Latest Turn-ons

Recently, when shopping for lighting accoutrements, I stumbled across Forbes & Lomax, a very posh English vendor of even more posh light switches and plates whose appearance can absolutely add to the quiet elegance of a room.

Their current collection includes such lux finishes as nickel, uncoated brass, frosted glass, stainless steel, bronze, and a clear glass “the invisible light switch” which just becomes invisible on a wall. I’ve spent enough time in years past just hating so many of those dreadful switch plate covers to seek out something different.

No need to look further, this is where it’s at…Note that they are available in the States!

There must be an invisible switch plate here no doubt. Portrait of Queen Elizabeth II by Annie Lebovitz (c).

Visit their site at www.forbesandlomax.com

Barbara Ashfield

Making Wallpaper Fashionable...Again!

Cole & Son, the well known purveyor of wallpaper has joined forces with British fashion legend Vivienne Westwood for a line of new wallpapers. The line was introduced in the UK last October, but won’t be coming to America until March 2010. Westwood lends her trademark quirky style to this line that portrays her verve in a brand new medium. These papers aren’t for everyone, but they bring an alternate point of view to the existing Cole & Son range.

The designer of the latest Cole & Son range...The fabulous Vivienne Westwood.

The company will be presenting the new Westwood collection, along with new patterns in their Classix II at the upcoming Maison et Objet in Paris January 22nd through the 26th.

"Magnolia" by Vivienne Westwood for Cole & Son.

"Tromp O'leil" by Vivienne Westwood for Cole & Son.

"Dogtooth" by Vivienne Westwood for Cole & Son.

The new Westwood line is in keeping with the company’s attitude of collaborating with noteworthy contemporary designers. In the past these have included David Easton, Tom Dixon, and the archives of Piero Fornasetti. Each of these collaborations has broadened the company’s offerings and made them the wallpaper of choice among designer and client alike.

"Libris Maximus" by Cole & Son.

"Indian" by Cole & Son.

A contemporary classic "woods" by Cole & Son.

"Classix II-Canonbury" flocked wallpaper by Cole & Son.


"Checkmate" handprinted wallpaper by Cole & Son.

Anyone interested in interior design has seen a Cole & Son wallpaper, and the company’s offerings have become quite iconic. With the resurgence and renewed interest in wallpaper over the last few years the fascination with Cole and Son has only multiplied. The firm has positioned itself as the standard since 1873 when it was originally known as John Perry Ltd. Since many of their papers are hand printed with wood blocks or silk screens. It is interesting to learn where some of the wood blocks originated from. Cole and Son has steadily acquired wood printing blocks from other notable wallpaper manufacturers throughout the years as these firms have gone out of business. By 1941 the company owned the most significant collection of wooden printing blocks in Britain, and perhaps the world. Many of these patterns the company acquired throughout the years have been used in stately homes and castles throughout the United Kingdom and Europe. Cole and Son wallpaper has even been used in the White House here in America.

Screenprinting the "Rajapur" pattern. Each repeat is done by hand.

Hand printing the "Catwalk" pattern.

Screen printing the "Aragon" pattern.

Cole & Son is available in San Francisco through Lee Jofa. My thanks go out to Savannah Amerson, the manager of our local showroom for connecting me with images and content from the home office in the UK.

Savannah in the Lee Jofa showroom with a wallpaper by Piero Fornasetti.

I look forward to seeing the Westwood range first hand!

David Hansen

* Please Note: We did not receive compensation for this post. We really love the wallpaper!

The Civility of Country Life Personified

An early image of Althorp in Northamptonshire.

I recently took in an episode of Antiques Roadshow, the television series on BBC America (the English version is the only one going as far as I’m concerned) and for this installment, the show was being filmed at the Althorp Estate (pronounced “Al-trup”) in Northamptonshire, England.

Antiques Roadshow host Fiona Bruce with Charles, The Ninth Earl of Spencer with items from the family estate.

The Antiques Roadshow faithful at Althorp on the back lawn.

Althrop is probably best known as the childhood home, and final resting place of Diana, Princess of Wales. Diana is buried in a classical structure in the middle of an oval lake on the estate, and the stables have been converted into an exhibition of the memory of her life. Althrop is presently owned by Diana’s brother Charles, The Ninth Earl of Spencer, and the home has been in the Spencer family now for over five hundred years.


