bespoke

This week’s obsession is not the Royal Wedding for me, but the amazing new wallpapers which I keep seeing everywhere as new designers embrace the digital printing possibilities that are now available. It seems that interior trends are embracing large scale and bright patterns, and while they may not be for everyone’s taste I love the boldness they offer.

The original bespoke wallpaper in Europe from makers such as de Gournay are exquisite and I have always lusted after a bespoke wall covering. But they are not cheap, and there’s a part of me that just cannot justify the expense. But just look at the beauty of them:

Recently, due to my somewhat obsessive scouring of Instagram and Pinterest, I came across a designer team in New Zealand called Back To The Wall. These designers do huge digitally printed murals in gorgeous designs, and while they may not have the hand finished painterly effect of a de Gournay, they are still pretty spectacular.

In the UK, another digital mural company well worth looking at is Surface View. They have a huge collection of images available to be printed up as large scale murals. Their botanical and historical prints are pretty amazing and you can go as wild or as tame as you like in terms of design. But all are large scale for a great feature wall.

Another favourite who I love is House of Hackney. They print beautiful designs which are quite intense, sometimes quirky and also designed as a set of 3 panels which can repeat around a room if desired.

I used their design Florida Onyx in my renovation of a townhouse as panels on wardrobes and it was stunning. Who knows, one day I may be brave enough to do a whole room?!

It’s been a bit quiet on the blogging front whilst I have been trying to plan how to fit the contents of a large house into a smaller one. Books are the big issue this past couple of weeks – I have cleared the blockbuster paperback shelves and donated them to the charity shops, but still have a lot left that I re-read constantly including loads of penguin classics and art books. Even after the purge, I still have hundreds and really do not want to part with them My tape measure and I are constant companions now, and I have spent days researching various options for bookcases and cupboards that I need to fit into quite wide alcoves in the dining room of our new house this summer.

They need to look something like this and fit the spaces perfectly.

Ikea hacking came to mind as a first option, with cunning combinations of shelves and mouldings – but I am not made on melamine, and even when painted it chips easily so I know it would drive me nuts spotting flaws on shelves.

I then got in several firms who build bespoke shelving units to quote. Most were averaging £1K per unit. Unbelievable! For that I would get MDF, not even solid wood.

Finally I have found a firm online who can make solid wood ones to order for very reasonable prices. I supply all measurements and they make, deliver and fit. It is millimetre perfect so is actually not scribed into the wall but removable. I can move the shelves around to suit the book sizes, and they come primed and sprayed in any paint I want as well – all F&B colours or any RAL. I am thinking plain white but I will paint the back beading a much darker colour to make things pop.

I am going for a combination of these library shelves below, but with doors not drawers on the lower part top hide the uglier books! I just love the ladder – the unit will be 9ft tall so I think I can justify one!

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