This summer, we flew to Istanbul, Türkiye, to find inspiration for our Design Shop. At the end of June, the summer air was already dry and the sunlight searing. It was the perfect time to road-test our water bottles and backpacks.
Had we come in April, Istanbul would have been flourishing with tulips. But the tulip season was over by June. Instead, we were left with oleanders, magnolias and roses.
We stayed at Hotel Niles, a plush boutique hotel in the fashion and leatherware district of Fateh. Of course, we needed something to remind us of home in West London. We walked around Istanbul with our backpacks, adorned with motifs of flowers that we drew and grew. The Yorkminster Rose takes its inspiration from our grandmother’s red Oriental thermal flask. Sophy’s Rose is inspired by the rose that we had at one time in our garden.
Here, at this eternal cosmopolitan city, we observed the way the Istanbulites kept themselves cool even when it was 30°C in the shade.
Water bottle everywhere
We took two water bottles for our inspiration trip: Diana from the Roses series and the Yorkminster Rose from the Suasana series. Before we stepped out into the sun, we filled our bottles with water from the cooler in the lobby. Diana and Yorkminster Roses didn’t look out of place on the water cooler or against the lush backdrop of Hotel Niles. As a homage to the Silk Road and the pastel city, we used the Old Boy and the Brontë Rose phone cases for our mobile phones.
Canopies and courtyards
Istanbul was a Roman city after all. The courtyard features prominently in both the public and private spaces. At times, the sense of a courtyard is created simply by hanging canopies – or training grape vines on trellis or wires – above tables and chairs, turning a non-place into a social space such as a restaurant.
Pastel city
The Istanbulites took summer in their stride. In June, loose clothing was the garment of choice. Some ladies had their hair wrapped in Byzantine silk scarves – always in cool tones despite the summer heat.
The buildings and monuments here are pastel in shade, mainly in pink, grey and beige. Against the cloudless blue sky, they create an elegant contrast. Buildings stack close to one another. They’re never tall but sprawling.
Shaded not faded
We marvelled at how Istanbul utilises architecture to create a cooling environment. Before the invention of air-conditioning, bazaars and mosques used domes, high ceilings and halls to create shades, to keep the sun out and to retain the cool air indoors.
We visited the Sehzade Mosque and mausoleum, designed by renowned architect Mimar Sinan. The mosque’s design allows for air circulation to be high enough to blow away the candle fumes and create a sufficient airflow. The courtyard of an Istanbul mosque, though exposed to the elements, is typically shaded and covered in marble tiles.
The famed Sirkeci train station, where the Orient Express runs from, also provides cover from the sun with little air-conditioning in the summer. The cooling winds from the Sea of Marmara enter through its high doors.
At leisurely pace
Istanbul is hilly. You climb up and down the streets. The walk gets slower especially as you near the sea. In the July heat, we took our time walking in the shade. We sauntered slowly to admire the alleyway grape vines, the facades, and of course, the trees and flowers decorating the streets. Walks were broken with rest stops at cafes where we sipped Turkish coffee and tea, and also checked out some local books.
We hope the Istanbul trip will inform our approach to designing more low-impact, carbon-neutral products. Find out more on products based on flowers we grew and drew, and photographed, in West London on our Design Shop.
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