HIC: ART AT HOME

Any place with magenta dyed camel hair blankets is on my must-visit list. I read about Hic Contemporary Crafts while researching modern craft boutiques in Istanbul and had to pay a visit. 

With an array of contemporary ethnic and unique home accessories, Hic Crafts focuses on bringing designs and motifs from faraway lands to the heart of Istanbul. The owner travels around Europe, Asia and Africa, curating a melange of one-of-a-kind textiles and ceramics for her gallery showroom. She has an awesome eye for combing in prints and textures from different countries.

HIC: WORLD OF CRAFT

Hiç is a shop in Istanbul where you find beautiful ceramic tableware, Afghan and Turkish carpets, jewelry, pillows and modern crafts. With a contemporary ethnic feel, Hiç is a very unique shop for Istanbul. Finding the gallery store on the Afar website, I dragged my parents after a long day of sightseeing. They begrudging trudged along narrow alleys and steep hills through the up-and-coming neighborhood. With its bamboo covered entrance and glowing windows, the shop beckoned like a beacon on the dusk laden street.

I was not disappointed. Small but extremely well-appointed, Hic is a haven of pattern and texture. There's a ceremonial headdress from Iran, now hanging as a wall sculpture. There's a carved chess board, with its soldiers lined up in ceremonial display. Pillows made from Ghana fabric or fashionable Turkish embroidery overflow from the overstuffed lounge chairs. Turkish style worry dolls decorate the branches of an indoor tree. Every corner is a vignette waiting to be photographed.

Address: Hacı Mimi Mahallesi Lüleci Hendek Sokak No. 35 

TOPKAPI PALACE INTERIORS

The Sultans left not tile uncovered, no inch ungilded. This sitting room had intricate details on every wall, floor, bookshelf panel, even on the fireplace covers.

Of course I still have hundreds of tile photos, but come back tomorrow for some retail inspiration from the very modern shopping meca.

GILDED PALACE

The Topkapi palace interiors were like a jewel box: gilded, adorned, painted and carved. The palace took the whole day to explore, and we were not disappointed.

SULTAN'S QUARTERS

The Topkapi has stunning interiors but it was the miles of tiles that blew me away. Tiles everywhere! On the ceiling, on the floors, inlaid into bookshelves and cabinets. Inside and outside. Such intricate designs are pretty hard to absorb, as detail and beauty is all round you in every space. I pointed my camera up, close, and down. I could pretty much dedicate a month to showcasing all the tiles in Turkey, with a week or two for just the Topkapi. But, somehow I don't think everyone would appreciate that!

The hues spanned the spectrum, from the richest cobalt and ultramarine to the palest cerulean. Since the Islamic religion forbids depicting fauna in Turkish Art, the patterns focus on abstract geometries and flora.