Contemporary Interior Design

• Posted on 28th September 2011 by Nicola Holden

With the London Design Festival over for this year, it is time to turn my attention back to my blog, and share with you all highlights from my bags full of flyers, brochures and business cards that are waiting to be unpacked.

I thought I would start my blogging with Hemma (the Swedish word for ‘home’), a new exhibition showcasing Swedish lifestyle through design, and highlighting the diversity that is the hallmark of Swedish design today. This exhibition was held in the beautiful Residence of the Swedish Ambassador, which I had the good fortune to visit last year as part of the London Festival of Architecture. This 18th century house was the perfect setting for the modern Swedish design on show.

Image – Ewa Kumlin.

Here are some of my highlights:

	A2 designers is a small design studio producing a range of distinctive, contemporary pieces combining the simple lines of modern Scandinavian design with bold colourways and a heavy focus on detail.
	I fell in love with Mateus’ ceramics – the colours, shapes and patterns in these beautiful pieces are the meeting place between modern Swedish design and traditional Portuguese craftsmanship, and will undoubtedly create the perfect setting for the occasion.
	From the island of Gotland comes Silvercurls with its unique silvery-grey, curly sheepskin fleeces. The Gotland Peltsheep start their lives black and get their final coats’ colouring from the limestone rich herbaceous plants that they graze on.
	Tove Thambert produces an interesting range of male jewellery and home accessories, from candlesticks that double as a set of dumbbells, to a gemstone and silver bracelet re-imagined as a masculine watch.
	Thomas Malmberg brings a new concept to lighting with this Regatta pendant. Malmberg draws his inspiration from his interest in architecture, nature, materials and technology.
	I am always drawn to the bold colours and patterns of the textiles, and the unique and timeless designs of the furniture that together form the concept that is Svenskt Tenn. I loved these little Acorn vases that were scattered around the Residence.
	This chair by Markus Johansson, just inside the entrance to the Residence, provided a fitting start to the exhibition. ‘Nest is a piece of nature that moves into a cosy home and breaks up those straight, rigid and traditional forms’, and would be a wonderful statement piece in any setting.
	In this sideboard from Olby Design, I love the mix of the sleek Scandinavian design with the slimness and elegance of a pin up girl in stiletto heels, stressing a belief in a continuing relationship with craft, past, present and future.
	And, last but by no means least, I found this Spectra chair by Matti Klenell for Källemo. The chair is created using 10 pillows in two layers which can be arranged to create different seating positions. This looks like the sort of chair to curl up in with a good book!

All in all, a great show from Swedish Design Goes London, and one which I look forward to next year.

• Posted in Interior Design, London Design Festival, Scandinavian Design | Comments Off

• Posted on 20th September 2011 by Nicola Holden

This weekend was Open House London, an event where hundreds of buildings opened their doors to the public, giving us a unique opportunity to get under the skin of London’s amazing and varied architecture.

The highlight for me this year was being awarded tickets through the ballot to go up the BT Tower.

This iconic building, towering 189 metres into the London skyline, dates back to 1965. The revolving viewing platform is on the 34th floor, 158 meters above ground level, and affords wonderful views across all of London. Luckily for me, despite weather reports to the contrary, the sun was shining whilst I was up the tower.

The Cruciform Building, UCL	Matchbox London
Crescent Overlooking Regents Park	St. Pancras Renaissance Hotel

From the BT Tower I had a leisurely stroll around that area of London:
- Past the contemporary frontage of Roka on Charlotte Street (I love the mix of modern metal and glass with the beautiful grained wood of the front door).

- Down University Street and past the Cruciform Building (which does not obviously show off its cruciform structure from ground level), and the colonnaded frontage of UCL.

- A peek into the amazing Gothic structure that is the recently refurbished St. Pancras Renaissance Hotel (sadly the tours around this building were very over-subscribed).

- To the German Gymnasium where the architects model of a refurbished Kings Cross Station was on view.

All in all, a great day of soaking up some of the rich and complex variety of architecture that London has to show.

“Architecture has recorded the great ideas of the human race. Not only every religious symbol, but every human thought has its page in that vast book.”
Victor Hugo

Images © Nicola Holden.

