About us
YOU are an LA woman over 40! And WE are adventurous, imaginative, enthusiastic women over 40 who are insatiably curious about the people and places that make up our “fabulous” city. We want to go where we haven’t gone and do what we haven’t done. And we’re as diverse as this city we love! You are welcome as you are, and no one is judged.
Together, we’ll make new friendships and discover the most “Fabulous places” in LA. Of course, we’ll find fun and fabulous places to eat and drink along our way.
WHY DO ORDINARY WHEN WE CAN DO EXTRAORDINARY~ Lorena (my mantra)
TYPES OF EVENTS
We periodically have monthly event series such as, “The Most Beautiful Restaurants in LA”, “LA’s Most Epic Rooftops”, and “Cocktails in Unique Places (CUP)”. Venues with live entertainment are always prioritized. Other events include:
▪️Fab Happy Hours
▪️Concerts & live theatre
▪️Fun festivals
▪️Museums
▪️Movies & dining
▪️Day trips to unique & interesting places.
HOSTING YOUR OWN EVENT
👩🏼🦰 Those who want to host an event or have ideas, feel free to let the Organizer know. Hosting an event you are familiar with can truly be very rewarding. It’s a great opportunity to do the type of events you are most fond of. It’s a great opportunity to meet like-minded friends.
KEEP YOUR RSVP CURRENT
If your plans change, please cancel and RSVP as "Not Going" at least 24 hours (1 day) before the event. Failure to do so will result in a no-show. 3 no-shows will ban you from the group 🚫. If there is an emergency, please contact your host immediately.
EVENT FEES
Some events will be free. But for others, we may ask for a small fee to cover Meetup expenses and to ensure your commitment to attend and reserve your spot especially at upscale restaurants. And of course, if you like our group vibe, you’re always welcome to make a donation on your own!
Organizers are currently charged an annual subscription fee paid one-full year in advance of $299.00 or paid monthly or twice yearly for a lot more. You contribution helps support the group to remain on-going. Fees also help off-set all the incidental costs your host may incur in organizing the event. Fees like photo copying, supplies (name tags, decorative items for special events, treats shared with the group, etc.).
MEETUP POLICY IS STRICTLY ENFORCED
🔺No drop-ins. RSVP Meetup members only
🔺 3 under 24-hr cancellations/3-months out
🔺 3 failures to pay (fee events)/6-months out
🔺 2 no-shows/1-year out
🔺Excessive cancellations perm. removed.
If you also love Vintage LA, our sister group, “Ladies Who Adore Vintage LA” offers an opportunity to learn about the iconic landmarks and venues that founded our city. Check us out to see what we do. Tap on ‘Past events’ to get a broader perspective. You may also want to join this group too!! https://www.meetup.com/ladies-who-adore-vintage/
Your ideas are always welcome! YOU can be an event organizer! We're always happy to help you make your event sparkle!
Just a few rules to remember:
For the safety of all our members, we require a clear profile photo OF YOU ALONE, OF YOUR FACE (facing the camera!) NO HATS OR SUNGLASSES! -- SORRY, BUT NO EXCEPTIONS!
If you RSVP and then don’t cancel more than 24-hours before at 3 events, we’ll have to show you out of the group for 3-months. But that won’t happen because you’ll update your RSVPs and cancel with at least 24-hours notice! Right?
If you fail to make your payment on designated fee events within 24-hours or as stated we will remove you from the event. Three failures to pay and we will remove you from the group for 6-months.
If you RSVP and we never see you that’s a NO SHOW even if you were there and did your own thing. 2 no-shows and we will remove you from the group for one year.
No-shows and Last-minute cancellations put our ability to book terrific venues at risk! Your event organizers and fellow members will appreciate your courtesy especially when there's a wait list and they hope to join!
Be kind and welcoming to everyone you meet here. We ask that you never contact group members you haven’t met in person. Don’t send group emails for any reason. Be respectful in the comments.
So come join us! There’s a world of new friends here that can’t wait to meet you!
Welcome to the group!
~ Lorena
============================================
DETAILED INFO & HELP FOR PHOTOS & SETTINGS:
Once again, we require a clear profile photo OF YOU -- ALONE -- OF YOUR FACE (shoulders-up facing the camera!)
NO HATS OR SUNGLASSES! -- SORRY, BUT NO EXCEPTIONS!
CHANGING OR REMOVING A PROFILE PHOTO:
You can change your ACCOUNT profile photo OR your GROUP profile photos.
Your ACCOUNT profile photo will be used by DEFAULT for your GROUP profiles. After a GROUP profile photo is set, changing your ACCOUNT profile photo will not update your GROUP profile. You can update each of your GROUP profile photos individually.
