Phoebe Sung describes her design style as jolie-laide, a French term that directly translates to “pretty-ugly” but really refers to unconventional beauty. This sensibility is imbedded in Cold Picnic, the New York-based textile company she cofounded with her husband Peter Buer, with rugs, blankets, and pillows that feature unlikely color combinations and quirky motifs and “draw inspiration from film, literature, and our childhoods,” Phoebe says.
When Phoebe and Peter aren’t creating an abstract pattern that evokes the Queens Zoo aviary or a floral snake design that honors the lunar calendar, they’re busy raising their two daughters between homes in Ridgewood and the Catskills. But Cold Picnic’s next move is always top of mind: “We are in the process of sampling some very fun things-that-look-like-other-things bathmats that we are very excited about,” she says.
Today, Phoebe writes in with the house renovation she’s dreaming about, her latest sweet treat go-to, and the podcast that keeps her in high spirits…
You’re invited to dinner. What’s your go-to gift?
A nice bottle of wine, a food-shaped candle, homemade dips. I love making chili crisp, so if I have any on hand, I will bring a jar of that as well.
What’s on your bedside table?
Books, water, and usually a makeshift Calico Critter “house” made from an eyeglass case or a Tupperware (or anything a six-year-old can get her hands on).
What podcast or playlist do you put on when you need inspiration?
We listen to a lot of the How Did This Get Made? podcast to put us in a good mood for work. Last summer, we made a mix of songs we’ve been embarrassed to put on mixes throughout the years, so that is fun, too.
What’s a film or TV show whose aesthetic has stuck with you?
Over the years, The Passenger by Michelangelo Antonioni has inspired multiple phases and facets of my life—rugs, fashion school thesis, haircuts, travel. It’s been so cold this winter—and things have felt heavy, politically—so we’ve been going back to the beautiful seventh episode of the show Station Eleven. The layering in particular.
