I love when new paint pics come in, they're always so beautifully styled, and really bring home the extent to which your paint shades create a particular mood in a room. Here are the latest shots from Dulux. The emphasis is clearly on a soft, homely vibe with a warm and comforting air.
This is actually unbelievable - it's the Sorapot teapot designed by Joey Roth. Now that, my friends, is functional art on a pretty awesome level. Imagine brewing your morning cuppa in that?! My friend Niamh pointed it out to me on the San Francisco MOMA museum store website. It costs $200 on there, and on the Sorapot website they have it at €158, I didn't see anything about postage, but it would make a fab wedding pres for the aforementioned pal who is getting married next year.
So, I'm just back from Copenhagen and I have a new designer to be obsessed with: Louise Campbell. Pottering through a proliferation of Royal Copenhagen designs, I noticed that the charming, modern designs appeared to be by a lady called Louise Campbell, and then when I was in the Louis Poulsen showroom her name cropped there too. So, when I dug a little deeper I found a whole host of beautiful designs to become besotted with. The first two pics show the office of the Danish Ministry of Culture, which she designed, and which rather amusingly incorporates a punching bag that allows not only the minister and staff but also any visitors to relieve tension on the spot with a good wallop! Next we have her designs for the Royal Copenhagen Elements collection, which is what initially drew me to her work. She also created this very cool The More, The Merrier candleabra for Muuto, and this one-off Fatso pendant light (part of a series) for Louis Poulsen.
...I've just been lazy/busy/shirking my blogging duties. Holidays are a thing of the past for me, and I think that my fellow homeowners out there will empathise. It's not just that I don' t have a cent to spare - I'm also happy to stay put in my crazy little house. It's old and dirty, but it's mine. Anyhow, plans are chugging along and I've been chatting to the builder, plumber and electrician about getting started. I must admit that I'm getting just a tad fed up of the grimy blinds, digging around in boxes to find clothes and having a kitchen that is beyond basic, so I really am looking forward to having a nice clean, functioning home. At some stage. After all the work is done. Gulp. And then, why it will be so lovely that I will never want to go on holidays ever again! Well, ok, maybe not; I'm still pondering over a return visit to Sicily because I fell so very much in love with it when I was there last September. I would love love love to treat myself to a stay in the delicious Casa Talia (above) or the breezy-looking La Lumie (below), both in Modica.
I'm quite relieved that I've shelved the extension for a few reasons, one of them being that my wee garden remains intact and I don't have to sacrifice any outdoor space. Since the weather is so beautiful I've been planning how I would like it to look in order to optimise space for both growing plants and veg, and sitting out in the fresh air. I love this concrete built-in-y style bench thingy in the Viceroy Hotel in Santa Monica, California. The powdery blue colour is lovely and fresh, and this allows you to get maximum use from the space at hand.
Hmmm, I wonder how long it will take before I get bored of my own bad knitting pun-thingies? Thought I would give a knitting update - so, I popped into This is Knit in Powerscourt on Saturday, where Lisa very kindly helped me figure out what I needed. She recommended the Stitch n Bitch book (apparently the Vogue Knitting book is something of an encyclopedia), and I got some lovely soft grey yarn to get me started. My first project, I decided, is going to be a little scarf for my godson Naoise, who will be two on Friday. Clearly, he is to be my first victim/recipient of my knitting efforts because A) he is too small to object and B) he is too small to be too cool to wear a scarf that his auntie knitted for him. And also because I love him very much, obviously.
As per usual, I set into my task all gung ho and all 'how hard can this be, really?' Half an hour later I was wailing 'I can't tie a slip knot'. My boyfriend rather wisely absconded, while I squinted at the pictures in the book, as well as trawling the internet for something, anything that would put me on the right track. I dug through the Vogue Knitting website, the Martha Stewart Living website and yelled at a video uploaded by someone called Cassie on youtube. I eventually got the hang of it and my needles were a-clacking last night while I watched a DVD. Very relaxing, very satisfying, highly recommended.
I do recommend Stitch n Bitch, but I must say that the innuendo stuff gets a bit tired - I mean, a scarf pattern called 'ribbed for her pleasure'? Yawn.
Anyhow, here's Cassie - she's a bit annoying, but she did help me get there in the end:
That's an overhaul of your home, of course - the RTÉ programme Showhouse is returning to our screens this autumn as My Showhouse, and they are currently looking for anyone who has just bought a new or second hand home and is planning a makeover, or anyone who wants to do some work on the home that they have lived in for years. You could be in with a chance to have a professional designer (under the watchful eye of the inimitable Neville Knott) jazz up your home - and to be on the telly! If you fancy it then get in touch with Lisa with details of your property (location, size, budget, etc) at myshowhouse@vipmg.tv or 01 864 1444. The pics below of previous Showhouse projects are a little taster of what your home could eventually look like.
I dropped into the launch of the new Foxford Woollen Mills shop on Drury St this morning. It's called No. 6 Castlemarket, and it's very much a showcase of the partnership between Foxford and Helen McAlinden, who has been designing soft furnishings for the company for a while now, about five years I reckon. The actual shop has been open for almost three years now (I think!) and they recently gave it a mini makeover to create more of a focus on the interiors end of things. Helen has given a really contemporary and cosmopolitan look to the brand, which is often perceived as extremely traditional, and the shop is a wonderful showcase for the many beautiful Foxford products. Uses for the soft and snuggly wool extend far beyond blankets and throws, and there are some fab sofas and statement chairs on offer, as well as woollen blinds and, my personal favourite, an extremely huggable wall covered in a soft grey woollen pinstripe. So cast aside your very traditional view of Foxford Woollen Mills and take a look at how modern it is. You really can get everything under the one roof here as well - besides the soft furnishings, there are lots of lovely pieces of furniture and some great accessories, along with the Faulkner Interiors Studio where you can avail of David Faulkner's interior design service that includes curtain making. My very amateur photography does it little justice, but here's a taster of what's on offer - from the top: this is a soft and cosy wing chair (€800) covered in Foxford wool, and there are also other chairs and sofas similarly covered; these would make such a statement in the garden, and they're citronella so they keep bugs at bay - you can buy refills that slip in easily; I want want want want want this table - it has a wooden base and concrete top, and it's my dream dining table, the only catch being that it's €1,100; here's a teeny tiny sample of the wide range of bedlinen, that is competitively priced, particularly given the quality - 300-thread duvet covers start at €55; here are some of the lovely breezy accessories; a pretty little coffee table upstairs; this is the totally touchable upholstered wall - mmmmmm, soft.
Did I inadvertently make it rain by yakking on about how nice the sun was? It's so grey out there now - makes me want to wrap myself up in Cath Kidston oilcloth and hop home all colourful and waterproof! If you're a CK fan the Kildare Village outlet is a must for you. I wouldn't even be super into her stuff, but, dotted here and there about the house, her prints are bright and lively. I got some wonderful napkins and teatowels, as well as a cute knitting bag, which is currently home to my second knitting project - a scarf for my five-year-old nephew. Anyhow - you can get oilcloth there for €22 per metre.
The sun has been making an extremely commendable effort to pop its head out from behind the clouds of late, which is giving me lots of summery vibes. I'm really excited about the prospect of potentially getting to wear some summer clothes this year, they don't get out much with our monsoony holiday months. Since I am bracing myself for the prospect of home ownership, I don't really see how a proper foreign holiday can fit into the plans this year. If we do actually get a summer I would really love to take a break at home - I haven't been to Dingle in ages, and the house of gallery owner Susan Callery (featured in our July/August 2008 issue) really made me keen to pay a visit to that neck of the woods as soon as I get a chance.
