Howard Hodgkin last designed fabrics for Designers Guild back in 1986 and they have just launched his newest collection for DG.

Hodgkin’s paintings are primarily grounded on a remembered experience or emotion – a meeting with friends, a view across a landscape or the moment after a meal. From this starting point Hodgkin embarks, working over a long period to produced layered, richly coloured, sweeping composition, which extend onto the picture frame. The finished pieces hover brilliantly between representation and abstraction and have been described as ‘profound painterly equivalents for memory itself’.

Howard Hodgkin fabrics for Designers Guild

He represented Britain at the Venice Biennale in 1984, was awarded the Turner Prize in 1985 and was Knighted in 1992. He was also the subject of a major retrospective at The Tate in London in 2006. His distinctive, lavish colours and expansive brushstrokes have been stunningly printed onto fine linens and crisp cottons.

Howard Hodgkin Large Flower Fabric

And I think this photograph below is amazing:

Howard Hodgkin

We stock Designers Guild here at Garrendenny Lane so if you would like any samples or to order any of the Howard Hodgkin fabrics, do get in contact with us.

I have to admit I’m not the pinkest of people – I only wear pink to co-ordinate with all the greens I wear (green being my fav colour) and the same goes for accessories. I have, however, been blessed with a daughter with dark red hair on whom greens, oranges and browns look fabulous and what does she want to wear – yes, you’ve guessed it – pink! or purple but preferably pink.  I managed to persuade her to include some greens and aquas in her own pink bedroom but the overall look had to be pink.  Do you think most girls genuinely love the colour pink or is it all down to gender stereotyping? Would love your thoughts on that.

Well, here’s some pink to brighten up your weekend on this dull “summer’s day” that we are experiencing today – cold, blustery, windy …. I’m very tempted to light the fire tonight.

But some pink cupcakes or even this pretty print would warm me up

I do like shocking pink and these dining chairs are delightful.

Vivid pink cushions and what girl doesn’t like shoes?  On sale at Garrendenny Lane

And the perfect wallpaper for little farmerettes – Moo by Mini Moderns in Pink.

I’m loving the pink fridge (would love a pink Smeg myself) but not so sure about the pink range cooker – what do you think?

I have yet to visit the Ladies room in Galway’s G Hotel, designed by Philip Treacy. Is it as vivid in real life I wonder?

Striking Pink and Green Monteverdi fabric by Designers Guild – great colour blocking!

And I will finish with my daughter’s pink (and slightly) green bedroom!

Hope you all have a lovely weekend and see you on Monday, Lorna x

Images: Isle of View, La Belle Vie, Garrendenny Lane x 2, Daisy Cup Cake, G Hotel, Designers Guild,

I did a post some time ago on decorating rooms with orange.  If you are just looking for a splash of orange, here’s some ideas for adding orange accessories to your home decor.

Am liking this orange throw on this lovely armchair (Image: Note to Sarah)

I’d like a little more zest in this I think – more orange please (from Inspiration for Decoration)

Small/Far Away Print

Pet Sounds wallpaper

Terry O’Driscoll hails from Cork and his fabulous home is featured in the current edition of Munster Interiors.  You can see more images and more about what Terry does on his website Peninsula Life and Design.  Terry is currently offering a 90 minute Colour Consultations at a much discounted rate of €65  and he has kindly agreed to do a guest post for us outling How to use Colour in our homes. The pictures are all from Terry’s own home.

Get the Foundations Right!

We are all more than aware, that with all things in life, you need to get the foundations right, if not then you’re heading straight for disaster.

Interior design is no different, with colour and light replacing your traditional sand and cement.  I can’t over emphasise the importance of getting the balance and quantities of these two vital ingredients just right, if you don’t, quite simply your foundations will crumble.  Not the look you’re after!

Colour & Light

The relationship between colour and light is a delicate one requiring sensitive handling.  Co-dependant, they can both exact positive and negative effects.  For example, colours possess varying light-absorbing levels, essential to remember when dealing with a room that has perhaps a limited amount of natural light.  The darker the shade the less light it reflects.  Additionally colours can appear very different depending on whether the light is natural or artificial.  Always ensure you see the colour in both lights before any decision making.