• Posted in Architecture, Open House London | Comments Off

• Posted on 08th September 2011 by Nicola Holden

I frequently get asked for advice on what colours go with what when putting together an interiors scheme. There are general ‘rules’ that can be applied to colour schemes using a colour wheel, however, some rules are there to be broken!

Where better to turn for inspiration on colour mixing than Mother Nature herself? How often do you look around the natural environment and think ‘Hmmm, nature got it wrong here’? And so today I’ve been having a lot of fun revealing a few of nature’s colour palette secrets.

At first glance this lotus flower seed head is a beautiful calm green, but look more closely and you can see greens tinted with both blues and yellows, as well as a clear tint of burnt sienna, and a smokey black in the seeds.

Contrast that to this predominately white image. Here the palette is a mix of greens, cool bluey-whites and greys tinged with green.

Next up is this beautiful water lily – full of regal purples, from pale through to almost very dark, but lifted by the golds in the middle to produce a split complementary scheme.

This scheme is also based on purples, but with a more violet pigment – a vibrant purple infused with magenta. The brown is more of a brick red, and the yellow a mustardy ochre.

The warm and earthy oranges in this scheme, from a burnt orange, to a dirty yellow ochre and a rosy flesh colour work together to produce this beautiful warm analogous scheme.

This forest mushroom is full of monochromatic wintery browns, but look closely and there is a light raw umber, greenish and dry-looking, and other browns tinted with greens and purple.

And, to leave you on a sunny note, this spectacular flame lily (Gloriosa superba) draws its colours from across half the colour circle, and the result is the vivid, saturated brilliance of a very modern colour palette!

Which is your favourite colour scheme, and why?

“Instead of trying to reproduce exactly what I see before me, I make more arbitrary use of colour to express myself more forcefully … To express the love of two lovers by the marriage of two complementary colours … To express the thought of a brow by the radiance of a light tone against a dark background. To express hope by some star. Someone’s passion by the radiance of the setting sun.”
Vincent van Gogh

Images © Nicola Holden.

• Posted in Colour, Interior Design | 3 Comments

• Posted on 01st September 2011 by Nicola Holden

September is an incredibly busy month in the interior design calendar! It is a month that leaves me feeling incredibly inspired and on fire, and one that I look forward to every year. From the 17th to the 25th of September the London Design Festival sees over 250 design events and activities in different design disciplines. Here are some of the design events not to be missed:

1. Decorex Top of my list is Decorex, the UK’s most prestigious design and interiors exhibition. On show are some of the most innovative, inspirational and high quality products. This year’s theme, Cherished Places, sees a selection of high profile designers explore the creation of sanctuary and our cherished places. When: 25-28 September 2011 Where: Royal Hospital Chelsea, London
2. 100% Design 100% Design is the interiors show that brings you innovation and a wealth of talent all under one roof. With over 400 world-class exhibitors, 100% Design is the ultimate living sourcebook for you to meet designers and manufacturers and see tomorrow’s design superstars today. When: 22-25 September 2011 Where: Earls Court, London
3. Origin Origin’s catch-phrase is ‘Made not Manufactured’, and this says it all! This contemporary craft event is oozing with handmade products ranging from furniture and interior accessories to fashion accessories and jewellery, which you can buy directly from the maker. When: 22-28 September 2011 Where: Old Spittalfields Market, London
4. Open House London Open House London celebrates all that is best about the capital’s buildings, places and neighbourhoods, giving a unique opportunity to get under the skin of London’s amazing architecture, with over 700 buildings of all kinds opening their doors. When: 17-18 September Where: Various venues across London
5. 20/21 British Art Fair This fabulous art fair, which champions Modern British art, presents 56 of the country’s leading dealers featuring the great names of 20th Century British art as well as exceptional contemporary art from both established names and emerging talent. When: 14-18 September Where: Royal College of Art, London

So, roll on the British Design Festival, and for those of you who find yourselves at one or more of these shows, enjoy! I’ll be blogging about them all in due course, so do check back.

• Posted in 100% Design, Architecture, Art, British Art Fair, Decorex, Interior Design, Open House London, Origin | Comments Off