Author: smharff

Amsterdam Art Wall

Amsterdam Art Wall

by smharff ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

One of the things I love about traveling to major cities is that it gives me an opportunity to visit world-class museums. I’ve had the good fortune to be able to tour some of the greats—the Musee du Louvre, the British Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, to name a few—and I always look forward to discovering new gems.

A couple of years ago, I had the opportunity to visit Amsterdam, and I was really impressed by the amazing art scene there. During our stay, we toured three very different art museums, each offering a unique setting and featuring incredible art.

We started with the Rijksmuseum, where we viewed Dutch Masterworks by Rembrandt van Rijn and Johannes Vermeer. The fact that I was viewing these paintings in Amsterdam, the city that played home to these great artists, made the experience even more special.

The Night Watch, one of Rembrandt’s most famous paintings, at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. 

After exiting the Rijksmuseum, we crossed a lovely courtyard to visit the adjacent Van Gogh Museum, home to the world’s largest collection of paintings by Vincent Van Gogh. This amazing collection was housed in a beautiful, modern space flooded with natural light. We were fortunate enough to visit during a special exhibit of original French Belle Epoque posters, which I loved. 

In addition to an incredible collection of paintings by Van Gogh, the Van Gogh Museum featured a special exhibit of original French Belle Epoque posters.

Later in the day, we visited the Hermitage Amsterdam, an outpost of the Hermitage Museum in Russia. Located on the Amstel River, this museum afforded us the opportunity to view more Dutch masterworks, along with a special exhibit about the fall of the Tsar of Russia.

The portrait gallery at the Hermitage Amsterdam.

Later in the week, I visited the cute boutiques located in the Little Nine Streets, a shopping district near the three original canals of Amsterdam, all of which have been classified a Unesco World Heritage Site. While browsing, I noticed that many of the shops and cafes featured whimsical modern art and fresh graphic posters, a testament to this city’s abiding love of art and design.

I like to purchase postcards and small prints to commemorate my travels, and I found the perfect option at a clothing store called King Louie: a set of charming postcards featuring portraits of animals styled like 17thcentury Dutch merchants. I felt they were a whimsical, irreverent take on the classic Dutch Masterworks I’d seen earlier in the week—a perfect blend of the old Amsterdam and the new.

When I arrived home, I decided to create a small gallery wall in my living room featuring the postcards and a few other lovely prints I’d purchased as mementos.

A gallery wall in my home, featuring the charming postcards and small prints I purchased during our trip to Amsterdam. Gallery frames by Pottery Barn.

This is one of several gallery walls in my home, each featuring a different destination. I like to use simple black gallery frames with creamy-white mattes, and I often augment the framed prints with fun three-dimensional pieces that accent the art. In this case, I added papier mache bird heads from Cody Foster.

This is one of the focal points of our great room, and I think of our trip every time I walk past it.

Have you ever found a great piece of art during your travels? I’d love to hear about your finds.

Until next time!

Stephanie

Favorite Brands: Buly 1803

Favorite Brands: Buly 1803

by smharff ♥ 0 Leave a Comment
Discovering Buly 1803, one of my favorite French brands.

One of my favorite parts of traveling is discovering heritage brands that have deep ties to the country I’m visiting—think Hermes in Paris, Burberry in London, or Tiffany’s in New York City. These classic brands inspire a loyal following with their deep sense of history. They offer desirable, high-quality items that are instantly recognizable by those in-the-know. 

Paris is home to many of my favorite heritage brands, to include the usual suspects, such as the aforementioned Hermes. But there are several lesser known brands I’ve discovered over the years, including tea ateliers, chocolatiers, candlemakers and more. Bringing home a little treat from one of these shops allows me to fill my home with beautiful things, with the added benefit of allowing me to re-create an element of my trip. 

Visiting Buly 1803 in St. Germain des Pres.

On a recent trip to Paris, I spent a sunny afternoon wondering through St. Germain des Pres, one of Paris’s finest neighborhoods, and home to some spectacular boutiques. One of my favorites was Buly 1803, a heritage brand founded more than 200 years ago, and specializing in bath and body products.

Like so many places in Paris, the exterior of the store was tasteful, elegant and understated; though I was looking for it, I almost passed it by. But I’m so glad I stopped in, because as lovely as the outside is, the inside is truly extraordinary.

The lovely interior of Buly 1803 features incredible cabinetry, successfully recreating the feel of a classic apothecary. 

The brand has taken great care in replicating a classic, old-world apothecary feel inside the shop, making the relatively small space feel warm, inviting and special, as if you are going back in time and entering an almost sacred space. The floor-to-ceiling fixtures are crafted of hand-carved wood, dark stone and ornate brass. These classic, natural finishes serve as the perfect backdrop for their tasteful products.

Buly 1803 products feature beautiful packaging, inspired by vintage advertisements from their archives. I especially loved the colorful illustrations on the soaps and match boxes.

