What are you doing over the holidays..?

I'm going to be listening to this....

Pink Martini's latest release - Joy to the World

....drinking a glass or two (or maybe more) of this....

delicious Australian Sparkling Cabernet

and eating way too much....

Happy Holidays to you all and Happy New Year!! I'll be back in 2011 - I hope it will be a great year for us all!

Just a little something I've been working on....

BRAT

Seriously Awesome Sausages

7 Elgin Street

Soho, Hong Kong

All photos by seriously awesome friend and photographer, Haf Saba

Aire del Sur

I've had this apartment in my mind for a while now...ever since I first saw it published in Australia's Vogue Living quite some time ago. It was such a delight to see more photos published this month in the Spanish Architectural Digest, and even more of a delight to find out who resides here.

Argentinian designer Marcelo Lucini is not only the resident and designer of this amazing apartment in Buenos Aires, but also the man behind the seriously chic furniture and accessories company Aire del Sur. This is a man who has managed to make home furnishings look sexy...

see? this picture is not advertising apparel....nice change, huh?

Anyway, I digress. The Aire del Sur line of furnishings is made from luxurious materials in classic forms, and I'm totally in love with the Anders desk and tables, made from iron and parchment....

Head on over to his website for more if this takes your fancy ;)

JMF & Hermès

Call me strange, but the names Hermès and Jean-Michel Frank in the same sentence gets me excited. Very excited. The decades old relationship between the über luxury house and the before-his-time designer is about to be resurrected. Hermès has announced they plan to re-issue eight of JMF's classic designs. The launch of these pieces coincide with the opening of their new Paris store...and their official return to home furnishings. Word on the street is a third of the store will be dedicated to homewares. So, what get's me more excited than that? The possible re-edition of pieces by Paul Dupré-Lafon and Jacques Adnet of course...

books...

I'm very excited about this new release from French publishing house Norma Editions. The first monograph dedicated to the work of Marc du Plantier by author Yves Badetz. Can't wait for my copy to arrive :)

Khai Liew

My latest love affair is with the home of the Malaysian-born Australian, Khai Liew. I've been a fan of Liew's work for some time now so it was a real teat for me to see his Adelaide home. It embodies all that is good about the Australian lifestyle - laid back and casual, and is blended with a cerebral Asian influence. Its the epitome of East meets West (sorry, I know that term is so overused, but I can't think of anything else). If you are a fan of the American designers Annabelle Selldorf or the firm Shelton Mindel then I think you'd like this place. If so, go buy yourself a copy of the latest German Architectural Digest.

As you can imagine I've been mentally re-decorating since I saw this....

Photographed by Derek Henderson for German Architectural Digest, Nov 2010 edition.

Nicholas & Alistair

If the Nicholas & Alistair gallery had been open when I lived in Melbourne, I may never have left. Housed in a hundred-year-old building located near the banks of Melbourne's Yarra River is what can only be described as Australia's greatest collection of 20th century design.

The gallery is named after co-owners Nicholas Mesiano and Alistair Knight (of course) who spend much of the year travelling the globe sourcing pieces for the gallery. In fact they've recently returned from a 2 month buying expedition in Europe and the Americas. Lucky them!

The pair pride themselves on finding the more exceptional and unusual examples of design...and I have to say the list of designers whose pieces have graced the space reads like my favorites list: Gio Ponti, Osvaldo Borsani, Carlo Scarpa, Ico Parisi, Jacques Adnet, Guillerme and Chambron, Jules Leleu, William Haines and Paul Evans....and many more.

I'll definitely have to pay them a visit next time I'm back home...

Amor español

I've said it before, and I'll say it again....the Spanish have style in spades! The Spanish Architectural Digest is definitely one of my favorite reads, and Nuevo Estilo - although not available here in HK from what I've seen - has a great website with so many beautiful images. I've discovered many talented designers, but one in particular I posted about here - Thomas Urquijo - finally has a website. There are so many lovely projects that its hard to pick a favorite, but this one which was just published by Nuevo Estilo, is pretty darn amazing...

Tom Dixon at Lane Crawford

Brit designer Tom Dixon made an appearance at Hong Kong's Lane Crawford on Thursday night to celebrate the launch of his new Industry collection and a book by the same name.

New products in the collection include 'Peg' a funky little solid wood, stackable café-style chair (seen below) and some wonderful new lighting designs using the Dixon signature metal- copper. I've always been such a fan of copper so its nice to see someone using it in a new way.

