Meet Lara Einzig – she’s the gorgeous Aussie-raised, LA-based mother of three boys (including twins!) with an incredible fashion industry background (Topshop UK and Goop fashion director no less) and a new styling start-up Aquadorium that celebrates summer and beach lifestyle through personal styling, creative direction, content curation and brand collaborations...
She also our new girl in LA and will be contributing to The Grace Tales every month. She’ll be sharing what she’s been up to, brands she’s loving, places she’s visiting and lots more. We’re thrilled to have her on board! Welcome to ‘Lara’s List’ – your new must-read monthly feature. Holding photo: Denise Crew | Go to www.aquadorium.com
Making
As a woman of some stature – 6’1, European shoe size 42 – shopping for shoes (especially those whimsical, barely-there strappy summer sandals) has mostly resulted in deep-seated sartorial trauma. And then, a revelation – personalized, bespoke sandals designed by you and crafted onsite in just 30 minutes? Saved! Founded by Anita Patrickson, celebrity stylist and fellow antipodean (she’s from South Africa), the idea for Amanu Studio was inspired by trips to the old-school custom sandal shops in Capri and feedback from clients all citing the same problem of trying to find beautiful, unique, well-fitting sandals. And so we began – first, I chose one of ten styles. Then, the sole (nude or black), followed by the materials and colours. Thirty minutes later, Claire, my cobbler, created a beautiful pair of sandals and adjusted them expertly to my feet until she achieved the impossible – the perfect fit, precisely to my design. The Amanu experience had the high-end luxury of bespoke, paired with down-to-earth friendliness and price points, as well as that European artisanal sensibility – the sandals also come in the chicest French girl market tote. The retail experience officially turned on its head…from the feet up.
Visit: Amanu Studio
Reading
The River Café restaurant in South London has always been the benchmark for exceptional, modern Italian cooking and now, thirty years on, their eagerly awaited new cookbook River Café London: Thirty Years of Recipes and the Story of a Much-Loved Restaurant, is no exception. Try the Artichoke Trifolati on page 236, close your eyes as you take your first bite with a caldo vino bianco and tell me you’re not in the hills of Tuscany, summering like an Italian.
Coveting
I’ve been following Dezso by Sara Beltran for over 10 years, continually enamoured by her beachy bohemian baubles, handcrafted and inspired by the ocean and natural elements. At the very top of my wish-list, this 18k gold necklace (with the chicest seahorse clasp), carved coconut pendant with a rough polki diamond and shell charm carved from blue tiger eye. I picked up these beauties from Sunroom, a spanking new boutique at the Malibu Country Mart with an impressive edit of stylish resort wear – Apiece Apart, Kalita, Three Graces, Waiwai, Su Paris etc head up an ensemble of brands you may not know, but should definitely get on your radar.
Visit: Sunroom, Malibu Country Mart
Beautifying
The elusive makeup bag upgrade has finally made it to the top of my to-do list – starting with Tom Ford Shade and Illuminate. Light and shadow play creates bone structure and reveals that longed for natural sunkissed complexion. The highlighter dutifully adds a hydrated glow, perfect for us dry, LA desert dwellers…and those summer nights.
Going
I love telling people about Calamigos Ranch, nestled in the Santa Monica mountains, deep into Malibu. A hidden, rustic gem of a guest ranch, luxuriously appointed with cottages, bungalows and estate rooms, surrounded by nature. There are three pools, five restaurants and a spa offering holistic treatments in the open air of the wilderness and soon to launch, a new rooftop cocktail bar overlooking the entire picturesque estate. And when you’re ready for a change of scene and some ocean air, a Tesla Model S will whisk you to their private Beach Club just off the Pacific Coast Highway, precisely twelve minutes away.
Wearing
Nothing feels like summer more than a new kaftan swishing around bare legs. As the air warms in the Northern hemisphere, this perennial palm print dress with the prettiest flutter-sleeve is on high rotation and is a great piece to throw on post surf. Not content with just the dress, my friends from Antik Batik, Paris, also sent me the blouse because j’aime les palmiers!
SHOP: Antik Batik dress, $318.
Seeing
Think ‘David Hockney’ and images of vibrant Californian pool scenes, English countryside landscapes, iPad drawings and photo collages come to mind – the latter of which I had managed to see at the Getty last year in celebration of his 80th birthday. Portraiture has always featured throughout his illustrious career too, and on show at LACMA – David Hockney: 82 Portraits and 1 Still-life… no further explanation needed, just go! A refreshing look at the renaissance of portraiture in an age where the selfie rules. On view through July 29, Los Angeles County Museum of Art
Watching
Utterly captivating, incredulous and frightening (my husband had nightmares!), Wild Wild Country, a six-part documentary on Netflix, hooked me in, riddled my consciousness with countless, obsessive questions, suspended my disbelief and left me wondering if it was all just one giant hoax. Masterfully produced, this is some of the best television I’ve seen in a long time. Did it all happen? I still don’t know, but I did get a perverse kick out of the gauche 80s Americana fashion.
