Thursday, March 28, 2013

Friday Fun Day Tip: Framing

There is much joy from correct hanging of frames.  Much.



It's all about the maths people.  Sorry I did say fun day didn't I...

With these beauties I got my friendly framer to come in and help.  It makes all the difference.  It makes for a more smarter and finished look.

Don't forget that frames can double as super duper mini storage units!

Art work - series of music vintage posters from The Flood Gallery in Greenwich, London
Jane Denton, Textile Art
Framing by - Seymour Framing, Blenheim
Reflection - Lighting by David Trubridge (Coral Light)

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Visiting: URBIS Design Day 2013

Urbis Design Day is done.  

 It was colourful, thought provoking, fascinating, curious, funny, social, capricious, interactive and mostly designery.


I loved it.  It is a chance for me to meet some of the faces I blog about or only speak with via the nets.  It's a chance to catch-up on design goss.  It's a chance to be inspired and to think bigger.  It's a chance to 'go big city' for a sec.

My graphic designer friend, Kelly Lawson and I (or Laverne and Shirley we were known after the MINI/Switch stop) started at the Bo Concept/Styledbyyou stop.  We hit the ground running as we were immediately lead into an area where there were models, clothing, accessories and cameras.  The idea was to choose an outfit that represented you, then the model had to 'work' it in front of a photographer, with props from Bo Concept.  Surprise! I went bright, mixing plains with stripes.  It was a gas.
Other highlights included the hyper-cool George FM DJ's, fly danish furniture from Bo Concept and an impressive art collection supplied but the Mobile Art Gallery.




Next stop was Paterson/Studio Frazerhurst.  Yummy mocktails and an intriguing entrance was a super start for this collaboration.  Clever plays on light, art forms and sexy bathroom wear joined seamlessly to give a sense of play-time into plumbing.  I also bumped in Kirsten Matthews, the Editor for URBIS magazine.  Although extremely busy, herself having to interview all the installations, she still had time to catch up with us.  Such an mega mount of organisation goes into a day like this so thank you to the team behind it all.  Especially Zara Tempest who co-ordinated tickets and all the rest!  Kirsten said the biggest thrill of the day was the fact that they had no idea before the day what the actual installations would look like.  



Next stop was ECC Lighting and Furniture/Tape Art NZ.  I have a wee confession to make...  I didn't get to see the Art installation as we only stayed downstairs.  It was not until afterwards when I said to Kelly, "Where was the Tape Art?", that we realised our mistake.  Whoops.  We were loving seeing all the lighting - they were my star of the show.  I have a real thing for lights.  Apologies to Tape Art - I heard it was impressive!


Next stop was Resene/Matter on K' Rd.  Starting the route with coffee, cupcakes and M and M's and worked off all that sugar by walking down the road passing an incredible installation that was situated below the K' Rd over bridge on an unused section of the motorway.  Very clever and very cool.  Other highlights included painting part of a mural and making a paper dart to get in a bucket.  I was not a champ and my origami skills were rusty.







Next stop was the Hewlett Packard/Whitecliffe Art School collab.  They were based INSIDE the silo's at the Silo Park.  It was a pleasure to walk around the arty-youth projects with a Nice-block in hand and look n' learn.


Next stop was Backhouse and the team from Gather and Hunt.  I loved their set-up with clever concepts linking to the whole theme.  Very nature inspired which complemented the furniture they were showing.  It was also interactive with your favourite furniture pieces relating to a food/beverage.  Fun team and a very brilliant installation.  I really appreciated the space - small but well formed.  All elements covered.  




Next stop was a three n' one with a combo of installs based in the stunning Geyser building.  Design Assembly created a personality decipher system that lead you too find your personality 'A'.  I decided I was a mixture of them all.  It was a clever layout that lead you through a font infested discovery of self.  The pineapple shorts worn by the host was a high light and don't think they were part of the install - maybe next year!  




Through the atrium and into the Yeoman's Capsule and Simon Devitt Photography collab.  Smart, stylish and clever.  Both product and artist.  





Next to them was the team from URBIS.  A place check out the newest colour infused issue and take a breather before the last of the day.  Nice to catch up with Micheal Barrett from Interior Magazine.  One stylish geezer.

Two more stops and then done.  Massive que here at Geyser - I guess that the three n' one deal caught up with the friendly complimentary taxi shuttles.  No mind.  Kels and I decided to beat the street and walked up Parnell Rise (which was our old stomping ground many moons ago).  As luck would have it I also stopped to buy a blow up Marlin (that matches my blow up Moose head) BUT THAT'S A DIFFERENT STORY.



By the time we reached Spazio Casa we were coming down from our sugar high and needed sustenance.  Spaz came to the party with a delizioso spread of Italian Antipasto goodness.  Once feed and watered we were off, finding well turned out models, hiding in bathware, dressed by fashionista, Yvonne Bennetti.  Life imitating art with fabrics that reseembled tiles, marble and all manner of bathroom glitz.  



Last, but by no means least was the MINI/Switch combo.  Brilliant.  I loved.  It had all the elements for me.  Cool cars, cool food, cool staff, cool badges, cool competitions, cool coolie cools.  Now just to win that Mini for a week...



