Hi guys. Sorry I’m late. I spent the day outside of Athens, Texas, at a superstar lake house that you will be seeing very soon in the pages of the magazine. But here are some wise words from my friend and yours, Jim Williamson. They say spring is almost here, but try telling that to my ivy, which really took a beating with this last freeze. My rooftop garden now looks like a young pop star released some toxins on it. See how I worked in current and trending topics and added a dose of bathroom humor? Yes, my inner 12-year-old never leaves me.
In design-related news, word has it—and I would take those words with a grain of salt found on the cold rim of a margarita glass, which I will be enjoying before seeing Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike at the Kalita Humphreys Theater. Did you know that it’s one of only three surviving theaters designed by Frank Lloyd Wright? And it is right here in Dallas. It is a great building but those theater seats aren’t exactly what I call comfortable.
Anyway, the story is that Oscar host, tweeter crasher, and famous million-dollar property flipper, Ellen DeGeneres, supposedly has a ghost in her new manse. The $40-million property, located in the exclusive Holmby Hills area of LA, is apparently haunted. Despite renovations aplenty, the sounds of doors opening and closing, footsteps, and even a woman’s sigh can be heard, and Ellen hasn’t had a good night sleep since moving in.
Those sighs could be that the former owner, Francis Brody, who died in the house in 2009. Maybe she is displeased with some of the renovations. But if you have seen any of Ellen’s updates, I think it would be a sigh of, “Damn it this is so fine. Why didn’t I think of that?” Who knows? I don’t believe in ghosts, but if stars can die and leave behind traces of past lives for us to see billions of years later, who’s to say we don’t leave a trace behind? We are all made of the same ingredients, just combined differently, right?
I did have a strange experience once while house hunting in Houston. It started out like any house hunting experience—not too terribly exciting. I think I was on my lunch break, and I met my then-partner and the real estate agent at the house. It was cute enough—kind of a split-level, Colonial vibe. Is that is a thing? At the time, it was in our price range and made for an easy commute, so that made it all the more appealing.
We knocked on the door and the agent greeted us, “Hey y’all. Come on in.” (He actually looked like Dom from Looking, in case you’re wondering.) As I was about to put one foot in the door, I had a weird feeling. Let’s just call it a “Dunham Moment.” I didn’t know what I was feeling or why, I just knew I didn’t like it. And no, it wasn’t the interior decor. I still can’t explain it, but my gut just said, “You aren’t going into that house, Mister.” I politely excused myself. A few minutes later, my friend asked what was going on. “ I don’t know,” I replied. “But I just felt like something bad was going to happen.” He sighed and called me Haley Joel Osment. We ended up getting a cool loft where we ended up having so many great parties. Things worked out.
So here is something that is definitely not scary: these soft and easily-to-live-with fabrics from Designers Guild. From the Moselle Vegetale weaves collection, these beautiful linens and linen weaves have a weight that ensures great body for your drapery, and it looks great on upholstery too. It has the word “vegetale” in the design description but no vegetables were harmed in the creation of these fabrics. However, the tones of the fabric are inspired by vegetables. That being said, I just noticed that the actual colors on the sofa are called “zinc” and “aqua.” So you have that. But if you know anything about Designers Guild, and by now you should, then you know they know how to do color right. This is right on target for what is happening now.
So there you have it. Now that wasn’t so scary, was it? Have a great weekend!
