Tag: boconcept

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Furniture Homewares

The best Scandi homewares and furniture stores in Sydney

There’s a reason Australians are so taken with Scandinavian design, and it’s far more than just a passing design trend. Scandinavians keep the design mottos ‘form over function’, ‘simple is best’ and ‘functional design is successful design’ at the heart of all that they do. Buying a piece of genuine Scandinavian design is investing in quality, functionality and timeless and understated style. Scandinavians have a practicality to their designs that suits the Australian way of life, and an innate desire to capture the beauty of natural materials that suits Australian indoor/outdoor living and our unique, pared back architecture style.

We’ve rounded up the best places to find genuine Scandinavian design in Sydney:

Marimekko

Opening its doors in 2012, Marimekko Sydney is housed in an iconic Art Deco building in the heart of the CBD and its fitout is light, bright and in keeping with the brand’s stores around the world. Marimekko is a Finnish design house, internationally celebrated for its bright and bold printed design patterns. It’s a lifestyle store, where you will find fashion, accessories, fabrics and a range of homewares that extends to towels, linen, kitchenware, cushions and décor.

Visit Marimekko to find some bold pops of colour for your home, to update your bed linen or to source beautiful new tableware.

Bang & Olufsen

A Danish company that have not only elevated the audio visual experience, they have turned it into an art form. Bang & Olufsen are at the forefront of the AV industry, with sound systems, TVs and audio equipment so masterful they are revered for their craft. Not only that, they are exceptionally beautiful, with speakers becoming sculptures for the home with typically Danish design detail such as perfectly honed oak legs. AV equipment is a fact of life in modern homes, and Bang & Olufsen not only make it stylish enough to warrant a spot in your living room, it will become a striking feature with exceptional functionality and quality to boot.

BoConcept

BoConcept was established 60 years ago in Hernig, Denmark, with the goal of producing stylish, functional and affordable furniture for the whole home. Now BoConcept is a global brand with over 250 stores in 60 countries, however their motivation remains the same: to help their clients get the most out of their home. With a particular focus on functional designs and customisation, the BoConcept range is extraordinarily comprehensive, with an expansive range of living room, dining room, bedroom, home office and storage furniture, along with coordinating lighting, rugs, gallery and décor. Given the size of the range and the endless possibilities due to the customisation options, they offer in-store or at-home design consultations with their designers and present shoppers with 3D drawings to simplify the decision-making process.

BoConcept is the place to go if you’re looking for quality, designer Danish furniture for the whole home. There is enough in their range to find that one special focal piece or to kit out your whole house from the one store. They have stores in Sydney’s Crows Nest and Moore Park.

Hay Design

A relative newcomer to the international Scandinavian design family, Hay Design has made a splash since it was founded in Denmark in 2002. Inspired by architectural forms and dynamics of fashion, Hay have a distinctive youthfulness and vitality to their designs with a global aesthetic and design ethos built upon quality, craftsmanship and functionality. Hay work in cooperation with a range of talented designers resulting in a unified but eclectic collection of furniture, including sofas and chairs, homewares and lighting.

The Sydney showroom in Surry Hills showcases the most popular and new arrivals from the collection and allows you to sit, touch and experience before taking home your selections.

Great Dane

Great Dane is an Australian business that is Sydney’s go-to for iconic Danish and Scandinavian design favourites from prominent designers. It is where you will find famous armchairs and design icons from the likes of Hans Wegner, Arne Jacobsen, Nisse Strinning and Verner Panton. They also house collections from more modern designers and young design studios. Specialising in furniture, homewares and lighting, check it out if you’re wanting to invest in classic Scandinavian designer pieces for your home such as the famous Wishbone dining chairs (56/58 chair), J16 Rocking Chair or the String shelving unit.

–This post is in partnership with BoConcept. Check out their catalogue or visit one of their two Sydney stores.