Profile photo requirements: The recommended ratio is 1:1. For example, a square 200 pixels high by 200 pixels wide photo. Photos must be in JPEG or PNG format and under 10MB.
TO CHANGE YOUR ACCOUNT PROFILE PHOTO:
Desktop web
1. Click on your circular profile button.
2. Select Profile from the drop-down menu.
3. Click Change your photo.
4. Upload a new photo or pick from your existing profile photos.
5. Select Done to confirm.
Android & iOS Apps
1. From the Home tab, tap your circular Profile button.
2. Tap edit profile or the Pencil.
3. Select Change or the Camera beneath your current profile picture.
4. Select one of the following options:
*Take a photo
*Select photo from your device
*Delete photo
5. Tap the checkmark or Save to confirm.
TO CHANGE YOUR GROUP PROFILE PHOTO:
Desktop web
1. Navigate to the group homepage.
2. Select Manage group or You’re a member.
3. Select Your member profile.
4. Select change your photo.
5. Upload a new photo or pick from your existing profile photos.
6. Select Done to confirm.
NOTIFICATIONS:
For the ability to communicate with you your EMAIL UPDATES and NOTIFICATIONS must be turned on in SETTINGS both on your computer and phone app. Without notifications you will miss out on newly posted events, but more importantly you will miss out on schedule changes. Important updates can include, time and meetup location changes, a rescheduled event date, and in some remote cases an event cancellation.
For instructions on how to change your settings, go to the Friendship & Fabulous Places HOME page. Click on MORE (under the portal photo), then click on MESSAGE BOARD. Select "Email and notification settings." Make certain you've checked all the boxes and allow us to email and notify you.
Please note: the Message Board is available on the Web Application, but not on the Mobile App.
To edit settings on the Mobile App, go to your profile icon (bottom right corner), then go to the 3 dots icon (upper right corner). Select "Push notifications", then select "Change email updates." Make certain all options are GREEN.
If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to ask. Send me a private message.
Featured event
L.A.'s Hottest NEW Restaurant: The Extraordinary Sous Sous at Hotel Lucile
BRINGING YOU LA’S H O T T E S T NEW VENUE
🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
Why do ordinary when you can do extraordinary~ Lorena
These historical “Fabulous places” are what I’m most passionate about. I’m an advocate for preservation. It’s simply remarkable what they have done with this space.
95-year-old LA church gets new life as 25-room boutique hotel & restaurant.
Take a look 👁️
If you don’t have Instagram (best two videos) watch the YouTube one until the end. It will WOW you!!!
https://www.instagram.com/reel/Dc9J7XtvhX7/?stkn=am9kMjlsNzhtcjY=
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DdcOXUdSUQJ/?stkn=MWRkdTRqNTJzdGN0YQ==
https://youtube.com/shorts/xY0nQUPvJG4?si=WxuOqGkCr5qnT4j-
Please kindly confirm your commitment to attend by making your $5 RSVP immediately. Event is two weeks out. You will be replaced otherwise. See payment info below. Thank you!
HOW A 1931 CHURCH BECAME SILVER LAKE’S GLAMOROUS NEW BOUTIQUE HOTEL
• A 1931 Silver Lake church has been reborn as Hotel Lucile, a 25-room boutique property with a restaurant and bar in the former sanctuary, preserving stained glass and a rooftop cross.
• After years of neighborhood debate, city hearings and a bankruptcy, Casetta Group took over the project.
There’s a cross on the roof, stained glass in the windows and a choir loft upstairs, but this whitewashed three-level building near Sunset Blvd in Silver Lake is no longer a house of worship. It’s the HOTEL LUCILE which just opened last week- Sept. 14 with a restaurant and bar in the high-ceilinged sanctuary where churchgoers once gathered. This opening follows more than a decade of controversy and transformation, including a community debate, bankruptcy and the arrivsal of a new hotelier in 2020.
The new hotelier is Los Angeles-based CASSETA GROUP which specializes in adapting older structures and has six properties in California and New Mexico, including the Surfrider Hotel in Malibu and Casa Cody in Palm Springs.
When guests arrive at Hotel Lucile, they will find many reminders that the building was constructed as Bethany Presbyterian Church in 1931. But those guests will also see plenty of updates, including 25 guest rooms in the space that once held a church school; a small pool (about 15 feet square); and a rotating display of more than 100 contemporary artworks (many for sale). The organ loft is now a meeting space. The choir loft is retooled as a zone for coffee and drinks. The rooftop (reserved only for hotel guests) is a lounge with downtown views.