The resting place of Diana, Princess of Wales, which has been built on an island in the middle of the lake on the Estate.

I was happy to learn of this impressive 14,000 acre estate which seems to have been a result of the family’s hard work from mere sheep farmers to “Landed Gentry”. The Spencer family were sheep farmers since before the time of the Tudors, and through the sale of livestock and commodities, was eventually able to buy Althorp outright and the land has belonged to the family ever since.


An early view of Althorp showing the red brick that would later be overhauled in the 18th century to be more "fashionable".

Over the years the Estate has been host to a number of “characters”, many who seemed to have had a penchant for collecting portraiture and books (this is where my interest was piqued). One comment made about the collection of books was that they were equal to their own “internet”. I have always said that if I were to collect something on a large scale, books would be my first choice.


A view showing the front of the home at Althorp.

In the mid 18th century the Honorable John Spencer, who had inherited the estate at age 12 commissioned Joshua Reynolds to paint family portraits that are now highly prized. He was also responsible for building Spencer House in London, which overlooks Green Park, near Buckingham Palace.


A Neoclassic dream. Spencer House in London circa 1800.

I’ve put Althorp on my list for my next trip to England. My trips to England in the past have focused on London, and I’m anxious to experience the civility of “Country Life” first hand. The estate has a wonderfully informative web site which can be visited here.

David Hansen

A Toast to the Oast – The first in a series on Vernacular Architecture

This will be the first installment of a series on “Vernacular Architecture”.

Oast houses in Kent, England.

I’ve always been fascinated by how people live; what they live in and how they live in it. Since seeing my first windmill in Holland at the tender age of 5 (not to mention learning that people actually lived in them) my curiosity has had the best of me. Certainly many of us can relate to past issues of National Geographic, whose photographs have given us a pictorial essay of life and lifestyles far different than our own.

All roads lead to home. Approaching Wendy and Andy's Oast house in Kent, England.

Wikipidia defines vernacular architecture as follows…“methods of construction which use locally available resources and traditions to address local needs, fitting the needs of an industry or locale. Some styles which I hope to feature in future pieces are the pyramids of Egypt, the Trulli houses of Apulia, Italy, and the cliff dwellings in Turkey, among others.

Roofs of Oast houses in Sissinghurst, England.

This first selection on Oast Houses is fitting as I actually have a family member who resides in one with her husband in a village in Kent, SE England. An Oast House you say? That’s exactly the question I posed when the news broke that they were considering the purchase of one of the same. Believing always that this terribly chic couple would only select something unique and wonderful, I was anxious to learn all about the history of this seemingly magical example of historic English architecture.

The home of my cousin Wendy and her husband in Kent, England.

An Oast is an oven, or kiln, that is used to dry hops which is used in brewing beer. The first structure appeared around the 1750s in Kent near Cranbrook and Tunbridge Wells, SE England and was constructed for the sole purpose of drying hops. Following the harvest, the hops were taken to the Oasts, raked flat and left to dry by means of hot air from a wood or charcoal fired kiln at the bottom of the dwelling. When the drying process was complete, the hops were raked out to cool before being bagged up and sent to the brewery. The conical roofs that you see in these photos made way for the cowls, which allowed the hot air to escape. These cowls turned with the wind, bringing the cool air in, turning with the wind.

A diagram showing how Oast houses were originally used.

As I did have the opportunity to stay with family, I made myself at home in this very spacious abode. With some parts of the house historically intact and in good condition, other rooms such as the kitchen and bathrooms were state of the art, no doubt the work of my cousin, a designer herself.

Another view of Wendy & Andy's Oast house.

The land surrounding the property is extensive, and although the hops industry in this area has now ceased, the once productive fields are now resting. The open space is unbelievably open and gorgeous in its raw beauty.

A look through the proverbial looking glass to Wendy & Andy's Oast house.

That’s it for this piece. Serendipitously, with the proverbial pen to paper, an email popped up with an invitation to travel and the question was posed…“Where would you like to go?” – Maybe those plans should include something in the ‘vernacular’.