‘Industry’ the book is the first of a new series of self-published books by Tom Dixon. The series will highlight and discuss a particular topic, the first being a subject at the forefront of Dixon's mind - challenging society's accepted means of design and production. The paperback outlines a critique of various design production formulas followed by Tom’s own proposal for a Future Industry, and includes previously unpublished conversations between Dixon and design critic Laura Houseley. In the same spirit of his philosophies, this publishing venture cuts out the middle man by employing Print On Demand technology. The book doesn't appear to be available online yet, but I'm hoping the Tom Dixon website or Amazon will make it available to non British residents...it sounds like an interesting read!

The Fairmont San Francisco Penthouse

I am so excited to be able to share with you a sneak peek of the as yet unpublished Fairmont San Francisco Penthouse. The iconic suite, which has been recently revitalized by Alexandra Champalimaud and her team, is 6,000 sq ft of pure luxury.

Ten times larger than the average apartment here in Hong Kong, the suite spans the entire eight floor of the building and consists of three large bedrooms, a living room with grand piano, a formal dining room able to seat 60 people, a kitchen, a two-story library, a billiard room, and an expansive terrace with sweeping views of San Francisco.

On top of all these amazing features, the suite is also home to an impressive art collection featuring original works by David Hockney and other contemporary artists as well as a grouping of exquisite Chinese porcelain vases.

If that's not enough to impress you, the world’s elite have called The Penthouse home. President John F. Kennedy, Prince Charles of Wales, Mikhail Gorbachev, King Hussein of Jordan, Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands as well as Mick Jagger, Elton John, Tony Bennett, Nat King Cole and Marlene Dietrich are just a few of the suite’s famous guests since it opened to the public.

About the spectacular suite, Champalimaud says “The Penthouse of The Fairmont San Francisco is like no other hotel suite. This mansion in the sky is a perfect example of the grand and richly detailed residences that were built for families of San Francisco’s great fortunes almost a century ago. In designing The Penthouse, we have inherited a rich history and the eclectic and sophisticated tastes of the suite’s original owners and those who lived here".

One of the three bedrooms in the Penthouse, this one is utterly beautiful. The colours are so fresh and calming, and the mix is classic and completely timeless.

The living room...I am absolutely in love with it! The colours are beautiful, as are the subtle details and the mix of antique and modern furnishings.

Can you imagine 60 of your closest friends in this room for a night? That's a recipe for one hell of a dinner party if you ask me!

The two-story circular library crowned by a rotunda where a celestial map is rendered in gold leaf against a sapphire sky. A secret passageway concealed behind bookshelves on the library’s second floor lends a sense of intrigue to the historic suite.

The billiard room covered in Persian tile from floor to vaulted ceiling. The Moorish details in this room were inspired by the original designer of the suite, Arthur Upham Pope, a pioneering scholar on Persian art and architecture.

The suite's terrace with enviable views of San Francisco. I certainly wouldn't mind sitting out here with a gin & tonic on a nice night! What do you think?

All images taken by Matthew Millman, care of Champalimaud design.

Just spotted...

these stunning leather products by German company Ludwig Schröder.

the Table lamp and 'Ring 3' bowl are stunning!

based upon...

The group of artists and designers based in London known as based upon were established by the Abell twin brothers in 2004. Their studio specialises in unique finishes that are so beautiful and yet so discreet you've probably seen them without even realising. Take the David Collins designed Artesian Bar in London's Langham Hotel - those seriously delicious tabletops (below) and the beautiful bar front are both by based upon.

The based upon studio has developed a unique liquid metal and resin finish that has been hand-applied to a variety of surfaces, large scale artworks and installations, and bespoke and limited edition furniture, and are often commissioned by leading designers for some of the worlds finest homes, boats and commercial spaces.

I have been coveting their furniture for some time now....check out their "Plum Blossom" cabinet....isn't it amazing?



Creating bespoke items for a project obviously comes at a cost, so the folks at based upon have launched the Plane collection - a range of customisable tables that allows clients interested in creating their own unique piece to do so without the time and cost usually involved in commissioning a completely new form. The tables use an adaptable leg design allowing several different shapes, and with a range of surfaces to chose from, voilà! - you have yourself a semi-bespoke piece of furniture!

Working models at 1:10 scale showing tables from the new Plane Collection

One possibility from the selection of shapes and finishes available.

A stamp of authenticity.

One of the beautiful surface finishes available for the Plane Collection.

I would seriously love to work with these guys on a project at some time soon, and will be putting one of these tables on my Xmas wish list. In the meantime, I'll just have to be content with lusting after the images on their website.

All photos courtesy of based upon.