WHAT TO BUY NOW - Quelle surprise FRENCH CONNECTION

High street retail homeware lines are becoming more and more popular, but somehow this passed unnoticed for long time... and I believe it is exceptionally good: French Connection!

Have a look at some pieces below. You can find it online or in store here:

- 140-144 KINGS ROAD, LONDON SW3 4UU
- 396 OXFORD STREET, LONDON W1C 1JX

RATTAN DINING CHAIR, £195.00

FIGHT THE POST-VACATION BLUE: Art and Design Event Calendar

Dear friends: summer is over. Luckily for Londoners, we can now easily turn our mind to the design and art world (and talks, and concerts) as indoor activities. Since I'm organizing my calendar, I thought it might be nice to share it with you. This is what I will attend:

8-9 September

LONDON DESIGN BIENNALE

WHAT TO BUY NOW - GUESS THE BRAND

I was looking for some atypical and interesting place mats for my table (my beloved ones from HAY got machine washed by my no-more-so-beloved husband and got transformed into six very hairy wool clouds) and I bumped into this noticeable items.

Guess who is the seller (I believe the pictures sell the products very well). Answer and prices at the bottom.

DESIGN SHOP - ORIENT 499 BEIRUT

I've visited Orient 499 during my first trip to Beirut in 2010 and I believe it's still one of the most astonishing shops I've ever entered (in the most extraordinary city I've ever visited). I am so enthusiastic that I've placed it within the top 5 things to see on my personal Beirut Guide for traveler friends... and actually Ilaria and Andrea loved it, hadn't you guys? :)

Orient 499 is a boutique featuring exclusive, original handicrafts and designer's creations. The founders are Middle-Eastern art lovers with an amazing taste for tradition and beyond belief sense for modernity.