Design Quarter

I always love to hear about new retail shops, especially those that stock beautiful Scandinavian inspired homewares. One such store is Design Quarter, recently opened in Remuera, Auckland by self-taught interior designer, Carrol Sandston. Carrol specialises in helping clients with the placement of beautiful things in their home, and working with colour (or lack thereof). She has always had a love affair with white, and likes clean, strong lines with a touch of whimsy.

Design Quarter is Carrol's first foray into retail, but it's something she's always dreamed of. She fell in love with the old David Elman shoe shop and had visions of transforming it into her own shop selling gorgeous products. And in May this year her dream became a reality when Design Quarter was formed.

Over the years Carrol has followed and appreciated many trends, but she has a special love of Scandinavian design, and feels it's here to stay. "Their furniture and homewares suit our New Zealand light and our lifestyle".

Carrol has hand-picked an amazing range of products from some fantastic Danish companies, including Madam Stoltz, Hubsch, and Bloomingville, as well as the best of locally sourced New Zealand goodies. She also goes on regular shopping trips to Sydney and Melbourne to complete her envious collection. If you're in Auckland, pop in to see the full range for yourself at 339 Remuera Road, or check out the Design Quarter Facebook page for all new arrivals, including lots of divine Christmas treats.

A Lesson in Compromise

I wanted to share this gorgeous room makeover with you, because I think there are some really important lessons in it (and it's beautiful). The home belongs to Sarah Yates, a photographer and author of lifestyle blog, A House in the Hills. She blogged about her living room makeover, which I totally love, and here's why...

Sarah's front door opens right into her living room, which can be kinda awkward. So she wanted to create an entry way for her home and eliminate that awkwardness. She came up with a clever plan which you can see the beginnings of in the photo below.

A console table would be an obvious choice, but with the narrow space between the wall and sofa, it could look cramped. Also the grate at the base of the wall doesn't want to be covered. Instead Sarah designed a gorgeous set of floating drawers. After agonizing over the wood and stain options, she hired a carpenter to build and install it.

Voilà! Doesn't it look beautiful?! Subtle but effective, and the plants at the base soften the clean lines of the drawers, while also distracting the eye from the grate. It creates the entry way Sarah wanted. Of course, the massive round, gold mirror helps too - making the small room appear bigger, and it's a lovely juxtaposition with the drawers. Sarah hunted high and low for the perfect mirror to add some 'wow' and a healthy dose of glam. That hunt was successful, but came at a price!

The mirror was expensive, but this is where the lesson in compromise comes in. Sarah had to have that mirror, it was perfect. So to compromise she bought her stunning, but very inexpensive side tables from Target (wow, love them, I wish we had Target in New Zealand).

Another money saver was keeping the coffee table Sarah longed to replace. Her husband, very manly and lover of minimalism, was very happy with the current coffee table, especially when it was kept fairly bare and minimal (see pic 2).

Sarah's second compromise was keeping the coffee table, but zhushing it up by adding some of her pretty 'girly' touches. I, of course, love all the pretties she's added. I had to laugh because my husband sounds a lot like Sarah's, and my coffee table looks quite similar, complete with the surfing book (which is my way of saying 'yes, my husband lives here too!').

So there you go... get creative with your design solutions; invest in one or two 'must have' expensive pieces that just make you happy; balance that out with some gorgeous bargains; and let the Mr have a say too, after all he lives there too!

Middle Eastern Picnic Rug

I have the perfect picnic rug for you this summer, and many, many more to come. These amazing Middle Eastern picnic rugs are made in Saudi Arabia, a country where the people have learnt to live in their harsh and demanding environment. Where their tents and rugs need to be resistant to wind, rain and sun.

A polyester top in traditional patterns, each one unique, is paired with a tarpaulin lining for an extremely durable, and water resistant rug. Available in two generous sizes - 2 x 3m and 2 x 4m - you can comfortably fit a large family or group of friends on these rugs.

photos by Sarah Horn

The rugs are designed to be rolled up and easily carried by a sturdy handle, so they're perfect to have in the back of your car for whenever you might need them. Granted, they may be a bit more expensive than your standard picnic blanket, but in the long run, they will save you money. When your cheaper and smaller blankets deteriorate (as many of mine have), these rugs will continue to see you through many special times - they are made to last!

Pop over to the Cush & Nooks online shop to see the full range of stunning ethnic designs.