Call me a sucker or a sentimentalist, but I find myself powerless to resist any of the rampant seasonal clichés. At this very moment, for example, I’m ashamed to confess I’m writing this from a chaise in my living room with Nat King Cole on the speakers, a crackling fire in the hearth, and eggnog on the rocks in a tumbler on my tray table. It’s the night before this issue goes live—why, oh why am I incapable of writing this editor’s letter any earlier than the absolute last minute?—and I figured I might as well throw myself fully into the festive swing of things. So welcome to Lonny’s holiday issue, and to my freshly made-over living room.
Read more on the makeover process in my full home tour, coming soon. For now, suffice to say that even as a small-scale redecorating project, it was an enlightening and humbling experience that made me doubly appreciative of all who take on such a task. I can’t wait to tell you about what I learned and the products and sources I discovered—for example, the Arhaus sofa-and-ottoman combination that finally solved the quandary of how to achieve elegant yet family-friendly seating. (Not to mention the superhuman team of delivery guys who literally hoisted it into my home.) The genius new service called Framebridge, which represents a welcome game changer in the industry. My new TaskRabbit buddy, Adam Bierton, who not only grows a mean mustache but carves award-winning pumpkins and built me a gorgeous set of floor-to-ceiling bookshelves inspired by this IKEA hack from Jenny Komenda. Oh, and that chaise I mentioned earlier? One of the most comfortable pieces of furniture I’ve ever owned—and you may never guess where it’s from.
Compared to many of the spaces you see in Lonny, my living room is hardly luxurious. But if luxury means the capacity of your surroundings to make you happy, then it would surely qualify. In that respect, my little Brooklyn two-bedroom can hold its own with homes as diverse as the chalet in the Swiss Alps or the glamorously quirky Southern California pad inhabited by one of my favorite designers. Still, when it comes to our issue’s cover star, we couldn’t think of anyone more suited to an aura of opulence than Hollywood golden girl Camilla Belle, who manages to outshine even a setting as burnished as the Palihouse Santa Monica.
Thank you for reading Lonny this year and providing your valued feedback on all our work. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I read and think about every e-mail and tweet (and even the odd feisty Facebook comment) you send our way. Next year brings more exciting changes. We’re experimenting with ways to bring you the home-tour content you love on an even more frequent basis. Check back for more news soon—and until then, turn up the Nat King Cole, top up the spiked eggnog, and toast with us to a good year just ended and an even better one to come.
ON THE COVER Actress Camilla Belle at the Palihouse Santa Monica. Photographed by Colette de Barros. Dress by Gustavo Cadile; shoes by Kurt Geiger London; earrings by Matthew Campbell Laurenza, rings by Casa Reale and H.Stern, and bracelets by Sethi Couture. Fashion styling by Caley Rinker at the Wall Group. Hair by Gio Campora at the Wall Group. Makeup by Brett Freedman at Celestine Agency. Produced by Sarah Storms.
