Beautifully imperfect: the art of organic design

Talking of not needing to be watered, my favourite natural curiosity has just flowered again. I love the fact that this magnificent triffid of an organism looks after itself, requiring no maintenance whatsoever. It seems to flower almost every year and looks totally stunning too, don’t you think?





I try to keep my London ‘sky garden’ tidy, but the other day, I noticed there was a mess on my terrace. I’d rather stupidly left a lovely Moroccan wooden dish from ShopCurious outside (for a few years) forgetting that, even though it’s been very dry here lately, we don’t have quite the same climate as North Africa. Unfortunately, rain has rotted the plate and now it's disintegrating.






I thought about throwing it away, but then I realized that imperfect is the new perfect (just as well, judging by the layout of this post). In fact, my dish looks not unlike the one shown right, by French ceramicist, Therese Lebrun, whose artisanal pieces and organic shapes are very ‘of the moment.’








And, if the Chelsea Flower Show is an indicator of trends, artisan gardens will soon be all the rage too. Jihae Hwang’s award winning Haewooso garden just happens to be curiously organic as well. The wooden building is a traditional style Korean toilet, or Haewooso – considered to be a place for spiritual catharsis.Whilst you free your mind by emptying your body, the latrine ferments human waste to make fertilizer - and it’s surrounded by a pretty garden to refill the mind with beautiful thoughts.









These days, even gardens are becoming works of conceptual art…which reminds me -Clerkenwell Design Week also starts today. London’s obviously the place to be this week, though I’m hoping we won’t get stuck here forever due to organic particles of volcanic ash.

Are you?

Bags of ancient bushido style...

This weekend we’ve got a distinctly Japanese flavour. I’m not sure if you’ve already seen the unusual handbags by British artisan designer Vivien Hew at ShopCurious? Viv’s latest ‘Bushido’ collection is inspired by the five moral codes of the Samurai Warriors.











“I was intrigued by the contradictions; the image of the ferocious head-carrying warrior in battle with the dignified, artistic, and spiritual, tea-drinking individual. I sought to separate the myth from the reality and to try to acquire some understanding of their conceptions of the world,” she explained to me.




Apparently the Samurai were habitual recyclers of armour; whether this was booty acquired on the battlefield, or heirlooms passed down from generation to generation. They frequently replaced the lacing of their armour to repair, update or personalise their battledress. Vivien also uses recycled materials wherever possible. Much of the leather in her products comes from recycled leather garments.

Personally, I love the funky Samurai tassels, however, probably the most unique thing about Vivien’s highly collectable bags is the woven fabric. Not only are the bags handmade, but the textiles and trims for every single one of them are also individually created by hand. Vivien says, “I drew on the vibrancy, the symmetry and order of the armour for my fabric designs. I used the vertical and horizontal stripes of the armour scales but made them less ordered and less predictable.”





I’ve noticed that all things Japanese are gaining ground over here too, from paper and origami in product design and art, to sculptural folding and pleating effects in fashion. I think we might be even see the rise of more curious fashion sub-cultures here too, like the gothic Lolita trend, featured in my post today at The Dabbler.

Do let me know what you think.

Will you?

Curiously sensible, but fascinating style

This month, I’m taking a little break from blogging, but will be back very shortly with our new theme of ‘sensible style’. Before you ask the question, the answer is ‘yes’ - of course it’s possible to give, dress and live curiously and still be sensible at the same time.












At this time of the year, there are plenty of sensible-but-stylish bargains to be found in the sales. We've recently added some new items to our ShopCurious sale, including these fabulous fascinators that have been handmade in England by the milliner, Gil Fox.






For a very small sum of money, you can jazz up any outfit with one of Gil’s colourful feather fascinators and you’ll also look totally individual wearing one of these unique accessories.













If you're a local like me, it's also sensible to invest in contemporary British design - you’ll be helping to keep small businesses and traditional artisan trades like this alive.

Will you?

PS ... international delivery is also available!