For luxurious decor, you will often see large hanging porch swings with an array of cushions, wide lounge chairs, and reclining chaises. Lighting should be kept soft and ambient, incorporating hanging lamps and candlelight. Adorn surfaces and corners with tall house plants, hanging plants, and flowers for an earthy, fresh feel, and keep surfaces clean lending room for books and beverages.
We hope you enjoy some of our favorite selections of modern luxury porches!
Keeping your home free of stagnant energy will help you live with lightness of being.
August is the fall of the summer, and autumn right around the corner. With luck, this summer you have spent countless hours bathing in sunlight, or adventuring in new territories. Now is the time to spend some time inside your home, take a look around, and begin to cleanse all the corners and surfaces to ready yourself for the last third of the year. Having a clean and pure living environment is clinically proven to increase brain activity, calm your nerves, and improve overall productivity.
The first step to minimizing clutter, and maximizing peaceful, clean energy in your environment, is to discard any of the following items from your surfaces and drawers.
Old Magazines + Newspapers – If you have stacks of old magazines and newspapers lying around your coffee tables or bookshelves, toss them into the recycling, and clear space for new projects and books!
Receipts + Bills + Documents – Have you already logged or filed necessary information from any receipts, bills, or documents you’ve been saving on your desk or in your kitchen drawers? Throw them all into the recycling bin! Anything that you truly need to save for your personal files or taxes should be neatly organized and placed in a file folder or cabinet.
Clothing – Take a long, hard look inside your closet, boudoir, or dresser, and remove anything you haven’t been wearing regularly (seasonal clothes aside).
Books – Do you have stacks of books that you have already read? Pick your top three, and donate the rest. Trade collections with your best friend, create a neighborhood “Take One, Leave One” bin, or find a coffeeshop with a bookshelf and leave them for someone else!
Medicine + Vitamins – Check the expiration date on all of your bottled medicines an supplements, and discard anything old, or anything that you are no longer in need of.
Makeup + Perfume – Cosmetics and toiletries expire also, and usually aren’t of the same quality after spending too much time laying around in a drawer. Go through everything an toss out those mostly empty compacts of powder or dried up mascaras!
Jewelry – If you aren’t going to invest in basic jewelry pliers or a small repair kit, it’s time to discard all the broken jewelry that you have cluttering up your drawers.
Old or Unused Electronics – Do you have a drawer for old cables, phone chargers, cell phones, or any other obsolete electronics? Get rid of all of that! Donate to your local Goodwill.
It is of utmost important to the balance of your mind and your home to dedicate an area of your space to setting intentions. Find a coffee table, bookshelf, or atop your mantle to place powerful items of significance, peace, abundance, and prosperity. Here are some things you can get started with:
An Altar Cloth sets the foundation for the space you are creating, reflecting all that is within you.
Salt is an important ingredient to place in a bowl on your altar, as it is protective, purifying, and represents the Earth’s energy.
A Chalice represents the Mother Goddess, or divine feminine energy, and is used to hold ceremonial drink, or salt water.
A Wand can be made from any organic material, and is used to direct and channel energies in and around you.
Candles are used to invoke and hold the power of each cardinal point, and are used to balance the masculine and feminine energies.
Bells or Singing Bowls call upon healing energies on your altar, clearing any stagnant energy, and can signify the beginning and ending of your personal practices or rituals
Powerful Stones like crystals and minerals each vibrate at their own frequency, and hold unique significance than can represent different feelings, intentions, and affirmations you would like to focus on.
When designing the interior decoration of a larger space, it is important for the room to feel cozy, while maintaining the flow of openness. Here are some tips on making a large room have the perfect balance!
Large Room, Large Furniture
Depending on the shape of the room, or where windows are placed, you may easily divide up areas of a larger room with and L-shaped sectional. In addition, you may even compliment your sectional or sofa with an oversized ottoman.
The perfect way to create environments for lounging in a larger room are to align your furniture atop an area rug. Use the rug to define the borders of a particular zone for sitting or laying.
Placing a day bed or chaise lounge chair in the center of a large room can be the perfect divider between different areas. If your living room and dining room are conencted in the same large space, separate them with the bold placement of a larger piece of furniture.
