Dorms Gone Wild

The Install: Life & Design with Paloma and Caroline

Paloma and Caroline tackle summer heat, pet mishaps with a stained abaca rug, the burden of carrying dual Apple devices in one tote, bitters

Key takeaways

• Pet stains can be stubborn even after professional cleaning, but enzymatic cleaners like Eco 88 may help neutralize odors and prevent repeat accidents.
• The physical burden of carrying multiple devices (iPad and Mac) highlights the need for better tech integration in daily workflows.

Main topics

• Pet stain removal and rug restoration
• Tech overload: carrying multiple devices

Notable quotes

"It's like, oh, my gosh, this is why I don't leave the building."

"You literally spray it on the carpet or wherever. It disappears before your eyes in seconds."

Conclusion

As summer heat lingers and life gets more complicated, Paloma and Caroli

Transcript preview

Speaker 1 (0:05) Hi, and welcome to The Install. We're Paloma Contreras and Caroline Jadier, and this is where we talk about design, business, and the real life behind creative work. What's inspiring us, what's challenging us, and everything in between. Hey, Paloma. Hey, Caroline. How you doing? How's it going? I'm doing well. How are you doing? Woo! Doing good. It is toasty outside. Oh my gosh, is it ever. It's... I mean, I feel like we've talked about this all summer, every week, but it's very hot. It's hot outside. It's so hot. It's just unbearable here this week. It's like been in the triple digits every day. And we obviously have really high humidity in Houston. So you just don't want to be outside any longer than you need to be, truly. I normally, during the summer, I'm surprised I really... Speaker 1 (0:56) Don't lose more weight than I do because like I don't I'm not leaving ordinarily. Today I had to run, go get some measurements for a shade that I have at my house that the dimensions I want to use in house that we're working on. So I was motivated to leave. And it was like, oh, my gosh, this is why I don't. leave the building. Once I come in in the morning, I'm there until usually six or seven o'clock at night, 630. And it's nice. And then there's not any traffic. Yeah. Hey, you just mentioned your house and it made me, it jogged my memory. Do you have an update on your rug, your big rug that the dogs had an accident on or multiple? Yes, I got it back. And, you know, all in. Speaker 1 (1:41) C2, 150, 350, 600, 700, over $700 round trip. I had it washed and replaced. And there were some stains on the other end that are really hidden, so it doesn't make any difference. You know, I wouldn't send it out to be cleaned because they're kind of under a table. We had a Christmas tree mishap. Oh, I say we generously. Speaker 1 (2:12) Anyway, those came out really well. Okay. So the process works. These pet stains, and it's not number two. It's all number one. Okay. There's not, it's not a number two issue. They're less, but not, but not gone. Now, round two, instead of using my. thingy that I've used before on these. And I do have a powder thing that I've used on top of it, but that's really probably a better product for like sisal where you don't want to get something wet and it soaks it up and then you can vacuum it out. I'm going to try your product, which I've ordered, and see if it will just make the stains disappear. I don't think it's too late. It might be too set in at this point. For anyone who missed the story the first time around, a few episodes ago, Caroline shared the story of a beautiful and very large and expensive abaca rug that she has that unfortunately got destroyed when... Speaker 1 (3:19) Her dog walker wasn't letting the dogs out enough when they were on vacation and they had accidents on it. And then just became accustomed to going on the rug multiple times. So she tried to salvage it by having it washed. It sounds like it's a little better, but not completely. The product that I recommended is called Eco 88. I couldn't remember the name the first time we talked about it. We got it locally in Houston at a place called Bearings. So Houstonians know all about Bearings. I think it's actually made by a Texas person. Speaker 1 (3:48) I don't know what's in it. I know it's a green product, so it's non-toxic. But you literally, we've been using it since we got Milo. Like if he has an accident, if he throws up, you spray it on the carpet or wherever. It's enzymatic, so it gets the scent out, so they're not attracted to that spot again. It's magic. It works before your eyes. Like you could put it on a urine stain, spray it generously. It disappears before your eyes in seconds. You don't rub it. You don't scrub it. You don't do anything, which is amazing. So hopefully it makes it a little bit better. But you're right. It might be maybe a little