Be My Guest: Karya

Karya is my first Turkish guest, and the last guest of this year as well. She's from Turkey but she's living in 
Cambridge right now for studying architecture. When I saw her pictures at first, I started to miss England as 
I remembered my time back in summer of 2007 in Oxford. Not only her style, but also her life which is full 
of pure interests, paintings and second hand books steals my heart and I can't stop to host her in this column 
of my blog. 

Be sure to check out her web-site to see her amazing pictures mostly inspired by the nature. She also 
drew me with my love that I can't wait to put it on my new home's wall!

Enjoy the interview, and stay tunned for the guests of 2014!

LIFE

* What do you do for a living?

I’m a freelance artist and currently in my last year studying Architecture at the University of Cambridge. 

* What are the 3 specific things you like to do?

- Painting and other arts and crafts

- Going to markets for food, clothes, books, antiques and other things

- Walking around and exploring scenic places 

* Which movie you never get bored of watching?

Probably Disney films which I’ve watched for years and years and never gotten tired of. 

Mary Poppins is one of my favourite, I’ve watched it so many times and it’s still great!

* Which song makes you happy?

Too many! I think I’ll go for an album instead; ‘Please Please me’ by the Beatles never fails to 

put me in a good mood 

* What are your inspirations in life?

For my art I gather inspiration from a number of things, I love working with natural imagery and so walking 

around in natural settings and visiting new places is great. I draw inspiration from the people around me, the 

past and different locations and cultures as I’ve travelled and moved around a lot throughout my life.  I also 

love going to galleries, museums and I’m obsessed with art books so I draw a lot of inspiration from other 

artists. My favourites include: David Hockney, almost all the Impressionists, Frida Kahlo, Edvard Munch, 

Edward Hopper and so many more.

For general living, I’m fascinated by the past and love collecting antiques. This influences a number of 

things such as the music I listen to, the films I watch and the things I wear. 

STYLE

* How do you describe your style?

I tend to mix a lot of vintage clothing with current styles. I don’t particularly follow fashion trends and enjoy 

wearing things, which I think suit me and which I feel comfortable in. I’m particularly influenced by mid –

century fashion, I love using styles of the 50s and 60s.

*  If your style is a movie character who would she/he be?

Hmmm I have no idea! But I’d love to own all of Catherine Deneuve’s clothes in the 

‘The Umbrellas of Cherbourg’. 

* If you have a color palette, which colors you put together to create your style?

Red, Maroon, emerald green, mustard yellow, pale blue, navy and cream.

CITY

* Where do you live right now?

Cambridge, UK.

* What are the 3 local suggestions for people who want to visit your neighborhood?

Walk/ cycle around:

Cambridge is great to explore on foot or by bike, everything is so close and the whole town is very scenic. 

You can even walk to neighbouring villages such as Grantchester taking a route through the Grantchester 

meadows, which is absolutely beautiful. And you can rest after by having tea and cakes at the 

Orchard Tea Garden.

Go shopping for antique/ second hand books:

G. David in St. Edward’s passage is my absolute favourite bookstore; the antiquarian section in particular 

is great, with lots of incredible books and art. In St. Edward’s Passage again is ‘The haunted Bookshop’, 

which doesn’t sound too appealing but in reality is a cute little shop with a magical upper floor full of old 

children’s books. Close to both of these is Market Square where there’s always at least one stall selling 

second hand books, you can find some great things there and it’s really good value.

Go Punting/ sit by the river:

A typical Cambridge thing to do, admittedly it’s most enjoyable in the summer and after exam period 

where there’s a great atmosphere with lots of people on punts or picnicking along the riverbanks. 

* Which city do you want to live for the future?

Somewhere in continental Europe, probably somewhere in the Netherlands because I absolutely love it there.

Thanks Karya ♪ ♪ ♫

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