February Newsletter

February Newsletter

I'm rather late in posting this month's design blog but nevertheless it's still packed with interesting design gems that I've come across in the past month or so.

I mentioned that I would be going to the Interiors show in Birmingham last month and sadly it was a much reduced exhibition and I have to say that there was nothing new to report. However there's still lots of cool things to tell you about.

Wallpaper-on-the-ceiling Trend

We've seen a number of trends when it comes to wallpaper in terms of style and what we paper and although the feature wall is still going strong there's been a move to doing something completely different. So where's the only place we've not yet seen it? Yes, you're right - the ceiling. I've seen a few images in the past couple of months of rooms with paper on the ceiling and it's not as odd as it sounds. I'm not sure I'll be able to persuade a client to take the plunge but I think it would be fun to try in the loo or a cloakroom.

Wallpapered Furniture

Perhaps a tamer and more easily acceptable wallpaper trend is wallpapered furniture. Byronie Porter creates really eye catching pieces and here's a favourite clad in the famous noughties version of toile de jouy from Timorous Beasties. Find out more at http://www.bryonieporter.com

And a few more little beauties.

Bathroom Trend 01 - Coloured Taps

Taking the lead from Byronie Porter and re-thinking a standard piece of furniture Vola, a manufacturer of bathroom products from Denmark, has produced a colourful range of taps. They're powder coated and available in a dozen colours and I'm sure we'll see other manufacturers following suit soon. Cute aren't they?

Bathroom Trend 02 - The Bath Filler

A fitting I've been using for a few years now when refurbishing client's bathrooms is the bath filler. Easily mistaken as the over flow it combines both functions and avoids having to sit taps on the side of the bath or on the wall and most manufacturers now include them in their range. It makes for a much sleeker look to the bathroom and is easier to clean around the bath.

Bathroom Trend 03 - Patricia Urquiola at Hansgrohe

Still in the bathroom Hansgrohe have just added a major international design name to their stylish Axor range. Patricia Urquiola has designed a free-standing bath and a basin that recall the shape of traditional washing troughs. The basin has a looped handle at either side and the bath has one which you can use as a towel holder.

Urquiola has designed a complementary range of taps and basin mixers that cleverly incorporate a soap dish or toothbrush/mug holder.

Bathroom Trend 04 - Planetarium in your Bathroom

Sega Toys has been selling a plug-in planetarium projection system for some time for about £160 but it's about to launch the Homestar Acqua battery powered version that you can use in the bathroom. The system projects around 10,000 stars onto a circular area of almost 2 metres onto the ceiling of your bathroom and there is even a shooting star function so you can wish upon a star as you dream happily in the bath.

Bathroom Trend no 5 - The Light Switch

Up until now all light switches have had to be placed outside the bathroom unless they're the pull-cord type. Altma Lighting Ltd have now launched a set of water-proof light switches and dimmers that meet all the safety and building regulations that can actually be placed inside the bathroom. The range includes these wafer thin single and double switches and dimmers. In fact

I had a client only a couple of months ago who was keen to have light switches inside her en-suite but the electrician and I insisted that she couldn't have that - if only we'd known about about Altma's switches then!

Homewares Bargains Online

The people from the fashion on-line store ASOS have launched a new website dedicated to Homewares. Like the fashion site there are high quality items at knock down prices and sales from different manufacturers are regularly launched. Recently they had 400-thread bed linen from Delorme and Delbanco Meyer at a third of the price and lovely glassware from Bar Originals. Go to www.achica.com for more info and to see what's coming up next.

Lighting - Balance by Windfall

It wouldn't be the a Poised to Move newsletter if I didn't include something about lighting. I went to the Arc Show which is a trade show for lighting professionals and the star attraction for me was the lovely and unique Balance by Windfall. Unlike a traditional chandelier that has a number of arms joined at a central point with lights on the end of each arm the Balance is a series of individual Swarovski candle pieces that are individually suspended and lit from above by LEDs. Because the pieces are not joined they give a magical floating effect - think of that scene in Harry Potter with candles magically floating in the air in the dining hall. The pieces can be hung in any formation or suspended individually over a kitchen island to provide good task lighting.

Upcoming Shows and Places to Visit in March

March is almost upon us and there are a couple of events I would recommend to you in you're in the London area.

Firstly the Affordable Art Fair held in Battersea Park, London. Over 120 galleries will be representing their artists and pieces can be bought from £50 to a maximum of £3,000. This is the place to discover who or what you like and maybe you'll even pick up an investment for the future too. Tickets cost £12 each but if you go to this site you can print off a 2-for-1 voucher to present at the door.

http://www.thegoodwebguide.co.uk/?PAGEID=011161

London Design Week - 22 - 26 March, Chelsea Design Centre, London

This is a trade show held at the Chelsea Design Centre where the major fabric, lighting, flooring, tile and furniture companies showcase their collections but Friday 26 March is open to the public and there is a seminar programme sponsored by the magazine Livingetc. The day costs only £20 and is excellent value for money as you'll hear big names in interior design talking about their work and inspiration and of course have the opportunity to visit all the showrooms as well. If you've not been to the Chelsea Design Centre and I would highly recommend this as a great day out. You can find out more information at:

http://www.designcentrechelseaharbour.co.uk

This site has a lot of flash on it and is cumbersome to get through but persevere and go to the Events section to find out more and book tickets.

