What is Luxury?
What is Luxury?
Having been in the industry of creating luxury interior designs for many years, we decided to take a closer look at the notion of luxury and what this word means?
As our society and cultural values change, the notion of luxury changes with them. Ultimately, everyone has their own version of luxury, but we would like to explore a bit the history of the subject and to see what luxury means to Londoners today.
Luxury in the past
The word luxury originates from the Latin word, luxuria, which means to dislocate and to grow rank. The Greeks, who could afford luxurious products, bought these to get extraordinary personal pleasure, but most of all to show their wealth and status to others.
During the Renaissance the French king Louis XIV built the Chateau de Versailles. This building was and still is the largest and the most luxurious building from that era. Louis XIV displayed his wealth through extravagant lifestyle and luxurious castles adorned with lavish ornaments, furniture, and fountains. Yet, the ordinary citizens of France at the time thought that his architectural creations were foul and tasteless, because his luxurious lifestyle was more than the acceptable standard of quality.
At the end of 18th century and the beginning of 19th century, the relation to luxury architecture changed rapidly. As the first modern luxurious city Chicago was developed, people started to accept luxury and started to feel comfortable about it. Adamo Boari and Adolf Loos were notable architects in this change.
Today, there is a large focus on luxury on a global level. Luxury of today can be divided into two main groups: material luxury and immaterial luxury. Historically, luxury was exclusively something material, that people could show off to gain some respect, wealth and status in the society.
The new kind of luxury is what Fritz and Gülow call “real experience”. Those luxurious, unique experiences, such as chartering a yacht to Alaska or eating out at a beautifully decorated gourmet restaurant, serve as a proof of wealth. With the advent of social media such luxury rapidly gained popularity, as people like to share their luxurious experiences with friends and followers.
Luxury today
We decided to check how people perceive luxury nowadays. A survey that Thulasi Sivapalan (MA Interior design, Staffordshire University) conducted is based on opinions of Londoners. According to them luxury is associated with something desirable, yet unnecessary in life. It is something that people aspire to have and what could be bought for money and could improve their quality of life. It turns out that the most desirable material luxury items are luxury interior decorations, property, clothes and shoes.
The survey also showed that unlike material luxury, immaterial one was much more personal and connected to emotions rather than to things. This study showed that both types of luxury are important to people these days with immaterial one being slightly more popular than the traditional material luxury.
What kind of luxury do you prefer?
A little more about Thulasi Sivapalan.
In 2013 Thulasi graduated from Aalborg University in Denmark with B.Sc. in Engineering (Architecture & Design). Right after graduation, she started working at Bjerg Arkitektur, the only passive house design company in Denmark. In 2014 she worked for Denmark’s largest and one of Scandinavia’s largest architect practices, C.F. Møller Architects.
In 2015 she started the MA in Interior Design at Staffordshire University through National Design Academy. As a part of her interior design degree, she chose to make a research about luxury design, because there is a global challenge of defining luxury today. Her goals was to understand how people percieve the word “luxury” and how they use it in their everyday lives.
The Clerkenwell Design Week
Clerkenwell in London is a thriving hub of top interior designers. Indeed the small district in the English capital boasts more creative businesses per square mile than anywhere else in the world.
Is Red just the language of Love?
RED or DEAD?!
Colour is an important part of our life and our culture. We use colours to indicate or give significance to objects or actions – however, colors are not interpreted in the same way by different cultures or regions of the world.
The more you understand colour and what it relates to in terms of our emotions, our moods and general wellbeing it can become a complete game changer. To consciously choose an “optimum outcome” within your interior design gives your kitchen, living room, bedrooms or bathrooms a valuable meaning that you may well have have missed – creating a healthy, happy home as opposed to a dull, oppressive or tired one. (more…)
Hoarders and clutter collectors
January is often a time of reflection, a chance to take stock of where you are, identify what you want to achieve with the New Year and the opportunity of a fresh start.
What better way to ‘clear the head’ than to physically clear the decks – get rid of some of the clutter that you may have accumulated over the past year and beyond!
