What I’m loving right now: “Curiouser and curiouser!” This iconic phrase from Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland perfectly captures my mood at the moment. As we navigate Wonderland, we encounter a disorienting blend of the familiar and fantastical, the natural and the supernatural. Bright colors, ornate patterns—florals and stripes!—and unpredictable scale keep us curious. Wonderland’s chaotic rules turn logic on its head, embodying a playful mix of psychedelia and whimsy, limited only by our imaginations.

I’d recommend it to someone who also likes…retro futurism and mid-century modern design but is hungry to mix it up. 

Courtesy of Everett Collection

Where I’ve spotted it in the wild:

A lot of pieces I’d characterize as curiouser and curiouser were at Design Miami, Los Angeles.  These all stop and make you wonder, smile, or get curious about their form, materials, scale, and meaning:

• Chris Wolston’s Hand Chandelier.
• Rachel Schillander’s Copper Torchiere Floor Lamp.
• Satyendra Pakhalé’s BM Horse Chair Bright.

Courtesy of The Future Perfect

Courtesy of The Future Perfect

Three real-life ways I’d try it:

1. Floral wallpaper that creates the Wonderland feel, like House of Hackney’s Woodland, Block Shop’s Peony, or my Idris Flower print for Target.
2. Wicker that gets weird. These pieces are at the intersection of natural and supernatural.
3. Rugs that transport you.

Courtesy of Ruggable

Courtesy of Block Shop

Courtesy of Jonathan Adler

It looks great with…Neo-Victorian home decor, like upholstered pieces that feature velvets, needlepoint, and floral prints, as well as ornate mirrors and tufted sofas reinterpreted in a modern way.  

If money, time, and space were no object, I’d…design a bed-and-breakfast in this style, where every room was a transformative journey to somewhere curious and fantastical. 

My shopping criteria: Look for new, vintage, and handmade to keep the space feeling eclectic and surprising. 

My elevator pitch to skeptics: “Imagination is the only weapon in the war against reality.” —the Cheshire Cat

What’s the next…

• Paint color you want to use: Havana Affair by Alkemis.
• Decor item you’re on the hunt for: An upholstered headboard for my king-size bed that is comfortable, beautiful, and not at all basic.
• Vintage score of your dreams: An original 1920s Art Deco mirror ball.
• Design destination on your bucket list: Cambodia.
• Home project you’d like to tackle: I’m in the process of designing an ADU in my backyard for my parents.
• DIY you might actually do: I’ve been sewing a lot lately—so making pillows and curtains.
• Trend you hope makes a comeback: I love that I’m seeing colorful bathroom fixtures be a thing again!
• Collection you’re working on: Keep your eyes peeled for new collections at Target and Ruggable—and I am working on a top-secret line launching in September. I can’t tell you what it is, but I can say that the designs may induce dancing. 

Courtesy of Objekti

Courtesy of Justina Blakeney

What’s the last…

• Thing you bought for your home: I was just in Mexico, and I bought a pineapple jar—kind of like this one or these—that I love so much.
• Post you saved: This pink house—the garden is EVERYTHING!
• Account you loved: @ayeshaophelia.
• Photo you snapped: An abstract mermaid and turtle that I just finished drawing.

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