too set in, but at least it's somewhat better. Is the odor gone? Well, I've blocked off the living room. I'm going to get the little shock collar things. Nobody come for me. My dogs have worn shock collars since they were babies because I live on a very, very, very busy street. Speaker 1 (4:44) And even though they stay very close to us, I would absolutely die if they, either one of them, got out in the road and they wouldn't know what to do. So just to keep them safe, we have done that for years. Now I'm going to get the little hockey puck things and train them to stay out of that room. But it has never smelled to the human nose. I feel confident. I have enough honest people in my life that would have been like, it smells in here. And I am very sensitive to people's houses that smell like dog. Honestly, like, I can't, like, I don't get two steps in the door until I'm like, hmm, this dog lives in here. So I feel like I would know and have enough, you know, I have teenagers too who'd be like, anyway. So I don't think it smells, but it's still, you know, the dogs can. Speaker 1 (5:39) trace, like, I don't know, murder people, you know, like, this is what they do. And I have sent hounds, you know, so I'm not going to get, unless your enzymatic stuff, like, completely neutralizes it. I don't think it's going to happen. But it took, for the record, three huge men that are movers that were buckling under the weight of this rug. It is so big. Yeah. And I bought it. And 17 years ago, the price per square foot on this thing has gone through the roof. People pay less for brand new vehicles than I'm going to pay for a replacement of this rug. Goodness. So it was worth the effort to try to salvage it for sure. For sure. But so, no, it is not that much better. Well, sorry to hear that. Thanks for asking that. Is that your low of the week or do you have a different high low? No, I have a different high low. Okay. My low is... Speaker 1 (6:49) I just got a new computer. I got a new Macintosh PowerBook or whatever they call them these days. I don't think they call it a Macintosh anymore. What do we call it? Just a Mac, right? I remember when they first came out. You said Macintosh. You're taking me back to like first grade. Well, I mean, that's... I mean, it is technically a Macintosh, but... I think I was in like fifth grade. 40 years. We got our first Macintosh. Okay. Well, anybody who's new here, like, but anyway, that is how it started for sure. But anyway, I got a new Mac, PowerBook. We've got the same number of syllables, honestly. Anyway, and I got it because, you know, trying to. Speaker 1 (7:41) produce this podcast. You really cannot do it on an iPad. You have to have a laptop. And I've been borrowing Stephen's laptop to the point that my children have noticed and they're giving me a hard time about, you know, like using his laptop too much. Like, when are you going to get your own laptop? And also like running Canva or... or it's not Pages, but the one where you can create presentations for Apple even, you can't do it as well on an iPad. And really, what are we doing with iPad? Like, why not? Like, can you just update the software and fix that problem, please? Because it seems ridiculous that now I've got to have a second thing, which is my bad week. So it's like, okay, I'll get it and I'll leave it at home. But have you started work? Do you use a computer? Yeah, I have a Mac power station. Speaker 1 (8:30) thing. Okay. Whatever. The big screen. But at home you use, at home you use. I usually just take my iPad back and forth and that's nice because it's lightweight. So the thought was, okay, well I have my power book at home. Yeah. Power book. I think that's what they, I'm not sure what we call it anyway. Your laptop. My laptop at home and I'll go back and forth with my iPad, right? Because I need my iPad for all. various sundry other things. And what's turned out to happen is a tote, literally, but a tote. and my tote, both of these. And together, combined, they weigh somewhere close to 2,000 pounds. I mean, on my shoulder, coming up these steps, we don't have an elevator. It's like three floors plus the dogs and this heavy bag on my shoulder, in addition to all the other measuring tapes and every lipstick that I've ever purchased in my life. It's getting to be too much. I'm like, Speaker 1 (9:35) Going to have to, but I have a sense of security. Do you do that with like things like my purse is nowhere near as organized as yours is? I'm confident. But if we're in a jam, if anything goes down, odds are on my purse, like I've got what you need. I've got you covered, girl. You're prepared. I'm prepared. I feel like there might be a moment where I might need that and it would be at home and it would be inconvenient to have to run back and get it. So