Friday, 24 June 2011

Big style teeny price

Browsing the new Matalan home ware I was impressed with the new colourful accessories. They may not last forever, but for a quick injection of some summer fun colour, you can't beat these for value. My personal fave is the bright bathroom bin - cheer up your bathroom for a fiver!

Friday, 4 February 2011

Huntin', Shootin', Fishin'

Personally I'm not sure about the traditional hunting, shooting, country house look - but my friend Daniel has a penchant for pheasants and curated this lovely collection of game inspired accessories.


This got me thinking about the trend for antlers (on the wane? I thought so but Graham and Green have recently brought back their popular white resin antlers and deer and stag heads). Now, I love an antler accessory as much as the next girl but I think it's time to give it a modern spin.

And that's exactly what my two featured artists today do. I discovered Rachel Denny via Designmilk, and immediately fell in love with her humorous, beautifully crafted take on traditional hunting trophies.

Snow white, by Rachel Denny.

Four Points, by Rachel Denny.

Red buck, by Rachel Denny.

Her 'domestic trophies' collection is gorgeously fabricated from cable knit wool and cashmere in vibrant colours, but what is so beautiful to me is the lifelike poses she creates - each animal looks like it is alive, happy and ready skip off your wall and into your living room.

In addition to wall mounted trophies, Rachel has recently created adorable life-size angora rabbits.


Rachel creates work on commission, and if you are visiting Arizona, USA any time soon, make a trip to catch her current exhibition at the Mesa Contemporary Arts centre, until March 6th.

My second pick for modern hunting lodge style with a twist is Donya Coward, a British artist who creates tile taxidermy' - tongue-in-cheek sculptures using crochet, knitting and sequins. Instead of a deer head, how about a French bulldog for your wall?




Donya is based in Nottingham, and can be contacted through her website.

Tuesday, 25 January 2011

Design delights under £100

It's the end of the (allegedly) most depressing month of the year, but it's pay day tomorrow and it feels like we should cheer ourselves up just a little bit, with something beautiful but not bank-breaking.

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