Find the answers to all of your decorating dilemas and stay up-to-date with the latest Interior trends.

Eco Interiors:

When I think of eco, I think of recycled materials, second hand things, the outdoors, growing your own food and saving energy, It makes for innovative, fun and interesting ideas and I think it brings out the best in people. We are born into a consumerist world which pushes us to buy new products all the time, wasting resources and damaging the planet, so at a time like this making the shift to recycled products or eco friendly products and really thinking about our purchases will help improve quality of life. Interiors have become the focus as we spend more time at home, using our dining rooms having friends to dinner, making our bedrooms luxurious and concentrating on the enjoyment and reward we can get from this. We want sustainable and reliable products that will last and be functional. I have searched around for the best interior products that go with these values.

The innovative sky planter from Eco Centric, is not only a space saver but an unusual and fun way of holding plants and herbs which also holds it’s on water reservoir meaning it “self waters”.

I’m an avid cheese fan and love this board from Love Eco, which is made from the shelves reclaimed from the Old Library at Selwyn College, interesting bit of history and useful!

My previous post talked about large light bulbs making a comeback and here we have the eco friendly version from Eco Centric.

I’m loving this statement cushion made from 100% recycled plastic bottles!This “charming” Chiwawa is filled with wheat and lavender. You put it in the microwave and the heat can last for two hours.

http://www.love-eco.co.uk/products/prince-the-hot-dog

Very cool recycled tyres to use as garden planters or inside for wood or maybe magazines; available from Eco Outlet

Out to the garden we go and a couple of snazzy products to keep your garden in perfect order; a garden planner and recycled plant labels, both from Eco Outlet.

Lilly & Lime compost bucket

Garden Milk bottles from Pure Design Company

Eco paint from Ecotopia

Recycling bin from Eco Centric

Solar Fairy lights from Nigels Eco Store

Feature by Liz Danon

I have recently been working on the interior design of a pub within a very tight budget and have found that the most important thing is lighting. I’m conducting a simple experiment where you begin in the dark and just turn on those lights you actually need to get around the place without tripping over, this way you achieve just enough light to see but also a great ambiance that is natural and cosy. You could also try this at home and at the same time you’ll be saving lots of energy!

I’m a sucker for fairy lights as they are not only pretty in a gollum like “precious” way, but also versatile and very subtle. They are flattering and create the sort of glamorous effect you might get from a theatrical mirror. These orchid lights would look beautiful above the bed or around a mirror.

Something that I have noticed recently is the back to basics of interior design and in lighting, the simple use of large light bulbs on dimmers. We often shade and disguise light but with simple design elements being pushed to the forefront, the light bulb seems to have come out of the shadows.

The laser bulb, previously featured in the Christmas gift guide is still a firm favourite of mine which you can get from click shop.

The floor lamps that seem to be very i for 2010 are the brightly coloured variety, which I think you need a lot of guts to place in a room and you certainly cannot be colour shy.

And now, going slightly off track, I came across this series of unique crystal lamps by Pieke Bergmans, with Royal Leerdam Crystal and Solid Lighting.

These light bulbs have been “Infected by the dreaded Design Virus“, creating all kinds of shapes and sizes through blown glass. I love the way they seem to have naturally blobbed and formed according to their surroundings.

And finally a quick peek at another exciting designer who also sees light in a different way – Victor Bodea has created these unique cases for lights to provide a  solution to the problem of light dimmers through the sleekly designed Cache Cache lamp, which in French stands for “hidden”. It uses a zipper to control the amount and direction of light.

Feature by Elizabeth Danon

Below is a copy of my feature from The Ideal Home Show’s website

As an Interior Stylist and Director of her own company Pippa Jameson Interiors, Pippa comes across gorgeous homewares on a daily basis. Here she talks about her favourite Eco products.

With an increasing number of consumers wanting to reduce their carbon footprint more designers are meeting the demand by delivering stylish and innovative pieces made from reclaimed materials. Paul Allen, author of the book, Your Ethical Business says. “It’s great to see businesses sharing our passion for greener living and creating such innovative products from reclaimed materials.

Baileys Home is a favourite of mine. Their specialty is to reuse unloved bits and pieces from all over the world and give them a new lease of life. As you would expect, the items take on a beautifully aged feel, my particular favourite are these timers made from reclaimed bobbins that were rescued from a Lancashire woolen mill. Other examples include old brooms made into boot racks and scraps of floor board that become mirror frames, tables or even kitchen units. Hourglass, 60mins, £49. Sermon timer, 15mins, £32. Interview timer, 5mins, £24. Tea break timer, 5mins, £14

Winner of Yahoo Finds of the year award Nigel’s Eco Store is another commendable company. Selling a variety of handpicked products and gifts, their aim is to help you save money and generally live a more planet-friendly life. They sell a large selection of homewares and one particular product that stood out was a piece called Rock’n’Roll. It is a unique Eco-shelving system made from specially sourced paperboard rolls, and then Velcro’d together. You can vary the amount of circles you use depending on the space you have. Rock’n’Roll shelving, £186.99, Nigel’s Eco Store

If it’s lighting that you are interested in then EcoCentric is definitely worth looking at. Made from steam-bent Ash, this pendant lamp has to be one of the most stylish Eco lights I have come across. Grand Curly Shade, £500, EcoCentric

The material has been locally sourced from a sustainable forest and is constructed from over 40 metres of wood curls and coils that are wrapped around a central frame. The finished result is a lively light producing an array of captivating shadows. It is designed by Charlie Whinney, formerly of award winning design collective Sixixis.

I think Graham & Green wins the prize for the most eco friendly stationary. The collection is made from 100% recycled cotton scraps from garment factories where the cotton is then pulped to make paper and embossed with a mock croc finish – genius! Credits: Prices start at £11.50 for a collapsible waste bin.

Special offer: 15% off all Graham & Green products including these Eco Chic office accessories. Follow this link and use this voucher code at payment: S9PJinteriors.

To look at the article on The Ideal HOme Show’s website click this link