Casa Kulanu

Sometimes I like to leave the pavement of city living on weekends and just get out of town. There is something really nice about a little day- road trip that can be just so refreshing. One of the amazing things about living in San Francisco is that you can just pop in the car and be outside of the city and enjoying a sunny afternoon just a short distance away.

Driving the windy roads to Calistoga (right next to Napa) and seeing the leaves on all of the vineyards start to change the afternoon light is like magic. Harvest time might be one of my favorite times of the year. It reminded me how autumn - and the changing colors, the foods and the weather - might be my favorite season of all.

Perhaps even more magically was having the pleasure of having lunch with friend Rela Gleason and architect Bobby McAlpine at her stunning house, set on 40-acres (just featured in the latest Architectural Digest, November 2011). Many of the pieces in the home, Casa Kulanu (meaning “all of us” in Hebrew) are from Summer Hill (which Rela is the creative director). Over dinner a few months back, Rela shared with me that she was going to be launching a new collection. These fabrics have just launched and are featured on the Company’s beautiful new website. They are stunning fabrics, and I instantly fell in love with the Fanfare collection. I immediately emailed Rela when I received the “hot of the press” samples and ordered it in two color ways for a client project.

I love seeing how people live and how they use their spaces. I love the relaxed, yet elegant, edited interior that is Casa Kulanu. I had to share some of these photos that I took on my visit. Sometimes you don’t get the feeling of warmth in overall shots as they appear in magazines. I think that you can feel the creativity and seemingly effortless styling in these details. A perfect sunny, Sunday afternoon expedition. Now I just have to figure out a way to be invited back!