Displaying posts labeled "Sponsored"

We all know and love the iconic magazine Wallpaper*, the ultimate authority on everything design and architecture, fashion, travel and art. Imagine if Wallpaper* opened an online store with the hottest, most covetable design pieces from around the world? OMG! Well you don’t have to imagine anymore. Get yourself over to WallpaperSTORE* pronto. It’s the world’s first curated design store with the best in living, tabletop, workspace, lifestyle and Handmade. As Wallpaper* says it’s “our very own creative market place for design, WallpaperSTORE* stocks, wraps and dispatches our pick of the finely formed and forward thinking from around the world.” AND there is worldwide shipping and easy payment options.

With designers like Aldo Bakker, Ettore Sottsass, Jasper Morrison and Tom Dixon to iconic brands like Georg Jensen, Bitossi Ceramiche, Vitra, Established & Sons and Gucci you may just find yourself with a wish list as long as your arm. I know I do. Here are just some of my favourites.

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I’m crushing on anything by Marta Sala Éditions. The lighting, the furniture, the objects are a marriage of functionality and intelligent design. Beautiful, top quality, crafted with care and attention to detail.

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Of course I had to save a few pieces from Dante -Goods and Bads to my wish list. Contemporary and elegant with an industrial aesthetic. I’m besotted with the ‘Minima Moralia’ room divider.

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Just a few more because I can’t stop. I love good design and WallpaperSTORE* is a treasure trove of the very best pieces from those at the forefront of modern design. Enough of my favourites. It’s time for you to click on over and lose yourself in the hundreds of designers and brands and the thousands of beautiful things for you and your home. Tell me what is on your must have list.

P.S. You can get 15% off purchases with the coupon code WDTI15

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Inspired by WallpaperSTORE*

Trying to find and create more space in any home can be tricky. Even more so if you live in an apartment and have little to play with in the first place.

Fortunately the experts at MADE.com have produced a clever guide to getting the most out of your space and bending the rules so that even if you can’t create more space – it will look like you have!

Every room is different so they have come up with some unique tweaks that will work best in these specific places:

Living Spaces

When it comes to increasing space, plants are an afterthought if even considered at all. Hold on a second – they not only bring oxygen into a room and add colour, they can create depth and dimension depending on the décor and design.

Nobody expects plants to adorn a small living space so if plants are present, it can’t be a small space can it?

A quick and easy solution if you are a renter and can’t make or afford any structural or colour changes to your environment.

Outdoor and Balconies

Anybody can add decorative touches like lighting and flowers but what about adapting to the available space?

A simple idea is to use lower furniture, especially on a balcony. Rustic, rattan chairs or loungers or a bistro set of hardy resilient but charming chairs and tables are the perfect place to see the sun go down in those long summer evenings.

Bedrooms

There is a lot of space to be had in bedrooms if you know where to look. Specifically using the space that is usually hanging around above the bed!

By raising the bed, you suddenly free up areas that can be used to store clothes, shoes, toys, consoles etc. If you can raise the bed high enough you could even create enough room for desk space and a mini-office.

Offices and Hallways

Talking of offices, while you may not be able to replicate an open-plan design, you can maximise your own space to have a functional modern workspace within your home.

Utilising existing areas that would appear to be useless space at first glance is a great idea; what might be too small for a printer or router could be ideal for stationary or books. Some basic joinery and carpentry et voila – a quirky shelf space any hipster would be proud to put their books in – if they still read them.

Bathrooms

Traditionally the smallest room of any property, sometimes space cannot be increased so other solutions must be found from necessity.

Changing the colour and materials within a bathroom can create a light and airy feel and the illusion of a greater area. Alternatively by utilising luxury materials such as polished marble a bathroom will attain a spa or hotel quality that means space is readily sacrificed for the quality of the ambience experienced.

Kitchen and Dining Areas

A smaller kitchen or combined food preparation and eating area can be a challenge to keep clear and clutter free so the ingenuity of the spacial engineers at MADE.com really stands out.

