Montecito
You’ll find exquisite interiors and the ultimate in chic in both halves of this hamlet
You’ll find exquisite interiors and the ultimate in chic in both halves of this hamlet
Written by Joan Tapper | Photography by Sara Prince | Illustrations by Digital Sunsets
Montecito is doubly blessed—with interior design studios, antique shops, and home furnishings boutiques in the Upper Village and the Lower Village along Coast Village Road. Explore them both for ideas to enhance your home, garden, and lifestyle.
UPPER VILLAGE
Birgit Klein emphasizes European design in the furniture, case goods, and accessories at Birgit Klein Interiors. Looking forward she says clients favor soft fabrics, deep couches, and
indoor/outdoor living. A newcomer to the neighborhood, Coda Studio arrived last Halloween with artisan-crafted indoor and outdoor tables, seating, beds, and storage in sustainable materials, all customizable by the client.
Interior designer Jennifer Sanan fills Country House Antiques with elegant Swedish and French pieces. Her new European shipment includes 19th-century French marble tables and a Swedish secretary and clock. At Davis & Taft you’ll find a mélange of midcentury modern vintage, antiques, and art. Owner Leanne Baker also recently introduced Formations and Dennis & Leen to her showroom. With thoughtfully curated home accessories, Eider Studio offers elegant bed and bath linens from Matouk, SFERRA, and Le Jacquard Français. Their washed linen napkins are must-haves for plein-air dining. Long renowned for its expertise in Native American jewelry and artifacts and 16th- to 18th-century Spanish Colonial antiques, Haskell also showcases furniture by modern Latin masters like Don S. Shoemaker and Arturo Pani. You’ll find interior designer Tamara Kaye-Honey’s timeless, livable aesthetic at House of Honey’s full-service studio and retail shop. The emphasis this year? Playful, bright sorbet colors and textures that evoke a feeling of lightheartedness. Located in the old Montecito firehouse, Lucca Antiques is open to the trade, that is, professional designers. Among the offerings are one-of-a-kind pieces made from wood, metal, stone, and “found” industrial materials. Jenni Kayne Apparel + Home is expanding its California-inspired décor with home textiles and a furniture line in reclaimed cedar and solid white oak, for example, a dining table and safari chairs. Interior designer Marc Normand Gelinas specializes in classic, livable rooms that reflect his clients’ individual personalities and style. It’s all about handmade designs in resin at Tina Frey. Check out the new Mushroom Lamp, and watch for the new lemon yellow and moss colorways in their tableware and furniture. Montecito mainstay Upstairs at Pierre Lafond highlights local artists and designers, including Don Scott, who crafts timeless wooden bowls and serving pieces, and whimsical ceramicist Baba Masino. For entertaining outdoors there’s furniture by Fermob. At eclectic William Laman the design philosophy for 2021 highlights natural elements—wicker, wood, rush, bamboo, and batik—mixed with a few fabulous statement pieces. Think “Hotel du Cap meets Versailles.
LOWER VILLAGE
Clic, founded by Christiane Celle, opened here a few months ago. Among the signature items in the concept space are Maison des Vacances textiles and handmade ceramics by Eric Bonnin. It will be a colorful spring at Hudson Grace, with vivid butterfly chairs made in France, striped dish towels, and multihued glassware that livens your tabletop. At Legacy, where wares range from home furnishings to fashion, owner Nancy Kimsey sees two trends: “simplicity and elegance, epitomized by their marble objects, and a mix of contrasting styles and textures.” Lily presents an array of jewelry, designer apparel, candles, and soulful gifts. For spring? Think of oyster chandeliers, mother-of-pearl crosses, and driftwood hearts. The neutral palette and natural organic vibe of Maison K’s owner Kimberly Phillips Hayes is evident throughout the boutique. Her signature tabletop décor is classic white ceramic ware by Astier de Villatte. Nautical New England sets the style at Mate Gallery, which highlights vintage art, books, and photographic curiosities. Curated by the editors of C Magazine, Studio C stocks the best made-in-California goods, from tabletop accessories, ceramics, and candles to cult beauty products, accessories, jewelry, and more, and hosts exclusive trunk shoes with designers.
