Inspiration from the tropics

Happy sunny Sunday – and sorry for the recent silence. I've been lucky enough to be on holiday in hot, tropical far-off places. But now I'm back in Blighty, to gorgeous (not to mention tan-sustaining) weather, feeling refreshed, renewed and full of inspiration.

While I was away, I revived my obsession with tropical foliage and am determined to get as much of it as is possible in a semi-shady London garden. Sadly, my quest for the gorgeously fragrant frangipani trees of my dreams has been fruitless, and I fear the search for exotic plants suitable for the southern hemisphere is going to be tough (though when I've spoken to some clever garden-y friends and got their tips, I'll share them). It's a small start, but I'm very happy with the mini magnolia tree I planted in the winter, which has sprung into life during our recent mini heatwave. I searched hard for one that didn't need a proper flower bed and lots of growing space, as I only had a big pot on offer – and if you, like my friend Giles, are also keen on a magnolia that you can grow in a container for a balcony, patio or front doorstep, check out this miniature pink beauty from Van Meuwen, which costs just £17.95 and grows to a manageable 150cm.

Meanwhile, here are some nice jungle-y, planty, flowery things you don't even need a garden for...

1. Cotton Kaveri bedding, designed by artist Rebekah Maysles, who was inspired by a trip to the south of India. Anthropologie, from £38

2. This luscious Green Flower Oilcloth, is one of the new designs at Viva La Frida. Big, bold flowers (the largest white flower measures 20cm square), and just £12 per square metre. Use it as a tablecloth to bring the tropics into your kitchen, or stretch it like a canvas and hang it on a wall. I think it'd look great in a bathroom.

3. This pretty vintage garden print, from The OK Corral is far from tropical – instead it's packed with bluebells. Very English. And very lovely. The artist is Beatrice Parsons (1860-1955) and this 24.5cm x 32cm painting, in its original wooden frame, is a snip at just £12.

4. Good old B&Q. I really like this environmentally friendly wallpaper, which is printed on 100% FSC paper using water based inks. It'd look lovely livening up a wall in a hall or along a staircase, I think. Best of all, it's just £12.98 per 10m roll. (And look out for this wallpaper in next Sunday's green-themed Insider column in the New Review. This week's, in case you're interested, is all about how to pimp your stairs.)

Pretty Japanese postcards – and money to a good cause

Aren't these Japanese-style illustrated postcards beautiful? 

They're from Our Shop, the retail side of Our Workshop, a graphic design collaboration which aims to showcase fresh new creative talent. They sell well-chosen vintage things, handcrafted homewares – and stunning artwork in the form of cards, like these.

The artist behind this limited edition set of five A6 mini-prints is the illustrator, Julie LaBulle. Each postcard features a unique japanese icon, from a kokeshi doll, kite, lucky cat, daruma and a koi fish. On the back of each postcard, there is a little history about each object. The set costs £10. 

All profits from the sale of these postcards will go to The British Red Cross/Japan Tsunami Appeal.

Shop at Shelf

I've just been doing a lot of window-shopping at Shelf. If you don't already know it, do have a browse – there are lots of differently priced things, from Matt Pugh's Wooden Owls, £32.50 (middle image) to Emily Warren's weirdly wonderful papier mache wall hangings (top three images), which weigh in at £205 a piece. 

It was those that led me to Shelf, in fact, as I have just been sent a copy of the very cool new book, Casual Living, by Judith Wilson (Ryland Peters & Small) – in which one home featured has a whole family of Warren's paper creations looking down, a little scarily, from a wall. Looks brilliant.

The birds at the bottom are Frerk Muller mugs, £12 each, fine porcelain – and the ravens were originally created by the German illustrator in 1978. Love the OFFCUT Design door wedges, too. They're £12.50 each and are made from discarded laminate and oak. The design is based on a 180° protractor (seen in full, above) with each wedge depicting a different section showing their 12° angle.

Five favourite clocks

On our search for this week's Five Favourite Friday items, we found too many lovely clocks. So this may have to be the first of several posts rounding up the best...


1. Green retro alarm clock, £19.99
You wouldn't mind waking up to this dinky green 50s-style alarm clock, would you? It's from Brighton shop, Pussy Home Boutique – and the bargain of the bunch.


2. Elephant Clock £43.17 (excluding shipping)

This elephant clock by Etsy store, DecoLab, is cut from eco-friendly bamboo and would look lovely in a child's room. Check out their other animal-shaped clocks too.

3. Newgate clock, £80

This Newgate clock from Pedlars is timelessly simple and just very cool indeed. And it’ll last forever.

