trendey

French-style bedrooms are romantic and sophisticated as well as seriously trendey. To create a French look, stick to one colour theme (for example pale blue, green, gold or pink) and team with distressed or whitewashed furniture. A sumptuous chandelier, soft floor-length curtains with tassle tiebacks and some antique items to give a shabby chic feel will further add to the look. And most importantly, allow a fab French style bed to take centre-stage in the room! I love the dramatic carved headboards of Louis XIV-style beds – if it’s good enough for royalty it’s good enough for me I reckon! :)

Take a look at these examples (both from the Living etc gallery)

Tripod (or three-legged) lamps are popping up everywhere and I mean everywhere. It’s virtually impossible to flick though more than a few pages in a home decorating magazine these days without coming across an interior design scheme featuring a tripod lamp. It’s clearly a must have in the decorating world at the moment! Here are a just a couple of examples to show you what I mean:

These three-legged little creatures have also managed to creep into a couple of posts here at Trendey, check out Mia’s posts Please Be Seated and Inspirational Rooms at Old School House. – Spooky how they get about!

So are the tripods really that great? Well, I am not completely convinced. I think they are nice enough – I particularly like the more industrial looking examples and those that look a bit like spotlights from some old Hollywood movie set – but I feel that they are just a bit OVERLY trendy just now and that makes me mulish. I’m not getting one until they go out of fashion. So there!

And that’s the lamp I’m talking about.: Isn’t it great! The good old Anglepoise lamp has been around since the 1930s (invented by British motor car designer George Carwardine) and I bet most of us will have had some version of this lamp illuminating our desks at some point. The Giant Anglepoise Lamp is three times the size of the original lamp and was created in celebration of the 70th Birthday of the Anglepoise.

I really like this lamp! It’s so deliciously out of proportion and would make a cool design statement in any room (I want it in my study). Handmade in England, this lamp doesn’t come cheap however… prices range from £1,200 to £1,990 depending on colour (check out the range at Anglepoise)

Right, now all I need to do is go and convince my husband that we need to spend two grand on a giant desk lamp… erm… Just in case this should fail, I would consider settling for this one designed by Muno available at RockettsStGeorge. It’s actually rather nice as well and only costs £249!

The patriotic trend in interior decorating is still going strong and many furniture and design stores are stocking lots of trendey items with Union Jack motifs at the moment (at least in the UK they are, not sure whether this trend has reached beyond the British borders! =)). Anyway, check out these lovely cushions and throw from Graham and Green, the stylish cake tins from John Lewis, the rather special chair from Jane Hornby and the pretty cushion from Cox and Cox. Aren’t they great!

My favourite Union Jack item is this rug below designed by Vivienne Westwood though (visit the Rug Company for details). However, since I’m not rich as a troll (as the Swedish saying goes) and since the Westwood rug costs around £2,000, I wonder if I could make the rug on the right from Cox and Cox (@ £135, kid not included) look like Westwood’s with a bit of abuse?

My favourite sofa right now has got to be the Chesterfield sofa! And judging by the many Chesterfields featured in interior design magazines recently and the fact that most fashionable furniture stores seem to have at least one version in their catalogues and window displays , it is clear that I’m not alone and that this type of sofa is experiencing a surge of popularity at the moment. And no wonder! The Chesterfield is sophisticated and timeless and evokes images of ‘Olde England’, of gentlemen’s clubs, cosy libraries and elegant sitting rooms.

These are some of my favourite Chesterfields: a bold purple velvet number from Sofa Workshop; a version from John Lewis in brown leather; and a delicious dark liquorice edition from Heal’s. (See also the gorgeous mustard-coloured Chesterfield in Mia’s post Yellow Spots)

The September 2009 issue of Living etc (UK issue, page.29) featured this beautiful and inspiring example of a stylish dining room where antlers have been incorporated in the room design to great effect.  The contrast between the grand proportions of the room and the rustic vibe from the different sized antlers on the wall along with the mismatched dining chairs creates a striking result. Add to that some old world glamour in the form of a majestic antique chandelier and the room succeeds in being elegant, edgy, unintimidating and relaxed – all at the same time. I love it!

However, if you feel a bit squeamish about hanging actual animal bones on your walls (I know I do…especially the skull part…ewwwww…), there are plenty of fake antlers around which work just as well!

Just take a look at these great antler coat hooks from Erich Grinder and Graham and Green for some inspiration on how you could incorporate antlers into your home without any risk of unintentionally making it look like a hunter’s cabin.

Bathroom TVs have been around for awhile, but the Seura The ONE television mirror launched this summer is state of the art. It embeds a 19 inch HD TV in a finely crafted mirror only 1 inch thick. When turned on, the LCD screen is visible as a window within the mirror – so as not to obstruct the view of your good self – and when turned off the TV becomes completely invisible. This high-tech bathroom accessory comes at a price though – it will set you back around $3,500 USD…

Massive price tag aside, I’ve still got mixed feelings about this concept! While the TV mirror looks really cool, I feel that it would be a bit of a pain standing around in front of the sink watching TV… Besides, being a bit of a TV addict, I would probably just get stuck in front of some good show and end up brushing away all my enamel.

No, if I were to let TV invade one of the last media-free sanctuaries in the home, I’d place it at the end of the bath and splash out on a less pricey option, like the Waview Waterproof Aquavision 19 inch Widescreen for £1,199 – that would be luxury enough!

Never fear, rescue is here in the form of wall stickers from Supernice. Available in five colours – Tangerine/Sunflower, Raspberry/Cotton Candy, Sour Apple/Mint, Charcoal/Light Grey and Midnight/Charcoal, the stickers cost £35 (not including the clockface) and are guaranteed to add quirky interest to any interior wall!

Many designers have jumped on the environmentally-aware bandwagon and some are designing the most beautiful chandeliers out of discarded every-day objects. How about this grand statement chandelier from en Pieza made out of Bic Ballpoint pens (!), or this chandelier from Josh Owen recycling used CD packaging?

Don’t they look the business?

However, since designer goods tend to come with big price tags, why not have a go at making one on your own? Take a peek at these two beauties below to get your creative juices flowing (Jelly Bowl Lantern by Madeleine Boulesteix and Milk Bottle Chandelier by Droog).

I particularly like the milk bottle one! Imagine that softly glowing over a rustic wooden kitchen table…

Hmm… time to raid some dustbins for unwanted treasures I think!

I’m talking about the 80s TV-show about alien visitors from outer space who were really lizards and disgustingly fond of gulping down live mice… Does it ring a bell?

Well, if you fancy having a go at assembling an outfit with an alien twist on the big new trend for A/W 09 consisting of 80s power dressing and shoulder pads, look no further for your inspiration! =)

 For example, slip into this Panel Detail Dress and Leather Snake Biker Jacket from Miss Selfridge,  add a pair of Sci-Fi inspired shades a la Martin Margiela and you’re ready to go!  Snacking on mice is optional…

Isn’t this the best message slogan ever? =)

The story goes that this poster was commissioned by the British Government’s Ministry of Information in the early days of the 2^nd World War as a reassuring message from King George VI to the people.

My own personal copy of this glorious British “stiff-upper-lip-inspired” poster arrived in the post today! I’ll be mounting it in an ornate metallic frame and hanging it on my bathroom wall.

Other design elements for the bathroom may include this yet-to-be-purchased seriously slick towel ring from Graham & Green.