Ferm Living Autumn/Winter 2011

Our favourite Scandi brand have finally unveiled their A/W collection, and it's LOVELY.

The Danish company photographed their products in the forest creating a beautiful and natural setting. Here's what they had to say about why they chose this location:
''The raw nature was the perfect backdrop for our universe of strong graphic lines and honest materials like wood, wool, organic cotton, leather, cork and paper.'' (Ferm Living 2011)

The collection has some new elements and some revamped classics. The signature harlequin print is back and it's darker tones make for some striking pieces. Look at that 'Spear' wallpaper below. It creates such a statement wall.

Their wall stickers are also back with some fun new designs. Although these always tread a fine line between cool and tacky for me, Ferm Living always seem to get it just right. The rain cloud is a lot of fun and children will love it. Best of all, you can just peel it off the wall when you are ready for a change again!

Well, it wouldn't be a High Street Home post if I didn't mention the cushions would it? And these new pieces are just lovely with the subtle mixture of graphic prints. I can see them lazily scattered on a bed. Overall, what a lovely collection. The mauves, deep pinks and greys create a moody atmosphere, perfect for the approaching season. Makes me want to reach for my blanket and Ovaltine.

{All images: Ferm Living}

Bringing the Outside in...

Don't you just LOVE this wooden bookshelf tree by Olivier Dollé?

Mixing traditional craft with contemporary design, French designer Olivier creates pieces that are both beautiful and functional. This bookshelf comes in either oak (main photos) or walnut veneer (bottom right) and would make a unique focal point for any living space. It would even look good without the books, as a piece of wall art. To learn more about Olivier, please visit his website where you can see more examples of his work and see what he's up to now.

If your budget can't quite stretch to a designer piece but you still love the idea of bringing the outdoors in, why not have a go at this DIY project I came across whilst browsing Poppytalk?

Made by one of Poppytalk's readers, this DIY project will be cheap and lots of fun! Although it is a family tree, I think that you could swap the photo frames for coat hooks and hang jackets, hats and umbrellas on. Perfect for a hallway! The tree is cut free-hand from self-adhesive cork and frames (or hooks) can be picked up cheaply from car boots and charity shops. Why not have a go? Click here to see the full project, then start making!

{Images 1-4, Olivier Dollé. Image 5, Poppytalk}

9 of the Best... Armchairs

We all love our Eames and our Bertoia chairs, but sometimes, after a long day, all you want to do is just collapse into a squishy armchair by the fire, right? So I have put together my pick of the best comfy (but still stylish) armchairs out there at the minute. One of them costs over £4000 however (eek!), but can you guess which one?

1. Little Moo, John Lewis, £999
2. Mr Bright, John Lewis, £899
3. Astrid Posey, Anthropologie, £1298
4. Stockholm (in Blad Brown), Ikea, £239
5. Oslo, Dwell, £399
6. Alberton Leather, Laura Ashley, price on request
7. Vitra Heart Cone Chair by Verner Panton, Heals, £2064
8. Quilt armchair, Established and Sons, Nest, £4260
9. Bump, John Lewis, £1400

Did you guess right? Pricey, yes, but just look how COMFORTABLE it looks! I want to collapse into it now! (You may be able to tell that I am writing this post after a very exhausting day at work!)
My personal favourite from the selection is the cowhide chair from John Lewis. I really like this as the cowhide print will suit most interior styles (it would suit my fairly industrial style apartment and it wouldn't look out of place in a country style decor either) and it gives the room a statement piece without taking over the room. It doesn't scream 'look at me!' but is a gorgeous piece to swoon over at the same time.
Although armchairs in general are quite expensive, I do think they are a investment piece that will be part of your home for a long time. They are comfortable, practical and will last forever. You can even reupholster most chairs if you get bored of the colour or pattern.
Which one do you like the best?

Etsy Find: Holli

It seems I have a thing for illustration. I didn't know this before I started my blog, but most of my Etsy Finds seem to be shops specialising in beautiful illustration work, and I can't get enough of it. Today I came across Holli, a little shop ran by Paola Zakimi from Argentina. Paola loves painting in watercolour and has a passion for dolls, something that is referenced regularly in her work. She has over 500 pieces for sale, so why not grab a cuppa and have a look through her site, I'm sure there will be something that inspires you today.

Isn't her work just stunning? So ethereal. I love the emotion Paola captures in her work through the fixed gaze of the subjects. The sketchy, almost unfinished style emphasizes this. Paola has lots of different styles to her artwork: playful (as seen in her animal illustrations here), whimsical and ethereal (above) and dark and melancholic, which you can see from the more sombre illustrations below.

