Destination: Turkey: Istanbul

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A la Turca

Imagine the home of an incredibly stylish Turkish woman who has collected treasures, particularly carpets and textiles, who opens her fabulous rooms to you and allows you to shop. That is the feeling of foraging in Erka Jaksoy’s A la Turca showroom. You could just bump into international designers like Mica Ertegun on the hunt for inspiration and collectibles.

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Abdulla Natural Products

Abdulla Natural Products carries thick handmade towels and beautiful cotton sheets, as well as soaps and hammam products.

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Adnan & Hasan

There are tons of carpet stores in the bazaar and throughout the city. One favorite source for high-quality Anatolian rugs of all styles, colors and sizes is Adnan & Hasan, which is near Fes Café. The owners, who have been brought to the attention of savvy travelers by Forbes and Maison Francaise, will give you a run-down on the different types of carpets, techniques and regional patterns and offer a fair price and reliable shipping. You can get a sense of the range on their web site. If you are serious about purchasing for specific rooms, it’s wise to bring measurements with you as well as fabric swatches.

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Asli Tunca

After a successful career as a fashion designer, Istanbul native Asli Tunca turned her focus to interior design. She and her husband, Carl Vercauteren, a Belgian artist, recently formed a company under her name to unite their shared interest in hunting down beautiful objects—both contemporary and antique. The couple work on design projects around the world and have recently added a design line. In their spectacular show house, you can wander the rooms discovering wonderful antiques and reproductions as well paintings, sculptures and accessories such as pillows and jewelry. The pair have incredibly refined taste and collect whatever strikes their fancy as they roam the world, so expect to find unusual and extravagant treasures in this very special shop.

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Cocoon

Seref Ozen and Mustafa Gokhan Demir are two of the foremost dealers in Central Asian textiles. In their shop in the Sltan Ahmet district, you’ll find high-quality rugs and textiles showcasing the tribal arts.

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Day & Night

In the chic shopping area of Nişantaşi, Day & Night is an attractive interiors shop that sells exquisite furniture, art and objects for classical design enthusiasts. It’s the kind of shop that designers like Nicky Haslam or John Stefanidis would have loved with antique objects mixed with handsome metal tables, artfully arranged books and subtle fabrics and textiles.

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Dervis

Tip from designer and painter Madeline Weinrib, whose atelier is located on the top floor of ABC Carpet & Home:

“In the Grand Bazaar, check out Dervis for luxe bath accessories like the vintage copper hammam dishes and huge, plush towels.”

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EV+

Tip from designer and painter Madeline Weinrib:

“Yael Mesulam Manzakoglu studied at Parsons in New York before returning to Istanbul and launching EV+, a collection of beautiful linens. Her work is quite refined, including delicate linen nightgowns and terry cloth towels with embroidery based on ancient Iznik tiles. You will not find these anywhere else in the world.”

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Haremlique

Opened by Caroline Koç, whose family has a long tradition in the Turkish textile business, and designer Banu Yentur, Haremlique offers gorgeous linens for a modern harem moment in the bath or bedroom. The supple cotton sheets and terry towels can be custom ordered for yachts or with your initials and come in gorgeous colors. The attractive shop also sells their signature cashmere throws and fabrics and great gift items like coffee sets and candles.

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IKSV Design

The first-floor gift shop in the new Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts features modern designs by Turkish artists, including prints, paintings and gift items such as silk scarves, crystal and pillows as well as photographs by Aliye Berger and Nuster Nurdan Eren.

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Iznik Classics

Tip from designer and painter Madeline Weinrib:

“I flip over Iznik Classics’ ceramics in the Grand Bazaar. Colorful dishes are everywhere in Istanbul, but it’s very, very hard to find ones like these that are lead-free and have such beautiful painting. The new designs are based on old patterns and are not expensive.”

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Karavanart

Tip from designer and painter Madeline Weinrib:

“For primitive carpets with a modern look, my pick is Karavanart.”

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L’Orient Handicrafts

Murat Bilir is a master metal worker who creates beautiful brass, copper and bronze pieces from lanterns and candelabras to coffee pots. He has quite a celebrity following for his treasures, and will invite browsers for a lengthy chat.

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Mehmet Cetinkaya Gallery

Tip from frequent Istanbul visitor, designer Madeline Weinrib:

“This is the place to buy old suzanis in perfect condition—with prices to match. I have one that’s so old and worn that only the edges are left; it looks like an abstract color-field painting.”

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Mozaik

One of the city’s most important and cutting-edge design showrooms, Mozaik features the latest furniture collections from such names as Zaha Hadid, Vitra Home, Cappellini, Knoll and Zanotta.

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Muhlis Günbatti

The best source for antique Ottoman and Central Asian textiles and clothing. The charismatic Günbatti will be opening another shop soon for his enormous collection, across the street from the Four Seasons hotel.

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Orient Handmade Carpets

Don’t let the somewhat generic name deter you; this boutique has an amazing collection of contemporary carpets in all textures and colors, as well as some vintage pieces. The staff here is expert and not pushy.

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Tarkan Özbudak

For the best selection of ceramics and Iznik tiles in the Grand Bazaar, head to Tarkan Ozbudak’s shops. Open every day, except Sunday, from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.

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Yastik by Rifat Ozbek

Yastik means cushion in Turkish and this gorgeous shop, which resembles an art gallery, celebrates Neo-Ottoman pillows. Well-known designer Rifat Ozbek has teamed up with Erdal Karaman to offer beautiful cushions based on his own textile collection. There are the ikat style ones that have become familiar sights in high-end design magazines as well as others made with fabrics from Anatolia, Brazil, even English stripes. Vintage fabrics and florals are particularly popular. The collections change twice a year, but all are unusual, colorful and definitely offer a special memory of Istanbul. The shop will ship internationally. Closed Sundays.

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