Inspired by MADE London

October 26, 2015

On Thursday evening after work MOH and I headed into town towards Great Portland Street and ONE Marylebone - a Sir John Soane church and also the venue for MADE London, the design and craft fair. I'd been invited to the private view evening ahead of the show's opening the next day. It closes today, so if you didn't get to go along, don't worry I've got lots to share with you - and there's always next year.

While I was waiting for MOH to arrive I amused myself by taking pictures of the venue and London's traffic whizzing by. It wasn't long before he arrived and we made our way across the road and into the show.

There were four floors of amazing makes for us to explore. We - as tradition dictates - started on the ground floor and immediately I saw this intricate plate/bowl by Waka Artisans. The detail was amazing.

As we turned the corner we couldn't help but admire these modern side tables by Forge Creative. Aren't they great?

Already inspired it was time to hit us with some colour. These lampshades, vases and plates by Aline Johnson definitely do that. These vases are a great way to display tulips, the colours too focus your attention on the flowers.

I was quite taken with the glass plate (or dish, or what have you) bottom left in the photo above. As well as the colour way, the thing that really caught my attention was the matt-ness of this piece. So different to its shiny cousins alongside it.

We weren't quite done with colour yet either.

This rainbow display of knitwear by Ollive Zwitserlood was simple but effective and eye catching.

These ceramic picture boxes by Maria Wojdat were also a favourite of mine. I was curious about how these were made. Maria explained that each piece of clay is cut to size, sprayed with colour and fired and then placed in its frame. The combinations of colour ways are endless.

I realised Thursday evening that I have a weakness for ceramics as I stopped at almost each ceramics stand. The simple lines and clean display of these by Justine Allison really appealed to me. Of course, I have no need for them but that doesn't stop me liking them!

These hooks made by John Egan made me smile. Their shape amused me and John explained that he likes to use as much of the tree as possible and these are shaped from branches. There's a clever design feature two as they glide onto a fixing on the wall meaning that they can get close to the wall and look as great as these. The multi-coloured wood (fourth and seventh from the left) was my favourite and I was surprised to learn that it was Yew.

We spent a lot of time talking about the eye catching hooks, but John also produces some fantastic furniture, take this bench for example. It uses the natural shape of the wood and I think John's one of the few people who relishes the aftermath of a storm as that means a supply of new materials to work with.

After making sure we'd seen every stand on the ground floor, we headed downstairs to the Crypt and the two floors of makers in these areas. This bright and cheery bird by Amanda Anderson certainly welcomed us into that space.

We saw lots in this part of the show and spoke to many of the makers and I will share more of what I saw there in future posts soon.

With the stands in the Crypt looked up we headed back upstairs and then up another floor to the mezzanine floor. Immediately it was these pictures by Ann Nazareth that caught my eye. They're made of spun paper, and Ann clearly has a lot of patience...

The sheen on these spoons made by Stuart Jenkins caught my eye, and like many of the makers he encouraged us to touch and pick up his items. They look heavy, but aren't as heavy as you'd expect and the ladle which I tried would definitely add a touch of class to any soup. I left trying to find a way to bring something like this into my life - so far, I've failed but I'm still working on it!

This jumper by Sasha Kagan also caught my eye. I'm a lapsed knitter but something like this could tempt my knitting needles out I'm sure. I liked the design, the colours and the bobble details on the rib. Sasha kindly offered me the opportunity to try it on and I was tempted. There were two things that stopped me though - the temperature on the mezzanine floor, and because I had a black top on and I thought there was a high chance I'd end up with white fluff all over it.

This cardigan too caught my eye. For me it has a touch of art deco about it - what do you think?

The yellow straps of this bag by Rosie Moss caught my eye and I soon made a beeline for it. After a while I spotted the gloved hands and I very nearly left with it. In fact there were so many things I could have left with had I been so inclined. I did make a purchase which you might have seen on my Facebook and Instagram feeds already, but more on that another time.

We also spoke with Rosie about our fascination with hares, something she shares too. And that pink hoppy cushion is a fab example of her work.

