Villa Collection - Summertime

Igår fick jag nya katalogen från Villa Collection, eller katalog förresten, det är en stor inbunden bok späckad med massor av härlig inspiration. Den heter 'Summertime - let's go slow'. I det här grådasket som jag har utanför fönstret känns den som rena tortyren. Som ni ser på antalet bilder blev jag lite 'carried away'. Du kan gå in och bläddra i hela katalogen på nätet här.

Ljuvligt sovrum med trevliga detaljer

Läsarhem i Sköna Hem som satsat på den ljuva linjen i sovrummet. Tydligen var allt i furu före renoveringen. Nu är det vitt med söt blommig tapet och med trevliga och annorlunda detaljer. Smart också att lösa snedväggsproblemet med en bokhylla och sänggavel i ett. Men jag skulle gärna vilja veta vad den där ställningen för smycken egentligen är för något. Någon som vet?

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Idag skriver jag om indisk inredning på svd.se och visar bilder från bloggaren Archanas (Rang Decor) eget hem. Missa inte det!!

Designer’s Portfolio, Hair, Magazines and Saladino!

I’d like to share a few finds with you that you might find pretty interesting, or at least new and exciting!

First of all…. HGTV has a feature called Designer's Portfolio, where they feature over 2,000 spaces from HGTV’s professional designers.  It’s fun to look around and see how the pros do it.  Here is a sampling…

This colors in this Master Bedroom are wonderful!  The mossy green with the black is a big hit in my book because of it’s earthy and sharp at the same time.  Love the striped wing chair.  Designer Erin Valencich.

Candace Olson’s Master Bedroom make-over.  Dreamy blues and beiges bring this room up to date.  One of the things I love about this room are the side tables.   I like different side tables, rather than matchy-matchy.  That goes for lighting too on the side tables…. sometimes.

This modern kitchen remodel by Designer Aimee Kim pleases me because of the sparkle!  The glass tiles, along with the stainless appliances  gives this space a clean, professional feel.  Love it!

I love all things Hawaiian… in fact I hope to one day own my own little bungalow on a beach someday in Wailea, Maui (if any of you out there know of a great deal… let me know!).  So, it goes without saying that this room speaks to me… the art panel behind the bed, the wood tones used in the room, the Hawaiian prints used on the wall and in the fabrics, all make this room scream Aloha!

O.K…. onto the next great find. .. this one isn’t design related, but it’s such great news, I had to share it with you…

I have really, really curly hair… like Shirley Temple curly hair!  All my life, I’ve fought these curls, but finally succumbed to living with them sometime about 10 years ago, when I realized I wasn’t going to change anything!

So, you can imagine my mission to find good hair products.  I’ve been using a hair product called Wen from Chaz Dean for quite awhile now.   I first saw it on one of those info-mercials and was hooked.   Damn those actors!   But, I have to say, that I was quite impressed with the product.

You see, I’m a bit of a proponent of organic products.  Not a lot of people know that most shampoos have a product in it called sodium laureth sulfates (SLS), which is a detergent and surfactant found in most shampoos, soaps and toothpastes.

The problem is that these SLS’s have been known to cause canker sores, and if ingested into the body/skin/mouth in large amounts over a long period of time, may cause cancer.  There are people who agree and disagree on this one… but why chance it?

Wen is free from these SLS’s.  And, up until yesterday, I thought Wen was only available through their website.  Additionally, you had to sign up for a service, which would require delivery of their products to you on a regular basis, whether you needed them or not.   Thanks to my friend, Nora, I now know that Wen is available on Amazon.com!  And you can buy the products separately! 

I use Wen mainly as a conditioner, not a shampoo.  It’s one of those all-in-one products and I LOVE IT!!!!

Next…I’ve just picked up my first copy of a great new shelter magazine called Loft Life Magazine.  It’s been out for a few months, but it’s new to me.  It’s a wonderful magazine, filled with an eclectic mix of articles, green design, and new design finds all with a funky urban feel.  I really like the magazine and you might too!

Article:  Viva La France Street

The photography is hip and edgy and even the paper that the magazine is printed on feels different from your typical magazine… a bit heavier.

The subscription is only $12.00 for 6 issues.  Quite the bargain I think.

And for you John Saladino fans, he has a new design book coming out on March 1, called Saladino Villa, where he tells the story through word and picture of his revival of a stone ruin in Southern California that he fashioned into his dream home over 5 years of painstaking attention to detail.

Anyone familiar with John Saladino will know that this book will be fabulous.  This is a man who knew what he wanted to do in life… even visiting Villa Rotunda when he was 19 to check out the architecture!  His work is beautiful and I can’t wait to read his new book and take in what might become my newest design bible!

You can get the book at Amazon here.

John Saladino dining room.  Montecito, California.

The master designer himself, John Saladino.

I’m off to Sonoma (wine country!) for the weekend.  Hopefully I’ll have some lovely photos to share of the architecture and landscape of the area.

Have a great weekend!

Urban Outfitters

Massor av kul i en stil som är härligt retro finns på amerikanska webshopen Urban Outfitters. Här är några av mina favoriter.

