Bloggers' favorites...
So finally… here is a new weekend read… I know it has been a while… but there are more in the making! This one is about bloggers’ favorites… I thought it would be nice to have people who spend their days thinking and writing about everything that has to do with design to share their ideas with us… so I asked some of my favorite bloggers to tell us more about their own favorites… I hope you enjoy this to start off the weekend!
lege regel
...Elena's 5 favorites; Labour of heart*
...favorite flower: " When I think about flowers, I think about Bloom! The magazine edited by trends guru Li Edelkoort is inspiring for creative people and for everyone who likes nature."
...favorite furniture piece: "My favourite furniture piece is the Polder sofa by Hella Jongerius for Vitra. I love the asymmetric cushions, the different materials and colors of the upholstery, the buttons. In short, I love the Polder sofa because, in my opinion, it is the only boxy sofa that is not “cold”."
...favorite pair of shoes: "I’ve recently found Galogaza. Petra Galogaza creates shoes, bags and accessories. I’ve fallen in love with white leather shoes collection from s/s 2006."
...favorite mid-century designers: "Charles and Ray Eames: I love the couple’s synergy in different
creative fields: furniture design, exhibition design, film making,
children toys, houses. In every field, they succeeded in creating
something excellent. I love the photo above: it is simply fabulous!"
...favorite city: "My
favourite cities are two: New York and Amsterdam. New York for the
inspirations you can find everywhere. Amsterdam because it is a town
with the mind of a big town, but with the way of life of a little town."
lege regel
...Grace's 8 favorites; Design*Sponge
...favorite city: "This
is an easy one for me: Savannah, Georgia. There's a line from the movie
"Sleepless in Seattle" where Tom Hanks describes touching the hand of
late-wife as, "...coming home, only to no home I'd ever known before."
That's how I feel about Savannah. From the second I landed there
everything felt l like home. The smell of jasmine in the air, the years
of Southern history tucked behind every door- I knew it would be a city
I called home at some point."
...favorite fabric or wallpaper artist: "Right
now it's a tie between Madeline Weinrib and the Hable Construction
girls. I love the femininity of their work and the way they each play
with color and texture in their textiles."
...favorite fashion piece or shoes : "Loeffler
Randall flats. Pref. in yellow. I've fully embraced my diminutive
stature so flats are all I wear. Especially when you have to do so much
walking in NY. Heels just won't do."
...favorite flower: "Peonies. No flower looks quite so happy to see you- all those layers and layers of pink fluffy petals. They're definitely the happiest flower around."
...favorite furniture piece: "This
is another weekly change for me. But for right now I'd have to say I
love this vintage Kofod Larsen rocking chair I got from Modhaus in
Boston ( modhaus.com). The rocking chair has the sweetest wooden back
that curves to meet you as you sit. I dressed it up with a bit of Hable Construction fabric called "Fig"."
...favorite interior design book: "Oh man- It's tough to choose a favorite design book. It's like a favorite color- they change with the week for me. But my favorite right now would have to be "20th Century Pattern Design". I find so much inspiration from pattern and this book has a really fantastic collection."
...favorite mid-century designers: " I know this is a boring answer but Charles and Ray Eames. But really, their influence over design can't be overstated. Well at least their influence over my personal taste can't. Their clean lines and simple forms really taught me to simplify things at home."
...favorite type house: " My favorite type of home? I'd have to say something old with lots of character. Whether that's a painted lady in San Francisco, an old bronwnstone in Brooklyn or a plantation home in Georgia- I don't care. I just like my homes to have some history to them. Clean and modern is beautiful but it never quite feels like home to me."
lege regel
...Kelly's 5 favorites; Hoping for Happy Accidents
...favorite type house: "i love small, simple houses and am fascinated by vernacular architecture (particularly amish communities and farming communities in the midwest). more recently, i have been really inspired by the home of aino and alvar aalto in finland. the contrast between the painted white brick and the dark wooden siding is really beautiful and inside it represents the perfect meeting of cozy and warm with modern and utilitarian."
...favorite mid-century designer: "i like a lot of the work of finn juhl - particularly his work from the late 40’s and early 50’s. his work continues to look current and the shapes are inviting and interesting."
