Beach House Style
Ever left the beach and wished you could take it home with you? The air, the crisp water and even the smell seem to affect us in such positive ways as we float home on the summer breeze we never want to end. Most of us don’t have the luxury as some do, to live on the beach. If you’re like us you envy Reese Witherspoon’s character on Big Little Lies for her beach residence, regularly running out to the sand to contemplate her life while being mesmerized by the salty waves. It's undeniable the way that the beach seems to bring peace and calm to us while also beckoning us to think just how vast and unknown the ocean is and how little actually separates us from all it has to offer. Now, wait a minute, we actually know of a place that can help us recreate some of that peace in not only our own homes but in our closets as well. Let us introduce you to Beach House Style.
Beach House Style is a shop located in the heart of Fairfax, California and is dedicated to creating that California beach style for your home. According to their site, Beach House style is:
“Obsessed with crazy good vintage furniture. Heaps of global textiles. Pretty poufs and pillows. Awesomely amazing collections of apparel. Locally made jewels. One of a kind handmade woven art. Organic candles and sage and magic crystals.”
This store seriously prides themselves on having a chill vibe and an ultra laid back atmosphere for anyone who stops by. Beach House Style provides exactly what the title implies by offering clothing as well as furniture and home accessories all in the theme of a beach house. Upon entering the shop, you will notice right away that the store actually resembles a beach cottage. The front portion of the shop reminds us of a front yard or should we say front yard sale. The majority of the store is outdoors and is full of vintage or used furniture and home and yard styling pieces. There are also two smaller looking cottages that house more furniture, blankets and home accessories. What initially looks cluttered turns out to be a comfortable chaos that we spend a few good minutes combing through looking for hidden gems to recreate our own beach style bungalow at home.
The furniture that we investigate outdoors reminds us of our ideal beach situation: a place where effortless and escapism meet. Everything is light and airy and we find large white pillows, driftwood installations, oversized blankets covering hand crafted lounge chairs and locally crafted benches. Besides furniture home accessories such as vintage cups, clay pots and larger than life dream catchers are sprinkled throughout the yard in case you’re looking for slightly tinier ways to turn your house into a beach oasis. We’ve only scratched the surface of Beach House Style, you remember we mentioned your closet can also benefit from this place as well? We didn’t forget and now we want to tell you a bit about the inside of this beachy boutique we’re crushing on.
Inside the actual store or should we say, “cottage,” we are met with jewelry, racks of clothing, crystals and essential oils. Practically anything you need to create your own oceanic oasis is here for your choosing. Multiple racks holding linen tops and cashmere sweaters in soft hues of beige, gray and blue are scattered throughout the store.
Everything is easy, comfy and delicate and makes us imagine ourselves going for a long walk along the coastline wearing these thin but snug layers. Beach House also has one of the more impressive vintage Levi’s collections we’ve seen in recent times, there’s practically an entire rack of dark to light washes in a wide array of sizes and fits. It's almost as if this boutique is providing us with everything we would ever need to recreate the ideal beach scenario in our own homes and we are loving every bit of it. After we have selected a few pairs of Levi’s and multiple tops and sweaters to match we wander innocently over to a wall of earrings and necklaces, pretending we are “just looking” but you know us better than that. Bohemian hoops and beaded dangling earrings grab our attention and after we find out that locally crafted brand, Amano Studio which is a short drive away to Sonoma, is a regular at Beach House Style, we quickly grab a pair to match each outfit we’ve picked out.
“The sea, once it casts its spell, holds one in its net of wonder forever.”
- Jacques Yves Cousteau
Pursuing the rest of the cottage we find an assortment of crystals, sage and essential oils. This store is a one-stop-shop for all things concerning wellness and peace of mind, which is after all how we feel when we’ve left the beach, right? We find our heads clear, our senses cleansed and free of worry. That is, at least until we get back to the real world, but with Beach House’s assortment of alternative remedies we’ll be able to keep that free feeling 24/7 and know that we can return for any refills and new pick-me-ups they might have for us. Hell, we will try anything that will keep us stress free and positive these days and it's comforting to know that Beach House Style has got our backs and our heads.
After spending a good amount of time at this cottage shop we think we’ve grabbed everything we needed to arrange our own personal beach haven at home. Beach inspired furniture? Check. Cozy beach blankets? Check. Snuggly sweaters and faded jeans? Check. Locally made boho chic jewelry? Check. Wellness crystals and oils? Check. Did we miss anything? Maybe we didn’t but damn we’re looking for any excuse to go back ASAP. So, we’ve given you our shopping list and we think we’ve covered it all. Now it's your turn to think about what you love about the beach, about what brings you peace.
Is it some new backyard furniture to lounge in while dipping your feet in the kiddie pool? Is it some cotton pants that give you that free, breezy feeling while you’re doing household chores? Or maybe you want to pick up some essential oils that will mimic that fresh air feeling only the coast provides. Whatever the items may be that contribute to your personal oasis, we’re sure you will be able to find them at Beach House Style.
xo
SS
Photography: Kailyn Chadwick