a weekend at Ijm

Busy times again! I haven't even posted all my Paris-inspirations yet, but now that's all blown away by the things that I saw this weekend. On friday InsideDesign opened, a three day-design fair organised by (the Dutch version of ) Elle (Decor). Frank Visser, color king and creative brain of IJm, always partakes in this fair and shows his magic in his studio. The good news is that they have developed their own brand of paints: IJm Colourspots. Finally! It's not in the stores yet, byt the story behind is is beautiful, very logical and very Frank. Send an email to paint@ijmcolour.com if you want to know more about it.

Also check wongema.nl, a story behind a story.

an office away from the office

Working from the home can be nice (for instance, if your own coffee and sandwiches taste best), but also a bit lonely and not so time effective if you are as easily distracted as I am. I was always thinking of maybe setting up a place where all free lancers can meet and work, with nice coffee and food. The Cool Hunter, the website for the cool, collected and amazing projects, showed a place that has set the perfect example:  Urban Station in Buenos Aires. A big office space, beautifully decorated, where you can work for a day, plan meetings or meet with fellow free lancers if you're doing a project together.  Now it only has to open an office in Amsterdam. Or maybe I should move to Buenos Aires...

that English feel

Although some of these images mightn't even be taken in Great Britain, photographer Debi Treloar has put the typical English feel in it that I love so much. A touch of romance, nobility and old, sometimes faded, glory. I've had the pleasure to meet her a few weeks ago, and she is very kind and gentle, and very very focused. Inspiring!

Sweet Paul...

... thank you for softening the blow from the fact that is autumn again! I don't care, as long as I get to make this lovely food, or a funky pumpkin and these beautiful decorations for Haloween, or just get to look at the beautiful images and styling. I read first about Sweet Paul, a fantastic online magazine on Bloesem, a blog that I follow with great pleasure. Thanks for the tip!

Maison & Objet for children

At the fair Maison & Objet I also found some wonderful companies to realise the decorating plan that I made for a childrens' room for a 2,5 year old boy. As you can see on my mood board, I chose lot of different shades of blue, with a little bit of black for a cheecky touch. At Mimi Lou I found the best wall stickers, like a collection of cool old timers or moon walkers, Donna Wilson had beautiful blankets and pillows for a softer and dreamy feel, and at Fred the Dog I saw funny duvet covers and was bags, with dinosaurs, robots or cranes.

news from Maison & Objet: escapism or optivism?

Against a lot of beautiful and tender designs in muted colors, ecofriendly fabrics, and natural materials, there were a lot of cheerfull, over the top and sometimes almost hysterical (but always cheerfull) stands.

With wild designs, all the colors that you can think in one design. And lots and lots of accessories crammed in one room, that remind you of holidays far, far away (and a long time ago) or fairy tales and magical realistic novels. You can call it escapism, to get away from the sometimes grey and harsh reality, but I call it optivism and the celebration of the imagination (running wild!).

pictures show the designer of the bags from Trinity Knot, presse papiers and postcards from Astier Villages, life sized animals made of vintages tapestry and the furniture collections designed by Jean Paul Gaultier for Roche Bobois.

news from Maison & Objet: eco - deco - grey

It is good to see that so many designers try to be as eco friendly in their designs as possible. And I'm happy to see that eco has long left behind her gritty, dusty feel. You can even say that eco has become a style of it's own. And that designers are inspired by it's authentic, pure, unbleached look. With colors like the soft greys of pure cotton and linen, maybe sometimes colored with herbal and mineral colorings, accessories made of pure clay and stone, combined with black and white. Some add a feminine, more decorative touch with lace or padding and even sequins. It is soft and tender, and easy on the eye, but still interesting, exciting look.

pictures show work from Poterie des Guimards, pillows by Margarete Häusler, pillows by Nicolette Brunklaus, curtains by Beatrice Laval and a chair upholstered with linen from Leitner.

pinterest

That's why it takes so long to work out my stories about Maison & Objet. Something new and exciting always comes along to get my totally distracted. I recently discovered Pinterest, a social catalog to which 'people with great taste' can assign and pin things they love. If you don't fall in that category (or you don't have time to pin things) you can browse through other peoples pinboards. Perfect for new inspiration and ideas. Here's some samples, one made by Ms Sheperd, and one called Things I love. I love them too!

my holiday

As promised, I will be giving my impressions of the Maison Et Objet, you can read them soon! But first, let me tell you about my holidays, and the inspiration that I picked up there.

