unexpected guests: kim schoen.
while i was down in los angeles i was lucky enough to stay with my good friend, artist kim schoen. kim lives in mount washington, a beautiful area high in the hills, near the workshop i was attending in atwater village. you may have seen a few of my instagrams from my time there. her place is so lovely, a sun-filled 1939 mid-century modern home surrounded by nature, with floor to ceiling glass windows sharing views of the mountains and landscape below. it even came with a stylish and private guest room below the house, which i luxuriously had all to myself.
kim is a fine artist, an editor at her publication material press, and freelance art director with a penchant for travel near and far, hiking the trails around her home and reading voraciously. i hope you enjoy the tour — as much as i did living it for my brief, but wonderful stay.
What are a few of your favorite things to do around Mount washington?
Walk around and look at hummingbirds, varietals of cacti, and falcons.
How would you describe what you do for a living?
Negotiating differences between kinds of visual rhetoric, generating new forms via image and word…
Do you have a secret spot or off the beaten path place in L.A. you think we should know about?
Then it wouldn’t be secret anymore. But I do love a little bench at the end of a hike in Elysian Park that overlooks a scraggly cactus field and downtown L.A.
What’s on your turntable?
do you have a favorite quote or expression?
“I want to be the owner of my own trouble” — Louise Bourgeois
Do you have a guilty pleasure?
Pleasure isn’t guilty. Pleasure is pleasure!
What are your top three online shops?
Well, yoox.com has pretty much destroyed my life. Italians!
Do you have a favorite possession?
I try to only have things in my home that give me genuine pleasure to interact with and look at.
What bores you to death?
Boredom.
What wouldn’t be caught dead in your home?
I like to think of my home only in terms of what lives…
• all photos by sfgirlbybay.
beautiful living
and lovely interview, inspiring.
Amy
Is that a big bowl of nespole I see there?? What is the name of this fruit in English?
kate – those are called loquats and i’d never had them before visiting kim. they’re delicious!
I think that african statue would probably scare the bejesus out of me in the middle of the night when it is dark and I’m getting a glass of milk. LOL
I love that concrete fireplace, looks awesome. Nice pics!
I love the dining room area (windows, lightness, tablescape… ) — all the orange is lovely.
I think I’ll make my new motto: What Lives! Love her sense of humor. This home is really nice. I feel comfortable in it. When can I move in?
Love the loquat tree and the beautiful Danish prints, and how they kind of echo the aforementioned statue in the kitchen. Harmonious and lovely home.
Always fun to peek inside someone else’s pad. It’s hard to come up with anything I’d absolutely not have in my home, cause sometimes when you just change the colour or size of something that you don’t like poof suddenly it looks fantastic. ex. I wouldn’t ever think of having a skull in my house, then Dan Akroyd came out with the crystal skull vodka and now I’ve got one and if I didn’t have that I might have been tempted to get one in neon or covered in rhinestones and not just display it at halloween. so I never say never!
I like the joie de vivre and the other banner and the idea of hanging them up all the time, not just for parties.
:)
mikky
http://www.todaloos.com
Wow, I love, love, love this home. Thanks for sharing! Makes me miss L.A.
lucky you having such a fab place to stay while visting LA. Teri
Such a lovely home! I love it when places are beautifully decorated but still look like they are happily lived in as opposed to beautifully styled but cold and museum like. Lovely post!
Kate
http://www.theforgetfulwife.com
Another interesting home, expressing beautifully the wit and spirit of its owner. I find it fascinating in peeking inside those types of livng, full of personality and style. Thanks for sharing!
Wow- I could totally move in here~ MCM furniture and art, wood carvings, succulents, textiles and pops of orange… these are pretty much my favorite things in the whole wide world. Thanks so much for sharing- lovely home!
Gorgeous! That white living room couch and tall dresser in the bedroom are amazing! Where did she get them from?
i know the sofa is from blu print, and i’ll find out about the dresser.
http://www.blueprintfurniture.com/
i’m doing a round up tomorrow of “get kim’s look”! :)
I’d say that she’s definitely achieved her goal of only having things in her home that are a pleasure to look at. My Dad lives in Mount Washington. I think you Instagram’d that you were at the Center for Enlightenment (or whatever it’s called) and I wondered if it was the one in Mount Washington. So many cool houses there to ogle when you go out for a walk!
she did indeed – it’s interesting to look at all her lovely objects, but it’s not cluttered or impersonal. and yep, that’s exactly where we were – it’s called the self realization center.
hello windows!! love this light filled space.
So pretty! Love the shot of the living room with the door open. Beautiful light!
Very open, bright and airy. I like your questions-they make you think about your home, or maybe a future home. I know I have some things in my Home I might not use often or need but like having them.
What a beautiful home. Absolutely loved all the textures and fabrics. And the loquats too. We used to have a tree in our back garden when we were growing up and they’ll always be special!
Such a restful, inspiring, light and life-filled space! I love it. Would love my place to capture the feel and look of this. Thank you for sharing, I will bookmark and be coming back for reference. Hmm, but how to incorporate cat beds into the look? :-)
Victoria,
I love, love, love this post. What a nice way to start the day. Thank you for sharing. :)
xoxo,
Kristen
I am so in love with that dining room set-up!
♡ Lexi
FASHION: Glitter & Pearls
WEDDINGS: Glitter Weddings
I’m dying to know where the prints that have the asian characters (the one in particular with the color wheel and diamond pattern) are from they are so charming!! Love the airiness of her home. Thanks for sharing!
I’ll second that!
it’s beautiful Victoria! and extra special because I live in Mt. Washington. such a fantastic LA neighborhood! and I love that quote! xxo elizabeth
beautiful photos of a beautiful place ! “a series of catastrophes and celebrations.” how great is that.
Oh, I would love to stay just a day a night in that house. Just WUNDERBAR! xoxo
What a great place and space. Where did she get the lounge chair in the living room next to the fireplace? I love the dinning chairs.
i checked with kim and she got it in NOLITA in NYC a while ago, and actually, cannot remember the name, but it was near the restaurant colonial. i hope that helps!
Serenity now! I can vouch for the perfect harmony of this place. And the VIEW from the back deck, you really should see it — made me think of Tuscany.
DO you have any info on how the fireplace was made? Concrete???
Thanks,
Yes, I do believe it is made of smooth concrete.