Secluded Staycations: Luxe, Little Known, Los Angeles Birding

One of the most rewarding aspects of birding is finding new and unexpected spots to point your binoculars. Bird enthusiasts in Los Angeles have an abundance of options when it comes to the sheer diversity of bird species and places to observe them in the local region, but the hunt for new places to explore is always part of the fun, and the more unlikely the better.

One surprising alternative to the same heavily trafficked parks and hiking trails is hidden in plain sight—some of the best hotels in the L.A. area feature spectacular birding from the comfort of their grounds and even the privacy of their rooms. In this time when we find ourselves keeping closer to home, these hotels offer opportunities for tranquil birding staycations without risking travel or crowds.

A Quiet Canyon Retreat

The Hotel Bel Air is a birder’s paradise with Old Hollywood pedigree tucked away in the canyons. The Bel Air has an elegant and distinctly Southern California style, updated in 2011 with a more contemporary feel that still nods to its rich history. The best birding at the Bel Air is on the canyon side rooms, which attract a host of avian visitors to their secluded private patios.

If you want to stretch your legs, the grounds of the Bel Air are extensive and designed almost like a botanic garden, with plant species labeled and ample room for observing the wildlife attracted to the lush foliage. One of my favorite garden flowers at the hotel is the pink abutilon that trails along the walking paths on the lake side of the property. The lake itself draws a variety of indigenous waterfowl and is also home to the Bel Air’s beloved swans, whose images appear as a recurring motif throughout the hotel. The Swan Lake Suite (a favorite of Cary Grant and Gene Kelly) boasts a breathtaking view of its namesake.

Greener Pastures on the East Side

The Langham in Pasadena is the East Side’s answer to the Hotel Bel Air, with a more traditional feel to its design. The Cottages at the Langham have patios that open onto the grounds, where the flowering plants attract hummingbirds and other pollinators just outside your door. If you choose instead to stay on the seventh floor of the main building, you’ll be treated to an eye level view of woodpeckers as they flit and peck about the treetops. Strolling the grounds in the early morning or dusk, expect to see (and hear!) geese flying in formation overhead.

If you’re looking to venture beyond the hotel grounds, the Huntington Library and Gardens and Descanso Gardens are both close by and offer more opportunities for safe and distanced outdoor exploring and are each home to more than one hundred species of birds. Both gardens currently require advance ticket reservations to maintain a reduced capacity for safe distancing.

A Breath of Fresh Air on the Beach

Lovers of sea and shorebirds will find their birding utopia at the modern and beachy Fairmont Miramar Hotel & Bungalows in Santa Monica. The ocean-view rooms claim breathtaking Pacific Ocean vistas from their balconies where you can watch gulls soar through the air, sandpipers scamper across the beach, and pelicans make spectacular dives for fish.

If you keep your eyes on the waves, you may be treated with a view of a pod of dolphins or migrating humpback whales (look for the spouts!). Although the ocean is the main attraction at the Miramar, you can also roam to the readily accessible hiking trails in the nearby Santa Monica Mountains, where red-tailed hawks make their home.

In Los Angeles, we’re lucky to have the biodiversity of the natural world so deeply integrated into the city itself, where it’s easy to enjoy the wellness benefits and calming presence of nature alongside the comfort of a polished urban environment. For bird loving Angelenos, adding new species to your life list while recharging in a serene environment is just a reservation away.

Sarah Barnard is a WELL and LEED accredited designer and creator of environments that support mental, physical and emotional wellbeing. She creates highly personalized, restorative spaces that are deeply connected to art and the preservation of the environment. An advocate for consciousness, inclusivity, and compassion in the creative process, Sarah’s work has been recognized by Architectural Digest, Elle Décor, Real Simple, HGTV and many other publications. In 2017 Sarah was recognized as a “Ones to Watch” Scholar by the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID).   

Classic Blue, Pantone's Color of the Year creates calm and inspires clarity in interior spaces.

Interior Design: Sarah Barnard, Photos: Steven Dewall, Painting: Reid Winfrey

Blue brings us a sense of peace, offers us refuge, aids concentration, and brings us clarity. It is a reflective tone that fosters resilience and gives us hope, qualities we look toward during this uneasy time in the world. Pantone's Color of the Year is Classic Blue, chosen to reflect our desire for a stable future as we enter into a new decade. TIME calls the Color of the Year, "both constant and classic." It is reminiscent of a serene sea and the sky at dusk.

