Table Tonic: February 2010

28 February 2010

Stylish Homes: Stacey Gregg & Michael Lamb

Another Auckland gem from New Zealand's Your Home & Garden magazine. Some fab pieces in this home, but who am I kidding, it's Stacey's Prada Wedges that really caught my eye... Lots to love here. Enjoy!

All images Your Home & Garden

Ikat: A love story

I. Love. Ikat. Like, a lot. I think that's been made clear. And I could safely say that this page in the January/February 2010 issue of Vogue Living was the catalyst for the birth of tabletonic.com.au. A beautifully visual page, Ikat - a delightful trend, but oh. Wait. What? $275 for a cushion? And the rest, as they say in the movies, is history. My handwoven, double sided 40x40cm Ikat cushions will be $90 and the slightly larger 45x45cm ones will be $95. And yes, they come with inserts, all ready to plop straight on your sofa/bed/chair. 8th March, people. 8th March.

Vogue Living

27 February 2010

Saturday Suzani inspiration: A late entry

Pretty picture. I know. But look back there behind the sofa. Interesting. Very interesting...

chicgeekdesigns

A Beautiful Blogger Award!

I was thrilled to bits to find an email in my inbox today, informing me that I had received a "Beautiful Blogger Award"! What a gorgeous idea. The blogging community never ceases to amaze and inspire me with it's constant support, encouragement, kindness and strong sense of community.

In keeping with the Beautiful Blogger Award, here are the other parts to my task:

1. Thank the person who gave you the award. Thanks a bunch, Adventures in Dressmaking! You really made my day.

2. Pass this award on to seven bloggers you've recently discovered and whom you think are fantastic. You all really do deserve it, but the ones I've found most recently are:

- The Style Files

- Daily Imprint

- Just Something I Made

- If the Lampshade Fits

- Head Over Heels

- House of Turquoise

- Woogworld

3. Contact said blogs to let them know they've won. Okay, done!

4. State seven things about yourself! Gosho. 7? Okay:

1. Cleanliness makes me happy. Very happy. It's the Virgo in me. You name it, freshly laundered bed sheets, a washed car, a clean house, squeaky clean hair... nothing better.

2. Optimism and positivity fuel me and keep my world turning. I can help but see the good in things and situations. Conversely, negativity, pessimism and scepticism all ~~give me the shits~~ irritate me.

3. I feel extremely fortunate to have made such an amazing, inspiring and amusing friend in Kayte, at the ripe old age of 35. Our 6 year old boys went to pre-school together when they were babies, and they're now at the same school. It was only a year ago that Kayte and I became really close and I now actually feel like I've known her since Primary School. And nobody can make me laugh as much as Kayte does. Except maybe my husband...

4. South Africa is my birthplace. My family immigrated to Sydney, Australia in 1986, when I was 12. And I am incredibly thankful that they would sacrifice so much, and rebuild their entire lives from scratch, purely to provide their children with a better future.

5. Right now, I am very tired. Deeply tired. I've stayed up past midnight most nights for the past 3 or 4 weeks, tending to the conception/birth of my Table Tonic online ~~empire~~ business. And last night we went to a beautiful, crazy, Irish wedding at the stunning Bells of Killcare. So, yeah. Tired.

6. I pretty much despise television and am constantly threatening to throw it out the window. I struggle to sit through any kind of movie, either. Which is sad. And frustrates my husband, no end. There's just always something else I'd rather be doing - being productive is my whole "go" in life.

7. I love, love, LOVE to cook. Good food is my reason for living.

Thanks again to Suzannah at Adventures in Dressmaking for sharing the love.

Saturday Suzani inspiration

I know. Obsessed much?

apartment therapy

elle decor

domino

elle decor

26 February 2010

Stylish Homes: Michal Haines

Inside the Auckland home of Chef Michal Haines, featured in Your Home & Garden magazine back in May 2009. What a great space, and you see that black abacus on the wall in the second last image? I recently saw some at Inside Traders & Co. in Sydney's Rozelle. Weren't very much either, from memory...

All images Your Home & Garden

Table Tonic online store

If this doesn't stick a rocket up your Friday, nothing will! 9 beautiful vintage Suzanis, all hand embroidered, all different shapes, sizes and designs and coming soon to tabletonic.com.au, the Table Tonic online store. So bookmark it, and keep counting down those sleeps (10 to go)!

