It's December 2nd and it's starting to look like Christmas at home!
Today I finished customising the advent calendar I had cut the previous year and added some colours and new activities to do on the back of each illustration.
I had no time to make a brand new one this year and to be honest I think this one deserved a second life!
It was my birthday treat during our week in Majorca. I really wanted to visit the Fundació Pilar i Juan Miró in Palma and it was really special: not only it was sunny, it was my birthday (42 eeek!), I was with my favourite people (my husband and my 3 kids) and in a place so inspiring and full of history.
If you ever come to Palma de Mallorca, go and visit this place. You won't be disappointed!
Juan Miró relationship with Majorca lasted his whole life. He was born in Barcelona but his mum and later his wife were from Mallorca. He spent his Summer there as a child and later in 1956 Miró settled permanently in Majorca where for the first time he had a stunning studio built by his friend Josep Lluis Sert.
By this time Miró was already an acclaimed painter but he needed a quiet place where he could retreat and work in silence.
A few years later he needed more space so he bought the adjoining land and San Boter, a typical Majorcan house from the XVIIIth century.Initially it was intended to be a sculpture studio but it actually became his second painting studio for large scale painting. Miró left some beautiful charcoal drawings on the walls of the villa.
Sorry for the lack of posts over the past weeks. We moved from the Netherlands to the neighbouring country, Germany this August. We are slowly settling in this beautiful white house who must have been built in the early 1900. How stunning is this entry with the stained glass windows?! This is the 5 of us waving goodbye to our dear friends Esther from Babyccino, her husband Tamar and their 5 beautiful kids. They stopped overnight before heading back to Amsterdam after 6 weeks exploring Eastern Europe with a camper van. I'm sure you have followed their wonderful road trip on Instagram!
We spent a lovely evening together listening to their travel stories and dreamt the rest of the night of doing the same one day soon...
The removal boxes have been emptied although we pretend not to see the pile of remaining unpacked boxes when we go down to the basement ;-) I think it takes a while to get used to a new place, how to organise each room and where to place the framed artworks on the walls. We lived for 5 years in Amsterdam and yet I never felt like the flat was done in terms of decorating. I had lots of ideas still. I like to know that it is never done and that decorating is always work in progress!
Saying that we managed to organise the kids bedrooms relatively quickly.
The boys are so happy to finally have their own room while they have always shared the same space in Amsterdam. Lucien who's turning 9 soon is delighted to have his own space to build his Lego towers without having them knocked down by his younger bro.
Téo has a bedroom with lots of light (there are 6 windows in his room!) and a big door surrounded by shelves. They were already there when we moved in this rented house. These shelves are perfect for displaying his books, toys and I was very happy to add some more colourful touches with the House Boxes! It is a cute and playful storage solution to hide all the small toys like Playmobil, Lego, cars, pencils and the never ending small things that kids have in their room!
New bedroom for little Téo:
HOUSE BOXES OFFER:
We have currently an offer on. When purchasing a set of 4 HOUSE BOXES, we will offer you the fifth FREE. It will be added to your order and the colour will be a surprise (Pink, Yellow, Pink or Black).
If you think of cement tiles, no doubt you'll have one of Popham Design image saved in your Pinterest board (like mine on Floors) or in your Inspiration folder. Every single interior mag has been featuring stunning homes decorated with the highly colourful and bold patterns of Caitlin and Samuel Down-Sandes, the owners of the brand. They have revolutionised cement tile designs thanks to their vision and collaborative projects with international designers such as Claesson Koivisto Rune who designed the iconic Dandelion tile.
So when I knew we were going to Marrakech this Winter I immediately contacted their Head Office which is located at about 10mn car drive from the city center.
We were greeted by the lovely Mariam who proudly showed us around their beautiful showroom, with floor to ceiling examples of their most iconic designs.
Here is Lucien in his djellaba in front of the blue and white wall panel featuring the ZigZag pattern.
Pentagone design:
Splinter asymmetrical design:
Mariam offered to give us a tour of their nearby factory and ask the kids if they wanted to make their own tile. The answer was a cheerful YES! OUI!
Our first impression beyond the amazement of the fine craftsmanship was the smile and the warm welcome we received from the artisans. They were so happy to share their skills and knowledge of their craft with us. It felt like entering into a large friendly family.
The children were fascinated by the process of layering the pigments, marble powder and cement into the different sections of the moulds. Each tile is entirely made by hand by these skilled artisans.
ZigZag design with a different pattern layout.
Check out their Pinterest, Instagram and website for an overview of their huge collection and colours.
The Dutch Design Week in Eindhoven ended last Sunday. I wanted to share with you some of my highlights.
Ophelia and I left early morning by train from Amsterdam to meet with my younger sister Charlotte in Eindhoven. Charlotte studied Product Design at the Design Academy, she knew the town very well and most ex-students exhibiting so we were very pleased to have her as our guide!