Santa Barbara
Enjoy a rambling tour of downtown’s home stores; you’ll be sure to discover something special to brighten your day (and your abode)
Enjoy a rambling tour of downtown’s home stores; you’ll be sure to discover something special to brighten your day (and your abode)
Written by L.D. Porter | Photography by Sara Prince | Illustrations by Digital Sunsets
From the Funk Zone to the top of State Street, Santa Barbara is packed with purveyors of home goods and services to transform even the simplest abode into a shelter-magazine–worthy dwelling. Guided by the healing practices of his ancestors, Rafael Adón makes soaps with indigenous botanicals as well as skin-care creations and perfumes at Rancho La Paloma, his 800-acre ranch in Santa Barbara. His items are available online and at Field + Fort in Summerland. A picturesque alley off Anacapa Street and De la Guerra Plaza leads to Architectural Antique Salvage, a loftlike space housing a treasure trove of early California and European landscape paintings, antiques, rugs, and historical architectural salvage, all carefully curated by owners Judy Cota and Jay Friedmann. With three floors of vintage and modern collections, The Blue Door is ground zero for unique pieces that set the vibe for any room. Don’t miss the new Betsey Johnson pop-up on the first floor, featuring the designer’s clothing, art, home décor, and furniture collected over the years. The Cabana Home showroom, with its ever-changing display of furniture, art, and objects, hints at the extensive professional services founders/designers Steve Thompson and Caroline Thompson provide, including residential and commercial space planning and design (incorporating furniture, flooring, and window coverings), building-plan review, and project management. Celebrating 20 years on State Street, Celadon House is committed to providing full-service interior-design services promoting sustainable, ethically sourced materials in partnership with Cisco Brothers, a leading upholstery manufacturer; it also offers a selection of furnishings, home accessories, organic mattresses, and bedding. Diani Living, the sister store to Diani Boutique and Diani Shoes—all owned by retail maven Caroline Diani—offers an eclectic collection of everyday home and lifestyle items that are sustainably made and sourced from small artisans. Personalized interior-design services are also available.
With in-house interior designers and nearly unlimited inventory resources, Habitat Home & Garden can help guide projects big or small. With access to skilled tradesmen from around the world, they can track down what you need or will custom build it. Featuring furnishings from farmhouse to modern style, HOME Santa Barbara carries the Magnolia Home Furniture line designed by Joanna Gaines, in addition to Universal Furniture, Furniture Classics, The MT Company, Orient Express, Four Hands, Spectra Home, Loloi Rugs, and more. Recently relocated to a new showroom, the team at NS Ceramic is ready to display its unrivaled selection of handcrafted artisan ceramic, glass, stone, metal, porcelain, and mosaic tiles from around the world. Services offered include product specification, design sketches, and budget estimates. MichaelKate Contemporary Furniture—which originally opened in 1953 as Danica House, with a focus on Danish and Scandinavian designs—today specializes in American and European midcentury, modern, contemporary, and transitional pieces. A cozy boutique that invites lingering, Raoul showcases owner/designer Sally McQuillan’s exquisite handprinted linen textiles and wallpapers alongside elegant hand-picked accessories. The design business—Raoul Textiles—is a McQuillan family affair helmed by Sally with son Gene and daughter Madeleine. Married owners Jami and Eric Voulgaris of Rooms & Gardens have designed custom furniture for clients all over the country, working with A-list interior designers and celebrities, including customers like President Bill Clinton. Their interior designs grace projects in Santa Barbara, Santa Monica, and Aspen, among others. Working with tile and stone factories worldwide, Tileco Tile & Stone Showroom imports and distributes ceramic, porcelain, marble, travertine, and natural stone throughout the Central Coast. It’s the perfect resource for materials that will enhance all styles of residential design.