Ny annonsör - webshopen anyhow

Elisabeth som skriver bloggen Lev Livet Leende skriver inte bara en fantstisk blogg utan har också nyligen startat webshopen anyhow. Mysiga och annorlunda produkter som sticker ut lite. Alltid lite extra kul när någon bloggare tar steget ut och satsar på lite försäljning. Anyhow är dessutom ny annonsör här på Purple Area. Här är ett smakprov på sortimentet som består av både festliga peacemärket, dekorationsord, kul tavlor på engelska drottningen, ministolar och kaninlampor.

Ferm Living blandar natur och retro med sekelskiftesromantik

Årets nyheter från Ferm Living har en hel del naturtema som grenar, löv och fåglar, blandat med lite retro precis som tidigare år. Nytt för i år är mönster med burfåglar, gammaldags cyklar, resväskor m m. Lite sneglande åt sekelskiftesromantiska hållet. Alltihop blir tillsammans en spännande mix. Du kan bläddra i katalogen här.

Flera nyanser av vitt

Har du läst min blogg på svd idag så har du sett att jag visat sovrumsinspiration från färgtillverkaren Sadolin. Här kommer flera av deras inspirationsbilder men med vitt som tema.

Purple Area på R & S again...

Som om inte det var nog så upptäckte jag i morse att Helena även lagt in ytterligare ett inlägg om mig på R&S där jag blir jämförd med giganterna Desire to Inspire... tack Helena, du är en pärla!

Tillbaka igen..

Den här veckan har jag varit ute och rest lite (skidor i Österrike). Under tiden har Helena på R&S publicerat mitt lilla bidrag till sin serie som kallas för Tisdagstanken - 'Mamma du är som en snigel!'.

Sajten Boombaby har publicerat några frågor från småbarnsföräldar som jag svarat på. Det handlar om hur man enklast fixar till badrummet, hallen eller vardagsrummet med massor av småbarnsprylar överallt - det inlägget kan du läsa här.

H&M har den här veckan öppnat sin websida med produkter för hemmet. Så nu kan du kolla in alla produkterna och även shoppa loss, om du känner för det, här. Pressbilder från H&M.

Fascinating Architecture

Having a real fascination for architecture can lead me down many internet black holes. In other words, I can get lost for hours looking at some of the incredible, fascinating, and sometimes funky architecture that has been created.

Here is a sampling for you… hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

The Ray and Maria Stata Center, designed by Frank Gehry, is an odd jumble of lopsided buildings. The Center houses three departments at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge.

The unconventional design led to cracks, leaks, and other structural problems. The amphitheater had to be rebuilt and reconstruction cost some $1.5 million. MIT filed a negligence suit against Gehry Partners, charging that their design of the Stata Center was defective.

The Bubble House. Located in Tourettes-sur-Loup, France, and designed by Hungarian architect Antti Lovag and completed by Pierre Cardin. At 35 years old, it has already been listed by the French ministry of culture as a historic monument.

It consists of a series of bubbles covered in oval, convex windows, the whole assemblage set into the volcanic rock hillside.

Located in Sopot, Poland at Bohaterów Monte Cassino Street the Crooked House was constructed in 2003 based off of drawings from Jan Marcin Szancer and Per Dahlberg.

The Piano House, China. This unique piano house was built recently in An Hui Province, China. Inside of the violin is the escalator to the building. The building displays various city plans and development prospects in an effort to draw interest into the recently developed area.

Located in Dalat, Vietnam the Crazy House, formerly known as Hang Nga Villa, was designed by architect Dr. Dang Viet Nga.

This office building is located in Prague, Czech Republic and was designed by architects Vlado Milunić and Frank Gehry. Because the building somewhat resembles a pair of dancers it was originally named Fred and Ginger, after Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. Later it was nicknamed the Dancing House.

Though quite a few thin houses exist around the globe, this particular Thin House is located in London, UK.

Dar Al Hajar. Located in Yemen, the Dar Al Hajar and built by Imam Yahya as a summer residence in the 1930s.

View from the roof of the Dal Al Hajar or Rock Palace.

Located in Arkhangelsk, Russia, The Gangster Wood House is believed to be the world’s tallest wooden house, soaring 13 floors and reaching 144 feet - about half the size of the tower of Big Ben. Rumored to be built by a gangster. This house reminds me of the houses in the movie Moulin Rouge.

The Sutyagin’s house is under the threat of demolition by the city authorities.

Cubic Houses of Rotterdam. Located in Rotterdam in The Netherlands, and developed by Piet Blom. Each cube house has three floors. The reception, the kitchen and the living room are on the first floor. The bedroom and bathroom are on the second floor. The third floor is used sometimes as a small garden.

Located in Valencia, Spain, the building is the opera house and is one of the buildings within the City of Arts and Sciences.

Designed by architect Santiago Calatrava.

The Pixel Tower in Dubai is scheduled for completion in 2010. Architecture designed by James Law Cybertecture.

Have a great week!