I left my heart at Hearst Castle...

I have been thinking about the beautiful Ranch
in the hills of San Simeon
all week.

The birds were chirping,
the waves crashing on the beach,
(we even saw some blue whales breaching)
and I felt a calmness I'm not used to feeling in the city.

While there,
I got thinking about the guests who got to stay
for a weekend at the request of W.R. Hearst,
and wished I was one of them.

The spectacular views, the amazing gardens,
and most admirably,
the POOLS.

There, of course, were two.

The outdoor Neptune pool for catching some rays
after a long ride on the property,
or a challenging game of tennis...

*Scenes from Spartacus were filmed here

and the indoor Roman pool,
for evening swims,


*the diving platform


was decorated with 1" mosaic glass tiles,
detailed with 23K gold leaf,

and glistened by antique candle-lit fixtures.

I would have loved to have enjoyed a night cap and
taken a dip with a young Cary Grant...

*he was a frequent guest...

before turning into my room at Casa Del Sol,
the 3600 sq. foot guest house.

*Casa del Sol

Maybe I would have asked him to tuck me in...

I know, there are many who would argue that he would have been
much more intrigued by Clark Gable than me,

but I'm willing to wager he would have found me enchanting.

Who knows?
Maybe in a past life, he did.

xx

I Only Have Eyes for Tomb...

I am happy to report that romance

is alive and flourishing in Los Angeles.

Memorial Day weekend found me at the
Hollywood Forever Cemetery
for the Cinespia screening of one of my all-time favorite films,
Hitchcock's To Catch a Thief.

A very charming, yet soulful, native Angeleno showed me the ropes,
(I'd shockingly never been)
replete with picnic blanket, cheese and a bottle of wine.
(I supplied the Haribo Gummibears.)


We poured a glass,
then took a stroll to bear witness to
the other 1800 people who had gathered to bask in
the Holiday weekend start-of-summer glory by
sitting under the stars,
taking in this Hitchcock classic.


Although a tad chilly, we sat snuggled up on our blanket
and watched as Grant and Kelly wooed one another.


The music swelled, the credits scrolled down the mausoleum wall,
and 'I Only Have Eyes for You' started playing as the lights came up.

And then, he kissed me.
Right there next to Laurence Olivier's tomb.

Hey, whoever says 'Romance is Dead' has CLEARLY
never been to the cemetery.

xx

To Catch a... few winks.

What a whirlwind weekend.

In preparation for moving AND coordinating a friends wedding,
I was a busy little bee.

Not only did I paint my floors- hardwood AND linoleum,
(yes, you can paint linoleum)
but I also planted 120 individual terra-cotta pots with herbs to use as favors.
(More on both later this week.)

After a hot bath,
(not only to decompress, but to scrub the navy-and-grey
splatter universe off of my limbs)
I sat down with a cup of tea and one of my favorite movies:
To Catch a Thief.


Cary Grant and Grace Kelly, in gorgeous Monaco, in amazing homes,
wearing amazing clothes.
Yes Please.

This film inspires me on so many levels- the set decoration is incredible-
the detail and sophistication. I am obsessed with the costume design-
his striped boatneck and red scarf...


Her beautiful gowns...

The classic and timeless perfection of design soothes me.
I'll have plenty to dream about tonight.
Sweet dreams.