A Final Funny ......

Like last month here's another design oddity that caught my eye. This time it's weird coffin designs. Not at all macabre but to be viewed as a last chance to make your stamp on the world I feel!

Well that's all from me for this month. I'll be back in a few weeks with more news and updates. All the best and thanks for reading.

Jane

January Newsletter

Welcome to a brand new year that's rife with exciting design possibilities.   January sees the first of this year's trade shows in the interiors world.  I'll be off to Birmingham to Interiors 2010, a vast trade show with more than 570 exhibitors.  Also in January I'll be off to the London Art Fair, it's open to everyone and runs from 13-17 January at the Business Design Fair in Islington. Over 60 galleries will be showing so if you're interested in art and photography it should certainly have a place on your calendar.  I'll report on those visits in the next newsletter but let's start with what's caught my eye in the past month.

The Decorative Fair

If you read my November newsletter and were interested in Drummonds Architectural Salvage you should make a note to visit The Decorative Fair held in Battersea Park from 19 - 24 January. It will be choc full of gorgeous antiques and textiles and I believe if you buy a copy of January's issue of The World of Interiors you'll find a free ticket that admits two to the fair.  If you like antiques and curiosities it's a lovely way to spend a few hours.  The url for the Fair is www.decorativefair.com.

Coffee Makers

As I write this newsletter/blog it's the 1st January 2010 and after welcoming in the New Year last night I've needed a few coffees to get me going.  Thinking about the not-so-humble coffee maker there have been some exciting developments in it's design recently.  Nespresso leads the way and since 2005 has hosted a design competition for it's coffee makers.  2009's winner by Brice Genre and Hanika Perez from France can truly be described as a work of art, it's thermostatic and changes appearance as the water heats up.

And here's the runner up called “Pearl” by Andreas Diefenbach from Germany

Here's  the link to view videos of these stylish innovations and to see the runners up.

http://www1.nespresso.com/events/#/en/design-contest/the-event/the-contest

I also like this coffee brewer and kettle from Behzad Hormoz that's inspired by the structure of a shellfish.  The bionic shape encases a kettle made of Pyrex as well as the power cord and rechargeable batteries meaning it's totally portable.

Lighting

Lighting is a favourite subject of mine and I love the Cache Cache lamp by Victor Baeda which ingeniously uses a zipper to control the amount and direction of light rather than a standard dimmer switch.   How cool are these?

Light Emitting Wallpaper

The next few years will see the launch of the first lighting emitting wallpaper.  Just imagine, a wallpaper that glows with an even light to give a sunlight-like colour rendition and consumes a fraction of the energy of an overhead lamp.  The UK government has awarded grants to research and develop OLED (organic light emitting diode) lighting technology so expect to see this revolution in home lighting soon.  Here's what it will look like.

Swarovski Crystal Palace

For exquisite, and much more extravagant lighting, check out the latest commission from Swarovski Crystals.  Every year Swarovski commission the world's best and hottest designers to create light pieces that are shown in Milan in April and Design Miami in December.  Last month's show saw the inaugural display of three giant sail-like structures from Gregg Lynn.

To find out more visit the Swarovski Crystal Palace site at: www.swarovskicrystalpalace.com and to whet your appetite here are images of just some of the beautiful and stunning commissions from past years.

Colour Trends for 2010

Global Colour Research is a world-renowned company that creates important colour trend predictions two years ahead of each season that are relevant to all industries. Colour is influential at every level of the marketplace and affects everything from brand logos, signage, packaging and of course the product itself.  Here is the colour palate predicted by Global Colour Research for Winter 2009/Spring 2010 with Verdigris and Opal slated as the dominant colours. 

And below are palettes from other professional colour predictors.  As you can see no one set of colours dominates but all are earthy and muted, perhaps a reflection of global consciousness of the fragility of planet Earth?

Home Decorating

Here's an idea for home decorating that ignores all those colour predictions and uses them all - and more! Take inspiration from this bedroom and use paint colour swatch strips from your local DIY store to create a great feature wall.

The Belly Love Sofa by Florence Jaffrain

This is a prototype of a gorgeous sofa being shown in a Paris gallery at the moment.  The furniture is made of foam covered in photo luminescent fabric, which also contains capsules that release fragrance into the air.   It looks really inviting and I really hope it goes into production.

And finally

Apropos of nothing I was really amused by this bus design advertising the Copenhagen zoo.

Well, that's a quick round up for now.  Have a great January and I'll be back next month with further updates on what's new in the world of interiors.

Don't forget you can follow Poised to Move on Twitter, I'm listed as PoisedtoMove or Jane Ringe.