Here is our top tip for your January clear out…
Top of the World Interiors in Manhattan
432 Park Avenue – this is the address of the New York skyline’s newest ornament and of the tallest residential tower in the Western Hemisphere. Towering up to 1,396 ft, the skyscraper offers 104 apartments at 30,000 sq ft each with 12.5 ft ceilings, 10 x 10 ft windows, and prices ranging from $16,95 million to $82,5 million.
This breath taking condo tower was designed by Rafael Viñoly and took three years to construct. It is situated in the centre of Manhattan, and the upper penthouses offer a view of all of New York City: from the Hudson to the East River, from the Bronx to Brooklyn, and from Central Park to the Atlantic Ocean. The building also features a private restaurant with an outdoor terrace, a 75ft swimming pool/spa, a screening room/ performance venue, climate-controlled wine cellars, a children’s playroom and a board room.
The skyscraper will welcome its first residents next year, so if you’re looking for a nice little place in NY and have a solid bank account, you’d better hurry, as the penthouses are going like hot cakes.
Winter styling ideas
The rich colours at our Claremont Square project mirror the hues of the season
Well it’s here then. The clocks went back, the temperature dropped and the evenings went dark. Winter has unleashed her cold fury and, if forecasts are to be believed, it looks like she’s going to be vexed for quite some time.
So, if we’re all going to be indoors for months, we need to think about how to cosy it up a little. How to create a place that’s a welcoming haven away from the elements rather than a box that’s going to induce cabin fever and family feuds.
We have already looked at lighting; in brief stick to table and floor lamps that will cast soft pools of light or wall lights that will wash gently over the space rather than the harsh glare of overhead pendants.
Let the warm hues of our Rutland Gate project inspire you on chilly days
Now it’s time to look at the soft furnishings. This is where you need to think seasonally. The Scandinavians think nothing of changing their cushions and curtains according to the seasons and we should do the same.
Keep the textiles natural and move from cotton and linen in summer to velvet and cashmere, and a bit of faux fur for fun, in winter. These days we don’t tend to have loose covers on sofas and armchairs but, if you do, consider having two sets made. There’s nothing like snuggling up on a velvet sofa during the long dark winter months.
Velvet sofa, West Elm
If you have a fitted cover or chesterfield then invest in a few throws. Have a couple folded over the arms ready to wrap up cold toes, or drape one along the back. Add a stack of cushions in warm berry colours – this year it’s all about shades of pink with metallic golds and brass – and suddenly the thought of spending a few evenings on the sofa with a glass of something red and warming in one hand and a Scandinavian box set in the other starts to feel less like entrapment and more like an invitation.
Curtains and cushions dealt with, let’s turn to the floor. Again, it’s easy to change rugs with the seasons. Think of something warm and cosy – perhaps even a deep pile or fur for winter and replace it with something lighter when the sun comes back.
Alpaca fur rug, Kelaty
Now, we can’t finish this post without returning to the Scandinavians. After all, those Nordic lands have the longest, coldest, darkest winters of them all. And how do they get round that? Hygge.
No we’re not sneezing, it’s a Danish word that doesn’t perfectly translate but loosely means cosiness. And the way to achieve that is with candles. Light a few candles every evening and you can forget about the wind howling round outside.
Stack candleholders, Miranda Watkins
Finally, remember that Cicero said that a room without books is like a body without a soul. Bring all those books you’ve been meaning to read and make a welcoming pile on the coffee table, those magazines that you were going to rip up to make moodboards? Now’s the time. The photo albums that need sorting. Bring it on.
Winter, we don’t care how cross you are. We’re inside, we’re warm and we’re cosy. See you on the other side.
Decorative lighting
Lighting is one of the most important aspects of interior design. Just as soft candlelight is said to be the most flattering to a woman’s skin, so a great lighting scheme can hide a multitude of furnishing and flooring blemishes.
From the stunning overhead pendant that means no-one notices the wobbly Swedish storage system leaning slightly on one side, to the soft glow from a couple of well-positioned table lamps that make everyone feel instantly more relaxed. Or the concentrated beam of a perfectly angled task lamp for help with reading or sewing. There are lights for every job, lamps for every mood and bulbs for every occasion.
