"It was an architectural gem – a hidden surf shack."
If you’re into quasi-kitsch mid-century interiors as fashioned by glamorous Amazonian women with a history of posing nude, you’ll know and adore the work of LA-via-Myrtle Beach’s Kelly Wearstler (pronounced Worst-ler).
Ms Wearstler, who is fifty-six in a few weeks, flew onto my radar in 1999 when she fitted out the relaunched Avalon Hotel in a sea of pretty greens and blues and banquette seating and mid-century pendants, transforming what was once a shadow haunted vestibule filled with the eyes-stinging smog of disinfectant.
The New York Times was similarly enchanted writing, “Her playful, elegantly over-the-top designs for the Avalon Beverly Hills changed the look of boutique hotels around the world.”
I gave my pretty white dick some Christmas sport in those rooms shortly after its doors were reopened. Glory days etc.
Now, and as celebrated in her latest book Synchronicity, the former Playboy playmate (“You can ask any of my friends. I have no problem with my sexuality. I’m completely uninhibited. Everybody has a body, and I want to show mine. God blessed me,” she says) has given an old surf shack on the Malibu beachfront her magical touch.
The joint had been on the market for years when Wearstler rented it so she and her fam could tough out the pandemic months. A pal had stayed at another place three doors and she was thrilled by how it hadn’t been gussied up by zeitgeist-y renovations.
So she tracked down the owner, asked if she could rent it and he said, hell yeah, long as I can show the place to potential buyers.
Smart guy.
Wearstler made the place look a million bucks and within a few months had a buyer – a Silicon Valley surfer who has since kept the place relatively original.
“You could have built a house three times the size of this one, which is what everybody unfortunately does on Broad Beach. But he’s not tearing the house down, just fixing up the original bathrooms and doing a little more landscaping. That was amazing to hear,” Wearstler told Wallpaper.
“It was about bringing together old spirit and new spirit to create unique experiences that make every room memorable.”
Check out Wearstler’s book here, nude pics can be bought here.