summer 2020 www.decomag.co.uk
Clock on: time for walls
Stainless steel kitchens
Pretty in Pink
Don’t make a passion for pink a guilty secret
Pricey yes, but worth it for your forever kitchen
Sibley Grove design a pub for a cool London Hotel *Lighting *Danish design *Real rattan
Painting the sea: Vertical gardening with Acqua Tower
Human form by artist Trate
You might not be able to get there but look closely and feel the breeze
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Contents Editor’s letter Welcome to our summer 2020 issue. And what a devastating year it’s been so far with the Covid-19 virus bringing the world to a standstill. It could seem almost ridiculous to be focusing on design, but there is comfort to be found in things we can control and produce. Many of us have used our time in quarantine to take up an activity, be it art, gardening or cooking and DIY has been a key pastime. So might it be fair to say your home is looking better than it has done for years? We focus on art, growing your own food ..in a vertical garden..and we take a look at Swedish furniture brand Bolia which turns 20 this year. And you’ll find lots of other topics such as real rattan and the love of pink. With warm wishes Abby Trow Editor, decomag For Greener Interiors Publisher ABD Associates, London N4 3DW, UK info@decomag.co.uk T +44 (0)20 7561 0675
Content team Editor: Abby Trow Publisher: Ajay Duggal Photographer: Mike Trow Visit us online www.decomag.co.uk
3/ News 4/ Review: Home Is Where You Make It 5/ Vintage books at AntikBar 6/ Keep It Real: the joys of real rattan 8/ Beam Me Up: great lighting 12/ Harvest Festival: all hail Acquatower 14/Stainless Steel: the most eco-friendly kitchen? 18/ Figure It Out: the paintings of the artist Trate 20/ Tinkled Pink: a colour to love 24/ Sea View: masterful paintings of the sea 26/ Bowled Over By Bolia: this contemporary Danish furniture brand turns 20 30/ The Chamberlain: C2C London hotel refurb 34/ Screw It Down:ground screws not concrete! 36/ Long Life Flowers: preserved flowers are the way to go 37/ Deck Hand: recycled PET outdoor rugs for garden delight 39/ Rock Around The Clock: walls need time
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News
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Ocean plastic garden chair
Bert & May tiles
Bert & May’s new Artisanal collection is inspired by things we Brits yearn for... Mediterranean skies, turquoise waters and local Spanish flora. It includes three striking new designs in a Spanish-inspired palette, with patterns reminiscent of the encaustic tiles long produced in southern Europe. Each pattern has been designed to work in harmony with earthy tones - natural woods, woven materials, handmade ceramics and terracotta - to create a colourful, uplifting effortless and artisanal look.
Global garden furniture player Scancom has launched its DuraOcean Nassau garden chairs, made from plastic fishing nets retrieved from the world’s seas. Each chair uses 3.5kg of recycled net plastic for the seat while the legs are made from FSC-certified eucalyptus wood. The injection mouldedchairs are sturdy and comfortable and should prove very hardwearing. But if after a decade or two and you want a change of seating, these chairs are 100 per cent recyclable.
Scancom has teamed up with Cornwall’s Eden Project, to be a seller of the chairs, and the latter will donate five dollars from each chair it sells through its retail outlets to charities which protect the oceans. The chairs come in a greeny-blue colour and they’re manufactured at Scancom’s plant in Vietnam, which has ISO 14001 accreditation for environmental management. A set of two chairs is available at Eden Project and Robert Dyas for £179, or a bistro set of table+2 chairs costs £299.
Ohelo bottles and mugs The drive for zero plastic waste has got lots of us investing in a reuseable stainless steel bottle that keeps drinks cold for 24 and hot for 12 hours. One of the newest brands, offering some of the prettiest products for sure, is London-based Ohelo. They offer bottles and lidded mugs which you can take to your favourite coffee shop (assuming cafes will re-open at some point..) so you can get that discount for bringing your own cup. From £29. www.ohelobottle.com
Recycled rubber eco planters
Greener bathroom
Some 1.5 billion tyres are discarded into landfill annually, so it’s reassuring to know more products are coming on stream made from recycled rubber retrieved from tyres. They include eding strips, paving ‘stones’ and planters from Primeur. Products are highly durable so leave them out all year.
Zed Bees is a new Manchester small business that posts you packs of eco bathroom products such as shampoo bars, soaps, toothpaste tablets and bamboo brushes. Products are plastic free, vegan and sustainable and come in recyclable cardboard boxes. Subscription boxes are available too.
