Karen Lindell, Author at Palm Springs Life

California Desert Plein Air Festival to Showcase Artists Across the Coachella Valley

Karen Lindell — Sat, 03 Jan 2026 22:00:00 +0000

Elaine Mathews still has her first plein air painting, a junior high art project. “Our teacher let us set up in front of the school,” says the artist, who grew up in Compton. The scene she proudly painted? Houses across the street. Now, living in Rancho Mirage, she has a more picturesque natural view when she ventures outdoors for a plein air session.

The post California Desert Plein Air Festival to Showcase Artists Across the Coachella Valley appeared first on Palm Springs Life.

10 Must-See Films at Palm Springs International Film Festival 2026

Karen Lindell — Tue, 30 Dec 2025 17:31:48 +0000

Fill your cinematic passport with these 10 films from other countries screening at the Palm Springs International Film Festival Jan. 2–12. Visit psiff.org for tickets.

The post 10 Must-See Films at Palm Springs International Film Festival 2026 appeared first on Palm Springs Life.

Kering Presents Women in Motion Program at Palm Springs International Film Festival

Karen Lindell — Tue, 30 Dec 2025 01:18:56 +0000

I’m Julia, this is my friend Sean, and I am so excited for what’s about to happen to everyone in this room.” On a September 2025 evening in the Hollywood Hills, “Julia” was Julia Roberts, “Sean” was Sean Penn, and the imminent happening was a screening of Brazilian filmmaker Marianna Brennand’s movie Manas.

The post Kering Presents Women in Motion Program at Palm Springs International Film Festival appeared first on Palm Springs Life.

10 Places to Celebrate New Year’s Eve in the Coachella Valley

Karen Lindell — Fri, 19 Dec 2025 20:03:02 +0000

You survived 8,760 hours of 2025. Now, toast the next 8,760. These desert venues are ringing in the new year with dinners, dancing, and more. Most require reservations.

The post 10 Places to Celebrate New Year’s Eve in the Coachella Valley appeared first on Palm Springs Life.

Need a Last-Minute Card or Desert-Themed Puzzle? Try Smoke Tree Greetings

Karen Lindell — Sat, 13 Dec 2025 14:00:00 +0000

I’m a well-wishing Luddite: I still prefer to give and receive physical greeting cards for birthdays, holidays, thank-yous, and other occasions, rather than e-cards. Stores that specialize in greeting cards are more difficult to find as correspondence leans digital, so I’m grateful to have one in a shopping center I visit frequently: Smoke Tree Greetings at Smoke Tree Village in Palm Springs.

The post Need a Last-Minute Card or Desert-Themed Puzzle? Try Smoke Tree Greetings appeared first on Palm Springs Life.

Three Local Music Groups Find a New Home at the Restored Plaza Theatre

Karen Lindell — Fri, 12 Dec 2025 22:43:40 +0000

Thirteen men in black suits and white ties, standing in a courtyard at The Plaza Theatre in Palm Springs, sang their a cappella hearts out: When I think of home, I think of a place Where there’s love overflowing

The post Three Local Music Groups Find a New Home at the Restored Plaza Theatre appeared first on Palm Springs Life.

4 Palm Springs Hotels With Totally Unique Rooms

Karen Lindell — Thu, 11 Dec 2025 00:09:32 +0000

When the keycard light flashes green, vacation mode clicks on. Behind that hotel room door, you’re looking for the comforts that set the tone: the plush bed, the plump pillows, the shampoo that smells like a spa day.

The post 4 Palm Springs Hotels With Totally Unique Rooms appeared first on Palm Springs Life.

Everbloom Expands With Downtown Indio Location, Plus 5 Other Recent Openings

Karen Lindell — Tue, 09 Dec 2025 14:00:00 +0000

Everbloom is the sunflower of Coachella Valley coffee shops: warm, bright, and welcoming, especially in the morning, when you’re starting the day and crave outsize human kindness alongside your caffeine. Now, a second location in downtown Indio makes that ritual even easier.

The post Everbloom Expands With Downtown Indio Location, Plus 5 Other Recent Openings appeared first on Palm Springs Life.

Natasha Marin Finds Inspiration in Joshua Tree for New Electronic Album

Karen Lindell — Mon, 08 Dec 2025 14:00:00 +0000

A desert storm comes to Natasha Marin first through scent. “The creosote bushes, they emit that special oil,” she says. Color is next: After an enveloping darkness and deluge, out come “the oranges and purples, layers of different shades,” ending in a startling burst of sunshine. The musician then translates all she has sensed into electronic sound: an underlying ominous, repetitive bass progression, followed by plunked-out individual notes that grow wild as the dynamics rise. Ascending and descending violin scales add a shower of chaos

The post Natasha Marin Finds Inspiration in Joshua Tree for New Electronic Album appeared first on Palm Springs Life.

