Document 6462104

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LIFE LIFESTYLE
1. SHADES OF GREY•..
Silvered branches, wisps afwood
smoke and a frosty window pane ...
this years '''neutrals'' come in the
form of a palette ofwinter~morning
greys. Little Greene has devised a new
paint collection, with English Heritage,
dedicated to the shade - "the root
of historical decoration, used for
centuries to create tranquil interiors"
- from pale "wood ash·' to the smoky
"dash of soot" (from £19.50 a litre,
littlegreene.com; 0845 880 5855).
Calvin Klein's soft "winter branches"
bed linen, in shades of grey, is beautiful
WINTER WARMERS
FOR THE HOME
Maria Fitzpatrick rounds up the top 20 interiors
trends that will take the chill off the season
and well worth the investment (from
£39-£235 a piece; selfridges.com;
02073183774). The White Company
has elegant bed linen and towels in
ash and grey pearl shades (from £13,
whitecompany.com; 0844 736 4222).
Scandinavian designs are timeless in
their simplicity: the oak uCopenhague"
desk at TwentyTwentyOne (£511,
twentytwentyone.com) and Nordic
House's coffee table, £350 (front cover;·
nordichouse.co.uk). Or get your mittens
on an old school desk (try salvage
yards) and update it with Annie Sloan's
vivid chalk paints {anniesloan.com).
2 . ..•OR MIDNIGHT BWES
If you prefer a richer colour scheme
for winter, look out for midnight blue,
indigo and ink colours. Habitat has used
these across its striking new ceramics
and textiles collection (habitat.co.uk).
13. ROARING lWENT ES
Thanks t o Baz Luhrmann's The Great
Gatsby and Downton fever, Twenties
style, with its metal1ics and mirrored
surfaces, is big this season. The key
piece is of course a vintage drinks
cabinet -Iovethisfurniture.com
has a range of styles from £500.
3. COSY KNITS
Knitted accessories are getting
bolder, with huge chunky cable-knits '
replacing demure weaves. John Lewis
has soft cable-knit, chunky knit or
ribbed wool/angora cushions in dove
greys, creams, mochas and reds (from
£25,johnlewis.com; 08456 049049).
And you'll be needing a pouffe, too
- the best interpretation of this
trend: essentially a big knitted ball
of wool for your feet. Our favourites '
are Loafs hand-knit cable-knit "bug"
pouffe in ash grey, rhino or raspberry,
£85 (loaf.com; 0845 459 9937) and
John Lewis's (£90) in smoke or steel.
4. VINTAGE EXPLORER
The interiors world is taking escapist
inspiration from historical explorers
and-naturalists. Vintage globes and
suitcases feature, along with hints
of botany and entomology, in the
form of plant drawings and butterfly
motifs. Present your "specimens"
(ornaments) under a bell jar (£12
from houseoffraser.co.uk) or frame
found objects in a group. Graham and
Green (grahamandgreen.co.uk) is a
great source for this look, but also
have a trawl at vintage shops such
as After Noah (afternoah.com).
5. WXURIOUS COMFORT
There's a definite air of indulgence
about this season's throws,
rugs and cushions; plush,
strokable textures seem
to be as important as
warmth. Ugg, maker
of the snuggly
boots, has launched
a collection of
blanketS, sheepskin
rugs, and floor
pillows (from £17,
uggaustralia.co.uk).
We love Oka's faux mink
fur and velvet throw,
£169 (okadirect.com; 0844
8157380) and Cream Cornwall's
sumptuous silk-velvet cushions (£42,
creamcornwall.co.uk) in deep blues.
6. KEEP! G IN CHECK
Touches of traditional tartan look well
in both a town house and country
house setting. If you're not brave
enough for Vivienne Westwood's plum
and forest green tartan wallpaper
(£67 a roll at John Lewis, as before),
Neptune's "Cotswold" throw in aqua
and heather, £1 00, is a lighter take
(neptune.com; 01793 427427).
7 . ~ CIIS 0 FIRES
It doesn't take much to make a feature
of the hearth, and iffuel bills continue
to soar we're going t o be looking at it
a lot more. Garden Trad ing's silvered
wicker log baskets last forever (£35,
14. WHIMSY
Touches of fun to break through the
winter gloom: our favourite is the
"memory balloon" ceiling light from
shoponyourdoorstep.com.lt's designed
to look like a balloon that has floated
away (£145.95; 01843 808061).