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book review
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How to make your space SO much nicer Text: Catherine Barritt Too many interior design books make the same mistake as many cookery books. They make every project seem like too much hard work as you go through the check list and think, no, I don’t have that, nor that, what the hell is that?
no, no idea about that and gosh where on earth would I get that? Close book, walk away and do something else. The latest book from home loving Geneva Vanderzeil on the other hand does get the creative juices
flowing because her projects are quite manageable - I particularly like the section on how to paint a wooden spoon because heck, I can definitely do that. And if I can paint a spoon handle, that will give me confidence
to move on to slightly more demanding tasks such as taking squares of white linen and dyeing them a pale shade of pink using an avocado skin (waste not want not). Geneva succeeds in not alienating those who don’t feel themselves to be naturally handy or creative. She is motivating without being chivvying and her How Tos are eminently followable. The book is laid out room by room with useful checklists - for example a checklist for an inviting living room reminds you that you need plants, shelving, good lighting, a great rug and nice cushions. As well as projects of varying degrees of difficulty (I would say anything that involves drills and rawplugs is at least A Level standard), this lovely friendly book offers Q&As, tips on buying rugs and a list of the best houseplants (best meaning easiest to look after). It’s not about having a lot of money, it’s about giving it a go. Home is Where you Make it is published by Murdoch Books, £11.99
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antikbar
Poster specialist AntikBar launches vintage books/magazines website
Pictured above: The Soviet Arctic (1939) designed by notable Constructivist designers, husband and wife team Alexander Rodchenko and Varvara Stepanova
Pictured above: if you’re interested in inter-war graphic design, this book will fire up your studies.. Italian Art Deco by Steven Heller and Louise Fili. www.antikbar.co.uk
London’s vintage poster specialists AntikBar is a business that translates well to the digital world as artworks are products we will buy online. Boss Kirill Kalinin say they’re doing well with online auction sales.. certainly people have a lot more time to stare at the walls at the moment and think, mmm, an empty space is a dull space, better get some pictures up asap. The company has also used this period of quarantine to launch its new book website which focuses on 1920s 1930s book design and ephemera covering the major art movements including Bauhaus, Constructivism and Art Deco.
Pictured above: Red Field Krasnaya Niva #19 1928. This weekly Soviet magazine was first published in 1922. Left: new to the AntikBar collection, a 1937 travel poster from the French authorities
Visit the site for books printed in Soviet Russia in the 19201930s, when constructivism was the mainstream art and design movement in the USSR. Book prices from £50
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rattan
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Keep it real
Rattan is a lovely material. And the good news is that it’s one of the most sustainable natural fibres - so avoid that nasty plastic stuff at all costs!
Above: Chateauneuf rattan sleigh bed from the French Bedroom Company. Elegant Louis XV styling with a touch of colonial cool. Bed frame made from reycled mahogany wood. From £1,195 Right: Willow Robe rattan fronted wardrobe, 190x100x61cm, £1395 from Loaf
Above: flower petal Round Rattan Mirror, 49cm dia, £26.95 at Melody Maker Left: Elin oak and rattan chest, £895 at Sweetpea & Willow Below: 2-seater rattan sofa, £725 at Limited Abode
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Left:Key Largo grey rattan linen basket, handmade by artisans in Semarang, Indonesia, £89 at Maine Furniture Co Below: Lot honey coloured rattan hanging chair, £299 at Beaumond Bottom right: Rattan hallway bench, handmade in Indonesia, 57x120x40cm, £199 at Maine Furniture Co
Above: rock it in rattan...Flat rattan tub chair at www.coxandcox.co.uk costs £325 and is perfect for a bedroom or a conservatory. Below left: Cozy Living Queen Natural Rattan foldable room divider /screen, 185x56x3cm, £240 at www.cuckooland.com
Rattan is a climbing palm which develops as a vine in jungles. The vines of the rattan grow up trees in the rainforest and can reach 100s of metres high. The vines when harvested are typically cut into 13-foot lengths and left to dry in the sun. Bear in mind though that real rattan furniture shouldn’t get wet so have a cover for it or bring it inside when it rains.
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lighting
Beam me up
Germany and Italy are home to great lighting brands. Occhio and Catellani & Smith offer very different products and looks but both inspire us to invest in enduring style and quality
This image: Occhio’s Sento lamp in desk and wall model. The lamp gives atmospheric pools of light when wall-mounted, while the desk lamp gives a highly focused beam for easy reading Below: Sento pendant lights hung over a dining table. Facing page, top left: Mito pendant light; top right, from left, designer Christoph Kügler and Occhio founder Axel Meise
Lighting is crucial to an interior and it has to be planned out at the start of a project. Lighting can’t be an afterthought. You need to know what lighting is needed where and how much light it needs to generate. Also, ideally all lighting should be dimmable. And if it can marry precision engineering with beauty so much the better. Which is why great lighting is expensive. Two leading but very differents brands which demonstrate what is meant
by good lighting are Germany’s Occhio and Italy’s Catellani & Smith. Occhio prides itself on ‘extraordinary design and exceptional quality’ which makes its products a joy to use. Architects love it because it has a certain mathematical precision to it and if you want to be sure a light is going to do its job properly, you won’t be disappointed. Founded in 1999 by Axel Meise, the company started out with what he decomag 8
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lighting
Catellani & Smith’s splendid Macchina della Luce pendant is made from aluminium and finished in gold leaf. It gives off ‘the golden light of the sun’
Catellani & Smith’s Stchu-Moon large floor lamp. Aluminium with silver leaf finish
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lighting
calls ‘a simple yet revolutionary concept: to create a luminaire system universal in design and quality of light, offering the ideal solution for every spatial requirement’. Today Occhio is one of the most innovative and fast growing lighting companies and has evolved from a German design icon into an international lifestyle brand. Light has always fascinated Meise. No surprise then that he turned his passion into his profession at an early stage, saying he wanted to use the power of light to improve the quality of people’s lives and to open up for them entirely new possibilities in lighting design. His goal was to offer a universal system that would ensure consistent quality rather than piecemeal products he found on the market prior to starting Occhio. Against this backdrop, Meise developed the Occhio body-head luminaire system. He had worked on it in the mid-’90s and with design partner and physicist Christoph Kügler, and developed a comprehensive, modular system of luminaires with interchangeable reflector heads that could be combined in any number of ways to give users the ideal lighting solution for virtually any situation in both home and commercial settings. Both then and now, this was a radical approach to aesthetics and design coupled with sophisticated technology that centers around the needs of the user at all times. ‘Occhio’s recipe for success is our focus on the essential,’ explains Meise.
