Glamping

My best friends and I are really into extending birthdays into the weekend, and for mine we decided to go camping. It is one of our absolute favorite things to do together, even if it is just for one night at a campsite 40 minutes away.

I'm new to this term called "glamping", a merging of glamorous camping. It isn't something that I've done before, or realistically probably ever will do. I generally sleep in whatever tent has room for me in a sleeping bag on the ground. Showering is rare. However, we do always manage to eat some pretty gourmet meals (bbq chicken and strawberry spinach salad with Dutch oven peach cobbler for dessert).

However, if I ever do become a glamper, this is what I imagine...

I would sleep in a place like this...

And I would definitely be wearing something like this...

In all seriousness though, I really do think a pair of duck boots are in order this season. Happy glamping!

one, two, three, four, five, six

May Display

A new month means a new display at the LA Mart. This month's theme: travel, books, & souvenirs. Here are some photos of my goings on this past week, which included a lot of drilling and even more spray adhesive. It took me a while to arrive upon the "travel" bulletin board idea, and until I got to that point I was a little worried about coming up with something creative, beautiful, and do-able. (I can come up with a crazy idea to hang vintage airplanes from the ceiling, but that doesn't mean it's going to be possible to execute.)

Kelli and I with our power tools:

The more I do visual displays, the more I realize what my strengths are and what types of displays, for me, are the most successful. It's definitely the interior designer in me, but the displays that I love the most and that I think send a clear message to onlookers are the ones that incorporate living. I'm not interested in stacking up product on clear acrylic stands at varying levels; to me that is more about achieving balance and a successful composition rather than also creating something interesting that people can relate to or at least want to relate to.

Work in progress:

Product from the showrooms gathered for the display:

Although I enjoyed my spring display, I feel like this month's display was more successful in creating a sense of living. As I was selecting product and putting together the bulletin board, I was telling a story in my head of someone who lived a fascinating life of culture, music, history, and of course, travel. I wanted the display to be a snapshot of this person's interesting life.

Finished display, back:

Like my interiors that I design for clients, I want my visual displays to feel collected, layered, and interesting. If it's too matchy, too cutesy, or too trendy, I tend to shy away.

Finished display, front:

Perhaps the most monumental feat of this months display was that I got home at 11:00 pm last night. That's quite the change from my normal 2-3 am arrival time on installation day.

Thank you dad and Kelli for helping me! As always, I couldn't have done it without you. I think it's about time to hire and intern...

Here's to wishing everyone a happy and creative May.

Absolute Vintage, London

One of my must do's in London was to check out Absolute Vintage, a vintage clothing store voted the #1 vintage store in London by several fashion magazines. The store was in a really great part of town so I snapped a couple of photos on the street (see below). Unfortunately Absolute Vintage doesn't allow photography inside their store, but trust me when I say it was the best vintage clothing store I have ever been to. If you're in to vintage shopping, definitely check it out next time you're in London.

top image via Hostel Bookers

www.BrittanyStiles.com

The British Museum, London

While in London we stopped by the British Museum to see the Rosetta Stone (very cool) and all of their ancient Egyptian and Near East artifacts. Something I was pleasantly surprised to also see at the British Museum was a small collection of drawings from modern artists. I really enjoy looking at the detail of pen or ink drawings where so much attention is given to a simple line.

www.BrittanyStiles.com

Paris & London

Thanks to my best friend and travel agent Ms. Kelli Black, I just booked a trip to Paris and London for the month of February. Just a week long, 3 days in each city, but I can not wait! Having never been to either city, it's time to start making my list of places to go and things to see. So far at the top of my list is some sort of flea market in Paris and Les Miserables in London.

Key West

My mom didn't want to spend Christmas Eve on our sailboat so she arranged for us to stay the night in Key West. I'll admit that I knew next to nothing about the island of Key West and had no idea what to expect, but I must say that I was pleasantly surprised by our whole experience there. We had some amazing food, did a little shopping and scooter riding, but my favorite part was just driving around and looking at all of the adorable plantation style houses. Most of the houses have been preserved and renovated, or at least kept up really well. Many of the houses have been turned into shops or bed and breakfasts, but many of them are still residences. Visually speaking, it was one of the cutest towns I have ever been to.

We stayed at the Parrot Key Resort, which was out of all the hubbub going on down town, which was kind of nice. The little bungalow style rooms and architecture, along with the pool and garden area were so beautiful. We had a really pleasant stay and a really fun Christmas morning (made complete with our dollar store tinsel tree and dart guns and candy brought by Santa).

Parrot Key Resort exterior

Our rooms

They were out of Christmas pastries, but I thought this bakery was so adorable.

There are some really cool vintage and antique shops in Key West that sell really unique items, many of them with a nautical flair (washed up bottles, ship wheels, shells, etc.) This was one that I particularly liked called The Garden Cottage.

There were so many places to eat in Key West that sometimes it was difficult to decide where to go. On Duval street, where all of the action is in Key West, is lined with unique eateries found only in Key West. One of my favorites was Flamingo's Cafe. Order their crab cake sandwich and you won't be sorry. I have posted a photo of the cafe's decor below. It was Golden Girl's rosy pink and oh so Florida, I loved it.

Farmer's Daughter & Tart

I had such a fun weekend. My really good friend Bethany is getting married next Saturday (yay!) so this weekend all of her really good girlfriends celebrated her last days of single-dom LA style. Bethany's friend Kelly planned quite the weekend for us; complete with good food, dancing, D list celebrities, and boutique hotel accommodations. My trips to LA usually consist of home furnishings stores, thrift shops, the Staples Center, and FIDM back in the day, so I always love it when I get a chance to see new sides of the city. The style and interior of every place we went had it's own vibe and personality, so I wanted to highlight the various stops of our weekend-o-fun. But as I started gathering photos, I realized I had way too much info for one post, so I'm going to make a couple of different bachelorette party installments.

The first is the Farmer's Daughter Hotel and the attached Tart restaurant. Located right by the Farmer's Market, this boutique hotel had a really fun and unique style. It's modern chic meets The Little Red Hen. Take a look...


For brunch Saturday morning we ate at Tart. Such good food (I got the veggie hash and pancakes), and an equally good design aesthetic.