15. STATEMEt'T CHAIRS
Go timeless with a twist a
Chesterfield in antique blue, £699
(distinctivechesterfields.com; 01484
663294), Or embrace graphic geometry
with Habitat's "Sura" black rattan
c;:hairs (from £300, Habitqt as before).
.,
:
'.
o
16. BOLDer B THS
There's a new wave of attentiongrabbing free-standing tubs. Catchpole
& Rye has vivid blues, bronze, and
even - if Father Christmas is fe.eling
frivolous - crystal-encrusted (price
on request, catchpQleandrye.co~).
o
17. CAtQL£S 'TH..
"
Forget decorative candlesticks - the
candle-.is now the main attraction. Cire
Trudoe's heritage grey candles are
top oft,he wish list (ciretrudon.com),
along with Graham and Green's neon
~:=~~ ~ colours (£2.20, grahamandgceen.co.uk)
..
gardentrading.co.uk)
or'if you're seeking that
ever-elusive attractive
fireguard, go to aka for
Nicky Haslam's "French Quarter"
design (aged metal with a verdigris
finish, £150, okadirect.com).
B. ILtJT
With all this softness, it's a good idea to
incorporate some textured materials
to interest the eye. Loafs weathered
birch rocker (£345, main image)
has a handwoven rattan seat and
backrest, and looks great by the fire
Ooaf.com, as before). Or try a toffeecoloured "Leona" rattan lights hade
which pops against winter white (£25,
sainsburys.co.uk; 0800 636262).
9 • ..00
C
It's difficult to move for badgers, .
owls, and hedgehogs at the moment.
Animal illustrations aside, keep your
eyes open for understated nature-
inspired pieces such as the glass
John Derian tree clock, £245, and
ceramic bird boUle stop, £6.95 from
Liberty (liberty.co.uk; 020 77341234)
and feather lampshades, £140, from
themintlist.com. The trend segues
nicely into a theme for Christmas,
with pine cones, berries and wooden
bird decorations (see houseoffraser.
co.uk for inspiration).
10. GREAT .... E
Demand for screens
is increasing, as
~~~~~I~~nV~~ual
open-plan rooms.
Decorate Now has
AGF T ..£$.
To mark London Underground's
lS0th anniversary this year,
Fired Earth used mo"lds from the
=~~j~if~ archives to reproduce 'its historic
~
wall and floor tiles. Some ornate
(Edwardian), others retro, they make
a distinctive feature in a met ropolitan
home (from £2.95, firedearth.com).
1l. FO
There's a "homespun aesthetic with a
Nordic influence;' at Sainsbury's; white
and berry-red block prints and papercut designs dominate (sainsburys.
co.uk). The mood is also prominent at
Habitat, in tie-dyes and
••
ikat weaves(habitat.
~
"'~
co.uk). We like .
I
Madeline
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.4 ~~
~
"'ikI.
"',
~
J
,
~~~~~~~;~~:bOO" \~~~' ~
coloured leaf on black '"
(£85) or a "lunar metal" ~
paisley cut -out divider
(£150, decoratenow.
~
co.uk; 01323 436180).
I"
~
#1:
,
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.
~~~n~i~;~nt
.napkins, £90/
six (madeline
weinrib.com).
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1 You'lineedadesk
, that befits those
seasonalscribblings.
lB.
19. "
0 4DE
Printed, knitted, woven or glazed - this
year customers want a "clear sense
of the hand of the maker," says Polly
Dickens, creative director of Habitat,
so.that they feel connected to the
craftsman. Look out for Portuguese
ceramiasand Inaian weavings in stores.
.
.......
20. SERf
'(
Whether oriental (at Okadirect.com),
Scandinavian (atjohnlewis.com) or
English (at liberty.co.uk), there's a
sense of yearning for calm and purity.
It doesn't mean plain: a new Liberty
fabric and wallpaper range, inspired by
William Nesfield, the landscape artist,
invokes the serenity of the English
country garden in warm hues (from
£59/roll, £75 per metre; liberty.co.uk).
,