The actual space itself has an obvious major say, some permitting great freedom while others can enforce restrictions.  Victorian properties for instance, when built, were painted in rich colours, i.e. racing green and deep claret red (due to the paint pigments available at the time).  So, if you were in the process of returning a period property to its former glory, this could be your way forward.  On the other hand, modern properties grant a greater choice from the colour spectrum allowing you to stamp your own style and personality on them.

Being a bit of a trickster, colour can perform an array of illusions, making dark rooms appear brighter, cold ones warm, widening narrow ones and transforming large spaces into intimate ones.

The Psychology of Colour

There is in-fact a whole psychology behind colour and the impact it has on us.  Have you ever noticed that all fast food restaurants have yellow and red in their corporate colours? Wondered why? Simple….. Yellow induces hunger and Red makes us uncomfortable, resulting in….eat and leave!  Clever!

Keep It Simple

For me, my own personal philosophy is “Simplicity”.  I like a colour scheme to be fluid and move seamlessly throughout the house.  I have a strong belief that less is more and endeavour to keep the colours used for the entirety of a house to a maximum of five (one dominant, four accents).  This achieves a feeling of connection with an overall sense of harmony.

Something I hear regularly is “paint is cheap”, not so! Choosing the right colours in a design project can prove to be a bit of a minefield and when it can cost hundreds of euros to paint a room, correcting an error can be pricey.  Seeking professional advice is a wise move.  By removing the guess work and confusion you can avoid costly mistakes proving to be not just wise but also euro-wise! 

Thank you very much to Terry for his informative post with fabulous images, I hope you enjoyed it, do check out more images and tips on his website and don’t forget to enter our giveaway this weekend on our previous post.

Orange is a wonderfully funky zesty colour for interiors, full of energy, life and bounce.  I have to admit it is not a colour I have used that much and usually just as an accent with accessories but as it has been so popular on the catwalk this season, it is now making its way into homewares and interiors decorating. Some people tend to be nervous about decorating their homes with orange as it is such a bold colour, however, if you follow our tips, you’ll be well on the way for a successful orange home decor, whether you are decorating a living room, bedroom or kitchen. 

Using Orange on the Walls

This bedroom picture from Living Etc with its strong orange wall and white furniture is beautiful and really striking:

but if a solid block of orange would be too much for you, using a wallpaper with orange in its pattern would be a happy medium particularly if used on a feature wall within the decorating scheme,  this Pet Sounds wallpaper in Orange would be extremely funky.

Using Orange as an Accent

Remember to have other orange accessories around the room as well as having the feature wall or if you are feeling less brave, just use orange as an accent and introduce orange lamps, vases, cushions, a footstool perhaps, one at a time as you get used to it.  It is grea colour to use especially if your decor scheme is mostly cream or white with wooden furniture.

25 Beautiful Homes

This orange  Pet sounds cushion is wonderfully striking, especially if coupled with a few other accessories in similar tones.

Which room would orange be best in?

Bedrooms? Well, it is certainly a warm colour and will certainly be warming if the bedroom is a north-facing room. It isn’t as stimulating as red (which can affect some people’s sleep). According to feng shui principles, it is a good colour for strengthening relationships and for improving fertility!

Kitchen or Utility: The utility room in the Ideal Home’s 2011 eco house is a bright tangerine orange and it is certainly zesty.

Personally I would have a headache if I was faced with a bright orange kitchen in the mornings and I think a softer orange would be a little insipid so I think I’d be going for smaller blocks of orange colour or else using accessories in oranges – (yes, the pet sounds orange designs also come in mugs and teatowels - how did you guess??).  Many kitchens incorporate blues and tend to put yellow with it but orange would be sassy alternative.

Studies/Offices/Dining rooms - If your furniture is a dark wood and you have cream or beige furnishings, orange would be a great colour to introduce in your accessories to brighten it up and generate more energy in the room.

Image from Homes and Gardens

Actually, I now remember decorating a dining room in a dull orange once. I wanted to use red but it was a mid terraced house and the room was too dark, while I liked it at the time, I’m not sure how long we would have lived with it if we had stayed living in the house for longer.  Personally I think I would opt for a block of colour with accessories rather than going full on  (now does this show I’m getting old?)

As well as being bang on trend, tangerine orange is also a wonderfully summery colour so go on, what are you waiting for? Add a little orange to your home decor and some sunshine to your day every day.

I’m going to do a ‘How to decorate with …..’ a different colour each week – any requests for a particular colour for next week’s post?