PINTEREST - I'm addicted!

If you're familiar with Pinterest, you will know what I mean.  But if you've never heard of it, you will wonder what I'm talking about!

Pinterest is a 'virtual pinboard' where you can post images onto 'boards' which you organise into whatever topics you choose.  Not surprisingly, mine are (almost) all to do with interiors but people 'pin' all sorts of things from recipes to shoes including hairstyles, favourite places and craft activities.  You can pin images from the internet (and you own images from your PC) and you can repin images which other people have posted.  

If you're planning a new room scheme, you can pin all your inspirational images onto one board.  You can also browse boards created by other people and use the search facility, so if you're looking for a table lamp for instance, you can search for it in Pinterest.  Clicking on the image will take you to the website from where the picture was originally 'pinned'.  You just need to bear in mind that Pinterest is worldwide and therefore, the original websites may not necessarily be from your home country.

There is an etiquette to follow, and to start pinning you need to request an invite which you can do via the Pinterest site.  You just need a Facebook or Twitter account to set it up but once you're up and running, it can become addictive!

One of my boards

Happy pinning!

London Design Week March 2012

Yesterday I went to Chelsea Harbour with a couple of colleagues from work for the start of London Design Week.  Following a very interesting lecture entitled "Trade Secrets: The Lightbulb Moment" we had a quick visit to a few showrooms before heading back home.

We've seen most of the new Spring collections as the reps have been out to the showroom but the highlight for me yesterday was the new Zoffany Arden collection and we were lucky enough to meet the collection's designer Melissa White.  It's a really lovely collection of wallpapers and fabrics which takes its inspiration from Elizabethan wall paintings of the late 16th century.

Photo by kind permission of Melissa White

In the image above, the painted stripe covers all four walls, including doors, hinges, and the stone fireplace.  It was found in the Merchant's House, Marlborough, Wiltshire and was the inspiration behind Zoffany's Merchant House Stripe wallpaper (shown below in Norsk Blue).  The house was built by Thomas Bayly, a prosperous silk merchant and the painted stripe is thought to represent striped silk hangings. (The Merchant's House is open to the public - for details and opening times please see their website - I shall definitely be making a visit!)

Photo by kind permission of Melissa White

To read more about the inspiration behind 'Merchant Stripe' (and other designs in the collection) please see the April edition of The World of Interiors.  You can also read more on-line on the House & Garden website.

London Design Week opens to the public on Wednesday 14th March and runs until Friday 16th March.

The best bits of this month's magazines

As it's a horrible day outside today, I've decided to spend the day drinking coffee and catching up with the latest interior design magazines.  I'm sure our postman dreads the beginning of the month when all the new magazines come out - and by the time I've finished writing this post, it will probably be summer!

idfx
London Design Week starts next Sunday (11th March) and idfx magazine has an article previewing the spring fabric collections from the more well known fabric houses like Sanderson, Osborne & Little, and Manuel Canovas, together with those which are not so well known like Swaffer, Chivasso, Brentano and Scion (to name a few).

Rainforest by Sanderson

Aurore and Gaspard by Manuel Canovas

Sereno Velvets by Osborne & Little

I've only included images for the new collections of the more well known fabric houses, but it is worth checking out the less well known ones too.  Links below to some of them:

• Brentano
• Chivasso
• Jocelyn Warner
• Sandberg
• Scion
• Swaffer

Also in idfx this month is a feature entitled 'Make Britain Great' asking why we should buy British.  An interesting read, and interesting products too!

The Beardmore Collection has some lovely door furniture for both traditional and more contemporary interiors.



I love these Domino side tables by Somerville Scott:

Original BTC and Davey Lighting have some great lighting products made in the UK.  I'm lucky enough to have the Primo Desk lamp on my desk at work, and we're about to install the Davey spotlights in a project we're currently doing at work.  The one shown has an integral transformer, so it's great for fitting where you don't have a void in which to place the transformer.

Davey low voltage spotlight with  shade
and integral transformer

    

Primo Desk Lamp by Original BTC

Flux Ceramics was established in late 2010.  The ceramics are designed and made by students and postgraduates of the Staffordshire University MA Ceramic Design course.

Cups designed by Flux Ceramics

25 Beautiful Homes

Always good for inspiration, 25 Beautiful Homes showcases some lovely products in its April issue (yes, April and it's only just March!).

The Chandelier and Mirror Company don't just sell mirrors.  They also have furniture, clocks, lighting and other home accessories on their website.  The magazine features the Travolta open bedside table - sadly it's not on the Chandelier and Mirror Company's website yet, but it's worth looking out for.

My favourite thing this month in 25 Beautiful Homes is this Oka rug in gorgeous muted colours.  The Haversham rug measures 180cm x 270cm and is made using a new manufacturing technique to give it an aged look.  It costs £1,895 including VAT.  I haven't told my husband yet, but I have my eye on this for our dining room!

If you're looking for a French style wall light (see my earlier post about French style furniture), the French Wall Light at £64 from Dibor might fit the bill.  Whilst on their site, I found a couple of others too!