...favorite pair of shoes : "I’ve had these peep-toes from varda on my wishlist for some time and have visited them often in the shop. They’re extraordinarily well-made and classic, plus I love the contrast of the gray canvas with nude leather trim. they make a black suede version that’s really nice too."
...favorite interior design book: "I’m not really into books specifically on interior design. i haven’t found one yet that i really really love ,“ probably because my design inspiration usually comes from rather unlikely and unexpected sources. however, i do like some of the lifestyle books that are out there from japanese publishers, like margaret howell houses. also, i often find myself returning to pictures from the catalog and website of the japanese company, truck."
...favorite fabric artist: "i love the textile designer anki spets and her company area home. i’m always drawn to the patterns and textures in the products in her line and the quality is extremely high. Anki on her design philosophy: “Design has to work, not just look good. Good design stems from a real and in-depth understanding of the task at hand, not from imposing an aesthetic point of view. I always aim to create useful designs that are visually attractive, but more importantly are satisfying to the people who use them. I don’t have a didactic outlook. My customers have and should have their own sense of style and individuality.” i could not agree more."
lege regel
...Loraine's 5 favorites; Grijs
...favorite interior design book: "This book is very much on my mind : SANAA houses via Actar."
...favorite 'flower': "Since last summer I'm into herbs left one is Valerian right one is Spanish Mint.
They give beautiful tiny flowers...the valerian gives white flowers and the mint is preparing him/herself for it, but the beauty of herbs is that they don't need it to be beautiful."
...favorite fashion piece: "Most of my favorites are already on grijs so I thought I'd show you some new things....at least to me. This outfit is from the fall collection by Marni via Elle."
...favorite textile design: "This is such a cool (textile ) design...i'm talking about the table cloth. Designed by Maurice Scheltens. The technique he used is called a photogram. For Droogdesign."
...favorite city: "My favorite ciy is Antwerp .The first time I visited Antwerp was about 10 years ago and I fell in love with it immediately.....that means it's hard to explain. I can also remember where it happend....it was about 10 minutes before we entered the central station. It just felt like coming home. It's a stereo picture from the 30's."
lege regel
...Pethra's 5 favorites; Inredningsbloggen
...favorite furniture piece: "A few years ago I walked into a interior and furniture shop with my mother. We walked around for a while and when it was time to go my mother couldn´t find me... After a while she saw me standing behind a red Corona chair (by Paul Volther) , my face glowed as if I had seen angels. It was the first time I saw this chair and it was love at first sight. But, (and that´s a big but) I couldn´t afford it. Time passed and I kept dreaming of one day owning a red Corona with fotstool. To celebrate my 40th birthday I had a party at home and was superbusy preparing for the guests arriving, when the doorbell rang an hour BEFORE they were supposed to arrive. I felt extremely stressed, opened the door and there was my mother, the biggest smile on her face, while some men carried my birthday gift inside. A shining new red Corona with footstool... I am almost 43 now and still my heart beats faster when I look at my chair. Everlasting love. (PS I later found out that the Corona was designed 1964, the year I was born, now THAT must be a sign, right?)"
...favorite city: "One of the first places that come to my mind is Malacca, in Malaysia. I lived in Malaysia for five years, in a small town called Port Dickson, and I loved to drive down to Malacca on my own once in a while, strolling around for hours. A mix of cultures, antique shops, Charles Chams gallery (the Orangutan house), museums, the different temples, great food etc. Aaaaaghhh, lucky you Irene, living in K.L. now, being able to take a daytour to Malacca whenever you feel like it!"
...favorite type house : " From this to …this! My boyfriend and I have a dream/plan of building a new house on the countryside, when the children have left home. We want a white plastered house in "new functional style". I also have a great love for the typical Swedish style; old wooden houses, red with white corners."
...favorite book & fabric artist: "Book about interior design/ Fabric or Wallpaper designer.
They go together, since I love Tricia Guild/Designers Guild and can sit and look at the pictures in her books and get lost in the exquisite design and beauty. I know of no one who can mix colours and patterns the way she can. I don´t want a full house with Designers Guild products, but I have a pillow that I love (also a gift from my mother, she understands my love for design...) and would not mind some more."