Pictured above: Catellani & Smith’s Gold Moon chandelier comprises small wire moons lit with LEDs. Every fixture is handmade in the company’s workshops in Bergamo in northern Italy Facing page, bottom right: Catellani & Smith’s magical Fil de Fer floor lights are made from thin wire and given gold or silver finishes
Central to Occhio is its bodyhead luminaire system one fitting for multiple casings
Left: Occhio’s Mito model as ceiling light strips Above: Occhio customers can choose small hand-held control panels for their lighting systems.
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lighting
‘So we distribute a few systems rather than many individual luminaires and this allows us to go deeper into every detail and focus on product quality. ‘For me, a good light must incorporate three components,’ says Meise. ‘The design must be right. It should enrich a space without being obtrusive, and blend harmoniously into every interior design. In addition, quality of light is a critical aspect, because good light means quality of life. ‘And finally, the question of how I can work with light is important, how the light interacts with the space, architecture and needs of the user. I have to be able to adjust and change the light to my individual preferences. ‘To achieve this, we use digital technology. With our Bluetooth-based app control, gesture control and many other features we can give the user unique added value.’
Catellani & Smith Based in Bergamo, Enzo Catellani founded his company in 1980. Incidentally, there is no Mr or Mrs Smith working with him, rather the Smith in the partnership refers to Logan Smith, a horse Catellani owned in his youth. ‘We were happy for people to think Smith was an architect in the firm, we just didn’t put them right at the time!’ recalls Catellani, one of the most creative of lighting designers in the industry. Catellani & Smith lighting is more decorative and whimsical than Occhio’s, which is why it’s perfect for
magical palazzos. But it’s also very precise, with models made to give differing amounts of light and aesthetic effects. The company uses predominantly metal - steel and alumium, with LEDs for the light source, which of course makes products economical to run. Every C&S light is made by hand and is a true labour of love. Catellani explains his process: ‘When I create a lamp, I always start with a prototype; my laboratory is a workshop where I continually accumulate materials, components and objects of all different kinds; and this is where everything is born... I assemble, weld, bend, shape...I need to feel the materials, to see how they play with light. In this initial stage there is no real design, the idea must take shape immediately, becoming an object. ‘Only at this point do I move on to the traditional design phase: feasibility, technical characteristics and much more; it’s an idea of light, and the desire to tell about it, which guides me through the construction. I believe this process can be felt in products by Catellani & Smith. ‘A large part of my production is made up by pieces that require a great amount of craftsmanship: it’s the hand of the craftsman that builds them, their manual work that creates the imperfection, making a truly unique object.’
www.occhio.de www.catellanismith.com
Lighting should allow you to feel you’re at the theatre - it’s fabulous to have the ability to create pools of limelight in a dark room, or bring an ethereality to your stairwell
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acqua garden
Harvest festival Your table will groan under the bounty you can grow in the Acqua Tower, a modular, vertical, self-irrigating garden that’s the brainchild of former London lawyer Jonathan Martin. Text: Abby Trow
Pictured above: Acqua Garden uses a coir growing material, provided in the kit Left: Acqua Garden is modular and can be set at a height of 3ft up to 5ft. The base of the product is filled with water which is pumped up to the top of the tower so it cascades down through it to water the plants.
Interest in gardening, or more particularly interest in helping people with limited space to garden, is, thankfully growing as fast as grass and ivy do in summer. Whether it’s prettier pots for indoor and outdoor plants, herbs for the windowsill or hydroponic LED kits so you can grow herbs and salad leaves on your kitchen table, it’s good to see that the garden sector is acknowledging that far more of us have little to no outside space than have rolling lawns and abundant herbaceous borders at our disposal. And the recent quarantine conditions we’ve been living under as governments struggle to get the corona virus under control has seen a rise in people interested in growing their own fruit, veg and herbs - in part because they want to go into shops as little as possible. Enter a man who can help turn wishful thinking into reality. He’s former corporate lawyer Jonathan Martin, who became so entranced with growing his own chillies and tomatoes in particular (not to mention strawberries, lettuces and flowers) that he used his ingenuity and design skills to develop a self-contained urban
garden small enough to fit on balconies, patios, in handkerchief back yards and even in a kitchen albeit you would need a reason able-sized one. ‘I love gardening and growing things, always have,’ says Jonathan. ‘I am interested in eating fresh foods and having a healthier diet, as well as cutting my carbon footprint, so I got to thinking about how great it would be if there were a way for people who don’t have much space or experience of gardening to grow lots of food for themselves.’ (And he means plenty, not just two small strawberries and a lettuce..) ‘So I set about designing an easy to use, all-in-one garden system that keeps itself watered. We now have the Acqua Garden, which is for everyone - kids to older people and people in wheelchairs or with disabilities who often feel excluded from gardening.’ Watering Crucial to Acqua Garden’s appeal is that you don’t need to water your crops every day. That’s because the base of the system is a reservoir you fill with water approx every three weeks. In it is a
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Pictured above: Acqua Garden uses a coir growing material, provided in the kit. The rotating garden is modular and can be set at a height of 3ft up to 5ft. The base of the product is filled with water which is pumped up to the top of the tower so it flows down through the plants
battery-powered pump (and solar panels on the outside of the base are being developed that will keep the battery charged) which is on a timer. A tube runs up the centre of the tower to a fountain head at the top, through which water cascades down through the plants. You set the pump to water as often or as little as you feel your plants need. The whole system comes
in a box and is easy to assemble - think of it as being a bit like a marble run. Set the growing containers to the height you want - the max height is 5ft but for children or wheelchair users might prefer to cap it at 3ft. The kit provides you with a coir growing medium, not soil because it’s heavy and can be infested with pathogens. You can buy plant plugs at extra cost from
Acqua Garden - for example chillies, tomatoes, peppers, lettuce. Alternatively buy your own non peat-grown plugs. Acqua Tower costs £385. It’s manufactured in China from HDPE, which is a very hardwearing and long lasting plastic. The coir growing medium comes from Sri Lanka - coir being fibre from coconut husks of course.