Table Tonic

Framing a Mexican Suzani 101

This is pleasing. Fighting the urge to take to my stash with some scissors... But ohhhh, liking... Nodding and liking...

Designsponge

25 February 2010

Table Tonic online store

Update! Update! The Table Tonic online store will be open for business as of Monday 8th March 2010. That's in 11 sleeps, people! You can click on the link if you just can't help yourself, but you'll just get a strange "parked domain" message thingy. PS Yes, this is another one of my "babies". Pretty isn't she?

Table Tonic

VOGUE Living March/April

While I couldn't resist posting on Hamish Bowles's New York apartment and "In Vogue: Check List" from the latest issue of Vogue Living, it was always my intention to do a more substantial post on what has become one of my favourite Aussie "shelter" mags. So here we go:

Also "In Vogue" right now is "Human Nature" (below). Not so feeling the brain leather stool as much as those beautiful (resin-concrete) hand bookends - which also come in white. Buy them online here at Top3 By Design (pick up a Missoni bathrobe while you're there!). PS Just $43. Love that.

(below) Interior Designer Sarah Davison's dreamy "Spanish Mission" apartment in Sydney's Tamarama.

(below) Betsy Morgan's ethereal New York home (in which this Gretchen Mol cover of Cookie mag was shot).

(below) John Wilson and Peter Lin's opulent Iain Halliday designed Sydney apartment. John is the director of catering company JohnAndPeter, and together with Peter, he ran Osteria Moana in Potts Point a decade or so ago.

(below) Inside Artist Sophie Lachaert's 19th-century brick shipyard workshop-office-gallery-B&B.

(below) The NSW Central Coast home of Interior Designer, Patricia Stewart.

(below) Craig Markham, PR man for Firmdale, "one of the world's chicest boutique hotel groups" calls this London apartment home. I call it heaven.

All images Vogue Living

Modern wisdom

imjustagirlwishingfortheworld

Cool website: Petedungey.com

Oh. Wow. So Pete Dungey is an artist who plants pretty little gardens in potholes in Britain's roads. "If we planted one of those in every hole, it would be like a forest in the road' An ongoing series of public installations highlighting the problem of surface imperfections on Britain's roads." Cool, huh? Visit petedungey.com for more.

petedungey

24 February 2010

Real Living magazine: March 2010

Lets take a little look through the new-ish issue of Real Living:

First up, Natalie Walton, Real Living's Deputy Editor (and Daily Imprint blogger) tries her hand at styling with the definitely inspiring "Home Office: Turn a work space into your favourite room" feature. You can read Natalie's insightful account of her styling experience here on Daily Imprint which includes "I lost 2kg that week simply because I didn't have time to eat." Somebody say Baptism by fire? (Gulp.) Well Natalie, it was worth it!

"Contemporary Charm": Hayley Paul's Victorian-period villa in Melbourne is rather perfect. This is the "back room", which couldn't be further up my alley if it tried. And Sisal. Loooove Sisal.

"Refresh! Bedlinen you can afford" shows us 4 perfect, but oh-so different bedroom styles, and I could honestly "be" any of them - London Style (below), Homespun Folk, Boutique Hotel and Modern Baroque. Which one are you?

All images Real Living

Jason Wu: New York Fashion Week moodboard

Jason Wu shot to fame last year, when First Lady Michelle Obama chose this white chiffon one-shoulder gown, created by Wu, to wear to ten official balls celebrating the inauguration of her husband, President Barack Obama. This is the 26 year old Taiwanese Fashion Designer's "moodboard" from New York Fashion Week. Loving that fire-y orange, the black and white photographs, all of it, really...

Vogue

23 February 2010

Table Tonic online store

Ahhhh Mexican Suzanis. One of the main reasons I decided to open an online homewares store. And I'm so excited that you're excited that they will soon be just a click away. The photo below is one of my new images for the store website which can be found at tabletonic.com.au - it will be up and running in a couple of weeks! PS Yes, that's Jasper's room and no, it never looks that tidy. PPS The single colour Mexican Suzanis will be priced at $490, and the multicolour Suzanis $510 and they are even more dreamy in real life than they look...