A taste of things to come

Sorry for my disappearance last month. It’s been a busy but very exciting time. I left the safety of my job to set out on an adventure with my own company Mariposa!

I’m still getting into the swing of things, so my posts on Bright Inside might take a while to settle into regular updates, but I don’t plan to disappear for quite so long again!

I thought I should warm the blog up again by posting a few things I’ve spotted during my hiatus…

Glitter Spoons by Leif (via Good Design Makes Me Happy)

Biscuit themed cushions of Nikki McWilliams (via Good Design Makes Me Happy)

My Writing Desk by Inesa Malafej of Etc. Etc. (via Design Milk)

Toilet Monster (via Rare Bird Finds)

If you want to see what I get up to in between my Bright Inside posts, you can find my thoughts of the ethical and economic kind on the Mariposa blog. I also have a personal blog, where I post anything else I find interesting, at helenthornber.com

Calendars that last forever

It might seem an odd time to write about calendars, it’s only September and we’re not quite into end of year mode, but that’s the beauty of these three calendar concepts… they work ever year and you don’t need to wait until January to start!

Binder Clip Calendar by Shantanu Suman

Shantanu Suman designed  the Binder Clip Calendar, a calendar which can last forever, to “save paper”. Using three sheets of paper (30, 31 & 28 days for February) and seven binder clips for the days of the week, it may be the solution that means you never need to buy a calendar again!

Hand-made perforated calendar by Harrington&Squires (via deeply IMPRESSED)

The Perforated Calendar by Harrington&Squires doesn’t technically fall into the category of an everlasting calendar, but on first glance I thought it was, and with a few tweaks to the design it wouldn’t be far off. I thought it deserved a mention anyway for being so pretty and showing up at just the right time!

Monthly Measure Calendar by Sebastian Bergne (via MOCO)

If you thought the first idea was impressive, Sebastian Bergne takes it even further. Comprising of only a star and a wooden ruler his two piece Monthly Measure Calendar is probably durable enough to survive for many years to come, and would be a lovely addition to any desk* (*my desk). It was launched at Maison&Objet this past weekend, so I”ll be keeping my eye on Sebastian’s website and online shop to hopefully snap one up for my office once they go on sale!

From Google with Love – Google’s Russian Offices

I’m a big fan of Google offices, their playful creative interiors are very much an inspiration for some of my future rooms. This is the first time I’ve seen the interiors of their offices in St Petersburg & Moscow, and they don’t disappoint! They were designed by Camenzind Evolution who also did the Google EMEA office in Zurich.

Google Russian Offices (via Home Designing)

Google Russian Offices (via Home Designing)

Google Russian Offices (via Home Designing)

Google Russian Offices (via Home Designing)

Google Russian Offices (via Home Designing)

Google Russian Offices (via Home Designing)

Google Russian Offices (via Home Designing)

You can see more photos on Home Designing . Also check out the Google London office on freshome.

Making it pop: when white is alright

If you love colour and avoid neutrals it can be easy to forget that a white or monochrome room can provide a great canvas for coloured furniture and accessories.

Anagrama, a Mexican brand agency, have completed a couple of projects which really show how colours can pop against a blank or monochrome canvas. Their work for Theurel & Thomas pâtisserie draws your attention to the most important part of the room.

Theurel & Thomas pâtisserie by Anagrama

Imagine what you could do at home in a white room with a statement piece (or two) of furniture. Perhaps not the solution if you have kids running around!

If you’re not ready for a completely blank canvas, this is another Anagrama project with a monochrome basis.

Micheline by Anagrama

Micheline by Anagrama

Micheline is a printing boutique in Mexico, but their interior could work as inspiration for any office. It manages to balance a professional authoritative feel with a fun and creative atmosphere.

The interior design, Jonathan Adler, expresses his love of colour against a white canvas in his home. The balance of white to colour is less extreme than that of Theurel & Thomas, and works beautifully to create a bright vibrant home where the furniture is the star.

Jonathan Adler's New York Flat (via Design Attractor)

How do you make vibrant furniture stand out in your home? Would you decorate your room white from ceiling to floor? 

The writing’s on the wall: chalkboard and whiteboard walls

Chalkboards remind me of school or the specials board in the pub. As for whiteboards, the first thing that springs to mind is the office. But both are making it out of their traditional locations and into the home, with special paints that mean you can turn an entire wall into a creative space.

Chalkboard and whiteboard walls (via lostindecoration.tumblr.com & ideapaint.com)

When it comes to thinking things through I love mind maps, lists, spider diagrams and doodles. It means my home and office end up with pieces of paper scattered everywhere. A chalkboard or whiteboard wall offers an opportunity to think things out on a bigger scale, and when you’re done you can wipe it off and start again.

