This weekend I found these geat mugs at IKEA. A set of two mugs (MARÄNG) comes with wooden coasters and spoons and costs €5.95/$7.99. Isn’t that a great steal?!
I love the work of Jenny Bowers. This talented illustrator from the UK studied Illustration with Animation at Manchester Metropolitan University and then completed her MA in Animation at the Royal College of Art in 1999. Since graduating Jenny has been working as a freelance illustrator and animator. She has also worked as an art for film and television. Jenny illustrates for newspapers, magazines, for fashion and design clients and book publishers. Her clients include big names as Penguin, The Guardian, BBC, The Saturday Telegraph and The Sunday Times.
Jenny’s work is mainly craft based and reflects her love of drawing, cutting and sticking. Photographs, old textile designs and her collection of Life magazines are being used as source material for her work. Some of her illustrations are available as screenprints. That gorgeous ‘Green Leaf’ print (top left) is for example available at Soma Gallery. You can see and buy more of Jenny’s designs at Soma.
Victoria’s post at sfgirlbybay about her organizing her books by spine color brought a smile to my face. Do you think she is a superfreak? I don’t! I can totally relate to this. I can’t stand clutter and therefore I like to arrange things by color and for aesthetic reasons. So to me it is perfectly normal to arrange books by color. If you think we are superfreaks, then look at this the photo below that I took at a café in Copenhagen, Denmark, called The Laundromat. You probably have to admit that these color organised books do look gorgeous…..
By the way, this café is a must visit when you are in Copenhagen. It serves excellent cappuccinos and a very delicious smorgasbord. In this cafe in hip Nørrebro you can also do your laundry (hence its name) and all second-hand books are for sale.
In my opinion the Swan Chair is one of the most beautiful chairs ever designed. Arne Jacobsen, one of the most influential 20th century architects and designers, created this iconic chair in 1957 for the lobby and reception areas at the Royal Hotel in Copenhagen. Both his buildings and products, like his Swan and Egg Chairs, combine modernist ideals with a Nordic love of naturalism.
The Swan chair, with its gorgeous organic shape, is still very popular today and is now also available in modern upholstery designed by Tord Boontje for Kvadrat.
Last week Kelly Hoppen’s London apartment was featured here on the style files. In her stylish home, Kelly has combined neutral shades with splashes of yellow. If you would like to have some uplifting yellow in your place, please find here some ideas for yellow accessories, furniture and wallpaper. Don’t go overboard but use the color as an accent throughout your house.
First row: Terrace wallpaper by Twenty2 , graphic Imperial Trellis wallpaper by Kelly Wearstler
Second row: Arne Jacobsen’s Egg Chair upholstered with fabric by Japanese designer Minagawa, Arne Jacobsen’s Series 7 chair in Sunny Yellow
Third row: Vintage Lemonade set designed by Sarvis from Finland available on Ebay, Orla Kiely mug with retro pattern
Fourth row: lemon pillow from Jonathan Adler.
Some more inspirational images of interiors with splashes of yellow:
Yoyo Ceramics was set up in 2003 by Helen Johannessen who studied ceramics at Middlesex University and Oslo School of Art, Norway. Helen is a trained ceramist with particular expertise in modelling and mould making. For Yo Yo she designs beautiful kitchen ware in bold colours and strong forms that will brighten up any home.
Her collection Is that plastic? is recognized as one of the most unique kitchenware lines available today. This line takes a household classic of utility – the plastic food storage container – and reimagines it in earthenware. Time Out magazine has described ‘Is that plastic?’ as the height of ‘ironic cool’ and ‘genuinely witty’. Visit Yo Yo Ceramics’ website to see the complete collection and to buy the products online.
Although we have seen a lot of laser-cut patterns in the past year, I would like to share this beauty from Vibieffe with you. Roses is an armchair made of metal and laser cut with a pantograph and is available in varnished or gold leaf versions. Check out their website for more information and to find a retailer near you.
I see a lot of retro patterns these days. As a lover of Mid-Century Modern furniture, glass and pottery I don’t mind this trend! I love for instance these Fire-King mugs. They will look good in any kitchen!
For those who do not know Fire-King: a Fire-King mug is a milk glass, jadeite, azurite or vitrock coffee mug or sometimes cup, which was made by American company Anchor Hocking Glass Corporation (Anchor Hocking) between about 1940 through about 1979. Collectors can find these mugs for sale on ebay. There are also a lot of Japanese websites that offer the mugs as the Japense love Fire-King (vintage in general is hot at the moment in Japan). Click here to see some more mugs. For more background information on Fire-King go to this website.
With his design TUTI, Dominik Wimber has put traditionally nomadic features in the context of our present lifestyle, intending to bring life back to the ground.
The function of TUTI is multipurpose. It is not a carpet, nor a chair. You can create you own TUTI as the flexibility of the material makes every shape possible, stimulating the users to create a piece of furniture that truly reflects their personality. Looking at these pictures I wouldn’t mind having at TUTI in my home, would you?
Lara de Greef is a young designer from Eindhoven, The Netherlands. Since graduating from the prestigious Design Academy in 2004, she has worked on various projects. 1+1=3 is a series of three ceramic vases that are build up out of second-hand products. By making different combinations of these objects, new form arise. For here tablecloth collection Lara has combined paper with different decorating techniques. My favourite design is this beautiful embroidered textile called Little Red Riding Hood. Visit Lara’s website for more information and to see all her designs.