A wooden or paper Japanese screen can be used for shade, privacy, or be a means to section off different areas within a larger space. Create a reading nook, or separate your dining area from the main living space by placing a screen between the two environments.
If you’d like to tone down the openness of a large room, or simply give it a little warmth and character, try adding an accent wall showcasing your favorite pigment. Use a color that is calming and comforting, but makes a statement nonetheless.
A perfect way to fill a large room with warm, earthy energy is to place taller house plants along the edges of your furniture, in corners, or on side tables. Try a potted ficus tree, a majesty palm, or Madagascar palm to fill out your environment with forest vibes.
One of the Five Arts of Chinese Metaphysics, fen shui, or wind-water, is a ancient traditional belief system that guides and governs the energy forces within architectural structures.
Closely linked to Taoism, feng shui practice discusses the arrangement within architecture in terms of the “invisible forces“ that bind the universe, earth, and humanity together, known as qi. In traditional Chinese culture, qi is believed to be the vital force, life force, energy flow, or material energy forming part of every living entity. Qi, in relation to feng shui, includes the orientation of a structure, its age, and its interaction with the surrounding environment, including the local microclimates, the slope of the land, vegetation, and soil quality.
The use of feng shui is dated back as far as 5000 BC to the Yangshao people that lived along the Yangtze River in China. Between 4700 BC and 2900 BC, the Hongshan people in Northeast China, who interacted with the Yangshao, adopted feng shui into their culture. Before the magnetic compass, feng shui relied on cosmography to set the orientation of structures. Early Chinese astronomers utilized a gnomon, or the part of a sundial that casts the shadow, as the first instrument to use circumpolar stars to determine the north-south axis of settlements. Rituals for using a feng shui instrument required a diviner to examine current sky phenomena to set the device and adjust their position in relation to the device. The magnetic compass was in fact originally invented by the Han Dynasty for the purpose of divination and feng shui.
In Western civilization, feng shui has become widespread, and is commonly utilized in interior design and architecture.
Bagua
In Yaodian, the cardinal directions are determined by the marker-stars of the mega-constellations known as the Four Celestial Animals:
East: The Azure Dragon (Spring equinox)āNiao (Bird 鳄), Ī± Scorpionis
South: The Vermilion Bird (Summer solstice)āHuo (Fire ē«), Ī± Hydrae
West: The White Tiger (Autumn equinox)āMĒo (Hair ęÆ), Ī· Tauri (the Pleiades)
North: The Black Tortoise (Winter solstice)āXÅ« (Emptiness, Void č), Ī± Aquarii, Ī² Aquarii
You can use the bagua diagram in your own home, by using a compass, or the compass app on your phone, to check how you have intuitively placed things around your home, and re-arrange accordingly. Using the bagua diagram can, if anything, be an excellent way to decorate and arrange parts your home with intention!
Chandigarh, India is a time capsule of Mid-Century Modern architecture nestled in the foothills of the Himalayas.
In 2016, the Capitol Complex in Chandigarh was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site, making these incredible modern buildings an unmissable wonder. In Chandigarh, India, you wonāt find an ancient city, or any British colonial buildings. Chandigarh was one of Indiaās first planned cities, created by the Chandigarh Capital Project Team, and led by Swiss architect, Charles Edouard Corbusier (Le Corbusier). As a marvelous result, Chandigarh is a urban zone that feels both futuristic and retro. The flawless geometrical outline mirrors the engineering virtuoso of the organizers of the city, Albert Mayer and Mathew Novicki. Chandigarh is a vacation destination with a modern business focus.
In India, most of the cities are planned and created solely for automobiles, so a sidewalk is an immense luxury. In Chandigarh, there are plentiful pedestrian walkways where you may safely stroll, a perfect means to pleasantly meander local streets by foot. Take a quick walk with us through this modernist haven!
Indigo is the āpeace that surpasses all understanding,ā being protective, benevolent, gentle, and cooling. It governs our higher psychic activities, insight, wisdom, and assists us in navigating deep changes.