Barbara Ashfield

Clipped To Perfection!

“Topiary is Nature Mimicking Art” *

* James T. Mason, Columbus artist and creator of the topiary interpretation of George Seurat’s famous painting, “A Sunday Afternoon on the Isle of La Grande Jatte”. The topiary garden is located at the old location of The Deaf School in Columbus, Ohio. It’s the only topiary interpretation of a painting in existence “the landscape of a painting of a landscape”. Installed in 1989, the garden consists of 54 topiary people, 8 boats, 3 dogs, a monkey, a cat and a real pond.


A view of the topiary garden for the old location of the Deaf School in Columbus Ohio.

"A Sunday Afternoon on the Isle of La Grande Jatte" by Georges-Pierre Seurat.

Another view of the topiary garden at the old location of the Deaf School in Columbus Ohio.

Topiary makes my heart sing. In fact, I am currently having a love affair with 4 mini-hedge topiaries in a window box near my abode. I find that I can give myself any excuse to take the “long way” home just to drive by and have a look see at these specimens of botanical joy who stand together, as if family, eagerly awaiting lord and master at the end of the day.

A shot David took in London of a "Boxwood family".

I’ve long been a fan of these magical objects of living sculpture. Upon further investigation I’ve learned an amazing amount. What began as pure delight has actually broadened my scope of all things beautiful.

A wonderful view of Hidcote Gardens, England with delightful topiary birds.

Beautiful Beckley Park topiary in Oxfordshire, England.

On that note… Topiary is defined as “the art of creating sculptures in the medium of clipped trees and shrubs”. And this is education here… “Shrubs considered for topiary are evergreen, have small leaves or needles, produce dense foliage and have compact and/or columnar growth habits. The most common plants used are box, bay laurel, holly, myrtle and yew”. Traditionally they were pruned and/or trained into geometric shapes: balls or cubes, obelisks, pyramids, cones, tapering spirals etc and were made of stone and lead sculptures and depended on patience and a steady hand, much like bonsai. Today, however, shaped wire cages are often used.

Topiaries at Fingask Castle, Scotland.

Topiarius (topiary) dates from Roman times. Cneius Matius Calvena (belonging to the “inner circle” of Julius Caesar) is credited with introducing the first topiary into the atrium of the roman villa. The trend caught on, and over time, the art of garden topiary manifested itself into the parterre gardens and terraces of

aristocratic Europe and England.

Gardens at Villa d'Este at Tivoli, near Rome, Italy.

A typical Roman topiary garden.

Topiary was not only popular in Europe and England but also the Far East, namely Japan and China. In existence for centuries, this art took a different name and overall aesthetic style. It is more familiar to us as Bonsai. Japanese ‘cloud pruning’ may be the closest comparison to the European “topiary”.

"Cloud pruning" in a Japanese Zen garden.

Topiary became popular in the US as early as the early 1800’s at the Walter Hunnewell Arboretum at Wellesley College in Wellesley, Massachusetts and another classic example in the Colonial Revival gardens and the grand manner of the American Renaissance (1880-1920).

Vintage photo of Walter Hunnewell Arboretum at Wellesley College.

Gardens at Colonial Williamsburg in Williamsburg, Virginia.

In 1962, the “American Portable style” topiary was introduced by Walt Disney at Disneyland when he sought to recreate his cartoon characters in landscape shrubbery. This style of topiary is based on a steel wire frame that is either stuffed with sphagnum moss and planted, or a frame that has shrubbery growing from within as a permanent cutting guide. The frame allows the plants to grow into every curve with a built in guide.

"Portable Style" topiaries of Donald Duck and Pluto at Disneyland.

This “portable style” has led to numerous imaginative topiary displays, notably Jeff Koon’s “Puppy”, which has been re-created worldwide and displays at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing China.

Jeff Koons "Puppy" on display in Bilbao, Spain.

Topiaries in the official garden of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China.

So here we have it. What was in the beginning of this post, pure adoration for the simply clipped rosemary topiary in my living room has now expanded itself and I am ready to take on the world of box, yew, laurel and myrtle, and hopefully, not just literally.

Barbara Ashfield