The Home Beete Questionnaire: LA Moffa

November 3, 2009 by Paulette Beete

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I met Christiana Moffa more than a decade ago when we both lived in Chicago. On her first day of work at JP Morgan, she sang me happy birthday. And believe me, this gal can sing! (You can take a listen here.) I always loved visiting Christiana’s Chi-town apartments.  I admired the way she ably mixed high and low, dramatic and classic—in both her dress and her decor. Moffa’s since gone Hollywood, but lucky for us, she’s still just as sassily stylicious as always.

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THB: Where do you live?

Moffa: Los Angeles (in Century City, just between Santa Monica and Beverly Hills)

THB: In five words or less, your home is . . .

Moffa: My sanctuary of Moff.

THB: What do you do at home?

Moff: A lot of things, but mainly read, exercise, and enjoy my lovely kitties.
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THB: Your favorite room?

Moff: I love my living area because it has art, furniture and accessories from every type of era.  It’s eclectic.  When I sit on my sofa and read or watch TV, I love how I feel.  I feel “home.”

THB: What’s your favorite piece of art or memento or plain old thing in your home?

Moffa: I have soooo many; that’s what makes up my style, I think.  But I did get a lovely vintage Parisian ad.  It’s a sketch of a male foot and a female foot, flirting and playing “footsy” under the table.  The caption says “Le Bas Scandale,” which means “the Scandal Below.”  Very Standard Era.

THB: What could you never throw out . . . though maybe you should?

Moffa: Despite my shabby chic apartment, I’m actually quite good at getting rid of old, antiquated items or those that could go to someone in need.  The only things I tend to keep forever are underwear and socks.  Hmmmm… I just admitted that on a blog.  Oh wait!  I have something – my old hat rack, which is broken on one side.  A new one is certainly in store.
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THB: What’s the best piece of decorating advice you ever got?

Moffa: “It’s okay to mix woods.”  People seem to have this idea that furniture has to match. I don’t think ANY of mine matches!

THB: What’s on your home wish list?

Moffa: At some point, a nice, long, chic chaise lounge in my bedroom.  However, I need a bigger space for that!  I would also very much like a washer and dryer, but that’s not as glamorous.  Plus, I rent.

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THB: Got color?

Moffa: All KINDS of color!  Themes tend to be burgundies and terra cotta tones, as well as champagne and sage.  Then I’ll throw in gold or blue, just for kicks.

THB: Any last words?

Moffa: La vita è bella! Live in a beautiful space that you love, and that brings you peace.

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Mmmmm . . . donuts . . .

November 2, 2009 by Paulette Beete

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Donuts

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When you borrow a friend’s husband for a trip to IKEA (faux-Eames chair, clothes-drying rack, a pack of 50 black clothespins!), the least you can do is make sure you eventually end up in downtown Silver Spring (Fenton and Ellsworth, next to Pier One) at The Fractured Prune

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In the Hood

October 29, 2009 by Paulette Beete

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Chinese beans; old bakery (about to become a brick-oven pizzeria); mid-century (?) sign; neighborly ghost; view from the Metro

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Recipe: John Derian’s Roasted Carrots, Parsnips, and Shallots

October 16, 2009 by Paulette Beete

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Here’s John Derian’s* recipe for Roasted Carrots, Parsnips, and Shallots from Martha Stewart Living (September 2009).

1.5 pounds medium carrots, scrubbed well (peel if you’d like)

1.5 pounds parsnips, scrubbed well (ditto on the peeling)

8 shallots, halved if large

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil (I used all of it, but it would’ve been fine with less)

Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

Olive relish (I didn’t make this w/ my version, but email if you want the recipe)

Preheat oven to 450. Toss veggies and shallots with oil, and season with salt ‘n’ pepper. Spread mixture onto two baking sheets, and roast for about 35 minutes (til everything’s nice and browny- glazy looking). Turn veggies a couple of times while baking, and remove shallots if they get browned first. Eat lovely roasted veggies with your fingers (cause you didn’t make anything else to go with them, and who needs to dirty up another fork)?