‘It’s easy-grow gardening for everyone,’ Jonathan Martin www.acquatower.com
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kitchen design
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Stainless steel: the most ecoStainless steel is seen by many as being too clinical for a home to scratches. But...stainless steel is supremely hard wearing, it
This stunning bespoke kitchen in a house in Stockholm is made by Italian manufacturer Abimis
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friendly material for kitchen? kitchen. It’s also pretty pricey and worktops are susceptible can look sleek and modern and it’s 100 per cent recyclable
kitchen design
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To make stainless steel work at home you need to contrast it with warm tactile materials such as leather and wood and have pretty accessories on show decomag 16
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You probably don’t have a kitchen this size.. but fantasise for a moment. The architect owners of this fabulous apartment in Stockholm chose a bespoke stainless steel kitchen because they wanted a kitchen that would last for decades, that was eco-friendly (most steel contains at least 40 per cent recycled content) and 100 per cent recyclable. The Ego kitchen by Italian manufacturer Abimis was their choice because it has rounded doors, which soften the look, and give a subtle ‘50s retro vibe. London interior designer Paul Warren says key to making stainless steel kitchens ‘not feel like a mortuary is to have lots of characterful, warm materials in the room with it, such as wood and leather, as this kitchen does.’
For most normal folks in rabbit hutch UK homes a stainless steel worktop is a way to bring the material into your home, and don’t forget freestanding butcher’s blocks as some are made with a stainless steel as opposed to a wooden top. Abimis kitchens are made to measure, prices on application. Brace yourself...
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art
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Figure it out The artist Trate believes the faces of women belie truth and emotion
Canadian artist Trate was to have unveiled his latest collection of works, Technicolour Malaise, to the London art scene via a gallery show in April. Corona virus put paid to that, so fingers crossed physical distancing will ease next year and the show can go on in 2021. In the meantime we’re bringing you a selection of Trate’s most recent works. They showcase his haunting aesthetic and ability to capture human sensibilities in deceptively simple form. He’s infatuated with how people’s experiences are etched into their physical traits and has developed his artistic ability to reimagine the human form and expose inner thoughts and emotions on canvas. Acting as a counterforce to the aesthetics of the digital age, where seemingly perfect social media imagery weighs on our perception of existence, this self-taught artist offers a raw, humane lens with which to look at humanity. He chooses to go by the name Trate and has dedicated himself to honing his artistic craft in private for over 20 years. He struggled with dyslexia as a child, so perhaps not surprisingly art became his chosen means of self-expression. That said he tried his hand at sculpture and woodwork as a teenager before being finding that the medium he loved best was painting. He uses handmade paints mixed with large ratios of walnut, safflower and linseed oils to achieve works that are deeply textural - a single work can take two months to dry. Now living in London, the artist behind the alias has had a nomadic life, with many years spent travelling and exploring different pursuits. The latter range from tree-planting in the harsh, remote forests of Northern Canada, to several years of humanitarian work with the UN in Mali, to living on a farm commune near the Swiss Alps, to working in finance in Buenos Aires, Mexico City and London. The vibrancy of these diverse experiences, distilled through his imagination, ultimately acted as inspiration for his fascinating and impactful figurative work.
