Wander About.

Marcel Wanders is probably one of my favorite designers. His spatial interventions, products and sketches make me really wonder. Everything is quite clean and poetic yet bold.

I truly admire the reality of arts and crafts hand in hand in his design: he gives that personal touch everyone looks for in contemporary design, whether in space or objects.

The Crochet Chair photographed at Design Art Fair, London - 2007

Interesting links:
“Marcel Wanders: Daydreams,” at the Philadelphia Museum of Art
Marcel Wanders: Behind The Ceiling - The book
“I hate camping… But I love lounging in style” Wanders & Puma

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Concept: A Big Christmas Box.

There’s one thing I love to design and admire: spatial installations and shop windows. I don’t do it for a while, but lately I’ve been driven to design an imaginary shop window (which I’m going to include on my portfolio). Hope you get inspiration from it. I would love to hear from you.


A space styled with layers and layers of tulle and knitted snowflakes.

To keep the knitted snowflakes they’ve to be attached on cardboard.

The idea is to have a light bulb in the centre of each snowflake.

An imaginary christmas box full of tulle and knitted snowflakes in white and red.

Materials: White and red tulle. Wool. Cardboard. Light bulb. Lead strings.









A story behind this 2D christmas styling: when I was in primary school I (we) had a class about christmas tree decoration. We had to choose one of the two (and of course to say why): a super well decorated one and another one with no deco but a star on the very top. Somehow, I feel the styling for this window started when I remembered this class I had many many years ago.

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Louis Vuitton: Art, Fashion and Architecture

Quite often I get inspiration from fashion design and when I saw this book in the V&A Bookshop I thought “another fashion book, lets flick it through…”. But actually it’s not another one. It’s a fantastic compilation of projects Louis Vuitton did in collaboration with architects like Shiguro Ban, artists like James Turrell and product designers like Ron Arad.


“A symbol of elegance and the french art de vivre, Louis Vuitton has cultivated a close relationship with the world of art since its founding in 1854.
LV’s interest in the arts grew sure strength in the 1980’s when it began working with painters like César, Sol LeWitt and Olivier Debré.
Collaborations between LV and other artist have taken a variety of forms: shop window design, site-specific art installations for stores, exhibitions at the Espace Culturel on the top floor of the Champs-Élysées flagship store, and the acquisitions of new works for the house’s own collection.
Louis Vuitton: Art, Fashion and Architecture offers a critical selection of the creative exchanges between LV and an ever-growing list of artists, architects, photographers and designers.” – Edited Preface (published by Rizzoli New York).

Shop window design at Selfridges, November 2009 London (day time).

Shop window design at Sloane Street, November 2009 London (night time).





My favourite object/space from LV - The Travel Trunks (since 1854) and the Wardrobe created in 1875.

Zaha Hadid interpreting the bucket. (Exhibition in the Design Museum, London)




Interesting Links:
LVMH Group
LV Journeys Awards

I would love to see a collaboration between LV and Richard Serra, probably my #1 spatial artist.

A White Knitted Christmas.

Few ideas for this year's Christmas decorations: knitted white flowers everywhere.


Organza, feathers, embroidery, brocades and crystals – Inspiration I got from the new Ralph Lauren winter collection.


Materials to go with the flowers: crystals, glass, velvet, madre-of-pearl and lots of tulle.






















Knitted flowers by Eliana.

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The Victoria and Albert Museum Refreshment Rooms – London.

The Morris, Gamble and Poynter Refreshment Rooms.

"These three rooms formed the first museum restaurant in the world. They were intended as a showpiece of modern design, craftsmanship and manufacturing. Although they were functional spaces, the Refresment Rooms belonged to the museum’s public face, so they were also given some extremely lavish decorations." – V&A

Centre Refreshment Room (now Gamble Room).

Clad in ceramic tiles on the walls.

Windows designed by James Gamble.



Enamelled iron on the ceiling.

These chandeliers are the perfect marriage between 19th and 21st Century, as if it's the diamond on top of the cake.





If you’re planning to come to London or already here, take a couple of hours and enjoy a nice cup of tea in this beautiful and inspiring space. On Saturdays there’s always someone playing the piano. Enjoy.

Next time I’ll post photos on the Morris and Poynter Refreshment Rooms.

Polka Dots Xmas.

Christmas for me is all about happiness, gathering and above all playfulness. That was exactly my concept: a playful Christmas for children and indeed for adults. I wanted to feel movement everywhere.