Categories
Furniture Homewares

Jen’s home office shopping spree at Supa Centa Moore Park

Sponsored by Supa Centa Moore Park

We live on the other side of Sydney from Moore Park so I’ll admit it had been a while since I’d visited the Supa Centa but, being abreast of all things interiors, I knew plenty of great new stores had opened there. So when they invited me to come shopping for home office supplies, I didn’t need asking twice. When you work from home like I do, the home office is really important! It’s also great when you get to choose the look and feel of this space and can avoid all things corporate (while still being mindful that sitting at the wrong furniture all day –however good-looking– can leave your back suffering!). Yup, I’m officially old!

The centre has a really nice, spacious layout and everything is well signposted, which always gets me off to a good start. There’s plenty of parking too, and places to buy coffee! I knew we (myself, husband Damian and toddler Sebastian) could safely be here for hours, and when I discovered a children’s play area, well, we couldn’t ask for more!

Top of my shopping list was a new desk. I already have an antique secretaire, which I’m keeping too, but I wanted something bigger, and better ergonomically. I browsed some nice options at BoConcept (they have one that attaches to the wall and pulls down, so great for small spaces), Shack and Icon By Design (all solid timber) before settling on the simple shape and beautiful beech of the Altar desk at Contents International Design. I am a long time fan of this shop, which stocks some of my favourite furniture and homewares brands. The visual merchandising in here is a real standout, so when I saw ‘my’ desk styled up in a gorgeous looking study nook, it definitely helped seal the deal! I just had to get out the door without buying one of everything! At $1,045 for a large desk in gorgeous solid timber with a drawer, it won over something similar I’d seen for $1,500 in another store.

My desk in store at Contents International Design

It’s worth mentioning that all the shops at the Supa Centa are really spacious which not only makes it feel lovely and open, but means getting around them with a pram, as I did, is no issue!

Onto the desk chair: a tricky purchase if ever there was one! As I was saying before, ergonomics are important if you spend a lot of time in your home office, but so many desk chairs are downright ugly and bulky. You’ll not find any black pleather in my house! As soon as I saw the Phoenix chair at Freedom though, I knew it was going to work well. It’s upholstered for a start, in a very inoffensive grey fabric which will go with everything. It’s slightly padded for comfort and, most importantly, it’s on wheels, height-adjustable and it swivels, so my back will be happy! As a bonus, it doesn’t have arms, so you can tuck it away under the desk. All this for $199, which I think is a real steal.

My desk set up at home with the chair and ottoman from Freedom
The beech timber is beautiful. Also pictured: boxes from Orson & Blake

While in Freedom, I couldn’t resist the glam new Palm Springs Ottoman so I quickly got to work thinking how I could justify this piece as a home office essential (come on, we’ve all done it!). I came up with the following: somewhere to put my feet up while reading documents (I know, I know!) and a spare seat for the rare occasions I’ll let my husband share the desk when he works from home. Purchase made!

Clearly a desk is not a purely functional piece and when you’re an interiors addict, there is always a styling or decorative opportunity to be had! I knew Orson & Blake was the perfect place to source some stunning trinkets and was not disappointed. These beautiful lidded boxes are perfect for keeping pens, paperclips and USB sticks, and the gold star is a paperweight. Obviously! The charming shop assistant, who had no idea who I was or that I was writing about the experience, was delightful and even gave me a discount!

Some of the accessories from Orson & Blake on my desk at home. How good is the star ‘paperweight’?!

In fact, I genuinely received great customer service everywhere at the Supa Centa, which was really refreshing and welcome, especially on a Saturday, when everyone can be super busy and a little frazzled.

Shopping at Supa Centa Moore Park

Some of my other favourite stores were Max Sparrow, King Living and Boori. Whatever your budget and whether you’re looking for furniture, homewares, manchester, flooring, window furnishings or outdoor furnishings, you can find it all under one roof at Supa Centa Moore Park!

I hope you like my new home office setup!

For more information on Supa Centa Moore Park.

What I bought:

Altar desk from Contents ID

Phoenix Office Chair in Light Grey and Palm Springs Ottoman in Indigo from Freedom

Various accessories from Orson & Blake

Categories
Designers Furniture Homewares House Tours Styling

Inside the home of Little Dwellings’ Kate Sparks

With 110k Instagram followers and hundreds of happy little customers, children’s interior designer Kate Sparks, has amassed quite the following. Creating gorgeous rooms for kids of all ages, through her business Little Dwellings, I, like many, have always longed to take a peak into her own home. And today, I finally did!

