Wallpaper of the Week - MetalXGlass by Brian Yates

http://www.brian-yates.co.uk/wallcoverings.shtml?pageNo=15

Isn't this lush ? I made the fatal mistake of taking a trip down to the Chelsea Design Centre last week. I did actually have some 'proper' work to be doing there sourcing fabrics and wallpapers but I just get so distracted by all of the beautiful things I really am a kid in a toy shop. Among some of my favourite finds were these wallpapers by Brian Yates.

They have such an amazing texturised finish, with parts appearing to be 3D and parts actually being 3D where they have been embellished with amazing glitters, velvets and in some cases glass beads. The problem is that you really do just want to reach out and touch them - not ideal in real life as even my 4 year old has been heard telling the 1 year old "no hands on Mummy's wallpaper" and the glass beads did take me back to the 1980s and the temptation to pick the woodchips out of the wallpaper at the side of my bed - oops ! Beautiful though ! (The glass beads not the woodchips)

The wallpaper that I have shown above also answers another interior design problem that I frequently come across. Which metallic finish to have in a room and how to get away with combining a few different finishes - I'm talking brass this, chrome that etc etc... By using a pewter base with a metallic finish you can never really be 100% sure what colour it is. Nature will take over and dependent on the direction of the natural light source, which angle you view the paper from and at what time of day you will get a variation on the colour that you are looking at allowing you a little bit more flexibility.

But let this be a lesson, if you are wanting to co-ordinate ...get a really good size sample piece, hang it exactly where its going to go and live with it - I'm not talking hang it up long enough to get your other half to say 'yeah like it' I'm talking a week, look at it before you leave the house, when you get in, when you are around at the weekend - its not cheap, its not one that you want to be taking down and doing again !

Where would I use this ? Master bedroom or a dining room - it seems a shame to hide such a beautiful thing away but an element of practicality needs to step in - its not one for a family room ! One of my favourite finds to date, you'll definitely be seeing more of this range to come...

Wallpaper of the Week - Bloomsbury Scarlet

http://www.villanova.co.uk/collections/bloomsbury-wallcoverings/scarlet

What a way to start March with the sun making a welcome appearance after what feels like months of grey drizzle or mushy dirty snow. I can yet again believe that there may be other seasons of the year that don't make me want to hibernate. Even if today's weather is just a cruel reminder before another week of hail, it does act to give hope that we may in the near future move into Spring. So, to celebrate this I have selected a nice bright, fresh 'bloom' for this week's wallpaper.

From Villa Nova's Bloomsbury collection this is the Scarlet colourway of this subtle, pretty, delicate pattern. Its unobtrusive yet the colours are quite strong and the scarlet sits perfectly against the turquoise (reported as 'the' colour of 2010). Also available in other colours such as Kelp and Cayenne there is plenty of choice if you are after a more neutral schemes. And as you would expect from Villa Nova there are a whole host of fabrics to complement, contrast and co-ordinate with your scheme, taking away any chance of 'getting it wrong'.