Abigail Ahern

Talking plants

Abigail Ahern — Fri, 17 May 2013 05:32:28 +0000

Forgive yesterdays lack of post – it was an early changing the store around kind of day. Juggled things around inside but the really exciting bit is we have now utilised the front of the store so it looks like a mini plant station. Our fab moss dogs sit alongside big fat real hydrangea, beautiful little plants for outside tables (dark dark chocolate brown) hang out with our faux fig and branches of faux apples sit in a great big urn. Love it! Both Gem and I were getting rather frustrated with the planting choices out there – I live a stone’s throw from Columbia which I adore but got very frustrated with not being able to find the odd cool thing for my outdoor tables. Gem had the same problem finding all the garden centres near here way to dull – so we figured we would do our own bijou little plant station. Combining two things we are passionate about (no 3 things). Layering – the more layers you put on tables (think things in front of things) the more interesting; Scale marrying plants that are so big with plants that are so small, and finally texture. We’ve wrapped bark around pots, we’ve got oodles of different textures going on and I said to Gem yesterday ‘I now want to open a nursery’! There is the biggest gap on earth out there – planting choices are stuck in the Stone Age, I don’t get it! We don’t all want pansies, and mixed combinations (my most hated thing I hate to say). Anyways I digress some images inside the store and out, hope you like.

Have a lovely weekend it’s a working one but then I need a bit of kicked backness on Sunday like pottering, cooking from Gwyneth, gardening that kind of thing. Oh and did I tell you last week I planted faux allium’s in the earth, which sounds nut I realise but its kind of looking super sweet now, if the sun comes out over the weekend I shall take a picture and show you. Not that I think the sun knows where England is anymore! xx

Making DIY cool

Abigail Ahern — Wed, 15 May 2013 05:16:16 +0000

Thank you to everyone who posted in comments yesterday – consider the forum a go! Am juggling around with the blog a bit so hope to have all these changes up in the next few weeks. I think it will be great having a forum and connecting!

Also another big thank you to everyone, who signed up and has taken the online design class, today is the last day. It is because of you guys actually that I suddenly realised how fabulous a forum will be because I have gotten so much out of looking at your work, commenting, advising, feeling part of the team and so thank you again.

I thought I would talk a little about DIY this morning a subject pretty close to my heart -which is surprising because I am not the best handywoman in town nor do I have any sort of patience. I want everything done now, in an instant and looking fabulous! Plus DIY gets a bad wrap, sneered on by many in the field (design is a snooty old business you know) but I like knocking all those predisposed assumptions on the head. Bit like faux flowers and pot pouri – the more people turn up their noses the more determined I am to dy mystify– weird hey!

When budgets are restricted (actually even when they are not restricted) creating something yourself gives you the most enormous amount of pleasure and saves you mega bucks. I have a problem with spending any money or anything boring – cupboards, kitchen units, wardrobes hate it – I want to spend my money on the cool stuff. Or in my head I see things that I can’t find in any store or market so then I make them (when I say we that is the Royal we btw)!

This could be as simple as finding some junk furniture and painting or spraying a fab colour (paint being the most transformative thing you can do to anything). The trick as I will say until I am 90 and you are bored to death of me is to push the colour palette – do that and you take any piece to the next level.

My younger sister had the brilliant idea of turning an old table she found in a flea into a bed head, cost next to nothing and yet it has given her room a totally rustic boho vibe. This isn’t her bedroom below found it on pinterest but next time I’m there will take a few pics to show you guys.

So I say we should embrace DIY a bit more, I’m talking lazy Sunday afternoon kind of DIY not something that takes a week (correction a month) like the blasted wardrobes in my bedroom. First of all you save mega bucks and secondly you give you home a totally unique vibe – a good thing in my book!

Happy Wednesday – (can you be happy when its blowing a gale is freezing cold and you have to pedal to Pilates at 6.15? Am thinking not!

A few questions

Abigail Ahern — Tue, 14 May 2013 06:20:17 +0000

Morning, forgive the slightly later posting – had the deepest sleep for ages which was rather incredible since I had Mung’s snuggled between my legs and Maud snuggled in the crook of my arm and I couldn’t move an inch. Think it must be the new linen bedding from Merci and a slightly open window letting the coolest sweetest smelling air into the bedroom!