Cutting surfaces, drawers and tables can foldout and be stored snugly when not in use so any aspiring chef can have all their materials and surfaces within easy reach when they need them, and they can literally disappear when they don’t.

Also taking a pragmatic view to storage in a kitchen can yield amazing results. Why use up floor space with a wine rack when one can be suspended from the ceiling with a minimum of fuss, also creating a Mediterranean style focus?

You’ll be toasting your increased dining area in no time!

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This post was contributed by a guest writer.

It has been a while since I shared anything happening around my house but unfortunately there hasn’t been much going on because I LOVE SUMMER and there is no way I’m going to spend what little free time I have not lounging poolside. I have insisted that since my husband and I don’t take any vacations over the summer that we do something fun each weekend and lately that has been visiting some flea markets. As a result I have some photos of my finds from those jaunts and a few other purchases I have made lately (nothing major though as I also need to sell off some furniture to make room). I also received some new books that I wanted to share.
Let’s start with some of the new bits and bobs I have acquired. First, up is a photo of a spot in my living room where I now showcase some pieces from my main squeeze and the best collector of vintage fabulousness there is, Rhett Baruch.

The purple steel cube sculpture and brass vase on the mantle are from Rhett. Now 2 of the coolest things I own. Also new is the curved glass vase on the floor I picked up last weekend at the McHaffie Flea Market. The perfect lead-in to a photo of all my scores from that trip:

As much as I try, I can’t seem to quit collecting West German pottery so there are 3 new pieces of that, along with some glass, some studio pottery and a couple of animals to bring some of the wild in. 🙂 The glass and WGP is from Sherry and Gordon’s awesome booth Off the Wall Retro.
Another recent trip was to Montreal to check out the St-Michel flea market. I always score there but no furniture though which was a bummer. I did however come home with this:

I’ll show you where I put most of these. (The light is yet to be installed in my media room. I have a little painting project for in there too so I’ll share that once it’s completed).

That adorable little black glass lamp is lighting up my dining room sideboard. (Most of the items on there with it are from Vanier Moderns)

That 80’s funky pedestal is now a plant stand in my dining room.

The solid marble (!!!) pedestal is in my foyer topped with my gorgeous new West German vase (with smaller vase on the tulip repro table, and a Chinese plant pot I found at Value Village for $3.99).

Not sure what to do with this pretty white pot so I stuck it by my plant table so the next time I buy a big plant I’ll remember to plant it in that. 🙂

Two new pieces of art fit perfectly on my neutral toned gallery wall in the bedroom. Top right is the one I picked up in Montreal and the woman’s head up at the top is brass and wood on burlap – LOVE – from Off the Wall Retro.

I almost didn’t buy her but someone left a DM on my Instagram story about her and I realized what an idiot I was so I ran back and snapped her up. (She’s an original so they priced her at a whopping $30). I hung her on this wall so I can see her every time I walk down the hall to the main bathroom.

Oh – and I repainted my kitchen! (In case you missed this in one of my pets on furniture series) It was a dark blue before and I frankly am not a big fan of blue. I used up some of the leftover paint from my dining room makeover – Farrow & Ball’s Picture Gallery Red. Get this – I hate red more than blue! This red though is out of this world. I absolutely adore it. Such a warm and cozy colour. Now I just need to get some new cabinets and a decent stove and I’m all set! 😉

Ok now on to the new books. Tuttle Publishing sells the cutest little books about gardening that I absolutely love. These 2 make wonderful additions to my growing collection. The first is Miniature Japanese Gardens that shows you how to create simple Japanese-style container gardens using inexpensive plants and materials that are available everywhere. Diagrams demonstrate how to organize the plants, and step-by-step instructions on how to build and care for your mini gardens. (By Kenji Kobayashi)

They also sent over the book Stylish Succulents. I adore succulents so I was stoked to add this to my pile of gardening books. This one could have been called “planting for dummies” because it describes each step of making some of the most beautiful succulent arrangements I have ever seen. It even shows you how to make a succulent wreath! So freaking cool!!! This one is by garden and green interior designers Yoshinobu and Tomomi Kondo, collectively known as TOKIIRO.