Summerland
Ideas for reveling in the Southern California lifestyle abound in the boutiques here, plus the beach is just across the way
Ideas for reveling in the Southern California lifestyle abound in the boutiques here, plus the beach is just across the way
Written by Joan Tapper | Photography by Sara Prince | Illustrations by Digital Sunsets
Quiet Summerland has become design row pretty much all along Lillie Avenue, and now that spring is upon us, the focus has really turned to our indoor-outdoor lifestyle. An interesting fact to ponder: Almost all the boutiques here are owned or co-owned by women…just sayin’. The natural world sets the palette and the tone for Botanik, a longtime home-and-garden boutique in a cozy cottage. New to the shop are tightly woven African baskets with a free-flowing edge as well as multicolored cotton throws from Ethiopia. Always a hit—signature succulent gardens in decorative pots. Looking forward to working outdoors? Field + Fort has fun items like Madison James “Get Muddy” garden aprons and Banshu Hamono pruning shears, and is now carrying Pennoyer Newman garden décor. To augment its room-by-room showcase of furniture, art, and accessories, the shop has expanded next door. Don’t miss the new items at its popular café. Garde, like its sister shop in L.A., has evolved from gifts to furnishings by established and up-and-coming designers. Unusual one-of-a-kind ceramics by Julie Nelson and Bronwen Grieves, among others, always catch the eye here, while the Summerland venue also carves out its own personality with lighting by Apparatus and furniture by Piet Boon.
Hacienda by Bonita Lifestyle is a new iteration in a new location of a Summerland mainstay. Paintings by Whitney Castro are on the walls, while the overall vibe is Mexican with wares that now include furnishings and snacks, including grazing boxes for spontaneous picnics. Among the apparel finds: gauzy cotton shirts, pants, and caftans worthy of a summer breeze. Bring the outdoors in, proclaims Porch, which now boasts a venue with a veranda worthy of its name. They’ve added ethereal landscapes by SB artist Colette Cosentino and large-scale photography by Will Pierce to the home décor—from faux bois iron mirrors to the favorite faux sheepskin swivel chairs and stylish outdoor rugs. At The Sacred Space, the go-to venue for books, crystals, incense, ritual items, and garden statuary, Jack and Rose Herschorn have gathered everything you need for your spiritual journey. Among their unusual “treasures from heaven available on earth” are a 4.5-billion-year-old meteor, desert glass from Libya, and moldavite from Europe that goes back 18 million years! For 30 years the individual dealers who have a spot in the Summerland Antique Collective have offered everything from home and garden furniture to architectural elements, china, glassware, books, and jewelry. There are rooms full of treasures here. Be prepared to stay awhile. The Well has perfected the stylish blend of rustic and vintage in developing its unique collections of home and garden pieces from Europe, Asia, and North America. Proprietor Shane Brown is readying everything for spring—from fire pits and outdoor fountains and greenhouses to 9- and 12-foot tables with umbrellas for warm-weather alfresco dinners.
Carpinteria
Everyone seems to know everyone else in this low-key, close-knit beach town with a penchant for vintage wares
Everyone seems to know everyone else in this low-key, close-knit beach town with a penchant for vintage wares
Written by Joan Tapper | Photography by Sara Prince | Illustrations by Digital Sunsets
Laid-back Carpinteria has the air of a beach town from years gone by, so perhaps it’s no surprise that a number of the boutiques and shops along the main drags of Linden and Carpinteria Avenues (or even farther afield) highlight vintage objects big and small. Folly has expanded from its tiny trailer venue to spacious new digs. Some 90 percent of its wares are vintage or handmade in California (mostly Santa Barbara and Ojai), and the shop carries furniture and items for men and children, too. Planned for the future are makers’ markets held on the grounds every couple of months. Pots, urns, planters, and troughs—there are containers of every shape, size, and material at Eye of the Day Garden Design Center. Fountains, antique items, stone and terra cotta wares, and glazed pottery are just a few of the oh-so-tempting Italian, Greek, and other European offerings for your outdoor pleasure.