This page and facing page: Trate’s work depicts the rawness of the human condition through reimagined physical forms, oil laden brushstrokes and a vivid aesthetic
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Trate’s women explore human emotion in deceptively simple form decomag 19
colour focus
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Tickled pink It’s been cast as a villain by those who think pink has a lot to do with ongoing gender inequality. But come on, pink doesn’t stink, pink is warm and pretty. Text: Catherine Barritt
Pink has had a tricky time of late, having been dragged into the gender equality debate. The Pink Stinks campaign set up by sisters Abi and Emma Moore has rightly been urging parents not to dress their baby girls in pink, so the colour ceases to be synonymous supine femininity, aka sugar and spice and all things nice. But there is undoubtedly something in the colour that appeals to the female eye and psychologists will tell you that’s because pink is a soft form of red, red being associated with the heart and passion. Take that passion down a few notches and you
have romance, gentleness, calmness. And pink is easy on the eye: in its pastel tones - shell pink, baby pink, peachy pink, mauvey pink, it’s very restful. In its brighter hues it’s a bit more of an acquired taste - think bubblegum pink, cerise, neon pink. These are colours that are full of life and fun but you probably wouldn’t want a bedroom full of them. ‘I love soft pinks, subtle shades veering into cream or lilac,’ says deco editor Abby Trow. ‘I’m always on the lookout for that perfect shell or muted salmon pink because I find soft pinks very soothing. I like pink for bedrooms wallpaper is a good vehicle for
bringing pink into your space, as it bedlinen if you find a shade you love. I would say it takes quite a lot of trawling around to find pinks that please me - I’ve sound some at www.knowles-christou and www.gingerlily.com.
Top left: faux flowers are great because they will last decades if you dust them regularly..and even if you don’t. Set of 3 faux amaranthus sprays made from polyester and plastic, £24.95 at www.audenza.com Top right: recyclable vinyl tiles in vibrant designs including Maze with its lovely pink stripes, £59 m2 at Atrafloor Centre, left: Pink and gold nest of tables, made from enamalled glass and metal, £600 at www.limelace.co.uk Above: Open Late A3 print, £45 at www.made.com
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Above: Antrax IT T Tower energy saving aluminium radiator comes in myriad colours including hot pink. Above right: Florence Broadhurst oversized lamp has a recycled glass flagon base and handmade Buckram paper shade. ÂŁ365 Left: Coral Iris rug made from 100 percent post consumer PET from Weaver Green Right: Pick up a pink poodle ...striking soft sculpture in bright pink leather adorned with 350 wool pompoms by MYK Berlin, POA.
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colour focus
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Above: Rasi Pink mural, made to measure, by Tashi Tsering, from £34 m2 at Wall Sauce Below: make tea for one an elegant affair...deep pink ceramic cup and saucer with gold edging, £17.95 at Bombay Duck Bottom: alstromeiria is an easy flower to grow in a sunny garden..offering bursts of pink in many delightful shades
Top right: Waisted One large lampshade, linen and velvet, 77cm height, £390, made by MatchiMatchi Above: Vintage linen Lakai floor cushion from Mind the Gap, £599 Right: Recycled polyester outdoor rug, made in India,designed by Inma Bermúdez for Spain’s www.nowcarpets.com
It doesn’t make you an airhead to want some pink in your home. Pink is warm, uplifting, calming..the colour of peace no less decomag 22
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Left: aluminium chain curtain from Shaded collection from Spain’s KriskaDecor Below: LED wool pompom 250cm string light, AA battery pack operated. £16.50 at Red Candy Centre, right: Jays Jungle placement cushion, 29x45cm, £110 by Claire Elsworth Design. Printed on velvet using eco inks. Cushions are filled with free range duck feathers and post-consumer PET plastic fibres
colour focus
Above left: European linen tablecloth, stonewashed, £85 from Chalk Pink Linen Left: Dayton blush pure wool rug, £99 at House Cosy Right: Get Plastered pink eco paint, made in Yorks for Dowsing & Reynolds
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painting
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Sea view Painting H2O whether it’s the sea, a river, a pond or a glass of the stuff is not easy...indeed painting anything well is notoriously difficult.. so be inspired by the professionals
Generations of artists have sought inspiration from water, the sea especially so, and the Royal Society of Marine Artists holds annual exhibitions of members’ works that show us the fruits of that inspiration. Mall Galleries in London is home to these shows and hopes are high that the venue will be able to open again before the end of the year to bring visitors face-to-face (masked of course..) with great art. Until that time though, we’ll have to make do with looking at art on our phone and computer screens. Not quite the same but better than no art at all!
Above: Mariquita and Marietta Off St Tropez by Brian Jones Light: Jenny Morgan captures life at work on a trawler in heavy seas. Work is called ‘William Wilberforce: Hauling and Towing’. Oil on canvas, £2,900. 75x55cms. Available through Myton Gallery
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Left: QE2 New York by Douglas Gray, work made in oil paint. His fans say his ownership of atmosphere, light, place and visual narrative add up to truly memorable paintings Bottom right: Sunlight & Shadows by Deborah Walker. Her work is, she says ‘landscape based with an emphasis on painting water. My approach embraces both representational and abstract elements and I push the character of the paint to extremes. I work mainly in watercolour...’
Below: Sun on Canary Wharf by Benjamin Hope. He says of his work: ‘I draw and paint directly from life, both in the studio and outside. Working in this way results in marks that are reactive, and for me, it is the best way to capture what it feels like to be with the subject.’
