Blue Blood Playing Cards from Uusi

Since visiting Uusi's Chicago studio for a story last year, I've been checking back to see what pops up from the talented husband-and-wife team of Peter Dunham and Linnea Gits.

After a round of Kickstarter funding, Uusi's new Blue Blood Playing Cards are up for sale on the site. Part historial fiction and part practicality, the artful cards are, as the site says, "purely enjoyable."

These will definitely bring the bespoke to my next camping trip.

Blue Blood Playing Cards from Uusi, $11 per pack

Friday Night Books

I can see these just fine

Since moving to my new neighborhood in Chicago's Ukrainian Village, I've been happy to discover a perfect used book store, Myopic Books, that combines two of my favorite things--books and painted gray floorboards.

I snapped this in their quiet upstairs reading room. If they had Earl Grey tea, I'd move in.

Blue Walls, Persian Rug

This is almost like two rooms: Below and above a 5-foot high sightline. They're both gorgeous.

A Beirut villa in May 2012 Architectural Digest

Spotted here

Bottega Veneta Suite at Park Hyatt Chicago

I took a spin through the Park Hyatt Chicago's new Bottega Veneta-designed suite last week, and the reality surpassed my high expectations. I've always loved the signature intreciatto leather weave of the Italian fashion house, but it's quite a different animal when it's whispered throughout an entire 17th floor suite overlooking Lake Michigan.

The barely-there neutrals are Bottega Veneta house colors: ash, pergamena (soft white) and uniform with accents of ebano, carbone and nero. The furniture is all from house collections, with duchesse brisee armchairs and dining chairs from the META collection in collaboration with Poltrona Frau, and folding camping stools and leather-fronted dressers from other lines. Cashmere throws, wool rugs and woven leather pillows from Bottega's home collection add another layer of sumptuous texture. I'm neglecting to mention the view, which is extraordinary for the location on Michigan Avenue's "Magnificent Mile": The large bay windows overlook historic Water Tower Place and Lake Michigan, so there's a riot of green treetops, blue water and wispy sky beyond the window seats.

Folding camping stools and cashmere throws in the bedroom 

The suite starts at $4,500 per night and includes a living room, kitchenette, two bathrooms and a master bedroom in its 1,400 square feet. All the furnishings are available for purchase through the Bottega Veneta store on the first floor of the building (the suite's personal shopper can arrange a private visit to the boutique), but you won't find any prices in the handy in-room catalog of the items. As my great-grandmother used to quote, "If you have to ask, you can't afford it."

Historic Water Tower Place from the 17th-floor Lake Suite by Bottega Veneta

Camping bed by Bottega Veneta: Frayed canvas intrecciato trimmed with leather