Meet the Duo Behind Cathedral City’s Best Brunch Spot

Karen Lindell — Tue, 18 Nov 2025 14:00:00 +0000

Named Best Brunch in Cathedral City in this year’s Best of the Best competition, Brunch 101 offers a laid-back, no-rules approach to brunch. With a creative menu and easygoing vibe, Brunch 101 has quickly become a local favorite. We spoke with owner Natasha Garcia to learn more about the brunch hot spot.

The post Meet the Duo Behind Cathedral City’s Best Brunch Spot appeared first on Palm Springs Life.

Ride Through History at Palm Springs’ Smoke Tree Stables

Karen Lindell — Sun, 16 Nov 2025 14:00:00 +0000

On the March 1964 cover of GQ, a dashing gray-haired Cary Grant sits atop a horse in denim and a red work shirt. The headline reads, “GQ Visits CG in Palm Springs.” At the time, Grant owned a home in the Movie Colony neighborhood of Palm Springs and spent much of his leisure time in the desert on horseback, often at Smoke Tree Stables.

The post Ride Through History at Palm Springs’ Smoke Tree Stables appeared first on Palm Springs Life.

The History of Casa Cody, the Oldest Hotel in Palm Springs

Karen Lindell — Wed, 22 Oct 2025 13:00:00 +0000

At Casa Cody, the only sight brighter than the pink bougainvillea spilling over the walls is the vivid orange horseshoe hanging in every room. “We think of those as our good luck charms,” says Sana Keefer, head of brand for Casetta Group, which runs Casa Cody, the oldest continuously operating hotel in Palm Springs.

The post The History of Casa Cody, the Oldest Hotel in Palm Springs appeared first on Palm Springs Life.

See the Beauty of Trees at Sunnylands in New David Loftus Exhibition

Karen Lindell — Mon, 20 Oct 2025 16:00:00 +0000

David Loftus sees trees differently. He notices the wrinkles in their bark, the red tinge in new leaf tissue (nature’s sunblock), the gnarled, “Tim Burtonesque” twists of their limbs. And with his camera, he captures their artistry as living sculptures.
“When you’re looking up into a tree,”

The post See the Beauty of Trees at Sunnylands in New David Loftus Exhibition appeared first on Palm Springs Life.

“The Donn of Tiki” Documentary Shares Story of Donn Beach

Karen Lindell — Fri, 17 Oct 2025 15:41:46 +0000

Ernest Raymond Beaumont Gantt is responsible for both Bootlegger Tiki and Ernest Coffee Co. in Palm Springs. These Uptown Design District establishments now take up the space, and share a patio, where Don the Beachcomber opened in 1953. The venue was part of a chain of South Seas–inspired “Tiki bars” envisioned by Donn Beach, the “godfather of Tiki,” born the aforementioned Ernest Gantt (who became the eventual namesake of Ernest Coffee).

The post “The Donn of Tiki” Documentary Shares Story of Donn Beach appeared first on Palm Springs Life.

How to Spend a Day in Twentynine Palms

Karen Lindell — Wed, 15 Oct 2025 20:14:06 +0000

The Old Schoolhouse Museum in Twentynine Palms displays a list from a 1950s edition of The Desert Trail newspaper titled “29 Reasons for Living in Twentynine Palms.” The list highlights, among other attributes, “no fog, smog, smudge”; “glorious sunsets — star-studded nights”; “good hotels, motels, trailer courts, restaurants, nightclubs”; and the area’s reputation as a “paradise for artists, outdoorsmen, rockhounds.”

The post How to Spend a Day in Twentynine Palms appeared first on Palm Springs Life.

Create Your Own Modernism Tour With a Drive Through These Neighborhoods

Karen Lindell — Mon, 06 Oct 2025 19:00:00 +0000

Cue the midcentury architecture and colorful doors. Here are four neighborhoods to check out by car on a self-guided modernism tour of Palm Springs.

The post Create Your Own Modernism Tour With a Drive Through These Neighborhoods appeared first on Palm Springs Life.

How Bird Singing Preserves the Culture of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians

Karen Lindell — Mon, 06 Oct 2025 13:00:00 +0000

John R. Preckwinkle III, an Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians Tribal Council member, grew up in Northern California, away from his tribe’s reservation and culture in the Palm Springs area — until a Christmastime visit at age 14 changed everything. Tribal members gave him and other young people iPods with recordings of the songs of his great-grandfather, John Joseph Patencio, considered the last ceremonial bird singer, or hawanik, of his people. Preckwinkle was intrigued by the family connection as well as the music.

The post How Bird Singing Preserves the Culture of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians appeared first on Palm Springs Life.