Wish list: Japanese ceramics in pastel shades

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New for summer 2014 is this elegantly understated china by Japanese brand Kinto. Each piece starts life as clear white porcelain, which is then glazed in one of several soft pastel shades creating a surface that’s washed with translucent colour: Choose from three sizes of plates, plus a deep plate/bowl that’s perfect for pasta and salads, and two further bowls, one large, and one small:

[all images, courtesy 95%]

Part of Kinto’s Atelier Tete collection, shop for Dune porcelain in the UK at 95%: this must-visit online shop is fiilled with covetable, design-led products for every room in the home: filing your shopping basket is more than easy! Enjoy the weekend, Jx

Discover beautiful fair trade gifts and more; plus an exclusive discount for Find the Details readers…

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Shopping for gifts can be hit and miss, especially if you like to know the source of your finds: sometimes I feel the buyers have all ended up at the same stall at the same trade fair. So for gifts that come far from the high street, yet with traceability, don’t miss Mimosa Street. Owner Francesca sources a mix of beautifully made, fair trade furniture, home accessories and jewellery that you won’t find elsewhere. Perfect for gifts (and for yourself!) here are my favourites from the spring collection:

Arambol bench, made from mango wood with a hand-woven jute seat, above: benches are perfect for hallways, of course, but I’d also love this as part of a simple, rustic bedroom scheme.

This delicate vase can also be suspended – I’m hoping to hang several together in a group…..

… whilst these intricate metal Vashti trays make perfect drinks mats or unobtrusive candle holders.

Decorate walls with this colourful stork print….

…and capture memories in the pretty Sari frames, above, or store them away in the Polly trinket box, below.

[All images, Mimosa Street]

There are many more beautiful, interesting products online so please do click through to Mimosa Street to see more and to take advantage of the exclusive 15% discount for Find the Details readers: add code DETAILS15 (no minimum spend, code valid until 8 May 2014). I can’t wait. Happy shopping! Jx

For lovers of craft, indigo and textiles: an exhibition

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If these words inspire you: textiles, crafts, traditional and inherited skills, and totally dreamy indigo blues patched over and over: then don’t miss the Boro: Threads of Life exhibition at the East Wing Galleries of Somerset House this April.

Focusing on the ancient Japanese textile tradition of Boro, which means ‘rags’ in English, the textile exhibits on display include bedcovers and clothes made by the poor, rural population of Japan who pieced and patched old pieces of discarded clothing onto and into new items, with fisherman’s jackets morphing into futon covers and on and on, as the pieces were passed down through families and generations.

With their beautiful colours, these humble works of art prompt the viewers to consider the act of ‘mending’: could it be considered an old-fashioned skill? Or, as we continue to embrace traditional crafts at home; and are more aware of the damage caused by excess waste (and/or simply feel the pinch financially) is it becoming more current to embrace repairs, so we can keep our possessions for longer?

Boro: Threads of Life, 2-26 April, free admission, Somerset House.

Located just off The Strand, Somerset House has to be one of the most hard-working arts and cultural venues in London; changing with the seasons, you’ll discover it hosting al fresco music gigs and giant cinema screens; a multitude of fountains; the latests frocks (it’s home to London Fashion Week) or a beautiful ice rink….

From this….

To this….:

[images, Somerset House]

The line up of their Summer Series of gigs (10-20 July) has just been announced: tickets go on sale this Friday 21 March, with the cinema screenings to follow later in the summer. To to learn more about the architecture, join their free guided tours (every Thursday and Saturday), taking in the Tudor and Georgian history to the modern-day, including the new Miles Stair created by Eva Jiricna. Enjoy! Jx

Just in: Arkiv wallpapers by Sandberg

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Combining both the best of both old and new design processes, Swedish wallpaper design house Sandberg has drawn on a wealth of archive material – both their own and sourced from Sweden’s rich architectural and design history – to create their first digital wallpaper collection.

