Welcome to this month’s Specials, aka 15 things I’m reading, watching, thinking about, listening to, and more.
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This month’s Specials:
First up, two interiors-related podcast eps I listened to this week: Annie Meyers-Shyer on Talk Shop with Ariel Okin and Nate Berkus on Revisionist History. Both were interesting looks at their design processes, from Annie’s perspective as a homeowner in the middle of a huge renovation to Nate’s perspective as a designer. I actually jotted down something Nate said in my Notes app that I wanted to remember to share here:
“I’m really afraid of people who present themselves as though they’ve mastered a craft…I’ve been doing this for almost 30 years now, assembling spaces hopefully that have meaning for the people that live there. I am trying really hard to do that, but it’s all evolving constantly. In any creative endeavor, if you’ve made decisions about how things need to be or should be, you’re missing every other sort of bright shiny thing you can reach down and pick up and incorporate. I think after this long in design I’m adept at scale, I’m adept at certain things that have practices—I’ve sort of refined a skill set, a practical skill set. But the creative, the magical, the imaginative…yeah, I’m always lost. I love it.”
I really appreciated his humility and that, rather than posturing as the household name he is, he shared that he’s always evolving, always searching, and always questioning his own process.
This was a big moment in the life of Ali LaBelle: I met Dolly Alderton! Alysia and I went to her book signing for Good Material and she was every bit as charming and witty as you’d imagine. When we got to the front of the line I told her that she is my Taylor Swift, and if THAT doesn’t cement the fact that we could never be friends because I’m too much of a fan, well, that sealed the deal.
Speaking of book culture, do you follow @famouspplreading on Instagram? The account is run by Bad On Paper co-host
and it’s basically Deuxmoi for the book girlies. Sometimes people tag their favorite celebrities in the comments of a post to ask them what they’re reading and it reminds me of the Pasta Girlfriend community—a group of people who just unabashedly love the things they love hanging out with each other on the internet.Mary & George, a British historical drama about Mary Villiers and her son George, premiered in the UK a couple of weeks ago and will air in the US soon. I don’t know that I’ll watch, but I will absolutely be tuning in to Mary & George & Me, a parallel behind-the-story Youtube series hosted by Alexa Chung. The first episode is out already and not only is it interesting, but it’s refreshing to see Alexa Chung interview historians and academics while maintaining her usual sense of humor. Also, her outfits.
My internet friend of many years (like, 10 maybe?)
just announced that her new book, Slowing, will be published in September! She also revealed her beautiful book cover and if that isn’t enough to convince you to buy it, the promise of Rachel’s wisdom and thoughtfulness within its pages should.Also, some people don’t realize this: preordering a book is, like, THE most important way to support a writer because it helps the publishers get a sense of demand and therefore how many books to print. Preorders also help bookstores get a sense of where to put efforts (ie. hosting authors for readings or featuring the book prominently on display). So preorder Rachel’s book!!!
Pinterest announced a couple of weeks ago that you can now filter search results related to women's fashion by body type! Type something like “preppy style” or “vacation outfits” into the search bar, then click the “body types” tab at the top to diversify what comes up. Over time the algorithm will learn what you most respond to and show you more of what resonates.
My friend
recently gave me a book I couldn’t wait to tell you about: Voyagers by Melissa Catanese, a wordless collection of black and white images of anonymous people reading. That’s it! And it’s beautiful.By the way, if you’re in LA this weekend, Jordan’s hosting a book drive at Prospect in South Pas on Saturday and Sunday! Details here. Prospect sells a curated selection of incredible vintage cookbooks, and if you donate something you can get 10% off your purchase.
I enjoyed reading this interview with poet Tayi Tibble on The Creative Independent the other day, especially this part about what she hopes her writing students learn from her teaching:
“I try to press perspective. I think it’s the most important and powerful thing that a writer or artist can have. It’s better than talent or even discipline. If you write from a place where only you can write from, that’s when you’re going to hit the good stuff. Usually, I end up tutoring or teaching Polynesian or brown girls, so I always tell them it’s about honoring your history, your heritage and your whakapapa but whakapapa can be a range of different things.
It can be your actual ancestors and your culture, but it also can be even just the types of art you consume or the music you liked as a kid, things like that. When you believe, trust, and enjoy your influences and let them color your work, you’ll make work that’s really special and impactful.”
SSENSE’s Instagram account is a treasure trove of original content, and it’s worth a follow if you work in marketing or anything adjacent for inspiration. This week they did series of videos of little kids spelling out designer names (spelling bee style) dressed in tiny designer clothes and it is SO cute.
I think I’ve written before about how much I love Gap ads from the early 2000s. I will never, ever forget the one where Orlando Bloom and Kate Beckinsale are chased by hoards of denim-wearing fans down the street—it’s a core middle school memory for me. I recently saw a TikTok that reminded me of how iconic these commercials were so I thought I’d share my favorites: the one where Sarah Jessica Parker and her clones dance to Lenny Kravitz, the one where Daft Punk falls for Juliette Lewis, and this one where Mary J. Blige sings one of the best songs of all time. But really, there are so many.
Another fun Instagram thing: Amber Asay’s “Women Designers You Should Know” series. Her Reels have introduced me to so many incredible women I had no idea existed in the design space.
Personal ask: does anyone have a good source for cute patio furniture? Now that it’s spring all I can think about is zhuzhing up my patio and making it the relaxing oasis of sunshine it deserves to be as soon as possible.
I promised I would keep you guys posted on Cookbook Club, so an update: this month we’re cooking from Ever-Green Vietnamese by Andrea Nguyen!
I meant to share this a long time ago and forgot: back in November, French artist Léa Maupetit went to Japan and documented her travels by way of a Reel about the colors she saw in Kyoto. I loved this way of sharing what she saw—I might have to copy her on my next trip.
For anyone who caught me earlier this week wrestling with the feeling that I had to cut a column here on the newsletter to make room for a new FAQ column, thank you for all of your advice and support! Sometimes it can feel like I’m putting stuff out there and am not sure if it’s interesting or helpful so all of the kind words and encouragement meant a lot. And if you didn’t happen to see my rambling Stories, pretend you didn’t see this either!
I appreciate you guys. Like and subscribe, you know?
x
Ali
In case you missed it:
These specials made my morning. And now can't stop thinking about Gap ads.
https://www.nssmag.com/en/fashion/23399/gap-most-iconic-advertising-campaigns
Love this sm