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Located in Sydney’s Hills District, the home has always had a special place in Kate’s heart, belonging to her grandparents until 2011. “My hubby, Jono and I bought it from my Nan just before we had our first child four years ago. The style of our home is strongly influenced by them, having a strong Scandinavian design which is my Dad’s family background. My hubby and two kids, Georgia and Harry, love living here.”

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[contextly_sidebar id=”YFOfH5eLHbDNxSTIDvajqHQxg2ctscEi”]With the design process being a journey of renovations and constant layout changes, it was important for Kate to create a home that best suited her growing family. It is for that reason, she favours her living/dining area, which was recently extended into the garage to accommodate a play area. “We spend so much time in there. We recently extended our living space into our garage (which we never used for our cars) and converted it into a playroom for our kids. This joins the living/dining room and playroom all together — definitely my favourite area of our home.”

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However, it wouldn’t be a real reno if there weren’t challenges! And for the living/dining area, that appeared in the form of structural walls. “The biggest hurdle we faced was needing to consider structural walls. This is when the exposed beam idea took place to create a feature piece where structure was needed.”

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Now with a layout that’s open and airy, Kate, like many of us, wanted her home to be functional for family events and open plan for modern-day living. However, for those that can’t afford (the money or the time) to make those big structural changes, Kate still has some tips for giving your home that new and fresh feel: “Decide on a theme or a style you are trying to create. Once you have settled on something you like, you should prioritise the big items you want to change first. If you are on a budget it may take some time for all the items to be purchased and the room to come together, so just keep that in mind.”

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Before you ask, much of the furniture shown is available from BoConcept, including Kate’s favourite piece, the entertainment unit.

Photography by Jacqui Turk.

Categories
Art Designers Homewares Styling

New Spring/Summer accessories collection from BoConcept

The new Spring Summer 2015/16 accessories collection from BoConcept draws on nature to bring an earthy yet sophisticated feel inside the home. “Nature creates a calm yet strong foundation for this season’s accessory collection which features natural materials such as stone, concrete, terracotta, marble and dark and light timbers,” says Eliza Williams, BoConcept marketing manager.

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While mostly tone on tone, the collection contains flashes of gold and copper to keep things interesting. “Metallics are still hot and bring glamour and sophistication to our homes and they also pair beautifully with contrasting natural textures,” says Eliza. The metallic collection, which includes a chic copper and gold pendant range, draws heavily on Art Deco influences.

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The brand’s new art collection features photographs of the ocean and animals in muted tones while their new living range includes some fab Scandinavian inspired functional accessories – a chic dustpan and brush set and marble and gold clock are both highlights.

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Of particular note is the brass skateboarding bulldog – this playful little number treads a fine kitsch line but is a guaranteed conversation starter.

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See more online.

Categories
Interiors Addict

Photos: Reader event with Greg Natale at BoConcept

We had a great night at our Interiors Addict reader event with award-winning interior designer Greg Natale last week.

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The crowd was captivated by Greg

The event was hosted by our friends at BoConcept in their new store at Supa Centa Moore Park. Guests enjoyed my live Q&A with Greg about his new book, The Tailored Interior, then patiently queued up to get their copy signed as he took the time to chat with each person.

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We also had a live 7 Vignettes challenge with everyone allowed to arrange and rearrange whatever they liked in the store for their chance to win a side table from BoConcept. Lucky winner Lucy Lee was thrilled to take home the prize!

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Vignette challenge winner Lucy Lee
Greg and I
Greg and I

BoConcept marketing manager Eliza Williams said: “We were thrilled to have the opportunity to host our third event with Interiors Addict, and excited to discover the guest host would be Greg Natale, a designer whom we have enjoyed working with and whose style and impact on the interior design industry we really admire. The best thing about these events is the relaxed atmosphere and the opportunity for guests to meet and chat with Greg and Jen and amongst each other, and for us to witness some pretty amazing styling talent from the guests in our showroom with the mini #7Vignettes competition!”