Today if you don’t mind I have some questions for you guys as I am in a bit of a dilemma. Firstly my crazy schedule means that the Design School will be stopping over the summer the last ones being in June. Huge shame I know but I just can’t juggle the schedule to make them fit in (btw if you are thinking of coming along there are only a few spaces left on the June dates). The good thing though is that they will be coming back with a bang in September, new content, new workshops and a whole different way of looking at interiors. And so here is my dilemma - I get asked a fair bit about doing half-day classes – do you guys think they are a good idea? Rather than a full day a 3 hour morning or afternoon session held in my pad obviously priced according so £75 – with the option of staying for lunch, or later on in the afternoon for champagne and snacks? What do you think – would you prefer a whole day or a half day? I am too much involved in the whole process to make a decision so thought I might ask you guys if you don’t mind?

Secondly I am changing the blog around in the next few weeks and as its been such amazing fun having a forum with my Online class, tossing around ideas, learning about peoples fears, seeing before and afters of their spaces I thought I would put a forum on the blog. That way we can all get to see what each of us is doing, encourage, help out, congratulate, and connect that sort of thing. When people come to the classes in my pad they often keep in touch, meet for coffee, loop us in with photos and so forth, exactly what is happening over on the forum. As that forum shuts down in the next month I thought it would be such a shame to loose it as its been fab for me seeing this community of kindred spirits. So what do you think?

Finally last night I had a Twitter chat with my on line class, I’ve got another one this morning at 9.30 and it was so much fun which made me think once a month I want a twitter chat – obviously I would time it for different zones around the world as we have a big following in Australia and America but I didn’t realise until the online class got underway just how much I enjoy the whole community spirit of the web – something I haven’t really thought about before. We are all scattered all over the world, going about our days, doing our thing but regularly on a forum or once a month on twitter I think it would be really cool for us all to connect. You never know we might even encourage more people to cross over, convert, and push boundaries. Whadda you think?

Some decorating tips

Abigail Ahern — Mon, 13 May 2013 05:11:59 +0000

Big thank you to everyone who attended Design School on the weekend, I had a fabulous day!

The weekend past in a nano second and with just Sunday as a down day I had a list as long as my arm to get through. It went a bit like this; garden (i.e. pour bucket loads of miracle grow, seaweed, tomato feed or whatever else I can think of over plants to encourage vigorous growth to hide neighbours ugly building at the back of the garden; put up shelves in the bedroom; style shelves in the bedroom (more on that in a bit) cook from Gwyneth’s book some recipes to get back on track, slipped off the wagon Saturday evening as had wine and an Indian takeout (whoops); nail what I have to get done this week, clean house, do the washing blah blah blah.

A question I get asked alot is how to style a mantle, a console a table and my answer is a simple one – patience! I don’t just throw a shelf or console together in a second, I put something together, hate it, stand back, tug my hair try again, hate it, do the same thing over and over again until it feels right.

The bedroom shelves for instance are tiny narrow little things so everything on them has to be front facing. Easy peasy I thought to myself at 6 o’clock last night – I can pull this together in 5, WRONG took at least an hour, until I was happy and we’re just talking about a few mags, the odd postcard and a bit of art – hardly anything as the shelves are small.So below I have listed some pointers which may get you on your in way in creating (as the Americans say) a tablescape.

1) Tucking something smaller like a postcard or notebook behind something major like a mirror or a piece of art takes the eye further and adds an element of intrigue

2) Stacks of books really help you out. A little pile of say 3 books with a small bunch of blooms or candle on top, adds texture and interest.

3) Rather than leave gaps, vary the height of your objects its far more intriguing

4) If you know anything about interiors or styling then the old trick of everything having one unifying tone plus one extra shot will get you out of all sorts of trouble. I tend to push it with maybe two colours but everything else is pretty much neutral. It allows me to mix far more easily.

Finally never ever ever put things in rows. Its to boring, its way to show home ish, and its to easy. Interiors aren’t easy; putting things in rows is like decorating by numbers, interiors should make you curious. Being curious is being daring and being daring is being alive! Pretty deep sentence for 6am on Monday morning, but there you go!

Shot of my pad below (from the Independent) – a simple little detail of my desk, oh and by the way a big thank you to the Independent on Sunday this weekend for their fabulous feature on my house, love the images x

Pin it Forward

Abigail Ahern — Fri, 10 May 2013 06:07:21 +0000

I am excited to share with you this morning Pinterest’s Pin It Forward Campaign. Pinterest is ramping up its international strategy by reaching out to other communities in other countries – the first one being the UK, which is hugely exciting. From today there is a new British English language setting, plus improvements making it easier to find UK content. I am the biggest fan of Pinterest not only can I get to see beautiful images at the click of the button which inspire all sorts of projects it cuts down research time. In the olden days I would trawl through magazines pull out tears, flag them and stick them in a file – now I just grab an image off the web, plonk it on my board and wham bam its done. It you’re looking for inspiration or if you’re in a conundrum with your decorating decisions pinterest will become your best bud. It’s hugely addictive as well just to worn, but for anyone curious, passionate or into design it’s one of the coolest platforms. Of course its not just boards on interiors that inspire – there are some amazing food boards, travel, fashion you name it.

