Spending winter in Los Angeles means I get to indulge a lifelong passion for looking at old stuff that goes way back to thrift-shopping in high school. (Seriously, we were dressing like Annie Hall before the movie came out.) Other than the local Habitat for Humanity, which occasionally has a few gems, there’s nothing comparable on the Oregon Coast. The Long Beach Flea Market was in action our first Sunday in town, and despite the rain forecast we couldn’t stay away, spending maybe an hour before the heavens opened up.
Another of my first stops was Urban Americana in Long Beach, where I spotted these Bauer planters. I didn’t know Bauer was doing a Willy Guhl-type planter! These were $400 each.
Note I didn’t say “shop” for old stuff. The days of finding Thonet chairs cheap at the local thrift shop are over. Even with prices out of my reach, I really enjoy a nicely curated collection of experiments in design, some failures, some timeless. It’s a great way to quiz yourself on what attracts your eye, or not, and why.
The real Willy Guhls I found at Big Daddy’s, which is closing this month and relocating in the future to Carpinteria.
There were a few large planters brimming with succulents plump from the recent rain. I was so attracted to this simple idea that I brought it home — the idea, not the planter.
I didn’t happen to have an imposing architectural bowl on hand, but there was a slimy, disused birdbath that, when tipped over, proved to have a hollow base. After cleaning and drilling a drainage hole, I pulled every spare Echeveria agavoides I could find to fill the basin. This echeveria seems to endure months of neglect better than the blue kinds in my garden.
What’s really funny about this scene is that it’s a composite of past rambles around town. The galvanized table top came from Smith & Hawken’s going-out-of business sale. Used for shop display, S&H didn’t even think to put a price on it, but we managed to come to reasonable terms when I decided I couldn’t leave without it. Indestructible after decades outdoors. The Loll couch comes from a local consignment shop. Also indestructible other than the sooty filth that accumulates during the. months we’re away. It easily scrubs clean.
On my rambles around town I was hoping to find maybe a couple more metal shop chairs, so incredibly useful for showcasing pots. Slim legs, doesn’t throw much shadow.
For example, the Mexican Grass Tree, Dasylirion longissimum, in the ground was mostly concealed under debris at the base of the fernleaf acacia. Elevating it on the shop chair really brings out the cascading quality of its grassy leaves, which I prefer to the saw-toothed D. wheeleri.
After Big Daddy’s, I stopped at Rolling Greens and Flora Grubbs, which were roughly in the same part of town. I took few photos, just enjoyed the beautiful plants and containers. I think I remembered the camera at Big Daddy’s mainly because the location will be closing. They will be missed.
More rambles to come — have a Happy Thanksgiving!