...favorite flower: "Peonies. What to say, except they make me feel happy and my house is filled with them when they are in season in our garden. Beautiful, beautiful. Since I dont want to cut long stems when there are new buds coming, I often make arrangements with shorts stems like in the picture to the left."
lege regel
...Maryam's 9 favorites; MoroccanMaryam
My inspirations are so varied, and change from day to day. They are also full sensory: the smell of evening jasmine, the sound of the call to prayer in Marrakech, the rub of old Moroccan sabra fabric. But I include a few other inspirations here.
...letters and numbers: I am fascinated by letters and numbers, and I have a good collection of letterprint blocks and some old brass stencils. I love numbers and letters on objects, like porcelain, boxes, and cloth."
...floating flowers/turquoise pottery: I have been collecting vintage Moroccan pottery in shades of sea green and turquoise, a piece here a piece there. I like to turn them into impromptu fountains by floating flowers in them."
...travel photography and tribal jewelry: Black and white travel photography - the more exotic the better, from a century old to contemporary. I buy pieces whenever I can afford them. I also adore tribal jewelry and wear it as well. I have some wonderful pieces from Nagaland to Benin."
...lanterns and candle light: Marrakech is filled with lanterns and I am still as enchanted by them today, as I was when I saw them here years ago. I especially like those that are pierced so the light comes through in tantalizing patterns."
...hands: This borders on obsession. I have been collecting vintage porcelain glove molds for almost 10 years and I now have 28 (~gasp ). I also collect hands of all kinds, bronze, wood, steel. So beautiful, especially in groups."
...old embroideries: I am obsessed with embroideries and old applique work, which I have collected over many years. For my guesthouse, each room has its own suzani and I am also planning ceiling paintings inspired by suzanis."
...henna: I love the intricate designs of henna. Here in Marrakech, women wear such beautiful henna designs on their hand and feet, and I am wanting to incorporate elements of henna in our home."
...peacocks: I am amazed by these creatures. They are so stunning, and I have nine in my Moroccan garden. I have named the guest house that we are building after them - Peacock Pavilions."
...Asian art: I lived and traveled in Asia for many years for my work and find Asian art to be a great counterfoil to Moroccan art. When we lived in Nepal, I bought 12 pieces of antique Tibetan furniture - from altar tables to chests."
lege regel
...Irene's 5 favorites; Bloesem
...favorite furniture piece: "Our 4 chocolate brown eames chairs with … our very first purchase of contemporary furniture and they have traveled with us all over the world… always pack them myself to make sure they stay in one piece… I guess these chairs mark the beginning of a putting together my own private museum for my home… but Hella Jongerius polder sofa is high on the wish list!"
...favorite type house: "Hmmm… this would be a prefab wooden bungalow… contemporary style… straight lines, not too many curves or rooms that make you feel boxed in.. doesn’t have to be huge… but living and kitchen flowing over into a garden with lots of bamboo would be a must…."
...favorite flower: " Poppy or ‘papaver’ in Dutch… fragile, almost like thin paper, beautiful and independent flower… I love the soft colors… just 5 solo poppies in a long vase… looks absolutely gorgeous!(image by Ron van Donge)"
...favorite city: "NY has been life changing for me… living there gave me confidence and freedom to express myself… a great trigger to pursue my dreams… but I am in love with both the new and old Amsterdam, and walking along the canals in the Jordaan area I know this will always be my hometown… In NY the twin towers were my beacons, proud symbols of a very special place on earth that captured my heart and imagination… I now find myself in another city with beautiful twin towers… could this be coincidence…(image of the Archives in Greenwich Village where we used to live)"
...favorite interior design book & mid-century designers: "This the first book I bought when we were living in NY (already 7 years ago!) and started out as a free lance graphic designer looking for inspiration… 'Robin & Lucienne Day by Lesley Jackson'...the first snowflakes I illustrated where inspired by the stars on fabrics designed by Lucienne Day… so many beautiful images in this book… also read the story about Lucienne’s and Robin’s lives and how they built their careers… it is really amazing! I did a post about them already some time ago, here it is for your reference."