But back to interiors and Pinterest it’s totally great for finding things that are a little hard to nail. Like art for instance. As a buyer its one of the hardest things to source, and personally I find it one of the hardest things to actually find. Which is why I am excited to share with you Saatchi’s online gallery. They have some incredible boards on Pinterest (just started following them) with art up for as little as £100. Cool no?

Happy Friday – oh and follow me on Pinterest if you fancy, I’ve just created a cool board on breaking the decorating rules!

One Day Sale – 15% off entire on-line collection

Abigail Ahern — Thu, 09 May 2013 09:56:22 +0000

One day Sale

Interior Design

Abigail Ahern — Wed, 08 May 2013 06:56:15 +0000

Interior designers have quite a tough job. I know from the outside it looks and feels like the coolest gig on the planet but as a designer you have to juggle many balls in the air. You have to listen to your client (most importantly) and interpret what they want but also push them to think outside the box. One of the reasons clients hire you as an interior designer is because we bring to the table a whole different way of thinking about a space. It takes a bit of skill getting clients on side (sometimes its easy sometimes its not). Occasionally there might be a bit of hair pulling and stamping of feet (all in a days work) but the whole process should be collaborative I consider myself incredibly lucky these days because clients come to us because they like our aesthetic – there’s no ‘can I have a white minimal space” requests, so battles are few and far between. In the early days when working as a designer in the States it was a whole different ball game.

I got sacked from a zillion projects; one couple wanted leopard throughout and were baffled when I couldn’t, wouldn’t, couldn’t do it. Another family wanted the chintz English country look (help me God) I think I got fired from more projects than I actually completed. Luckily I had two of the coolest bosses ever, who liked me and would propel me off such projects without actually firing me. Not quite sure why they didn’t fire me, but I loved them dearly. They had the best way of getting clients onside without being as blunt as me and saying ‘ are you nuts’. They would say things like ‘how married are you to this’, or there might be some taste level issues with that piece! I They put their voice across, if at the end of the day the client wanted to go their own way they accepted it. They didn’t have a tantrum or have a sleepless night I write an essay on why such and such was so wrong. They moved on and they created beautiful interiors.

What is my point – ah yes my point. The coolest interiors for me at least don’t look stylised nor do they look decorated to within an inch of their lives. You can’t quite tell if the designer has been in or not – they are coolest interiors. The interiors challenge you, make you curious, enlighten you and make your heart pound just that little bit faster but in the subtlest of ways. They look and feel lived in and loved. Commune Design do that, they bring to the table a relaxed vibe to all of their interiors. Based in California they have designed residential and commercial projects all over the place including the Ace Hotel chain. A couple of images from their portfolio to inspire. If you are in condundrum with your decorating decisions one of the coolest ways to be inspired is to check out the work of interior designers that inspire you and make notes on why you love it. Very soon a pattern will come shining through and get you on your way.

I’m soooo late, have been here rabbiting so long to your guys I am the latest ever for a meeting. Gotta fly x

See you tomorrow.

Talking gardening

Abigail Ahern — Tue, 07 May 2013 06:09:24 +0000

Morning, what an amazing weekend weather wise. We spent the majority if it in the garden – spreading bags of manure, sprinkling bottles of miracle grow over plants that need to grow asap to block out neighbours hideous build at the back of the garden and generally pottering around. G mentioned that as we now have 6 seating areas throughout the garden, might I stop? Possibly but they all serve different purposes. Under the fig at the back of the garden to catch the first rays of sun with breakfast (when I say breakfast these days I’m talking a spinach juice and a few nuts - over in a second)! Then there is the trestle under the bamboo in the shady part where I can work. Then we have two reclining Ikea things near the jasmine near the wood pile – Maud and I like to sit here for afternoon coffee. Then there’s the chairs around the fireplace, the table on the terrace oh and a bijou little table for two under the lilac (alternate coffee spot if its too hot in the sun). The thing about gardening in my book is exactly the same thing about decorating it needs layers. If you clock your garden or balcony or roof terrace in an instant it reads as boring. Whereas if you have quite a bit going on it tantalises the eye and intrigues it because it doesn’t quite know where to look.

