#118: Looking Messy Is Hard Work
Big chop, more Mexico.
I arrived back in London a few days ago and by the time our suitcases were loaded into the boot of our uber, I’d booked an appointment to have my hair chopped off.
The cut felt great. I wished I had a better reason for doing it (my hairdresser Laurence said, “people usually do this after a break up,” and I wondered what demons I had subconsciously tried to excise), but also like the idea of a drastic change just for change’s sake.
As I learn time and time again, looking low maintenance is not the same as being low maintenance: I am just coming to terms with how much mousse I need to apply to have my mop look aspirationally unkempt (i.e. less mushroomy). But as someone who shaves with soap (if at all) and only really uses hair oil, mousse is a novelty. We are currently watching Our Planet and I feel very sleek and hydrodynamic in the shower, like an otter in the kelp forests of California.
Speaking of summer, I took my new do to some classic weekend activities in the sun: dim sum at Goldmine; not one but two al fresco pints (make hay, etc.); Sainsbury’s for a grocery run; Padella for a catch-up with Millie so jam-packed we could’ve gone for an hour without ordering anything.
What was the last drastic change you made? Did you feel transformed?
Mexico City, Minus Mealtimes
To supplement my last email, here are my favourite addresses from our eight-day-stay that aren’t centred around eating.
To stay:
After spending our first few nights at the Mondrian in Condesa, we moved 15 minutes away to Hotel Dama. I loved it there: the rooftop for breakfast and drinks; the perfect showers; and big beds to lie in a taco-induced stupor.
To see:
Frida Kahlo’s Casa Azul, a sublime if crowded space distilling Frida’s creative and emotional world. Book ahead and don’t miss the side exhibition on her clothes, including the corset she painted, hammer and sickle and all—I wouldn’t be surprised if the mirrored discs inspired the coveted Prada SS1999 skirts. A great double bill with Trotsky’s House Museum, nearby.
Museo Nacional de Antropología, where I wish I had more time. I loved the indoor-outdoor layout, and the fact that the Aztecs had a patron deity for prostitutes.
Barragán Houses: we went to the Casa Estudio and Casa Pedregal, and it was fun to compare and contrast the two: the first with its almost womb-like fortress feel, and the latter with its expansive layout. Ivan bought a pair of huarache sandals at Tetetlán, next door, which would be a nice place to spend a few hours working or reading. For the architecturally inclined, a kind Floss reader Molly also shared a list including nearby houses that belonged to Pedro Ramirez Vazquez and Barragán collaborator Max Cetto—you can make a full day out of them.
Museo Anahuacalli, a bonkers literal temple to pre-Hispanic craft conceived by Diego Rivera.
Kurimanzutto, a beautiful open air gallery currently showing works by Gala Porras-Kim, Minerva Cuevas, and Thiago Hattnher.
I wouldn’t go out of your way, but it was fun to see the murals, painted by students of Diego Rivera, at Mercado Presidente Abelardo L. Rodriguez in the city’s historical centre.
To shop:
