the most beautiful things on earth…in one website

Arne Jacobsen's Egg chair

Featured in the FT’s How to Spend It last Saturday (ironic I was reading it really as I have zero pennies in my piggy bank) was this fantastic website, http://www.1stdibs.com with the tagline ‘the most beautiful things on earth’ and they’re not far wrong. Their divine antiques, modern masterpieces, vintage fashion and jewellery that separates the ladies from the girls would make anyone with taste and no money such as myself literally drool and become thoroughly depressed, it’s that good. Such furniture includes Niemeyer’s lounge chair and ottoman, pieces by one of my favourite furniture makers, Jacques Adnet, and Arne Jacobsen’s egg chair are all there to set the standard. Galerie Moderne has two of my favourite pieces mentioned above, the Niemeyer and the Jacobsen, and Galerie Andre Hayat has some of the best Adnet pieces. I’m heading to Paris in a few weeks time, so perhaps I’ll pop in for a dribble. In the meantime, I’ll be trying my luck with the lottery…

Open House London

I got quite excited when I saw this event going on (for free!) and then realised I had a wedding to go to… However, that’s not to say that anyone else should miss out, so here’s the deal: you get to see loads of buildings that aren’t usually open to the public and that are considered ‘of architectural interest’ (a really grim yet poignant example is Erno Goldfinger’s brutalist Trellick Tower). Highlights include the glorious concrete and glass beacon that is the BT tower and a personal favourite, a glimpse at old Fleet Street – the Art Deco foyer of the ex Daily Express offices. Tickets became available only this morning and many are sure to be ‘sell-outs’ (so-to-speak) almost immediately. However, many of these open house events will require stamina and enthusiasm as queues throughout the two day event, September 18-19, are expected to be looooong.

Visit http://www.openhouselondon.org.uk/ for more info.

Taken in 1966, this old RIBA archive image depicts the interior of the BT Tower, formerly the Post Office Tower

new Jonny Hannah exhibition at St Jude’s Gallery

La Mer by Jonny Hannah, edition of 50, £65

The fabulous printmaker, illustrator and occasional t-shirt designer Jonny Hannah has pulled off yet another great exhibition, ‘A Bed of Sea & Dead Men’s Suits’ at one of my all-time favourite galleries, St. Jude’s in Norfolk (more about that later). I bought one of Jonny’s posters created randomly for the small Cecil Higgins Gallery in Bedford. It was for their exhibition about working life in the town called ‘Clocking In’. The signed poster, limited to an edition of 100, was a bargain at £20 so I grabbed one while I could, although the woman behind the counter seemed incredibly reluctant to give me one for some reason… anyway, that aside, he is a great illustrator who designs lots of great commercial and arty posters, books and prints for his own Cake & Ale Press. As a passionate music lover, his ‘Hot Jazz Special’ book full of bold poster-style art and ret-hot rhymes took second place in the 2005 V & A illustration award.

A little note: The trip to Bedford, just to add, was for a research trip to look at the Edward Bawden archives, possibly one of the greatest illustrators of his time, and I took hundreds of photos, some of never published work so I shall put these up at some point to give you a sneaky peek…

Visit http://www.stjudesgallery.co.uk/show.htm about the show and http://www.castorandpollux.co.uk/cakesandalepress/index.html for more info about Jonny

modern romance with Samuel Moyer Furniture

enjoy a lazy breakfast in bed with Moyer's 'hair of the dog' tray

With bags of charm, the small team of LA-based artisans behind Samuel Moyer Furniture have really done their homework, making pieces that are so timely, and timeless for that matter – they’ve caught the mood of young and impressionable aestheticists who want sustainability, humour and quality from furniture design. I’m particularly fond of their simple yet charismatic ‘Love Couch’ and their ‘Hair of the Dog’ tray is great for serving drinks in the evening to eager friends as much as it is for enjoying a cosy hangover breakfast in bed the next very lazy morning…

Visit http://samuelmoyerfurniture.com

designer bargains at made.com

stroller desk by Steuart Padwick: just one of made.com's beautiful pieces "without the high street mark up"

I absolutely love this website, made.com, which has gorgeous, modern designer pieces with a truly affordable price tag! You could buy their walnut stroller desk by Steuart Padwick for less than a pair of Louboutins, down from £1495 to £319 and I particularly like their almost Sotsass-looking Bentwood shelves made out of  American walnut or white oak from a tiny £149. It puts Ikea to shame; their furniture is so much prettier, not to mention more stylish…

the haberdashery: tea cups and dachshunds

Lovely miss-matched, vintage bone china tea cups

You know how you go somewhere and it sticks in the mind for several days? Well I haven’t had a nice surprise like this since I went to the Courtauld Gallery – possibly one of the best, and to say the least, manageable galleries that London has to offer. However, the next little gem I found was in a place I didn’t expect to find it – Crouch End. On a very laborious bus journey from the West, I lacked a certain enthusiasm, especially as the heels only permitted the most totteriest of totters so when I finally stumbled across the quirky cafe (I almost missed it), The Haberdashery in Middle Lane, it was well received with gratitude, and it  wasn’t just because of the heels. It’s a rather unassuming place, and I’m sure there are many little cafes that have an interior such as this one with its vintage feel, but the attention to detail just made it so good.

It was because of a friend’s engagement party that I made the trek and it turned out to be the perfect venue for the pair. The pretty little garden came with bunting, candles and Pimms as standard, which could have been too sickly-British for some, yet you’d have to try pretty hard not to be overcome by its quaint charms. As I said, it’s all in the detail – the vintage miss-matched tea sets in a simple wooden dresser made it feel homley and best of all were these fantastic prints all based on the story of the cafe, its owners and Hornsey.

I’m a sucker for two things in particular – art and sausage dogs. As these limited edition prints by Steve Lenton had both, I got incredibly excited and they certainly have a humorous touch which just adds to the fun and vibrancy of this well-established community hub. My favourite is ‘Lady Pinky with Porky, Purdy and Pam’, which features the Crouch End clock tower and Steve’s favourite character with her adorable Dachshunds. Mia Nilsson, who has done countless illustration for clients from Tatler to the Notting Hill Arts Club, has also created fabulous prints with equal wit.

Visit http://www.2dscrumptious.com/ for Steve’s work, www.mianilsson.com for Mia’s prints and www.the-haberdashery.com for more on the cafe and the team.

Sausage Dog by Mia Nilsson