Pantone provides a universal language of color that is used by more than ten million designers and producers around the world to define colors accurately across different platforms and industries. Their Color Institute is dedicated to researching purchasing trends across various industries to determine each year's color. Pantone has been naming a Color of the Year since 2000 and has influenced product development and purchasing decisions in fashion, interior design, industrial design, graphic design, and advertising.

Classic Blue is akin to the very first Color of the Year, Cerulean. The hue represented the excitement of a new millennium, while also offering a sense of protection and serenity amidst the feared approach of Y2K. This year, we are experiencing a similar feeling of trepidation from the United States to the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Syria, and across the globe.

The reigning Color of the Year offers reassurance, confidence, and connection for us in a time of uncertainty. "When we look at the world around us, we know that we're living with a lot of unrest, where some days don't feel quite as secure," said Leatrice Eiseman, Executive Director of the Pantone Color Institute, in an interview with Architectural Digest. "Blue from an emotional, psychological standpoint, has always represented a certain amount of calm and dependability. It's a color that you can rely on."

Classic Blue is the color of deep ocean water or a handful of ripe blueberries. It is a part of the art market, the beauty industry, automotive manufacturing, tech, and space sciences. Its associations with dependability, trustworthiness, and constancy make it a great color to incorporate into your home design.

My work as a LEED and WELL-accredited home designer is deeply rooted in wellness and biophilia. Biophilia is our innate desire to be close to nature, and biophilic design aims to create healthy and comfortable interiors by meaningfully incorporating natural elements into our home and work environments. Integrating Classic Blue into our spaces builds on the principle of biophilic design because of its presence in nature.

Art, textiles, furniture, and accents are all great ways to introduce soothing Classic Blue to your home or office. A project I recently completed features oceanic shades of blue that act almost like neutrals. I took inspiration from the home's beachy surroundings, bringing in a Classic Blue velvet sofa. I then repeated the color through vintage ceramic vases, books, and toss pillows.

When acting as a base layer, Classic Blue can be paired with a multitude of colors, including other shades of blue. For the client's bedroom, I selected a handmade upholstered bed, Belgian linen bedding, wool drapery, and an abstract painting by Jonathan Elder, all wed by various blue tones. The buttery vintage leather chair and wooden bench at the foot of the bed complete the space, providing visual warmth and balance.

Consider adding serene, calming, earth-focused tones to your home in the new year. Whether you choose Classic Blue as an all-over hue or an accent, you can't go wrong with a color that takes its cues from nature.

Sarah Barnard, WELL AP, and LEED AP specializes in creating calming restorative environments that support physical, emotional, and mental well-being. Her interior design practice centers around her client's health and wellness while incorporating natural elements into every space she designs.

Pantone’s Color of the Year: Living Coral

The family cat is the primary resident of this guest suite featuring a pink and coral color scheme.

Coral reefs are disappearing from our oceans at an alarming rate. It is imperative to the ocean’s ecosystems, and as much as a quarter of all ocean species depend upon it for food and shelter. Precious marine lifeforms are also the inspiration for Pantone’s color of the year: Living Coral.

Coral and lush greens create a lively and inviting atmosphere for an outside space.

Sarah Barnard, a Los Angeles-based interior designer, WELL AP and LEED AP, specializes in home design that contributes to her client’s health and wellness and strives to make nature a part of each home she creates. “A happy and uplifting color reminiscent of the ocean is the perfect starting point for a happy, healthy home.”

Coral colored tiles and beautiful glossy stone slabs make this coastal bathroom warm and bright.

This color takes its name from the beautiful coral marine invertebrates that build extensive coral reefs, habitats for a vast diversity of life in the ocean. Sometimes referred to as the "rainforests of the sea," coral reefs are quickly dying, and are projected to reduce to 10% by 2050. Half of the world's coral has died since 2016, due to rising sea temperatures, pollution, destructive fishing, invasive species, and changing sea chemistry.

"The timely selection of this color by Pantone should be an important reminder to all of us that nature inspires beautiful interiors. If we aren't careful to preserve the natural world, we will have nothing left to take inspiration from," said Barnard.

Coral naturally complements with blues and ocean tones. Coral embroidery was a perfect companion (complement?) for a throw pillow in a coastal home.

Pantone is most widely known for their color swatch books. It is the company responsible for color matching paints and graphics; and now devotes the time and resources of Pantone Color Institute to research the purchasing trends of various industries. With this information, Pantone determines this year's color. The naming process regularly pulls inspiration from the natural and human-made world, naming colors such as "rose quartz" or "millennial pink." Pantone's color of the year for 2018 was ultraviolet, a beautiful, energizing shade of purple reminiscent of bright flowers and the sky at sunset. This year's choice is PANTONE 16-1546 Living Coral, a potent reminder to preserve and protect ocean life.