Rustic Wall Light

French Wall Light

Silver Wall Light

       

Finally from 25 Beautiful Homes is this 30's inspired Daisy chair from Poltrona Frau.  Shown here in lilac leather, it's also available in different coloured leathers and upholstery fabrics.

Ideal Home

Ideal Home's offerings this month include the Cube rug from Woven Ground.  It's a shaped rug and it comes in two different sizes and shades.

Staying with their colourful theme for the April edition, is this Rasymatto cushion by Marimekko and available from Heal's - and whilst on the Heal's website, I spotted another one!

Marimekko Rasymatto Cushion £58

Unikko Red and Pink Cushion £58

Back to Original BTC, Ideal Home feature the Hector Bibendum pendant lights with coloured cord (shown here with red cord).  These lights retail at £99.50.

Ideal Home are also running an article about Joseph Joseph this month.  If you've never heard of Joseph Joseph, and like bold colours with great, practical design their website is definitely worth a look.  Here are just a few things which caught my eye:

Chopping Boards in case £45

Nest Utensils £25

Bread Bin £45

Ideal Home also found a reproduction Swan chair by Blue Sun Tree.  Originally designed by Arne Jacobsen in 1958 for the Royal Hotel in Copenhagen, Blue Sun Tree offer their reproduction in a range of different fabrics and two sizes.  They have just about every imaginable design classic chair (and other pieces of furniture) on their website!

The main theme for Ideal Homes this month is colour and they have suggestions for decorating rooms in red, yellow, blue green and purple and a black and white monochrome scheme in which they have this chair from Andrew Martin:

Finally, they have a feature on statement appliances.  Smeg are no strangers to colouful appliances but it seems you can now get 'white goods' in all the colours of the rainbow!  Much as I love purple, I don't think I could live with a purple oven! The danger with statement pieces like this is that they will date and if you want your kitchen to stand the test of time, I'd opt for white or stainless steel appliances and inject some colour with decoration!  The only exception, would be an Aga who have been producing colourful cookers since 1956 and it's almost expected that you have anything other than cream!

3-Oven  Aga in Pistachio

  

Homes & Gardens

Finally, Homes & Gardens - full of ideas and inspiration for your home and garden.  Like idfx, Homes & Gardens also features the new collections focusing on "this season's vibrant colours and strong patterns" and have grouped them by colour:

Spicy nutmeg and saffron featuring fabrics by:

Cheveyo by Kirkby Design

• Elenbach
• Watts of Westminster
• Kirkby Design
• Romo
• William Yeoward at Designers Guild
• Zoffany
• Nina Campbell at Osborne & Little
• Brunschwig & Fils at GP&J Baker

African Inspired Motifs featuring fabrics by:

• Mark Alexander
• James Hare

Kasuri by Mark Alexander

Fresh Emerald Greens:

Yukatan by Pierre Frey

• Harlequin
• Northcroft Fabrics
• Pierre Frey
• Manuel Canovas at Colefax & Fowler
• Sanderson
• Scion

Multi-coloured Designs:

Zola Stripe by Linwood

• Christian Lacroix at Designers Guild
• Laura Ashley
• Linwood
• Boeme
• Thibaut
• Christopher Farr

Chic Neutrals:

Bloom by Blendworth

• Larsen at Colefax & Fowler
• Dedar
• Casadeco
• Casamance
• Zinc
• Zimmer + Rohde
• Swaffer
• Blendworth

Blue Hues:

Raphaela by Sandberg

• Ferrick Mason at Tissus d'Helene
• Rubelli
• Ralph Lauren Home
• Jim Thompson at Fox Linton
• Nobilis
• Sandberg

The final category in their review of the spring collections is called "Springtime Brights" in which they solely feature Madame Butterfly by Designers Guild.  It's 100% linen and available in one colour - Peony.  It's part of the Kimono Blossom Collection.

The section on fabrics continues with a look at fabric trends concentrating on pattern, texture and colour with input from Tricia Guild, Emily Mould and Ariane Dalle.  The final article in the fabric trends section is a piece which looks at different styles of blinds from formal to modern and relaxed.

From the Shopping article, I like this Hartford chair by Michael Reeves Furniture for Osborne & Little (very similar to the Julep Chair by Designers Guild).  Shown here in O&L Alvare fabric, it costs £1,340. 

Also in the same article is this bright "No 4 Chair" from The Conran Shop:

(This chair is also in an article in Ideal Home)

At work we've noticed that orange and pink (yes - together!) have featured a lot in this season's new collections and this dhurrie rug from The Rug Company is no exception.  It's in their Studio Collection and costs £120 for a rug measuring 153cm x 91cm.  It is available in other colours if this is just a bit too bright for you!

On the same page as the rug above is a book called I Love Stationery.  As a self-confessed stationery addict, and someone who used to make my own gift cards, a copy of this might be making its way to my bookshelf!