This was one of the most rewarding styling projects I’ve done back in Portugal: a home christmas styling. My clients, who I didn’t know before this project, booked an appointment with me Friday late. The brief was simply “we want a happy red and silver Christmas”.
Saturday I bought a few things; Sunday I worked on the concept, painted a few things in silver and red and finished my shopping; and Monday styled the hall and the living room. Everything in 3 days. Freedom to do what I wanted was, indeed key for success.
They had no idea what I had in mind. Simply knew that I was sticking things on the wall, as I called to get permission. Total surprise when they got back home that Monday evening.

I knew they would love it or hate it. A challenge I had in hands. As soon as they got in, a smile in their faces couldn’t be hidden. And when they got to see the polka dots wall… I felt the most happy and lucky woman on earth. No one could hide their smiles.
It was a success to everyone involved. Later, they told me xmas decoration was an excuse to invite friends over for dinner for the whole December and that everyone loved it.

I must say I was, and still am, very proud of this project. Every opportunity I have I talk about it, like today.
Thank you Dina and Nuno Costa. It was a pleasure to design for your family.


The wood silver xmas trees were designed and painted by me. My local carpenter made them.











Materials:
Feathers. Tulle. Paper. Organza. Silk. Spray painting . Vinyl stickers. Wood. Wire. Christmas deco.

I wish everyone a happy xmas preparation.

I’m available to style flats, shops and offices for xmas celebrations. Contact me if you’re interested.

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David Chipperfield @ Design Museum.

“With a style that is restrained, quiet and thoughtful, David Chipperfield is of one of Britain’s leading architects. He has a huge international reputation and completed buildings in China, Japan, Italy, USA, Spain and Germany. Chipperfield produces subtle and sophisticated buildings, from museums to homes, with an acute sensitivity for materials and a powerful awareness of their environment.” – Design Museum

As I said before, I’m a big fan of the Design Museum.
“David Chipperfield – Form Matters” is amazingly well interpreted. The space is so perfectly curated that I ask myself if it was David himself who designed the exhibition.

It’s very challenging to design a gallery space. More than technical issues such as light or enough space to walk around the art or design work, there are little details that really matter. It's important to understand the potential of every surface in a gallery, weather vertical or horizontal. And again, I was extremely amazed with how Design Museum satisfied my curiosity. The idea to design on the clean white walls the buildings perspective was genial. We can admire David’s precise architecture through models and a different perspective drawing at the same time – it’s total engagement.

The exhibition inclues homeware David Chipperfiled designed to Alessi.

Museum of Modern Literature
Marbach am Neckar, Germany, 2002 – 2006
Winner RIBA Stirling Prize 2007

The following photographs were taken when I went to Berlin last March.
Building extension by DC
Am Kupfergraben 10
Berlin, Germany, 2002 – 2007

Architectural details.

"All my life I have sought the simplicity of a single line." - Antoine Watteau

You can read “Perfect Weekend by David Chipperfield” at How To Spend It, the magazine by Financial Times.

This exhibition made me pick up my last university project and develop it further, which I plan to publish soon: “Challenge the common practice of art display”.

Perfect Paper.

I love books. I believe I’ve more books at home than any other objects, if I can call a book an object. Well, I can argue it’s an object of inspiration, knowledge and even an object of decoration like a Chanel or a Cartier table book.

The last one I bought is a preciosity. The content is rich and the design very attractive. It’s called Perfect Paper. It’s “a book of work in paper by today’s artists, architects, illustrators, graphic designers, industrial designers, fashion designers and photographers with varying intentions, processes of making and aesthetics styles.”

It has 4 chapters: Illustrative Paper-cuts, Arty Objects, Interiors & Installations and Papering the Body. It includes projects by Holly Ormrod , Jordy Yu Fu , Publique Living , Sounds of Silence, Tokujin Yoshioka Design and Violise Lunn just to name a few.

When I came across to this book, “In Praise of Shadows” by Junichiro Tanizaki was constantly in my mind. He writes: “Paper, I understand, was invented by the Chinese; but western paper is to us no more than something to be used, while the texture of Chinese paper and Japanese paper gives us a certain feeling of warmth, of calm and repose. Even the same white could be as well be one colour for Western paper and another for our own. Western paper turns away the light, while our paper seems to take it in, to envelop it gently, like the soft surface of a first snowfall. It gives off no sound when it is crumpled or folded, it is quiet and pliant to the touch as the leaf of a tree.”