Good lighting is where twin aims of form and function should come together in one (actually not blinding) flash of brilliance. Here’s how to create some impact with your illuminations.
Let’s start with the most dramatic of them all. The chandelier. A thing of such beauty that it looks perfect in an empty room. Try one in the hall if you’ve got space. Let it announce to all who enter that this is a domain of serious decor. A statement of intent that the rest of the house means business when it comes to the interior design. Either that or it will cast a flattering light on all the cheap furniture in the rest of the house because you blew the budget on the lighting. What about this one from George Singer?
There’s often not enough humour in the home. You can afford to inject some wit while still keeping a practical element. There are some wonderful alphabet neon lights out there at the moment and they come at all sorts of prices so you can find one that works for you. Top of the budget will be these from Delightfull. Perfect for one signature letter – put it on the kitchen wall.
Or perhaps you can afford to spell a whole word with these from Seletti. Try putting them up the stairs to create an unexpected, and functional, display.
Sticking with the dining room, or eating space, it’s a place where you don’t always need huge amounts of light. A room that tends to be kept for evenings and where there are often candles close by, what about some pop art for the walls? These from Double Merrick will give off a soft glow at night but in the day time they double up as art.
Moving into the sitting room, this is the one place where you need to layer different types of lighting as it’s probably used for the most different activities. It’s also possibly the one room where you don’t necessarily need an overhead light. Think about wall lights instead for an ambient background glow, such as these quirky squirrels from Atelier Randall. Then add table lights, a floor light and a task light by one of the chairs. This can go on either the wall or the floor depending on the space.
‘A well-considered lighting scheme allows for different scene setting,’ explains Mike Kazer from The Light Corporation. ‘We would always suggest the circuiting is designed so that you can mix the different lighting features to balance the space and offer different moods depending on the occasion. Using downlights to highlight features such as artwork, be it sculpture or prints, will give the room some interest. Only use downlights for feature highlighting. Then build the levels up.’
‘Try adding a pendant if you have the space or use a downlight to highlight the coffee table separating the sofas, this creates real drama, always on a separate circuit. This way when scene setting you can make the room appear larger by having a brighter middle and softer outer.’
We’ve been past the letters on the stairs (what did you spell out?) and move into the bedroom. An overhead light is practical for getting dressed on dark winter mornings, but it’s a bedroom. Make it pretty. Try the Lee Broom crystal.
‘The beauty of table and wall lights is that they offer warm light at a living level,’ adds Mike. ‘This can create a softness that can quite often be forgotten in contemporary schemes.’
Or do something different. Why not free up the bedside tables (they’re full enough with all those piles of books you’re never going to read) and hang a pendant light from either side of the bed. Just make sure you can turn them on by the door as well as when you’re under the duvet. It’s a dramatic and unusual look that is completely practical too.
And while we’re on the subject of being practical why not hang your book on one of these?
Living in… Hampstead
Hampstead is one of the most sought-after areas of London. Not just for the huge heath – one of London’s so-called green lungs – but also for the lofty Edwardian houses and large Victorian villas which lie along its leafy streets.
NW3 has long been associated with the intellectual left wing; the liberal literary set and the slightly more louche characters of Oasis and Ozzy Osbourne.
In recent years, in addition to the rock stars and the actors who move on from Crouch End as soon as they can afford it (which is at about the same time they make the transfer from small to big screen), there has also been an influx of City bankers and lawyers.
This is because the bankers are the only other people who earn celebrity salaries. Or it might be the other way round. The point being that if you haven’t got several million in the bank you can’t come in.
As Frank Townsend, manager of the local Savills estate agents, happily points out; the core market is between £650,000 for a two bedroom flat to around £3m for a four-bedroom family home. Although he did sell a double fronted, unmodernised, six-bedroom Edwardian house for £12m the other day.
‘The market has been pretty consistent and from its peak in 2007, apart from a slightly quiet period after Lehman Brothers closed, it bounced back in 2009 and is now 20 per cent higher than six years ago,’ he says.