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THANK YOU

Huge thanks must go to Greg and BoConcept and our event partners The Wooden Whisk (we can’t get enough of their catering!), First Creek Wines, Bang & Olufsen and Supa Centa Moore Park for their support. Thanks also to our gift bag sponsors My Little Photo Book, Feast Watson, Murchison Hume, White Glo, Belle  and Real Living magazines, Pukka tea and Babe Scrub.

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There are a few spaces left at our next event with The Block’s Darren Palmer at West Elm next Wednesday. Read more and register here.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY ALEX JACKSON.

Categories
Designers

Meet Greg Natale at our next Interiors Addict reader event

I’m so delighted to announce the first Interiors Addict reader event since I returned from my travels and it’s a good one, if I don’t say so myself! This is your chance to meet Belle Coco Republic Interior Designer of the Year 2014 Greg Natale, listen to him in conversation with me and get a signed copy of his book, The Tailored Interior. Excitement plus! You’ll also get to meet other like-minded interiors addicts, take part in a fun and interactive live 7 Vignettes challenge with a prize and take home a gift bag.

Greg Natale
Greg Natale

Places are limited and we anticipate a wait list so don’t delay and register to attend today. The event is taking place thanks to the generous support of our friends at BoConcept at their brand new store at Supa Centa Moore Park in Sydney. The fun starts at 6.30pm on Friday 31 October and ends at 8.30pm. Places will be allocated on a first come, first served basis, after which time a wait list will be established which you can request to go on.

You will be able to buy a copy of The Tailored Interior and get it signed by Greg at the event. Having worked with Greg on this book, I am really excited to be able to give my readers the  chance to see it. It really is a beautiful addition to your coffee table, with stunning images by Anson Smart, but it’s also full of fantastic, easy to follow advice. You’ll also be able to shop the store with a special discount on the night.

The Tailored Interior is published by Hardie Grant.

If you’d like to join us at the event, please sign up here.

Categories
Styling The Block

Photos: Friday night’s Sydney 7 vignettes event

We had another wonderful reader event with The Block’s Darren Palmer in Sydney on Friday, at BoConcept in Crows Nest.

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Double act: Darren Palmer and I
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It was great to have such a big crowd
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We pride ourselves on a good spread at our events!

A crowd of more than 100 people came along to listen to me interviewing Darren and sharing his insider take on The Block as well as insight on how he got to be where he is today, tips on decor and getting into the interiors industry. He was a popular guest of honour with plenty of people queuing up to have their photo taken with him and ask him questions.

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Interviewing Darren for his fans

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Later in the evening, the crowd were let loose on the BoConcept showroom to move anything they liked and create their own vignettes, uploading them to Instagram for the chance to win a fabulous BoConcept stool worth almost $500. The lucky winner was Tessa White.

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It was great to meet so many readers in person

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Darren delighted our guests, having lots of chats and photos with them
Our youngest guest, Annabel with her mum, Emma
Our youngest guest, Annabel with her mum, Emma

Guests mingled and met each other, having got to know each other first through the monthly 7 Vignettes challenge on Instagram. I loved meeting so many of you. It is always a pleasure and I swear I have the nicest (and most creative) blog readers in Australia!

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Setting up vignettes
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Tom Ryan arranges his vignette. Yes, men come to our events too!
Emma Blomfield snapping her vignette for Instagram
Emma Blomfield snapping her vignette for Instagram

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More happy guests
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Guest of honour Darren Palmer and I

Delicious food was provided by The Wooden Whisk and drinks by First Creek Wines and Santa Vittoria water.

A huge thank you to Darren and our event partner BoConcept. There’ll be more events in Sydney and interstate before the end of 2014, but first my 6-month overseas trip!

Thanks also to our gift bag sponsors: Byron Bay Cookies, Temple & Webster, Taubmans, The Wooden Whisk, Ultraceuticals, Babe Scrub, BoConcept and Silk Home Staging & Styling.