IdeaPaint (via Flickr)

I love the idea of a chalkboard wall in the kitchen. Write your shopping list on the wall, then take a picture and take it with you to the shops.

Image credit: Marisa | Food in Jars' (via Flickr)

The best bit about thing about a chalkboard walls is how cheap it is to do. You can get enough blackboard paint to cover 6 sq m for £5.38 from Wilkinsons. With one or two tins you can cover a decent size of wall. You can pick up a 24 pack of chalk from Ikea for £1.01. What a bargain!

Ikea MALA chalks, £1.01

I really like the idea of magnetic blackboard paint, giving the wall an additional function. International Magnetic Blackboard Paint is only £12.49 from Homebase. It’s moments like this I curse living in a rented house. There is a wall in my kitchen that would be awesome if I could paint it with this stuff.

Chalkboard-painted wall (via The New York Times)

The whiteboard effect is a bit more expensive, IdeaPaint seem to be the only producer. For £23.50 (ex VAT) you can get a IdeaPaint Lil’Bit Kit from Muraspec that will cover 3 sq ft. Covering a wall will be significantly more expensive, but it would be amazing in a home office or play room.

IdeaPaint (via Flickr)

What do you think – Would you give a chalkboard wall a go now you know how cheap it is? Or spend a bit more to get a whiteboard wall? Have you already done it? Let us know in the comments below. 

Shiver me timbers!

Yo ho ho! Today there is only one thing I can blog about, and that, me matey, is pirates. It’s been a day full of swashbucklin’ inspiration. At work there has been lots of talk of pirates, with an idea we’ve had for a publicity campaign. And at home the other half has very recently (within the past couple of hours!) become an uncle and has already invested in two three pirate outfits for the new addition to the family. It seems only right that I continue the theme over here.

Pirates are one of other halves favourite things. If he could redesign our bedroom he’d probably choose something like this… (check out the full post at Design Milk for information and more cool photos!)

Pirate Ship Bedroom by Kuhl Design Build (via Design Milk)

Even if I won’t let him turn our bedroom into a pirate ship, when we have kids I’m sure he’ll make sure they have a cool pirate inspired bedroom like the one above or below.

Chambre de Pirate by ninipompom

However it seems that pirate interiors aren’t just for the kids, Three Rings Design turned their office interior into a ship inspired by 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.

Three Rings Design office by Because We Can (via cnet)

Three Rings Design office by Because We Can (via cnet)

If full on pirate design is a bit much, but I have found a couple of ideas for giving you home a more subtle pirate influences.

Perhaps you could include some hints of a pirate theme in your bathroom? Starting with this Skull and Crossbones Mirror from The Funky Mirror company for £4.99.

Skull and Crossbones Mirror by The Funky Mirror Company

Or if you’d like a hint of pirate in your lounge then this cushion might do the trick. If you don’t manage to grab the last one from Scrummy Things, then why not try and make your own?

Pirate Cushion Cover by Scrummy Things

So me hearties what do you make to a pirate themed room? Would you do it for your kids? Would you do it for yourself? 

A bright quick fix for a little mistake

Having just moved house there’s lots of furniture assembling going on and some mistakes along the way. One of these is in the study where the back of the shelves got put on back to front leaving the silver tape and a grubby brown surface exposed (well behind the junk – we’re still unpacking!)

My other half got rather frustrated, but I think it’s an opportunity to do a little DIY job to make them a bit more colourful. The first idea I had was inspired by this bookshelf by Port Rhombus Design.

Image Credit: Modular Paintchip Bookshelf by Port Rhombus Design (via Design Milk)

As the study is a mismatch of both our furniture, and I’m not quite sure yet what we’ll do with it design wise, so I didn’t want to commit to a particular colour so I decided that the gradient idea would have to wait for another project.

Today I came across a brilliant idea in a 2009 issue of Good Homes, using Paperchase wrapping paper as wallpaper at the back of shelves.

I popped into Paperchase on the way home today and found a couple of possible candidates. I think the spots are winning at the moment, and at £1 each we’ll need six sheets.

Paperchase wrapping paper - Spots, £1 per sheet. Flowers & Butterflies, £1.50 per sheet.

We already have wallpaper paste so it should be a cheap simple fix to brighten up the office. Hopefully I’ll get a chance to complete the project in the next couple of weeks. I’ll post pictures as soon as we’re done!

What do you think? Which paper would you choose?