Kensington Church Street

 

Kensington Church Street is a great place to start when shopping abroad for clients.  I started at the fabulous Robert Kime and walked downhill to Kensington High Street.

Robert Kime sells wonderful fabrics, light fixtures, and furnishings from London.  His items are available through John Rosselli in the United States.

 Simon Spero is a great porcelain source.

This Japanese Gallery is one of the best in London that sells asian art and accessories.

Reindeer Antiques carries some of the finest English furniture pieces.  Every item in the store has been restored to excellent condition.

 Kensington Lighting Company has a great collection of reproduction light fixtures such as the exterior lights on the front of their store and the pagoda sconces below.

Cologne & Cotton carries a sampling of the finest linens. You would almost think you were in Porthault!

This fabulous little bakery off the main street is a great pit stop.  Yotam Ottolenghi is a famous chef from London who started this little outbranch for quick gourmet bites on the go!

Next my favorite store I discovered on the trip is Yastik.  They have the most fabulous pillows!

A collection of exotic Turkish pillows in velvets and cottons.  They are only available in London and Istanbul right now, but the owner promised me they would open a store in New York soon!  Watch for a few of these on my One Kings Lane sale next week!

A'Lolivier has the most sensuous olive oils.

The flower market in South Kensington.

 Oh if only I could bike up and down these streets everyday! 

Such a pretty place!



Up in the Trees!

Surfass Treehouse

It's that time of year to start building a treehouse for your children to play in during the summer or for yourself to get away from them!  Here are a few tree houses that I find very interesting and appealing.  I would love the opportunity to design and build my very own one day in the woods far, far away from the bustling noise of taxis honking and dogs barking.

Sam's Treehouse

 

Redmond Treehouse

Very interesting stairs that give it such a natural feeling.

This hanging house is truly camouflaged from below.  Who knows how you get in it?!

The Nest

Pam's Getaway

 

Out'N'About Treesort

The B'ville Treehouse

How one adult designed the interior of her tree house in the forest.

Sarah's Treehouse

This is really fun for the kids to slide right out!

La Cabane Perchee

 

This rustic approach to decor makes it feel very natural.

Sure seems like a lot of stairs!!

Liberty of London

Upon my arrival in London, everyone was busy working away, so I started out at the infamous Liberty of London.  Built in 1875, Liberty is synonymous with London and design.  Arthur Liberty's legacy lives on in this beautiful Tudor building full of housewares, carpets, and accessories.  He was a master collector of his time travelling to find pieces that would inspire and excite his clientele. 

The Tudor building is actually constructed out of the timbers of two ships.  The building was designed by Edwin T. Hall and his son at the height of the 1920's Tudor fashion revival.  Arthur Liberty wanted the building to feel as though you were walking through your own home.  There is a center well in the building from the main floor up three flights.  Each well is surrounded by smaller rooms with fireplaces and furniture where they would drape exotic rugs and quilts for sale.

These cute little drawings were hung on a wall in one well.

I also discovered this fun fabric line below.  Wild prints in bright bold colors!

The back stair well in Liberty.

Liberty's popularity is never ceasing after 130 years!

Preparing for the upcoming years, they have started their own Liberty magazine.

Well-known for their trademark small scale floral prints, Liberty has branched out and produced everything from clothes, scarves, bags, plates, etc. using their popular fabric designs.

A few of the fun fabric prints below...

Make sure you stop by on your next trip to London!

Liberty

Great Marlborough Street

London W1B 5AH

Monday - Saturday 10am - 9pm