After serving as a church for most of the 20th century under varying names, the building was informally adapted for multiple uses, including spells as an antique shop, filming location and the backdrop for interactive horror theater experience “Delusion.”
The building has lived several lives, and now stands as a pillar of revitalized beauty and a new gathering place.
This church-to-commerce transition isn’t entirely unique. Across the city and the country, declining attendance has idled many religious buildings, often leading to conversions. I personally have been to a few of these repurposed former places of worship. I went out to view Hotel Lucile before posting this event.
Hotel Lucile is by far one of the most remarkable repurposed religious buildings I’ve been to in Southern California. AN ABSOLUTE MUST SEE!!!
Hotel Lucile begins a new chapter, retaining interior arches, masonry, woodwork details and a rooftop cross that the hotel will keep alight at night. (The old church bell, however, will remain silent.) “We did preserve as much as we could of the original beams and stained glass,” said Laney Langenstein, who oversees strategy and marketing for Casetta. Though guest rooms have minibars (curated by Erewhon and other partners), Langenstein noted that hotel staffers will also push a martini cart that will “go through the hallways and see if anybody thinks it’s cocktail hour.”
DINING
Run by the team behind De La Nonna, Sous Sous is the main restaurant for Hotel Lucile. The restaurant sits in what was formerly the church's chapel, complete with a marble bar where the pipe organs used to be. Sous Sous' draws upon cooking traditions of southern France and the American South, which means dishes like polenta-crusted rainbow trout, bouillabaisse for two, and sazeracs with toasted coconut rims.
As of now Sous Sous only serves dinner. A hotel cafe will be open to guests for breakfast and lunch in the near future. They will introduce Happy Hour and occasional live music on the room’s stage.
MENU
Their menu on their website does not have prices but someone who recently went uploaded a photo of their menu. See last photo in the photo gallery.
HOTEL
The new look of the hotel was produced by Casetta Hotels and design firm Electric Bowery. Of 25 rooms, 24 have a single king bed and one has two queens. Most rooms have showers, not tubs. There is one suite, which has its own courtyard patio and fountain.
With an eye to potential expansion later, hotel management has also bought up one of the three immediately neighboring properties.
RESERVE YOUR DINING SPOT
$5 RSVP PayPal, Venmo or Zelle (NOT if waitlisted). NOTE: Fee is NOT refundable or transferable. If you need to cancel immediately update to “not going.”
Payment contact provided at time of RSVP made immediately or spot will be released so someone else can join.
AT TIME OF PAYMENT INDICATE: Sous Sous
NOTIFICATIONS-ON ARE REQUIRED
It is YOUR responsibility to know if you were moved-up from the waitlist.
PARKING
Valet $15 or street parking.
The church is located in a residential neighborhood. Give yourself plenty of time to find street parking. Space is very limited and may require walking a block or two.
MEETUP POLICY
🔺No drop-ins. RSVP Meetup members only
🔺 3 under 24-hr cancellations/6-months out
🔺 3 failures to pay (fee events)/6-months out
🔺 2 no-shows/perm. removed 🔺 Excessive cancellations perm. removed
Upcoming events
2
AMC Stub Tues 50% Off “Heart of the Beast” & Happy Hour GLENDALE AMERICANA
AMC theater Americana Brand 18, 322 brand Blvd., Glendale, CA, USA wonderful suspense thriller to uplift our spirit as we escape for a moment from all the madness currently going on in the news.
A man and his dog and the quest for survival!! Such a great heart-warming story about trust and love!!
Trailer
https://youtu.be/JFQcDFhNh4o?si=1mygUUmYgUDF0nmPHow Uber became Odin the dog actor
https://youtu.be/2fjbYzfruk8?si=N-ghk0YVH19zOsDn$1 Meetup fee will be collected at Happy Hour. It helps offset the cost Organizers pay annually to use the site to share events and helps with all other incidental fees to run events. Thank you kindly for supporting the group!
96% Popcornmeter
After a harrowing plane crash, Special Forces veteran James Belmont (Brad Pitt) and his combat dog, Odin, find themselves stranded deep in the Alaskan wilderness. Together, they are forced into a brutal fight for survival against the elements. From acclaimed filmmaker David Ayer, Heart of the Beast is an intense adventure thriller that explores the unbreakable bond between a man and his best friend as they face their greatest battle yet.Three of us are seated at: Row F, seat 13, 14 & 15
I particularly like ROW F because there’s a rail in front of this row where you can rest your feet. Choose your fave row.2-PART EVENT - WHERE TO MEET:
MOVIE: 2:00 - 2:15 PM AMC Lobby (movie previews start at 2:20 PM). Buy your ticket in person or better yet buy online to ensure better seating options.HAPPY HOUR: 4:00 PM Lobby at Cheesecake Factory.
