speaking of clocks...

following my insightful wee post about clocks last week, i came to think of one of my favourite bars in Belfast...Irene and Nans and this fabulous display of retro clocks they have behind the bar... i like it...

ach aye the noo...

well folks - its been a while, and i can't wait to go back - i'm off to Edinburgh this weekend to catch up with some friends from Uni and revisit some regular haunts and find a few new haunts...

watch this space for some reviews and insights from anything new and exciting that I come across...

insitu...inreda...

well folks...all my voyeuristic touring last week led me to this amazing little find in a shop on Camden St called Inreda (www.inreda.ie)

this chair is simply amazing and comes with a simply amazing price tag...1300 E

its a salvage chair, which has been burnt, finished black and reupholstered with a black leather seat and back pad...very classic and contemporary...i like it alot

3 sides and 2 levels...

folks...i stumbled across an amazing little find yesterday

i am involved in the interior scheme for a new-build country house in Co. Cavan, so on a day trip to the site i was taken by my client to see this little place she had heard/read about....and what a find

along a country road just 10minutes outside off Kells, Co. Meath we turned into a tree-lined driveway to arrived at a beautiful little county farm courtyard. (www.thecourtyardkells.com). featured over 2 levels and across 3 sides of this courtyard was a unique selection of pictures, clocks, pottery, bedlinens, curtains, furniture and much much more. whether you are looking for contemporary or unique furniture and accessories, i feel your sure to find that 'unique' something for your home.

ideal home show...

whats you ideal home..???

well your were bound to find plenty of ideas and inspirations at the weekend if you visited the RDS in Dublin and the Ideal Home Show.

every year over the October bank holiday the Ideal Home Show takes to the RDS. Ever since the first exhibition in 1908, the Ideal Home Show has continued to amaze and delight visitors from all over the world, and today it is officially Ireland’s biggest, best attended and most successful exhibition for homeowners.

the 2008 Ideal Home Eco Show House lead the way in green and eco-friendly interiors. Natural wall coverings in sisal and bamboo, bamboo flooring, minimalist furnishings and carpets made from recycled grass and organic cottons were prominent show features. What i found really exciting about the Eco House was that every room had a display highlighting each product / finish and their supplier so if you saw something you liked it was so easy to go find out more about it.

the Eco House was designed by Sinead Kelly, one of Irelands leading interior designers who is well known for her classic yet contemporary style. (www.sineadkellyinteriors.com). Sinead focused on a sustainable design that seeks a balance between practical needs and harmony with the environment. The interior style was natural and tranquil and will married with the eco-friendly features cleverly incorporated into the design of the house.

another exciting feature of this years show was the Interior design Awards. This year’s Interior Design went to Chao Chen, an interior architect who created a design for a 100sq.m. apartment using the concept of a hermit crab – making the apartment a mobile structure that could be moved and where the internal space can be easily transformed.

He cleverly incorporated the use of the 'Living Shell' formula which introduces a ‘second skin’ concept to solve the problem of the formulaic internal layout which is limited in terms of an individual’s demands. The 'Living Shell' functions to repackage the existing space.

Chao Chen's design was there to be viewed at the Design Gallery feature in the main hall. This area also featured a number of other interior designers showcasing their own work and answering any design-related queries for visitors.

3 foot thick....

wow - they surely don't make them like they used too do they...

Sunday past found me in Armagh for the day, I had been asked to call and present some ideas for a small extension....now the house in question is at least 150 years old, some small changes have been made over the past year and now its time for me to step in and add the finishing touches....and provide my input regarding a small extension...

boy was i surprised to listen to some of the clients ideas and views - clearly somebody spends Wednesday evenings watching Grand Designs....

the walls in this house are seriously about 3 foot thick - small windows but deep windows...very exciting and interesting...although i don't think there's a square line in the house

so my research has led me to look into some small build and extension companies, and look back at smaller architectural practices that have been involved with small extensions....

dont forget to turn the clocks back....

well the gd folk at dwell decided to keep me up to date with the end of summer time with a few clocks to make the most of that extra hour...

so i decided i'd do the same and show you 5 nifty clocks that i've sussed out....

this first clock being from dwell....extra large floral wall clock (www.dwell.co.uk)

this very different wall gear clock from e-potporri (www.e-potpourri.com)

this tres chic and cool grandfather sticker wallclock from ochigo (www.ochigo.co.uk)

a ghost like neon version from polyvore (www.polyvore.com)

and finally...a bit of a combination things i have an esteem for in design...there is this Bai Design Cubist Retro Modern Wall Clock from (www.kaboodle.com)

enjoy that extra hour folks...

design blogg....

well folks i set this up about a week ago in the wake of my redundancy to be insightful and intrepid and all those things about design....

