Belle Époque Revival.

Velvets, brocades and gold have always been part of my interiors styling. This year, another one has joined the team: animal prints. Every one I see I have to touch (and sometimes even smell). I have to say that I actually find it a strange love affair.

Anyway, what I want to underline here is that I like this Belle Époque Revival we're living in interiors. To me, it recalls rebirth, change and hope. Power. I like the feeling. It makes me smile. I look at these fabrics and it reminds me those historical novels from late 19th Century like ”Os Maias”. (It's an amazing novel, and when it comes to describe the interiors you can feel and smell absolutely everything. Highly recommended.)

What fabric or colour do you identify your style with?

Xmas Colours.

Every year we get excited with Christmas and I'm sure all of us have different and exciting reason why.

December 1st is the day we normally put our tree up. What about you?

Have you decided what colours your xmas is going to be this year?

Few ideas for Xmas Decorations.
White Knitted Christmas
Polka Dots Christmas

Earthy Colours.

I love Autumn. It invites for long walks, specially after a raining day.

Anthracite and Yellow | Green and beige | Brown and green | A touch of purple - Colour inspiration for the season.

The Window As A Space.

Somewhere downtown Manhattan, there was this dog looking through the window. His (or hers) posture totally grabbed my eye.


Do you like to stand in a window space watching who's passing by? I do.

Another article about windows

The cloud.

There's nothing more beautiful than looking up the sky and see a fluffy cloud alone crossing the wilderness of the skies.

New York sky in September 2010

Maison Moschino, An House To Dream.

Following yesterday's post, here's a few more dream-rooms at Maison Moschino.

Gold

Life Is a Bed of Roses

Ivy

Half Room

Forest

In which room would you like to spend a night over?

Photos from Maison Moschino Website

Maison Moschino, An House To Dream.

Every time I think Moschino I think design with humour. This time is not with their fashion that I'm amazed with, but their Maison. An highly imaginative and eccentric boutique hotel, the philosophy behind it, is to inspire the mind while the body rests, "because to sleep is perchance to dream".


The space is composed with 65 contemporary rooms. For today I'll post images of my very favourite - The Blue Room, first image.


What cought my eye when I was reading this article on Blue Travel Magazine, was the floor lamp. It's objects like these ones that really make me proud for being a designer.


The Corset Lamp, as I call it, is a must have in any walk-in-wardrobe, don't you agree?

Photos from Maison Moschino Website and Google Images

Royalty As An Experience.

When luxury is experienced in what was once Palaces to Royal Families.

Golden Age is back and we all feel it. I'm totally inspired by this photo.

Breathtaking, isn't it?



Photo credits to Financial Times

Piles Of Books.

Last week I posted about books as a decoration feature in our living and working spaces. Today I found a few more pictures on my archive that I'm using on my studio moodboard. Do you like them?

Books market in Paris by the river.

My friends pile of books. Love it!

Art installation at The V&A last summer.

My pile of books (magazines and newspapers) on a Sunday afternoon.

Little Side Note: I changed my Blog layout. Do you like it?

Through The Window.

Do you look through the window?

There was this day that I was passing by and suddenly these windows grabbed completely my attention. Intrigued, I decided to seat on a café terrace on the opposite side of the street. Asked for a glass of red wine and enjoyed the view.



The interiors looked as clean and crystal as the light the windows projected.
I imagined a masculine and monochromatic space styled with eclectic objects from different sources, books, lots of books and a huge dining table where friends and family gather in a night like the one I was enjoying. Casual!

Little side note: I see a window as a transitional space which is part of the façade yet with its very own identity. A frame with dual exposure and perspective has always things to see, stories to tell.

Vélos Parisiens.

No one in the world is more stylish riding a bike than a french woman.
It's total delight watching Parisians pedaling along the Seine.

Have a stylish weekend.

Ralph Lauren In Paris.

Ralph Lauren is one of my favorite fashion brands. One word only describes it: classic. And classic is forever.

I have visited a few RL shops but this one in Paris is indeed the most charming one. French interiors enhance totally the classiness of each piece.

