Holo Holo: Island Hopping to Maui!

"Bask in the Hawaiian sun, dip your toes in the open sea, and smile to the road ahead..."

The weekend is almost here and we're still in vacation mode from our holo holo trip to Maui! The blog team got to do some adventuring around Maui's Ali'i Kula Lavender Farm, Ho'okipa Beach, and the little artsy Paia town. Maui's laid-back, small town vibes gave us just the little refresher we needed and reminded us what "island style living" really is.

 

Amanda from our blog team, met up with her best friend Genevive back home in Maui, to explore the Ali'i Kula Lavender Farms!! Both are sporting our Cameron Hawai'i tees ($42-$56) and Ocean Wave Shorts ($35-$55) with our very own "Golden Wish" bracelets and rings ($80-$120) from our Tidepool Love collection!

Although it was a bit rainy and cloudy in Kula, the girls made the best of it and create their own sunshine with our "Encased in Happiness Sunrise Shell Necklaces" ($160-$200)!

Amanda and Genevive, hit the road to watch some surfers at Ho'okipa Beach and got some shopping done in the artsy Paia Town with our Cameron Hawai'i Shell Clutches. 

Amanda stopped by the beautiful Grand Wailea Resort, to make one final stop at the "Lucky Mermaid Statue" and made a wish for good luck! 

It's little island hopping trips like these that remind us how lucky we are to live in Hawai'i. Whether you're in the city lights here in Honolulu or in the laid-back Valley Isle Maui, take advantage of all the things island style living has to give....

XOXO, Cottage by the Sea Blog Team

Erin Is Back: Ija Designs Weekend Sale

"Hand Forged, Environmentally Conscious, Effortlessly Chic"

After battling breast cancer for eight months, we can't express how excited and inspired we are to have one of our talented artists, Erin Hasler, in remission and back in full force with her line! Erin is a trained metalsmith and the sole designer of Ija Designs where every piece is designed and handmade by Erin herself.  To celebrate we're having a trunk show sale on Ija Designs!! There are tons of pieces to choose from and are all 15% this weekend only! Here's some of our favorites to choose from....

Fly away with her little "Gull Necklace" ($100-$105) or take a little twist to classic teardrop and hoop earrings with her "Geo Shaped Earrings" ($50-$58)

Erin and Amanda taking a photo break, taken last year at her trunk show here at Cottage by the Sea

Her strength and words of wisdom have inspired and given us insight, here at Cottage by the Sea to always remember that there's gonna be "bumps" in life but it's those "bumps" that show us the beautiful lesson of how strong we can be in life's journey.  With that being said here are some words from Erin....

"Thank you for all of your incredible support during this difficult bump in the road, but know that it was just that, a bump in the road. I knew I was a strong woman before cancer, but I feel unstoppable now."~Erin Hasler

Coffee Break with the Cottage Girls

"Easy Like Sunday Morning..."

Nowadays everyone seems to be in a hurry, to get to the next destination, to get a response on emails and calls, to get through the fastest line at a store, just taking short cuts in life's moments when we really shouldn't.  It's Sunday and we decided to take a little coffee break at our local Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf Hawaii to enjoy the end of the weekend before Monday rolls around the corner...

 

Taking it easy in our new comfy tops, Louise in our "Casual Sunday Blue Top" ($44) and me in our "Keep Me Cozy Sweater" ($58), enjoying our yummy English Breakfast Tea Lattes!!!  We found it fitting to sport our silver spoon rings made out of actual forks and spoon by our exclusive artist Jennifer! Her "Rose Ring" ($64) that I've got on is made our of 16-24 little, sugar spoon handles and Louise has her fun "Fork Ring" ($36) made from a mini fork!

The friendly and talented Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf staff whipped us up the best lattes ever! We were lucky enough to have one of my good friends, Jon Kato, show off his skills and make us some latte art!

There's nothing like a lazy Sunday, so take your time, soak up every moment before the work week starts again. We did!!!

XOXO, Cotttage by the Sea Blog Team

Morning Recap: Discover Kakaako Fashion Show

We're slowly getting out of our weekend mode this morning from all the fashion fun we had at the Discover Kakaako Fashion Show, where our casual, Spring beach looks were featured! Here's some pics if you missed the show!

 

Our models showed off our "Oahu Love Totes" ($24), "Spring Maxis" ($68), and "Dip Dye Shorts" ($35-$55)

Thanks to our lovely models who showed off our Spring looks!!!

XOXO Cottage by the Sea Blog Team

Paw-fect Weekend Outing!

Weekends are the "paw-fect" time to spend out with our four-legged family members and friends! Here at Cottage by the Sea, we consider our pets family too and even if it's just a walk along the beach or in the park every bit of quality time counts.  We actually have a lot of customers who are dog lovers and they just love our paw print jewelry by Heather and our fun doggie message jewelry. The great thing about our store is that we're known for being Pet Friendly, so any four-legged shopper is welcome to shop at our store with their owner!  