so tomorrow it starts....with the hours ggoing back an hour it gives me an extra hour to get creative and find something exciting to post for my first design blogg....

i'm excited....watch this space

stroller, saunterer, drifter...

hi folks....its Thursday, and truth be told I've managed to have a very busy week.

its a tiring daily battle knocking on doors, asking for work, sending the CV out there, getting knock backs, getting told my CV will be held on file for 6 months ya-de-ya-de-ya...

still none-the-less...i've actually enjoyed having my head out of a desk and walking about Dublin and realising that there's actually a whole entire world out there....

i remember the first time i went to NYC, and being in central park and in total bemusement and awe at the amount of people continuously jogging and running and the likes, and wondering to myself 'don't these people have jobs and a life'...and now I'm sitting in St Stephen's Green in the nice October sunshine we've been having wondering exactly the same about the people of Dublin.

got me back to thinking about all the things i learnt in Uni about the 'fláneur' and the 'voyeur' and I'm starting to think past the exterior of the facades of our streets and urban landscapes and actually observing the city - and so all these theories and contexts are flooding back to me so I'm going to take a day to re-aquaint myself with these contexts and my thoughts and see what i can come up with....Ed Hollis, thanks for the insights....

think big...?

best wee bit of advice i've gained after the past few days folks came from a Smurf...(don't ask)!

"if you think small, big things happen"

on the scratcher...

Morning folks....

Well, this is Tuesday and this is signing on day for me.

Had a lovely drive on Sunday with my girlfriend, we drove through Rathfarnham up into the Dublin/Wicklow mountains, visited Glencree Barracks and taking in the views of the glens and hills that fall through the drive from Dublin to Powerscourt.

The diesel indicator came on halfway through the drive so I did get a bot worried what with it being a recession, and me being redundant if I'd ever find a fuel pump in time before I'd need to be trying to reach the AA with no coverage on my mobile...so we promptly found ourselves back on the M50 from Bray into Dublin.

Lovely drive though....all those earthy tones and colours in the heathers and the bogs and the fews forest. Amazing.

Monday came, and with Monday came the reality of being jobless and having to get out there and keep the head up. So I trailed Grafton St, Dawson St, Nassau St, Baggot St and Merrion Sq - knocking doors of Recruitment Agencies.

Excellent results - 6 years experience as a designer - producing designs for 4 star hotel groups and major corporate identities with the places I've worked for and best I can now get is packing CD's in boxes in Swords. Well sure there's reassurance if ever i needed it.

Anyway, trying to keep the head above water and remain pro-active. Today I'm off to sign on the dole, the scratcher, the social...whatever you want to call it. That is what some of my taxes have been going towards these past 6 years is it not.

As some of you may know, I'm actively involved as a committee member with the Interiors Association (www.theinteriorsassociation.ie), tonight I'm off to a Better Business Workshop which the IA is hosting in the Morrison Hotel on the quays. I have plenty of questions.
How do you start your own business? What do you need? Who do you need to speak to? Everything I need to know about making it on my own, I hope to find out at least how to make a start tonight.

OK - Jeremy Kyle is negotiating a domestic here in the background, so I'm going to get me bits and pieces together, get on my bike and hit the social....

Pics from Sunday's drive to follow....

proactive

Its great how suddenly I'm in this happening city where I've lived and worked for 3 years, yet it's taken a knock like this to give me a chance to actually appreciate and enjoy just exactly where it is I live.

Nothing like walking down Grafton St, when the shops are closed, your not bumping and knocking into people, or taking in the sights and sounds of Templebar and the smells of the Farmers Market.

I haven't taken the time to do these things for so long....I got to notice 'Maser' has been busy at the St Stephens Green end of Harcourt St on some hoardings.

So while tomorrow heralds a new day of knocking on all doors, putting the CV out there and adapting my experince to potential new roles, today I'm off for some fresh air and a drive and a hike with my girlfriend up into the Dublin/Wicklow mountains.

Pictures coming with my next blogg update....

Saturday...

So...Fridays nearly over, its almost Saturday and I have had two days of being redundant...but Mother of Mick, how proactive can a body be?!?!
So my CV's are out there, I'm negotiating shifts in career, side steps if you will, prolonged steps, a 2step....anything but a back step.... but in these times i gotta take what i can get...true?
No, no - nope not me! That sounds like the glass is half empty and anyone who knows me, knows that isnt me! So, what doesnt kill me only makes me stronger, the glass is half full and whats for me won't pass me by. So what's your favourite cliche? Get over it already!
Things like this happen as a sign of the times, their not personal, their not reflective of me or my abilities - they're just the way it is for now and I'm not the only one in this position.

watch this space...

Good morning folks...welcome to my blog!
Well in these economic shifts of uncertainty the world as we know is changing daily - a sign of the times has occured that has given me the opportunity to be able to start blogging....watch this space.