It relates to the third eye, where the pituitary gland is located. Indigo relates to self responsibility of one’s own life, to following the soul’s path, and trusting one’s own intuition. It inspires the ability to see things from a ‘higher’ viewpoint rather than purely for satisfaction of the ego or one’s material comfort. In indigo, we feel a resonant sense of unity and clarity. Indigo relates to self-expression through speech and communication, and is the very essence of truth and purpose.
Indigo dye is among the oldest to be used for dying textiles and making prints, and was first documented in history as being used in Huaca Prieta, Peru. Since its discovery, indigo dye has been used in the ancient civilizations of Japan, India and Southeast Asian countries, Mesopotamia, Egypt, Iran, and Africa.
The color indigo is named after the indigo dye derived from the plant Indigofera tinctoria and related species. Indigofera tinctoria, also called true indigo, has been naturalized to be cultivated in tropical areas of Asia, Africa, and the Americas. Since it is a legume, it is also widely used as a soil-improving ground cover, and is rotated into fields similarly to alfalfa and other beans. Dye is obtained through processing the leaves through fermentation.
This summer we are so excited to present a new line of woven pillows handmade from vintage Turkish rugs. Each design is one hundred percent unique, finished with a cotton backing and zipper. These pillows pair perfectly with our signature bunglo pillows for an eclectic, boho look.
Check out the lovely array of vintage Turkish pillows below, and let us know what you think!
Upcycling, or creative repurposing, is the process of transforming used and discarded materials into products or projects for better environmental use and better quality.
By upcycling, you prevent wasting potentially useful materials, therefore reducing the consumption of new raw materials when creating new products. Reducing the use of new raw materials can result in a reduction of energy usage, air pollution, water pollution and even greenhouse gas emissions. The major environmental impact of glass production is the atmospheric emissions from melting activities. The combustion of natural gas or fuel oil, and the decomposition of raw materials during the melting, lead to the emission of carbon dioxide.
Glass bottles are already a brilliantly constructed work of art. Both their smooth, oblong shape, and array of colors make them a prime candidate for upcycling in your own home. When they go in the recycling bin, or often the trash, it is common for them to shatter and become useless for anything other than being melted down. It’s a shame to let such a beautiful sculpture go to waste! Imagine the possibilities of using beautiful blue hues of glass, or serene greens to create a privacy wall, outdoor shower, garden bed, or simple a lantern to hang a candle.
Check out these immensely creative and extraordinay applications of glass upcycling. Some are more complex and require a bit more knowledge of construction, and some that can be simply constructed in a weekend!
Just in time for summer, our luxurious Poolside Collection was inspired by long, lavish days spent by the pool at the iconic Beverly Hills Hotel in Los Angeles.
The dreamy “Pink Palace” is the ultimate beacon of timeless allure in Los Angeles, and has been the place to see and be seen for over a century. With an unforgettable fusion of vintage glamour and modern luxury, we hope to sweep you away with the same soft hues. Adorn your outdoor spaces with elegance and style, make every area of your environment inviting. Surround yourself with fresh fruit and flowers, modern bohemian patterns, and a dreamy summer color palette. Setting your table and outdoor spaces with intention will ensure you’re sent into the season with panache.
Enjoy taking a tour through our new summer collection, and feel inspired to create your outdoor oasis this summer!
A house in the country could be your weekend escape, or perhaps where you experience everyday life of tending to land or caring for animals. While immersed in nature, it benefits the flow of your home to incorporate as many natural elements as possible. Even if you are aiming for a modern edge with the design and decor of your home, you might still utilize as many organic materials as you can find to keep the feel peaceful and grounding.
When we envision modern decor, polished surfaces, sleek angles, and crisp edges come to mind. To soften the sharper edge of contemporary style to adapt to the countryside, you may begin by adding accents of timber, wicker, and fresh flowers and plant life. Ideally, your home will have large windows to illuminate the space with sunlight, and views of the surrounding forests or pastures. To keep the flow of the outdoor landscapes, utilize an earthy, neutral color palette.
Draw some inspiration from our selection of homes with a lovely fusion of contemporary and countryside styles. With all the right ingredients, these homes have created the perfect modern farmhouses.