Coral colored ceramic provides earthy contrast against the ebonized table and black lamp.

Coral is vibrant, cheerful, delicate and energizing, and the perfect shade to start the New Year. Living coral, described by the Pantone team as “An animating and life-affirming coral hue with a golden undertone that energizes and enlivens with a softer edge.”

The bath and shower feature locally sourced handmade ceramic tiles in a coral gloss.

Pantone published, “Vibrant, yet mellow PANTONE 16-1546 Living Coral embraces us with warmth and nourishment to provide comfort and buoyancy in our continually shifting environment. [...] Representing the fusion of modern life, PANTONE Living Coral is a nurturing color that appears in our natural surroundings and at the same time, displays a lively presence within social media.”

Coral and pink shades blend beautifully with wood tones. Art is a subtle and seamless way to introduce colors like coral.

While top interior designers don’t necessarily recommend painting one’s home to match the color of the year, art, accents, and of course plants are an easy and safe way to introduce vibrancy to your living or work space through home decorating.

Pinks and coral create an inviting atmosphere.

For those interested in using Living Color in their home, Sarah Barnard said,  "Living Coral is a perfect complement to blue shades, and pairs well with coastal or beachy interiors. For the daring, reupholstering a treasured piece in a bright color like Living Coral can revitalize a space. For those who prefer to mix pops of color with neutrals, I recommend starting with small accents."

Pantone's Color of the Year is an excellent opportunity to add lively, earth-focused tones to your home. Make having a happy and healthy home your New Year's resolution.

Cream and coral ceramic jars are a perfect storage solution for bathroom necessities.

Sarah Barnard designs healthy, happy, personalized spaces that are deeply connected to nature and art.

To learn more about Sarah Barnard Design, please visit www.SarahBarnard.com.

Photos by Abby Siniscal, Chas Metivier, and Charlie Daniels

Design for a Healthy Mind: Interior Design and Mental Health

Custom Wall Sconces designed by sarah barnard

It seems that every week, a new article is out asking what is the source of our mental health troubles. Depending who you ask, demanding work schedules or an over-stimulating world could be the culprits. It’s all too often not one thing, but a combination of factors that leave us feeling sensitive, low, or unmotivated. At the center of new conversations emerging on mental health is the effect of our environment on our wellbeing. Taking the care to consider our home design is an important step in seeing how our familiar surroundings impact us. From small adjustments to a total overhaul, the home can transform from a source of stress or isolation to a sanctuary for calm and comfort.

An exercise: pay attention to how you feel as you move about your space from room to room. Where do you spend your time? How do you react looking and living through your space? From the height of the ceilings to the presence of plants, subtle but pervasive factors can improve mood, focus, and alleviate anxiety. Humans intuitively respond to environments that promote productivity, intimacy, and efficiency.

This isn’t a recent development: the practice of Feng Shui, for instance, has a history going back thousands of years. At this point, it is likely you’ll need to consult a compassionate interior designer to help guide the daunting task of creating your ideal, holistic home. They can assist from the smallest details to a total transformation of the space and how you live in it. “You’re never alone in the process,” designer Sarah Barnard says. “Having a second pair of seasoned eyes can bring our attention to the affect our homes and their layouts have on us and our visitors.”

The effects our homes have on us are largely defined by how we use and live within them. Architecture theorist Kate Wagner claims that most of our homes are too separated by function; most of our time is not spent in designated hosting spaces, such as a front room, but in the kitchen and the den. “Large, unused spaces designed for social functions foster isolation instead,” she explains. These isolated areas end up becoming pile-ups for unwanted furniture, or inaccessible simply because they’re too formally separated.

Likewise, small, constricting spaces inhibit creativity and discourage freedom of movement. Laying in a darkened room in the comfort of a bed is difficult for anyone to get out of, even when the sun is shining.

Wagner makes an empathic suggestion to “channel [your] earlier self,” outside of the expectations of space and presentation that comes with creating your home in adulthood. In this project by interior designer Sarah Barnard, natural light and free movement is prioritized. Walls do not constrict, but are left open and accommodating.

