Wednesday 15 January 2014

Elle Decor January 2014 Part 1


I do like an "international" issue.
Otherwise it ends up consisting mostly of Californian beach houses that most of us can't really relate to 
or poach any ideas to translate into our homes.


I love lucite.  
I never tire of it. But one does need to ration its use otherwise I have noticed it tends to look a bit gimmicky.

Who doesn't like Cartier?
They do have lasting workmanship and 
their objects get better with age and never date.
If you are in Paris, you should go to the exhibition at the 
Grand Palais that is until mid February.



I like the clean lines and neutral but defined palette of Tomas Maier.
Been a fan of his for a long time.
Bottega Veneta is for me the Italian Hermes.


It seems to be a great backdrop for all the objects.
This store is like the Four Seasons of boutiques with that central pool.



I love how Manuel Canovas let the objects speak for themselves.


On the other hand, Charles P Rogers has changed the angle of the bed. 3/4 profile is the most flattering for all objects right?


On to the editorials.
Here is the token house by the water.
It's in Denmark where it seems everyone has great taste.


Is it me or am I just so brainwashed with watching so much 
Nordic Noir that I feel like this is a crime scene?  


Apologies to any Scandinavian readers but 
this is why the media is so powerful!
But watch either the Killing or the Bridge and I am telling you that everyone has the most stylish homes!


This house is very streamlined.
No room to leave any evidence behind.
( I really gotta stop that.)
Can't tell if it would belong to the crime suspect or the police investigator who is typically anti-social and OCD.


Concrete is cool but also very cold.
I couldn't have it in my house.



To change the tone, they featured a lovely renovated 19th century farmhouse in Normandy, France decorated by Franz Potisek.


It has lovely comfortable tones and nothing looks too forced.


I really appreciate the simple way the red paint frames 
otherwise ordinary shelves.  


I could imagine a yummy Sunday lunch here so it is a success.
Sometimes I think people forget that decor is not about 
the actual style sometimes but if the room evokes 
the purpose it is meant to serve.


I love how wallpaper just lifts this room to something 
so sleek and interesting.
By the way, you have to check out the wallpaper 
Heidi chose for her Adelaide Villa here.


Ditto for this otherwise ignored loft room.
If there is a room that you neglect due to an odd shape - 
wallpaper it!


The power of paint is shown once again in the garden. 
Interesting that even in the exterior areas that the rich dark highly pigmented colors are being used.


If there is one place I would love to move to for a year or so is Marrakech.
I love pretty much everything about that place.
I would love to buy a riad and do it up. 
But with different builders of course...


I did a lot of riad hopping and loved the various way of refurbishing them.  One thing that really surprises me is how well riads suit sleek modern styles.


I would probably not include a kitchen because 
the food is fabulous and so cheap there.


I know I said I wouldn't have concrete in my home but for some reason I could handle it with this combo of riad structure, 
ornate traditional features like the doors, and a Venetian mirror.


But the star of the riad is always the central courtyard that 
is one of my favourite types of gardens and outdoor spaces.


Part two tomorrow!

31 comments:

  1. Naomi you're so funny "but with different builders"!
    Of course I love this house in Normandy, those colours that are slightly muddy but also clear. It's a very cozy interior. I agree about the concrete with the exception of when it is somehow combined with venetian mirrors!
    Heidi's new post with that gorgeous wallpaper is making me think about which room I could wallpaper in my house.

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    1. I might have better communication with patois instead of some odd hybrid of English we use on site. Normandy is amazing but the weather is worse than England!! Wallpaper makes Heidi's laundry room look like you could have a tea party in there - please share when you do :)

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  2. I have to tell you that I have found my ipad! ... this is after having lost it for over a year ... and thanks to you, I have also been buying magazines!... House Beautiful has a wonderful Ipad format! I totally adore the farmhouse by Franz Potisek. I am so in-love with his use of colour and the warmth and homey atmosphere it creates! I also adore that green kitchen! I am a huge fan of colour! Thank you, as always for your witty, 'on the button' comments! xxx

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    1. yay! Ipad subscriptions have helped prevent dog eared pages all over the house for sure! I love how they also show different angles which trumps the paper version surprisingly. Lately I am seduced by these tones as well - can't wait to see you Bowral home done xx

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  3. Love this Naomi! Of course, I loved the Normandy house and noted that the colours of the cupboards are the same as mine! The Scandinavian houses scare me!

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    1. That Danish house was meant to be woken up in the middle of the night by a sound - even in the day it looks like night! Complete opposite to that Normandy house which is sooo cosy!

