The new gold standard
Add lustre to open-plan living with these gorgeous new Zen sliding doors by Rimadesio, recently debuted at the Milan Furniture Fair. Sandwiched between two sheets of glass is a semi-opaque sheet of gold that helps create rooms within a large open plan space and lets the light that filters through the mesh become part of the decor. Set on a track, the Maglia Gold doors start from €1,640 but the large ones in the picture cost about €21,000. The marble-topped Manta table costs €3,700. Both are available at Minima.
Tel: 01-633 7716, minima.ie
If you'd prefer to add metal accents the Italian trompe l'oeil master Fornasetti brass and glass convex collar mirror, €1800, ex delivery, is a good way to work the trend. Tel: +39-02 -8965 8040, fornasetti.com
Cactus crazy
Not since the 1970s have house plants been so on trend. They're popping up in cool planters, hanging in pots on walls and suspended from ceilings in macramé confections that make you feel like you're in a time warp. Most on trend are Wild West-inspired, low-maintenance cacti, plants that thrive on neglect. Keep your eyes peeled at Lidl and Aldi for affordable examples. And if real cacti are too much of a commitment then opt for faux. London-Irish decorator Abigail Ahern has a cool collection that needs no looking after and ranges in price from about €65 to €787, ex delivery. Tel: 44-207 -3548181, abigailahern.com
New leaf
Fashion turned lifestyle designer Tory Burch collaborated with 1960s ceramicist Dodie Thayer who first created her signature tableware by moulding pottery from lettuce leaves. The Palm Beach-based designer's fans included First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy, the Duchess of Windsor and New York society queen Brooke Astor whose 218-piece lettuceware collection sold at Sothebys in 2012 for almost €70,000. The canapé plates are an especially sweet way to bring nature indoors, about €110 for a set of four. See toryburch.co.uk
A range with range
Italian upscale range cooker firm J Corradi's Country is a range cooker that heats while it cooks. It comes with a wood-burning stove that adds visual warmth as well as making perfect pizzas; electric and multi-function ovens and a customisable hob that can be gas, ceramic, induction or fry top. The stove can also heat an existing water system or can heat through a ducted air system. The range has Italian good looks; enamelled metal panels, porcelain handles and antiqued brass detailing. It can be ordered through Sho. From €14,000. Tel: 01 -8162101, sho.ie, jcorradi.com
Monochrome masterpiece
After years of travertine and black and speckled granite, monochrome white and veined Carrera marble feel pristine and new again. A material favoured by Michelangelo, who used it in his Pietà and David, sculptures it should be installed in thick slab format on kitchen countertops and used to make a feature out of splashbacks and islands, as per minimalist architect Joseph Dirand's Parisian apartment, one of several inspiring homes in Monochrome Home, a new publication by Ryland Peters & Small.
In bathrooms, use marble on floors and walls for a fabulous boxed-in five-star finish.
Whimsy
People are fed up with the make-and-do mantra of austerity, says decorator Garry Cohn of Cohn Rhattigan. "The paint-it-new process of upcycling is giving way to a sense of fun with whimsy creeping back to living spaces."
Danish London brand Wrong For Hay's functional vases have been given a fun tree-trunk treatment, the small pink vase (about €53.50) and the medium orange (about €103) are available to buy from UK-based online store Unique and Unity. Tel: +44- 845- 605 9699 uniqueandunity.co.uk
Aroma
How do you make your home smell great without resorting to an army of scented candles whose perfume can overpower? Muji's aroma diffuser is one of the smartest buys on the market. It uses ultrasonic waves to vaporise water and essential oils to create a dry fragrant mist. The device can also give off an ambient glow – doubling as a lamp – and costs about €62. See muji.eu
Ideas lab
Where should we be going next for ideas? With everyone having access to Pinterest and Houzz there's a welter of images to browse, but after a while they all look a bit samey. Three-dimensional printing gives real people the chance to become product designers and create completely individual items. Take inspiration from Australian ceramicist Valissa Butterworths who recently created a range of Limoges porcelain, using traditional as well as 3D printing techniques. It is one of the many inspiring images in Digital Handmade, an ideas-laden publication by Thames and Hudson. On the home front check out Dublin-based Love and Robots, who offer customisation and Limerick-based Fab Labs where the public can book time on their 3D machines. See loveandrobots.com; fablab.saul.ie
Bring colour in
Be adventurous with texture and print by playing with offbeat colour combinations. Take your lead from Moooi’s recent presentation at Milan which was a riot of intense colour. A Hexagon rug, €2,540, in blue and red, by Studio Job competes for attention with the rich jewels print of another wall-hung design by Maison Christian Lacroix, €2,540. The room setting also featured the Charles chair, €1,595, a light looking seat by the company’s artistic director, Marcel Wanders, and a reworking of a classic chandelier, the three- tiered wire frame Coppelia, €2,536, by Arihiro Miyake. Tel: +31-76 -578 44 44
Decluttering
2.0 Post minimalism, how do you select stuff to go into your home? By making tidying a special event, not a daily chore, says Japanese decluttering consultant Marie Kondo, the author of The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up (two million copies sold worldwide). Her "discard first and store later" credo has A-list actor Jamie Lee Curtis describing her as her "organiser-in-chief". This limited edition Camerino valet stand by UK-based design duo Brose Fogale is one way to get clothing off the "floordrobe" and bedroom chairs. Made to order, it costs €434, ex delivery. Tel: +447511 595263 brosefogale.co.uk
Industrial elegance
Since British product designer Lee Broom launched his crystal light bulb in 2012 he has become the go-to name for London store fitouts such as the Christian Louboutin shop in Harrods and the Coast flagship. His presentation at Milan last month, housed in a row of disused shops, showed statement lighting and a cog-shaped Shadow furniture collection (left) that pared back the steampunk trend to the most seemingly simple of silhouettes. The pieces pictured are prototypes and prices have yet to be confirmed. Tel: +44-207-8200742, Leebroom. com
Make the outdoors great
Whet your appetite for summer with this poly rattan Copa set, the perfect place to sip an aperitif. The angular graphic weave set has two chairs and a side table and comes in two colourways. It costs about €546, ex delivery, from UK-based made.com. You could also hang out in your garden in this Pod frame chair, left, €360, by Carolyn Donnelly Eclectic at Dunnes Stores. dunnesstores.com