Much of what compresses a space isn’t tight walls and low ceilings, but its furniture. A clear and open home is a natural reflection of a clear and open mind. Prioritizing objects of beauty, function, and meaning within your house can be reflected in the popular Konmari Method, or “the life changing magic of tidying up”. Its founder, Marie Kondo, takes inspiration from Feng Shui to ensure that organization and tidiness are a permanent life change, not a cycle for us to endure every few months. She believes that every object in our home brings us joy, and that each object has a specific place where it belongs within in our home. The method suggests we ask ourselves simple questions when we encounter an object we can’t bear to part with: “Does this bring me joy?”

Cherished furniture shouldn’t be thrown away for the sake of self-renewal. In fact, they can be essential to giving a room its individuality. Older furniture pieces that you’ve had for years can be given new life when reinterpreted within the space.

During a revision of a Scandifornian style home, Sarah had the opportunity to place older furniture into a bright, updated, and minimalist aesthetic. A treasured antique dining set, found in Thailand, remained in the dining room; its deep rosewood and impeccable design and detailing brings warm elegance in the new space. The dining set has a new life, and the new rooms feel familiar and fully livable.

Maybe you’ve decided to really start from the ground up: new furniture, fixtures, the works. Avoid the stress that can come from heavy-duty furniture pieces that forbid reorganization and movement. They aren’t active in the home, and an imposing weight or size can compress a room while taking away the opportunity for revitalization and customization.

Consider modern, playful furniture that is light and accessible to move, promoting autonomy in your environment to reorganize as you wish. As an experienced interior designer, Sarah has a deep understanding of the principles of Universal Design, which encourages flexibility, simplicity, and low demands of physical labor throughout the home. This is achieved through seven principles: the designed object or space must be equitable, flexible, intuitive and easy to navigate, stimulate as many sense as possible, safe and tolerant of error, physically undemanding, and with adequate space for free use. When a sensitive and informed designer adheres to these principles, their projects have the benefit of being widely applicable to a variety of needs: from every day appliance use to wide ease of access throughout a home. It makes your home more intuitive.

To make the most of your new space, have systems in place that facilitate organization, tidying, and reward. Cleaning can have therapeutic, empowering effects on the psyche. The areas around us reflect the care we have for ourselves. Interior designers carefully choose pieces or can work with skilled artisans to build furniture to suit your needs, from the perfect chair to expansive organizational racks that can transform the use of a room. Also, this can be where your creativity and distinct personal inspirations shine; a pair of homeowners wanted a cabinet that resembled a type of Japanese locker, getabako. The cabinets were numbered in a sequence that was significant to the husband and wife, culminating in a piece that was unique, functional, and intimately designed. In using the locker, the homeowners would feel comfort and satisfaction at its place in the home.

A cluttered environment has been proven to drain energy and negatively impact our overall mood and self-image.  In bringing in new furniture, we want to bring in new systems of living and using it. Wall-based organization is a great way to free up space on the floor. Light, free-standing shelves in this home office provide ample space for books and objects of meaning and beauty. The floor is freed up for movement and active use. All furniture here, fitting for a home office, has a cohesive design and an obvious function, encouraging productivity and serenity.

Echoing the exercise of moving through the home, think of the importance of free and open movement: everything we encounter can be a treasure rather than an obstacle. The importance of possessions is knowing and fully appreciating their use and place in our home. Our home is a space for us to respect, personalize, and flourish with and within.

Just as promoting mental health and clarity through interior design goes back thousands of years, color therapy (also known as chromotherapy or color medicine) is as old as any other medicine, with a history going back centuries. There’s research that points to spectrums of colors even affecting different parts of the body! It’s physical and mental effects are essential.

Does this mean you paint your whole apartment blinding shades of sunshine yellow to spur energy? Not entirely - research points to the contrary. Researchers at Logan Regional Hospital in Logan, Utah discovered that overly vibrant color schemes produce heightened states of unease and anxiety.

Splashes of your favorite color are a given within the home, but we can also look outside for inspiration. In this idyllic guest retreat, Sarah Barnard has used the natural landscape as inspiration for a cohesive palette. Even visitors to the home are invited to a room that is earthy, grounded, and familiar. The prominent presence of green in the bedroom reflects the vibrant trees growing just outside with generous sunlight.

Meanwhile, natural dark wood establishes a sense of warmth and comfort, once again using the surrounding nature as inspiration. The consideration of all senses, particularly touch, creates a holistic and familiar space. Organic textures such as stone, encaustic tile, and wood make us feel - literally - grounded in our environment.

Investing in the space of your home as a part of mental health doesn’t have to be a daunting task. Reach out to an empathic interior designer who understands the importance of the house in your health. With a rich history and vast resources, transforming with a healthy, mindful designer can have incredible effects on your day-to-day life and long-term happiness, letting your home come alive as your mirror.

