So, this black steel fireplace by French company Focus has apparently been voted the World’s Most Beautiful Object by the Pulchra design competition in Italy.
Thoughts? It’s impressive, but definitely not my most beautiful object (still trying to think what would be though). And this room is utterly spectacular, though that has more to do with room’s bones than the so-so decor.
What objects would you nominate?
One of the main things that really drew my eye to the Lulu Guinness spread was the magnificent Pearly Queen of Dalston wallhanging above the banquette. I love everything about it – its wit, the fact that it’s made of buttons, its quintessential Englishness, the colours – and it seemed like just that sort of thing an expat Londoner would hang over her Seattle sofa.
I even vaguely thought about commissioning one, but it soon became clear from sculptor Ann Carrington’s website that it would be way out of my league – it’s apparently a fairly important piece, purchased by the Rothschild collection in honour of the Queen’s 80th birthday, and doesn’t belong to Lulu Guinness at all, it merely served as the inspiration for her limited edition ‘Stamp Jayne’ handbag (shown to the left of the banquette picture and seemingly no longer available through her shop).
Here it is in more detail
And here are some other works by the artist, both made using thousands of tiny pearl buttons.
I wonder, though, if American readers are getting the cultural reference?
Pearly Kings and Queens are the heads of certain families in London’s East End, descended I think from Victorian costermongers (street sellers?) who decorate their black clothes with thousands of tiny buttons and do tons of work for charity.
If you like the look then these cushions here are pretty special.
I’m a little bit on the fence about this one, as it’s a little too romantically girly for my taste, but there’s still a lot to love in Lulu Guinness’ Notting Hill house.
First up the bones of the house are superb – the Victorian houses built in Notting Hill are larger and grander than in other parts of London, so the proportions are generally, as in this case, more splendid.
And there’s something about the quality of the light there, I lived in Notting Hill for twelve years and even on gloomy days it always seemed brighter and lighter than the rest of London – something to do with the white coloured houses and the sunset views to the west. But maybe it was just because I loved living there so much.
But I digress.
I love the eclecticism of the decor, the bold use of colour, the collections of objects which are clearly much loved and personal and the way the whole thing reflects LG’s own quirky feminine but slightly kitsch style. (Is she well known in the US? I haven’t come across her here. In the UK she is renowned as a handbag designer, but she also designs homewares.)
The other interesting aspect is how the house has evolved since it was last photographed in 2001 (seen here on Hidden in France) – LG has kept many of the same pieces but the style is a little more pared down and the colour palette more restrained, with much more use of white. It’s so refreshing to see a wealthy person who doesn’t throw everything out and start again every few years, but who keeps their house full of familiar, much-loved treasures.
What do you think? {All images, by the way, from Living etc}
What I like about art is that sometimes it teaches you to look at things with a different perspective.
In my life I must have spent thousands upon thousands of hours commuting backwards and forwards on the Tube in London, but never once did I think to look for these surreal juxtapositions of Tube trains/passengers and the huge ad posters which are posted on the other side of tunnels from the platforms.
Genius stuff. By Yusuf Ozkizil.
And now these pictures have got me all nostalgic for the Tube. Who knew that I would think of those days of being crammed in like sardines with one’s nose stuck in someone’s smelly armpit with such fondness?
As we are driving past Seattle’s baseball and football stadiums
Minx: That’s Safeco Field!
Me: Who plays there?
Minx: The baseball.
Me: And who plays at Qwest Field?
Minx: The Sounders! (We recently went to a game.) We had to sing ‘go home Chelsea’! (Chorus of ‘go home Chelsea’ from the back seat). But there were no girls (the Minx is a keen soccer player).
Me: Who else plays at Qwest Field? (Silence) The Seahawks play at Qwest Field. We haven’t been to see them but they play American football.
Minx: Do they have girls?
Me: No, girls don’t usually play American football.
Minx: Is there nowhere in Seattle that I can go to watch GIRLS?
How do I explain that one?
Feeling inspired to create but can’t afford the materials?
Yes, paints and stuff are expensive, so go and rescue that sad and lonely reel of packing tape you’ve got stuffed in a drawer, pick off the bits of fluff and get to work.
Here’s the sort of thing you could be making.
The above are made from layers of tape stuck to plexiglass with light shining through.
All images by Mark Khaisman.
I came across this fabulous art via Flavorpill’s Daily Dose, where my post on Charlotte Mann’s wall art was also featured {via a mention on Fashioncopious.com). As a result my blog stats have gone through the roof and it’s been fascinating to watch my post go slightly viral, with people blogging about it, linking to it on Facebook, Tweeting it and posting it on other social networking sites.
Such things don’t normally happen round these parts, though I suspect it has slightly more to do with Charlotte Mann’s fabulous art than my sparkling prose. Anyway, thanks all for the mentions and I do hope Charlotte is getting some nice juicy commissions as result.
Really my dears, she makes it all too easy.
