>> M.V.

Spotted in an antique store in Martha's Vineyard: James Taylor's 1979 album "Flag". How perfectly M.V.

Also spotted (and eaten): Fried clams.

Begrudgingly heading back now.

Gallardo Works

Matt got some pretty great birthday gifts this year, but the best one of all (and I hope I'm not offending anyone here) was the custom stationery my brother and sister-in-law got him from Gallardo Works. The note cards feature a custom crest with his initials and a rendering of Harrison (re-drawn from our Save-the-Dates). Pretty sweet!

Sel de la Terre

I love weekend lunching in Boston. Yesterday we hit up Sel de la Terre and I was loving the use of vintage spritzers as wall decor almost as much as the rosemary frites. Headed to New York tomorrow and have some exciting news on the way!

Boston See Party

Ok, that title is lame, sorry—it's all I could muster before I head down to New York in a few hours. While we were here my brother and sister-in-law threw the most dreamy roof-top dinner party for us and it is to date the best night I've ever spent in Boston. The views of the skyline as the sun set were quite a sight (get it, see party?) But more impressive was they served perfectly-cooked whole lobsters that just basically fell out of their shells. Thanks to all who came out, and thanks Brett and Maryam for a killer engagement party.

Many people's favorite Boston building, The Hancock designed by I.M. Pei, completed in 1976.



True-to-form, as the night progressed, things got a little weird.

Bye Boston!

Maptotes

When I travel I always throw a few empty totes in my suitcase, and they always get use, whether for it's to schlep tennis balls, dirty shoes, picnic blankets or cameras. Some of my favorites are these from MapTote ($15-$40). They have a great selection of cities, styles and colors—and I think they make an excellent gift too.

Shepard Fairey's 20 year retrospective

Speaking of Shepard Fairey, my friend Anne (who's mom is friend's with Fairey's mom--how awesome is that?) is going to his first museum survey opening in February at the ICA Boston. I had no idea the Obey Giant campaign has been going on for two decades; I definitely remember seeing those stickers and posters on street signs and buildings in Boston when I was in high school, but I had no idea it's been in the works since '89. The ICA show, "Shepard Fairey: Supply & Demand", will feature over 80 works from the Obey Giant stencil to screen prints of political revolutionaries. In complement to the exhibition, Fairey will be creating public art works at sites around Boston like the photo above and below. There's a pretty cool Obey Giant coaster set ($12) and a special edition print publication ($60) already on sale at the museum store for those crazy Sherpard Fairey collectors out there.

New England round-up

Study in Grey by Jeffrey Bonasia (more on him coming soon!)

I'm thrilled that my friend Amy Fox will be regularly contributing to the blog as a fashion correspondent! She's an L.A.-based fashion stylist who has dressed Beck, styled Nike advertisements, compiled O.P. look books and is currently working as a consultant for Levi's. She's also got a great eye for design and a knack in the kitchen. I emailed her the other day and asked some fashion advice for traveling to Tokyo, and I was like, "Man I wish you'd do this for the blog...". Amy's currently vacationing with her husband Norris on Nantucket, so her first post is a New England round-up which I've added to. Here it is, the straight dope:

Murray's Toggery Shop has been on Nantucket's Main Street since 1945, where they carry a wide selection of Barbour (but not through their website), Barbour Bedale jacket ($345). The original Nantucket Reds, a salmon colored chino, that after many washings, fades into a beautiful sunset pink color are a Nantucket staple. I love this pairing with a black velvet blazer (runway pic from Etro)! Nantucket reds ($59-$70). No New Englander is complete without their Steele canvas tote ($45) or a sailor rope bracelet ($6).

Bostonian pipe made from Briarwood ($56); Opinel bread knife ($80), from Nantucket's French General Store.

No honest seafood connoisseur would be without a Connecticut Clam Ram ($24); the best candles in the universe ($24 for 12). Why are they the best? They are made by a company that's been in business since 1643--and if you can stay in business selling candles for over 350 years, you must be doing something right. No drips nor smoke and the bottom end of the candle is tapered slightly so it fits in different size candle holders.

