As the creative director of the family owned Italian furniture company Moroso, Patrizia Moroso has spent much of her career nuturing new talent. She's helped propel designers from Ron Arad to Tokujin Yoshioka onto the global stage by commisioning daringly designed chairs, tables and sofas from these designers. 

Another designer whom Moroso has supported is Spanish designer Patricia Urquiola. Moroso comissioned Urquiola to design her own home - the outcome of which is a surprisingly serene and airy structure with colorful, welcoming interiors. On the outside, cedar siding and deep red trim make the 10,000-square-foot structure almost disappear into its heavily wooded setting; on the inside, ample windows let nature into the sheltering spaces.

Some of the furniture is one of a kind, like the painted metal chairs by Ron Arad, but there are Moroso prototypes, too, like the Rift sofa by Urquiola covered in African fabric, which sprawls in the downstairs sitting room. Some pieces are simply rejects, like the Arad-designed plastic Ripple chairs on the terrace. Their colors, muddled in the molding process, made them even more appealing to Moroso. “I like the ‘strange’ version,” she explained, “the mistakes from the factory, the unique pieces made by the industrial process.” Her house, she said, is “sort of a testing place for me,” and “an extension of what I do.”

Moroso furniture is available locally here.

The most efficient way to build is vertically. Building vertically saves space as it uses minimal ground square meters. When it comes to interior design, the same rule can be applied. By focusing on height rather than width, efficient storage designs can be created. However, high storage designs can create a new problem because the higher storage parts will be difficult to reach.

Staircase is a shelving unit that combines a bookshelf with a pullout stair system in the bottom three shelves. The shelving unit is 2.6 meters high and the top shelves are accessible by using the bottom shelves as steps for accessing the higher shelves.

Tom Kundig, of  Seattle based architecture practice Olson Kundig Architects, who is known for houses that are both elegantly rugged and eminently livable has created a home that sits nestled in a rocky outcrop. It occupies a 15-acre site in the San Juan Islands off Washington State, the compact, 220 square metre box has a sod roof and tall steel-framed windows.  The house consists of a main space, 20 metres long and four metres high, with a large kitchen at the back and a living and dining area overlooking the water up front. There’s also a master bedroom and sitting room as well as a small guest room on the main floor, and another guest room tucked beneath the house.

Inspired by the french film “Le Ballon Rouge”(1953), where the main character experiences a sense of floating, the Balloon Bench looks to do just that - float. In reality the bench is actually suspended from the ceiling by 4 anchors concealed by the balloon shapes, creating the magical illusion of the bench being lifted by ballons.

With its classic style and sweeping views over the Mediterranean sea, the La Réserve Ramatuelle by Jean-Michel Wilmotte sits quietly just outside St. Tropez in France. As a wellness retreat, the hilltop hideaway is part spa and hotel and embraces the tranquility of its surroundings. With the option of seven guest rooms (which can be rented short term or long term) or 16 suites, and a 1000 metre spa which are all set within a pine covered expanse, the resort is equipped for singles or families alike. The rooms range in size from 50 to 100 square metres and come equipped with private gardens and terraces. A personal chef is also on offer to conjure up any gastronomical delights you need. Each space within the resort pays tribute to its surroundings with Wilmotte's renovation of the 1950s buildings in which La Réserve Hotel and Spa is situated embracing natural colours and subtle classic styling to remain understated and timeless in its appearance. We are particularly drawn to the finer interior details like soft furnishings which illustrate some of our favourite designers including rugs by Paola Lenti and contemporary furniture by Hans J Wegner, Moroso, Flexform, Poltrona Frau and B&B Italia.

(NB. All of the furniture in this resort can be purchased in New Zealand - check out Design Folio magazine for where to go).

One of our favourite pieces of design - the Kennedee Sofa by Jean-Marie Massaud stands out from the crowd as an utterly elegant sofa. The delicate 'x' motif hand sewn into the leather adds a modern perspective to traditonal tufting.  The Kennedee is a modular sofa with an infinite number of combinations and is finished in the soft leather that Poltrona Frau are renowned for. 

Georgigregg currently have one of these spectaular sofa's in their showroom sale. We suggest you get in quick for this, and other beautiful items...before we do!

For more information go here.

Anyone with an over flowing wardrobe will know just how difficult it is to find a hanger system that looks good and functions properly. These Hangers formed part of a recent exhibition held by Philips de Pury in the Saatchi Gallery in London, titled Thin Black Lines. The works are by one of our favourite Japanese design collectives - Nendo, and are solid steel works designed to visually reference traced or sketched lines made on a designers sketch pad. The designs successfully translate the forms from two to three dimensional shapes.

This glass house - The Williams Studio, situated over a boat house on Stony Lake in Canada, is a photographer's home and studio. Designed by GH3 the brief included simplicity, open spaces and a unity between exterior and interior spaces.  The double-height space provides the owner/photographer with unparalleled light and natural illumination, whilst the 360 degree glass backdrop provides an ever-changing backdrop with nature. Sitting jutted out over the water's edge, the entire building appears to almost float over the water when inside. Whilst it looks like a literal ice box in winter, the architects considered inclusion of granite's thermal mass that saps up the sun allows it to remain warm. The mezzanine floor houses the bedroom, bathroom and closet which can be concealed from the rest of the space by sliding glass. White lacquered panels with reflective qualities diffuse light in every part of the interior, making it the perfect canvas for artwork, and the perfect space for photography.

Mention the word inflatable a decade ago and a series of garish bouncy castles might spring to mind, but since then, the design world has come to the party and created a series of successful (and in the most part aesthetically pleasing) inflatable products and installations like this and this.

The Inflatable Spaces series featured above by Inflate Germany provides the perfect solution for commercial environments that want to create a sense of privacy or atmosphere that don't compromise on aesthetics. In fact, they look rather futuristic. In a variety of forms: air walls, pop-ups, domes and cubes, they are a pretty succinct solution for those seeking temporary, well designed solutions.

One of the last projects fashion designer Alexander McQueen took on before his tragic suicide in February was a collaboration with The Rug Company. Three years in the making - the results are reminiscent of the stunning gilded warrior looks that formed part of his final fashion collection. Handknotted in cashmere, wool, and silk, and in some cases woven with shimmering golden threads, the rugs each took six to eight months to produce. The Rug Company now plans to take the McQueen designs on a global tour. First stop: Miami, where they’ll be exhibited at the company’s Design District showroom during Art Basel Miami Beach and Design Miami in early December.