carson`s la - Carson Kressley

Q+A
Describe your first time in L.A.
The very first time I went was
my high school graduation present. I begged my parents to
let me go with my older sister,
who was 21. We were scared to
fly into LAX because we were
country mice. We rode around
on a double decker bus, went to
Hollywood Boulevard. Everything
I knew about L.A. came from
Charlie’s Angels and The Beverly
Hillbillies. I saw palm trees, fancy
cars and said, “I think this is
home.”
What‘s a must-do whenever
you arrive in town?
I always do L.A. a little bit like a
tourist, going to the Beverly Hills
Hotel for brunch on a Sunday
morning. They have amazing
food, and you can see Tom Ford
in the Polo Lounge.
carson’s l.a.
When it comes to bringing opposing viewpoints together,
Carson Kressley may be our greatest diplomat. And that’s not
just because of his barrier-breaking fashion advice for straight
men on Bravo’s reality TV series Queer Eye for the Straight Guy
and straight women on Lifetime’s How to Look Good Naked. It’s
also because of the East Coast native’s unabashed love of L.A.
The fashion maven uses New York for a mailing address, but
he considers L.A. his second home, while still regarding it with
a visitor’s excitement. “As soon as I get there,” he tells Where, “I
rent a fancy car and ride around with the top down and still live
L.A. like a TV show.” The Hollywood resident hosts two new
reality shows on the Oprah Winfrey Network: Carson Nation
and Your OWN Show: Oprah’s Search for the Next TV Star.
What’s next on the agenda?
Have lunch at Fred Segal; try
on clothes and see stuff I can’t
afford, ‘cause I’m on cable;
get some amazing pasta, then
the pants don’t fit anymore.
There’s lots of little gems in
West Hollywood: The Yogurt
Stop—it’s so much better than
Pinkberry—and Dominick’s on
Beverly. I love to eat outside
in L.A., because in February in
New York, you can’t do that....
Also, I’ve discovered the joys
of the [San Fernando] Valley.
Some of the best sushi places in
the world are there. They have
a Neiman Marcus now, so it’s
totally safe to go there.
Where else do you break out
the credit card, shopaholic?
I like local places like Fred Segal,
Denim Doctors for jeans, H.
Lorenzo in Sunset Plaza. They
have a little touch of glamour
without being overwhelming,
like Rodeo Drive. If you want to
find your inner Adam Lambert,
that’s the place to go. And what’s
also great is the Rose Bowl Flea
Market. They have great vintage there. I’m willing to get my
fingernails dirty, or at least my
assistant’s fingernails dirty.
When you’re­shopped out, what
else do you do for fun?
I’m a big equestrian­—I grew up
on a farm in Pennsylvania—so
whenever I get homesick, I go
riding. There’s a place called Park
Place Stable in Malibu. You can
rent horses there, and they’ll
take you through the canyon and
you’ll be in the middle of wildlife
and nature, 25 minutes from the
biggest city in the world.
Speaking of getting out of
the city, tell me about Carson
Nation.
It’s a road trip, going from small
town to small town, West Coast
to East, basically making over
anyone in my path: Someone
that really needs my help, [who
has] some real obstacle or sad
time in their life.… I have a vintage Airstream trailer that I bring
with me that is filled with clothes
and shoes, and we use the local
resources. And I hopefully hold
up a mirror and say, “You can
transform and do more than you
thought, and live a better life.”
Details
Denim Doctors 7383 Beverly
Blvd., L.A., 323.964.0080
Dominick’s 8715 Beverly Blvd.,
L.A., 310.652.2335 Fred Segal
500 Broadway, Santa Monica,
310.394.9814 H. Lorenzo 8660
W. Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, 310.659.0015 Neiman
Marcus Westfield Topanga,
6600 Topanga Canyon Blvd.,
Canoga Park, 818.316.7000
Park Place Stable 2035
Decker School Lane, Malibu,
310.589.8845 The Polo Lounge
9641 Sunset Blvd., Beverly
Hills, 310.887.2777 Rose Bowl
Flea Market Second Sunday
each month, 1001 Rose Bowl
Drive, Pasadena, 323.560.7469
The Yogurt Stop 8803 Santa
Monica Blvd., West Hollywood,
310.652.6830
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