Marimekko Cambridge

Yesterday afternoon I walked over the Longfellow Bridge to meet Maryam in Cambridge to check out the only US Marimekko store! But before we went design hunting, she took me on a tour of the Google office, where she works. I'm not allowed to post photos, but just trust that it completely blew me away! The first person I met was her massage therapist and the first thing I saw was a Google sign made out of Jello boxes—to say nothing of the giant chess set and indoor jungle gym. I reluctantly left the office to trek deeper into Cambridge to the Marimekko store that opened last year, but honestly all I remember about Marimekko was my interior monologue of "must find way to get Google to hire me...must find way to get Google to hire me." Maryam did score some great pillows for their home office (NOT ANYTHING CLOSE TO GOOGLE OFFICE!) and we both went home with matching mouse pads. The store will also custom-make any pillow from the huge wall of fabrics they stock for only $65. Regular pillows are $40—great price point, and definitely worth a trip if you're in the Boston area. 350 Huron Ave.

Fireplace wine storage

My friend Alissa just moved into a new apartment in the South End this week and I stopped in to see the digs this afternoon. I've never been so impressed with a Victorian rehab—the closets, the bathroom, and the kitchen are all sleek and new and seamlessly abut beautiful white moldings and classic architecture. But I have to say the coolest thing about her new apartment is her fireplace wine storage! What a great idea for old non-functional fireplaces!

Vessel

I first learned about the brand Vessel a few years ago but had no idea they have stores too. Well, two stores, and both of them are in Boston. The newest one just opened in the South End and after being in for a few minutes I decided that if I lived here it would be my first stop for getting gifts whenever a birthday or engagement cropped up. The Vessel stores not only have their own line of functionally chic items for the home, but they also have books, tabletop, garden items, Blu Dot furniture, Vitra furniture, beauty products and TEE-PEES! If you're in Boston check out the new store: 652 Tremont St.

Brett & Maryam's apartment day 2

Last night I showed Brett and Maryam a bunch of potentail items for their living room, and we're setting out in about 45 minutes to go look at some of them. I think they're really excited about how their living room is going to look when it's done. Here are a few of the pieces we decided on. Above: Maryam really likes the idea of one of these Eames walnut stools for beside a sofa or reading chair and it can double as a fifth seat in their small dining room. Below: Restoration Hardware is currently having a sale on lighting and we all agreed that this Atelier Task Floor Lamp in polished nickel will look great beside a wing chair in the corner of their living room. Maryam and Brett also were in need of chairs that could be stacked and easily carried up to their roof deck or placed in an office or used as extra dining chairs—even though Brett explicitly told me "no plastic!", I think Maryam and I sold him on getting a few Thayla stacking chairs made by Kartell in brown. We're off, more updates to come!

Hudson

Within the first 24 hours of being in Boston my stylish friends Anne and Allison both (independently of each other) directed me straight to Hudson, a lovely boutique in the South End. It reminded me of a mini Jayson Home/Calypso Home hybrid. They've got a great mix of furniture and accessories both new and vintage. I really loved a pair of recovered Danish Modern chairs in a rich green velvet they had in the store. And bonus points: They have their own matchbooks! Check out the website or go into the store at: 312 Shawmut Avenue, Boston. They also have a new store in Wellesley.

Blogging from Boston

Hello friends! I had a whirlwind weekend attending the most fun wedding in history (there was crowd surfing, there was knife dances, there was Journey). This is my first official day in Boston and I'm on the search for an area rug, a reading chair, some lamps, and office chair, and a few other items for my brother and his fiance's beautiful brownstone in the south end. I'm about to pound the pavement and hope to be blogging more this afternoon and this week, but I thought it was a happy coincidence that one of my favorite New York stores, Kiosk, which usually gathers exotic items from foreign countries, will be featuring their first American installment: Massachusetts! The items should be up any day now (I'll update this post when they are), and will be the quirky and fun kind of flavor the Salvor team is know for—like the above hot sauce bottle turned toothpick holder they spotted at a Edgartown diner on the Vineyard.

Andy Warhol temporary tattoos

I'm going to be in Boston all next week seeing some friends and helping my brother and his fiance decorate their new brownstone (lot's of Boston blogging coming soon!). While browsing the Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston's website to see what was going on I stumbled on to these Andy Warhol 15 minute temporary tattoos ($7), an item that will definitely be coming home with me in my suitcase.

Beat Boston!