4. Half-time cuckoo clock, £165

This this slick lacquered wood cuckoo – available in black, green or red too – from Found Interiors gives the genre a whole new twist. Not cheap, but very lovely. 

5. 1980s Czechoslovakian wall clock, £165

Find this gorgeously unusual wooden clock (which measures 39cm x 39cm x 4cm deep) at Clock Props. And be warned, the place is a tempting treasure trove – but not cheap. Not feeling flush? Try this recently-discovered little secret – the British Heart Foundation's eBay shop! Here are its vintage clocks (starting price, £2.99). Love the Westclox 'Big Ben'.

Edited by Hayley Simpson

Pop art print by Katy Binks at HowKapow

LOVE these colours together. This, and a little bit of sunshine in the air – and it feels all springlike.

The name behind this pop art-y print is Katy Binks, a 26-year-old London-based artist to watch. Her geometric art is influenced – explain Cat and Rog at HowKapow, where the print is exclusively for sale in a limited edition – by architecture, pattern and a fascination with traditional craft techniques and digital technologies.

The 98cm x 76cm screenprint costs £95 – but hurry, there are just 30 available.

But Howkapow promise to treat us to more of Katy very soon. Hurrah!

Vintage treasures from The Bucket Tree

The Bucket Tree is my new favourite shop (yes, yes, I know that happens quite a lot...). The rather lovely vintage emporium is run by Artemis Russell, who also writes a very beautiful and inspiring blog, Junkaholic. She also runs RUST, a jewellery company, based in Clerkenwell, London, and Tokyo, with her husband Nao.

The shop came about because Artemis and Nao's love for collecting junk outgrew their tiny south London flat... so they thought they'd sell some of it. And lucky us – because they collect some absolutely beautiful things, as you can see above.

Wooden rabbit nesting dolls

This lovable, hand painted wooden rabbit family, would look great in a child's bedroom. They measure 15cm high and cost £25.

60s children's card game
Love this colourful, animal-illustrated game for children from late sixties'. Instructions (and original price of 7 1/2p!) included. £14.

40s/50s alarm clock
A pretty little wind-up clock, which has luminous hands and brass fittings on the back. It's made of metal, ticks loudly and measures 7cm tall 
and 6.5cm across and costs £29.

She has heaps more adorable things for sale – from old books to crochet blankets, a miniature yacht, an art deco perfume bottle and a few clothes, too (love the 1930s dickie bow).

Etsy's 'Little Zoo' prints

Elizabeth Soule, from Portland, USA, took her 'Little Zoo' range of funny/quirky/cool photos on her Polaroid SX-70 camera, then scanned them and matched them to the original Polaroid. Which gives them this strange big/small feel, almost like one of those tilt-shift photos. 

I think they're fantastic. Really love the lion and tiger face-off, below. You can buy one of these cute and unsual prints (6"x6" centered on 8"x10" piece of photo paper – perfect fit for a standard 8"x10" frame) for around £15.50 ($25), plus around £4 postage, at Elizabeth's Etsy shop, or see more of her creative photography at her website.

Go straight to the Deer and Vines print above, which – like the others – comes on Hahnemuhle Photo Rag paper (190 gsm) with Epson archival inks.

Deer and Flowers print

Lion and tiger print

Zebra print

All prints are around £15.50. There are also lovely gnomes, raccoons, birds, hares, whales, pigs and much more...

Pretty postcard prints from Mercy

What a lovely surprise it was when these four pretty postcard prints arrived on the doormat – a present from supercool design agency, Mercy. 

Each card features a blend of rather inspiring quotes from two great thinkers (named at the bottom of each, shaking hands). Sadly, these gems are not for sale in the online shop (though you can buy some of their other goodies and check out all the rather lovely design work they do). 

Wisdom comes from well-known brains such as Victor Hugo, Robert Louis Stevenson and Henry Miller, as well as from lesser-known names (to me, at least) including Rachel Carson and Zeno. Below are close-ups so you can see who said which quote. And for similar text-based art of an affordable variety, you could try the Keep Calm Gallery, or order a bespoke quote from Karen Miller of Devon Driftwood.

Right – I'm off to put these babies in frames and hang them by my bed. Just the thing to look at on a rainy morning.

Fabulous "wooden" feature wallpaper from Bodie and Fou

This "Scrapwood" wallpaper, which comes in six variations (see below, too) is odd and beautiful in equal measure, I think. 

It's designed by Piet Hien Eek and for sale at hip online store, Bodie and Fou. It's pricey – £145 a roll – but the rolls are large (each is enough to cover 4 square metres) and you probably wouldn't want to do a whole room in it. The more I look at it, the more I love it. What do you make of it?

