Intsight and me

It's a perfect day so far. I spent part of the morning in a nice coffee shop talking to Montse Vicens, the charming founder of interior design and branding firm Intsight. If you have been following my blog for a while, you know how much I appreciate Intsight work for their ability to create outstanding, iconic spaces where smart simplicity is a key-element.

Not only I had a good time but it was very interesting to know better the concept behind the firm: Intsight has a free, flexible approach able to adapt to many kinds of projects and clients, offering  "low cost" inspiring solutions to interior (and more) issues, from simple things like "how can I organise my living room" to "we need a new, coherent image for our brand".  We also talked about one of their last projects, Mik Max, a Spanish textile company specialised in home decoration. Intsight developed a new visual identity for the brand and updated their catalogue. For sure you will know more about this last project as Mik Max is about to launch their new web and shop but, until then, here it is a series of images coming from Intsight web.

Interior stylist: Intsight .
Photographer: Mireia Rodríguez.

 

If you are new to the blog, do not worry: you can check previous posts about Intsight here and here or visit their newly launched web. As for the second part of the day, well, you'll need to wait until tomorrow to see my pictures of &Other Stories  new shop in Barcelona!

Monochromatic apartment by Fanstastik Frank

Just a few images from one of Fanstastik Frank last flats, already sold. The styling is beautiful and I love the touches of brown in the living room and hallway. Is it really brown the new black?

Via Fanstastik Frank

Liebester Award

Here it comes a new prize for facing north with gracia! It is the Liebester Award, thanks to my blog friend Maria of marq-gzgz: thanks Maria so much for your mention and the great comments you always leave here. It is a honour you decided to choose me! 

 Like all the awards, this one has got its rules: I have to thank the blogger who gave me the award (THANKS MARIA! AGAIN!), reply a series of questions and name 11 blogs I like with less than 200 followers. 

Please, do not get scared: I won't repeat myself. You can know a bit more about me and facing north with gracia here (hope Maria won't mind). As for the blog mention, I've decided to change a bit the way of doing it: last time, I regretted a bit because the best part was actually to tell you why I chose those blogs. So, I'm going to mention one blog a week and tell you a bit more about it. Then, it would be a good occasion to exchange information: have you got any new blog you think it is worthy the award? Leave a comment and I'll check it! I have to admit the thing I liked most of my last award was to get in touch with other bloggers so, please, feel free to send me any suggestion!

But today it is all about Maria. Here it is a collage of some of my favourite images from her blog, MARQU-GZGZ. Marìa is a Spanish architect from Castilla y León with a great passion for good renovations with a contemporary twist. Enjoy!

This will be my home ...

...even if it means I have to move to another country (again!). I saw this apartment a few days ago on Emma Fexeus' blog but, as we are renovating a bit our rental flat, I had no time to post them. The house had already be shown in Swedish magazine Plaza Interiör and in Emma's blog before, but its recent sale gives us a chance to see a bit more of it. 

My favourite thing is the kitchen: I wish mine had that professional, industrial style but, at the moment, the only thing we have in common is Le Creuset pot! Already something, isn't it? I'm a positive girl.... I also like the way they solved the dining area: simple, functional but very intelligent.  The concrete floor is the perfect choice for this place, combining perfectly with the building architecture.

One of the details I'm going to "to steal" is the huge mirror in the entrance: ours is located at the end of the hallway so it is a bit too dark but a mirror could reflect a bit of the light coming from our living room windows.

More time I spend looking at this pictures, more things I found I love, like the curtains ...

Photographer: Patric Johansson

A rose for love and a book forever

Feliz día de Sant Jordi!

On the 23rd of April, the whole Catalunya celebrates the Diada de Sant Jordi (Saint George's Day), to commemorate one of its patron saints and I believe it is probably the actual Saint Valentine's day around here. The tradition wants sweethearts (but also loved ones and friends) to exchange gifts: men gave women roses, and women gave men a book to celebrate the occasion—"a rose for love and a book forever." Roses have been associated with this day since medieval times, but the giving of books is a more recent tradition originating in 1923 and used to commemorate the nearly simultaneous deaths of Miguel Cervantes and William Shakespeare on 23 April 1616. So this is the day bookshops are so full you cannot even move around and Las Ramblas are filled with thousands of thousands of roses.

I wish you all a Happy Saint George's day!

All images via.

