Getaway: On the Bosphorus

If you live in northern climes, I think we can all agree that this dreary snowy and rainy weather is getting old. Fast. So let's escape, at least virtually, to exotic Istanbul. In college I studied antiquity and medieval history so I've always wanted to visit the golden city of Byzantium. The House Hotel on the shores of the Bosphorus is the place to stay. Renovated by the Autoban design group, this historic 19th century building has been transformed into a luxury boutique hotel that combines contemporary design with historic charm. 

Can you even handle this room? I love, love, love the ornate crown moulding, paneling and ceiling medallions especially paired with those awesome modern light fixture. And that headboard... 

{Images via The House Hotel} 

Isabel Harvey

I happened to find myself in Wellesley on Monday morning and decided to take advantage of some spare time to check out the local boutiques. One of the first to catch my eye was Isabel Harvey with its colorful displays of jewelry, scarves and handbags. Sisters and co-founders Kimberly and Alexis Kissam named their boutique in honor of grandmother, Isabel Harvey, who's motto was women should express their unique, individual style through beautiful accessories. 

In-house designed bracelets, necklaces and earrings along with luxurious leather totes go hand in hand with a well curated selection of home accents and artwork. I had my eye on several picture frames as well as one of those fabulous totes, it would be perfect for trips to the design center! 

Tortoise & Gold Sources | 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 

Blue Bell Sources | 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5

Old World Charm in Brooklyn

British transplants Hilary Robertson and husband Alistair McCowan have brought their love of old world charm, antiques and flee market finds to their Brooklyn abode. Everything about this divine home is perfect in my eyes, from the cream and grey wall palette to the gorgeous crown molding to the pink accents to the vintage light fixtures. You have to say there's something pretty miraculous about a husband who allows a his wife to use Pink in their principle living space.

Like what you see? Hilary's just opened up a shop, Mrs. Robertson a few blocks away in Brooklyn. 

{Photography by Matthew Williams for Living Etc}

Flower Power

Last Monday I was surprised by a beautiful bouquet of flowers. Why? Long story short a bouquet that was supposed to be delivered to my on Valentine's Day never arrived. A refund was made to the sender but Winston's sent me a bouquet anyway! Last week was a particular horrible one for me but every time I looked at my flower arrangement I couldn't help but smile. So I bringing you the power of flowers as the week starts. Monday's can be a bear but hopefully these images will alleviate, at least temporarily, the blues. 

Alpha Smoot for Cup of Jo

While a well crafted bouquet from a wonderful florist is always appreciated, Joanna over at Cup of Jo had a great feature last week on arranging blooms commonly found at your local supermarket. No florist needed. 

{Images via Pinterest unless otherwise noted}

Winning

For several months now I've been telling myself that in honor of Halcyon Style's second birthday we were going to splurge on a professional blog template. Initially this meant tracking down a designer and shelling out a large fee. Then I went to Blogshop. And it changed my graphic design life. Now, instead, I'm working on giving my blog mini "lifestyle lifts" all on my own.

Last night I burned the midnight oil. I revamped color, relocated some of my sidebar items, labels & popular posts, to the footer and last but not at all leasts, I conquered the button. Sure, blogshop taught me how to create those wonderful social media icons and other buttons but how in the heck do you add them to you blog's layout? Magic. Kidding, I followed this basic tutorial, fidgeting a bit with the final html code at the end. Next up on the list: the header, the about page and my interior design services page. 

Back to regularly scheduled programming on Monday, promise. 

SRSLY. Watch These

Seriously, you'll love SRSLY. I stumbled upon them the other day while rummaging through the Birchbox video tutorials. These comedic shorts are parody's of real life situations for young women today. It was hard to pick just a few favorites to highlight in this post but think I choose some winners that surely will leave you hooked on duo Danielle Gibson and Alexandra Fiber's slightly sardonic wit. 

Going Out - who hasn't had this exact same experience?



Juice - Cleanses aren't for the faint of heart.



Gym - Competitiveness at it's finest. 

 Check out all the witty SRSLY. videos here.

Halcyon Style Turns Two

It's been 731 days since my first post here on Halcyon Style! Here's to another 365. 

I promise to cool it on the circular shapes for a while, I was just so excited when I learned how to barrel images into shapes using Photoshop. 

{Image via Sweet Thing}

Bedside Manner

I'm a bit sleepy this morning so let's take this opportunity to talk about the perpetual mess that is the bedside table. Go on, admit it. You wish your nightstand looked like one of those styled masterpieces in your favorite shelter magazine. Instead it's full of books, magazines, multiple alarm clocks, phone chargers and bedtime beauty products. It's okay, I'm here to tell you it's okay to embrace the mess. 

Is your bedside table well groomed or jumbled chaos? 

{Images via Pinterest}

Mastering Photoshop

Have you heard of Blogshop? Tailored specifically for aiding bloggers, It's a touring two-day Photoshop intensive taught by the talented duo Angela Kohler and Bri Emery. If you're a blogger or simply interested in learning a bit of the basics of photoshop I cannot express enough how beneficial this workshop would be. I attended the Boston workshop this past weekend and my brain is spinning with ways to implement my new-found skills on my blog. This morning I practiced some blemish correction and dark circle correction {and maybe some wrinkle removal!} on photographs shot the first day of the workshop. 