More affordable art

Yesterday I blogged about some gorgeous Panda-based prints for a child's room from A Little Bit of Art. Just after I'd posted it, I couldn't resist a bit more window shopping on the site and dug out a few more goodies. I wouldn't usually blog about the same shop or site twice in a row – but there was just so much more there and I needed to justify the very long time I spent thinking, "want that"... "want that"... "want that"...

For the small dog in my life, I had to start with this super sweet and slightly kitsch canine covered number under the banner Collection of Joy (£20, A3 size, open edition digital print).

And it's not only prints for walls that the shop sells. LOVE this plate! (It's £30 and 250mm diameter.) There are some tea-towels and other illustrated accessories for sale on the site too.

And these fishing boats are just great, aren't they? By artist Hanna Melin, it costs £60.

And this is just brilliant. Love the dayglo tinge. It's by Robert Rubbish, costs £50 (48cm x 64cm, signed, limited edition screenprint of 200). I really want it.

Stylish interiors for children

How adorable is this panda? He's part of a range of posters for children from the online shop, A Little Bit of Art, which specialises in affordable art.

This chap – who officially goes by the name of Pandamonium – costs £40 (40cm x 50cm) and is one of a limited edition of 50 signed screenprints. I like Pandapop too (below). Same price, same size etc.

For more inspiring ideas on staying stylish when you have little people sharing your home, check out my Insider column on the topic in today's Independent on Sunday.

PYMCA prints, Faris Badwan, Lawrence Watson - and loads more affordable art at the Book Club

Live in London? Like art? Like art you can afford? Looking for a rather special Christmas present or two...? Then check out the art, prints, posters and arty/printy books sale happening at The Book Club in Shoreditch on Wednesday 15 December.

The quirky bar, which launched last year, has been hosting all sorts of cultural events over the last 12 months – and the images available in this Christmas sale are their favourites from the art and photography exhibitions they've hosted. There will be DJs to perk up your ears while you browse and, of course, it's a bar – so a festive tipple to encourage you to be reckless with the credit card. 

These images (by Faris Badwan, left, PYMCA, the youth culture photo agency, below, and music photographer Lawrence Watson, top, who should all be hanging around on the night) are just a tiny taster of what will be on offer - and it is for one night only so put it in your diary.  

The damage? So un-damage-y: prices from £30 for a Faris Badwan screen print (limited editions from £70); PYMCA posters are £5-10, prints between £50-150. Sonic Edition prints are £69 but they have  £5 posters, and there are books – usually £20 – doing some crazy buy-one-get-one-free and print + free book offers.

The Book Club

100 Leonard Street

London EC2A 4RH

6pm – 12am

FREE ENTRY

Budget-friendly Christmas gift guide

Some generally quite affordable nice interiors-ish things that I think would make great gifts... would love to hear what you think, if you got any of them, who you bought them for. Will no doubt be adding more shortly.

Who for Busy parents who'd appreciate an excuse not to display Auntie Dot's cat calendar this year; architecture students; style conscious entrepreneurs; organised eco bods

Where from The Peanut Vendor 

How much £12

What This no-nonsense wall planner measures 70cm x 100cm and is by Crispin Finn design studio – who apparently only design in red, white and blue. It's 100% recycled and comes beautifully packaged. A great stocking filler or chic Secret Santa.

Who for The chap – or chapess – who appreciates the finer things in life; the friend who throws slightly intimidating dinner parties in her/his uncluttered home; the cognac connoisseur; the friend who has everything
Where from  Boudie and Fou
How much £35
What These deliciously touchable brandy glasses by Normann Copenhagen are specifically designed to "enhance bouquet, temperature and volume" of the cognac, apparently.  If you're buying for someone with lady-sized hands – they also do a smaller version.

*ONE-OFF*
Who for Craft nuts; vintage sewing fans
Where from The OK Corral 
How much £5
What Totally loving this online shop right now. And this book would be a lovely, unique gift for crafty friends or relatives. Not only does it have a marvellously retro cover (it was first printed in 1978) but it is also wildly practical – with tips for knitting, sewing, crocheting and more (it even includes patterns). It's a one-off so no guarantee it'll still be there – but do browse the site's other vintage books,  or try eBay or if you have the patience to rummage, Oxfam Books online has some gems too.

Who for  Children saving for a rainy day; grown-ups who'd like to look at a nice owl sitting on their mantlepiece
Where from  Habitat
How much £10
What It's from the kids' department – he's a moneybox – but this super cute retro styled owl would make just as lovely a present for a full sized people, in the ornament department. Thanks to cunning shopping friend, Holly, for this genius idea.