Ask me what my favourite style of sofa is and the first thing that always pops into my head is CHESTERFIELD! I know I’ll never find a vintage one around these parts so buying new is the only way I have a chance of getting my hands on one, and now I have a great source for this classic sofa style. British furniture and interiors company Timothy Oulton is known for its creative collections including distinctive handcrafted leather furniture, unique lighting and home accessories. Exuding the perfect balance of tradition and modernity, each piece is pervaded by a passion for traditional handcraftsmanship and a fearless quest for innovation. They take what is typically thought of as traditional and make it relevant for today. “Be relevant or be dead” – Tim Oulton 🙂

Let me give you a little taste of what the Timothy Outlon brand has to offer in the realm of chesterfield sofas:

These give me heart palpitations. That tufting! The worn, vintage look of the leather. That curved arm. So hot!!!

DAMN it is so sexy in black! I should note they have an incredibly broad range of leathers and fabrics (for those who don’t do leather). I counted 7 black leathers! You’re bound to find your dream shade.

Not only do they have a huge range of materials, but sizes too. You can choose from a 1 seater, 2 seater, 2.5 seater, 3 seater, 4 seater and a footstool. That’s not all. The red leather chesterfield above is the Westminster Feather Sofa that has an added touch of luxury in the form of plump down feather filled cushions. WHOA. If you want something with a bit of femininity, there is the Serpentine Sofa that has a sweet curve at the front. Or if you want something less traditional and more modern, there is the Piccadily Sofa that has narrower arms and the absence of any studs or piping. Looking for something with a glamourous edge?  The Westminster Button Faded & Degraded Sofa comes in 4 vintage rug-like velvets – a modern take on faded grandeur. The variety of options are impressive.

Here are a few more photos of Timothy Oulton’s chesterfields in spaces he has designed and some that demonstrate his love of tufting.

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This post is in collaboration with Timothy Oulton. All opinions are my own.

A’ Design Award & Competition is organized and awarded annually and internationally in a wide range of categories. Every year, projects that focus on innovation, technology, design and creativity are awarded with the A’ Award. While realized projects find opportunities to get published, reach new markets and meet a wide range of buyers for their existing products, the organization also helps the creative minds and startups to meet with the business people to realize their product ideas. Here is a look at 20 past winners…

Spot Multifunctional Sofa by Vinicius Lopes and Gabriela Kuniyoshi

Seehof: a garden architecture Hotel by Noa

Catino Bathroom collection by Emanuele Pangrazi

Banco Kitchen table by LA AGENCIA

Silhouette Collection Vase by Libero Rutilo

Malangen Retreat Family retreat by Snorre Stinessen

Jurong Library- Jinke Branch Library by Yi Chen, Muchen Zhang

Zhao Hua Xi Shi Living Museum by Iapa

Corner 60’s Residence by Yu-Jui Chang

Images of “Knitted” – Lighting Collection by Ariel Zuckerman

Flexibility Residence by PartiDesign Studio

Binhi Multifunctional Bench by Ito Kish

Tribeca Loft Residential Apartment by Andrew Franz Architect PLLC

AS Offices Mixed Use Building by AS Arquitectura

Weave Curio Shelf Curio Shelf by Jo Zhu – Suyab Design

Pool House Residential by Priyanka Khanna and Rudraksh Charan

Shallows Vase by Kazunaga Sakashita

Mantova New Life with Secret Garden Residential private house by Davide Cerini

Méo Shelf by Desrochers Olivier

Gravity Swing sofa by Maria Neus Alos

Some details not to be missed: The competition is now open for entries for 2018/2019! Details can be found here. Registration information is available here. At the end of the competition we’ll be featuring some of our favourite winners so stay tuned for that!

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This post is in collaboration with A’ Design Award & Competition