Episode

Bad Hotels, Good Hair & Better Boundaries

Podcast
The Install: Life & Design with Paloma and Caroline
Published
Jun 23, 2026
Duration seconds
2987
Processing state
not_requested
Canonical source
https://api.riverside.com/hosting-analytics/media/673773f28e49dc32bd3ea234fc95a3a9f0f44883bad838e0d04c774b27599457/eyJlcGlzb2RlSWQiOiJhOGE3ODUxOC02ZmZmLTRkYmUtYWI0MS1lZmZiMTkxYjcyODAiLCJwb2RjYXN0SWQiOiI3Y2ZlNDgzNC0zOTgyLTRlZmEtOGUxNi05MDdkZTQ4ODUyMjkiLCJhY2NvdW50SWQiOiI2OTY5MDBmYmNiNTY4OTM1YWE2NWJkYTIiLCJwYXRoIjoibWVkaWEvY2xpcHMvNmEzNWI4ODcxYjBhN2M3MjE3YmI4OTI3L3RoZWluc3RhbGxwb2RjYXN0cy1zdHVkaW8tY29tcG9zZXItMjAyNi02LTE5X18yMy00NS00My5tcDMifQ==.mp3
Audio
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JSON
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Markdown
/podcast/the-install-life-design-with-paloma-and-caroline-7774938/bad-hotels-good-hair-better-boundaries.md

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Summary

Paloma and Caroline check in from Cabo and Paris for a vacation-edition catch-up that delivers equal parts glamour, chaos, and practical wisdom. They talk about changing travel plans, the joys of slower vacations, and what it’s like to travel with kids at different ages—from early wake-ups to future shopping buddies and museum eye-rolls. Along the way, they cover Malmaison, Josephine, and Paris museum adventures , Paloma’s very relatable decision to ditch a hotel that wasn’t passing the vibe check , and Caroline’s vacation highs and lows, including a spider bite, a bruised shin, and a deep devotion to French snack food . There’s also a standout product recommendation for taming frizz, followed by a smart and candid design discussion on why decorators should not be hiring the contractor —plus the client red flags that tell you a project may not be the right fit. Chapter Timestamps 00:00 – Intro: Paris vs. Cabo 01:14 – Why Paloma changed her original Paris plans 02:48 – Caroline on her first kid-free trip in 20+ years 06:25 – Shopping, Charvet shirts, and museum parenting 07:53 – Malmaison, Lafayette, and Josephine as ultimate style icon 11:08 – Pool days, beach reads, and vacation mode in Cabo 13:23 – Paloma’s hotel horror story and the great Cabo switch 16:52 – High/Low: trusting your instincts on vacation 18:31 – Caroline’s lows: spider bite and shin injury from hell 20:17 – Caroline’s high: beloved French chips and snack obsession 22:01 – Margot cameo! 23:34 – Glass-door mishaps and kid vacation stories 25:17 – Paris celebrates PSG into the wee hours 25:52 – Product Rec: Chris McMillan Styling Balm 30:39 – Design Question: Should a designer hire the contractor? 37:25 – When a client request becomes a red flag 41:51 – Contract redlines, process pushback, and knowing w…