The Perennial Favorite Escape for City-Weary Creatives

Tomorrow marks the Autumnal Equinox in the Northern Hemisphere, where the day is equal to the night. I’m always wondering which season feels more appropriate for slowing down when our world constantly moves at such a speed that life feels like a constant whirlwind. Seasonal shifts feel so sudden, I suggest we all seek more solitude, respite especially right now.

I am writing from Seattle after a few days in the San Juan Islands and the crispy fall air feels so refreshing after months in the hell-level heat of Texas summer. The Pacific Northwest feels quite similar to today’s destination of Hudson Valley. Stunning countryside, mountains and idyllic towns accessible from a major city, perfect for seasonal escapes. Places where artists, writers, and creative types go to reset and start anew.

Lila couldn’t be more well-suited to tell us about Hudson Valley as a destination for the creatives. She is the founder and editor of a publication called Wrong House, an online magazine for “design writing with guts”. And I couldn’t recommend more, Wrong House is one of my go-to reads online these days. Lila is brilliant and so is her taste level for a life well-lived. I met her a lifetime ago when producing a photography event in 2012 and have loved getting to see her flex her storytelling in the world of design (architecture, interiors and furniture). She keeps bees in Ulster County and co-owns a record store in Kingston. And her Hudson Valley guide (below) should be bookmarked immediately.

Enjoy the read,

Mariah

I love getting to know a town through repeated visits, and meeting locals. Savannah, Georgia, is one of those places—I used to drive there to visit my Dad, who moved there in the early 2010s, and dropping in and out of that bizarre and welcoming atmosphere gave me such an appreciation for the folks that live and make culture there. We’d go on these meandering visits to neighbors and friends, strange errands to pick up art or plants from local characters, and pop-ins into hole-in-the-wall lunch spots it felt like only we had found. Visiting there now on my own, it’s hard to have that kind of experience without a local to take me under their wing—but I’m always going to remember those years of weekend trips.

I love taking a long weekend drive and exploring a place I’ve never been. I recently went out to the Berkshires in Massachusetts for the first time, right in the middle of everything being in full summer bloom. I mostly wandered around Lenox, Massachusetts, a charming little town that’s now home to Walker Street Market—maybe my favorite new store for design and craft. Everything in there is beautifully made, from sculptural andirons made by Simone Bodmer-Turner, to textiles by Megumi Shauna Arai, to lighting (featuring real flowers!) by local designer Jake Coan. I could go on and on here, but it’s beautifully curated, and Matthew, the proprietor, is incredibly knowledgeable about everything there.

Most of my time is spent in the Hudson Valley—my husband and I moved to Stone Ridge, New York, a little over two years ago.

Ha. Um, if we’re talking about traveling for leisure—as little as possible! I am what my best friend and I call a “travel bottom”: I do not want to be in charge. Most of my professional life is so frantic that when it comes to leisure, the last thing I want to be doing is making in-depth agendas and massive research documents. I’m trying to relax, damn it! My strategy mostly involves creating a Google map and saving any shop, restaurant, or attraction that looks interesting to me. I then plan my day around neighborhoods, clustering visits within certain geographic areas. If I get to one or two hard commitments in a day, I consider that a success.

If it’s for leisure, having a great time and not destroying my bank account in the process. If it’s for work, it’s a different story—then I’m hardcore planning and packing my schedule to the gills. I often travel to “design weeks” for my writing, like Salone del Mobile, the biggest global furniture show that takes place each April in Milan. At those events, I’m balancing between events I find interesting that might contribute to my knowledge or coverage of design, events being put on by folks in my network, and ones where there’s a potential for a commercial play.

My website is at http://www.lila-allen.com, and personal Instagram is at @lilerr. Wrong House is at http://www.wrong-house.com and @wrong__house.