I fell in love with Santa Fe while there for a class called Arts and Cultures of the Southwest for an Art History class I was taking at Colorado College. This historic and exotic beauty was inspiration on the half shell. The artist culture, combined with amazing restaurants and world class healing arts scene, was intoxicating. There is something about the land, the vistas, and huge open sky that beckons the soulful traveler. After college, I announced I was going to live in Santa Fe, and off I went.
Santa Fe is a big part of why I am an interior designer today. I lived there for a year, waited tables, and just experienced the land. I discovered yoga, meditation – the whole getting into your body thing – getting grounded. All these experiences come with me into interior design – not just connecting people with beauty, but also with the earth, and with one’s body.
The sculptural adobes are at the root of that inspiration – firmly planted, earth embracing structures that simultaneously blend seamlessly into the desert sky. Inside these sky-loving homes is a cultural Zen. Spanish, Indigenous, and American influences weave together to create their own unique and sensual brand of boho style. Santa Fe is SENSUAL
On a recent trip back to Santa Fe I visited a beloved boutique: Santa Kilim. This family owned and operated, Santa Fe institution, specialized in handmade tribal goods and antiques from all over the world.
As they point out on their site “…walking into our store is as close as you can get to a trip around the world in under an hour.”
Look at these gorgeously intricate carved wooden doors! What a magnificent headboard either of these would make.
It is here that I got my very first tiny little teal blue Turkish Kilim rug to go in my very first little studio rental, in the early 90’s. Thus it is fitting that I found that Moroccan rug for our office lobby – at Santa Kilim!!!
This gorgeous Moroccan rug has pulled the lobby furniture together in a beautiful way. The wonderful blue gray color with slightly ivory whites- PERFECT!
If you are not following Santa Kilim on Instagram- Follow now and prosper. Even if you never, ever intend to visit Santa Fe (Really? Rethink that.) the eye candy and inspiration you will find on their Instagram feed is reason enough to start up an account.
I hope you have been inspired by Santa Fe to get out there and explore this summer. New people, places, and atmospheres are a great ways to tap into new passions.
~marcelle
