Kavi and David Moltz make the kind of scents that stop you dead in your tracks. The couple behind Brooklyn-based D.S. & Durga are responsible for some of the coolest perfumes out there—Steamed Rainbow, Black Magenta, Radio Bombay, Bistro Waters, and Burning Barbershop among them—all of which have sparked hours of debate at the ITG office as we attempted to rank their core lineup once and for all. For the duo, inspiration can strike anywhere. That includes the North Fork area on Long Island, which the Moltz family visits every year at the start of Fall. This year was no different. Below, Kavi shares the rundown from their annual escape.
Dear ITG,
Labor Day weekend is my equivalent of New Year’s Eve. We’re thrown into the full swing of things when we get back from the summer holidays, and even long after the children have left the nest, back to school time always brings that hope of a fresh start. There are the sharpened pencils, newly curated outfits, and the creeping suspicion that I must suddenly become a more productive human being, which is why this sacred weekend serves as our last hurrah before we plunge headfirst into the tetris-like game of autumn scheduling.
My family and I always spend it with the same group of friends. There is something so comforting about this annual ritual: the same faces, the same meals, the same long walks down the beach, the same late-night singalongs. Everyone immediately resumes their designated role. I’m the cook, David is the playlist curator, someone is the dedicated dishwasher, and someone else watches said dishwasher while pouring drinks from an artisanal Aperol bottle. The weekend is about swimming, eating, reconnecting, ooh-ing and ah-ing over how much the kids have grown, dog walks, and a spot of tennis if we’re lucky.
The setting is a North Fork farmhouse situated across from what was once a vineyard but is now reduced to a bucolic but infertile field. Local legend insists the proprietor himself razed it to the ground in a fit of revenge against a snooty Bridgehampton rival. Anyway, the field now provides us with the most gorgeous sunset views. On our most recent trip, we spent our days splashing in the pool, and we feasted by candlelight while trying to remember which wet towel belonged to whom in the evenings.
Naturally, beauty played its part. In fact, our unofficial centerpiece was a sunscreen bar with an industrial-sized jug of Supergoop Play, a variety of Sun Bum formulas, a tube of La Roche-Posay UVMune 400 for the face, and a can of Vacation SPF 50 I spotted drifting across the pool.
Skin and hair were my priorities. I wanted them plumped and hydrated, respectively. I brought Crown Affair’s leave-in conditioner with me—it was much needed with so much pool time. My sun-worn skin likes winter cream even in summer, so I packed both Sofie Pavitt’s Omega moisturizer and May Lindstrom’s Blue Cocoon, layered generously over Dieux’s Deliverance serum. On the shelf of the outdoor shower I placed a new miniature Soft Services Buffing Bar, which smells like oranges and coffee and is reminiscent of showering in a Florentine café.
There was no multi-step makeup routine—my late August tan granted me a bronze glow that rendered all my foundation shades useless anyway. Minimalism was the name of the game: a pop of Fenty’s bright coral Daiquiri Dip blush here or a Fara Homidi red lip there with a touch of Spatch created by my good friend and makeup artist Quinn Murphy. The compacts have two shades in one so they cover me in summer and winter.
No weekend is complete without the perfect soundtrack. We left the poolside DJ duties to David and our curated playlists. Jazmín Yucatán carried us through lazy afternoon swims while Italian Citrus was made for golden-hour cocktails and our requisite aperitivo.
By nightfall, the mood shifts a bit. The sun dipped and the last of the fireflies made an appearance. At that point, beauty demanded a small costume change. I spritzed on my favorite perfume, Durga, which really is unimaginably hypnotic. Recently, I’ve been shocking myself by reaching for a brown eyeliner from Victoria Beckham—as a lifelong goth (and black eyeliner addict), I consider this a startling mid-forties development. It’s perfectly smudgy, smoky and sexy. I also love the Kiko Milano eyeshadow stick in Golden Taupe. I’m into the VB contour styluses for their precision—much appreciated because it gives my face just enough definition to look intentional even when I am barefoot in a field. Before bed, I slathered on the luxurious Optimizing mask from Auteur, which the lovely and talented facialist Raquel Medina recommended to me.
Gathering people together for a meal is one of my great joys, though over this weekend it takes on a looser shape. The North Fork farmstands are at their peak in late August and provide all the inspiration for the table. I also made stops at the Village Cheese Shop, Love Lane Market, and Agora Greek Market which provided the sort of ingredients that transform a simple spread into something faintly Bacchic. The table was set with bowls of olives, caprese salad, homemade focaccia, potato chips, bruschetta, sungold tomato pasta, Rancho Gordo beans, peaches, and grilled corn. To drink: champagne, martinis, and lemonade.
For at least one night, we skip the cooking and cleaning and head to the North Fork Table & Inn, our perennial favorite. Their ability to squeeze every drop of summer from peak August vegetables is amazing, so everyone—my vegetarian self and my omnivore family and friends alike—stays happy.
By Sunday evening, we were sun-drenched, wine-soaked, and exhausted in the best possible way. Also, we were ready for autumn and the Oasis concert that was scheduled to take place the next day. We packed up the kids and dogs, and headed back to the city after a beautiful weekend away with friends who are really family.
With Love,
Kavi Moltz
—as told to Daise Bedolla
Photos courtesy of Kavi Moltz