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danish design
If Scandinavian design to you means all those midcentury greats such Arne Jacobsen, Poul Henningsen and Hans Wegner, it’s time to get with the 21st century and feast your eyes on the work of companies such as Bolia which continue in the spirit of their not so distant forefathers. Celebrating its 20th birthday this year, it’s a big brand that’s curiously perhaps not as well known as it deserves to be here in the UK. It’s products are in the Heal’s/Conran price range, which means while it’s not high street inexpensive, it is do-able even if it means saving up for a while to make that purchase. And its designs
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Above: new for 2020, Arc collection for informal everyday dining includes bowls, plates, cups and jugs in muted colours and slightly irregular shapes. Pieces are made from porcelain Below: portable Pica LED lamp with rechargeable battery for outdoor use. Bolia has also this year produced a collection of outdoor furniture
Bowled over by Bolia
This Danish furniture brand turns 20 this year. With terrific eco credentials, it offers timeless contemporary style and lasting quality
offer that timeless Scandinavian simplicity that appeals to people all over the world. It’s contemporary furniture that’s easy to live with, comfortable, tactile and laid-back smart without being posh or stuffy. And perhaps not a surprise as our Scandi brethren have been committed eco-warriors for longer than the rest of us, Bolia is a good green company to do business with. It uses certified materials, such as FSC timbers, it manufactures in European factories where environmental standards are high, it innovates with new materials such as those made from waste plastic and it’s increasingly using fabrics for upholstery that have cradle to cradle certification. Among them is Danish textile company Gabriel’s Gaja fabric, a New Zealand wool available in 35 colours produced using no harmful substances and which is compostable. A lot of pieces are hand-made, Bolia believes in craftsmanship not mass production, and it’s happy to meet bepoke requirements. 2020 has been a tough year globally because of Covid19 decomag 26
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This page, top: elegant minimal Lomi sofa by Meike Harde comes in 3 sizes and can be upholstered in whatever (suitable) fabric customers would like. From around ÂŁ2,300. Above: Pelote circular dining table and chairs Right: Highlands concrete planters for in and outdoor use. 4 sizes available. www.bolia.com
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danish design
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Above: Lomi 2-seater sofa in a cream wool fabric, with matching footstool Left: CEO of Bolia, Lars Lyse Right: Pelote oak round table with upholstered Kimono chairs that feature metal sleigh legs Below: lowbacked Jerome sofa - again it can be made in sizes to fit your room. Bolia furniture is made in Europe and comes with a 5-year guarantee
What’s great about this furniture is its simplicity. So if you don’t want fuss but do want timeless contemporary style and durability then Bolia is for you.
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Lars Lyse, CEO, reflects on the company’s journey: ‘I joined Bolia in 2005. At that time, it was a very small company with a strong entrepreneurial culture. In 2006 we decided to become a design company and started collaborating with designers. Today, we are more than 600 passionate employees, have over 60 European stores, web shops in 32 European countries, and more than 500 exclusive dealers in more than 50 countries around the world. So creativity is flourishing. But even though we’ve grown a lot, we still feel and act like a small company, open to change and making fast decisions. In our culture, nothing remains stable, everything is moving forward – our concept, our business and ourselves as individuals.’
but that’s not stopped Bolia rolling out its 2020 collections. Key pieces include the lovely Lomi sofa by German designer Meike Harde and new outdoor furniture centred around the Orlando sofa. CEO Lars Lyse is very aware that what people buy has to resonate with them on many levels. ‘We all have five senses and if you really want to make sure customers perceive the brand as you want, you have to ask the weird questions; ‘How does my brand sound? How does it taste? What does it smell like? How does it feel?’ and ‘How does it look?’ Today, we’re working with the five senses in basically everything we do.’
Above: a bit Japanese..Maiko blown glass pendant light with a cinched in top designed by Denis Guidone Right: the company loves accessories as much as bigger ticket items. So if flowers are your thing, be sure you have the right vase to show them off in. These Mingel mirror finished curvaceous glass vases by Denis Guidone are perfect for eyecatching arrangements
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eat drink and be merry
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Top: The Chamberlain hotel now has its own pub where passers by can pop in for a pint, regardless of being a hotel resident. The bar has a traditional London pub look with dark wood, high stools and industrial style vintage lighting Below: The foyer is a place to grab a coffee and sit for a while. Enjoy the funky yellow tub chairs and retro vibe Left: Sibley Grove commissioned vibrant art
‘The architecture at The Chamberlain is stripped back to reveal the inner workings of the space’ decomag 30
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The Chamberlain
Loads of us are counting the days until pubs and bars can open again. And Londoners have a treat in store at the refurbished Chamberlain Hotel, courtesy of interior designers Sibley Grove
