i grew up in los angeles, and lived there most of my life until coming to san francisco sixteen years ago. so, i’d say i’ve got l.a. in my blood. i know the streets of the valley like the back of my hand, and spent many a rebellious and youthful night trolling the streets of hollywood, not sure looking for what, but enamored with it’s tarnished glamour. i love a good bit of los angeles film noir and fantasize about living in a neutra or lautner home high in the hollywood hills, my view of the sprawling city layed out before me, filtered by a slightly smoggy sunset. this is los angeles, and sometimes, in my dreams i live here again.

i think i’m gonna go high-powered, ultra cool and stylish in the living room like this one from richard powers photography. a mid-century modern flagstone fireplace would be awfully swell, too, even if it is too warm out to ever light the pretty thing.

morgan of the brick house has the epitome of l.a. cool going on in her kitchen and dining room, so i’m gonna go for this look. i find los angeles to be this unusual dichotomy of cheesy spots like the big donut and then it’s all stylish and vintage-modern, like a Butterfly Chair, via moma and morgan’s rad kitchen (below).

i’ll probably dress like this (because this is a fantasy, afterall); and have a view of the hollywood hills, via lonny, which i’ll take slightly for granted and scarcely appreciate as much as i should. i’ll have great mid-century fixtures and eames chairs scattered about carelessly; and some skateboard art called fringe by ryan kapp, via the beholder.

i think i’ll go with a sleek and modern bedroom, via lonny and maybe have a vanity that’s a little bit old-hollywood for those nights i need to glam it up and hit the l.a. scene, because that’s how i’ll roll.

• top image via the life of an architect.

all work and no play makes me a very dull girl. but i played a lot last week at alt summit, so i’m working caaa-crazy hours and still trying catch-up on this very long-anticipated fab friday! but, if you’re going to work at home, it might as well be stylish, right?

i’m thinking about an office makeover and loved some of these inspiring spaces. this vintage dresser diy’d with the word ‘papper’ in swedish, or paper — is a great idea, via elle interiör; simple bulldog clips make for an easy diy photoboard idea from the creative mama; i love everything about lotta jansdotter’s busy, but organized workspace; and Lotta Agaton´s office styling for Södra Interiör is clean and inspirational, too; to get the ball rolling on my office makeover, i picked up a couple of serena & lily’s rolling storage crates for arts & craft supplies. can’t wait to start the transformation!

today’s a good day. my lovely sponsors connected goods are hosting a reader giveaway, and wait for it…it’s a $200 shopping spree on any of their fair trade goods! you can purchase anything you like from their gorgeous collection — from jewelry and clothing, to home and garden goods and all kinds of accessories.

it’s connected goods’ goal to offer the opportunity for you to connect with various artisans throughout the world by way of their fine craftsmanship and unique stories. The fair trade system strengthens the skills of the producers to grow and become self sufficient in the international trading arena, and connected goods connects you more directly to producers in developing countries, reducing the middle men, and helping local artisans make livable wages, while you enjoy products that are backed by a unique story and history. so you can shop away on connected goods, whilst helping out some artisans in need!

Note: comments are now closed, and we will announce a winner shortly! thanks!

to enter, simply:

• visit their facebook page and ‘like it’.

• comment below letting me know you did, and if you like, share with us what you might purchase with your $200 shopping spree. we’ll select a winner randomly from the comments section.

• as always, please leave a way to reach you via email, twitter or facebook, and we’ll announce a winner on facebook and twitter next week.

• please enter by wednesday, february 1, pacific standard time.

* giveaway sponsored by connected goods.

hello from salt lake city where I am for alt summit! we’re all having such an inspiring and fabulous time, and I’ll report back much more on that next week. but in the meantime, i just had a quick moment to post, and thought I’d share this drawing of me by Wendy mcnaughton for the bold italic. I don’t think I’ve drawn since I was like five at Disneyland, so I was quite tickled by it. have a happy weekend and see you back on Monday!

if y’all have received your west elm catalog in the mail this month, you may have noticed some familiar faces and spaces. lucy and i are featured in the current west elm catalog (and their blog front & main) and she looks great as always — damn that girl! the lovely folks at west elm came over for the day, asked me to style up the place and show off my parson’s desk. then, they shot a little behind the scenes.

i’d like to also say, i think it’s super awesome and ahead of the competition to show all my own pieces mixed in with west elm products. normally, you might see just ‘product’ in a catalog and this was so refreshing, to show how their pieces can mix so well with your own. so if you’ve got your catalog, take a peek and say hi to me and lucy!

the new issue of online magazine covet garden features the home of the family behind bookhou at home – a favorite etsy shop of mine. their home, the shop and their designs — all of it wow me. so beautiful in its simplicity and vintage-inspired style. here’s a look, but hop on over to covet garden to see the whole wonderful home tour. and be sure to check out the bookhou at home etsy shop, too for a look at their stylish fashion and decor accessories — i’m just in love with their textiles!

pssst…i just wanted to alert y’all to the fact that On Monday, December 26, my very lovely sponsor, H.D. buttercup is have their Half-Yearly Sale. big discounts if you’ve been hankering for something gorgeous from the H.D. buttercup inventory. both of their entire stores in san francisco and in los angeles have sofas, light fixtures, pillows, tables marked down 20-70%.

did you know the always affordable, and very often ahead of the curve, Swedish IKEA, has a blog? it’s called Life at home or livet hemma in swedish. i’ve been hitting ikea since the first one in california opened in the mid-80′s — we’d make the trek out to riverside, and marvel at the stylish bargains. i like how easily you can mix up IKEA’s Scandinavian pieces with traditional, vintage, mid-century and modern contemporary furnishings for a really eclectic and individual look — even though a million other people may have the same piece. it’s just neutral and cool enough to work.

livet hemma is in swedish, but you can google translate it into almost any language, and you’ll find loadss of inspiration and ideas, and even ikea diy hacks! i like a company that shares how to hack themselves — it’s pretty genius if you ask me. here’s a look at life at home.

there’s a lovely little book out there entitled, a perfectly kept house is the sign of a misspent life. written by Mary Randolph Carter, this is a design book for those who perhaps prefer a little more cluttered (not messy!) aesthetic. mary randolph carter, or just carter as she is known, is the longtime creative director at ralph lauren. if you love stacks of art books, charming mismatched furniture and the value of an unmade bed (cozy!) then carter’s book a perfectly kept house is the sign of a misspent life is definitely for you. Full of photos, design advice and essays that illustrate how to exalt the beauty of imperfection and to live perfectly while doing so.

west elm’s spring line is on its way and should be in stores January or early February, and i do believe they are channeling the road to morocco. these look like magic carpets you could drift away on, daydreaming yourself off to an exotic port of call. west elm’s new ethnic inspired rugs range in styles from a classic Moroccan Berber Rugs to the Patchwork Cadiz Rug in India Ink. the Aquamarine collection is inspired by the ever changing colors of the sea. ahhh, take me away…

UPDATE: The bulk of the new 2012 spring collection will be available in early January. The Morocco collection is being phased in later on in the season and will be in stores and online in mid-to-late February.