* ONE-OFF *
Who for Anyone who's just moved house; a chap who doesn't mind getting his hands dirty; the guy with a new home and no clue what to do with it; a single gal (or co-habitee of the former) needing some DIY tips; a young man about to be unleashed into responsible life
Where from The OK Corral 
How much £5
What A thoughtful secondhand book – particularly of the non-fiction variety – can solve the trickiest gift conundrums. This 1913-20 bible of manly skills covers everything from polishing shoes to mixing your own paints. And it's a piece of history! A total bargain to boot. See above for links to some other places to shop around for more of the same.

Who for A man with a home office; a stylish bachelor; aspiring gentlemen; fans of spy novels; probably not someone working in a call centre or the armed forces, the police or at sea
Where from  The V & A shop
How much £15 unframed (try Eframe for affordable non-standard sized frames to order)
What This cool, manly poster features the nautical flag and Nato alphabets. It'd be perfect hung near a popular telephoning spot – for translating call centre interpretations of the spelling of one's name without hesitation. It measures 297cm x 420cm.

Who for Clean, serene design freaks; loveable hypochondriacs; a couple with a newborn and an sleekly designed nursery; chic eco warriors; the stylish in-laws; nature nuts; subscribers to Inhabitat 
Where from  Super-Collider store 
How much £129
What This is Andrea. She looks nice, doesn't she? As well as that, she also purifies your air – in the most natural way known to nature, by filtering toxins through her planty fronds and roots. Only she's a super pimped plant, with NASA research behind her creation – and French designer, Mattieu Lehanneur behind her sleek style. Super-Collider is a sexy science-y organisation that has lots more than gifts going on. Check it out.

Who for The sort of friend who might own a cake stand and drink tea out of proper cups; a no-nonsense kitchen whizz; parents who sit down to breakfast with their toast in a rack; owners of a country-style kitchen
Where from Labour & Wait (click on "all products")
How much £14
What This glass butter dish, made from an original 1950s mould, is a classic bit of design. It's lovely and almost transcends taste; a bit of a no-risk gift for any of the above and many more.

Who for A person in whose kitchen yellow won't clash; a mid-century modern loving friend/sister-in-law/mother; someone who happens to live in a town full of Northern European style townhouses like the ones on the tea towel, or is moving from the country to the town – that would be sweet
Where from Lisa Jones Studio
How much £10
What Love this "Town" tea towel and the way it looks like a chocolate box Swiss village, just waiting for snow to fall. It's 100% fairtrade organic cotton, too.

Who for Storage nerds; those with allotments; that person you know who has a whole cupboard full of bags for life they keep forgetting to take out
Where from Habitat 
How much £15
What Technically it's a bag. But I love the idea of it as the place you dump all that unsightly guff you walk through the door with (keys, bicycle lights, dog lead etc.) – and make it look beautiful. It'd work well by the front door or on a suitable kitchen or hall shelf, or on the stairs if they're wide enough. It'd also work as a magazine rack. And, of course a shopping bag...

Who for That person you know who's just done a first aid course; a parent with small children and a suitable bathroom; the gentleman cyclist who often needs his wheel wounds dressing
Where from Amazon
How much £21.98
What This tin first aid box (21cm x 15.5cm x 16cm) makes a sweet and unusual gift... however, if the colour-scheme of your intended recipient is all about beiges and creams, this might not be ideal – it'd work well in a house which embraces splashes of bold colour.

Who for Someone with a nice desk; anyone who likes Orla Kiely-ish/Scando/mid-century modern stylings; retro kitchen owners
Where from North Rock Gallery
How much £13.20
What Designed by Lotta Odelius for Sagaform, this Swedish tinged ceramic container is probably intended for the kitchen but would look great on a design-y desk – perfect for paperclips, odd coins, Post-it notes of import etc. A row of three would look great.

Who for The Proud-to-be-British; ex-pats missing home; a chap who needs some wall filling but needs to keep it masculine; font nerds
Where from Bold & Noble
How much £38 unframed (it's a standard size, so no need for framers' shops: try Eframes or Ikea's Ribba range for affordability and niceness)
What They do maps in the same range of Australia, New Zealand, the USA and London too, so good gifts for anyone moving or travelling to any of those places soon or, indeed, living there. They measure 50cm x 70cm and also come in a duck-egg blue.

Who for Doggie types

Where from Quietly Eccentric 

How much £30

What These cute cushions come in lots of different breeds – including non-breeds. The designs are printed onto new wool, fully machine washable covers and feature illustrations by the artist Lindsey Gardiner. They're kinda cute.

