Home, Heritage, Culture and Leisure – The Feature – October 2020

home • heritage • culture • leisure
– Pearl and Maude’s favorite things –

~ Home, Heritage, Culture and Leisure ~

In October’s Feature: spooky home decor for your Halloween night, 120-year-old footage from a flying train, the most gorgeous rotting fruit, Brewery Open Studios are on (!), new products from Pearl & Maude and more…

Don’t tell anyone (hi internet!), but I’m a spiritual soul. I sense that the barrier between “here” and “there” is thinnest in October and I revel in my proximity to the vast field of wisdom and energy which can sometimes feel difficult to tap into. This time of year, I’m comforted and invigorated all at once. Which is good because it’s bustling around here! Also, October has the best parties. (Even this year, albeit much, much smaller.) How will you be celebrating Halloween? May we make some recommendations for October’s home, heritage, culture and leisure?

Prepare a fete for two (or more).

Here’s the plan for keeping it small this year: this dining arrangement (a collaboration from Witty Bash and friends). I know it seems Pearl and Maude is all about color and pattern (well, yeah, we are), but what we really love is character and this set-up has character in spades! Aged brass furniture and heavily tarnished silver compliment the browns of the moody floral arrangement. Of course, you’ll need a dark wall and soft lighting too. Charcoal dusted fennel and floor mounted candles might make this best in a garage or on a patio rather than the formal dining room. Whatever, we’re leaving the logistics up to you. Just don’t forget to leave enough room for the Ouija board after dinner.

 

Fly through a village 120 years ago.

I’ve been saving this one for you! MoMA recently pulled this clip from their film vault. It’s difficult to decide what makes it more unique: the incredible clarity of the large format film or the fact that it is shot from industrial, suspended tracks almost 120 years ago. Be sure to scroll down to see the colorized version as well as THE SAME SHOT from only 5 years ago. This is the stuff my dreams are made of. This brings 1902 Germany to vivid life.

Pearl and Maude Pillows are here!

It’s happened! We’ve been offering throw pillows at in-person events for about a year… which means five months, really. Since events aren’t happening, we’ve photographed and launched them on our site. Six Pearl and Maude patterns with colorful velvet backs. They are luxurious, unique and bring the oomph to any space. Check out all the designs here.

 

Buy the best Halloween book.

“The Pumpkin Smasher”: do you know it? My nephew recently brought it out and the memories came rushing back to me: rigging a ghost on a wire with Dad – it would swoosh out of the birch trees and across the pathway – scaring the bejesus out of the local kids as they approached the front door on Halloween night… Ah! So good! Between the story and the perfectly moody illustrations, this is hands-down my favorite Halloween book. Then I found out that the author, Anita Benarde, reprinted the book at the age of 88, due to surprise DEMAND. “The Pumpkin Smasher” is available on Amazon. Be sure to read the story of the book’s renaissance here.

 

Brewery Artwalk open studios: this weekend!

In the spirit of adapting to changing times, we are trying something completely new with our Brewery Open Studios. Can an open studio event be done virtually? We are about to find out – Brewery Artwalk: it’s happening!!! Virtually. Not like old-school “virtually.” But new-school *actually* virtually. Know what I mean? In collaboration with LA Art Tours, we’ll be live streaming studio tours over Zoom, Facebook, Youtube and the Brewery Artwalk website. There will be two tours per day. My studio will be featured Saturday and Sunday at 11:20 am and 5:40 pm PST. A schedule of the artists is available on the Brewery Artwalk site. This is an experiment and a BYOB event. 😉 Soooo, join us from wherever you may be!

 

See beauty in the rot.

Ugh. I’ve been loving the jewel encrusted, rotting fruits of artist Kathleen Ryan for a while. And they just seem so appropriate for the current cultural zeitgeist. Then again, I’m still able to see bits of beauty in the world, so make of that what you will. Anyhow, Ryan makes work with a palette of materials ranging from semi-precious stones to granite and industrial found objects. She makes works of scale and intense weight while holding tightly to an unapologetic femininity. *sigh* Awe with me here and here.

 

Put on a show for your neighbors. 

Hands-down, year after year, my favorite Halloween decoration is not a blow-up pumpkin. I’m sure this comes as no great surprise. Instead, check out these black paper crow silhouettes from Martha. I love the moodiness and subtlety of these crafty birds. There’s also a template for paper… mice? I say rats, but you get the point. These work great in dimly lit windows, on stair risers and in the garden. Whatever you choose to decorate with, go a little bigger this year. Add some extra pumpkins… even if they’re the blow-up version. Entertain the neighborhood from a distance. We could all use a little more fun right about now, don’t you think?