We started with a coffee and chocolat chaud at Usine to plan our day as there were so many events and things to see in one day. We knew we couldn't see everything. Imagine an entire city devoted to design, it's pretty overwhelming - in a good way! Btw I would recommend to have some sort of transportation to go from one event to the next as some venues are located on the outskirt of town. The DDW offers some taxi (free) rides but there's often a long queue.
Hot chocolate with chantilly anyone?!
Cute green little kids corner at Usine.
Our first stop was Hardcore exhibition by Core Studio. It took us a while to find the entrance, after realising that the event was on the lower ground floor of a car park.
Ophelia was intrigued by this foamed bookshelf by Onno Adriaanse.
Envisions:
This year Envisions collaborated with the Spanish wood manufacturer Finsa. The idea was not to show the final product but instead to show the process that is rarely shown to the public. Envisions believes that experimentation is key to good design and leads to new ideas and innovation.
That is the driving force of Envisions, a Dutch collective directed by Sanne Schuurman and Simone Post, presenting everything except the final product.
Envisions books are available to purchase here.
Recolored, A new way of recycling by Jessica den Hartog.
Self reflection in a Lex Pott and David Derksen oxidised mirror.
Lex Pott, detail of Fragments of Nature Log.
Stripe paper yarn by Dienke Dekker.
Huge balloons covered with Sunbrella fabric, by Charles Pétillon.
Since we moved to our new apartment a year ago our walls are still pretty much bare of any frames. Only last weekend we managed to get the tool box out of the closet to hang the paper cut of Amsterdam but that's pretty much it!
A pile of framed artworks - a good number of my paper cuts- paintings and photos are waiting one against the other in the attic to be displayed. I would like to add to this collection some colourful drawings and paintings made by the children (yet to be framed!).
I have gathered on my Pinterest board a selection of beautifully framed artworks. I would love to cover one of our wall from floor to ceiling with frames of different sizes and styles. On the To DO list.........
From top left to bottom right:
1.A gallery vignette photographed by Heidi Lerkenfeldt for Elle Deco.
2.Art gallery in your toilet.
3.The Design Files Open Day.
1.Barbara Iweins's house
2.Aurélie Lecuyer's house.
3.Wall art in Café by Sparks Fly.
4.Creative walls.
Ophelia loves to keep an incredible amount of small things in her bedroom such as cute little erasers, hair clips, pencils, make up, paint pots, pearls and threads (I used to do the same!). Now all those little things have found a home...
Our House boxes are a great storage solution to hide in a fun and stylish way small toys, crayons, desk accessories and all other small things that are scattered in a room.
I'm trying to figure out how I can improve to have a more tidy desk and yet keep all the things I need (pencils, scissors, scalpels, notebooks...) and like to see (postcards, drawings...) in one place.
I like the idea of adding a large pegboard that I would paint in white on the right of my desk. I'll have baskets for all my stationary and clips to hangs photos and drawings. Here's a little inspiration from my Pinterest board.
My desk at the moment.
Pegboards inspiration...
What do you think? How do you keep your desk tidy and organised?!
Colours that make me happy...
Caracas armchair by Colonel.
Plait cushion of the Mangas collection for Gan-Rugs, in 100% wool.
Kyoto sideboard by Colonel.
Colour Carpet, designer duo Scholten & Baijings for Hay.
Bright interior and DYI Ikea stool table from Vtwonen.
Limited edition giclee print on Etsy by Eloise Renouf.
Baby blanket on Purl Soho and yarn by Purl Soho as well.
Yesterday afternoon we took the children to visit the Dutch interior trade show Show Up on the outskirt of Amsterdam. In only a couple of years this show as doubled in size and is now showcasing lots of really nice European and international brands. It was nice to see familiar faces like Amber from Down to the Woods and Sabine from Engel.
Here are some images I took while at the show. Sorry I only had my phone to take photos so the quality is not great.
Pretty flowers at the entrance to remind you that you are in THE country of flowers.
A Love wall with lots of cute cards and posters about Love...for St Valentin
Lots of really nice stuffs at Down to the Woods: wire hangers and baskets and charming felt masks for kids.
Colourful party paper hats at Engel.
Birthday party cards from Meri Meri.
I just wanted the whole lot! Egg cup holders by Lucie Kaas.
We had this very weird weather this morning in Amsterdam. The day started beautifully with a blue sky. As I was leaving the kids trade show Kleine Fabriek mid morning this very thick white fog appeared all of a sudden. It was eery and magical seeing black silhouettes of cyclists and building as I was walking back home.
This inspired me to show you some beautiful images of white interiors seen on This is Paper.
I hope you had a nice Christmas with your loved ones. We had the most relaxing Christmas just the 4 of us in Paris followed by a long weekend in Provence. As I am now 30 weeks pregnant (with baby number 3 due early March!) so we decided to take it easy and just do nothing for a week. Heaven.