Kate Sibley and Jeremy Grove, the husband and wife team behind Sibley Grove had fortunately completed the re-design of the public areas at The Chamberlain Hotel, near the capital’s Tower Hill, before lockdown struck. Restaurants and bars remain closed but they will re-open hopefully in the not too distant future. So if you’re in London when that happy day arrives, have a celebratory pint or lunch, or indeed a cup of coffee, at The Chamberlain, because it’s a great place to hang out. It’s been transformed by Sibley Grove, a studio that always has the environment at the heart of what it does, with a particular commitment to choosing C2C certified products for its interiors hat means cradle to cradle certified in case you don’t know the term. The new ground floor has been reconfigured to include a handsome pub and restaurant. The space has been stripped back to create height and volume, revealing structural columns and duct work, and the façade has been adapted so natural light can flood in. The Chamberlain is part of brewer Fuller’s portfolio so Sibley Grove believed it was vital the pub remained the cornerstone of any design proposal. ‘Although the ground floor is modern, it was very
important to create the perfect pub, rather than a generic hotel bar. Pubs don’t discriminate, they’re accessible to all. Historically, Fuller’s has always created welcoming and relaxing destinations, and wanted this pub to carry on the tradition,’ says Jeremy. The ground floor also includes a vibrant hotel reception. With a new concrete reception counter with blackened steel trims, folk can pop in for a coffee whenever. Kate and Jeremy have used an eclectic range of furniture, creating spaces to relax, catch up on e-mails or hold informal meetings. The most significant change to the hotel is the creation of a brand new cocktail bar, set deep within its exposed underbelly. The space includes a private meeting room, cosy areas for small groups, and is large enough for private events of up to 130 people. ‘The Chambers is a luxurious interpretation of an industrial basement bar – a hideaway from the busy London streets where you are treated to great service and a bespoke cocktail menu,’ says Kate. The architecture is stripped back to reveal the inner working of the space; however, the furniture includes sumptuous velvet banquettes and contemporary detailing. The designers also commissioned artists
Left: dark walls add a touch of mood and mystery to the stairwell, topped with a stunning overhead pendant light Below: the restaurant is warm and casual with exposed ducting for that industrial / warehouse feel
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and photographers to produce bespoke art for The Chamberlain, cataloguing details of the surrounding areas. Sibley Grove strongly believe design should be a vehicle for positive change, both environmentally and socially. ‘Cradle to Cradle™is a certification for materials and products. It helps designers be considerate of the materials they select, thinking about how they’re made and what will happen to them after their commercial use. It’s about moving away from the ubiquitous cradle to grave (landfill) system,’ says Jeremy. ‘The hotel industry is inherently throwaway, but people are looking for ways to correct this. Cradle to Cradle is a really effective way of tackling issues such as global resource depletion, exploited labour and excessive waste.’ C2C You’ll find a lot of C2C products in The Chamberlain Hotel. Among them: Mosa wall and floor tiles Ege carpets, Troldtekt ceilings, Havwoods timber Also in Sibley Grove’s little black book: Low VOC paints Fabrics from U.K. and European mills - made with recycled content and non-toxic dyes Bamboo Major suppliers: Light Corporation, Style Matters, Kirkby Design, Camira Fabrics, Pollack Fabrics
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Top: The Chamberlain has lots of hospitality areas for non hotel guests, including an elegant basement cocktail bar with a private dining room (pictured facing page, top) Left: the cocktail bar allows for intimate chats. Facing page, bottom: The new concrete reception counter
‘C2C certification makes designers think about products they specify from a complete environmental perspective’ www.sibleygrove.com decomag 33
ground screws
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www.stop-digging.co.uk
Screw it down Ground screws are an eco-friendly alternative to concrete foundations for small building projects
The concrete sector is working to reduce its carbon footprint but it’s unlikely ever to become what could be termed a sustainable industry. Urbanisation means millions of gallons of concrete are poured in cities around the world day-in, day-out - but for individuals with small building projects, there is an alternative to a concrete base, which is to choose ground screws instead. Concrete is an essential material for the building industry and it’s unlikely a future Shard or Burj al Arab will ever sit on ground screws. But the manufacturing of cement to make concrete accounts for five per cent of global CO2 emissions and it ranks third in the production of manmade CO2 emissions worldwide after transport and energy generation; and as such there is a need to use alternatives to concrete foundations for smaller building projects. Concrete is strong and long lasting but it’s not indestructible and when it does need to be disposed it, it invariably ends up on landfill where it doesn’t biodegrade. We know it’s big user of water but we think it’s not so bad really because concrete is derived from natural
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DECO PROMOTION
stone. And hey, didn’t the Romans use it? How does cement used today differ from that used in the past? Hydraulic cement, better known as Portland cement, is the modern artificial type of cement used in construction. After the process of thermal decomposition of calcium carbonate to produce clinker (CaCO3 (limestone) + thermal energy > CaO (lime) + CO2), the clinker is ground with gypsum to create a powder (Portland cement). In contrast, non-hydraulic cement produced by the Romans and other ancient civilisations was hardened by exposure to carbon dioxide (naturally in the air) without the need for water. How is concrete made? Elements are extracted from earth (e.g. sand, gravel, limestone, granite) which are mixed with cement material and water, which binds these materials together to create concrete.