🛑IMPORTANT:
If you do not see the group at the Cheesecake Factory lobby at 4:00 PM be CERTAIN to see comments for an update. If Cheesecake Factory is packed (they don’t accept reservations for Happy Hour at this location), and we can’t all be accommodated we will go to Bacari. Both have great Happy Hours and are located at The Americana.SEE HAPPY HOUR MENU FOR BOTH CHEESECAKE FACTORY & BACARI IN THE PHOTO GALLERY
⚠️IF YOU ARE ONLY JOINING HAPPY HOUR BE CERTAIN TO LET ME KNOW IN COMMENTS SO I CAN FIND AMPLE SEATING.
Feel free to see the movie of your preference either before or after Happy Hour if you’re not interested in “Heart of the Beast”.
AMC Glendale- choose your fave movie
https://www.amctheatres.com/movie-theatres/los-angeles/amc-the-americana-at-brand-18/showtimes?date=2026-10-06THE AMERICANA ON BRAND
The ultimate outdoor shopping, dining and entertainment destination.I highly encourage you become a Stubs Member (FREE to join the Insider Membership).
ENROLL TO BECOME A STUB MEMBER
https://www.amctheatres.com/amcstubs50% OFF OF THE FULL PRICE
Adult $9.24 on TuesdaysNote: If you have the Stubs Insider Membership (about $19 per year) you get perk upgrades on food.
TRIVIA: Did you know the Glendale Galleria has more visitors annually than Disneyland in California? True!!! Glendale Galleria Visitors: The mall reports an estimated 26 to 30 million annual shoppers.
- Disneyland Comparison: Past baseline comparisons often cited Disneyland Park drawing around 16 to 18 million visitors per year during those same comparative periods.
PARKING
Those unfamiliar with the Americana discovering the FREE entrances can be very tricky.IMPORTANT PARKING TIP
FREE GLENDALE GALLERIA PARKING NEAR THE AMERICANA:
Use the mall parking entrance on Central or Brand. This is considered GLENDALE GALLERIA PARKING (not paid Americana). I recommend the entrance on CENTRAL AVE. It’s closer to both Cheesecake Factory and AMC. It has multiple levels & stretches all the way across to Brand Blvd. There’s more easily accessible parking spaces.ENTERING ON CENTRAL AVE. (recommended)— where you see “B” Parking not far from the overpass bridge between Broadway & Colorado Blvd. Enter the parking lot structure near the large vertical Bloomingdale’s marquee. SEE PHOTO SO YOU ENTER THE RIGHT DRIVEWAY INTO THE GARAGE.
ENTERING ON BRAND BLVD.— enter at the alley directly next to In-N-Out Burger where you see “B” Parking.
AMERICANA PAY PARKING $5 with movie validation up to 4 hrs. If you go beyond 4 hours you end up paying FULL PRICE from the time you entered. This could wind up to be $16. Entrance is on Central between Cheesecake Factory & HM Store and on Brand next to Capital Bank & Frieda Restaurant for paid parking. The FREE entrance is directly next to the pay entrance. Why spend money on parking?
GLENDALE GALLERIA MALL PARKING
Parking is FREE. Enter on Colorado Blvd, Broadway Blvd or Columbus Ave. After you park cross Central Ave.9 attendeesL.A.'s Hottest NEW Restaurant: The Extraordinary Sous Sous at Hotel Lucile
Hotel Lucile, 1629 Griffith Park Blvd., Silver Lake, CA, USBRINGING YOU LA’S H O T T E S T NEW VENUE
🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥Why do ordinary when you can do extraordinary~ Lorena
These historical “Fabulous places” are what I’m most passionate about. I’m an advocate for preservation. It’s simply remarkable what they have done with this space.
95-year-old LA church gets new life as 25-room boutique hotel & restaurant.
Take a look 👁️
If you don’t have Instagram (best two videos) watch the YouTube one until the end. It will WOW you!!!https://www.instagram.com/reel/Dc9J7XtvhX7/?stkn=am9kMjlsNzhtcjY=
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DdcOXUdSUQJ/?stkn=MWRkdTRqNTJzdGN0YQ==
https://youtube.com/shorts/xY0nQUPvJG4?si=WxuOqGkCr5qnT4j-
Please kindly confirm your commitment to attend by making your $5 RSVP immediately. Event is two weeks out. You will be replaced otherwise. See payment info below. Thank you!