As someone who has a great appreciation for excellent design, I’ve always been drawn to beautiful packaging, and Buly 1803 did not disappoint. The scented soaps, lotions, toothpaste and matches were adorned in the most gorgeous, vintage-inspired labels, each featuring the signature Buly logo, French text explaining the contents and charming illustrations. The color palette is classic and sophisticated–ebony and ivory with pops of chartreuse, French blue, scarlet and emerald.

The attendants allowed me to test some deliciously-scented soaps, which were washed away by this charming goose neck brass faucet.

I ended up purchasing a variety of items, including lotion, hand cream, toothpaste and little boxes of scented matches that smell amazing when you light them, their scent instantly transporting me back to the shop.

Upon returning home, I worked to incorporate these lovely items into our décor. I put one of the boxes of scented matches in a glass box on the end table next to the sofa, so that I could use them to light candles I purchased from another favorite French heritage brand, Cire Trudon. I displayed another box in a set of wall cubbies where I house cards and other small, tasteful souvenirs I pick up on my travels.

Buly 1803 scented matches are right at home in a little glass box on an end table. I use them to light my Cire Trudon candles. 

Incorporating these little treasures into my decor always reminds me of the wonderful trips I’ve taken. The fact that these items are practical as well as beautiful means that I actually use them. I find this so much better than purchasing the typical souvenirs, which tend to be poorly made and quickly discarded.

What are your favorite souvenirs? And how do you incorporate them into your home?

I’d love to hear your thoughts. Until next time!

Stephanie

How to Host Afternoon Tea

How to Host Afternoon Tea

by smharff ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

One of my favorite daily rituals is enjoying a hot cup of tea. For me, it’s one of life’s little luxuries. It’s something special I do for myself every morning, before my busy day begins. It really makes me feel nurtured.

But I haven’t always started my day this way. This ritual has its origins in an experience I had in 2014 when my husband and I spent a week in London for our anniversary. While we were there, I had one of my favorite travel dining experiences of all time—a traditional British afternoon tea at Fortnum & Mason, the gourmet grocer to the British Royal Family.

Fortnum & Mason is a purveyor of fine foods, one that has been around for more than 300 years. Housed in a historic structure on London’s famous Picadilly Road, F&M features a fresh food hall where they carry a wide variety of gourmet groceries, including organic fruit and vegetables, cheese and charcuterie, florals and fresh bread, wine and spirits, and more.

Now I can’t go to London without stopping by Fortnum & Mason to pick up provisions.

There’s also a tea and specialty food floor that features all kinds of delicious treats, including their amazing loose leaf teas and their famous custom hampers overflowing with an assortment of tea biscuits, fancy jams and jellies, gourmet chocolates, Turkish Delight and other fancy treats. 

Three additional floors house beauty products, housewares, and a variety of dining establishments, including a restaurant, a wine bar, and an ice cream parlor. But my favorite place at F&M is the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Tea Salon. And that’s where my husband and I treated ourselves to a traditional afternoon tea.

Upon arrival, we were welcomed into a large, formal salon with carpeted floors and cream-colored walls inset with beautiful hand-painted silk panels. Large round tables were set with white linens covered with fresh cut flowers and Fortnum & Mason’s signature pale blue, white and gold china. 

Afternoon tea in the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Tea Salon at Fortnum & Mason.

We were seated and offered a menu featuring dozens of different tea options. Fortnum & Mason is serious about tea, and I’ve yet to source a better brand. We elected to have the traditional afternoon tea, which included our choice of loose leaf tea steeped at our table, along with delicious tea sandwiches, scones, strawberry champagne jam and clotted cream, and an assortment of delicate pastries. And, of course, the white glove service was impeccable. I was so inspired by the experience that, upon returning home, I decided to use some of the items I’d purchased at F&M to recreate this experience for my friends.

First, I planned a menu inspired by our experience. I wanted my tea to include all the elements I’d enjoyed at F&M, but with my own twist, to include finger sandwiches from Joan’s Catering, and my favorite pastries and scones from Fresh Market.

Party prep. For a party of five, I determined that I’d need two tea pots. That worked out great, as it allowed me to offer two different teas. I also purchased these cute initial mugs from Anthropologie.

On the day of the party, I picked up the food, along with some fresh flowers, and then I gathered all the items I’d need to set the table, including some cute initial mugs from Anthropologie that I’d purchased for my friends. I decided to use simple cream plates, small wood spoons and linen napkins I already had. Then I set the table.

I served two variations of F&M’s famous loose-leaf teas, along with finger sandwiches, petite Madeleines, chocolates and other treats.

My friends were delighted with the tea! They enjoyed trying the different options—I served Green Tea with Apples and Assam Superb Tea, along with milk, lemon slices, rough-cut brown sugar and white sugar cubes. We spent a nice couple of hours catching up, and then the ladies each took their mug home as a keepsake. 

This was the first time I’d ever tried to recreate a travel dining experience, and it really inspired me. Since then, I’ve hosted several other parties, brunches and dinners inspired by my travels. You can check out my Instagram feed to see photos of my travels and the decorating projects and events they inspired. I’d love to hear what you think. In the meantime, enjoy!

Until next time!

Stephanie