One of the real pleasures of the Milan Design Week is that you get the chance to see inside places in the city that would usually be closed to you. I went with the fella this year, who in a previous life lived and taught in Milan. He said how nice it was to see the city opened up, with courtyards and grand buildings usually hidden behind closed doors welcoming visitors.

So it was at another of this year’s most-discussed events, the show at Spazio Rossana Orlandi. This rambling warren of rooms and courtyards was once a tile factory and now is an exhibition space and showroom for young designers.

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Milan 2014: Hay and Wrong for Hay

Just back from Milan’s 2014 Design Fair. I have a suntan, a hangover, a suitcase full of design bumpf and a canvas shopping bag that Jill was immediately envious of. Jog on Jill, it’s mine.

Address book: Pink Apple’s lighting

I’m in Milan, daaaarlings, swanning around palazzos full of dimly lit furniture, sipping a tiny espresso and trying not to trip over any exhibits. The city has a great reputation for cutting edge design, and high-profile designers always display items here that will be influencing our own interiors tastes for years to come.

Video: Save the Jubilee Pool

There’s six weeks of lovely weather coming! Time to get in that sea. Sadly though, in my home town, the winter storms’ effects are still being felt. The gorgeous 1930s lido that sticks out into the sea got a heavy battering, and the already vulnerable structure has suffered.

The Japanese have a word for that

I read somewhere a while ago that there is a specific word in Japanese for the feeling of depression, dread and shame one experiences after getting a bad haircut. What a culture! I was just trawling through Tokyo blogger Hello Sandwich’s annual photos of blossom season, wishing once again I was there with my brother. […]