White and Gold everywhere.

Wouldn't you love to live in here?

Changing rooms, or should I say Dressing Rooms?

You find these little corners around the shop making you feel at home, Ralph Lauren's Parisian home.

The shirt I fell in love with. Très chic, n'est-ce pas?

Soon I'll post about Ralph Lauren Jardin, a gorgeous space to meet a friend for a nice afternoon tea.

Related Articles
White Knitted Christmas
Ralph Lauren Home

Books As A Decoration Statement.

Today I've started to plan my next little studio. Walls are already immaculate white waiting for my intervention.

Books display is an important feature in anywhere I live or work and these pictures I took early this month at Merci in Paris are a great source of inspiration. Always loved walls filled with books from top to bottom.


Next to a wall like this, specially if in your studio or living room, an armchair is a must have. What's better than seating comfortably with a cup of tea checking which books you need for your next project or what you're going to read next?

What's your most important feature where you work?

Related articles
Eclectic Space By Contemporary Friend
My Favourite Wall
Reading Is A Very Personal Thing

Notre Dame Hotel.

I still have many photos of beautiful Parisian spaces to share with you all, but time has been little and the list of things to do gets longer everyday. Anyway, in the mean time I leave one photo only of the Hotel Notre Dame designed by Christian Lacroix.

Café on the first floor by the Front Desk.

For more photos, check From The Right Bank. Ally wrote a nice article about it.

Give It Some Humour (With Pottery).

The moment I put my eyes on this façade I smiled. From a distance it looked like buttons, colourful buttons covering an immaculate linen. I get closer and suddenly it looked like patchwork, ceramic patchwork designing some kind of interesting grid. What it is, is a simple traditional building covered in Portuguese pottery.

What's better than finding design and architecture dressed up in humour?



As you probably realised, this is a traditional pottery shop.

Building in Sagres, Vicentina Coast.

Unexpected (Love).

One of the reasons I never regret to carry my heavy camera with me at all times is because I always find fragments I want to record (and share) for the rest of my life. This photo is an example of it.

Isn't it so poetic?

The perfect curvy pink heart right on a middle of a "no trespassing" traffic sign.

I just fell in love with the unexpected message.

What message do you read out of it?

Photo taken today @ Vale da Telha, Vicentina Coast.

Café.

A café is always the scenario friends like to gather in for a chit-chat, isn't it? This following week I'm off spending time with two gorgeous friends in two different cities. I'm pretty sure a café is going to be the stage in many occasions.

Call a friend. Pick a nice café. Enjoy both.

Lumière Parisienne.

Everyone talks about Parisian light. I talk about it too. Though it's never about the blue sky. It's always the transition day-night / blue-black and the golden light popping out everywhere. Those so sculptural réverbères always blow up my mind.




More Parisienne Nigh Light

Little side note: I really hope you can see these photos the way I see them on my desktop.

Merci, Nous Vous Aimons.

Merci, the cutest shop in Paris. Don't we all agree on it?
A space with 1500 m2 decorated (and for sell, of course) with precious objects, like furniture, objects plus ordinaires and acessories for kitchens, I'm sure it's every women perfect corner.

I went for a browse, but couldn't leave without having a delicious salad and a gâteau au chocolat. Paradis! I'm sure if one day I live in Paris, it's here that I'm going to do those afternoon pauses, either with friends or on my own.

Grande entrée.

Great combination between the Torch, light by Sylvain Willenz, and the Provençal benches. All those round shapes come together pretty well, don't they?

Beautiful dining table. Now imagine it in a living room with a wall in deep red as a background?

Speaking about red, this metal table is a must. It recalls all the moments I've spent by the beach with friends and family having hors-d'œuvre. Check the hole on the middle of it, where the shade used to be placed. Do you remember?
Oh, almost forgot to mention the plates. Another must have!

Keep Recycling And Carry On - Great idea to reuse old doors.

Detail of the reused door.

If you follow my Twitter or are a friend on Facebook, you probably have realised Fiat 500 is my little favourite car. Just for it, it's impossible not to love Merci.

Merci Merci!