Our 'base camp' was at a beautiful gîte in the middle of Brittany, near Guingamp. The gîte is in an old barn that is beautifully restored by the owner. (Who happens to be my sister, which doubles the fun). Her website and her blog are in Dutch but she speaks fluently English and French. It is a great place to stay, to have a rest or discover the rest of Brittany, like St Malo (my favourite area in Brittany) or Dinan.

 You can rent the gîte or put up a tent (or a caravan) on the camp site under a pear tree. Lola, the donkey and her two goat friends will keep you entertained all day.

 In Dinan I found the best shop to spend a rainy afternoon, which sometimes can happen in Brittany. Fleur de Lin et Bouton d'Or is filled to the roof with ribbons, lace, antique fabrics, old buttons and colourful yarns. The perfect spot for some new colourfull inspiration.

I'm back!

Sorry to have kept you waiting for new posts, I was on a long, lovely holiday with my family. I'm working on new posts so I can show you were I was, what I have been working on, and next week I'll be going to Paris for Maison et Objet again. So there's a lot to tell.

More later!

Stephanie was here

Phew, I've been busy! But working 'behind the scenes', like trying to get some building permits (boring) (and complicated), shopping with and for clients (very nice!, but I already wrote about the shops I wanted to bring them to), working with the carpenter who's making some nice benches for a garden and a basement, watching paint dry and making some new paint samples. Nothing is finished yet, so there's nothing to show yet.

So it was time to reload my battery, as they say. And I chose the perfect spot to do that: B&B In de Aap, a beautiful Bed&Breakfast in a little village near the coast in the North of Holland.

Even if you don't go for the breazy seaside style, there's plenty of decorating ideas that work for any style. I like the wooden floors that are glued to the floor. You have the lovely feel of wood on your bare feet, without creaking that can wake you up in the middle of the night. And not the cracks where most of the dust and crumbs go when you're not watching. I also love the egg shell-paint, that gives the wood a nice gloss.

The walls have wall heating, which prevents the dust from flying around. And I like it better than floor heating because that always gives me the feeling that I have a fever. The chalky paint on the walls and the ceilings are perfect for walls that aren't completely straight, and it gives a nice nonchalant feel to any room. It can also work beautifully for a more loft style-house, because of the unfinished, raw look it can create.

The bathroom is a dream, with a nice big bathtub and a beautifully tiled shower and a tadelakt floor, a lime plaster that is traditionally used in Moroccan hammams. Beautiful and nice and soft to your feet.

All in all, a lovely place, (with a lovely big breakfast) that I will visit more often. They also have a nice and cosy family house, nice for a next visit.

Foam with The Girls

Last wednesday evening we joined Penny and Celia to the opening the exhibition of Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin at Foam. The exhibition is called Pretty much Everything, a title well chosen. Because the museum is filled top to bottom with what seems like all the images this creative photography couple ever made. I especially like almost their over-the-top and coulourfull images. And they suit Penny and Celia, another coulourfull, ballsy, funny and frightfullly creative duo who just started their own company, The Girls (tm) just perfectly.

a factory full of furniture

On my hunt for some furniture for a project, I paid Fabrieknl a visit, in the south of the Netherlands. It's been a while since I last went there, but it was worth the trip again. I bought my couches for my own home here.

The old shoe factory is big (5000 square metres) and packed with the most beautiful vintage furniture. Some parts of the factory are set up as tastfully decorated living rooms or dining rooms, so you can get a feel how the furniture will look in your own house. The rest of the factory leaves room for your own imagination.

sleek, fragile and sexy designs

And while we're at it (or at least, I am), I also love the tender, fragile ceramic designs by Laura Pregger  (images below)...

and  the sleek lined, kind of sexy designs by Nika Zupanc. I saw some of her designs a few years ago at Satellite in Milan, the 'corner' for young designers at the big furniture fair Salone del Mobile. Glad to see she's doing so well.