ALL PHOTOGRAPHY BY JACQUI TURK

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Interiors Addict’s editorial assistant, Olivia Shead
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Previous 7 Vignettes winner Galina Dixon
Guests enjoyed wines from First Creek
Guests enjoyed wines from First Creek
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Guests took home packed gift bags
 
Categories
The Block

Two reader events in Melbourne and Sydney with The Block’s Darren Palmer

Jen and Darren

I’m delighted to announce two free reader events in Melbourne (our first!) and Sydney next month with guest of honour, The Block judge and interior designer Darren Palmer.

Jen and Darren
Jen and Darren

The 7 Vignettes evening events will be open to more than 100 readers in each state, thanks to Interiors Addict’s sponsors Haymes Paint (in Melbourne) and BoConcept (in Sydney). I’ll be interviewing Darren live as he shares his top decorating and design tips and takes audience questions. Then attendees will be encouraged to create their own vignettes around the venues with prizes for the best ones. There’ll also be food and drink, goodie bags and the chance to meet fellow readers, interiors addicts and Instagram buddies, and of course, Darren and I! All Interiors Addict readers are welcome to apply for a spot.

The last Interiors Addict reader event at BoConcept
The last Interiors Addict reader event at BoConcept

Where and when

Continue reading “Two reader events in Melbourne and Sydney with The Block’s Darren Palmer”

Categories
Interiors Addict

Photos: The first 7 Vignettes event with BoConcept & Belle

The first ever Interiors Addict reader event was a great success on Friday night with a huge turnout of around 150 people and a fun evening had by all at BoConcept’s Crows Nest showroom in Sydney.

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Very happy to be meeting so many of my blog readers!

Readers even flew in from Western Australia, South Australia and Victoria specially so as not to miss out and it was a full house of creative interiors addicts, many of them enjoying meeting each other in real life after bonding on Instagram.

Continue reading “Photos: The first 7 Vignettes event with BoConcept & Belle”
Categories
Interiors Addict

Save the date for the first 7 Vignettes Meetup with Belle’s Steve Cordony and BoConcept

The BoConcept showroom, where the event is taking place

I’m so excited! Only seems a couple of weeks ago (probably because it was) that a few members of our 7 Vignettes Instagram community asked if we could perhaps have a meet up. Like, in real life. And now, I’m delighted to announce it’s happening on Friday 23 August.

Belle's Steve Cordony
Belle’s Steve Cordony

Judging by the buzz and the sense of the community we have online, I can only imagine how fun it might be to meet some of you in person! What’s more, Belle’s interior designer editor, the hugely talented stylist Steve Cordony, will be doing a demonstration on how to style vignettes. Learn from the master!

This is all made possible thanks to our friends at Danish furniture store BoConcept and the event is taking place at its stunning Crows Nest showroom in Sydney, with support from Belle. On the night there’ll be food and drink, fabulous goodie bags, and a live styling competition, which you can choose to take part in.

Continue reading “Save the date for the first 7 Vignettes Meetup with Belle’s Steve Cordony and BoConcept”
Categories
Interiors Addict

Add a touch of Danish to your decor this Autumn

BoConcept has some lovely new accessories in store from next week. What better than cushions and candlesticks to change up your look for the cooler months?

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Unexpected contrasts are achieved by combining traditional patterns and colours in new, non-traditional ways. A check pattern with a floral print, red with animal print, or the surprise of neon yellow in a scale of blue tones. The rule is that there are no rules. Play with shapes, materials and colours.

Continue reading “Add a touch of Danish to your decor this Autumn”

Categories
Interiors Addict

BoConcept brings us affordable Danish design with first Australian store

BoConcept is an exciting new furniture and homewares destination for Sydney, with its first Australian store opening in Crows Nest today. I was lucky enough to be shown around this morning and I was really impressed. Already available in 59 countries around the world and having been in New Zealand for a decade, it’s about time, right?

Everything’s been beautifully styled, making it very easy to imagine the pieces in your own home. And it’s no surprise the store is looking so slick, with BoConcept’s finest from the States, Hong Kong and elsewhere having been flown in to share their expertise and get everything just so.

Continue reading “BoConcept brings us affordable Danish design with first Australian store”