Make Yourself at Home

Why Didn't You Think of That?

Putting It Together

Design for Living

Anywho:

Bonnie Downing, author of the book Peculiar Beauty joined me to talk a little about some of the absurd beauty ideas from days past. She had some remarkable tips including typhoid fever for eliminating body hair (no more bikini waxing!) and washing your hair in gasoline. These ideas are, admittedly not for everyone, they're antiquated tips from old beauty manuals that Bonnie has compiled and edited together into her book. She had some good idea with an island twist to it as well - try putting on your snorkel and covering your face with Vaseline and immersing your face in ice water for about 20 minutes to achieve poreless glowing skin. She left me with a lovely thought - a woman is most beautiful when she's most herself and least conscious of it. Pick up her book for some silly, strange and fascinating tips.

Out And About:

When you walk into a Trader Joe's do you ever wonder where all the wonderful d³cor comes from? Probably not where you imagine - the biggest purveyor of the "aloha" influence is Oceanic Arts in Whittier California. I stopped by and spoke with owners Bob Van Oosting and Leroy Schmaltz about their passion for all things indigenous. Inspired by a voyage to the south seas, they founded Oceanic Arts on their return in 1960. The warehouse/store is jam packed with everything needed to go native, from reed mats, to puffer fish light fixtures, carved door handles to hand carved tikis, some of which are created by Leroy, who is a master tiki carver. He showed me how and then they gave me a lovely hand carved Tahitian tiki to take home with me. I learned something rather interesting on my visit, tikis are part of island culture, while totems are from the Inuit or Eskimo cultures. If you're ever in Los Angeles, be sure and take a trip out to Whittier and explore the world of Island style decorating. Be sure to say hello to Bob and Leroy while you're there!

Random Thoughts

The dancers in the final scene were Luana Haraguchi and the Hawaiian Dance Company that she trained right here in New York. They did a beautiful job with the hula they performed for the show. It was lovely to have such delightful and talented guests to finish out the episode.

I think the art department did an especially good job of putting together our blank slate "porch and yard" for this episode. It was really nicely executed. Thanks guys!