(There were no parsnips at Whole Foods so I went with three pounds of carrots instead. The shallots didn’t caramelize that well; next time I think I need to chop them in half . . .though when I asked the farm lady if they were large—being sorely lacking in shallot-sizing experience—she declared them medium. That’s okay beautiful farm lady, I still heart you and your braided ponytails.)

*Go here to take a peek at John Derian’s home in Provincetown. Hmm, John Derian and P-town in the same sentence . . . yeah, that deserves a double SWOON.

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Tulip Fever

October 12, 2009 by Paulette Beete

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A bouquet of ten tulips was $9.99 this week at Whole Foods. I love tulips; I love yellow; I have a total heart on for yellow tulips.

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Recipe: Roasted Potatoes with Salsa Verde

October 12, 2009 by Paulette Beete

Potatoes

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Find the recipe* from Orangette here. (You’ll need to scroll down toward the bottom of the post.)

p.s. Feel free to adjust the oil to taste. I used 3 T and that was quite enough.

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The Home Beete! Questionnaire

October 8, 2009 by Paulette Beete

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I first encountered Jennifer Grey over on Design*Sponge, or rather I should say I encountered a few swoon-worthy photos of her gorgeous Southern California home. When Jennifer was sweet enough to chime in on The Home Beete! to thank me for my gushing response to her D*S spread, I took the opportunity to invite her to be the first ever person to answer The Home Beete! questionnaire that’s not me.

Once you’re done with your own oohing, aahing, and general gushing, check out The Old Painted Cottage, Jennifer’s equally swoonworthy online site. With categories like She Makes Things, Curious Finds, and French Country, I have a feeling you’ll be making a (very long) wish list just like moi! (And keep an eye out for more from The Old Painted Cottage when I get around to launching my weekly Shop This! column.)

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THB: In five words or less, your home is . . .

Jennifer: My Sanctuary, Love, and Life.

THB: What do you do at home?

Jennifer: I run my own online business out of my home, so when I’m not taking care of orders, I’m doing projects, moving things around, or contemplating moving things around.

THB: What’s your favorite room (and why)?

Jennifer: That would have to be my dining room. The custom built shelves we had made to showcase my ironstone collection take my breath away every single day.

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THB: What’s your favorite piece of art or memento or plain old thing in your home?

Jennifer: Can a floral loveseat be considered a piece of art? I think it’s the most special thing I have. Purchased at an antique store several years ago, I’ve convinced my husband that when we’re old and gray, we’re making room for this tufted baby in our retirement home.

THB: What could you never throw out . . . though maybe you should?

Jennifer: I’m not sure this is something I would ever “throw out,” but I have a lot of my grandparents’ things. My grandmother adored Victorian style, but her things just don’t go with my current look. I’m not one to put things away out of sight, so I have found a home for her things in nooks and on shelves to keep them in my heart.

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THB: What’s the best piece of decorating advice you’ve ever received?

Jennifer: Two pieces of advice actually. The first came from my mother when she said “Paint covers all sins,” which rang especially true with this house. And the next came from my mother-in-law when she said, “No matter how much you do, you’re never done decorating.” How true, how true.

THB: What’s on your home wish list?

Jennifer: I can’t wait to remodel our master bathroom, which needs a major overhaul, and I’ve been dreaming of a white picket fence since we bought this house one year ago. Or since the day I was born really.

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THB: Got color?

Jennifer: Yep, two of my favorites: A great taupe – Ralph Lauren’s Canvas Natural (seen on my walls in my dining room, kitchen, and living room). And a fabulous creamy white – Behr’s Seaside Sand (seen on all my white furniture, doors, trim, fireplace wall, and ceilings).

THB: Any last words?

Jennifer: Are we there yet?

(See more pix of Jennifer’s digs and get the inside scoop on some of her treasures and marvel–when you see the second image–that we have the same, exact vintage clock on her blog.)