I’ve picked up old tables from flea markets, apple crates which I upturn and use as outdoor coffee tables along with a smattering of chairs some of them modern, some of them country rustic. Lumps of old wood double duty as occasional tables to put t-lights on and wicker planters from Burgon and Ball add another element to the garden. We got a builder to build an outdoor fireplace from old brick not actually as expensive as feared – basically two days labour (£300) as we had the brick over from bricking up the basement.

If you don’t have a garden then window boxes are fab in two ways, firstly they look pretty cool and secondly they help draw your eye outside of the room making it appear larger than it really is. Some images below to inspire:

Love this window box, infact anything that’s rambling and tumbling I am automatically drawn to.

I do this alot, use chunks of wood as occasional tables to plop t-lights – very cool!

Love this outdoor fireplace, when you have one you want to decorate like a living room, coffee tables, flowers, occasional tables etc etc. Very cool.

My all time favourite image, Miss Maud hanging out in our coffee spot (shot by Todd Selby).

Right then I have to get ready, big day today we are shooting my Debenhams collection, debuting September 2013. I am surrounded by a zillion cool things, accessories to basically knock you’re pad out of the park! Wish I could show you a few but I’m guessing I might be killed and then who knows how the two M’s might be brought up!

Late nights, pizza beer, bad TV, no school, no enforced bed times – cannot stand the thought!

Happy Tuesday

New Collection coming out for Debenhams

Abigail Ahern — Fri, 03 May 2013 05:38:43 +0000

I am so excited to be able to tell you guys about my latest venture – a collection for Debenhams! I have wanted to tell you for ages and now I can. My autumn/winter collection will be in 100 of Debenhams stores and online of course from September. Imagine the coolest selection of lighting, vases etc. cannot wait to show you, but it hasn’t even been photographed yet so I can’t. It’s the coolest thing I have done and I am so very proud, and the team at Debenhams are amazing! From designing a capsule collection of lighting and tableware to a 30-piece A/W collection for a major retailer is a dream come true. I think when the collection goes in the stores I will be camping outside of the Oxford Street branch desperate to go see it.

So today’s post is a little mentoring one. If you have a dream follow it, it might take a while (took me at least 6 years until things started turning around). You will stumble and self doubt and things will go wrong big time. You will question why are working all the hours under the sun for little in return, you will worry and at times want to jack it all in. Don’t give up is all I can tell you. I wasn’t born with a silver spoon in my mouth; hard work is the only thing that has gotten us to where we are, nothing else!

Exactly the same principles apply to decorating. You will go wrong particularly if you embrace my style of decorating. One of the reason’s I think that so many people play it safe is because safe decorating is easy to achieve. I sort of think of it as decorating by numbers nothing makes you gasp, takes your breath away and keeps you routed to the spot. It’s nice but its not life changing. My way of thinking is that in life like in decorating you’ve got to push it, yes it will go wrong (particularly if you are going dark, because sometimes when you put up a colour it will feel so bad). Been there one hundred times over, don’t give up, don’t because when you’ve figured out why its gone wrong and you change colour, the next hue will throw that interior out of the park. The fab thing about pushing things is that you feel alive – there is no happy medium – it either works and its amazing or its terrible and mirgrane inducing.

Happy Friday!

Below an interior that I wanted to show you guys, yes it’s pale so it may seem a surprising choice for me but even though I give neutrals a hard time when you push neutrals to a whole different level by using a plethora of pattern and colour, cool things start to happen. The house in question belongs to the artist Kirra Jamison’s and is in the latest edition of Inside Out Magazine you can see the whole house story here:

By the way for anyone doing the online course the remaining part of Module Two gets published today. Oh and I thought we would have a twitter chat next week, we will email you guys the details shortly ( its a bank holiday here in England on Monday so back Tuesday). To my class don’t worry about the bank holiday, Module 3 will be up on Monday and I’ll be checking into the forums and answering any questions that I can xx

Thursday’s sale now live

Abigail Ahern — Thu, 02 May 2013 10:14:41 +0000

On the site today we have glass decanters reduced from £52 to £31.20, two very cute ceramic dogs were £469 and are now £285, oh and for one day only (as stock is limited) our pelican lights down to £155 (normally £195). Other stuff as well of course including super sized ceramic urns, perfect for planting up this weekend I’m nabbing one for myself (actually I’ve already got one but I need two, just don’t tell G, he will never notice).Plus he is still fuming that when I parked the car up last night I didn’t engage the hand break and it rolled down the road and smashed into a tree. Whops!