Who for Wildlife-loving children with bare bedroom floors; stylish vegetarians; pampered pussy cats (or their owners); the nephew you've also sponsored a tiger for

Where from The V& A Shop

How much £20
What This cute-faced fairtrade Tibetan rug is made from felt wool and measures 38cm x 94cm. He's very handsome.

  

Who for The Hipster tween/teen in your life; fashion-forward photography fan

Where from The V & A Shop

How much £12.99

What The Street Style Memory Game features 25 pictures taken by the Flemish photographer, Barbara Iweins of hip young things on the streets of Amsterdam. The game requires players to match their faces with their outfits – or it can be played as a traditional memory game.

Who for Design-conscious in-laws; arty Grandpa or Grandma; husband; wife; colour-loving lover; glasses-wearing pals

Where from Supernice

How much £30
What A rather special glasses case designed by Jonathan Adler, who also makes rather glorious ceramics in the shape of birds and lions and angular faces  (and rugs and exciting books and all sorts) that are currently flying out of the gifts section of Heal's...

Who for Him indoors; the family; anyone with a silly sense of humour who likes a nice big mug of tea; fancy dress fans; the guy who loved Movember more than anyone expected
Where from Pedlars
How much £16.95 each
What Handsome half-pint sized mugs , designed by Peter Ibruegger, with your choice of moustache on the front. They're kind of silly but beautifully made (and so a pleasure to drink from) and would cheer up any kitchen. One or two would make nice stocking fillers, or splash out on a whole set for someone really silly who you really love.

Taxidermy chic from the Peanut Vendor

I really am having a squirrel moment right now. And, as such, I find myself strangely drawn to this stuffed squirrel in a box, which measures W32 x D12 x H38.5 cm and costs £160, from the Peanut Vendor.






But back to the Peanut Vendor - they also have a fantastic range of Christmas gift ideas - from £12 upwards. I'll post up my favourite   stocking filler in a mo, along with some other goodies from elsewhere. When I was growing up, my mum had a Victorian taxidermic pike in a box that I sort of hated, but found transfixing. Having just spotted one going for £850 on eBay, I'm wondering what she did with it...

Elphick's online art shop

It's a day of discovering lovely new things... Isn't this the sort of shop you want to just rush into?

Elphick's, in east London's Columbia Road, run by the artist Sharon Elphick (you can see her flowers in a vase picture in the window) is packed with the owner's well-chosen collection of art, including her own - and at very affordable prices. I'd heard about the shop but have never been - but the online version is almost as exciting. There's so much great stuff I don't know quite where to start. Without doing an inventory of the entire catalogue, I'll attempt to self-edit and pick out a few highlights you might like the look of. But do check out the shop for yourself - there's a lot going on.

I really like this print, called Tuba, by Helen Lang aka Madamsange. It reminds me a bit of one of my favourite children's books, Patrick, by Quentin Blake, which has equally joyous visions of flowers growing where you least expect them, and shoelaces turning into giant ribbons. But Helen's boxy figure feels much more Fifites/early Sixties than the fluid, 1969-published lines of Blake. The print measures 30x40cm and costs £55. See more of Helen's work at her Wet Paint website.

Not sure if Russell Loughlan's work is still at Elphick's but it had its debut there last year. And I like his work so much I thought I'd include it - plus a link to his site, above, just in case. I know Russell, but hadn't seen his work until it appeared at Tales from a Park Bench, a special pop-up shop/ performance art/writer-y thingy I took part in. But back to Russell, who combines illustration, found imagery, vintage postcards, antique maps and pop culture. Elphick's were selling them in recycled frames for £145 each.

I tried hard not to feature one of Sharon Elphick's lovely bird artworks and picked this postcard montage instead (are those John Hinde cards?). A woman after my own heart, not only does she cherish old postcards, but seems to share my love for bird ephemera. (In my house, from where I'm sitting right now: I can see one money-box - a 1970s brown owl; one lamp - one of Ed Carpenter's pigeon lights; a sticky-in-the-ground wooden garden ornament (from Brazil) and my Ikea outdoor bird fairy lights.) Wish You Were Here, at her more expensive end, is £350.

I love Charley Harper, as old-school followers will know. But I've struggled to find prints of his work - in desperation I bought a Harper memory card game from the Saatchi Gallery shop and framed the whole pack of little squares. I like it - but I also like this print, which is one of about ten that Elphick's is selling - it's £40. And I also now know why I had struggled to find Harper prints before - Elphick's is the only place licensed to sell them.