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Ispiration

in Color Inspiration, Furniture, Interiors, Ispiration

Child Studio’s latest project

21 June 2021
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The more I look at the interiors from Child Studio the more I like them. It is the same for Humble Pizza and the spectacles store Cubitt as well, both published on +DECO.
Today we are going to look at Child Studio‘s latest project in the Saint John’s Wood district of London, not far from the Abbey Road pedestrian crossing made famous by the Fab Four. The founders of Child Studio Alexy Kos and Che Huang designed this interesting space -originally a post office- keeping in mind its history. The interior preserves the historical memory of the modernist building in which the restaurant is located and they have also introduced some distinctive Japanese elements.

The blue geometrical ceiling complements perfectly the custom-made dark cherry wood panelling perfectly. The black floor gives the space an oriental feeling when the glass block partition introduces a curve element allowing in the meanwhile the light to flow. Dotted around there are some legendary design pieces such as the Pipistrello table light designed by Gae Aulenti in 1965, the moulded plywood armchairs designed by Norman Cherner in 1958, the cast aluminium stools by the Japanese designer Naoto Fukasawa, some antique brass sconces by Stilnovo.
What can I say….another ‘bravo!” for Child Studio!

in Color Inspiration, Furniture, Interiors, Ispiration

Mãos at the Blue Mountain School

9 May 2021
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The older I get, the more I like uncomplicated interiors. This eight seater Mãos Restaurant at the Blue Mountain School in London is a good example of an interior thats charm is based on a clever use of materials and colours. The furniture is functional and complements the space: it adds colour and interest without dominating the attention. The pinewood floor with its abundance of knots gives this notable Michelin star eatery in the East End a natural look, it reminds me of the floors in saloons in the Wild West. The floor in one room is complemented by the wall colour and in the other room it complements the light grey of the painted wall and the tiled wall. In both cases, the chairs -very different from each other- introduce a new style and a new colour.

The Blue Mountain School doesn’t just host the Mãos restaurant on the sixth floor but also an events room (Grace’s), an exhibition and project space (Blue Projects) and a collection of limited edition works available for sale (Hostem Archive).

Photographies courtesy of The Blue Mountain School

in Color Inspiration, Furniture, Interiors, Ispiration

A good example of how to use colours and some thoughts about the present

9 March 2021
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A friend of mine have just left a comment below one of my posts on Instagram noting that I have published quite a bit of beautiful hotels recently and if that hides a desire to travel. Yes, it does. In the last few weeks I have felt a bit caged. I miss exploring. I can’t even got to see an exhibition! Museums in Italy are open Monday to Friday until 18.00, basically they are open for retired people who probably don’t go anyway considering they are the most vulnerable age. We need to be more patient, things are going eventually to settle down even if I wonder if they are ever going to be back to how they were.

Going back to the my recent obsession for hotels, today we are going to speak about Hotel Les Deux Gares. Located between Gare du Nord and Gare de L’Est in Paris (hence the name), this small hotel has everything you need, including a gym and a lovely atmosphere. The interiors were designed by British enfant-prodige Luke Edward Hall and they are an excellent example of how colours can transform a place. The young designers has cleverly mixed vibrant greens, yellows, pinks and light blues with touches of red, geometric patterns, stripes, fringes, leopard and much more. The space look so cohesive though because the main colours are recurring even if used in different ways: light blue can be for instance a sink, in a stripy fabric, a wall, the background of a wallpaper, a door frame.
Totally inspiring!

Photos courtesy of Hotel Les Deux Gares.

in Color Inspiration, Furniture, Interiors, Ispiration, People

A new adventure for Child Studio

2 March 2021
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A new adventure for Child Studio!

The creative British Child Studio duo has collaborated with British brand Floor_Story to create a colourful rugs collection inspired by the Bauhaus, an artistic movement started in an art school that operated in Germany between 1919 and 1933. The collection’s title, 19-19, gets its name from the beginning of this period and it consists in 6 handwoven wool and silk rugs, called after some of the most relevant Bauhaus female artists and designers.

As Alexy Kos and Che Huang, the founders of Child Studio, explained:

“Bauhaus aesthetic is often seen as something rather austere and unrelenting, but we have always been fascinated by the rich and inventive use of colour in the interiors & graphics produced by the artists associated with this movement. We always try to inject colour in our interior work and this project was an opportunity to tell a new story entirely through the abstract means of geometry and colour.”

The collection was photographed at the Isokon Building in London, designed by the architect Wells Coates. Many founders and key figures of the Bauhaus School like Walter Gropius, László Moholy-Nagy and Marcel Breuer lived in this modernist building in the 1930’s. The wood-panelled interiors are to die for, the perfect setting for Child Studio new adventure and Floor_Story‘s gorgeous rugs!

Photos Felix Speller & Child Studio, courtesy Child Studio.

in Arts+ Crafts, Color Inspiration, Furniture, Interiors, Ispiration

Tropical and colonial marvel

20 February 2021
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I am working from home today. I am here in front of my computer, the cat sleeping on my lap, purring away like a coffee machine, a smiley blue sky outside. It is one of those days in Rome where you can smell spring in the air. The quality of the light, the warm temperature, the first buds on trees deceive your brain and heart, making you believe that spring is just around the corner. Part of me is hoping for another two months of cold weather, I am not sure I can resist until the summer with this glorious sun, my mind gets into a dangerous excited and playful mood that makes concentrating a hard task.