All the projects featured in Perfect Paper you can see and feel every word Tanizaki’s describes about Chinese and Japanese paper.
They’re both books to have, to read over and over again and to give to special people in your life.
If you're in London, you can find both books at Victoria and Albert Museum Bookshop

Javier Mariscal @ Design Museum.

When it comes to exhibition design, Design Museum in London is one of the best. The space is always engaging, communicative and very inspiring.
“Mariscal - Drawing Life” is another perfect example. This exhibition is on for another week, until the 1st of November.

“I don’t think that it’s good idea to explain what is behind the drawings, to analyse them or try to justify them with theories. Nor do I think there is anything to understand; they can simply be looked at and enjoyed. Interpret them in the most personal way possible.” – Javier Mariscal

“Mariscal - Drawing Life consists of thirteen installations that explore the way in which Mariscal sees the world, and the ways in which he uses drawing.” – Design Museum

Shower Tunnel - An installation of 640 illustrated ideas that represent Mariscal's visual language from 1970 to 2009.

Editorial Curtains - Composition made using the instalments published by Editorial Salvat of the 'Diseño con Mariscal' encyclopaedia, designed and directed by Estudio Mariscal.

Letters Wall - A typographic composition built using original pypefaces by Mariscal.

Visual Identities - A collage made from deconstructing the visual identities for post-production and FX company, Framestore; the bank, Bancaja and the America's Cup sporting event.
Editorial Curtains - Composition made using The New Yorker, El País Semanal and Apo magazines published between 1990 and 2004 with covers designed by Mariscal.

Interiors & Other Interventions - A video-collage made using images of the Gran Hotel Domine Bilbao, the Metropole cafeteria and the Splash & Crash bar, the Ikea restaurant, the H&M shop and artistic interventions.

Interiors & Other Interventions.

Interiors & Other Interventions.

Joie de Vivre - A visual allegory of the joy of living (Barcelona, 2009) represented as an installation of fragments from the Mediterranean coastline.

(My note: the rug was designed by Mariscal to Nanimarquina , my very favorite rug company)

Señor Mundo 'Chapel' - An installation with 225 illustrated messages from Sr. Mundo that were published in El País newspaper, 1994.

Photographs by Eliana Tomás.

Consultoria em Design de Interiores. | Interiors Consultancy.

Do dia 15 ao dia 26 de Dezembro vou estar em Portugal. Pode contactar-me através do numero +44 77677 222 97 ou por email para tomaseliana@gmail.com se estiver à procura de Personal Shopper ou Consultoria para Interiores.

From the 15th until the 26th of December I’ll be in Portugal. Feel free to contact me on +44(0) 77677 222 97 or email me on tomaseliana@gmail.com if you’re looking for Interiors Personal Shopper or Interiors consultancy.

Lighting by Aureliano Toso (Italy). Bedside table by Adal Biaccio (Spain). Rug by Nanimarquina (Spain). Organza by Aldeco (Portugal). Bespoke mirror by Eliana.

Windows Styling by Eliana Tomás

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My Favorite Wall.

I started to build this inspiration wall when I came to London. It took a while to finish it and when it was spot on I moved to another flat. Only a shot to remember it. Now it’s time to start a new one. Hope you get inspiration from it.

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Pavilion of Art Design London.

"A designer can never be original. Everything I use or apply comes from the existing world. I simply give it a personal touch but I don’t invent anything. A designer’s greatest achievement is to change the perspective of things a little" – Jurgen Bey


Carpenters Workshop Gallery London UK

Vincent Dubourg
Nouvelle Zélande
2009
Steel
Edition of 8 + 4AP

Recomended Books:
"Limited Edition - Prototypes, One-offs and Design Art Furniture" by Sophie Levell
"Design / Art - Limited Editions" published by Stichting Kunstboek


Todd Marrill Studio Contemporary New York City USA

Joseph Walsh
Formations Dining Table
2009
Burr Olive Ash and Olive Ash
Edition of 12 Unique Variations

Recomended Books:
"Modern Americana - Studio Furniture From High Craft to High Glam" edited by Todd Merrill & Julie V. Iovine

You can find all these books at the V&A Bookshop
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Inside Out.