{Photography by Angela Kohler}

Coveting...

Fans of Caitlin McGauley's illustration rejoice! She recently launched a series of trays featuring her original designs. I'm particularly enamored with the Zig Zag Tray. It needs to make it's way to my bedside table to help corral the chaos. Check out her other designs too. 

{Images via Caitlin McGauley}

Kitchen Vignettes

I do love a well styled vignette. I have a whole pinterest board dedicated to images featuring little moments or special stories within a larger design. Often we neglect to create these vignettes in our kitchens in favor of the "neat & tidy" effect where everything is organized within an inch of it's life behind closed cabinet doors. At least this is what happens in mine. I think we should change this, especially those of us who spend a great deal of time in our kitchens. Wouldn't it be nice to have a special moment in sight to help us remember to smile or relax during harried dinner prep? Even the smallest of spaces like my city closet kitchen can accommodate something; maybe it's how you store your fruit or the arrangement of daily cooking oils and spices next to your stove. 

{Images via Pinterest}

Breakfast in Bed

I've been having breakfast in bed for the past week. But for a very unglamorous reason, I destroyed a muscle in my lower back early last week and consequently am now dealing with sciatic pain. Thankfully, I seem to be on the mend but I still usually need an extra half hour in bed in the morning while waiting for my ibuprofen to kick in. A perfect time for my daily oatmeal and cup of tea while reading the newspaper and my favorite blogs. As the whole world undoubtedly knows, this Thursday is Valentine's Days. I'm pretty ho-hum in general about this holiday. I don't necessarily care about lavish gifts or chocolate (the later is blaspheme according to my mother) but I do enjoy the little indulgences like fresh flowers, a handmade valentine or a sugary breakfast in bed. Bringing your valentine breakfast in bed doesn't have to be fancy but here's a few ideas just in case you want to bring it up a notch.

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Want to go beyond buttery croissants and fresh fruit? Here are some ideas: 

Heart Shaped Waffles with Crispy Prosciutto and Boozy Maple Syrup

Nutella French Toast with Fresh Strawberries

Blueberry Sour Cream Muffins

Baked Egg and Avocado Tostadas

Southern Egg in Cocotte (Grits, Cheese, Sausage and Egg Bake)

{Images via Pinterest}

New Cabinets on the Block

Remember that movie from the late 90s where two teenagers get pulled into an old black and white television series and slowly bring change and color to their new surroundings? I feel that a similar revolution is happening in the world of kitchens, not to get too dramatic. In a world of plentiful gray, I'm pleased to have found a few fresh ideas out there for your cabinets from metallic finishes to shades of green from soft mint to bold hunter.   

And the pastel love continues with these mint cabinets. I love it paired with the marble counters and brass finishes. 

Hammer-time, just kidding. Those drop crotch pants should stay where they are: in the past. These hammered metal cabinets, on the other hand, are just gorgeous. 

This kitchen. This kitchen is beyond words amazing. Bailey McCarthy is a design genius. 

Mirrored panels for your kitchen island? Why yes, I think I will. 

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Landscape Statement Art

I love my gallery wall above my sofa, I really do. But sometimes it's nice to be reminded that sometimes one piece of art is all it takes to transform a wall from boring to brilliant. Generally oversized, these statement works could be anything from oils to encaustics to photography. It's photography that's catching my eye today in this image. I love the softness the photographed landscape lends to an otherwise rectangular space. If you'd like to give the power of statement photography a go, I've rounded up some favorites below. 

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The Kevin Russ images are both featured in the Emerging Artists sale on One Kings Lane ending tomorrow; full of more than just photography. This is a great way to start building up your art collection, on a budget. Isn't it time you replaced those ratty, framed posters from college anyway? 

{Image via Pinterest}

Magazine Collections

This past weekend I spent a good number of hours tearing up magazines. No, it had nothing to do with anger management or lack thereof. I simply cannot stand the large piles of magazines and catalogs that pile up around my house. Twice a year, once they've accumulated to such proportions that the stacks could double as accent tables, I flip through them one last time and tear out anything I deem inspirational, interesting recipes or practical advice. The remainder are heaved into the recycle bin. Phew. However, I recognize that some actually enjoy their magazine collections. And for those of you who do, you likely need a place to keep them organized. Here are a few ideas for corralling the chaos.

1. A chic stack of magazines and books next to a sleek fireplace. 

 

2. Stacked within reach under your nearest lucite coffee table. 

3. Behind closed doors, glazed or not. 

4. Make them an active part of your bookshelf styling.

 Do you keep your favorite magazines? Or do you rip them apart and create old-school pinterest boards like me? 

{Images via Pinterest}

Springing into Pastel

I weed through my closet twice a year, launder and dry clean the items destined for the consignment store and fold them neatly in shopping bags. And then they sit in the corner of my bedroom for two years. I have all the good intention to take them within the week to my local resale shop but somehow never actually get there. Sometimes this works out for the best. Remember how pastel was really in a couple of seasons ago? Well, this gal gave a shout of delight when she found a couple of sorbet-colored sweaters in her give-away pile. Just in time for a very pastel spring which is abundantly clear if you step into any clothing store or browse through the latest J.Crew catalog. I'm looking forward to slightly warmer weather so I can start capitalizing on my re-discovered pastels and my every growing collection of chambray button downs... 

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