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los angeles

17 In los angeles/ travel

a staycation in venice

Right before we moved, we escaped the packing madness for a short staycation near the beach. The Kinney in Venice was kind enough to host us for a little respite, and it was so nice to run away from the mess. It blows my mind just how endless packing was- such a beating. Comparatively, the Kinney was heaven on earth!

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0 In food/ lifestyle/ los angeles

smorgasburg la

 

purple hair fantasy braid 

I was so excited for us to finally be home and unscheduled on a Sunday so we could go eat at Smorgasburg. I love food trucks and food halls and all delicious food, so I was seriously jazzed to get my fat little fingers into all the yummy offerings.  

smorgasboard-directions smogasboard market

During the week, this space is the wholesale produce market, so I’ve been before when shopping for jamming or a pie party.  Then, it’s been crowded with crates of produce, but I’ve never seen this many people at the Bay before.

food truck meet upsmorgasboard ramen burger smorgasboard ramen burger grill_ the ramen burger

We were hungry, so we beelined for a legendary ramen cheesburger.  It was INCREDIBLE- crispy and chewy and savory and it honestly disappeared in just a few bites and I was sad I had to share it with David and contemplated getting right back in line for a second round. It totally lived up to the talk.  

big mozz stickssmogasboard beer garden

We moved on to artisan mozzarella sticks and that was a very good life choice.  We skipped the beer garden, because I had left my ID in my purse from the night before. I wasn’t brokenhearted, because I’m not a beer lover and David was driving, so I wandered off to do a little shopping.

beautiful things la truck vintage record shopping coast to coast vintage shop smorgasbaord shopping

I was pleasantly surprised at the caliber of the shops – there is obviously an application process, because all the vendors were diverse and quality. I went in for sunnies and caftans at Coast to Coast vintage, and eyed this holo swell for quite a while at beautiful things.

banh oui banh mi smorgasboard

Another sandwich round was up next for us, with a pork belly Banh Oui. I know fusion isn’t perfectly authentic, but this was one of the best pork belly sandwiches I’ve ever had, perfectly balanced and so mouthwatering!

smogasboard stuffed face cut out amaze bowls smorgasboard acai bowl smorgasboard

As we moved on to sweets, I had to go full out for the coconut bowl at Amazebowls. It was super gorgeous, but if i’m being honest I make tastier ones – some of the edible flowers were super bitter. And it was pretty tiny for the price, so I might hack these at home soon.

palomaspaletas popciclespalomaspaletas-popcicle-girl

I chose blackberry kaffir lime at Paloma’s Paleta’s, and it was both super delicious and very photogenic- and super refreshing, because it was so. freaking. hot. out there.

There’s a ton we didn’t get to eat, but we’ll be back soon, probably right after our next NYC trip! And I’m eyeing the soft shell chili crab sandwich, some biscuits, and a ramen burger repeat. So much goodness- if I wouldn’t outgrow my clothes, I’d go every Sunday!

purple hair braidbeauty in the breakdown

similar dress, 2, 3 (with tassels!), 4 (patterned), || sunnies  || kate spade bag- on sale!|| sandals || ear jackets|| cuff || rings: pearl, spiral || nails

purple-hair-hottie

loveRavayna

0 In los angeles

modern art in dtla

broad art

I could spend hours in a good museum.  The Broad is a very very good one, and it’s free to boot! It seems like I made our reservation to visit the Broad Museum a lifetime ago, but it just finally rolled around. In the typical mayhem that is my life, I had an early flight, landing at LAX just in time for David to pick me up and for us to head downtown for a morning of art appreciation.

broad america in lights broad huge table chairsgiant chairs broad

I don’t fancy myself some great art critic, but I’m educated, open minded and appreciative of the artistic spirit. It may not speak to me, but I’m interested in it regardless. My view can be too literal for some modern art, but that wasn’t the case at the Broad- the collection is incredibly well curated, one of the best of contemporary art I’ve come across. Even the most absurd of exhibits had accuracy.

broad gold urinal jeff koons michael jackson sculpture

I adore art that really impacts- that makes you think.  Some of the seemingly simplest works of art pull me to introspection. The installation of FEMA propane barrels was so intricate up close, and the Katrina kid in me will carry that with her always.  The graphic art was almost pointed. I love when I want to inspect a piece of art up close, when it engages me that way, and the Murakami portion of the exhibit did just that.

body battle ground picture broadhalographic artwork the broad license pate wall the broad skulls the broad takashi murakami the-broad-wally-and-judybroad tips to sell art broad split lovers

I’ve been super-inspired by negative space lately, in design and art, so admired this divided embrace piece for a little while. It’s far larger than the picture depicts, with the green aspects the size of doors.

