the store-people at Fred Segal for quite a bit about the line. That’s how I learn the things I do. I always just talk to people, ’cause I’m curious. I said “oh wow, these fit/are INCREDIBLE, what is this line, I’ve never heard of them” and he said “oh, they’re new, they’re based out of London and they exclusively sell them in the US for us at Fred Segal,” and then we talked about Frame for quite a bit, and now I feel very cool and special owning a pair of Frame denim. You know me and my denim. I LOVE NOTHING MORE THAN DENIM. IT’S THE GREATEST INVENTION OF THE WORLD.

Here’s a post from Barney’s blog “introducing” Frame denim to the world, posted as recently as December 3rd 2012, http://thewindow.barneys.com/blue-jeanius-introducing-frame-denim/ so I think they are VERY new. Of course the creator of the line says “we’ve been obsessed by denim for the better part of 15 years,” and of course the blogpost says “we believe you guys– all you need to do is slip on a pair to understand;” because….you can just tell. The MILLISECOND I put them on, a little cartoon version of me in my head cocked its eyebrows in intrigue, because I knew they were something special and new (the exact reaction to/experience I had when I tried on my first ever pair of DL’s).  I think I could alternatively be a denim-buyer or like, denim-expert because somehow I just KNOW good denim when it slides up my legs. haha. And DL 1961 and Frame– best denim I’ve ever worn. Which is why I BLOG for DL1961. They offer different things too– Frame only has one cut– the skinny; and DL 1961 has like 7 different amazing styles in a rainbow of colors and prints.  But good denim does not have to announce itself to me– my soul knows it when it’s on my body.

^^^ That’s the white tank right thurr — (but not the pants– those are my FLARE light washes. Equally as essential/versatile, but totally different thing). The Frame pair are cropped-ankle skinnies, pictured belooow! I can’t stop wearing them with everything. I’m wearing them now, right now as I type. And I wore them on the plane home from LA. And to see Django Unchained on New Year’s Eve.

Pictured below— New Year’s Eve (for pre-gaming, BEFORE I changed into my sparkle-dress), with my sparkly Halson Heritage heart-applique sweater and sparkly Lanvin flats (INSANE SCORES from Decades, where I went immediately after Fred Segal–more info to come on that. And by info I mean, a 3 page post dedicated to my experience within the store Decades. You don’t even know):

Today (with the same white tank, flats, and Balenciaga cashmere sweater–another Decades score–MOOORE to come):

Airplane ride home from LA back to DC (with Derek Lam and Margiela sweaters from Decades– I can’t even):

hahahaha I couldn’t stop taking pictures. The shopping in LA is sickeningly good. The flats/jeans/sweaters do not come off of me.

Soooo, as you’ve gathered, after snagging the white tank/jeans from Fred Segal  I went down the block (literally 1 block) to shop at Decades.

And I can’t go any further, because I have a POST– a dedicated, full, blogpost, to how amazing that store is and everything that I tried on and bought. #MargielaMargielaMargiela. Do you know what my twitter bio is? And my instagram bio? I’LL TELL YOU.

IT’S

“WHAT’S THAT JACKET, MARGIELA?”

^^^ PRESS PLAY^^^

^DO IT^

^SERIOUSLY PRESS PLAY ON THE EMBEDDED VIDEO UP ABOVE. IT’S 5 SECONDS OF YOUR TIME^

Because that’s my favorite line of  N***as in Paris. It’s my favorite Kanye line of all time. For the way he says it. And how it sounds. And the idea that Kanye likes/knows of Margiela. And the idea of what it would represent to ask if that jacket’s Margiela. And the idea of him poking fun at himself for the idea that he would/might/probably-has asked someone if their label is Margiela. Or/and the idea that the types of people he hangs out with probably ask HIM if that jacket’s Margiela. And because I love the sounds of the word Margiela. And love when Kanye says it. And because, oh I don’t know, I FUCKING LOVE MARGIELA.  MARTIN MARGIELA. MAISON MARTIN MARGIELA. MM6. MY EYEBALLS LIKE THE WAY HIS DESIGNS LOOK. And because the most beautiful shoes I’ve EVER SEEN, THAT TO THIS DAY, I DREAM ABOUT, TURNED OUT TO BE CREAM-COLORED MARGIELA WEDGES ON RACHEL BILSON.

And I bought a Margiela sweater (IT’S PRETTY MUCH A JACKET, FOR ALL INTENTS AND PURPOSES) at Decades for 100 dollars that hasn’t come off of me in 5 days. So that’s why “Decades” and the fun I had in there deserves its own blogpost.

But here is a teaser.

Me, snap-happy. Iphone, mirror, the best clothing in the world, in the best city in the world, after getting my hair done, brand-new blonde color. Sheer. BLISS. Heaven on earth. Boyfriend. Resting his face in his hands. But so patient and helpful when it comes to decision time. FYI he was at the Getty until 10 minutes before Decades closed at which point he showed up to help me pick my purchases : )

(That’s the black Margiela open-front, drapey, slouchy, amazing, black, cashmere, so soft, so cool cardi-jacket. It pleats almost like a dress. More pictures in the next post. They don’t really do it justice. It’s soft and amazingly designed. Today I ran into two friends at Tryst and they were involuntarily petting the Margiela sweater and apologizing for stroking my clothing. Without knowing the sweater’s backstory. Because that’s what Margiela sweaters make you do– lend out your hand and softly stroke their beauty).

