The November Specials
15 things (for everyone this month!)
On the last Friday of each month I send out a list of the month’s Specials, or 15 things I’m buying, reading, watching, thinking about, eating, etc. to paid subscribers, but this month I’ve decided to send it to everyone as a little treat!
And also, I wanted to say thank you for being here. There are so so so many great newsletters these days (and new ones all the time!) and it’s hard to pick and choose which ones are worth reading, let alone paying for. I have the same problem: I can’t possibly subscribe to and read all of the newsletters I’d like to. So please know how much it means to me that you’ve chosen mine, whatever subscription level you’ve got. Social media has tricked all of us into thinking that content should be quick, funny, and (perhaps most detrimentally) free, and Substack has given a lot of us a place to unravel from that. Did I think I’d ever add “writer” to my business card? Nope! But thanks to you and your encouragement, À La Carte has become the home I wasn’t finding on Instagram or anywhere else and I’m really, really grateful for it and you.
Here are the Specials for this month:
Fashion designer Tanner Fletcher launched a selection of new and vintage gifts on their site last week and I instantly became obsessed with the tiny chair ornaments they’re selling. It turns out they’re made of dollhouse furniture!!! I’m inspired to make my own next year.
My friends and I started a holiday bucket list the other day (a list of things we want to do together before Christmas) and I got inspired to make my own, too. So far it includes making latkes, going to Capri Club, getting a Starbucks peppermint mocha, my annual solo trip to the Grove, and watching the only three holiday movies I care about (The Holiday, Home Alone, and The Family Stone.)
You might not even see this due to the hundreds of Black Friday emails in your inbox. Cool times! I’m working hard not to go off-list on this dark day, which only includes re-upping my candle stash (Maison Louis Marie No. 4), replacing all my plain white t-shirts, and buying enough Blue Bottle Instant Espresso to get me through to Thanksgiving 2024.
I came of age in the height of the Alexa Chung era, so when she turned 40 the other week I think I experienced a bit of an “oh shit, how old are we?!” moment, too. I still have a little ways to go (and for the record, 40 is not old), but something about seeing my festival-going teen idol cross that threshold did something to me. Anyway, when I turn 40 I will be celebrating the exact same way she did: it appears that her friends and family all boarded the Venice-Simplon-Orient Express from Paris to Venice and had the bougiest, most over-the-top fun time ever.
Speaking of picking and choosing what Substacks to read, my pal (and former At The Table With guest) Kelsey Rose Williams started one called
that art and architecture lovers are going to be very into. Kelsey is the Photography Archivist at the Eames Office and recently moved to France (for love!), so she has a really uniquely knowledgeable lens through which she writes. She’s also planning her wedding and recently wrote about the process of finding a vintage dress (or a few of them!) and the historical context behind some of her favorites. It’s great.I’ve lately become infatuated with antique silver and pewter, which is unfortunate because it seems like it could be a very expensive hobby. I’ve decided that I’m going to be one of those ladies that has a substantial collection of it in a hutch someday, so I’ll circle back in 40 years to show you my collection.
Martha Stewart’s collection is my inspiration I’ve also been developing an obsession with cutwork lace. I especially love when it’s customized with a word (like this curtain I saw in Italy). The girlies at Gohar are clearly into it too because they’re selling it in every form you could imagine, including in the form of an apron for a wine bottle. Last week the design firm Ash announced that they’re opening a hotel in Richmond, VA next year with this announcement and it stopped me in my Instagram scroll tracks. I’m 99% sure it isn’t real, but if you have a connection to someone that makes custom lace PLEASE TELL ME.
I recently listened to an episode of the Chairish podcast about Ralph Lauren and it inspired me to watch the 2019 Ralph Lauren documentary, Very Ralph. It was executive produced by former Vanity Fair EIC/current Air Mail co-editor Graydon Carter, so, you know, it’s all a little suck-uppy, but I really enjoyed learning about the history of the brand and Ralph’s career. Now if someone could make a documentary about all of Ralph’s houses I’d be very grateful.
A cool opportunity: my pals at Paperchase Press are hosting a Make-A-Magazine competition where the winner will get 250 copies of the first issue of their magazine made for free. If you have an idea, you should enter!!!
Some of you might remember when I wrote about design icon Gere Kavanaugh back in March. Among many other things, Gere designed a prototype for chair in the 1970s that was never commercially produced…until now! Floyd Home just released the Gere Easy Chair, a cute little swivel-y guy that is perfectly mid-century (and not in a West Elm sort of way.) I love that Floyd partnered with Gere (now 94!!!) to make it happen…she’s one of my heroes.
Home decor brand Blockshop just opened the doors to their first retail space here in LA, and I just had to show you the incredible door handle that their co-founder Hopie Stockman had made for the shop. At 9 months pregnant Hopie designed and molded a giant snail, then had it cast in bronze while she was off giving birth. I’m excited to go into the shop, but I’m most excited to meet the snail!!!
It hasn’t been published in the US yet, but I ordered Dolly Alderton’s new book Good Material via Blackwell’s (free shipping!) and read it in a day. You guys, it’s so good. I love Dolly and would read a grocery list if she wrote it, but hearing her voice through a male protagonist was such a fun departure from her debut novel, Ghosts (which I loved too). Her memoir Everything I Know About Love will always be my favorite, but put this on your list to read over the Christmas-New Year’s dead week.
Substack’s Head of Writer Partnerships in the UK, Farrah Storr, has her own newsletter called
that I’ve just started reading. Her latest essay titled “How NOT to have children…” really spoke to me…I thought it was really beautiful and got me thinking.I’m obviously in full holiday shopping mode, so I'm sharing an event in LA that I think you should know about: Midland Market, which is on December 2nd and 3rd at the Revery near Chinatown. Tons of great brands will be there: Jamie Haller, Bliss & Mischief, Stephanie Matthias, Michelle Kim, Le Marké, Shaina Mote, and more, and there will be lots of food and wine and other fun stuff. Buy tickets here ($15 at the door, $12 presale). I’ll be there Saturday!
I’m always asked what my favorite places to shop in-person are in LA, so a few favorites: Nickey Kehoe, Mohawk General Store, Tortoise General Store, Arcana Books (but really any bookstore), Pasadena Wine Shop, LA Home Farm, LOQ, Bucatini (which is currently under construction but reopening soon), Heather Taylor Home, and Altadena Beverage.
Last thing: did you know you can gift a newsletter? You can even schedule the gift to deliver at a future date. If you have a friend who might be into À La Carte, gift them a subscription with the button below. From now until Tuesday annual subscriptions are 20% off!
This Sunday’s Notes Of (my mood board column) is my favorite one yet and includes a ton of holiday decor inspo, if that’s your thing. See you then!
x
Ali
In case you missed it:
I’ve been in gift guide mode! My first one is called “Gifts for your friend who’s a lot like me” and my second one is “Gifts that are made by and support artists”. Each includes 36 gifts I’d be excited to receive myself. The next one will go out in a couple of days and is all under $50!
My At The Table With guest this month was the artist and designer Marianna Fierro! Her new collection launches today so make sure you check it out.
I wrote an essay about personal branding and personal taste that I’m hearing a lot of you connected with.
Would love to know your full bucket list when it's finished! I added 'play santa hat drinking game' and 'learn one new christmas craft' and 'buy one new fun tube of wrapping paper'
OMG Ali LaBelle...thanks for the recommendation of Absolument...it's so good! As soon as I untangle myself from the knot of insecurity I am now trapped in...I shall be subscribing! (Yours is good too!)