Weekend inspiration: Jennifer Levau

Weekend inspiration from Jennifer Levau's blog. Love the grey and light pink colours palette of these pictures. An the bracelet with the wing, isn't it cute?

Classic inspiration

It's a classic inspiration day: PK80 bench, PK8 and PK58 by Poul Kjærhol.

Via

MDW2013 @ullakoskinen

Third series from the Milan Design Week 2013 is from Scandinavian Deko chief editor Ulla Koskinen, who managed to het some real nice shots from Nendo's works (chair and glass series). This is just a small selection of the many pictures Ulla took: visit her profile here to see more!

Flash news

New flash news from the blogsphere:  on Decora tu Alma, they have decided to giveaway a Eames Rocking chair. Check their website to know the possibilities to join in. The shop has a preference for colourful and joyful design with a vintage declination. 

Image via @cerealmag | Instagram

A house in Madrid

I guess when you think of a house in Madrid, this villa is not exactly what you tend to visualize. Located in the surroundings of Madrid, it is part of a greater development of other 9 units. The space is enriched by the several changes in section while the furniture is kept to a minimum: the white walls and the concrete floor are used as devices to reflect and guide the light that come from inside. Though I love the sequences and connection among the rooms, I'm not sure the overall effect is a bit too severe. What do you think? Work by Abaton Arquitectura.

MDW2013 @elisabettabongiorni

Here it is the second series from the Milan Design Week 2013 from Elisabetta  Bongiorni of Elisa Ossino office. I always love Elisabetta's pictures: she manages to get the most interesting views. Her photo of Michael Anastassiades lights for Flos is my favourite one. I love the quotation from Italo Calvino, too: "The one who has a sharp eye, manages to find what he's looking for even with his eyes closed." Elisabetta's nickname in IG is @elisabettabongiorni.

MDW 2013 @lottaagaton

I could not go to Italy for the Milan Design Week this year but,thanks to Instagram, I managed to enjoy it a bit, so I thought to share with you some of my favourite pictures. Today it is Swedish interior stylist Lotta Agaton to take us for a walk in Milan, starting with Michael Anastassiades lights for Italian brand Flos, so far my favourite news from Milan this year. Second picture goes with the Prunus tree for her styling for Lammhults and we move to 10 Corso Como - the place you cannot miss when in Milan. Superstudio and Lambrate and Bulthaup stand compose our second row. And last but not least, Cos installation by Bonsoir Paris, another spot from Superstudio where she did String stand and a beautiful spot of DePadova.

If you want to see more pictures, Lotta Agaton has just published a small reportage from her week in Milan here!

Wolfgang Behnken

Hamburg, Germany. Here lives Wolfgang Behnken, creative director of Advertisment agency Young & Rubicam. You do understand this is a special place at first glance: the serene, elegant atmosphere of this neo-baroque flat captures you instantly. The owner's passion for photography and design is clearly visible by his impressive collection of vintage pieces and Bauhaus and Modernist icons: the PK55 table and PK 11 chairs by Poul Kjaerholm, Serge Mouille's and Christian Dell's lamps, Eames's armchair just to name few. I could move there immediately ...

Milan Design Week 2013: Bonsoir Paris & COS

First snapshot from the Milan Design Week 2013 ( or as we call it in Italy, "Salone del Mobile") is Bonsoir Paris installation for Swedish label COS, which I'm a very big fan of. Inspiration for the installation’s modular design came from children’s toys, such as the classic straws and connectors kits: the space created evokes a serene atmosphere and a lightness that reflects perfectly the idea behind COS. The structure is simple but the care of details (look at the junctures) and the use of materials reveals the real complexity of its concept and development.

Monochrome apartment in Belgium

AIDarchitecten is an architecture firm based in Malle, Belgium. Their range of works is quite wide but shares the same principles based on the bureau belief that "it is the task of the architect to understand the context and work in a subtle way" trying to acquire the best quality and keeping always a little room for poetry. Their work shows a great attention to space distribution and details, especially in the materials combination: the use of marble in the kitchen is beautiful as it is the palette of neutral tones that characterized all their works. Last but not least, I'm fascinated by the way they connect the inside with the outside: I do not know if they also designed the gardens but the sculptural use of planting is stunning.

(I know a post has just come out but as soon as I saw this image in Pinterest, I couldn't avoid to check the designer and, then, share it with you all! Happy week-end!)