Berlin is a city full of beautiful and inspiring surprises. The following photographs are a good example of it.
A few years ago I did a project for college about the Serpentine Gallery and the Summer Pavillion (London). The main concept was to link the central room inside the gallery with the pavilion.
The reason why I’m mentioning this is because my first concept was to turn around the inside walls to the outside, which is exactly what this german façade looks like.
What was once an interior space is now facing a central square: plaster wall details, lamps, a fireplace and the mirror above it. Everything is behind a glass wall in a very unaesthetic stainless steel frame lightened in bold colours, but it was a very nice viewpoint. I look at these photographs and I see different momentums in architecture and interiors, somehow compatible. We all have seen projects like this one. But above all, what triggers my creativity is the “inside out”.
These photographs together with my first one at Rebirth challenges what means inside, outside and in between. How can I use this inspiration in my interior design projects? Do you find it inspiring?





If you click on each image you can see the details. They look to me Baroque Interiors.

PS – When I took these photographs I didn’t have a tripod. Apologies for the out of focus. Hope you still enjoy and get inspiration from them.

Rebirth.

All these photographs have been inspiring me lately.
Rethink. Restart. Rebirth.
Get inspired.

This is one of the most beautiful dead spaces I've ever seen. To see the clouds through the non existing roof from the outside is so inspiring. Beautiful different point of view.

This house is abandoned. And they say it has bad spirits. And I say I want to give it life again.

Pigeon coop. A space where pigeons gather. An animal space I want to understand to develop my skills as a spatial designer.

Small windows. Small door. The advertisement of Singer, a stereotypically domestic woman’s product. What story has this space to tell? How can it be reinterpreted?

A church in the middle of nowhere. What could it be now? Reinterpret a spiritual space? Leave it as it is? Or give it some life, real life? How many stories can a space like this could tell us?

A gate seems to me always a fragile structure, although very intimidating. Makes me to stop. Makes me think twice if I really want to go through. Should I then redesign a gate?

By the way, I would love to put my hands on all these spaces as the existing start to reuse them.

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Inspired By Light Installations.

My favorite type of art, if I can say that, is spatial installations. I find them extremely inspiring to start an interior design project. And today I’ve been digging in my art photos archive to find inspiration on lighting. Found these ones that I truly love. I’ve taken these photographs in Lisbon and London between 2006 and 2008.
Hope you find them inspiring too.

Carnaby Street. London.

James Turrell installation.

Centro Cultural de Belém, Lisbon.

Tate Modern. London.

Reflection on the glass wall looking down to the Turbine Hall.

Tate Modern. London.

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Inspired By Paris.

Cliché: Paris Je t’aime.
But the truth is that I really love paris. It’s bright, clean, busy, noisy, chic, inspiring, smelly and of course extremely beautiful. The vibe is so good. I feel good!
At the moment I’m working on a concept “inspired by paris”. The following photos are part of it. Enjoy it.

When I was a kid, way before being teenager, I wanted to be a ballerina (bailarina in portuguese). And this photograph makes me feel like dancing. It inspires me. I think about mirrors, wooden balustrades, tulle, light, big windows and space, lots of free space.

I love classics. And that goes from furniture, to clothes, and of course cars. I love cars. A car is just a power identification tool. I own this car, therefore I am. It tells a lot about the owner. And this Citroen is just stunning. Well, I love all Citroen Classics.

And look at this view: the colour and how beautifully polished it is. I can imagine who owns it actually. I wonder if the owner lives in this beautiful and classy building where the car is parked, because they really go well together.

This perspective is very inspiring. I want to design stripes (again) but in a different perspective and different thicknesses. This photo gives me ideas for horizontal and vertical stripes for a 18th century apartment...

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Photography by Eliana Tomás.
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Wallpaper* Chair Arch - Last photos.

As part of the London Design Festival (2009), the installation has been dismantled this morning. We are now hopping for another fantastic one next year.

I went to photograph this installation a couple of times. It was an extremely inspiring project: the concept, structure and definitely the aesthetics. It was a very engaging installation as you can see on the following photographs. Hope you like them.

Water reflection.

Bird view.

Night rainbow.

Engagement (1).

Engagement (2).

Engagement (3).

Engagement (4).

On a pitch-black background.

My idea of it…

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Photography by Eliana Tomás.

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Welcome to Autumn.

For the past week I’ve been inspiried by Autumn.
It represents to me a transition and an urge to retreat. Earthy colours are inviting to spend more time at home with a nice cup of tea.
I could only post a few pictures with sofas, curtains and vases, as this is an Interior Design blog, but instead I thought I could only inspire you with textures, colours and materials.
This article is just about inspiration to style your space. I hope you find your way.


