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.

WHAT TO BUY NOW - HEMA

I've met HEMA for the first time in the Marais and I thought it was the genius version of an H&M for housewares. Relatively low pricing of generic house goods, often with a Nordic and minimalist design.

The first HEMA opened in Amsterdam in 1926. Since 2014 HEMA is present in France, Spain and the UK.

They also have other products that I would recommend checking out, like:

Beauty and Make-Up

Travel and Luggage

Canvas Bags

Toiletry Bags

Find here below my selection of what is interesting to buy for your home now at HEMA:

1. Vase in sturdy and glazed ceramic, 22 cm high - £5.00
2. Cheese Knives - £10.00
3. Ball-shaped BBQ - £20.00
4. Salad Spoons - £5.00
5. Woven burlap pouf - £35.00
6. Tea Towels - £2.00
7. Hammok! - £15.00
8. Thermal Jug - £20.00
9. Metal Case - £4.00
10. Flower Pot - £2.00
11. Sea-grass Basket - £3.00
12. 100% Cotton Throw with frills at the ends - £7.00
13. Glass Jar - £6.00

DIY - HANDMADE PURSES

DESIGN EVENT - MADE LONDON

In the next couple of months London will host most of its highest quality contemporary craft and design fairs.

Last week Made London run for 5 days in Canary Wharf showcasing about 100 exhibitors.

What is interesting is that during this event the makers themselves meet the public to discuss inspirations, design processes and future projects, enabling maker/consumer relationships.

The next interesting ones are the London Craft Week (9-13 May) and the Clerckenwell Design Week (22-24 May). www.londoncraftweek.com | www.clerkenwelldesignweek.com

Please see here below what I found interesting at Made London:

Alex McCarthy Ceramics

mccarthyceramics.com

LONDON ART FAIR GUIDE 2018

Art fairs: if you ask me, there is no better way I would like to spend my time. Yeah yeah, art exhibitions too. But at an art fair... all you can see, you can buy! Ain't the definition of paradise? It would if I could afford all that I like!

DESIGN SHOP - BECARA MADRID

I've noticed the brand Becara 1964 at Madrid Barajas Airport few years ago and it stuck to my mind because in a way, that would be kind of my dream business. It has been founded by Begona Zunzunegui when she saw an opportunity in the wholesale business of furniture, decoration and gift in the Spain of the 60's.

She was also a passionate traveler and she sought suppliers in China, India, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand and many other Asian countries. From that moment on, she consolidated the business in a chain of interior shops that offer the craft of the design.

Now, the taste is a bit too baroque for me, but have a look at the selected pieces below and to some of the shops' interiors. It's not cheap. Could you imagine that as a chain of shops?

All images @Becara1964 - www.becara.com

DESIGN EVENT - HOUZZ OF 2018

Houzz is a website about architecture, interior design, decorating and home improvement which is hosting an event live in London right now: Houzz of 2018.

The interior design studio Run for the Hills transformed a stylish five-storey Soho townhouse into a complete flat reflecting all that's current in home design. 

If you love snooping around other people's homes, this is the type of experience you'll have, and you will be able to buy anything you see for a 15% discount on the original price.

The pop-up is open to the public between the 26th January-31st January and is free.

DESIGN SHOP - ARKET

Arket belongs to the H&M Group and defines itself as "a modern-day market". The first Arket store was opened in Regent Street in August 2017 displaying homeware and stationery items along with clothing and accessories for men, women and children.

Prices are not H&M aligned, it feels more like if Uniqlo and COS had a baby, and the baby has also a homeware line.

I've been there three times, and so far I've bought only notebooks and socks, but I'm sure I will soon surrender to that cast-iron pot, the umpteenth thin-glass set, one green vase or an overpriced terracotta flowerpot.

The in-store café has a very distinct northern European style, and good coffee.
Let me know what you think.

THE CHOICE - DOOR WREATH

One of my all-time favourite festive (and not festive) home decoration is the door wreath.

I favour it totally natural, predominantly green, with modest coloured - but still natural - insertions, and very circular and lush.

London offers many occasions to see gorgeous door wreaths this time of the year. If you live here, you don't need to buy them at the Botanique Workshop or at That Flower Shop. You can find very nice wreath at Borrough Market, Whole Food, Liberty, and at every small florist down the road.

But most of all, here’s a link on how to make one: it’s easy and cheap DIY XMAS WREATH.

Enjoy the gallery below (the last one is our very own!)

HOME TOUR - DARIO & MARIAGRAZIA

I have the pleasure of bringing you a stunning home tour, that just so happens to belong to my cousins.

We are all about festive atmosphere right now, but this interiors shows how that’s achievable without oversized and overtly bad design home decorations. Of course, the striking snow-covered panorama adds magic to the soothing ambient.

At the lower floor of a remarkable 16th century country house in Bergamo - Northern Italy, these rooms were once the peasant’s kitchen, the cows stable and the farm porch.

My architects colleagues will recognize the iconic pieces (MDF Italia bookshelf, Desalto table, Renzo Piano Riva Chairs, Artemide and Foscarini lights, etc.), but the truth is that Dario and Mari’s home embodies all that makes Italian homes so special. Historic details, natural material finishes, exposed structural elements, and always – always, gorgeous light. When you apply a few genius design choices, an Italian home can be hardly beat.

Floor: wax treated raw-cut slate
Exterior window frame: power coated iron
Interior doors and windows: walnut wood
Bookshelf: Random, MDF Italia
Table: Iblea, Desalto
Chairs: Renzo Piano Design Chair, Riva 1920
Chest of drawers: Kyoto, Riva 1920
Lights: Logico, Artemide + Bahia, Foscarini
Kitchen: Valcucine (former Demode)

THE CHOICE - IN THE WIND BY NEMO

Many friends fell in love with it. This incredibly contemporary and elegant beauty it's Nemo's best product In The Wind.

CITY GUIDE - AMMAN, JORDAN

Amazing trip to the magic Jordan... the city of Amman gives you plenty of occasions to buy very high quality handicrafts such as painted pottery, candlesticks and handmade textiles.

In my opinion the best places to buy quirky home decor are the Jordan River Foundation (Rainbow Street) for handmade baskets, rugs and traditional Bedouin weaving products, and Wild Jordan, (Othman Ben Affan St. - also very close to Rainbow Street) an eco-tourism spot that sells hand made jewellery, beautifully decorated ostrich eggs and organic goods like olive-oil soap. Special mention for Dare to Dream, also off Rainbow Street.

JORDAN RIVER FOUNDATION

www.jordanriverdesigns.com

INTERIOR INSPIRATION - DECORATED PEBBLES

Black ink patterns on white matte background. Who knows me since I was a compulsory doodler teenage can tell that this was my true obsession. Still is.

And the below is pure ASMR for me. Simple and yet so stylish. You can try too.

Enjoy!

INTERIOR SHOP - VERANDAH LONDON

Walking around residential neighborhoods in London you can bump into little interior shops that sell interesting goods from all over the world. This is the case of VERANDAH in Kensal Green, 116 College Rd, London NW10 5HD.

Here below some pics of the shop's interior and their selected products.

Enjoy!

WHAT TO BUY NOW - H&M HOME

Here's what I've found interesting and convenient at H&M Home few days ago.

Enjoy!

DESIGN EVENT - LONDON DESIGN FESTIVAL 2017

Didn't have the chance to visit the London Design Fair? Here's below some pictures of what I found interesting. For informations on products or designers, you can write to me privately or check the exhibitor link below.

Enjoy!

EXHIBITOR LIST

WHAT TO BUY NOW - WEST ELM DISCOUNTS!