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.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock lately, you have probably heard of Annie Sloan chalk paint – every blogger writing about decorating seems to have tried it and is raving over it.  The good news for all of us in the South East of Ireland is that Eclectic Interiors in  Castlecomer is stocking it now and is also going to be running workshops on how to mix and apply the paint.

Annie Sloan Colours

What makes Annie Sloan chalk paint different to other paints? Well, it is environmentally friendly, has low odour, is very easy to work with, dries quickly and what is especially handy is that it sticks to virtually anything and doesn’t require a primer or undercoat. The colour palette is inspired by European painted furniture colours from the 1700s and you can also mix your own colours, adding wax to add a distressed effect and to protect the piece.  Shabby Sweet Tea describes the paint and waxing process in this blog post. I love the picture of this Antibes Green taken from the 2 Friends & 2 Cities blog.

Entry Table painted with Annie Sloan Antibes Green paint

Selina at Eclectic Interiors has been painting and upcycling furniture for years in her workshop at Castlecomer Estate Yard.

Alongside painted tables, wardrobes, desks, beds, tables and chairs are many pieces of  antique furniture and smaller antique accessories.

Selina will also be running workshops showing people how to paint with the Annie Sloan paint and full details will be up on her website once she has decided on dates.

Have you tried Annie Sloan paint yet? I have a couple of pieces awaiting some work so I’m looking forward to giving it a try.

Red is a traditional colour for dining rooms, a warm colour that also encourages conversation and the appetite. The perfect backdrop for lingering over a nice bottle of wine or a brandy after a scrumptious dinner.

Many years ago, we lived in a number of small terraced Victorian houses and the dining room was always to the back of the house with a single narrow sash window looking out to the back garden. It was always the darkest room in the house and sometimes it was too dark for a red wallpaper but sometimes it was perfect. I think we had a total of two red dining rooms in the past.

A red wallpaper in this room adds more interest that a plain red paint, plus the added texture of a wallpaper adds more warmth.

We often think of red wallpaper in dining rooms of being of damask patterns, smacking of panelled rooms and Victorian times but here’s the Miss Print Dandelion retro wallpaper in Storm with Coral being used in a dining room to beautiful effect.

It all makes for a contemporary, relaxed feel in this retro dining room.

If you are looking for a more tradition and grand design, the Deer Damask in claret and gold is perfect with its skull and thistle design in a damask pattern.

Deer Damask Wallpaper

If you are looking for a red wallpaper, check out our ranges here which can be purchased online.

If you were at the Ideal Homes show in the RDS last weekend, you might have picked up a copy of ‘Moving in to Inspire’ and here’s a copy of the article I wrote for it. (just click to enlarge)

And here’s my most recent article for My Waterford magazine – all about Christmas decorating:

Have you decorated for Hallow’een yet? I have to admit that we have only 2 rather small pumpkins on our pumpkin patch (sowed them too late and it was too cold here this summer I think) and I haven’t done anything yet for Hallow’een. Passing by a Christmas shop on our way home from the cinema yesterday, my 7 year old said ‘Do you think they think Christmas comes before Hallow’een?!’

Here’s a few pictures to inspire you for Hallow’een if you are like me and have yet to purchase a pumpkin let alone anything else

And these are brilliant – Ernie and Bert!  Particularly if the traditionally scary faces on pumpkins are too frightening for little ones.

And if you were thinking of doing the traditional scary mouth with bared teeth and misshapen eyes and nose, well, I’m not trying to make you (or me) feel inadequate but isn’t this carving amazing?

Images: Martha Stewart, Crafted Sparrow blog, Craftzine, pinspiration

Happy Decorating for Hallow’een. I’m really looking forward to the children having the week off, catching up with friends and going to a couple of Hallow’een parties.  And once the Hallow’een decorations come down, there is only a month before the Christmas decorations will be coming out of the attics again.