I know we’ve been through all this before, but Ms W has a new book to promote, so therefore pics of the interior of yet another Hollywood home are doing the rounds (does she actually live in any of these houses?) and it’s the FUGLIEST yet! Quelle joie!
Ths sad thing is that from the exterior this is a beautiful LA house with a stunning pool, but now you couldn’t pay me to live amongst all this cold, hard, ersatz splendour. Money truly is wasted on some people.
Can anyone explain what I’m missing about this woman? I would genuinely love to know – at the moment it just looks to me like the Empress has new clothes.
No, she didn’t let her boys scribble on the walls, apparently this is custom-made graffiti-inspired wallpaper. Which is not to say that the boys wouldn’t have done a better job.
Like living in the British Museum, and about as comfortable.
Doesn’t it strike you as a little inconvenient to have to move half a hundredweight of assorted replica statuary every time you want to lay the table?
This is apparently Kelly’s study – such a practical place for a working designer n’est-ce pas? And those chairs would seriously freak me out.
Two further questions strike me.
– With the zebra skins and the faux decapitated heads, is Kelly channelling Eddie or could Eddie be channelling Kelly? (Though why either of them would wish to is beyond me.)
– And how on earth does a colour scheme of dark blue and dirty brass with some pink scribbles qualify one to write a book about colour (the subject of Kelly’s next magnum opus)?
Oh and for those of you in the UK and elsewhere, Kelly Wearstler is one of the most famous interior decorators in the US. I kid you not.
This post is for all Project Runway contestants (and judges) past and present, who have struggled with the concept of ‘avant garde’. Viktor & Rolf took saws to densely packed layers of tulle to create walking sculpture and the result is both strangely gorgeous and absolutely riveting.
Wouldn’t you just love to see some super brave starlet walking down the red carpet in one of these? (And she could always sweep the carpet at the same time.)
{via Project Rungay – run there to see more pictures, the runway videos are worth watching}
As you know I was never a big fan of Domino - I’m becoming more American every day, but nothing has come remotely close to replacing the British shelter magazines such as Living etc and Elle Deco in my heart – but I was looking forward to the launch of Lonny, the online magazine brainchild of former Domino Market Editor Michelle Adams and photographer Patrick Cline.
Issue 1 was launched today and I’m afraid you’ll just have to colour me rather disappointed.
First the good news.
– The online reader tool is fantastic – clear, fast and making it very easy to flip between the pages (though it seems strangely old-fashioned to just duplicate a print magazine online – if you can add hyperlinks, for example on the shopping pages, why not just do it?)
– The photographs are aces.
– The styling, though completely not to my taste, is generally excellent.
– There’s lots to read, with plenty of home tours and not too many ads.
The bad news, unfortunately, is that the whole magazine is a celebration of the fussy, over-ornate, grandma’s old knickers style that dominates American interiors magazines and which I’m sure led partially to Domino’s demise.
The front cover is spectacularly meh. I know it doesn’t have to stand out on a newstand, but really couldn’t they do better than this? If the cover of a magazine is supposed to tell you what a magazine is all about then this says is ‘fussy’ and ‘mumsy’ (do Americans understand what this means? Should I be writing ‘momsy’ instead?), which is not a decorating style I aspire to.
Inside the layout is full of the multiple fancy fonts, strange dotty lines and fussy boxes which we’ve discussed before about American magazines, though it is less busy and better organized that some.
The shopping pages feature some quite spectacularly ugly stuff.
The fashion pages are EXECRABLE. I have no words.
And there of course are loads of rooms cluttered with overdecorated repro furniture and table lamps in every direction (what is it with Americans and table lamps?)
Regardez
The one more modern home featured is about as imaginative as a Crate & Barrel catalogue
Even the home of Grace Bonney from Design*Sponge, whose taste I normally quite like, is made to look dull.
Finally our old friend Eddie Ross is back with his special brand of granny style, featuring even more zebra than he had in his New York apartment and a ton of fuss and clutter on every surface (a shame as the bare bones of his country house look absolutely amazing).
The very best news though is that we now have a great new source of ‘Go Fug Your Room’ fodder. I thereforewish Lonny Magazine many, MANY years of success.
And now, having offended most of the American online decorating establishment, I will go and do some real work.
For the longest time I avoided wooden accessories in the home – they always seemed a bit too rustic and ‘knit your own yogurt’ and you know that I’m really not that sort of a girl.
But recently wood seems to have become a little more sleek, sophisticated and playful, while still retaining that delightful tactile smoothness and warmth.
Check out this gorgeous coffee table from Habitat in the UK
These cute owls (here we go again) from UK designer Matt Pugh
This beautiful walnut cheese board/server from SavedFromAFire (made from offcuts of wood saved from furniture making, which would otherwise be thrown away or burnt).
These stacking rings from Little Sapling Toys who make the most fantastic wooden kids accessories
These wooden iPhone cases from Vers (though I’m not sure how practical pulling your phone in and out would be).
and finally, the wooden accessory that revived wood for me, my Jean Pelle candleholder