Launching this spring, Arkiv includes fifteen different highly detailed patterns: pictorial designs of trees and chairs; buildings (in particular the Nordic Museum) and architectural elements such as doors; as well as maps, Japanese woodblock prints (highly popular in 19th Century Sweden), and digitally reproduced images of popular Sandberg designs and sketches:

From the top: Justus, Gunnars Stolar, and Nordiska Museet from Chaper One: Architecture, Arkiv collection, Sandberg

From the top: Georg, Tang and Botanica from Chapter Four, Sandberg Archive, from the Arkiv collection by Sandberg

Top: Hiroshiges Regnskyar and below, Eishi, from Chapter Three: Japanese Woodblock prints, from the Arkiv Collection by Sandberg

My favourites are these two, with their very different but equally calming tree motifs:

Top: Carlsbergs Trad, and below: Eden, both from the Arkiv Collection by Sandberg

[All images, Sandberg]

The Arkiv collection launches this spring; visit Sandberg for detailed global stockists information.

Creating art with Waterlogue: beware, it’s addictive

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I’ve been having such fun with the Waterlogue app: I’m no professional photographer, relying on my trusty iphone 4 to capture my memories, but even the most basic images can look beautiful when given the Waterlogue treatment. Here’s the Victorian pier at Eastbourne in East Sussex, last weekend:

… the beautiful Canadian Lake of the Woods in Northwestern Ontario, which we didn’t want to leave last summer….

And the boys making a bonfire this Saturday night:

Ordinary objects (and cats with ambitions to become models) turn into decorative still lives….

The finished files are large enough to be reproduced as hard images for display and framing, making them a clever and unique way to create personal artwork.

Find Waterlogue in the App store, and do share your images with me via Pinterest, I’d love to see them. Jx

Wish List: Grey china

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For this Friday’s wish list I’m coveting tableware and decorative china in soft shades of grey: possibly to match the endless skies as here in the UK we limp, damply and soggily, into the middle of February – and possibly also because we can’t get enough of this versatile shade in our homes right now. These are my favourites:

Above: French stoneware bottles, from Baileys, approximately 30cms tall: fantastic in a group as shown… and below, mini tapas bowls and oval platters, from Pale & Interesting:

Below, this simple grey china with its ripple pattern and chunky, generous shapes, is part of the SS14 collection at Sainsbury’s:

A perfect salad bowl at Rigby & Mac, below:

…alongside more patterned, decorative grey accessories: this floral tableware is made from hand-painted metal, also in store and online at Rigby & Mac:

And I love these diminutive dipped terracotta bowls; made in India as part of a fair trade initiative, you’ll find them amongst other delightful products, including a similar mug and jug, at Decorator’s Notebook:

Click through the images and links to take you to that product’s retailer… happy shopping! Jx

Revealed: Designs of the Year 2014: Design Museum / Makoko Floating School

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Today The Design Museum announced their nominations for the Design of the Year 2014 and one of the most innovative architecture designs has to be the Makoko Floating School, which is located in a lagoon in the heart of the city of Lagos, Nigeria. Designed by architecture / design practice NLE in collaboration with Makoko Waterfront Community (the area is described as being similar in functionality, if not looks, to Venice), the floating structure takes into account the community’s needs (for a school and social space) and the physical demands of their environment: increasing tropical rainfall and an increasingly urbanised population.

Lead by architect Kunle Adeyemi, this prototype building is sustainable, ecological and alternative: two classrooms above and a play area below ensure the available space is used thoughtfully:

[images courtesy of NLE, Iwan Baan]

Designs of the Year brings together 76 cutting edge, innovative and talented creations, with the best in world-wide architecture, fashion, product and digital design and more on show at the exhibition, which opens on 26 March (until 25 August) at the Design Museum on Shad Thames, London SE1. Head to the show and whilst there, vote for your favourite design; but if you can’t make it in person, the online Social Vote platform gives you a chance to have your say. On Twitter, follow #designsoftheyear and @designmuseum for current conversations.

Wish List: Marimekko Weather Diary china

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For this Friday’s wish list I’m dreaming of Marimekko’s Oiva Saapaivakirja (Weather Diary) china. Created as part of their Autumn 2013 collection, the Marimekko design team were influenced by autumnal weather patterns. The resulting china patterns fuse intense colour mixes on to grey ceramic backgrounds, conjuring up the atmosphere outdoors during these stormy, chilly, sometimes sun-filled yet low-lit winter months. The blue and yellow/grey/blue designs are my favourites:

Marimekko are justifiably proud of their design archive, and many classic designs are either still in production or used to inform new launches. This year they are happily celebrating the 50th anniversary of Unikko, Maija Isola’s instantly recognisable, simple and iconic floral pattern created in 1964. Join the celebrations with the fabric by the metre and accessories in this striking colourway:

[All images, Skandium]

These and more Marimekko products are available in the UK online and in store at Skandium; and from February at the Republic of Fritz Hansen store in London, W1.

