With the opening of ByCloudia (bycloudia.life), stylish chef/treasure hunter Claudia Geoly is sharing her wares from around the globe.

ByCloudia owner Claudia Geoly sits on a 19th century inlaid Syrian club chair at her new boutique. PHOTO BY JENNIFER STONE

Despite initial impressions, a common thread connects beetle sculptures by an Italian ceramicist to an 18th-century Dutch-language illustrated bible—along with funky furniture, paintings and more—at the new ByCloudia boutique: It is the store’s founder, Claudia Geoly, who developed a knack for finding extraordinary objects wherever she traveled.

Geoly is a former chef who grew up in Houston but spent many of her childhood summers in Mexico. While catering, she recalls, “Sometimes I would walk into a place, and they didn’t have, like, the right artwork on the wall, and I would just end up staging their event with plates and dishes, but also chairs, linens, beautiful art.”

Though she planned to open a cooking studio in Austin after moving here six years ago, once her collection started to become sizable, it was time to pivot. “I just put everything online and on Instagram to see if anybody was interested in what I had,” she says. “And they were.”

Geoly eventually found an unexpected storefront in Central East Austin and gradually filled the shelves and supplemented the space with sculptures, furniture she had reupholstered with out-of-print fabrics, and other valuable finds. “I want people to have accessible, original pieces they can talk about,” she says. “Then maybe they will give it a new life or give it away. You know, pass the story on.”

Nak Armstrong is one of my favorite jewelry designers. I like his chunky stuff and his Art Deco designs. I love how he brings in the cuts—it reminds me of fabric the way it comes together.” Nak Armstrong Double Fold Over Mosaic ring, nakarmstrong.com. PHOTO BY JENNIFER STONE

“I’m obsessed with this candle. I already put the last bit in the microwave and put another wick in there to keep using it. And I love it more because [interior designer] Mark Ashby gave it to me.” Le Labo Encens 9 candle, lelabofragrances.com PHOTO BY JENNIFER STONE