You all know I love de Gournay, a collection of hand painted Chinoiserie wallpapers called The Colony designed exclusively for the newly renovated Colony Hotel in Palm Beach, Florida.

This large scale scenic mural comes from the collaboration with the French maison with Colony owner Sarah Wetenhall and de Gournay and inspired by the original mid-century mural that adorned the hotel lobby when it first opened in 1947.

The joyful wallpaper depicting flamingos, monkeys, alligators, panthers and luxurious fauna and the furniture picked by Kemble Interiors perfectly combine, achieving a look that it is at the same time colonial, feminine, humorous and tropical. 

Photography by Carmel Brantley, courtesy de Gournay.

in Color Inspiration, Furniture, Interiors, Ispiration

A pick on Dedar 2021 textiles

7 February 2021
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Today we are going to have a pick at Dedar 2021 textile collections. I have selected the ones I like best and the ones that I think you would find more interesting but don’t forget that Dedar has a full range of plain colours fabrics of any kind and for any use. In fact I would say that Dedar strength is plain colours, geometrics, abstract, essential sophisticated fabrics.

Which one is your favourite? My favourite are Ukiyo Mongatori collection but also Oolong and Eneide.

Ukiyo Mongatari collection
Oolong collection
Nimbus collection
Tabularasa collection
Scarabeo collection
Viridiana collection
Vuk collection
Eneide collection
Magnolia collection

(Andrea Ferrari Studio photography)

in Arts+ Crafts, DIY, Interiors, Ispiration, People

Alfhild Külper’s deep work

26 January 2021
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There are some books that have the power to ignite awareness. When you finish reading them, a seed has been planted and a new awareness has been introduced . These books become part of what you ultimately are.

At the moment I am reading “Deep Work” by Cal Newport. I don’t know yet if it is going to be part of the books that make me but I can tell you that it has already given me food for thought.

Deep work is what we do when we focus and concentrate for a stretch of time. It is quality, on-task work produced in a state of total focus. It is what artisans do all the time: they devout their attention to what they are creating, every step is important, every distraction could compromise the final result. It is what Alfhild Külper does when she makes her beautiful wool creations. With a busy, frenetic job as a head of design at a luxury fashion house, Alfhid was looking forward to engage in something more hands on and felt the urge to make something intricate and soft.

She has started creating beautiful, hand knotted rugs inspired by nature. Each piece require many hours of patient attention, many hours of deep work.

Alfhid Külper rugs are pieces that last forever, that combine tactile and visual emotions.

(Photographies courtesy of the artist)
in Color Inspiration, Furniture, Interiors, Ispiration

Maison Souquet lavishness

19 January 2021
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Here we are already half through January. I have started the year slowly, work is slow and I am slow. I am distracted and lethargic; the only things I feel like doing is practicing yoga and drinking wine (a bit bipolar, I know). I am trying to pick myself up and find a bit more concentration and liveliness. Is anyone else feeling like that?

In the meanwhile I day dream of interiors that can shake me from this sort of numbness. The one I am showing you today is beautiful in a lascivious way: it is an eruption of opulent colours, sophisticated patterns and lavish materials. Maison Souquet re-proposes the original spirit of the building, a former pleasure house during the Belle Epoque in the area of Montmartre in Paris. Together with another gem, Maison Athenee, Maison Souquet is part of the Maisons Particulières Collection founded by Sylviane Sanz and Yoni Aidan. The interiors were designed by Jacques Garcia, a legend in the interior design world. Each room is different but equally enchanting and sexy.

I am sure a night in Maison Souquet would shake me from my torpor.

Photographs courtesy Maisons Particulières Collection.

in Interiors, Ispiration, Outdoor, People

The hotel of the year: The Birch

2 December 2020
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The Birch is a hotel where you can have fun, socialise, rest and reflect in Hertfordshire, England, just 30 minutes north of London. Not bad for a countryside hotel, no wonder it has been voted the Hotel of the Year 2020 by the London magazine Times. Apart from the many cool indoor and outdoor spaces (and bars) where you can meet people or simply hang out, there are several workshops (glassblowing, pottery, bread making), a yoga room, a cinema, an on-site organic farm and a wellness space. The original features of this 1763 Georgian mansion were preserved and not overwhelmed by the furniture which is a wonderful selection of functional pieces that range from trendy vintage to the more modern. The interior was curated by the architect studio Red Deer, run by founders Chris King and Chris Penn.

(Photos by Adam Firman, courtesy of The Birch)

in Arts+ Crafts, Furniture, Interiors, Ispiration

Masculine, zen and original

25 November 2020
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sergey manho, plusdeco blog, plusdeco, ukrainian architecture, zen architect, kiev aparments, kiev manho apartment, kiev modern houses, manho studio, +deco blo, plusdecoblog, architettura manho, architettura kiev

The Wabi Sabi Apartment by Ukrainian architect Sergey Makhno presents so many layers of interpretation that focusing on the fact that the project brings together Japanese aesthetics and Ukrainian traditions seems to be reductive. The penthouse in Kiev, designed for the architect’s family, puts together successfully earthy elements (branches, clay walls), industrial features (concrete ceilings, a grey stern kitchen, a metal bed), natural details (the vertical garden, the bonsai plants), more decorative choices (the green in the kids bedroom, the back and white tiles in one of the bathroom) and numerous interesting pieces of furniture.

Wabi Sabi Apartment is very masculine, very zen and very original at the same time; it is very urban and very Japanese but full of Ukrainian artistic taste’s references.

Images courtesy of Sergey Makhno

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