Posted by Lisa & Rena

A couple of weeks ago, I left Rena alone at Rare Device in the cold and windy San Francisco and headed for one of my favorite spots in the world: California's Mojave Desert.

I flew into Palm Springs (which is a treat itself) and met my aunt and uncle, who live about 50 miles outside of Palm Springs, near Joshua Tree National Forest, in the town of 29 Palms.

A sign entering 29 Palms

29 Palms is a bit of a sleepy town, and that’s what I like about it. I have returned time and time again for its clear, clean air, gorgeous sparse desert landscape, and mountain vistas. There isn’t a whole lot to do there besides hike around Joshua Tree, but this activity alone makes the trip worth it.

Joshua Tree National Park is one of the most special places in the world -- there is nothing else like it on the planet. (In fact, sometimes walking around the park you feel like you might be on another planet).

The famous Joshua trees of Joshua Tree

Before my aunt and uncle retired there last year, I stayed twice at the lovely 29 Palms Inn, a rustic, affordable, and beautiful accommodation in town, near the entrance to Joshua Tree Park.

Besides hiking in the park, there is some great antiquing and thrift store shopping in nearby Yucca Valley. And any kid will enjoy a visit to Pioneer Town, a cool movie set where they used to shoot western TV shows and films. If you like driving around and taking photos of old signs, the expanse between 29 Palms and Yucca Valley are chock full.

An abandoned homestead

Low on pretense and cost, high on hidden charm, gorgeous desert views and fantastic weather (especially in the fall and spring), 29 Palms is truly out of this world.

Good news! If you do not yet have your tickets to the Dwell on Design 2008 exhibition in Los Angeles, our friends at Dwell are now offering free passes to Hatch readers (free entrance to the exhibition only).

To get the goods you’ll need this code: BDODEC.

To register, follow this link: http://www.dwell.com/peopleplaces/conferences/17691009.html. All the details about the event can be found here. Enjoy!

So, are you looking for a little excitement this weekend? Are you tired of the air conditioned cubicle at work? Ready for a little people watching, a little art gawking, and little music, and little cocktail imbibing?

May I suggest: LOUNGE ON 20 and the Sacramento Art Walk!

LOUNGE ON 20 is one of the latest and greatest new hang outs located in the heart of midtown, 20th Street, Sacramento, California. Sleek and modern with a sophisticated, yet casual atmosphere, ON 20 emphasizes wine, champagne and smaller plates. And what champagne lounge would be complete without oysters, so count on them as well!

Owned and operated by the very gallant Ali Makari (who also owns Restaurant 55 , another top notch restaurant), the lounge is doing brisk business. It's small wonder as Mr. Makari has a way of making everyone feel like a VIP. Take a look at the drink menu here and the food menu here. Just a little something to whet the appetite!

The concrete floors, white leather upholstery and dark wood accents all provide an excellent backdrop to the custom lighting which continually changes throughout the evening as it skims over the wave textured white walls. Wine bottles become an artful display against one whole wall of the space. You can tell where the priorities are here!

I stopped in during their "soft opening" last month during the Second Saturday Art Walk to check it out. It was in full swing early in the evening.

A fab place to just hang out with friends, old and new.

And here are some old and new friends now! My long-time gal pal Leanne Davis just happens to be one of the fabulously brilliant designers of ON20. And new friend Valerie Hoffman-Deming headed up the project. Both are from the very talented architecture firm of Lionakis Beaumont Design Group, one of Sacramento's finest. Very nice work ladies!

ON20 is located in the MARRS Building (MARRS = Midtown Art Retail Restaurant Scene) which was developed recently by the very enterprising visionary, Michael Heller. Above is a very typical scene from the Sacramento Second Saturday Art Walk (I will refer to it as SSSAW) right outside the MARRS building.

The Solomon Dubnick Art Gallery, also located in the MARRS building, is a "must-see" on SSSAW. Serious art for serious art collectors.

But there is something for absolutely everyone. There are a host of galleries all within walking distance, and there is a free tram service to get you to those bit farther than you may want to hoof.

If you start a bit on the early side, you may miss the heavier crowds...but then again...the crowds are a part of the excitement. I had to hold my camera above my head to get this picture. It was a "tight spot".

There is also the out and out funky and fun. This was a fund raising art event: the Art Bra Show, which benefited the Albie Aware Breast Cancer Foundation.

There are bands on every corner. This one was all girls.

There are all forms of entertainment.

One of my favorites is Sacramento's own One Man Band Acoustic Sanctuary. You crawl into the very small back entrance of the "band wagon" and find:

Wink Ljizz. He will ask you to take a seat and ask you to name any subject. He will play you a song, or several, based on that subject. Just the thing to hum on your way home at the end of a very happy night.

I know many of you are in the throes of planning Spring parties and charity events, and believe me, I know that it can be daunting to decide on a scheme for an event. Sometimes all it takes is a spark... which is why I thought I would show some images from last week's New York City Ballet Spring Gala which was designed by none other than Charlotte Moss in collaboration with the talented DeJuan Stroud. (Moss and her husband Barry S. Friedberg were also Chairmen on the event.)

The event kicked off the Ballet's Jerome Robbins Celebration, so naturally the evening's program included such Robbins' works as Circus Polka, The Four Seasons, and of course West Side Story Suite. It was the graphic backdrop of this last piece that inspired the design duo's scheme for the event: yellow and black. I think this was an interesting choice because this color combination is graphic and gutsy and is not usually seen in Moss' residential work. But this is where Moss and Stroud were absolutely correct- when planning an event, sometimes you've got to think big and bold. What might work in a small room at home might fall flat in a large space, especially one like Lincoln Center.

Stroud and Moss, seen above attending to pre-gala details, kept things interesting by mixing up the table settings. Some tables had yellow cloths and small arrangements of yellow roses and protea, while others were all about black- black tablecloths, big black vases, and tall branches of forsythia.








Mixing up the table settings keeps things interesting.

Of course, the table settings are not the only things that need to be considered. What to do with the general atmosphere of the space? Are there architectural details that can be incorporated into your design scheme? Are there large voids that need to be attended to? In a place like Lincoln Center, it was important to make sure guests did not feel overwhelmed by the vastness of the space. I think they managed the space issue quite successfully, both with the tall masses of yellow flowering branches and with the yellow sculptural pieces hanging from the ceiling. And how great does the yellow and black striped banner look behind the Nadelman sculpture?


Bringing a large space down to size


It's all about the details

I hope that these tips might help you in planning your next event. With a little creativity, forethought, and careful planning, not only will your party be a success, but you too will be cool as a cucumber the night of the event. Just like Charlotte Moss.


Moss making her entrance at the Gala.

(For more information on the New York City Ballet, click here.)

(Image of Moss at top courtesy of Erin Baiano/Paul Kolnik studio. Decor shots and image of Moss at bottom: Mary Hilliard.)