All in all - it was fantastic. A huge thank you to all those who took part - the level of thought and the amount of effort put in was super evident and very inspiring.  This day is a credit to the talented good buggers and the URBIS staff.  Three design cheers for you all.  See you next year.


Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Hosted: MillerMcKean Clothing

Recently was lucky enough see the new range by the lovely (and talented) girls from MillerMcKean clothing.  
They asked me to host the launch of their new label to the South Island.  Priv!


Ange Hart and Missy Bayer, the designers.

Silk Kimono tops in colours and patterns

The temporary show-room

It was a super evening where guests could peruse as leisure the yummy sampling they had to offer.  MillerMcKean pride themselves on their sumptuous silk fabrics that delight in brights and flatter in all shades - silk that are made to be worn everyday.


Racks of colours

They are planning to be available online at some stage in the near future but until then you can see the range at Thread in Auckland.  You can find them on Facebook.

Room info:
Walls painted in Dulux, Dance Studio
Faux Zebra Rug from Sallee 
West German Pot Collection - owned by Alex Fulton Design

Thursday, March 14, 2013

Sneak Peak: Our Place

Exciting times as we gradually renovate our new home in Blenheim.  
This is just a sneaky peak as we are also getting ready for a photo shoot early next month, then all will be revealed.


What we have done here:
All Beige walls have been painted white 
All wood work has been painted white
Original tim pressed panels painted dark navy
New lighting from David Trubridge, Corals in White (from Essenze) and Tom Dixon, Jack Light (from ECC Lighting and Furniture)
Other products include Balinese Water Container and Magis Paradise Tree Coat Rack (from ECC Lighting and Furniture)

Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Good Prod: Luxy Loli Customised Phone Cases

If Anne Hathaway's nipples can have their own twitter account so can my new iphone case.

Images by Alex Fulton Design

This bespoke beauty was made just for me and it could not have been more perfect.  Sharai from Luxy Loli is a glueing genius that can transform any phone/ipad into a mini masterpiece.

Those of you that know me will know immediately that this phone cover was mine.  Silly, colourful and mostly bonkers... and what about the troll people.

When I found her via the inimitable Gala Darling, imediately I knew one had to be mine.  You can find Shair's beauties via her facebook, email or etsy.


Thursday, March 7, 2013

Giveaway: URBIS Design Day

The URBIS Design day is a fun designery day out in Auckland City, New Zealand.  


It's a lovely conglomeration of spacial design, fashion, art, food, automotives, graphic design, colour, photography, lighting, furniture, architecture and schmoooooozing.

Collaborations make it all the more fun and they have just been announced - very exciting indeed.

They are:

Each collaboration is supposed to interpret this years theme, which is 'Journey of Connections'.  The collabs were announced at the new venue in town called Citizen Park.  Tres cool.

Here at AFD we are giving away 2 double passes to some lucky design heads (NZ peeps only sorry).  All you need to do to get your name in the hat is to tell me a favourite collaboration you have seen or would like to see.  
e.g.  Tom Dixon + Habitat (all time favourite wallpaper)
Kate Sylvester for Douglas + Bec (golden beaked swans, say no more)
Louis Vuitton + Yayoi Kusama (those polka dots!)
You can either put your answer here on the comments section or on our AFD facebook page, here.

Good luck (you have x2 chances) and I will draw this prize next Thursday the 15th March.


*******Our lucky winner was Missy Bayer********

Here's some images taken last year...




All images provided by URBIS Magazine

URBIS Design Day double pass tickets provided by URBIS Magazine
To be used on the day of the 23rd March.  This prize does not include accommodation or flights in/to Auckland.  To find out more about the day please see here for details.

Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Shop it up: Bloc (Mt Eden, Auckland, NZ)

Bloc is collaboration.  No understatement.

The talented photographer Larnie Nicolson recently photographed the design lineup that is Bloc.  The images really speak for themselves.  

Cool Food

Bo Concept

Collected by LeeAnn Yare

Douglas and Bec - Homewares

Citta Design Homewares

This, my design buns, is a destination for the design savy and creative inspired.  Food, beauty, interiors, stationary - it's all covered off under one stylish roof.  Glory be.


Pencil


WORLD Beauty

I'm coming Bloc.  See you when I come for the URBIS Design Day.

The stylemakers - look at you all.

All images taken by Larnie Nicolson

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Shop it up: Vintage Marquee Lights

Waiting for a sign was not me hoping that some mythical creature would appear or the next lotto numbers to emerge from scattered stones.  I literally have been waiting for my sign...
and it arrived.

Oh happy me.  A vintage sign.  My very own.  

I have been spotting these yummy's all over the shop... Pinterest, Shelter Mags, Look books, and Catalogues.  Not to be out done, I investigated and luck behold I found.



I found Jerrad and his skills of vintage marquee goodness.  Him and his lovely wife make and own Vintage Marquee Lights. They sell a glittering array of rust and coloured rust signs, symbols, letters and numbers.  They can be joined up to make works or simply stand alone.





They rock my eyes.  So did their sweet movie.





Teeeeeeensy problem.  They came with bulbs that hated our NZ voltage.  I fixed that issue and bingo-mingo we have light.  Not cheap to fixaroo but do-able none the less.  If you are to order one from Jerrad, I'm happy to assist with the conversion - just contact moi.



Here's my red arrow in ma kitchen.  S'lovely.