Last night the Lakers lost game 2 to the Celtics. They almost came back from a 20+ point deficit in the second half, but sadly they lost. It seems that the slogan "Beat LA" is still ringing fondly in the ears of Boston fans after two decades. There's a plethora of "Beat LA" merchandise out there. In fact I was looking around the NBA website to see if there were any "Beat Boston" t-shirts and I found something much much better. Most teams have mini team figurines that represent the city, a car or truck usually. The Boston Celtics sell a Fleer Boston Celtics 1:80 Die Cast Tractor Trailer ($16). Pretty cool...I guess, that is until you see what L.A.'s figurine is: a Los Angeles Lakers die-cast OCC chopper! ($30). I'd like to see them try and beat that.

First Act Green Guitars

Is it Earth Day today? I think someone told me it was, but I feel like the concept of putting aside one day for the Earth is a little lost on most of us these days. It's more like Earth decade. In any case, my friend Anne who works for the company First Act musical instruments (what a cool job!) let me in on their new Green guitars—and they look great!! I believe it started when Adam Gardner of the band Guster asked First Act to create a custom 100% green guitar. The deets: The body of the guitar is crafted from Forest Stewardship Council certified wood, nearly all of the hardware and electronics are made from recycled or salvaged parts—even the exterior finish and paint were chosen for their low toxin emission. Additionally, the carbon emissions associated with electrifying the guitar for its entire lifetime will be made "carbon neutral" through renewable energy company, Native Energy. Check out Garnder's custom guitar and First Act's earth-friendly bamboo guitar ($399) right here. Thanks Anne, you rock!

**update** It's Earth Day EVE today. Sorry.

BoSox

I'm not a Red Sox fan, (more of a Nat'l League kind a girl), but seeing as they did just win the World Series, I thought I'd throw them a bone. The Red Seat is a great website for hard-core BoSox fans (what other kind is there?) with great merch from coasters (like the above set of 8, $15) to t-shirts (like the below "Regime Change", $20)—all of it funny and well-designed. Check out the rest of the goods on the Red Seat website.

Good is Great

Jennifer Hill contacted me over the weekend to tell me about a store in Boston she loves (and designs the website for), Good. Good, it turns out, is great and has a wonderful selection of goods for sale on their website. My brother is moving to Boston this Fall and I might have to plan a visit so I can check out this Charles St. boutique (88 Charles St. in Beacon Hill for all you Bostonians out there). Above are only a few things I want from this store (clockwise from top left): The aquatinta suspension lamp, designed by Michele de Lucchi, $610; Japanese kiriwood coasters, $25 each; Heywood Wakefield stacking school chairs, $450 for a set of four; John Derian 13" x 18" feather tray, $285. Check out more goods from Good by clicking here.

Calypso Home

I think I drank too much Pepsi at the Dodger's game tonight (last night) so this post is coming in at a totally unreasonable hour (3:58 a.m. PST), especially to be blogging. Moving on. The high school I attended is located about 30 minutes north of Boston and whenever we could me and my friend Kingsley would jump in a cab, get on a train, or find some way to get into the city (more often than not it was a undercover operation). Despite all the Nor'easters and Masshole accents I endured over four years, I have only sunny memories of walking up and down the brownstones of Newbury Street. Without a doubt we would always stop into Calypso which I still love for two reasons. 1. They always have a wide selection of Jack Rogers sandals. 2. They organize their clothing not by category, but by color—with neat sections of bright turquoise, deep magenta, sage green, lemon yellows, and always plenty of white. I headed to the Brentwood Country Mart for the first time yesterday and went into the Calypso store there and found exactly what I was expecting to find, only more...a home store too (also organized by color)! It opened four months ago and has copious amounts of imports from Roost, Oly Studio, and Madeline Weinrib (who makes pillows and cotton rugs that are worth giving up your first born for). There are Calypso Home stores located in Santa Monica, Soho, Sag Harbor, and East Hampton. Check the website for more info.

Going to the Marimekko Market

Several of my neighbors use reusable grocery bags (which inspired me to use them), and it's funny to notice who's using what. Some have the red Trader Joe's bags, some have Bristol Farms bags, Matt and I have two green Whole Foods bags. Yesterday while looking through the Marimekko image bank for a story I was writing I noticed their cool reusable grocery bags with divided sections . I don't think I would ever make the effort to buy one for myself, but it would make a pretty snazzy (and of course functional) gift for a friend. You can get a similar to the above bags at Kiitos Marimekko for about $60 or check for store locations right here. Or, if you happen to live in Boston—Marimekko just opened their first USA concept store at 350 Huron Avenue in Cambridge.