‘The clientele is pretty cosmopolitan. We also have several Arsenal footballers and we spotted someone from One Direction with an estate agent the other day.’
He also enjoys telling a tale of looking up from his desk to see Rod Stewart yelling up at a window opposite before Ronnie Wood poked his head out and agreed to come down.
Having said that, you don’t have to live in Hampstead to enjoy its pleasures.
There are lots of great restaurants, including many of the better chains, Cote and Carluccio’s, a few gastropubs such as The Horseshoe (owned by the Camden Brewery, London’s most successful micro brewery) The Wells Tavern (John Le Carre’s local) or The Spaniards (frequented by Liam Gallagher).
And, after a good lunch, there are plenty of shops to browse round. Zadig & Voltaire and Questionnaire if you’re feeling flush, Nine West and French Connection if you’re not. In terms of interiors? Well you can buy your Farrow & Ball paint and your Fired Earth tiles (obvs) and after that it’s off to Zara Home.
Don’t forget there’s always that added thrill of celebrity spotting. One word of advice though, if you haven’t got a chauffeur, the parking can be a bit of a nightmare.
THREE PRODUCTS THAT SUM UP HAMPSTEAD
In a nod to the area’s literary history you better brush up on your grammar with these grumble mugs. £39.95 for set of six, The Literary Gift Company
Not forgetting the current rock and roll residents, these cushions would fit right in or perhaps the nest of table would show you know your genres. £55 each, Quirk & Rescue
There’s no doubting the area has become rather blingtastic in recent years so Philippe Starck’s AK47 gun light for Flos in 18k gold should sort the plastic from the platinum. £1,541, Utility
Our favourite launches from the London Design Festival
It’s been a busy few weeks in the studio since the annual extravaganza that is the London Design Festival, and we’ve had some quite ferocious debates over which products and brands have made our top picks for this year!
There was so much to see, as ever, and the endless bubbles, canapés, late nights and long days have made things just a little foggy, but here are a few of our favourite designers, who all stood out from the crowds with their wondrous creations…
The Moooi Showroom
Co-founded by Marcel Wanders, it’s no wonder that Moooi continues to impress. And during the festival, they transformed their west London showroom with items from their Unexpected Welcome collection, debuted at Milan this year, to create a new take on conventional living spaces. After all, no living room is complete without an orange male mannequins. Is it us or does he look a bit depressed? Cheer up love.
Melody Rose
Exhibiting at Tent, exciting ceramic brand Melody Rose really stood out with their upcycled vintage ceramics. A quirky idea, well-executed – these plates would certainly make a talking point over the dinner table.
Surface View
Surface View are a pretty unique company – creating bespoke wall murals, canvases, window films… anything on a ‘surface’ basically. They can also create completely bespoke designs from your own images. Exhibiting at 100% design this year, they’re definitely one to watch. Check out the fab ‘View of Amsterdam’ window film above.
Buster + Punch
We’re long-time fans of Buster + Punch at Callender Howorth. Biker and rock ‘n’ roll inspired designs are their speciality, and we love the raw, masculine edge of their designs. Perfect statement pieces for the suave man about town.
Timorous Beasties
Timorous Beasties’ refreshing take on toile de Jouy caught our eyes a while ago and is still just as captivating – look closely and you’ll see the London Eye and the Gherkin amongst other landmarks in their London Toile design, pictured. And as for the colourway… Just fabulous.
Mauger Modern Art
Fibre optics have transformed our ability to use light to create outstanding and unusual pieces, such as the striking Columbia Seated Child, above, by Ibizan artist Roseline de Thelen, on display at Mauger Modern Art. Set up by artist Richard Mauger and his brother, the gallery in Pimlico is definitely worth a visit.
James UK
With accolades from the likes of Elle Decoration under the belt, it’s no wonder that James UK continues to go from strength to strength. The ‘James’ in question is James Harrison, who’s gathering legions of fans for his simple, clean-lined contemporary furniture. We like.
Tandem Studio
We discovered Tandem Studio at Designjunction and immediately fell for their quirky, inventive designs. Established in 2005, Tandem is led by Jonathan and Simone Wright, a furniture maker and architect. They work with architects and private clients across the UK, creating timeless and elegant furniture and interiors for commercial, residential and public settings.
