Beyond the Fridge

Quite recently, I was looking around for a decent memo board (to no avail). I ended up with an awful standard-issue cork one (which after seeing these is probably going to get put on FreeCycle). Beyond the Fridge take the humble memo board and make it into a work of art! These magnetic boards are made from durable steel and have a high gloss finish. Actually it seems a shame to cover them up with anything so banal as a shopping list. For a bit of fun, take a peek at their lovely Gallery slide show which displays them so nicely.

Coffee Pot

Millefiori on Black

Utensils Red

Wim Delvoye

I absolutely love these sculptures by Belgian Artist & vegetarian tatooist of pigs Wim Delvoye. He makes Gothic style Caterpillars and trucks made out of laser cut steel shapes (if you look closely at the top two sculptures you can see that he has incorporated Gothic cathedral interiors into them). The bottom sculpture is a cement truck fashioned from carved teak wood, incredible! Check out the amazing website of Wim Delvoye and take a tour round Wim City; the below sculptures can be found in the "Gothic Works".

Don't get caught out...

...like poor old Harold below; just remember that the clocks go back this Sunday in the UK. Thank you to the guys at Habitat for mentioning this in their newsletter today and thus saving me from at least one of my twice yearly les faux pas GMT!

Harold Lloyd in Safety Last (1923)

Fornasetti Room Fragrance

Here's an early morning Monday treat for you! Any Pargy regulars will know about my love of Fornasetti, so you can only imagine how overjoyed I was to find that there is now a room fragrance range: which also includes very beautiful ceramic encased candles and also insence sticks (or josticks to you and I). Take a peek at the beautiful Fornasetti fragrance site and dream away!

New Niki Jones Catalogue

I was very happy this weekend to look in my letterbox and find the new Niki Jones catalogue; full of very bright and beautiful ojects to brighten up the home! I'm particularly partial to the below spice jars, which to be quite honest do look a bit like something you might keep a dead relative in, but when you see them all grouped like this they are so stunning. I was also going to mention how much I adore the below Christmas tree baubles, but it's only October, and hence way too early to mention!

Kate Spade coming to the UK soon!

...well soonish anyway (Spring 2011 to be exact), but here is a preview of some of the best stuff (I think) on the US webstore. Kate Spade is a tres stylish New York operation and the pics below have a bit of a "Breakfast at Tiffanys" feel to them don't you think? Perfect way to get rid of the mean reds!

Damien Hirst prints @ Collette

Most people don't actually think of Damien Hirst's work as "pretty". Rather the image usually conjured up is that of a shark floating in a tank of formaldehyde from the "Sensation" days (Art critic Robert Hughes famously called this piece "the world's most over-rated marine organism"). I personally have always felt that Hirst has a keen design eye and often uses a very feminine palette. And as if further proof were needed I saw these amazing signed litho prints on cool French site Collette today. The top two are also encased in a wooden box frame with floated artwork and UV plexi glass. Incredibly beautiful.

Beautiful Inside my Head Forever 2009 (Grey)
331.10 x 233.8 inches

Beautiful Inside my Head Forever 2009 (Pink)
331.10 x 233.8 inches

The Death of God 2009
331.10 X 233.8 inches

Happy Friday!

And for a bit of fun, here's a fantastic brand that I came across at about 6.00am this morning (!!!!) - The wonderfully wacky Blue Q is an American company that designs and manufactures all of its' own products. They're also an ethical company that don't animal test and use 94% recyclable materials for their bags.

More Dash than Cash!

It's official - I love Peacocks. It's so barginously cheap, but the design is really rather good! Firstly you have the incredible Evie and Pearl Lowe ranges, and then there's the shoes! (I have one pair that I got in their sale two years ago for £6.00 and I still wear them all the time). We're all a bit skint at this time of the month, so I thought I'd post some of my favourite pieces form their current online collection, which seem to have a bit of a forties vibe about them! Total cost of all featured items £79.00!!!!!!!!!

Manolo Blahnik signing at Liberty - Today!

Yes indeedy. The man himself will be at Liberty of London this evening from 6-00 till 8-00 pm, and will be signing copies of his new book 'Manolo’s New Shoes', published by Thames & Hudson. Event takes place on the ground floor - enjoy!

