No surprise for the regulars, I’m sure, but in my marriage, I tend to be the one tied up in all things house and garden and obligations—a stubborn and immovable tap root—while Jesse—like those dandelion seed-puff helicopters currently broadcasting outside—is happy in motion. So when he said, Let’s go to Paris, I suppressed strong feelings of But what about the seedlings?!! and instead said, OK yes.
The other thing about Jesse is that people love to give him things. I can’t explain it; it has been ever thus. Once Jesse got so much free stuff from Adidas in a single year that interns mistook him for a major celebrity and he was assigned a handler at a Coachella party. There’s a lot more to say here, but for me, it’s usually net-positive living in orbit with this particular tendency.
During this trip, for instance, it meant we were invited to stay at the Merci apartment, CIMER—a special space put together by Arthur Gerbi and his team to host gatherings and to sometimes house friends and family of the Merci brand. We’d only seen a few photos before going, but they really didn’t do the place justice. When we finally got there and started to look around, I decided right away I’d need to make a post to show you all. It’s such a beautiful case study on both restoration and creativity—when to add, when to subtract, and when to leave it just as it is. Plus, I walked away with a ton of ideas to file away for who-knows-when.
Idea #1: A clever fix for the dark powder room
Most of the apartment had glass half-doors, including the one to the very dark powder room/water closet. The glass is frosted—private!—but lets in enough light so you don’t feel like you’re in an actual closet.
Idea #2: The wardrobe headboard
This one I thought was really clever. The headboard of the bed was the back side of a wardrobe. It also served to divide the room, creating the feeling of a walk-in closet on the closet-side. As if that wasn’t enough, they also had it wired so that on the bed-side of the piece, there were outlets and light switches.
Idea #3: Leave what’s there, fill in the gaps
So much of what was so good about the apartment was what was already there. The floors had no finish (!)—they were sanded and left as-is. In the kitchen, they left the original tiles on the floor, removed damaged ones and filled the gaps with concrete.
Idea #4: Don’t over-think it (when it comes to hand soap)
I’ve always loved these wall-mounted basin sinks, but wondered where the soap goes. In my mind, you would put in a hook and then switch to an entirely soap-on-a-rope lifestyle. (Easy!) Easier still: Just leave the soap in the sink.
Idea #5: Comfortable goes with everything
In such an ornate and historical space, it would have been pretty easy to slip into a little antiques-driven period twang. Instead, they almost always erred on the side of comfort, which, after logging over 25 miles of walking over the course of three days, I very much appreciated. Plus, it looks nice.
Free! Pallet furniture in Chico, CA, which honestly looks pretty good! (LINK)
For when you’re doing surgery, but it’s 1930. (LINK, but on THIS PAGE)
Las Vegas is nothing if not consistent. (LINK)
This flower arranging workshop in Portland (Oregon, for those who celebrate) looks really fun. (LINK)