styled living simply achieved by Jacqueline deMontravel
If my bed were reincarnated it would be as a runway model, changing looks within a pivot backstage. COVID-19 has its plus sides, like more time spent in the bedroom, innocently speaking, my parents read this. Creating looks in the same manner as fashion whims keeps the home updated and is an easy, affordable way to test new looks and find the design you love.
Choosing one strong accent color with a geometric pattern can set a bed’s theme.
There’s the dad who threw their kids in the deep end of the pool to teach them how to swim to those who did a background check on any guy you dated. They embarrass, enlighten, support and demand what seems unachievable because they know you can do it.
Father’s Day ideas in the year of being at home more with family.
In the year of COVID-19, Father’s Day gifts that relate to the quarantine experience is this year’s theme. There has been a rise in purchases for sporting goods, men’s skincare and niche cooking accessories. The kind of gifts that make them feel good, look better and elevate simple experiences–sort of like what our dads do for us.
“2020” could be the title of an Italian opera. One of the darker ones with unrequited love, pounding arias and tragic loss. Instead of falling into the drama, we’ve found ways to pivot from the challenge, the proverbial when life gives you lemons. It begins with the feet or, more specifically, toes. As salons begin to open, at-home treatments offer a safer option and it’s a lot easier to relax without gasping through a mask.
When the pandemic hit the U.S. crocuses began to break through the soil, precursors of the bright season ahead. After a bleak experience of lives lost, quarantine and financial instability, there were signs of reopening–all shattered from the senseless loss of George Floyd. Protests ensued, emphasizing the message that Black Lives Matter. Next came rioting but in the same realm of Lloyd’s unnecessary death, where his family spoke that this was against his peaceful nature, what was the point? Rioters profited at the expense of a man’s death, destroying the businesses of people who have been trying to recoup from COVID-19 that killed so many and kept us sheltered–away from families, community and regular human interaction. Perhaps such upheaval from normalcy altered many, becoming the switch that turned on bad behavior. Emotions are raw. We were trying to contain a virus, an unseen mysterious enemy that I hoped united us. The virus does not discriminate on gender, sex or race. It should bind humans. Floyd’s murder pivoted the collective energy from #WeAreInThistogether to #BlackLivesMatter.
Peonies begin to mark their glory with impeccable timing.
Fall fashions are going to look a little different this year, face masks are the It accessory. Thank you COVID-19. For Back to School, the trendy kids will have to slip off their llama-printed mask in between slurps from metal straws. Masks come in as many colors and patterns as a unicorn’s den. Designers have crafted options to provide a safe, fashionable mask to outfit everyone in the family and meet preferences such as ties, elastic bands and pointier cuts versus a strip of cloth. Aside from a way to exert the style trend of 2020, before donning your mask, follow precautionary measures to ensure good health as many sold are non-medical grade.
Fashion is taking note, masks are the leading accessory of 2020.
The love affair has been a long one. It began when I saw a woman wearing the most remarkable black velvet pea coat. New York City, morning rush hour walk, but I had to stop her to ask where the coat was from, assuming it would be a couture piece with only five in existence. She pulled me aside with a hushed giggle and whispered, “Gap Kids.” Of course it was Gap Kids, I’ve always admired their children’s styles and wished they’d make the same designs for adults. As a true petite-sized woman their size 10 or 12 would fit. While I don’t actively look for children’s sizes because the cuts are created for females who don’t have a learner’s permit, the clothes offer a fun, stylish option. What’s even more fun is the kid’s clothes prices.
Borrowing clothes from your kids, shown here in a Ralph Lauren crewneck flag sweater.
For women who have a smaller build and tomboy style, here are our picks to add to your summer essentials list:
If we were to Zoom into private spaces during shelter-in-place, dining tables would look like a breeding ground of kid’s books, coffee cups and chewed up pencils without erasers–a fusion of office, classroom and everyday activity. We’ve built enough forts to populate a nomadic village. We’re experts on the routines of our household and rather not have the conversation about slacking on toothpaste. Now that signs of reopening the country are in play, with a message from the president to return to work, the next wave of uncertainty is triggered. Safety is foremost, there is the profound need to ignite intellectual, mental and physical nourishment, as well as the reality of earning a living. The best way to be responsible citizens is to maintain life at pause when able, reenter society with an awareness that this virus is omnipresent–remaining vigilant on using sanitizers, incessant hand washing, wearing a face mask and social distancing. Says Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York it, “‘violates common sense for states to reopen before meeting CDC guidelines.”
Golf is a great way to maintain a healthy approach to social distancing with its open space and being outdoors, just don’t share balls!
When news of artist adventurer Peter Beard’s disappearance was reported right when quarantine took effect, it was both shocking and apropos. This is a man who hung with elephants and icons with ebullience. Raised with privilege in Manhattan, earning an art degree at Yale University, he had every opportunity available but chose the path of an artist.
Peter Beard 1938 – 2020
Tripped on your kid’s chrome book yet? Have the conversation with your husband on his need to use a noisy pencil sharpener in a digital age? Taking Inventory of your spaces applies to all facets of living: home, mental, relationships, diet and health. Not to get overly existentialist, this is a forum that covers how to set a holiday table with gusto, but containment puts analysis into a deeper perspective. It’s an exercise on what works, worked but needs adjusting, or should be removed entirely. With more time at home, and the home becoming a tricky hybrid of work, family and even a classroom space, design needs to be as efficient as ever.
Editing rooms to its basic needs increases livability, especially when a house serves multiple functions during shelter-in-place.
I’ve been wearing pajamas to pump gas. (Please refer to aforementioned story). The last time I let myself go like this was when I was a student backpacking in Europe, saving money for drinks over suitable lodging. Now all grooming efforts have been directed to the hands—makeup, blow drying and beauty treatments are so pre-COVID-19. Accessorizing is for virtual meetings. Socks are becoming threadbare.
A dress I designed, which I wore to one of the first Met galas.