Here are some muted colours inspired by our stay in Paris and Provence: shades of grey from Paris and touches of muted colours from the South of France.
Yardhouse, concrete tiles by London based Assemble Studio.
Top image: Aus Schauma from Katja Windau.
Bottom left: painted wood boards by Mayas Loft.
Bottom right image:Interior by Modernmood. Cushions by Hay.
All from my Pinterest Colour board.
Less than 10 days to go until Christmas! It is going so so fast and so much to do. This is some Christmas inspiration from my Pinterest Christmas board. Oh I love Christmas and how creative one can be around that time of year!
1.Paper doily xmas trees DIY.
2.Advent calendar from Mokkasin.
3.Paper tree origami garland from Nurin Kurin.
4.Antique glass trees found on Anthropologie.
5. Merry Xmas biscuits by A Table for Two.
6.Hand painted pine cones by Torie Jayne on Flickr.
7.Glitter reindeer as seen on Sweet Paul.
8.Proof!
Famille Summerbelle is very excited to be part of Patternsnap a newly launched application for iphones and ipads which helps you search, save and share a very large selection of wallpaper and interior fabric patterns. Choose a design and Patternsnap provides detailed samples of similar patterns then links you directly to the stockists and company website where you can purchase your favourite product.It is really fun to use and very useful for searching beautiful patterns (You will find the work of designers like Deborah Bowness, Louise Body, Abigail Edwards, Erika Wakerly, MissPrint, Timorous Beasties and many many more...)
Hello. Today I wanted to share with you a small selection of colourful wire products for the home. Do you know of Bend? Bend is a design and manufacturing studio based in Los Angeles making playful lampshades and furniture.
From top: Bar Stool from Bend, Timber and ore bar stool from Woodsmithe, Origami Coffee table from West Elm.
Bright yellow lampshade and basket by Bend:
Ferm Living basket/table:
Garden shelves and storage by Kilian Schindler.
Aino-Maija Metsola is the designer who created the beautiful Sääpäiväkirja collection of tableware and fabric for Marimekko. The starting point of this collection was a fascination for rain, fog, wind, light and water and how we perceive the weather surrounding us.
Aino-Maija Metsola spent several months creating sketches and patterns and colour palettes using different type of media such as aquarelle and ink.
Here are some images of her research:
It has been a month since we came back from our long Summer break and I am already thinking of the holidays and where we could go next with the children. When we go abroad for a family weekend break or longer holidays we always try to rent an apartment instead of staying in hotels as we like to have the comfort of a home.
The newly launched Kid & Coe is what we have been waiting for since we had children. It says it all 'A vacation holidays rental that simplifies family holiday travel'.
This beautiful website has carefully selected kid-friendly homes around the World to rent for one night or more.
Simon and I have been talking about going to Italy for ages and I think I found the perfect place here...
Copenhagen:
London, Primrose Hill:
With Pinterest it's a playful excercise to pin things on your favourite boards in few second. However nothing will replace a hand made inspiration board with little objects, tickets, cards, colour swatches that you have collected along the way.
In my studio I have a large white foam board standing on my bookshelf where I pin all the things that inspire me. I could be some of my papercuts, a photograph from a magazine, a post card from an exhibition I have recently seen or just a small fabric sample.
Some people prefer to keep their visual inspiration in a notebook. I used to do that but then I like to have it on display so now I prefer to have it all on display on a wall.
How do you keep the things that inspire you?
From my Pinterest board:
1.Styling ideas from Anna Westerlund.
2.White Inspiration from Imke Klee.
3.Kristina Klarin.
1. Dream Office from Barbara Pederzini.
2.Via A view to.
3. Via Decor 8.
I received an email from Sophie Tatlow and Bruce Slorach from Utopia Goods this morning and comletetly fell in love with their patterns and vibrant colours. Every print references an aspect of Australian faune & flora or history. Some patterns are hidding little koalas, kangaroos and cicada which is Australia's loudest bug!
Initial drawing of the Flowering Gum Feast print:
Flowering Gum Feast Cushion.
State of Waratah cushion in Indigo:
With wood or metal legs, the Eames Plastic Chairs edited by Vitra have become iconic pieces in many homes. We have the white rocking armchair in the children's bedroom that I have used so many times to rock Lucien to sleep when he was a baby. It was a wedding present from Simon's mum and was our first designer chair to furnish our flat in London.This is a selection of Eames chairs from my Pinterest board:
1. Black with wooden legs from La Maison d'Anna G.
2. Mint rocking chair from the French designer Caroline Gomez.
3. A mix of earthy colours from Alvhem Mäkleri & Interiör.
4.White with wooden legs from Remain Simple.
5.White with metal legs from Emmas Design Blogg.
White rocking chair in the Italian home designed by architect Fabio Barilari. What a view!
Yellow with wooden legs from Bourbon Daisy.
