Address book: Bathroom accessories

I’ve ordered new taps for the bathroom, otherwise that project is at a complete standstill thanks to indecision about big factors. You’d think I wasn’t at the point of looking at accessories for the room yet since there’s not even a paint swatch up or a shower tile picked. You’d think, but you’d be wrong. Bathroom accessories – and I’d include small storage ideas, lighting and mirrors in that – are the bits that give the room a personality and thus the bits I find easier to focus on while the whole tile debate continues. They can stop a bathroom from feeling too functional or chilly and make it feel more designed and complete. Here are the things I’ve been looking at, starting with mirrors…

Black bathroom | Double mirrors | My Friend's House Circular mirrors are cute and you know what, they do actually work in pairs or threesomes – on a decorative level more than functional. This is a very cool black bathroom too, don’t you think?

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Lo-fi washing machine

Orf grid

I was amused to read Catherine Bennett in Sunday’s Observer writing a piece about the lack of progress in domestic appliance design. Why all the obsession over tiny developments in mobile phones, while the humble washing machine seems still as clunky, ugly and prone to break-down as it has been for decades*, she asked? It made […]

blue enamlled pans

Blast from the past

In Margate this weekend we took retro-loving friends to Margate Retro, a charming store run by a man and boy, both in Arkwright-style shop coats, with an ever-changing stock of 50s office furniture, lighting and record players. Free with my friends’ purchase came two copies of a long-forgotten part-work magazine. Brilliant sales trick.

Paul’s shed

By all accounts, Paul Smith is fashion’s (cycling nut) nice guy. I like to think you can somehow extract this sentiment from the incredibly lovely shed he put his name to for LDF14. It was exhibited in the garden at the V&A and was part of The Wish List project in collaboration with Sir Tel […]