Finland Selected by Formex

Mer från Formex... den här gången hade man tagit fram ett nytt koncept som man kallade för 'Selected by Formex'. Genom den här utställningen ville Formex lyfta fram sina nordiska grannländers design. Först ut blev Finland och designföremålen är handplockade av Stefan Nilsson från Trendgruppen. I pressmeddelandet för 'Finland Selected by Formex' stod det så här:

- Finland kokar av spännande, ny design, säger Stefan Nilsson. Finsk design handlar om ärlighet, att vara sig själv och lite jävlar anamma. Sisu helt enkelt. Det blir mycket trä och naturliga material.

Och så här såg det ut.

Love Life.

Simplify your life
Live one day at a time

Less is more

Slow down and take it all in...

Quality over quantity

Forget about the mess sometimes & be happy there's someone there to make it.

Don't worry

Paring down makes you feel free...

Take pleasure in the day to day

Appreciate the little things in life

Find beauty in every day things...

Don't click away the time

You never regret taking the time to do something nice for someone

They grow up before you know it

Keep your goals in mind but don't forget to appreciate what you already have...

Each day is such a gift to us and we should treasure its beauties: nature, our homes, our friends, our families...

Take nothing for granted. You will be happier, I promise.

A little girl drowned in the ocean this week while we were at the beach. I can't imagine how horrible it must be for her family right now & I'm heartbroken for them. Please say a little prayer & remember what's really important in your life. Don't take even one day for granted.

xoxo,

lauren

*images- 1. Real Simple, 2. Baby Christian 3.Atlanta bartlett 4. Atlanta bartlett 5.Real Simple, 6. real Simple 7.Mine-FL Rocking Chair 8.Atlanta Bartlett 9.Mine- wild chickory 10. mine- Froggy 11.real Simple 12. Mine- Ashby 13.Atlanta Bartlett 14-16. Mine - family

Formex hösten 2009

Nu är jag hemma från Formex igen. Det är alltid lika spännande att se trenduställningar, lyssna på lite föredrag och spana in alla nyheter. I år hade Formex bjudit in bloggare för pressfrukost och en liten diskussion efteråt. Jättetrevligt! Kul att vi bloggare nu uppfattas något mer seriöst än tidigare och även toppen att få träffa andra bloggare. Jag hade sen förmånen att få springa runt med Annika, Charlotte och Frida och diskutera trender och tävlingsvinnare m m. Så kul!

Formex egen utställning var som alltid tankvärd och tänkt att spegla tidens trender. Den här gången var det designern Paula Malm som hade utformat en blandning av järnvägsstation och kontinentalt hotell med vänthall och spa. Så här står det i pressmeddelandet:

– Jag vill skapa en känsla av ett gammalt, patinerat hotell från en svunnen tid och samtidigt ge miljöerna ett modernt uttryck, berättar Paula Malm. I utställningen dominerar grönt och naturtoner. Den gröna färgen refererar både till jugend-stilen och tankarna på en grön framtid. Det är också mycket trä och snickerier i utställningen som omfattar bland annat hemtextilier, kuddar, doftljus, tvålar, väskor, plädar, vagnar, cyklar och ljusstakar.

Bilderna är mina egna.

Blå inspiration

Har inte hunnit sammanställa från Formex än, så det blir lite blå inspiration från fotograf Trine Thorsen istället. Blått är flott eller hur?

Pear Tree Cottage Design Seminars!!

For any DC area readers, I wanted to let you know about Pear Tree Cottage's Design Seminar Series. (For non-DC area readers, just enjoy the pretty eye candy ;) The super-sweet & creative owner, Frances Brayshaw has gotten together a group of local designers to do a month-long series of design seminars on every Sunday in September. I'm so excited to be a part of the series & am the first one up on Sunday, September 6th at 4:00 pm at the shop in Vienna. Spots are limited, so if you'd like to attend, email Frances at RSVP@ThePearTreeCottage.com

Pear Tree Cottage
130 Maple Avenue
Vienna, VA 22180
RSVP@ThePearTreeCottage.com



I'm doing a workshop on arranging your accessories and will be starting with empty surfaces & demonstrating step-by-step how to create artful tablespaces, bookshelves & mantle arrangements.

Here's the schedule of Seminars:

Sunday, September 6 @ 4:00- Lauren Liess: Arranging Your Accessories

Sunday, September 13 @ 4:00- Toni Principe Korby: Defining the Look of Luxury

Sunday, September 20 @ 4:00- Kimberly Stein: From Photo to Finish

Sunday, September 27 @4:00- Rebecca Ilgenfritz: First Impressions: The Foyer

Everything in the shop is displayed so beautifully & they carry antiques & one-of-a-kind items as well as new items. The merchandise is always changing and it's one of those places you'll want to go to often to see what's new. (Not to mention you'll want everything in there!!!) Check out The Washington Spaces Blog for much more detailed description. (image below from Washington Spaces Blog)

It's going to be so much fun & I'd love to see some of you there!!! (It's my first time speaking in public since college so wish me luck!!- eeeeeek! ;) Again, spaces are limited & are booking up quickly, so email Frances at RSVP@ThePearTreeCottage.com to reserve your spot!!

Hope to see you there!!

xoxo,

lauren

Hemmet stylat i tv?

Har du suttit framför tvn och undrat hur det skulle varit att få hemmet stylat av 'Äntligen hemma' gänget? Då har du chansen nu för de söker nya objekt till nästa programserie. Kanske är det ditt hem som kommer i tv nästa gång. Läs mer om det här.

Grisaille Murals & Wallpapers

OK, all I can say about the entry in one of Martha Stewart's homes (above) is LOVE LOVE LOVE. I've been attracted to large-scale murals & etchings & toiles lately as you can see here.



Grisaille is a term for painting executed entirely in monochrome, usually in shades of gray or brown, particularly used in decoration to represent objects in relief. (I'm not going to lie, until I heard this term I always called them toile-like scenic murals ;) The 7 feet by 4 feet blown up Durer print on fabric that we're going with in our dining area (above) is my way of getting the look of a handpainted wall mural on a budget. (With the feel of a tapestry).



I thought I'd share with you a few beauties I've found along the way.... The image below from http://www.michaeldute.com/images_chinoiserie.htm:



This one below from House Beautiful has been floating around a lot lately biut I just can't get over it. I love the shades of green against the warm, rich browns of the furniture. perfection.



Here's one found in a restaurant by frenchbutchic.blogspot.com:

And of course, we needc to include some hand-painted wallpaper from de Gournay:

SO GORGEOUS!!!! Here's another one, below:

The image below from http://charlottesullivan.com/portfolio/murals/index.htm and I love how soft it is, receeding in the background:

Remember this one??? More of a large scale toile but I'm in love anyway. I contacted the company about this handpainted paper but never heard back. (Just as well, I'm pretty sure it's just a smidge out of our price range. ;)

The warm-toned Chinoisserie mural below is from http://kathleendeyo.wordpress.com/2008/11/ :

And here's just one more from de Gournay... Maybe one day I can replace my "tapestry" with the real deal???? Oh just so beautiful....

Hope you enjoyed these beauties. As soon as I get my "tapestry" up I'll post pics!!!

xoxo,

lauren

ps- If you didn't get a chance to weigh-in on the question in the previous post (below), I'd love to hear your thoughts!!!