Lovingetc: January 2011

Sorry I’m late with my Sarah 101 recap – I’ll have it for you soon!

I fell a bit behind with my magazine reading over the holidays – actually, I was already behind before the holidays, and now I’m even more behind! But here it is, the January 2011 installment of Lovingetc.

If you’re new to JAX does design, Lovingetc is a once-a-month feature where I post about  some of my favourite things from the UK home decor magazine, Livingetc. Sources and prices are included wherever possible, although I don’t know if all companies ship to North America. But Lovingetc is as much about inspiration as it is about shopping :-)

I have to start by saying that I LOVE the cover of the January 2011 issue (click the image for a larger version). The architectural detailing and herringbone flooring in the room are fabulous, and love the colours – can’t go wrong with grey, purple, and chartreuse!

OK, so here we go…

1. I am TOTALLY diggin’ Mrs. Murphy’s Tatto’d Sailor – it’s such a fun & cheeky pattern :-) It comes in either a white or grey colourway, and is available as fabric, cushions, various kitchen items, and even a lamp shade. You can learn more about Mrs. Murphy here. The product line is carried by Mairo in Sweden. “A Sailor is not a Sailor, til a Sailor’s been tatto’d”. 

2. Is this not the cutest nutcracker ever?! It’s the Scoiattolo from Alessi and is the creation of Italian designer Andrea Branzi. If you want to buy him, he’ll cost you a lot more than peanuts – he’s $120.00 US at Unica Home.   

3. And what goes better with a squirrel nutcracker than an acorn card placeholder? It’s available from Habitat in the UK, although I can’t find it on their web site. They do have a matching acorn napkin ring, though – set of 4 on sale for £6.00.

 

4.  Smile! It’s the Happy Happy Bow, designed by Stephen Johnson! I love this description of the Happy Happy line of products:

The new ‘Happy Happy’ range continues his interest in designing products of no physical use-value. The range is about design's ability to exist purely for the psychological, aside to our more commonly perceived physical needs. ‘Happy Happy’ is a range of products designed to make you happy, and it’s as simple as that!

And also designed to make quite a hole in your pocket. This big aluminium metal bow {it’s 80cm / 31.5”} comes with a big price tag – a whopping £1,840.00 from Shop at the Savoy.

5. This is such a great look. The Edland linen cabinet from Ikea is painted a brilliant blue, and the interior is covered with bright green flocking. Now THAT is a seriously cool & colourful Ikea hack! {Edland linen cabinet is $499.00 CAD}

6. The London Shade from Lush Designs is £48.00 and comes in a variety of colours and two design options – with or without a drowned lady. Seriously – read about it here. Corpse aside, it’s a fun and funky design, and a great way to inject a touch of whimsy into a room.

I absolutely love letters and words used in interior design. Here are four fantastic ways to add both functional and decorative word art to your home…

7. From Andrew Martin in the UK come these super-cool alphabet side tables. There’s one for every letter, and all are about 18” high and 20” deep. Depending on how many side tables you need in a room, you could have a really fun game of Scrabble or that game where you shake up a bunch of letter dice and spell words that I can’t for the life of me remember! If you know the game I’m talking about, please leave a comment and tell me!8. Speaking of Scrabble, check out these fun Scrabble Cushions by the letteroom and available at Not on the High Street. {Added bonus that they’re displayed on a purple sofa!} They’re made from unbleached organic cream cotton, and are available individually or in sets that spell PEACE, DREAM LOVE, HOPE, and HOME. {£17.50 each}

9. I don’t know how comfortable the Dharma Lounge is, but it definitely makes a statement in a room – literally! STAND FORGE BREATHE ACKNOWLEDGE OBSERVE. And may I just toot my patriotic horn here and say YEAH CANADA, because these super-cool chairs are the creation of Palette Industries in Calgary, Alberta. WOOT! According to their web site, they’ve completed their limited run of their studio edition of the Dharma Lounge, and are looking for manufacturers to bring it to a larger audience. Fingers crossed someone picks it up!

10.  And finally, my very favourite item from the January 2011 issue. I absolutely LOVE the concept behind this artwork from Spineless Classics in the UK. They take a literary classic and print the entire book, from first word to last, on a poster. Beyond cool! Prices range from £24.99 for a single page poster, to £219.99 for the five-page The Complete Works of William Shakespeare. I’m seriously considering buying The Hound of the Baskervilles {fingers crossed they ship to Canada}:

Can you guess what book this is?

Did you see anything here that inspired a design project? Leave a comment and let me know! The next installment of Lovingetc will be in early February :-)