Quick Takes With: The Remodelista Editors

This week, a Quick Takes Special Edition, in which our design editors answer Qs from our own questionnaire. Read on for our favorite design destinations, recent things we bought (and loved), definitely-would-do-that-again house upgrades, and more height-of-summer dispatches:

You’re invited to dinner. What’s your go-to gift?

There’s a cut-your-own flower farm down the street, and I like to make a wild arrangement of whatever’s blooming. A couple pastries (for the next morning) are a treat, too. – Annie

What’s on your bedside table?

Currently it’s the Hilma AF Klint biography and Minois lip balm that I share with my daughter. – Alexa

What’s a film or TV show whose aesthetic has stuck with you?

The apartment of Jaime, The Bionic Woman. I must have been 6, newly arrived in this country and devouring reruns of the show. Her open-floor apartment (I think above a barn?), decorated in ’70s orange and browns, seemed at once expansive and intimate—and very American to my immigrant eyes. Watching it, I couldn’t wait to be an independent grown-up one day and have my own space, to decorate as I want. – Fan

Seaside Hotel, set in Skagerrak, Denmark, in the years pre- and post-World War II. I love the design details, starting with the wash basins being delivered to guest rooms in the opening credits. I just watched season 10, the finale! – Margot

Which Instagram account do you go to for design inspiration?

@themodernhouse. – Julie

Always, @clarissedemory. Her selection of personal work and sharing the work of friends and colleagues remains decidedly un-Instagram-y and authentic. Increasingly, though, I’m turning more to my holds at the local library for design inspiration. – Alexa

What has been your best house upgrade?

Real wood floors. When we moved to Oregon a couple years ago, we looked at many new-construction homes; after living in an old Colonial on the East Coast, we were excited to finally enter the 21st century. Problem was, many of the new homes had engineered wood floors, which these days look nearly the same as the real deal. Except I can tell. And I much prefer the feel and look of real wood. – Fan

Last summer I scoured Etsy for vintage brass switchplate covers to replace the yellowed plastic ones in our Wellfleet house; what a difference. I wish I had done it years ago. –  Julie

Adding a corner banquette in place of a second sink in our tiny kitchen. We had a furniture designer friend build ours and it was very reasonable. – Margot

Swapping out the ugly track light over our dining room table with the Hay rice paper shade (size medium). So simple, but suddenly the room looks effortlessly cool. – Annie

What’s a simple design move you wish you’d known sooner?

A duvet cover without an insert makes a perfect summer-weight coverlet. – Annie

My favorite sheets are…

Extra crisp, like LL Bean’s percale. There should be an audible crinkle. – Annie

My go-to kitchen utensil is…

Kitchen tongs, especially during the summer, for tossing and serving salads. Williams Sonoma offers good options. – Julie

First design love?

Le Corbusier; I studied his work in the legendary William Jordy’s architecture class at Brown University. – Julie

What item from your closet do you have on repeat?

Block-printed tunics from Layla. – Margot

A pale yellow Cristaseya sweater, when weather permits. – Alexa

Favorite design shop to visit (online or in person)?

Maison Empereur in Marseille, and also Labour and Wait in London and Tokyo—I’ve made pilgrimages to them all. – Margot

March in San Francisco. – Julie

What is the last thing you purchased for your house?

Just last week I bought a bronze Cosanti wind chime for our front porch. I love the green and pinkish patina on it. – Fan

Not a purchase, but my grandmother, whom I never met, was a beautiful artist, and my parents recently gave me one of her vibrantly colored paintings. I can’t wait to hang it in my writing room where I can see it and think of her. – Annie

Something you’re coveting?

A new kitchen! My partner and I moved into our circa-1942 Cape a year ago and inherited a rather dated kitchen: orange-y wood cabinets, a broken dishwasher, a yellowed fridge. A coat of paint on the walls and cabinets made a huge difference; we’ve even grown to love the retro stove. But I can’t wait to start fresh. I’m dreaming of slender stainless-steel counters, no linoleum worktops in sight. – Annie

A pair of Giandomenico Belotti Spaghetti Armchairs, but I fear they are not child-friendly, so maybe in a decade! – Alexa

Thanks for reading! Stay tuned next week for more Quick Takes.

N.B.: Featured photograph by Matthew Williams with styling by Alexa Hotz, from Before/After: A Remodelista’s Refreshed Parlor Floor Flat in Brooklyn Heights, NY.