For 23 years Homestead Antiques and Trading Company has showcased the individual tastes and specialties of the collective’s myriad dealers. The eclectic and vintage goods range from furniture to jewelry, books to old bottles, art to accessories. You can spend one dollar or a couple of thousand. The elegantly shaped cast-ceramic bowls, vases, lamps, and pendants at Miri Mara Ceramics may be colorfully glazed or incised with subtly intricate designs on a neutral palette, like the new Assisi bowls with a sgraffito finish. The sophisticated objects are all handmade by the talented Italian-born artist who gives the boutique its name. The Grapeseed Company is behind the Seaside Makers Collective, a sister boutique to its Funk Zone venue. New and popular items here include Mono B active- and leisurewear, an artisan food pantry, and the Breathe Easy Mask Spray, whose organic eucalyptus and mint infusions refresh our latest accessory. Soap has occupied its courtyard corner for more than two decades, offering Asian-influenced items, robes and sleepwear, and bath and beauty products, including its own Carpinteria Beach Collection, with a water lily and lotus flower fragrance. New and unique are 8-inch flat candles from Lithuania, with hand-painted scenes that range from fine art to florals. Zelda Prune opened Space Home and Garden on Labor Day 2020 and filled it with furniture and decorative items ranging from antique to midcentury to contemporary goods. There’s artwork inspired by early California history and, notably, the history of surfing—including surfboards and other surf-related treasures. Founded 11 years ago, women-owned Tidepools presents ocean-oriented gifts, accessories, and objets—from locally created jewelry to shells and candles, as well as natural soaps and lotions. The boutique also showcases a constantly rotating display of works by area artists. A longtime Carpinteria favorite dedicated to reusing, recycling, and repurposing, Whimsy Antiques has vintage architectural salvage, hip vintage clothing and jewelry, vintage maps, vintage furniture, and other fun things. It’s all reflected in the shop’s new motto: “the comfort of old good things.”
Ojai
Under the gaze of the Topa Topa Mountains you’ll find a big design destination with a small-town charm
Under the gaze of the Topa Topa Mountains you’ll find a big design destination with a small-town charm
Written by Anush J. Benliyan | Photography by Sara Prince | Illustrations by Digital Sunsets
Scenic Ojai beckons with its famous “pink moments,” rich organic agriculture (hello, Pixie season), thriving art scene, and a design landscape that boasts one-of-a-kind décor boutiques and artisans that perfectly reflect the city’s bohemian charm. At her quaint eponymous shop, Carolïna Gramm proffers a mélange of specialty home goods and gifts, from organic olive oils and balsamic vinegars to one-off midcentury furnishings, vintage pottery, candles, antique napkins, and more. Only a handful of Chris Brock’s coveted ceramics—which nod to ancient Mediterranean civilizations and early 20th-century American works—are available each year due to the master potter’s complex glazing and firing processes. Brock’s late husband, designer Paul Fortune, is greatly missed by the design world and honored with the recent rerelease of his book, Notes On Décor Etc. Stop by interior designer Isabelle Dahlin’s deKor & Co. for customizable furniture, stylish tabletop accessories, and vintage lamps, baskets, cabinets, and Moroccan rugs. FiG Curated Living and its sister store Bungalow by FiG are brightening up the spring season with lots of color. On offer are outdoor tabletop goods and glassware that complement vibrant patio furniture by Fermob, as well as flamboyant vintage Peruvian blankets. Jack Gerard and Genevieve Barrere of Four Leaf Wood Shop specialize in hand-carved kitchen utensils and accessories in walnut, cherry, and maple. Each product is sanded and polished to perfection and sealed with beeswax and coconut oil. Local stalwart In the Field is curated with all the lifestyle essentials, including men’s, women’s, and kid’s apparel, home accents, pantry delicacies, apothecary goods, made-in-Ojai handicrafts, and more.
With sustainability at its heart, Lineage Botanica supports marginalized Eastern European communities through artisans’ handcrafted décor and textiles—think bedding, aprons, and towels—all made using organic, low-impact materials like hemp and cotton. Color consultant Teresa Grow’s Ojai- and L.A.-based studio Madison and Grow offers interior design consultations in addition to California-inspired patterned wallcoverings and textiles that are silk-screened by hand. Inspired by traditional Japanese craftsmanship, Mark Churchill crafts dinnerware, vessels, vases, and bowls by hand using stoneware and porcelain clays all sourced from local ranches. Founded by Bernd Dressler in 1981 and today run by his wife, Debra, and daughters, Chelcea and Kirsten, Messermeister is a leading cutlery and culinary company whose handcrafted products include the Ojai-inspired Adventure Chef collection, a range of compact, portable, high-quality knives that allow you “to get outside and cook great food wherever you go,” says VP Kirsten Dressler Wilson. Run by the Asquith family, Ojai Olive Oil’s Ladera Road shop stocks award-winning extra virgin olive oils—including infused varieties like basil, lemon, and Ojai Pixie. Every bottle is made with the olives from the family’s nearby groves, which date back more than 150 years. Ojai Plant Works specializes in interior “plantscaping,” with services that include designing orchid, air plant and succulent arrangements, and curating the perfect foliage for your interiors, with delivery, installation, and even maintenance taken care of. Stop by Pixie’s General Store for whimsical gifts including candles, pantry goods, cheeky mugs, stationery, sweet treats, Ojai swag, and more. Michael and Rachel Graves, the husband-and-wife team behind design and framing shop Summer Camp, recently opened Plant Based, a new store that stocks plants, pots, ceramics, and other handmade goodies. Embracing a neutral palette, ceramist P. Lyn Middleton of P Studio crafts one-of-a-kind, food-safe pieces (think plates, bowls, and other vessels) from her Ojai workspace. Tipple & Ramble’s collection of indoor/outdoor décor, small-batch specialty food items, picnic staples, games, and vintage barware will inspire you to take your next adventure, host a killer cocktail party, or perhaps both.