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Why concrete is not environmentally friendly? Production results in high CO2 emissions and heavy water useage. CO2 is emitted at two stages of cement production: first as a by-product of burning fuel to create heat to drive the production process; the second is thermal decomposition of calcium carbonate to produce clinker (see formula above which many of you will remember from your GCSE science...) To produce one tonne of cement (40 standard bags), 780kg of CO2 is released. That’s almost 20kg of CO2 per bag of cement. What are alternative solutions to modern concrete? It is possible to find cement made from recycled and sustainable materials. Rammed earth: it involves compacting gravel, clay, sand and water to strengthen the rammed earth. However, 5-10 per cent cement often needs to be added to this mixture which diminishes its green credentials Ground screws: they eliminate the need to create concrete bases for structures such as garden buildings, cabins, decking, fencing, signs, play equipment, etc Stop Digging Ground Screws Founded in Sweden in 2012, Stop Digging produces large steel ground screws to replace pile drivers and concrete during construction. This unique screw has been designed to withstand the Nordic climate and can be installed all year round. Different sized and shaped
screws are used depending on land ratio, load, and type of project. Sizes range from 865mm to 1200mm in length, with different width sizes available. How do the ground screws work? 1. The area is checked with specialist machinery for underground pipes and cables. 2. The footprint of the intended building is marked out accurately. 3. String lines and ground paint mark the area where the building and screw locations will be.4. The holes are pre-drilled to deal with any obstructions and ensure accuracy in positioning the ground screws. 5. The stop digging ground screws are placed in the pre-drilled holes. 6. A laser level is used to set the best height for the building requirements. 7. The screws are drilled into the ground within minutes. 8. A timber frame and building can now be placed on top of the screws. Air passes underneath so damp will not occur. You don’t need concrete foundations for temporary
Ground screws make it easier and faster to install decks and garden rooms structures such as garden rooms because ground screws provide the base. What are the eco benefits of ground screws? No concrete is involved and the ground is not damaged. No waste - digging out foundations creates a substantial amount of waste but the screws create none. What’s the cost? The price of screws varies according to their size but Stop Digging screws start at £45+VAT and one screw covers approx. 1m2. Can I buy and install the screws myself? No, Stop Digging uses specialist machinery to install the screws correctly. Properly installed, they come with a 25-year guarantee.
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preserved flowers
Long life flowers Find it annoying how quickly fresh flowers wither and perish, but aren’t drawn to faux or dried flowers? Then join the growing band of fans of the preserved flower
Preserved flowers look like the real thing because they are the real thing. They’re treated with a safe bio-chemical liquid that means they look daisy fresh for up to a year
If you grow your own flowers or get them delivered from a nice person nearby who grows them in their allotment then you don’t have an eco dilemma. But many of us buy cheap supermarket flowers; and the bad news is they come with a heavy carbon footprint, derived from the road or air miles needed to get them here. And those very £5 bunches of roses have a human cost, since flower farms in Kenya or Brazil have been found to subject workers to very low pay, exposure to dangerous chemicals and insanitary working conditions. All reasons to think about switching to preserved flowers which last for a good year. Saves money and stops us succumbing to bargain bunches with a hidden cost.
Top left and right: oats bouquet, £16.99 and red preserved hydrangea stem, £19.99 from Dowsing & Reynolds Left, centre: Kaffraria preserved bouquet, £49 at www.limelace.co.uk Bottom left: pink diosmia bouquet, £18.99 at www.dowsingandreynolds.com Far left, centre: Kara deluxe preserved bouquet £195 from www.etherealblooms.com
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outdoor rugs
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Deck hand
Take the indoors outside in the form of a rug. Not a wool or silk one of course because it’ll get ruined. But a recycled plastic one is perfect for making a deck, patio or balcony look inviting
More of us are cottoning onto the joys of a garden rug. They make rough old decks soft under barefeet, they smarten up a patio and they’re much more comfortable to sit on than those hoary old wool rugs we used to get out of the car boot when the sun shone. Many outdoor rugs on the market have pretty good eco ratings as they’re made from recycled PET. UK brand Weaver Green and US brand Fab Habitat offer recycled plastic rugs at eminently affordable prices. Products are woven in India and they are recyclable at end of life.
For more luxe products look at Spanish rug makers including Now Carpets, Gan and nanimarquina. The former has a stunning range of recycled polyester carpets designed by Inma Bermúdez while the latter is producing some of its most popular rug designs woven from recycled plastic so you can take the look outside. Swedish brand Pappelina has great outdoor rugs made from locally made plastic. Not recycled content but they are 100% recyclable. Also check out US company Albert & Dash, which has super outdoor rugs.
Top left: from nanimarquina Shade palette, polyethylene fibres, recyclable & fair trade, around £900 at Made In Design Above: plastic fibre rug from Gan’s Layers collection. Available at Chaplins Centre left: outdoor recycled rug, £90 at Limited Abode Bottom left: Annabelle recycled PET rug for Albert & Dash £99 at Darlings of Chelsea
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outdoor rugs
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Left: plastic rug from wide selection by top Swedish manufacturer Pappelina Below: recycled PET has been made into a deep pile shaggy rug for outside spaces. Plush Reversible rug in silver £179 (120x170cm) at Lime Lace Top left: nanimarquina’s ever popular Oaxaca rug in outdoor guise, made from recycled PET fibres.170x240cm £1340 at Go Modern Top right: Llasa rug by Fab Habitat, 150x200cm, £89.95 at Cuckooland Above: pink and navy stripe recycled PET rug £79 at Made.com Left: PET rugs from Devon-based Weaver Green
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clocks
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rock around the clock Right: cork wall clock with black hands by Zuiver £49 at Cuckooland Far right, top: Forester rustic wood and steel clock, £66 at Artisanti Bottom right: minimalist Eslabón walnut clock by Spain’s Nomon Below: large Putney black wall clock with red hands by UK maker Newgate, £100
Feel your rooms lack a certain something? attractive wall clocks can bring TIME to life and you can become far more punctual
Right: Mr Blue Steel modern clock by maker Karlsson, £68.38 Find brand at Wayfair Centre, top: red faced Deep Sea wall clock £129 at Escapology Centre bottom: flat faced iron Skeleton clock with Roman numerals, £64.95 at Melody Maison
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www.lapuankankurit.fi
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