Velvet. Organza. Silk. Leather. Paper. Paint. Brass. Ceramic. And just a touch of wood.


Crocodile textures. Pony skin leather. And a touch of floral pattern.

Brass chandelier. Leather cushions. Wallpaper screens. Velvet curtains.

Texture. Texture. It's all about texture.

Leather. Organza. Pearls. Beautiful combination.

One day I want to style a house with pearls… their imperfection gives them so much character, beauty and charm.

Pearls and organza to style the bedrom.

Fendi Casa leather sampe: iguana pattern.

Enjoy an end of the day walk in a Fall day...

The sunset: a moment to retreat.

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London Design Festival - Blow Light by Tom Dixon.

Blow light is specifically designed to accommodate a low-energy Compact Fluorescent Lamp, allowing the lamp to give a strong directional light through the clear base. Originally designed for the big Trafalgar Square Giveaway in 2007, Dixon gave away 1000 free lamps, to raise awareness of CFLs and promote sustainable design.

Text from Victoria & Albert Museum.

Photographs by Eliana Tomás.

London Design Festival - Wallpaper* Chair Arch.

In the courtyard garden of the Victoria & Albert Museum, a key location for the festival, Wallpaper* magazine has chosen to revive a long-forgotten British tradition; when towns would build a commemorative arch spanning the high street to celebrate a royal visit or other special occasion. With designer Martino Gamper, the magazine has constructed a spectacular double arch using 160 original Ercol stacking chairs, made in High Wycombe, central England, once centre of the UK chair industry. It was also the location of the first chair arch, built in 1877 for a visit by Queen Victoria.

Text from Financial Times (House & Home sup.) September 19/20 2009.

Photographs by Eliana Tomás.

Eclectic Inspiration.

These spaces were styled between 2004 and 2009, both in London and Lisboa. Some of them still exist, others don’t.
I find in these photographs a fantastic source of colour, geometry, patterns and textures.


Vintage cabinet. Decorative paintings. Fashion, design and theory books.


Ikea coffee table and plant. French hat. Favourite handbag. Habitat candels. Design, photography and fashion magazines.


Bespoke bookshelves in wengé veneer. Habitat lamp. Bespoke red & purple cushions. Spanish chaise-long.

Purple velvet curtain. Personal objects.

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Detail The Water Closet.

Sometimes the simplest of details make a space more communicative and unique.

The main concept for these bathrooms and toilets was to keep the space pretty simple, giving detail through colour or/and stainless steel.

Bathroom tiles (20x20cm) in 3 shades of non-glossy beige. Decó in terracotta tones. White furniture designed by Eliana Tomás.

Brown horizontal stripes.

Orange and stainless steel stripes.

Wooden floor, white background and red statement.

Stainless steel squares detail.

Tiles detail. The coloured tiles give some movement to the white background.

Tile size: 10x10cm.

An Inteiror Design Studio.

My studio from 2002 to 2005. My lab of colour. My showroom of textures.

Tables, shelves and cabinets designed by Eliana Tomás.

Interior design studio hall.
Bespoke wall: glass fiber on steel structure painted in silver designed by Eliana Tomás.

Stainless steel with glass top desk designed in 2001 by Eliana Tomás.

Vase by Álvaro Siza.

“Lorosae” lamps by Álvaro Siza to Reggiani Illuminazione.

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Stripe it again.

Simplest of patterns. Maximum impact. Extremely elegant. Impossible not to be noticed. Timeless. Stripes forever.

An home office I’ve designed a couple of years ago – Braga, Portugal.
The concept was pretty simple: a splash of colour, keeping the space balanced.
In one wall I’ve designed the stripes (bottle green & white), the other is totally green (where the window is) and the other 2 walls are pure white.

Bespoke painted stripes and white Ikea shelves.

“Communicating with patterns – Stripes (handy book on stripes @ V&A bookshop)

More stripes and green inspiration.

Fabrics – Designers Guild.

Stripes in perspective.

“All my life I have sought the simplicity of a single line” – Antoine Watteau.

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Design Photography.

Sometimes I wonder if my design influences my photography or if my photography influences my design. One thing I’m sure: one inspires the other and both enhance me as a person.

“A life ahead”
Santa Rita, Portugal – July 2009

“The sky, the sea and myself”
Santa Rita, Portugal – July 2009

“Come and play with me”
Santa Rita, Portugal – July 2009

“Happiness”
Santa Rita, Portugal – July 2008

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