Chisel & Mouse
‘Buy a piece of architecture for your home’ – that’s the tagline for sculptors Chisel & Mouse, who create delightful mini versions of some of the UK’s most recognisable landmarks. They also take on commissions – we wonder how they’d feel about taking on the Shard…
Delightfull
We can never get enough of great lighting designs at Callender Howorth. Delightfull have a huge range of playful, individual pieces, characterised by sculptured forms, reduced shapes, clear lines and plenty of colour. What more could you want?!
That’s just a small selection of the designers we’ll be keeping an eye on over the next few months. We’d love to hear what you thought – tweet us at @c_h_studio with your top picks!
LONDON LIVING
Our guide to areas and who is living there…
Battersea – family friendly terrace houses, riverside apartments
The area spreading out from Clapham Junction, which proclaims itself as Britain’s busiest railway station, is mainly home to a complementary mix of trendy young professionals and well-to-do families. The transition from one to the other (but not back again!) is a smooth one in the area between-the-commons (Wandsworth and Clapham) known as “nappy valley”, where yummy mummies do brunch with their Bugaboos (a “travel system” for babies) along the lovely, bustling Northcote Road with its posh market and pretty cafes. This is almost exclusively a residential area and not a hub for hotels, but it’s definitely worth a day trip.
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Islington – smart Houses and a mix of funky eclectic flats…
Islington mixes elegant Georgian squares inhabited by London’s liberal elite with some rough-and-ready bits. This vibrant borough has a thriving fringe theatre scene and a bustling nightlife, centred on the clubs, bars and restaurants of Upper Street, and, if you’re planning on partying, the hotels here are a good option. The area is also home to Arsenal, one of London’s biggest football clubs, and The King’s Head Theatre, the first and best of London’s theatre pubs. Nestled between Essex Road and Upper Street, Canonbury boasts the delightful New River walk, while just south of Angel you’ll find a very pretty stretch of the canal.
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Chiswick – family friendly area with many detached properties, close proximity to park and river
If you don’t mind being a bit further west, Chiswick is a great answer. Local park with Chiswick House and close proximity of the Thames gives plenty opportunity to spend free time. Again, like Battersea, is a family friendly area with a well-established reputation. You can find plenty of beautiful detached Villas here, but that depends on how deep is your pocket.
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Knightsbridge – luxurious neighbourhood of London with its famous penthouses and large town houses
Harrods, the most recognised shop in the world famed for its annual Christmas lights and window displays, is at the centre of Knightsbridge, an area that is becoming the best place in London to max out your credit card. Bond Street was the traditional location for designers to have their flagship stores, but an increasing number, including legendary shoe designers Manolo Blahnik and Jimmy Choo, are moving to Knightsbridge. To the north, Hyde Park and the Serpentine lake provide attractive open spaces away from the bustle, and the south of Knightsbridge is also an attractive place for a stroll, with the grand fashion boutiques replaced by neat terraces, gardens and antique shops. On the ground floor and basement of the Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park hotel can be found the first London restaurants of celebrated chefs Heston Blumenthal and Daniel Boulud.
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Mayfair – the most exclusive area of London
Primarily thanks to the game Monopoly, where the area is deigned to have London’s most expensive property, Mayfair’s sharp reputation precedes it. The smart neighbourhood is named after the annual May Fair which used to take place on the site that is Shepherd Market today. Rents are among the highest in London and the world – which adds to the area’s exclusive feel. Important buildings in Mayfair include the Royal Academy of Arts, the Grosvenor House Hotel, Claridge’s, The Dorchester and the US Embassy in Grosvenor Square. Mayfair has also become an attractive location away from the City for private banks, hedge funds and wealth managers. Throw in the designer shops and art galleries of Old Bond Street, New Bond Street, Savile Row (home to some of the world’s most renowned tailors) and Conduit Street – and you begin to get a picture of just how exclusive the neighbourhood is.
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Just a few thoughts – you Londoners know lots of this already! But always fun to remind others of the truly eclectic city that we live in!
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