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  4. Ah, yes, crime scenes. And silence. Still chortling.

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    1. That house freaked me out. Who needs amityville horror eh?

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  5. One does love the aesthetic of the Scandinavians. One fears, though, that it might be a bit brisk in those climes.

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    1. I think they have perfected the art of champagne socialism. Free health care and stylish homes for all. hear hear.

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  6. Nordic crime scenes! Those houses definitely fulfil the criteria!
    I love the Normandy Farmhouse almost as much as the clean Nordic lines.
    Doing up a Riad would be so amazing, but you really would want different builders. Since watching Grand Designs I've convinced myself that German builders are the way to go!!

    On the subject of Scando crime, have you seen Unit One or The Eagle? Also great crime from the North

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    1. No I havent but I will netflix those - the bridge season 2 just started so I am doing a catch up - can not wait! I am not that into huf haus but i would get one for those builders alone whose builder vans were cleaner than most kitchens!

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  7. Love that Venetian mirror above .. and the garden.. gorgeous! The farmhouse is so pretty. Great kitchen and I like the blues and greens. Yep. Definitely a crime scene;) .. or something medical. Not my cup of tea..

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    1. orange trees in the courtyard of a riad sipping mint tea after a session at the hammam is one of my go to peaceful places in my head Leslie!

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  8. Have you been to the Alhambra in Granada?
    The riad reminded me of that....

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    1. Yes in fact I went there before I visited Marrakech and it blew my mind!!!

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  9. Each one is great in its own way! The farmhouse looks the easiest to live in, and with its poutres apparentes, would make a lot of Anglais happy. The thing that I loath with a passion in interior design mags/books/websites is this love of placing furniture and books as if it was a gynocologists waiting room...lined up and symmetrical round a pile of crap on a coffee table or large poof. And not to mention when everything is festooned with so many cushions it renders the function of the furniture useless! Grrrr

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    1. Argh! Having a predictive text nightmare day...that should obviously have read pouf!

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    2. Alas, not many poofs in a Gynie's office...I did a post about the excessive cushion syndrome. half the floor ends up with them anyway!!

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    3. Ha! As Sweden has already started womb transplant and the first baby born from one is predicted for this year...who knows.

      Got a link for your excessive cushioning syndrome Naomi?

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    4. True that! I then would decide to have loads of babies.

      Link to cushion syndrome is

      http://naomipicks.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/enough-pillows-enough-already_2.html

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  10. Lovely issue. I hate to have to admit it, but yes, the Normandy house looks stunning and so appealing to me also. I love the room in the attic and love to see how you could work with wall paper. Inspiration for the renovations, many thanks!

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    1. That attic room was an amazing example of what wallpaper could do wasn't it? That farmhouse was done in a very comforting style I agree.

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  11. I've got Swedish relatives - I promise that most real Swedish living places are less austere:). How would they survive all the dark winters otherwise!

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    1. Yes I am being a bit cheeky but in Britain any nordic noir fan is brainwashed like myself :) But they just seem to have consistently the best decor - there was only one home that wasn't stylish but it belonged to a hooker who was a witness to a government scandal or something!

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  12. Already looking forward to Part 2! I much prefer the global issues which provide so much inspiration. The French house is so welcoming (and I don't usually like too much colour in a room!) I love the Marrakesh dining room too with all the tagines and that amazing black tulip dining table and chairs. As for the courtyard, perfect! The contrast between the lush plants and the grey and white - wonderful.

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    1. My fave is the riad though - there is just the best balance of all aspects for me!

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  13. Definitely bodies under those Scandinavian stones! And the detective and the criminal inhabit the same house, for ultimate suspense. I love courtyards. And I wish I had thought of wallpaper for my crazy angled ceilings in the upstairs bedrooms!

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    1. Yes for some reason I love a courtyard more than a traditional open garden. I am surprised the effect of wallpaper on odd angles and this is something I will file under possibly useful information that I amy nor may not ever use... :)

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  14. I agree 110 %, concrete looks really cool, but I'd never have that in my home, it looks so sterile and cold. But it does photograph well, maybe that's the point and the intention behind it.:)

    P.S.: What's with the no-comment posts? A couple of posts ago I wanted to say that it seems that you're not the biggest fan of Vogue.:)

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    1. I thought I would do it once in a while because I feel like responding to any commnets but on the weekend I thought I should try and take a computer break ( well try to anyway )

      I am not the biggest fan as you rightly noticed but it is sort of the benchmark no? that is why i cant help continue reading it!! argh.

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