Dear *Loraine, *Pethra, *Kelly, *Grace, *Elena and *Maryam, thank you all so much for contributing to this weekend read! I very much enjoyed reading about your favorites!
What an inspirational & wonderful "read" to jumpstart the weekend! I too, think peonies, are a beautiful flower and Bloom Magazine is a unique place to pick up on trends. Thank you, Irene.
Posted by: mk wong | July 20, 2007 at 12:31 AM
Oh wowza. Everyone has such beautiful favorites! Thank you so much for asking me to join in on your round up!
Posted by: maryam in marrakesh | July 20, 2007 at 10:01 AM
really fantastic. i will peek at this over and over this weekend. thank you.
Posted by: mav | July 20, 2007 at 10:45 AM
Ahhh, what a lovely round-up from some of my favourite bloggers. I was genuinely touched by what some of us have in common, if not specific things at least the passion about them. Irene, how precious you are with your Eames chairs- I'm the same. There's not much of a design heritage here in Ireland so I had to buy mine overseas and I have a terrible affection for them. And I also love the polder sofa (who couldn't)..
When I saw Grace's description of her favourite city it summed up exactly how I felt about my favourite place, which ironically is Brooklyn. I'd never been anywhere else that I felt as at home in until I visited Brooklyn. Having visited tons of city in Europe and never felt a strong bond, it was both surprising and comforting that somewhere so far from home could make me feel that way (Maybe it's cos I'm a L'il Kim fan, who knows).. Lovely weekend read, thanks so much x
Posted by: zee | July 20, 2007 at 10:55 PM
Heerlijk, ik sluit je blog nu af omdat ik er de tijd voor wil nemen. Je levert me een geweldig vooruitzicht voor dit weekend. Mmmmmmm!!!!!!!!!
Posted by: neeltje | July 21, 2007 at 05:01 AM
Thank you for the link to Robin and Lucienne Day's book--now I'll be sure to get my copy of it--seeing how I love designs from that era. :)
Posted by: Amy | July 21, 2007 at 06:37 AM
A nother fantastic read Irene...Loved Kellys description of favourite type of house and the link to Truck is fab!!
Also loved Loraines choice of herbs!
Thank you for putting this together. xx
Posted by: julie | July 21, 2007 at 07:21 AM
What a treat. Thanks Irene for getting these inspiring people to give us a peek into their lives.
Posted by: heather moore | July 21, 2007 at 12:50 PM
man, that's an incredible bunch reading and gazing! thanks so much, everyone!
Posted by: jen j-m | July 21, 2007 at 01:01 PM
This is excellent, Irene! it's filled with ladies with great tastes, definitely a treat! Thanks, Irene.
Posted by: imelda | July 24, 2007 at 10:30 AM
Thanks for asking! I just came back from Gotland, on the Swedish east coast. It was my first visit there, and I am in love! I deifinately have to add Visby as a favourite city, I want to live and die there. (PS I was wrong, the Corona was designed in 1961, not 1964...)
Posted by: Pethra på Inredningsbloggen | July 25, 2007 at 01:20 AM
beautiful round up. what a wonderful collection of inspiration.
Posted by: susan | July 25, 2007 at 08:09 AM
fantastic round up, thank you!!!
Posted by: melanie | July 25, 2007 at 12:17 PM
Oh Irene this is a wonderful roundup, you did a beautiful job on it and I loved reading all of them - each one was really great. I especially enjoyed Maryam's, as she is a friend of mine and I feel I got to know her a little better now because of this entry. It was also nice reading your favorites to, of course!
Holly
Posted by: decor8 holly | July 25, 2007 at 11:34 PM
Goed gedaan, zusje! Was weer heerlijk om te lezen en wat een schat aan informatie. Liefs, Ellen
Posted by: ellen | July 26, 2007 at 05:48 PM
I really enjoyed reading this, you do the most informative weekend reads! Thanks for the round-ups from some very talented design-conscious ladies, fabulous picks from everyone...I'm sure I'll be revisiting again in the near future.
Posted by: cruststation | August 07, 2007 at 07:16 AM
love this site! mega inspiring!!
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