now I'm carrying both and it's just not the way life should be. They really just need to update this iPad. It's interesting you say that because I've actually been thinking about my bag situation recently. I used to carry like, I always liked like a bigger tote and I would... Speaker 1 (10:22) Like for work, you know, day to day, we had all kinds of things in there. And then there came a point where I just reached my breaking point and was just so frustrated by how disorganized it was all the time. It all just kind of falls into a jumble at the bottom and I can never find what I needed and have to like rummage through it to fish out my keys or whatever. I'm surprised by you, honestly. I would think that you would have all sorts of little zip things and never fall into this mess that I've got. Yeah, I have. But then I feel like that gets cumbersome. I've tried it both ways. And then a couple of years ago. Speaker 1 (10:58) I got overwhelmed, like maybe three years ago, I was just like, I can't do this anymore. I have a toddler. I'm having to carry her, pick her up, put her in the car, out of the car. I need to be hands-free. And so I've sort of done a crossbody ever since in my day-to-day. And just recently, like actually this week, I was like, I need like a new tote, like a suede tote or something for fall. Because now I'm over carrying like little bags because I can only have my essentials. So, you know. achieved my original goal of like staying more organized and not having the extraneous junk. But then today, for instance, I have had a headache all day. And of course, I meant to take something for it before I left the house this morning, but we were just busy getting everybody out the door and not forgetting the backpack or this or that. And so I forgot to take something. And then... Speaker 1 (11:49) got to the office and typically we have, you know, like ibuprofen or something in the pantry and I went to look for it and the bottle was expired and not like by a month, but by like nine months. So I was like, okay, I don't know if it's going to do anything for me. It's not going to hurt, but it may not work. So I was like, okay, maybe I need to go back to carrying a bigger bag day to day because I have all that extra stuff in it typically. Like when I travel, I always carry a big tote and I have, you know, medicine and all kinds of things in it. Speaker 1 (12:18) But yeah, it's like a, there's no perfect scenario for me. I feel like I either have too much or not enough stuff with me. Yeah. Well, I only schlep the big bag back and forth from work to here. Like, I mean, we were traveling. You're a little, a tiny bag girl. Like, in terms of your purse, you always have little bags. Yeah. Teeny tiny. And a lot of times I'll throw a little under the arm purse in my bag. Like if I'm going out afterwards or whatever, I'm not schlepping this around. This is just a way to get to, like I'm not the type of person who needs to carry my journal book with me everywhere I go. I only need it back and forth from the office, like home and here, you know, where I'm going to look at my list here and I got to make the list there. So it's got to go back and forth and that kind of stuff. But yeah, ordinarily, I really just need a lipstick. Speaker 1 (13:11) my phone, a credit card, you know, a feather. I mean, like not much in my little bag, but the big, that's why I'm like really hating it with this. with this whole bag situation. It's gotten so heavy. And then I wrote down my, the bag just tipped over. I wrote down my good week and I've forgotten it. Oh, okay. That's not a good week. All right. So I don't have a good week. I just had a bad week. It's just been a bad week. There's a lot to slap around. It's been a good week, but that's really just it. How about you? Well, I would say my bad week, I mean, good and bad, like bad because we'll miss her. So our director of operations who's been with us for six years is retiring. She's young. She's my age, but she has kids who need her. And so she's going to step away from work and focus on family. She's going to be with us a couple more months and she is then going to retire. Speaker 1 (14:18) you know, focus on the girls. So we're sad to see her go. That's our bad news for the week. But then I guess the low or the high would be, and I was thinking about this the other day, not in relation to this specifically, but just in general, and it kind of applies. I feel like my relationship with change has evolved significantly in recent years. And even more recently than that, I feel like I used to have a really hard time with it. And now I'm kind of just like, you just roll with the punches and you keep going, you know, you carry on. And that's just life. Like life is full of change and you kind of just have no choice