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Hitting the Links (10/5/09)

October 6, 2009 by Paulette Beete

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Let’s sleep on, er I mean in, it! Here’re the winning rooms from Ronda Carman’s Best Bedrooms contest. I love the gorgeous yellow walls in the winner-takes-all room, but I confess that I was rooting for the Reader’s Choice room. Who wouldn’t want to fall asleep, wake-up, dream, read, and dream some more amidst this gorgeous greenery, inside and out? Take note: What all of these rooms have in common is that they offer a mixture of textures, shapes, and furniture styles and periods. Nothing says boring bedroom more than rigorously adhering to a certain set of rules. In other words-nix the matchy matchy folks, just nix it!

C’mon get happy! One of my favorite fashion and design doyennes–Oh Joy!–is now also indulging her foodie side with her new blog Happy Lady! One of my fave features is the sweet little foodie quotes that pop up every now and then. In other words, Oh joy, oh boy!

On the road! If only I had an unlimited bank account (and some actual upper body strength), I’d flit, I’d flee, I’d fly from coast to coast carting around my perfect LBDs, Havianas, James Perse tees, and lots of other It-girl type clothes I don’t actually own in these refreshingly upcycled suitcases. Heck, these suitcases are so cool, that my regular old clothes would become It-girl clothes just by virtue of having been carried in them. (via Shelterrific, and a few other cool blogs I’ve perused lately)

My precious. Let’s face it, most people’s junk somehow turns into my treasure. Lucky for moi, there’s lots of likeminded folk out there, like the proprietor of my new favorite Etsy shop High Street Market. (No, I don’t just like it because it’s a fave haunt of Jen Bekman’s, not that there’d be anything wrong with that. . . Sigh . . . ) From darling little globe banks to wall-worthy vintage paint-by-numbers to collectible–and covetable–brass animal figurines, I guarantee you’ll find something you want . . . even if you won’t admit to it.

Coming later this week–the spoils of Saturday’s thrifting, a new Shop It feature, and my first ever not-answered-by-me Home Beete questionnaire a/k/a my first “big girl” blog post!

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Hitting the Links (10/1/09)

October 2, 2009 by Paulette Beete

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Diana Fayt at work. Photo thanks to Design*Sponge

Flower power. These vases by Diana Fayt are simply stunning. As you can see in the photo shoot, Fayt’s floral-etched vases manage to showcase rather than compete with the blooms they hold. I also love the practical aspects of the design: the vases are narrow-mouthed, so you can get 2-3 arrangements out of a single bouquet of florals. Better yet, they’re just as lovely—and floral—even when they’re bloomless. As I commented when I first saw these: breathtaking. (via Design*Sponge)

Rooms that make you say hmmmm . . .  So here’s an insider look at Hazlitt’s in London. Not sure I’d actually want to stay here—it’s a little too museum-ish for my taste. That being said, I could definitely be convinced to spend a blissful hour putting that wonderful shower through its paces. (via notcot)

Non sequitur alert. Uhm, so this blog (by Rainn Wilson) has absolutely nothing to do with home stuff, except for the fact that I am sitting in my home laughing because of it. I suggest you do the same. (via Twitter, I think . . . )

Eat me. This recipe has me downright salivating. Let me know if anyone gives it a try. (via ReadyMade)

You had me at “fruit stand.” As you all know, I’ve never met a farmer’s market I didn’t like. And I’m also the one in the car gazing longingly after every single hand-lettered sign promising homemade pies or fresh produce or lemonade. So no surprise that I’m dubbing this interview the “feel-good story of the year.” Note to those who like moi are of a certain age: Skip the part where they you how old Andrew is . . . sigh . . . .  (via ReadyMade)

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Can I come over?

September 28, 2009 by Paulette Beete
090309AngeliqueSLIDESHOW22_rect640Detail from Angelique’s Apartment Therapy Home Tour (Photo by Phillip Maisel)

A collection of homes that give me a heart-on . . .

House of Treasures. (via Design*Sponge)

Vive le France (via Design*Sponge)

One person’s clutter is another persons, “Ooooh, treasures!” (via Apartment Therapy)

I think I’m having an art attack! (via Design*Sponge)

A lofty goal (via Something’s Hiding In Here)

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