We’d seen Jeff Koons’ Tulips when it was on display in Las Vegas, but I’d only seen his other works in print. They are just giant, much bigger that I anticipated, pretty much embodying all things glossy shiny prettiness. Total picture bait too- we had to be patient to get these shots while there were high school field trips in house. Teenage girls are very vocal in their admiration of my hair, for what it’s worth.

the broad jeff koons bunny dog pet-the-jeff-koons-balloon-dog-peakaboo-lips pet-the-jeff-koons-balloon-dog-peakaboo pet the jeff koons balloon dog the broad roy lichtenstein flowers jeff koons tulips broad christopher wool run dog run jeff koons tulips broad

I love how fun modern art is, and how truly creative it can be. Don’t get me wrong, I can spend hours among the Impressionists, but sometimes it’s just really enjoyable. After flying, and LA rush hour traffic, I was tired and cranky when we reached the museum, and it managed to turn my mood around quickly. And David loves museums a lot less than I, but we both really had a good time at the Broad.

broad-roy-litchenstein-mirror broad jasper john painting broad polka dot painting

The Broad is beautiful inside and out, but in a really approachable way.  I enjoy the art in the random, like cleanly designed administrative offices (yes, I peeked). I swore every other person on the escalator was taking a selfie, then realized why when I stepped into the tunnel. And I loved the little voyeur window into the vault, an art exhibit in itself.

the-broad-escalator broad storage paintings broad monkey bones broad bird skeleton

It’s probably the New Orleanian in me, but I always find myself enraptured when beauty and breakdown combine in art. Both  Julian Schnabel’s The Walk Home and Urs’ Fischer’s untitled melting lamppost really drew me in.

broad broken plates broad melted streetlampinfinity light room

Our tickets were for just after opening, so we were early enough to secure a spot to see Yayoi Kusama’s Infinity Mirrored Room. There is a separate ticketing kiosk inside, for 45 second slots within the exhibit, but it normally reaches capacity for the day about 1 pm. We were paged to the exhibit about two and a half hours after we ticketed.  An undulating LED light show in a dark mirrored chamber, inspired by the artist’s hallucinations, it was stunningly beautiful, stimulating and exhilarating, and over way too soon.

infinity light room infinity light room broad couple infinite light room infinity light room broad

similar dress, 2, 3, 4 //  similar necklace2 (under$25!), 3, 4 // earrings (on sale!) // wedges

 

“Art is a humanitarian act. Art should be able to effect mankind, to make the world a better place.”         -Jeff Koons

yayoi kusama infinity mirrored room

loveRavayna

0 In los angeles

break bread la

When in DTLA the other day, we checked out the Break Bread LA exhibit at the Think Tank gallery.

break bread galerie dtla break bread gallery dtla hoop art break bread gallery dtla dead mario

A collaboration between artists Scott Hove and Baker’s Son,  the installation is 7.5 k square feet of a twisted grownup candyland.  Though inspired by Cirque du Soleil’s Zumanity, it definitely has its own quirky flavor.

break bread gallery dtla horny woman break bread galerie dtla suck it bitch shoes break bread gallery dtla mouth shoes heels break-bread-gallery-dtla-growl

It was certainly not like any cake frosting I’ve ever come across, and I’d consider myself quite the cake connoisseur.

break bread gallery dtla cake break-bread-galerie-dtla-phone-mirror break bread gallery camera man

I found the antique phone and was totally having myself an Adele moment, straight silliness. The mirrors really made it feel like you were living in a pink cake- completely surrounded. Even David couldn’t escape!

break bread gallery dtla girl on fire-2 break bread gallery dtla girl on fire break bread gallery dtla water wall break bread gallery dtla water wall bts

This digital installation wall was supercool- it moved and undulated, transforming from flame to water and back again.

My dress is Cynthia Steffe from Nordstrom many moons ago, but I always come back to it. My booties are Old Navy, clutch is Zara, and necklaces were souvenirs from New Mexico.

break bread gallery dtla

The exhibition is open at Think Tank until March 13,  and there are some tickets available for the remaining special events. Just visiting the exhibit is free, so you can make a reservation on eventbrite or just stop in and check it out!

 

 

loveRavayna

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