HOW A 1931 CHURCH BECAME SILVER LAKE’S GLAMOROUS NEW BOUTIQUE HOTEL
• A 1931 Silver Lake church has been reborn as Hotel Lucile, a 25-room boutique property with a restaurant and bar in the former sanctuary, preserving stained glass and a rooftop cross.
• After years of neighborhood debate, city hearings and a bankruptcy, Casetta Group took over the project.There’s a cross on the roof, stained glass in the windows and a choir loft upstairs, but this whitewashed three-level building near Sunset Blvd in Silver Lake is no longer a house of worship. It’s the HOTEL LUCILE which just opened last week- Sept. 14 with a restaurant and bar in the high-ceilinged sanctuary where churchgoers once gathered. This opening follows more than a decade of controversy and transformation, including a community debate, bankruptcy and the arrivsal of a new hotelier in 2020.
The new hotelier is Los Angeles-based CASSETA GROUP which specializes in adapting older structures and has six properties in California and New Mexico, including the Surfrider Hotel in Malibu and Casa Cody in Palm Springs.
When guests arrive at Hotel Lucile, they will find many reminders that the building was constructed as Bethany Presbyterian Church in 1931. But those guests will also see plenty of updates, including 25 guest rooms in the space that once held a church school; a small pool (about 15 feet square); and a rotating display of more than 100 contemporary artworks (many for sale). The organ loft is now a meeting space. The choir loft is retooled as a zone for coffee and drinks. The rooftop (reserved only for hotel guests) is a lounge with downtown views.
After serving as a church for most of the 20th century under varying names, the building was informally adapted for multiple uses, including spells as an antique shop, filming location and the backdrop for interactive horror theater experience “Delusion.”
The building has lived several lives, and now stands as a pillar of revitalized beauty and a new gathering place.
This church-to-commerce transition isn’t entirely unique. Across the city and the country, declining attendance has idled many religious buildings, often leading to conversions. I personally have been to a few of these repurposed former places of worship. I went out to view Hotel Lucile before posting this event.
Hotel Lucile is by far one of the most remarkable repurposed religious buildings I’ve been to in Southern California. AN ABSOLUTE MUST SEE!!!
Hotel Lucile begins a new chapter, retaining interior arches, masonry, woodwork details and a rooftop cross that the hotel will keep alight at night. (The old church bell, however, will remain silent.) “We did preserve as much as we could of the original beams and stained glass,” said Laney Langenstein, who oversees strategy and marketing for Casetta. Though guest rooms have minibars (curated by Erewhon and other partners), Langenstein noted that hotel staffers will also push a martini cart that will “go through the hallways and see if anybody thinks it’s cocktail hour.”
DINING
Run by the team behind De La Nonna, Sous Sous is the main restaurant for Hotel Lucile. The restaurant sits in what was formerly the church's chapel, complete with a marble bar where the pipe organs used to be. Sous Sous' draws upon cooking traditions of southern France and the American South, which means dishes like polenta-crusted rainbow trout, bouillabaisse for two, and sazeracs with toasted coconut rims.As of now Sous Sous only serves dinner. A hotel cafe will be open to guests for breakfast and lunch in the near future. They will introduce Happy Hour and occasional live music on the room’s stage.
MENU
Their menu on their website does not have prices but someone who recently went uploaded a photo of their menu. See last photo in the photo gallery.HOTEL
The new look of the hotel was produced by Casetta Hotels and design firm Electric Bowery. Of 25 rooms, 24 have a single king bed and one has two queens. Most rooms have showers, not tubs. There is one suite, which has its own courtyard patio and fountain.With an eye to potential expansion later, hotel management has also bought up one of the three immediately neighboring properties.
RESERVE YOUR DINING SPOT
$5 RSVP PayPal, Venmo or Zelle (NOT if waitlisted). NOTE: Fee is NOT refundable or transferable. If you need to cancel immediately update to “not going.”Payment contact provided at time of RSVP made immediately or spot will be released so someone else can join.
AT TIME OF PAYMENT INDICATE: Sous Sous
NOTIFICATIONS-ON ARE REQUIRED
It is YOUR responsibility to know if you were moved-up from the waitlist.PARKING
Valet $15 or street parking.
The church is located in a residential neighborhood. Give yourself plenty of time to find street parking. Space is very limited and may require walking a block or two.MEETUP POLICY
🔺No drop-ins. RSVP Meetup members only 🔺 3 under 24-hr cancellations/6-months out 🔺 3 failures to pay (fee events)/6-months out 🔺 2 no-shows/perm. removed 🔺 Excessive cancellations perm. removed12 attendees
Past events
323