Which are your favourites? The animal illustrations are just so cute they would look perfect in a nursery. I like the ethereal illustrations the most I think, though it's hard to choose. I think they would look lovely framed and sat on a hallway side table. Hope you've enjoyed my Etsy Find as much as I have, let me know what you think!

{All images: Holli via Etsy}

Sibella Court's China Town Apartment

Hi guys, how was your weekend? Mine was spent watching repeats of The Antiques Road Trip (great show) and eating in the tiny Hand and Heart restaurant in Nottingham, so was lovely all round! What did you get up to?
I thought I would start the week with a particularly lovely house tour from New York. This gorgeous little apartment is home to stylist Sibella Court and is located in central China Town. The loft apartment was converted from an old textile workshop and the tin ceiling and metal pipes have been kept as a reminder of this. Sibella has also referenced the immediate area in which she lives with lots of Chinese paper lanterns clustered together. Lets have a nosy around.

I particularly like (and am slightly jealous of!) her vintage collection of butterflies above her chest of draws. She has so many and has displayed them beautifully.
The predominant colours throughout the apartment are white and green which provide a cool, airy feel. Sibella has teemed antique green feature pieces (chest of draws, vintage wallpaper) with plain white walls which help make features of the accent pieces rather than distract from them.

The apartment is a treasure chest of well curated pieces. I love the freshness of the plain white walls and exposed pipework mixed with lots of antique pieces. There are a lot of things on display but somehow it still doesn't look cluttered.

Overall a beautiful, creative space which has given me lots of ideas for my own place. If you want to find out more about Sibella, have a look at her website for her Australian store, The Society Inc, a truly creative project. Sibella has also published two books: Etcetera and The Stylist's Guide to NYC, both are certainly worth a read.

{All images: House to Home}

Yarn Bombing

Hello there! Who's up for a bit of knitting inspiration this Sunday morning?
A few weeks ago I stumbled across some images of a knitted tree and started researching what this could possibly mean (as you might imagine, I was quite confused). It turns out that there is an international phenomenon called 'yarn bombing' whereby textile artists knit and crochet around, well, everything and anything. The movement has been credited to Magda Sayeg of Knitta Please, a knit graffiti group. Magda shares her groups projects via her blog of the same name and they get up to some seriously cool stuff. Look at these for starters.

Follow Magda's projects over at her blog, Knitta Please. One of her latest commissions was at Etsy HQ in Brooklyn, have a peek at what her team got up to here, and here. It's not just Texas-based Knitta Please that's in on the action though so keep an eye out for some knit graffiti near you. And if you happen to come across any, let me know!

Have a fun weekend, see you back here on Monday.

{All Images: Knitta Please (except image 1, Apartment Therapy}

Write a Bike

Okay, I know it wasn't that long ago I was lusting after a Beg Bicycle, but look what I've found now! These are so beyond amazing I really don't know what to say about them, apart from WOW. I wonder if he can make a 'Laura'?

For all those romantics out there, Juri has even designed a tandem. However, having recently been on an 11-mile ride on one of these, I can assure you that they are much harder work than they look, even on the back! But with one of these at least you'll look good.

The bikes are the work of Juri Zaech, a Swiss art director currently living in Paris. Unfortunately the bikes are only in the initial stages of design and are not currently for sale. Juri is currently working on a way to produce a prototype of one of the bikes. Fingers crossed all goes well so we can buy one of these personalised beauties! I discovered Juri's work via the Behance Network, a platform for creative professionals to showcase and discover creative work. Check it out, you'll find some interesting stuff ranging from photography, jewellery and art.
If these haven't inspired you to go on a bike ride this weekend, I don't know what will! It's going to be sunny too!

Happy Friday! x

{All Images: Juri Zaech via Behance Network}

My Other Home...

Hi everyone! Hope you are all well? I'm afraid I've been neglecting my blog somewhat the last few weeks, there just seems so much to do but so little time! But I promise I will get back to some serious blogging action soon! For those of you that follow High Street Home, you'll know that I now write a weekly column on the Natural History blog which has been keeping me busy for the last few weeks. If you have been following my posts, a big hug and 'thank you's' are coming your way, I really appreciate the support! But for those of you that are new to my blog, here's a little round up of what I've been getting up to at my other 'home'. Click on the links to see the full post over at Natural History. Be sure to check out the rest of the blog too as there are some brilliant contributors with some really exciting topics being covered!

Antique Chests

http://naturalhistory.typepad.com/blog/2011/07/antique-chests.html

Introducing... The Bucket Tree

http://naturalhistory.typepad.com/blog/2011/07/introducing-the-bucket-tree.html

Botanical print tiles

http://naturalhistory.typepad.com/blog/2011/07/botanical-print-tiles.html

To see what I've been writing about and where you can buy all the lovely things pictured above, click on the links! Thank you for your support everyone xxx