And also the way Alex is looking at me in this photo is the heart-warmingest thing in the world to me. You can baaaarely see it off to the right there, but I know what that look is.

But this instagram shows it a little better:

#love. And most of the time he tried to make the time go faster by inspecting the threads of sweaters. What else to do when you’re in a guy in a girl’s world. Well, you do what Alex does everywhere, which is make the 5 different salespeople at Decades fall in love with him. It was also observed by an astute saleslady that we would make very TALL babies. This is true. And with great fuckin’ hair too. That kid’s hair, I swear. Maybe that’s another reason we’re in love. BOTH of our manes are our IDENTITIES!!! Without our hair, both of us are nothing. If someone shaved my head, I would slowly cripple up and die. Alex says that at the first sign of a receding hairline, he’s putting a ring on it. He says he will propose to me the night he finds that one millimeter of hair has started to recede. Because he’d be unmarketable without his hair (him speaking) and he’ll have to ‘lock it up’ instantly.  We are nobody without the manes we have. Alex is Andy Sandburg. We would cease to exist without our hair. I understand our love now. Hair, height, it’s beautiful.

Can you HANDLE how cute that cardi is??? ^^^^^ That CASHMERE CARDI, with MULTI-COLORED GLITTERY H-E-A-R-T-S ALL OVER IT??? IN PURPLE, RED, AND GOLD??????? WHAT?? THEY ARE GLITTERY. FUCKING. HEARTS. ON A GREY SWEATER. THAT IS COZY. AND CUTE. AND HAS A SLIGHTLY-DEEP V-NECK IN A SUPER-SUBTLY WAY. AND IS CASHMERE. AND FITS LIKE A GLOVE. WHAT KIND OF A MONSTER CONSIGNS A SWEATER LIKE THIS?????????? WHAT KIND OF A SICK FUCK ELIMINATES THIS FROM THEIR CLOSET AND TAKES IT TO A STORE TO BE A SOLD FOR A FRACTION OF ITS WORTH SO THAT A CARPETBAGGER LIKE MYSELF CAN ABSCOND WITH IT? What kind of a SOCIAL DEVIANT says, “meh, you know what world: I think I DON’T want this grey, cashmere, multi-colored sparkly heart applique cardigan. I think I’ll just DUMP it at the nearest upscale, high-end consignment store for some poor loser to give it a second life?” Sorry, sorry, getting ahead of myself- this is reserved for the Decades post.

SO, after spending the ENTIRE rest of the afternoon at Decades, Alex and I departed and headed straight to downtown LA to meet my bfffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff( x 20 more f’s) at Baco Mercat. I’d heard as much about this restaurant as the world heard about Monica Lewinsky in 1998. I’d read about it on at least 4 blogs, and of course, my EVER-SAVVY, ever-hip friend Whitney said “how about Baco Mercat–you’d love it!” when I asked her to tell me where we should eat on Friday. Natttturally. There is no friend of mine on earth who has more identical sensibilities in terms of what we like to do, where we like to eat, what atmosphere we like, what crowds/types of people we like, where we like to go, how we like to spend our days, our goals, our values, etc. That’s why getting matched-up with her RANDOMLY as a roommate when I studied abroad in Barcelona was one of the single greatest blessings I’ve ever received.

I was all bundled up in my new sweaters and denim and flats, and we sat outside, in perfectly crisp weather next to heat lamps, and ordered 4 delicious dishes (it’s a small-plate restaurant where the table orders a few small dishes to share). Per Whit’s recommendation, the ceaaser brussel sprouts were THE BEST THING EVER. They SHRED the brussel sprouts like a cole slaw, and then make them taste like ceaser salad. Amazing. AND THEY’RE SERVED WARM. not cold. ugh so good.

So she and I and Alex all chatted and drank and ate and expressed our undying love for each other, as happens every time Whitney and I are together, and she gave me the SWEETEST. CHRISTMAS. PRESENT. OF. ALL. TIME. EVER. EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The thickest, coziest, warmest, tribal-print sweater in shades of salmon pink, navy blue, and white.

LOOK AT IT!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wearing it that night:

And a beautiful silver bracelet that she picked up this year in Cabo–where we had the best trip EVER when I went with her and her fam in 2009, because she REMEMBERED that when I was there 3 years ago, I bought a handful of silver bracelets off the men on the beach and she wanted me to add this to the collection. I meeaaannnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn. #LOVE. I am not sure how to match and/or out-do her on this gift.

Then Alex and I drove allll the way to our airport hotel and nearly died 11 times on the way there (holy. shit. driving. in. LA. is. scary. THOSE FREEWAYS!! OH MY),  snuggled in bed and I jumped up and down on the bed squealing with delight at what a great day it had been, seeing friends like Denis and Whitney, having such awesome experiences at Fred Segal and Decades, fresh color and blowout, a meal at Blu Jam, dinner downtown….a magical day indeed. OH, AND, Shooter McGavin from Happy Gilmore walked RIGHT by our table at Baco!!! Just walked on by. Like his thigh was one millimeter from our table. Haha I LOVE seeing celebrities no matter how A, B, C, OR, Z-list they are or once were. Love it. Seeing them in their natural habitat, just like literally walking down a sidewalk in downtown LA on their way to god knows where, is always surreal. No matter who it is.

NEXT POST—————

ALL ABOUT DECADES!!! AND ONE MILLION SELFIES OF EVERYTHING I TRIED ON AT DECADES!!! CAN YOU EVEN CONTAIN YOUR EXCITEMENT?!?! haha #immakingfunofmyself