We were almost done and the glasses of fizz as we wandered around kept us going, thank you to Tutton and Young for inviting me along. It was an inspiring show with so many makers that were keen to talk about their creations.

The last items that I'm sharing today are these Moth Balls and Bee Bug Balls by Claire Moynihan. They have a museum feel to them, but when you look more closely they're not quite what they seem.

Claire hand embroiders British insects onto felt balls. She processes local alpaca wool to produce the felt balls and stitches three dimensional insects onto their surface. They are just beautiful.

I definitely left feeling inspired and proud to be British and of the talent we have, which was clearly evidenced by the items and the people we met throughout the evening.

Disclaimer: I was given free entry to the MADE London show in return for this review, however all words and opinions are my own.

A review of Vita Interiors George Nelson Style Ball Wall Clock

October 14, 2015

When Vita Interiors got in touch and asked if I'd like to review a 1950s style clock I hoped I'd be able to choose one of the design classics, the ball wall clock by George Nelson. And I could, so I did.

The question was though, what colour to choose as there were eight colour ways to choose from. Although there are three wood finishes available - oak, maple and walnut - I knew I wanted something more colourful.

As you can see from my pictures I chose the multi-coloured version. For me the choice was between this and the all blue version. Other colours included orange, white, and red, so there's something to match whatever decor you have.

I planned to put the clock in our study, where the walls are painted in cream and blue-green. It's a relatively small room, but it's chockfull of books, craft supplies, lots more paper, a rogue chair, our printer and a few remaining cardboard boxes which we really must sort through.

We didn't have a clock in there though and it's an easy place to lose an hour or two. Adding a stylish clock would I thought add to the room and help improve my timekeeping - what a bonus!

Once I'd placed my order I began to wonder if I'd chosen wisely - would it be too bright, too gaudy or should I have gone for the all blue version? But it was ordered so I hoped it would work in our study.

When it arrived I was pleased to see that the colours were colourful but muted and not overly bright. Phew. I think it works really well on the blue-green wall, and in fact much better than an all blue version would have.

The photo below is my favourite shot as it shows the depth of the clock's mechanism, the more delicate metal hands and each hour ball clearly. I also like the shadows it casts on the wall.

The clock is easy to hang on the wall on either a single screw or a picture hook. It operates on a single AA battery and I was surprised and pleased that one was included. Now that doesn't happen too often does it? It's light weight too so I'm confident it will stay on the wall.

I'm really pleased with it and I think at £44.50 it's a stylish clock for a reasonable price.

Once the clock was in place, I wondered why I'd been unsure about my colour choice as I suddenly noticed quite a few blues, greens and oranges in the room. It's funny how things work out isn't it?

PICTURE SHOWING A SCENE FROM AN OLD FIVE POUND NOTE

Disclosure: I received this 1950s George Nelson style ball wall clock for the purposes of this review, however all words and opinions are my own.

Styling the seasons: October

October 12, 2015

This month I'm a little earlier with my Styling the Seasons post which Katy at Apartment Apothecary and Charlotte at Lotts and Lots run. The idea is that you style an area to reflect what that month means to you. Like last month, this month was relatively easy for me, as this month it's all about returning to work.

So what better thing to style than a desk. Yes exactly.

This desk is actually a side table and is on my landing rather thank in our study, the light levels are much better there and it's a part of our house we don't get to use that much, so it's nice to dress it up for this.

So, on my desk I have the laptop, a notebook and pen all obvious choices. There's also a mug for my tea and a soup caddy for my lunches.

One of my previous work friends used to like having "Desk flowers" and while I can't manage that I do have a plant - a long life one at that.

There's an apple because I should eat more fruit, and because we're still eating our way through our allotment apples. And some simple wooden cats, because everyone needs to feel like they belong and because I used to lay claim to being almost a crazy cat lady.

My car key is there too - and that's significant, as for the first time in my working life I'll be driving to work. Previously I've hopped on the train into London along with everyone else. But not for this role, I'll be heading off by car and no doubt some days into traffic.

So what does October mean to you?