Santa Ynez
Wine, windmills, and wide-open spaces set the stage for design-detailed lodging, home, and garden havens
Wine, windmills, and wide-open spaces set the stage for design-detailed lodging, home, and garden havens
Written by Anna Ferguson-Sparks | Photography by Sara Prince | Illustrations by Digital Sunsets
Surrounded by rolling vineyards punctuated by old oaks, Santa Ynez Valley design gurus create and merchandise meticulous collections of home and garden goods that reflect the region’s rarified ranch lifestyle. There’s everything from modern home furnishings with neutral color palettes to vintage rock ‘n’ roll memorabilia and dreamy succulent gardens. Bodega Los Alamos opened in 2018 as a wine and beer garden, retail shop, and greenhouse, focusing on natural wine, unique beer and cider, and handcrafted items. The lounge-y vibe has since extended to the property’s renovated 1920s farmhouse, with the Bodega House guesthouse. Solvang-made shrubs and vinegars from Broken Clock Vinegar Works add flavorful flair to home bar carts and kitchen pantries. The innovative culinary products here incorporate locally gleaned fruits and herbs, some from their own garden. Scandinavian design reigns inside The Copenhagen House in Solvang. Embodying Nordic design traits like minimalism, innovation, and a penchant for light, the portable, rechargeable Carrie LED lamp effortlessly illuminates spring’s outdoor dining venues, pampered picnics and campsites, or indoor desks and bedsides. Fresh ideas are in bloom at Forage Florals in Santa Ynez, like the recently added DIY Herbarium—a planting area stocked with air plants, succulents, specialty vessels, and other terrarium accoutrements. Also new: a take-home flower-arranging kit complete with video instruction and supplies.
The Global Eye Art Collective, an all-handmade gift and home store in Los Olivos, recently grew into a larger space where new clothing, jewelry, and milliners’ lines coexist with owner-designed art installations and ceramics. Spring brings outdoor items such as crocheted hammocks and picnic supplies and floral and botanically inspired ceramics. Boho chic meets Santa Ynez Valley ranch style at HÛS by Anouk Designs, which has a new Ballard home. Delightful finds include contemporary Western art, handmade jewelry, leather goods, one-of-a-kind hats, vintage rugs and textiles, and laidback fashion for luxe country living. J. Woeste in Los Olivos has been bringing smiles to gardeners’ faces since 1998, with its eclectic maze of treasures displayed inside and around a turn-of-the-20th-century farmhouse. The Landsby’s hygge animal and abstract artwork by Rachel Brown is available for purchase in the Solvang hotel’s intimate lobby boutique; the rest of the inventory is curated by Santa Ynez General. Elizabeth Poett of Rancho San Julian—the 14,000-acre family ranch that produces delectable jarred honey and offers premium beef delivery parcels—has a new cooking show on the Magnolia Network (streaming on Discovery+) called Ranch to Table. Santa Ynez General, the home store known for bringing signature Valley style to design-savvy tabletops and interiors, is expanding its flagship location in downtown Santa Ynez this spring. In 2012 Lisa Boisset Babcock launched Soulstruck Vintage, a tasting lounge and feast for the senses in a former production warehouse at Babcock Winery. Groove to iconic ’70s tunes while shopping well-curated vinyl, fashion, jewelry, and home décor.