Feeling Fresh

My mood today is definitely the colour green.

Hopeful and optimistic, with all the promise of Spring and warmer weather just down the road.

Cheers, Arren


Riotous colour and barmy prints! Thank heavens for architect Josef Frank, whose textile and furniture designs for storied Swedish design retailer Svenskt Tenn are an antidote to a grey day, if ever I saw one.

His perfectly curvy and very on trend sofa 968 was actually designed in the late 1930’s, and that gobsmacking fabric? It’s Vegetable Tree, a print Frank designed in the 1950’s inspired by the classic Tree of Life motif.

If you’re looking for something just as stylish, if a little more contemporary, then the cool cats at Svenskt Tenn have collaborated with Swedish architecture firm TAF on their first ever non-Frank designed sofa. Just as curvy as the 968 but with a fresh perspective, the Famna 2020 looks as swish in Frank’s wild 1940’s Hawaii print as it does in plush persimmon velvet. See that stunner here.

Photo: sofa 968, Svenskt Tenn

Photo: sofa 968, Svenskt Tenn

Photo: Famna 2020 sofa and stool, TAF for Svenskt Tenn

Photo: Famna 2020 sofa and stool, TAF for Svenskt Tenn


I love commitment to colour. So when I see the same minty-meets-chalky shade of green popping up in two entirely different rooms, in completely different styles, I’m sold. One, the creative home in Ghent of design duo Muller Van Severen (see more here). The other, a maisonette in Fulham by British interior designers Barlow & Barlow.

That green is a classic Muller Van Severen shade. Spot it in metal frames for lamps and furniture, as well as in Match, a line of Ikea kitchen cabinet doors made of waxily touchable polyethylene for Reform. Ever creative, there’s even a special Music for Kitchens playlist curated by the duo on Spotify.

Colour is key in this Barlow & Barlow interior too, adding oodles of style on a slim budget. For this peppy living room, Farrow & Ball’s Arsenic is the shade in question. The look is amped up further with a chair upholstered in Lasso by Pierre Frey. It’s a fave from their capsule collection with designer Vincent Darré. Yum!

Photo: Alex Profit

Photo: Alex Profit

Photo: Barlow & Barlow

Photo: Barlow & Barlow


Norwegian paint brand Jotun Lady is def where it’s at for modern colour and styling inspo. Exhale, one of their hot picks for 2020 is the soft and misty shade of green in this interior styled by Kråkvik/D'Orazio. And yes, that is a Muller Van Severen Standing Lamp No. 1 in the shot. Couldn’t you just slink right in and never leave?

Check out the rest of Jotun Lady’s totally on the money colour trends for 2020 here.

Photo: Line Klein

Photo: Line Klein

Julia Black: Pop-Up Colour

In light of all the pop-up shops that have been, well, popping up lately, I've felt a lovely buzz around the city like never before. The only problem is that this dampening, dreary winter weather throws a blanket on all the energy we have. I know, when you look outside it appears cold and grey, but the fix is in, and it's colour! Just look to the latest from folks like Jonathan Adler, CB2, Ikea and BoConcept for tons of helpful inspiration, and decide on a New Year's resolution to get more pops of colour in your life. Have a look below at snaps of BoConcept's collection for 2010. Oh, and btw, BoConcept has a store in Vancouver and are about to open a brand new location in Calgary in the next few days.

To read more posts from Julia click here, and to check out her cool blog click here.

F&B's 4 takes on '10

Here we go, a bit of a look forward (hopefully past lots of nasty wintry weather) into the gorgeousness that will be 2010 from Farrow & Ball, since the nice folks there have come up with 4 key colour trends for next year that all sound - and look - simply lovely.

From the top, Industrial: A strong but fragile fusion of colour which slides tradition up against modernity and is inspired by industrial architecture. Next on the block is Aquatic: A soft, watery palette inspired by the elements which is a palette that starts out with an inky blue then softens to something more tranquil. Then we move into a stronger, more fashion-forward and graphic direction in dramatic plums and greys for Urban Decay: A vibrant scheme with an unpredictable twist. Finally, on the more opulent tip of things you'll find Glitz & Glamour: A decadent look that celebrates excess with lots of gold and hints of Middle Eastern influences.