 It's the unconditional love that our pets give us that makes it even more special having them as a part of the family. This weekend we took some time out with our buddies because it's moments like these where you appreciate the little things and the meaning of quality time with friends and family!

One of our Cottage girls, Adriana, brought her doggie Jackson along with her while she shopped around here at Ward Warehouse! Since Ward Shopping Centers are Pet Friendly, you can walk and shop around with your dog even grab a bite to eat with all the outside tables right in front of our store!

 Adriana's wearing our "Oahu Love Shirt" ($42) and our "Paw Ring" and "Paw Leather Bracelet" ($45-$55).

Our little buddy Cinnamon enjoyed the sand and sun during our beach outing! Although we had no luck finding any sandy, shell treasures this time, she still enjoyed being out and about and all the snack treats she got!

 Amanda's wearing our Cameron "Hawai'i Forever Shorts" ($55) and here's a few of our doggie message jewelry ($29-$55)

Make time with your pets, you can even bring them into our boutique to visit us on your next shopping trip!
XOXO Cottage by the Sea Blog Team

Cottage Girl Style 411

We took the time to get the 411 on style, favorites of the week, and life of the youngest gal of our Cottage by the Sea Team! We got to find out what trend she's loving right now, her style icon, and that she's been a world traveler at such a young age!

Meet Cynthia!!!

 Some of her store favorites right now are the "Chevron Bangles" ($78-90), our Cameron Hawai'i "Hawaiian Gold Tunic" (shown here on Cynthia $66), "Daydream Maxi" ($108)

She's also been helping with our blog inspirations and going on little adventures with the rest of the Cottage gals! Check out Cynthia and Louise's North Shore Sunday Funday in our previous post "Treasure Hunting!"

So stop in and visit Cynthia and the rest of the Cottage Gals for styling tips while shopping for your next outfit!
XOXO Cottage by the Sea Blog Team

Girl Put Your Record On....

"Girl put your record on, tell me your favorite song..."~ Corinne Bailey Rae

Missing the weekend and got the case of the mid-week Wednesdays??? Well we know how you feel and we got just the remedy to get you through the rest of the week! Sometimes it only takes a melody to spark some good energy, so here's a playlist with songs that are actually playing right now here at Cottage by the Sea on our video lookbooks! Take a Work Break: check out some of our tunes on our playlist either in our store while shopping or online on our video lookbooks.  So go on and put your record on!!

Here's one of our songs "Angel" by Jack Johnson featured in our Tidepool Love Video

Tidepool Holiday 2012 from Cottage by the Sea on Vimeo.

The weekend is almost here!!! XOXO Cottage by the Sea Blog Team

Farmers' Market Fun!!

"Shop Local. Buy Local."

Since Cottage by the Sea is locally owned, we try to shop local and buy local! Over the years we've continued to carry jewelry and clothing collections from local designers in our store to support local businesses like us.  

We just got in cute and sturdy canvas totes and bags that are perfect for any green shopper to take to the market. This gave us the perfect excuse to take a little work break and visit the market for good food and produce from local vendors. Not only were our cute shopping bags filled, so were our tummies with all the great local food vendors! 

Seeing the crowds of people who gather in the markets to support local businesses, makes us appreciate our local customers even more, who continue to shop and support Cottage by the Sea. So take a break and head down to the Farmers' Market near you for yummy food, fresh produce, and just good people!

Kristen and Chelsea are sporting our cute "Beach House Bucket Bags" ($42-65) perfect for shopping or the beach! 

There we got to talk to local vendors like Ono Pops who make their yummy pops from local and organic resources here in Hawai'i! Kristen tried their "Dark Chocolate 5 Chinese Spice" and Chelsea got the "Cherry Flavor," they also have fun flavors like "Butter Mochi" and "Green Mango!"

Kristen and Chelsea look adorable in our new "Cut Out Crochet Top" and our "Kiwi Mist Sweater" while shopping for fresh local produce!

Being silly and going bananas over all the fresh fruits like these locally grown apple bananas!! 

So remember "Shop Local, Buy Local!" 

XOXO Cottage by the Sea Blog Team

It's ALOHA Friday!!

 Say hello to the weekend! We love our Fridays, not just for the weekend but for all the new shipments of goodies with clothing and jewelry that arrive! Since we're so lucky that we live in Hawai'i with all the good things that come with it, we try to make the best of our weekends. Here's our "mood/inspiration" board filled with things that inspire the Cottage girls for the weekend!

 Remember, it's not what you have, but what you do with what you have that makes it what it is, and now that, is all you really need. That's what we're talking about!! So greet the weekend with a smile and enjoy it because it's....ALOHA FRIDAY NO WORK TIL' MONDAY!

Some jewelry featured here are from our Tidepool Love Collection "Laniakea Earrings" ($92) and our "Surf Session Necklace" ($44)