Fabulous kitchenware items to set your culinary juices flowing …

1.  Duck Feet Egg Cups £11.50

2.  Cookbook Holder £19.00

3.  Colombian Tajine £27.50

4.  Wine Glass Holder £10.50

5.  Large Oven Serving Dish £40.00

6.  Ceramic Storage Jars – from £10.00

7.  Sandwich Plates £15.50

8.  Heatproof Mat £9.50

9.  Colombian Serving Dish £72.50

10.  Bag in a Box Wine Stand £22.50

These are the new pieces that you’ll love … from cushions to kitchenware … double yum!!!

1.  Colette Silk Cushion £32.00

2.  Architect Silk Cushion £38.00

3.  Grapes Funky Cushon £40.00

4.  Glasgow Cushion £52.00

5.  Plaza Cushion £32.00

6.  Fab Love Cushion £70.50

7.  Alejandra Cushion £42.00

8.  Velvet Stripe Cushion £38.00

9.  Vita Linen Cushion £40.00

10.  Fiesta Funky Cushion £30.50

Collections 2009/2010 Fall-Winter

Your insider guide to all things interior!

The Autumn 09 collection thrilled our team of designers. Kate Mooney, Managing Director occa-home reports from the halls of Paris…

“As an interior designer one of the ongoing challenges is to meet the demands of our clients, hotel or domestic, without compromising the key design elements that make a scheme successful. Maison & Objet in Paris facilitates this as it’s a creative hotbed of innovation with design led products that enables us to meet and exceed our clients’ briefs.

Seven enormous halls bursting with fabulous home styles and interior design goodies – stunning furniture, beautiful accessories, funky products…it was all there in abundance! Maison & Object’s reputation as the most inspirational international trade show is well deserved.

This twice a year event is usually the highlight of the interior design calendar and this year was no exception. Despite the economic downturn, luxurious lifestyle statements were everywhere with beautiful room sets and products overflowing from each stand.

1.  Bunny cushion

2.  Pelted graphite throw

3.  Woodstock wooden candle holder

4.  Chrome candle holder

5.  Christmas red wine glass with silver edge £9.50

6.  Christmas champagne glass with silver edge £9.50

7.  (Left to Right)

Glass onion £5.50

Glass ball fashion silver

Acorn micaceous £7.00

Glass ball fashion smoke

8.  (Left to Right)

Tealight stick tiffany silver

Tealight stick tiffany bronze

Cup for light tiffany silver

Overriding themes on display fitted our Comfy style, with striking New England styling and stunning ski lodge sophistication. Furniture was predominately chunky and quite often finished in grey and distressed timbers. Surprisingly, the grey and taupe paint and wall colours that have been around for so long now, were still dominant with black as a favourite accent. Other accents were a stunning winter jade colour complimented by silvered turquoise in paint, cushions and throws. Aubergine and mauve were also in use and looked particularly good against the vintage white of some of the winter collections. Glass and timber accessories were in abundance with stags and bison heads being a really popular wall hanging, especially in chrome.

Our Fancy style was well endorsed with copious amounts of leather, glossy black and sparkling chrome hotel chic, complimented by dark polished timbers, horn and shell. Glamorous mirrors, silver and textured fabrics featured heavily with a clever combination of traditional and more contemporary furniture pieces in weathered velour. Lighting was ornate and alluring with horn, chrome and ebony bases, complimented by silver mesh or black shades.

Texture was more evident that ever – from tactile carpets and textiles, the variety of fabrics and materials was fabulous. Silk, cashmere and linen all played lead roles. However I was also really interested to see a huge amount of natural materials and furs including cow and pony hide rugs as well as fox and rabbit throws – both faux and real. I took great pleasure in mixing these with heavy cable cashmere knits, leather cushions and silk throws – just gorgeous! The trend for combining all these contrasting textures in individual items is set to grow with feathers and leathers mixed to great effect.

New Funky fun was covered by an exciting plethora of innovative and contemporary products, high gloss, lacquered, white furniture as well as unique and unusual seating typically in acrylic and polyprop. Colours were primary and bolder than elsewhere in the exhibition but typically played against white furniture and darker walls. Fantastic accessories and kitchen-ware made this a vibrant and exciting part of the show.

Given the time of year the reindeer’s were out in force, complimented by sweet gingham hearts and fabulous Scottish inspired Fair Isle knits with snowflakes and acorns – reds and greys are big. However, I’m working the “Vintage Christmas” look this year – using the beautiful and understated brushed silver and bronze, mixing old and new and playing with white, natural products and weathered accessories.

Trend Alerts? I’m watching out for luxurious textured carpets and rugs in silk and wool [yes even in this economic climate!] as well as fur throws and cushions. I also see Kilm and Turkish style influences coming through – not quite the Aztec style of the 80s but warmer and more organic. I loved the winter jade and silvered turquoise colours and am looking forward to trying the aubergine and mauve out in a winter bedroom look. The detail and accessorizing on display was also worth a note – layering and displaying objects and picture frames with vases and candles adds a whole new dimension to any room.