Make 2014 a year of timeless colour: beautiful paints from Belgium

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New year: which means new must-have decorating colours for 2014 from those in the know: for Pantone, it’s a slightly stomach-turning shade of purple/pink they’ve named Radiant Orchid (for me, it’s not a shade that suits the cold light in northern hemisphere homes – though down in New Mexico, Marie from Breaking Bad would’ve been mad for it). For Dulux, 2014’s colour is a much more livable-with shade of Teal, whilst Farrow & Ball suggest a rather lovely deep blue balanced by shades of stone, warm grey and apple green.

If you’re in the mood for some more paint colours that will appeal for far longer than 2014, do take a look at the inspirational Emery & Cie shades, which are rich, timeless and striking:

[all images and paint shades, Emery & Cie]

Based in Belgian, Emery & Cie produce their ultra-matt acrylic emulsion and gloss paints in these atmospheric, strong shades, all designed to make your walls sing. Take your pick from their handpainted paint charts:

….which and come either as the pure colour (two above), or as a shade chart depicting each pure colour diluted with a specific quantity of white (two below):

Beautiful: the perfect choice for classic paint colours. Visit Emery & Cie for more info and to discover the rest of their collection (exquisite wallpapers, tiles, ironmongery, furniture, lighting………all for the wish list!). Enjoy! Jx

Sneak peak: John Lewis Spring/Summer 2014

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Take a break from silver, glitter and sparkles this pre-Christmas week and mellow out with a sneak look at the beautiful press shots from John Lewis’s spring summer collection for 2014. There are two key trends; Expressions, which combines materials (wood, upholstery fabrics, wallpapers) in warm, detailed and textured neutral shades with others (glass, metallics, soft furnishings) chosen in flashes of contrasting brights: orange-hued copper (copper is definitely having its moment), citrus yellow; warm rose; rich purples and blues:

The Brushstrokes wallpaper is a particular favourite; new for this season; shown here in Smoke colourway, the pattern is also available as an upholstery/drape fabric. The painterly Expressions framed prints are part of the new range; styled here alongside Content by Conran side tables (they come as a nest of three for £199), and a Heming sofa in Porto Grey.

Why Wood circular table, £399; dining chairs, £125 each

Accessories include: Rose gold hurricane lamp, £12; pink hydrangea stems £30 for 3; purple and blue tall glass vase, £35; copper bowl, £5, all John Lewis

Also new in store this spring is the Croft collection: think upmarket utilitarian; traditional crafts; nostalgia (but without any twee-ness…) in a 21st-century-pleasing palette of soft neutrals, blues and greys:

Tiny check stripe cushions £20 each; basket weave throw, £70; reversible cashmere throw, £110; natural ribbed knit throw, £80; all from the Croft collection by John Lewis

Perth armchair, £900; Sparrows cushion, £28; cream bottle vase, £35; Charm Lily rug, £125, all John Lewis

Croft tableware: jug, £22; tumblers, £4.50 each; dinner plates, £10 each, ceramic ivory cutlery, from £3.50 a piece, all John Lewis

And there are plenty of products to make your utility area scrub up nicely: whitewash wooden crate, £35; dustpan and brush set, £29; platters, from £15; storage jars, from £6; dolly pegs, glass brushes, glass cloths and jug, all from John Lewis

Natural Joanie butterfly double duvet cover, £80; tiny check striped cushions, £20; light grey basket weave throw, £70, all John Lewis.

All photographs, John Lewis

The products will be in store in the New Year; till then Happy Holidays, Jx

Find the details

for covetable, decorative product designs and interiors news

Wish list: Japanese ceramics in pastel shades

Discover beautiful fair trade gifts and more; plus an exclusive discount for Find the Details readers…

For lovers of craft, indigo and textiles: an exhibition

Just in: Arkiv wallpapers by Sandberg

Creating art with Waterlogue: beware, it’s addictive

Wish List: Grey china

Revealed: Designs of the Year 2014: Design Museum / Makoko Floating School

Wish List: Marimekko Weather Diary china

Make 2014 a year of timeless colour: beautiful paints from Belgium

Sneak peak: John Lewis Spring/Summer 2014

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