I came across the website of the Tripod Agency recently and was instantly mesmerized. It’s a photo agency based in Paris that documents the work of designers and architects through the photography of Xavier Bejot and Franck Tomps. Such fabulously eclectic spaces captured so beautifully.

I was excited to come across the portfolio of John Loecke, an amazingly talented interior designer, and as it turns out Jo blogged about his work quite some time ago. But there is sooooo much more to see so here’s another peek into the “frisky, fabulous and fun to be around” world of John Loecke. It’s all about colour, patterns, and more colour. And no beige.

Sorry folks, there will not be a Flickr finds post today. Instead, I thought I’d share with you a major purchase I made about a week ago. A bit of background first…

During the kitchen renovation, I wanted a dining table built because I needed something narrower than an average size table, and it needed to fit 6 people. My boyfriend and I were initially going to build it, but my contractor offered so we took him up on it. The table turned out to be pretty disastrous. The wood of the top ended up warping and splitting, and the pedestal base was completely non-functional for such a long table. In the end, I ended up picking up a couple cheap table legs at Ikea and adding those on, particularly for instances when some of my porkier cats would launch onto it from the countertop. Here is a photo of the table:

I’ve been looking for a table on and off for several months now and have had no luck, up until a couple Fridays ago when I took my boyfriend down to the Byward Market with me on a table hunt. We were in Stacaro, my new favourite store, when Jeff spotted a really cool desk. It was on sale at 40% off (floor model), and had a black steel base and a wood top, the same colour as my cabinets but a few shades darker. It came with a shelf attached to house a desktop computer, and we quickly discovered it could easily unscrew off. It was the perfect width (just shy of 3′) and length. Here is a photo of it from their website:

SOLD! It arrived last Monday and I finally got a chance to try it out with the shelf (decided it was too distracting and hid my Pantons) and find some things for a centrepiece. I love it. I am so happy to have something straight to eat off of, and I am no longer embarassed to have people over for a meal.

There’s a few more photos over at my kitchen blog.

It’s been a long week, and today is a day off for me from the day job, as is every Friday until after Labour Day. And that folks, is my summer holiday. Anyway, I thought I’d share this gorgeous 4 story Georgian home (with summer house out back) in London with you, because I could really use a weekend at a place like this right about now (I’d be quite happy with the little summer house).

San Franciscan Caitlin Moran is an interior designer who “balances a certain timeless grace with an unquestionably modern sensibility”. I love classic shapes mixed with modern colours and patterns. It’s such an eye-catching melange that is so pleasing to the eye. And might I add that she was once employed by design legend Vicente Wolf. Yes, Caitlin Moran has it going on. (Do I ever need that closet in a bad way).