Nice Knockers You've Got There

Excited to see the Farmer Brothers in H&G this month, they are 1) really nice guys 2) really hard workers and 3) rescued Beardmores which in itself deserves them a medal.

I first came across them whilst working on Park Walk, just around the corner from their shop, during my time at Veere Grenney Associates.  They always had everything, if in doubt go to Farmer Bros, and we did.

Some years later I found out they bought Beardmores, at the time in liquidation, and it seems their venture has gone from strength to strength.  Well done them we need more of adventurers to rescue and keep beautiful, well made things alive and well, and if at all possible more of it out here!  Oh how I miss good craftsmanship and beautiful objects.

I have specified these knobs from the Anthologie collection for a project out here 

 

Anth 1008

Tea for Sympathy

Almost all boxes unpacked for our 14th move in about as many years.  What I would like to have found in my many boxes is this delicious Melon Tea Set from Asprey

Knock on Wood

I have always loved wooden houses and timber cladding of all sort, I was introduced to painted tongue & groove about 15 years ago by a designer friend and we used it everywhere, I still love it and use it on walls and ceilings.  It works well giving warmth and texture to simple, otherwise uninteresting rooms and teh combinations are endless.  Not a huge fan, generally, of large patterns on walls unless it is a very grand hand printed damask, Mauny, Zuber or De Gournay with a room to go with it, ridiculous otherwise.  

There is a tendancy here, perhaps cultural to over-design, and whereas I do not belong to the minimalist camp, I do believe the success of a room is in the balance

of scale, proportion and what is appropriate to put in it.

 Above pictures from Italian AD

 No one does timber cladding quite like our american friends, make cladding not war

Good Bye Mr Parr

It was almost 20 years ago, and whilst I was still quite new at Colefax, the cuttings girl in fact, when I was asked, being French, to help translate a speech for Tom Parr to the Musee des Arts Decoratifs in Paris. He had put together a charming collection inspired by documents from the museum in true Colefax & Fowler style. I remember it quite well, it included a most beautifully printed paper called Amelia which had a hand printed Mauny quality to it that is sadly rare these days.

I was absolutely terrified.  TP has he was known in the building - although I would not dare address him as anything else than Mr Parr - was quite a formidable character. He most certainly did not appreciate complacency in one's work and he was usually right. I trembled my way through a few sessions of translation, his French was already very good, and made myself look the part via secret phone calls to relatives in France for all the complicated words. I am sure it was not a cost effective exercise and I remain unclear as to the translation for Curator! 

I only have a handful of memories being only a very junior showroom girl at the time, but all taught me a great deal.  Mr Parr had no time for mistakes.  He understood colour and pattern, light, shade, proportion and all the things that make for great decorating, I would be more than happy to run around after samples for him today.

Telegraph Obituary by Nicky Haslam here

Thomas Simon Parr 1930-2011