Sarah Barnard designs healthy, happy, personalized spaces that are deeply connected to nature and art.

To learn more about Sarah Barnard Design, please visit www.SarahBarnard.com.

Harbor-Side Loft: Living Room

A high-rise apartment building near a California harbor seemed the perfect fit for a beach-loving New Yorker and his beloved golden retriever. While he valued the location and the bones of the place, the homeowner wasn’t sure how best to make this house feel like his home. Interior designer Sarah Barnard introduced natural materials, saturated colors, modern fixtures, and a textured palette elegant enough for entertaining and durable for everyday life.

The apartment’s open floor plan allows for a pleasant flow between the kitchen, dining and living areas. The dining area features a muted neutral palette accented by the oversized chandelier. This modern circular design brings rustic brightness to the dining room. Artwork by Sara Pae, Evan Conway, and Rebekah Waites adds a playful contemporary element to the otherwise traditional spaces.

Sarah Barnard designs healthy, happy, personalized spaces that are deeply connected to nature and art.

To learn more about Sarah Barnard Design, please visit www.SarahBarnard.com.

Photos by Chas Metivier

Healthy Home Design: Natural Interiors

The impact of sustainability can be addressed both in terms of the built environment, and its effect on the day-to-day lives of the people who inhabit these designed spaces. Sound environmental home design should create a symbiotic relationship between the user and their environment. Designer Sarah Barnard’s holistic approach considers the psychological and emotional factors within a model to promote wellness.

Featured in ELuxe Magazine

Healthy Materials

When choosing the basics, one should keep in mind the range of organic materials that offer health benefits. Sarah believes that eco-friendly and natural material selection is the basis for a healthy design. “Creating a restorative environment begins with sustainable choices. Even the smallest decisions matter and can have profound effects on our health and the environment.” Her holistic approach towards material selection includes raw fibers and natural textiles, such as wool, cotton, and linen.

This all natural (non-toxic) sofa pairs with a handmade, live edge coffee table displaying a collection of the homeowner's favorite things: agate slices, ammonites and an array of rose and lavender colored thistles. A group of brightly colored floor cushions provides the perfect casual living room seating. Natural fibers like wool and linen are comfortable and healthy and can be organically dyed.

Intricately hand carved sconces in American Walnut were designed by Sarah Barnard specifically for this “Scandifornian” style home. Natural woods are another excellent material with an array of attributes that can become a defining focal point within your design. From stunning colors to unique knots and grain patterns, natural woods such as oak, walnut, and maple provide various utility and elemental beauty within a home. Sarah Barnard works closely with local artisans and craftsmen to realize her custom furniture and lighting designs. This beautiful walnut dining table was custom made for this room from a single fallen tree.

Elemental Accents

A key component of biophilic design is to incorporate natural elements within an artificial environment. We spend so much of our time indoors that the objects we surround ourselves with become very important. Recently, Sarah Barnard completed a sustainable penthouse for an out of town couple with super meditative space requirements. Think total relaxation and harmony with the universe. By utilizing furniture and accessories as an expression of nature, Sarah’s custom designs bring the outdoors into the home. Elemental accents such as stone, concrete, minerals, ceramics, and plants create a sense of grounded balance.

Sarah designed a concrete fireplace specifically for this home with features such as subtle, etched lines that reference the movement of water. The mantle displays specimens from the homeowner's collection of minerals. Delicate orbs are a soothing and repeated design element throughout the home. Sarah worked closely with a local artisan to realize her vision for custom designed wall sconces. This piece of functional art was hand-made from ceramic clay and fired in a kiln using traditional glazing processes.

A handmade table with a live wood edge feels close to nature drawing attention to its organic form. When displayed among collected shells and family photographs, large mineral specimens diversify a typical collection. Sarah believes it is vital to surround yourself with things both meaningful and beautiful.  "Live with what you love. Surround yourself with beauty and positive energy." Her design philosophy recognizes the importance of creating contemplative spaces that highlight her clients valued mementos and personal collections.

Another beautiful hand made wood table was made to fit perfectly within the foyer alcove providing a gentle, welcoming display of objects meant to inspire, protect and enlighten. The subtle sheen of the pale blue wall covering references the nearby reflective sea and accompanies delicate coral inspired wall sconces.

Sarah Barnard designs healthy, happy, personalized spaces that are deeply connected to nature and art.

To learn more about Sarah Barnard Design, please visit www.SarahBarnard.com.

Photos by Steven Dewall