5/9/18

Inspired Movie Sets: You've Got Mail

To be a great designer, I believe that you must always be slightly bored.* Which is why, when you ask a designer, like really ask, "where do go for inspiration?" they won't say "Houzz." (and if they do, maybe consider re-hiring). Yes we go to Houzz and Pinterest, but it's more of a tool that we use rather than our source of true inspiration. In fact, the question "where do you go for inspiration?" is one that designers often talk about amongst themselves, as if they're sharing a secret recipe. Like, we're all over here baking apple pies, but how do they come out equally delicious, yet slightly varied? Is it in the flour?  the sugar? the timing?

So today I'm sharing one of my inspiration sources: Movie Sets.

Instead of diving into all the nuances about what lights my fire on a good movie set, I've decided to turn "Inspired Movie Sets" into a new series, where I will explore sets one by one, and talk through the details as they come. Today we will start that series with one of my favorite sets (and one of my all time favorite movies) You've Got Mail.


Ah, here we are outside Kathleen Kelly's (Meg Ryan) Brownstone. It's fall, and no one is concerned with the fact that she could never afford this IRL. She runs a bookstore that grosses 300K/year (according to Joe Fox aka Tom Hanks, who later announces this at a party) and somehow, she lives in what is surely a $7-million Bachelorette pad, in the heart of NYC. Yes people, we are officially on a movie set. But HEL-LO, look at that entryway. Bay Windows, original millwork, a perfectly colored front door. Ay-yai-yai!


Type-type-type-type-type, I love you, Tom Hanks, Marry me and my cute lamps and perfectly placed vase. I also have fantastic built-ins to my left, probably orginal too, type-type-type-type 


Oh look, it's me again! Kathleen Kelly. I'm still typing, but this time you can see my sweet little antique desk more clearly, along with my perfectly curated wall art. Somehow each element on my desk is perfectly balanced and arranged. It's almost as magical as how I've come to afford this place (or did she inherit it? I think they may mention that at some point in the movie... but still, COME ON PEOPLE).

I just... can't, even. The millwork, the matching sconces with tiny-little-shades, a perfectly selected mirror, and two (surely antique) plates on just the tinsiest sliver of wall. Shoot, even the toilet is cute.

P.S. The Pajamas. Are they horrible or do I love them because they are also antique?



Cut to:  *antique pajamas flouncing around living room* Actress peers out of perfectly hung sheers, to confirm that boyfriend has fully exited the brownstone. She is surrounded by well curated prints; stripes, florals, and dots, as she tip-toes back to antique desk with perfect lamp, perfect vase, and the aforementioned PERFECT BUILT INS. 

This was filmed in 1998, and 20 years later, I'm pretty sure she could rent out the shelves themselves for like $700 a month. I've seen worse here.


The kitchen is tiny, but like a good New Yorker, she doesn't do much in there anyway. Plus, it has french doors with glass windows, WHICH IS ALL IVE EVER WANTED FROM LIFE.


Oh wait, she's doing something in there. I see veggies and a pot, maybe she's making soup. This must be from one of the scenes where she was sick and couldn't leave the house. Remember? it was like.... 


This! There she is. Full on flu. 

And Tom Hanks Joe Fox brings her flowers and she's all "huh?" because he just put her out of business and was like a TOTAL JERK and stole all the caviar at a party WHILE putting her out of business and subsequently stealing her main source of income.

..But I digress.. look at the floral sofa! So 90's. Which is a great place to pause this article and be serious for a moment; because this sofa, inspires me. Not that I want to put traditional, floral sofas, all over Portland, but that I'm drawing ideas from it. I love how full it feels with all the pillows and blending of prints and textures. Nowadays, if I hop on the aforementioned design websites, I'm going to find mostly minimal, sleek sofas with sharp lines. 

Example:



It's a handsome sofa, and I see it a lot. Which is why it doesn't spin my wheels like the 1998 floral throw back, coated in cushy, varied pillows and throws. 

Make Sense?

Oh heck, back to the movie:

Great, we didn't miss much; Kathleen Kelly appears to still be typing. This time she's probably talking about that country-chic-meets-french-renaissance bed frame and headboard. THIS IS NOT SOLD IN STORES PEOPLE, not in 2018 anyway. But again, the wheels of inspiration are turning:
Soft stripes, white-gold frame, with a kiss to Paris? Um yeah, I'm on board. Where can I custom order one and DO YOU WANT ONE? Unlike the sofa, I'm not simply inspired by the bed frame, I'm ready to buy. Everything comes back around, right?


*sigh* 
Movie-Set-Perfection

L


*This is something Issac Mizrahi said years ago, regarding fashion design, and it's stuck with me ever since. 

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