IDA – new Professional Interior Design Association Launches

The IDA is the official body representing Interior Design practices and independent designers working principally but not exclusively, in the International contract interiors market.  The association was officially launched on 25th September 2009, with membership invited from amongst the top commercial interior design practices.

The IDA has an industry council made up of founder members and is led by Chairman, Mary Fox Linton. Council members include: Stephan Oberwegner  of Max Bentheim, Kate Mooney of Occa Design, Charles Leon of Charles Leon Associate, Mark Plumtree of Plumtree Mee, Naomi Porter of Space Therapy and Ken Giannini of Scott Brownrigg Interior Design.

Kate Mooney of occa design is delighted to be on the council:

“The IDA is a long awaited professional body for commercial interiors and the interior design profession.  Not dissimilar to the well established RIBA for architects, it aims to provide a national platform that supports and promotes commercial interior designers in a professional environment.  It is a valuable addition to the industry and will inevitably make its mark on improving the way the industry is perceived and does business”

Working on behalf of members to provide a crucial commercial advantage, the IDA will champion the importance of design right and press for improvements to legislation, create closer relationships with manufacturers and suppliers, take the profession to a higher status, and improve the commercial performance of members.  The IDA will be the voice of the members and the industry on relevant issues and encourage a positive business environment

IDA members work in many market areas which lie in five quite distinct areas: offices and places of work in the public and private sector; hospitality industry; the education sector;  health care in the NHS and private care facilities;  and retail premises.

Full details for membership application is available by contacting Colin Watson, Managing Director of the IDA on 01494 896790 or at colin@theida.co.uk

This year 100% design London celebrated 15 years of showcasing the newest products, finishes and trends for the commercial interior design market.  A regular date in the design calendar this years show aimed to create a new visitor experience which was interactive as well as informative.

A lot of things have changed in the years the show has been running both in technology and also the way we as designers do business.  Global culture rules and we have access to markets that never existed before and this was clearly evident this year.  As well as showcasing the best of British talent, the influence from emerging brands in Eastern Europe & South East Asia was very prevalent.  Especially eye catching were the companies representing Korea with an alternative take on simple everyday objects which was refreshing and dynamic. ‘Another Ceramic’ by Kim ha yoon was beautifully delicate yet stunningly different.

A lot of focus this year was also on materials with an entire section devoted to this, and companies were featuring natural materials such as backlit granite and marble cut to a wafer thin thickness in many sizes and forms.  There was also a real cross section and diversity of oversize textured weaves & re-cycled materials.

Two product items really stood out for me this year, their concept was again simple but very well constructed.  The First was the amplamp (the name I’m not sure about! but it is going to be a definite winner) created by Futuros this is a table lamp with you guessed it, an amp/speaker. Simple yet brilliant and that is what good design is about!  Often it is hard to get the localised sound right in a hotel environment with ceiling speakers, but I’m really excited about the possibilities for this product.  Alongside this another item which was beautifully finished was the ‘Qlocktwo’ a timeless designed wall clock which has no hands or numbers but displays the time in illuminated words, the chronometer inside it also adjusts the brightness of the characters to suit the light within the interior space it is placed in.

But the most inspiring part of this years show was the introduction of Designer’s Block alongside the main hall.  Usually held in very transitory architectural spaces this unique multidisciplinary display brought together over 60 established collectives such as Ella Doran & Timorous Beasties as well as shiny new fledgling designers in a space that was allowed to be organic and in my mind let the products speak for themselves.  It felt like being at a music festival where tents are randomly pitched and I kept expecting see people in brightly coloured wellies stroll past. The rejection of standardised pitches in favour of letting the space flow (no pre-installed floor finishes only fair faced concrete & whatever the designer brought) was a winner in my mind and judging by the popularity of the hall they did the right thing. 100% has always been about cutting edge design and this addition has kept that firmly established.  Highlights included new textile surface designer Asma Hussain’s fabrics and wallpapers + Joon & June’s flat light bulb.

I love it when the seasons change and the clocks go back.  It’s the cold crisp mornings and the darker nights; the leaves falling and the autumnal palate of copper, amber & gold.

It warms the heart as well as the senses!

My favourite things from this seasons collection are our deliciously soft faux fur throws & cushions, the fragrant scented candles and the flicker of candle light you get from our unusual lanterns…

…everything you need to have a comfy Saturday night in front of the tele watching the X-Factor!  Well … that and a nice glass of red!

1.  Klim Brown Black Horn Photo Frame £33.50

2.  Softness Cushion £38.50

3.  Louvy Cushion £38.50

4.  Snap Wall Clock from £155

5.  Rustic Decorative Balls from £10 – £29.50

6.  Black Faux Fur Throw £347

7.  Candle Lantern from £134 – £190

8.  Foret Mystique Sented Candle £19