As indie retailers up and down the country are opening their doors again this week, read on for a look at how ourselves and L’Appartement styled a compact living space for ercol with indie brands alongside the exquisite ercol furniture, creating a homely, eclectic look for urban family life.
Photography by Beth Davis
Creating a gallery wall
When it came to creating a lived-in feel ourselves and stylists L’Appartement wanted to explore using an eclectic mix of artwork, reflective of the way a family may collect pieces of art over many years, adding to their collection creating a ‘gallery wall’.
Photography by Beth Davis.
Cuemars framed prints, far left GOODBOND ‘Fingers Crossed’ and far right top CEPE ‘Good Graces’, below ‘African Palm Trees’
We used art from Cuemars alongside our personal pieces, in groups of threes at differing heights, frame colours and styles to create an eclectic, relaxed feel.
Cuemars is a wonderful boutique in the heart of Brick Lane, that we have respected for a long time due to their philosophy which is founded on conscious curation. At the heart of Cuemars is their ethos of ‘buy less, buy better’. As a retailer they are wholeheartedly aware of their responsibility towards sustainability and strive to act sustainably in many aspects of sourcing, selling and shop-keeping.
We love their eclectic mix of homewares, plants and green-living products, perfect for creating a thoughtful, creative and colourful aesthetic for your home.
Cuemars, Brick Lane, London
Mixing natural textures
A good way to create intrigue and interest on shelves is to mix different textures. We chose a mix of cork and wooden accessories alongside terracotta pots and glass propagation vases to create a naturalistic compliment to the greenery on and around the shelves.
A brand that shares our passion for the natural world is Graen, an online store that specialises in design-led products for the practice of horticulture. Perfectly aligned with our aim of the ercol Style Pod to create a space to enable a positive mental wellbeing, Graen aims to inspire individuals to reap the health and wellbeing benefits of connecting with nature through good design.
We used their Burnt Oak Ikabana vase within the styling. The eye-catching vase is handmade using the Japanese technique of Shou sugi ban where the oak is charred to highlight the beautiful, natural characteristics of the wood. The vase is designed for Ikebana; the Japanese art of flower arranging, perfect for creating a contemporary sculptural display with fresh or dried foliage or flowers. We used a stem of Asparagus Fern with its delicate green foliage contrasting beautifully against the blackened oak of the vase.
Photography by Beth Davis.
Top shelf Burnt Oak Ikabana Vase by Graen, Balombo Masi scultpure by Mind The Cork
Seen above is the unique ‘Balombo Mosi’ figure by Mind The Cork. Sculpted from solid cork, by the highly skilled craftswoman, Jenny, founder of Mind The Cork. The Balombo figure is a very personal representation of Jenny’s history. The Balombo symbolises Jenny’s fascination of eerie artistry. Inspired by her memory of the Angolan Chingange figures she grew up with. Dramatic and treacherous clowns posing as deific storytellers, telling bewildering tales of unknown evils only they can protect us from.
As the name suggest Mind The Cork creates and sells small-batch homeware and lifestyle products made from cork. Cork is a renewable material; the harvest does not require the cork oak tree to be felled, ensuring wildlife diversity is maintained and promotes reforestation.
Jenny, Mind The Cork, in her South London studio where she handcrafts her cork based products.
Adding life into small spaces
Of course plants add life to our homes, but having the ability to grow trees from humble beginnings is a really exciting way to bring nature into our lives and enhance our living spaces. A product that we have championed for a long time is the Avocado Vase by Ilex Studio. Ed and Amy founders of Ilex Studio spent many years painstakingly designing the best vases for rooting and growing trees within our homes. Using the humble avocado stone that is all too often discarded, you can enjoy watching this lifeless-looking stone grow into a beautiful tree even in the most limited of urban spaces.
Ed and Amy are hugely passionate about encouraging us as a nation to “grow more trees”. They have recently opened their gorgeous shop Ilex Studio at 161 Goldhawk Road London where you can be inspired by their highly infectious passion.
Photography by Beth Davis.
Far left Avocado Vase by Ilex Studio
For more information about the ercol Style Pod, and living with plants for a mindful escape see our previous blogs.
A full furniture and accessories list as follows:
Furniture from ercol:
Monza small extending dining table
Monza Universal Cabinet
Marlia chair in N312 fabric
Ballatta Shelving Unit
Sienna Side Tables
Heritage Chair
Lighting:
Brompton Pendant 1 (10cm dia)
Brompton Pendant 2 (15cm dia)
Brompton Pendant 3 (20cm dia)
Paint:
Portland Stone Pale (155) from Little Greene
Aquamarine (138) from Little Greene
Plants, Pots and Plant Stands:
L’Appartement and stylist’s own
Art:
CEPE New Graces from Cuemars
Goodbond Fingers Crossed from Cuemars
African Palm Tree from Cuemars
Other art - stylist’s own
Accessories on top of Monza Universal Cabinet:
Mari Masot vase from Cuemars
Ata yellow vase from Att Pynta
Accessories on Monza Dining Table:
Amber Ribbed Glass Tumbler from Forest
White Terrazzo Pot from Tankten
Accessories on Ballata Shelving Unit:
Avocado vase by Ilex Studio
LSA Self-Watering Planter
LSA Canopy Vase
Black Burnt Oak Ikebana vase from Graen
Balombo Mosi sculpture by Mind The Cork