Marimekko Jewellery

I've always been a big fan of Finnish textile giants Marimekko, and was very happy to discover that they also have a jewellery range which is true to the spirit of their bold aesthetics. Check out the below picture of various items in the Peukku, Salkopapu and Auer ranges. I believe that Heals online stock the Peukku range in this country!

Weird but Cool!

Today I've decided to do a new tag, "Weird but Cool", which does what it says on the tin, i.e. showcases some of the cutest "Out There" stuff I can find on the web!
First up is this amazing suitcase chair from South African designer/ recycling extraordinaire Katie Thompson. All the pieces that Sarah creates are in fact, one offs - so you do need to get in there quite quickly! You can clearly see in this photo that the craftsmanship of this piece of furniture is first rate, even if it does have great novelty value!

Then, how about these incredible lamps, new to Rockett St George, from Abigail Ahern. To my mind they look like they've waddled straight out of an Edward Lear poem!

Customised KMixers!

This is a great project from Kenwood and the Make-A-Wish Foundation. There are 6 mixers to choose from. Below are my particular favourites (althought they are all lovely). Top mixer by the Conran Shop, followed by the street fashion label PPQ and luxury jeweller, Stephen Webster. Check out the above Kenwood link to be taken to the auction page for each mixer and support this very worthy cause!

The B28 Floating Hotel

OK, I know what you're thinking, crazy girl , why is she showing me pictures of a floating hotel in Amsterdam in October?! Truth is, I only found this the other day whilst routing through some old newspaper supplements, and when I saw the design of this place, I immediately thought wow, I must share! Anyway, I'm sure it's fully heated (although I'm totally prepared to freeze for the sake of good design if it's not!) This floating hotel, or houseboat, was originally a sailing barge and as you can see from the below photos, the interior has been designed to a very high spec. I've put a photo at the bottom, for nostalgic reasons, to show you how the vessel originally looked! On a practical note, the B28 is located very near to Amsterdam's Centraal Station and the rates are very reasonable (so I know where I'm going on holiday next year)! Find out more here!

New Orla Kiely Radio!!!

First there was the Cath Kidston & Roberts collaboration, but now there's a new kid on the block, the Orla Kiely & Evoke Mio Radio! And not only does it look great, but it's digital, it's ipod compatible, it has a USB socket! If this makes you go radio GaGa, you'll be very pleased to learn that it hits the shops in November (exclusive to John Lewis).

Holly Fulton @ Smythson

Big thank you to those peeps who left really nice comments about the recent Holly Fulton post, and so here's a bit of a treat for you! Ms Fulton must be on quite a few radars at the moment as I spotted the below diary she designed for posh stationers Smythson at Grazia Daily. This range hasn't hit the shops as yet, but I've also added some pictures from the Smythson blog. It would seem that Sam Cam, who is Artistic Advisor for the brand, has been doing her job very well indeed!

Pop Cakes!

Shoe designer Patrick Cox has been taking a bit of a sabbatical lately and trying his hand at being a cake designer (yes, you did hear me correctly). However this venture requires less of a leap of imagination when you see the incredible cakes themselves, which are be-topped with edible Warhol-Marilyns, Dali-lips and chocolate pop-skulls! Made by renowned Patissier Eric Lanlard, I have it on good authority that the Marilyn cakes are especially yummy (post typed whilst trying to get crumbs out of space bar). Head to Cox, Cookie & Cake @ 13 Brewer Street London to "test" for yourself.

Return of the Retro Phone!

I don't know about you, but I'm done with over-priced grey digital combi phones from Argos. I welcome the return of classic retro telephones. The Princess Phone (pictured middle) was the original! It was designed in the States in the late 50's and was primarily aimed at the female market. It's the kind of phone that that you might use whilst reclining on a chaise Longue in filigree negligee and pink fluffy mules! The box for this is also gorgeous - almost as desirable as the phone itself!

The TrimPhone (top two pictures) is a slightly later UK design (early sixties) and much more masculine in feel. The re-issue of these phones come in a vast array of colours and will go with pretty much any home colour scheme. And then, of course, there is the much beloved 706 table telephone, which most of us will have used at some time or another in our lives. They were the main telephones in use from the 60s to the 80's (I especially love the below red one, which looks like it has been ripped from the Bat Cave!) Obviously these new issues have a different technology behind them (digital and not analogue), but they add something wonderful to a room instead of just being functional! Good selection available from Bloomsbury & Co.