Scent of the Month

Our scent for the month of June is Artemisia, described as 'both floral and fruity with a beautifully sensual powdery dry down. Caramel soft, sweet, powdery and silky. A tumble of green apples and nectarines washed with jasmine tea and sprinkled with a luxurious medley of violet, cyclamen and lily petals. All this softly unfolds with great subtlety surrounded with layers of honeyed vanilla, warm spices, a touch of amber and a hint of musk. Haunting and addictive.'

Clockwise from top left: blouse, sunglasses, earrings, bracelet, purse, perfume, heels, pants

Recipe - Summer Story Cocktail

We love the Summer Story cocktail at the Story Hotel in Stockholm. 

Based on the ingredients list, here is our interpretation.

Ingredients:

2 oz. Smirnoff Black Vodka

2 oz. Ginger Beer

0.5 oz. Amaro Montenegro

5 Raspberries

5 Blackberries

3 Strawberries

0.5 oz. Lime Juice

0.5 oz. simple syrup

Sprig of fresh mint

Powdered sugar (optional)

Muddle the berries and add them to a copper mug with ice. In a cocktail shaker add ice and all of the liquid ingredients. Shake well and pour into the mug. Stir to mix. Garnish with mint and berries, and sprinkle with powdered sugar if desired.

Fashion Inspiration: Safari

 Inspiration: Keira Knightley's African Safari-inspired shoot for Vogue Magazine.

Clockwise from top left: jacket, scarf, hat, belt, khaki dress, sandals, tote, bag, wedge, romper, necklace, tan dress, bracelet

Vista Vision

Style Icon: Brigitte Bardot

It's summer, and that means we pretty much all want to look like Brigitte Bardot, with her sun-kissed skin and perfectly tousled hair.  Bardot made being playfully sexy look easy, as her style developed from 1950's sex kitten into full on beach goddess in the 1960s and early '70s, before her retirement from the screen in 1973.  Today she is reclusive, but still lives in St. Tropez on the French Riviera, the ultimate destination for her brand of style.

 

Song of the Week

Robin Thicke - Blurred Lines

Crazy About: Colorful Sunnies

Clockwise from top left: yellow, lavender, navy, pink, amber, green, orange, sky blue, red, clear blue

Favorite Hikes: Crissy Field & Fort Point

This is more of a walk than a hike, but it's very pretty. You start out at the beach, and walk along the water right up under the Golden Gate Bridge. There is a public parking lot right off Marina Boulevard by the Beach Hut Cafe that's a perfect starting point. You walk past Crissy Field which currently features these awesome over-sized sculptures.

You continue along the flat, sandy path, along which there are picnic tables and a hot dog stand, perfect for lunch when the weather is nice.

Once you get to the end of the road, you end up right underneath the bridge at Fort Point. Built during the Civil War, it's now part of the Golden Gate National Park. It's open on weekends, and on Tuesday-Thursday during the summer. Check the website for opening hours before visiting.

The interior is really cool, and the views of the ocean and the bridge are amazing.

Recipe: Berry Pie

This berry pie is a simple, yet tasty way to take advantage of the fresh berries currently in season.

Ingredients:

1 lb. of cherries

1 container fresh strawberries

1 container fresh raspberries

1/3 cup sugar

3 tablespoons cornstarch

2 pie crusts from your favorite recipe (this is a good one)

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 375. Pit the cherries and cut up the strawberries, then mix together in a bowl with the raspberries. Add the cornstarch and sugar and mix together.

Step 2: Roll out the pie crust and put in the pan. Add all of the berry mixture.

Put the second pie crust on top, and pinch together all of the edges. Cut vents in the top crust. Brush with almond milk and sprinkle with a little sugar. Put in the oven on the lowest rack for 20 minutes.

After 20 minutes put the pie on the higher rack, so the pie is in the top 1/3 of the oven. 

Bake for an additional 20 minutes.

Let the pie cool slightly, but serve while still warm with vanilla ice cream.

Summer Solstice Party

Clockwise from top left: tent, string lights, bottle holder, lantern, bench, food cover,

 patterned plate, solid plate, champagne glass, brass mug, tart server

We Recommend: The Kid Stays in the Picture

 

Robert Evans is a Hollywood icon with a legendary career.  He started out in film as an actor, before moving on to the role of producer, studio head, and back to producer, and he brought such game changing films as The Odd Couple, Rosemary's Baby, Harold & Maude, The Godfather, Chinatown, and Love Story to the big screen.  In 1994 he decided to published his memoirs, detailing not only his extraordinary work, but his personal life, which included seven marriages (he was most notably married to Ali MacGraw, who left him for Steve McQueen while away in Texas filming The Getaway), as a book called The Kid Stays in the Picture.  Eight years later, the documentary based on the memoir, also of the same name, was released.  While the book is well worth reading, the film offers a more intimate glimpse into Evans' home (which includes one of the most beautiful pools we have ever seen), personality, and trademark delivery.  He is a fascinating subject - no one has ever lived a life quite like his - so we absolutely recommend the documentary.  If you need more convincing, or if you are already a fan, Wes Anderson's interview of Evans is also fantastic:

Day Trip - The Getty Villa

The Getty Villa was commissioned by oil tycoon J. Paul Getty in the early 1970s, to house his collection of Greek, Roman, and Etruscan statues and objects.  Its design was based off of a first century Roman house, and much of the details are authentic to that period, even down to most of the landscaping.  The buildings and grounds were renovated in 1997, giving them a more modern, but still decidedly Mediterranean feel.  The location in Pacific Palisades is right across the Pacific Coast Highway from the beach, and there are few more stunning places to spend an afternoon, or a day.