Homes and Gardens are also holding a one hour Masterclass on Wednesday 14th March as part of London Design Week.  During the Masterclass garden designer Stephen Woodhams and interior designer Joanna Wood will discuss indoor and outdoor spaces that will work in harmony.

There are pages devoted to lampshades and tables  - here are a couple of lampshades to inspire you and if you're looking for other ideas, see my earlier post Lovely Lampshades or my pinterest board (link above).

Dahlia from Lush Designs

Baby Bird Summer by Yukari Sweeney

As usual, there are inspirational pictures of real homes and the Designer Secrets this month focuses on Martyn Lawrence-Bullard, a designer based in Los Angeles and best known for creating interiors for clients such as Cher and Elton John.

Finally, there is an article about artist Melissa White who, in association with Zoffany, has produced a range of designs inspired by the Elizabethan style of the late 16th century.  You can read the article here: How I became a Decorative Painter.

There is so much more in Homes and Gardens this month, not included here - such as an article by Tricia Guild on Easter Entertaining, tips for hanging pictures, choosing fitted furniture and inspiration for bathrooms and kitchens.  Oh .... and 15% off at Oka so maybe that rug could be in my dining room after all!!

Well, it's not quite summer but it certainly seems like a different season now compared to when I started this post!  I'm off to Chelsea Harbour now for the start of London Design Week to see first hand what's new this season!

You can never have too many cushions!

I love cushions and personally think you can never have too many!  They are so useful for adding a splash of colour to a neutral room, for adding an accent colour or for pulling a scheme together.  At the design practice where I work we nearly always have them made - that way you can create something truly unique!  However, there are thousands to choose from if you're not feeling that creative and don't forget, cushions don't have to be square - oblong cushions look great too!

Here are a few of my favourites from the high street ......

.......starting with florals








The red cushion on the left is the Martagon which is crewelwork on a heavy linen (self piped and plain back).  Also available in other colours.  This is just the cover though, you would need a cushion pad.  Available from OKA and costs £59

This is also a cushion cover from OKA - Patmos -blue embroidery on white linen - £75
















This oblong OKA Cassia cushion cover is hand embroidered on linen and measures 60cm x 35cm.  It costs £59 for the cover.














Designers Guild are always good for colourful cushions - here are 3 of their latest designs:

Madame Butterfly £75

Amala Peony Cushion £75

Kimono Blossom £89

If you want something more contemporary, try these (both from John Lewis):

Sanderson Still Life - abstract painting by Henri Matisse
This includes a feather cushion pad and costs £50

Paper Flowers cushion, also available in a couple of other colours - £25

Checked and striped cushions look really smart - and don't be afraid to mix them!  Checked cushions (particularly plaid) are usually made of 100% wool so are lovely and cosy (appropriate at the moment as I look at the garden covered in snow!).  Checked cushions also look great in a country setting, in a shooting lodge for instance.

This self piped cushion (above) is Highland from OKA and is 100% wool (cover only £45).  They also do a matching throw and the oblong cushion in the same fabric gives a more contemporary look to a traditional design:

Two new cushions from Laura Ashley -the Cranbourne check cushion (left) is 100% wool and costs£42 and the Hagan cushion (below) is 100% cotton with a fringe on one side (£38).  Both include the cushion pads.   

John Lewis have this self-piped Moon Flannel cushion (which includes the feather pad) for £50.  Shown here in beige, it's also available in a dark grey.

For a smart striped fabric, how about this Zoffany Corinthian cushion (below left).  It measures 50cm x 30cm and includes the feather pad (£50).  The striped cushion on the right is by Harlequin (£45) and measures 44cm x 44cm.  Both include the feather pads and are from John Lewis.

My favourite striped cushions are these two by William Yeoward (available from Designers Guild):

Brandon Rose Cushion  £65
45cm x 60cm

Pierscourt Navy Cushion £55
35cm x 50cm £55 

Ikat prints are everywhere at the moment, and all the fabric houses seem to have their own take on the traditional ikat fabric which was produced by weaving partially dyed threads - unlike tie-dying for which the process involves dying the cloth after it's been woven (see the description on the V&A website if you want to know more   http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/articles/m/album-with-nested-carousel18/).  Ikat fabrics make great cushions and here are a couple I've found:

Vintage Silk Ikat cushion cover from
The Contran Shop £80

OKA Tramonto oblong cushion cover
£45

For really cosy cushions, take a look at these knitted cushions from The White Company:

Chunky Hand Knit cushion cover 50cm x 50cm £75

Somerton Cable Knit Cushion Cover 

Other places to try for cushions are:

• Not on the Highstreet
• Lombok
• Tinsmiths

Finally, a couple of my own cushions which I had made for our bedroom:

For the two 22" cushions, I used Larsen Allure in Mineral for the fronts and Zoffany Ketti silk for the backs and piping.  

For the large rectangle I used Larsen Mood velvet which has an aged look to it, and added some Wemyss Opaline trim on the short sides:

Thanks for stopping by - hopefully by the time I post again, the weather might be a bit warmer!