Warming up for Winter 2013

Cape Town based Interior designer and Homes& Styles Zimbabwe regular contributor helps us prepare stylishly for next year's winter.

Details in Issue 15; Available on Sale on 03 September

Our lovely Issue 15 Cover

About our Cover- Issue 15

Tuskers Spring Showroom located at #1090 Marley Drive, (off Maranzi Road), Kambanji, Harare makes a debut on our cover. The elegant& airy showroom that is owned by Meredith& Meredith features a broad collection of game products with the family’s aim to bring together the best of Zimbabwean talent within the wild life genre. It incorporates art by the wild life artist Will Maberly, bespoke teak furniture by Holly Hudson, a collection of striking jewellery using bone and horn, and the diverse range of Meredith and Meredith products.

More In Issue 15: Available for Sale on 03 September 2012

5 Minutes with a Bona Fide Artist, Brigette Lottor

If you love doing your rounds at the trendiest interior design and décor centres in Harare then you would have surely bumped into finely designed decorative mirrors and paintings by the effervescent and uber talented artist, Brigette Lottor.

Asked what from her collection and works would be the ideal Christmas present ideas, she recommended her mirror designs and pieces from  her Crazy Cutlery range cast out of aluminum. We had a brief one on one with Brigette about her craft.

Tell us a little about you, what is your background?

I was born in Zimbabwe, schooled here till I was 15 years old, then I finished high school at the art, ballet, drama and music school in Johannesburg. I did art, matriculated and went on to study fine art at Durban Technikon. Upon leaving, I worked for a company designing swimwear then I went on to work as a window dresser for South African fashion retailer, Foschini. I then got into painting people’s race horses and polo ponies. I moved to Malawi and got into craft making, where my market predominantly consisted of expatriates.

  

I came back home and continued to live off my craft as I slowly got back into painting and exhibiting. I have exhibited in Spain, Kenya, South Africa and have painted murals in Vienna. My art has taken me to some awesome places; I have travelled to India, the Himalayas, the Andes Mountain and Morocco. All these places have influenced my work and life.

Natural-esque Inspiration

Subtle ways of  adding a little nature in  your home...

1.  Ball Jute lampshades, US$95 (50cm)  and  (30cm), The Gallery & Home

2. Hanging baskets, in basket are succulents, Cinnamon

3.  Banana leaves (large), Aura’s Lighting & Décor 

4.  Arched  foot vase, in the vase are magnolia spray piwic, Calla lily leaf, hydrangea,  Alice Rose, Manhattan Interiors

5.  Wicker waste basket, falling out of basket  is  chocolate  and cream pot pourri, Dreamz

6. Pine stool, Lifestyle Interiors

7. Eijffinger oriental wallpaper, Lifestyle Interiors 

 8.  Bamboo Roller (Mopani Cherry), Window Dressings

Aura’s Lighting & Décor- 0772 316 030, Cinnamon-0772 283 675, Dreamz- 0773 447 382, Lifestyle Interiors- (04) 744 053, Manhattan Interiors – (04) 852 851, The Gallery & Home - (04) 870 420, Window Dressings- (04) 882 872



Indulge Yourself – Maruva Cosmeceuticals

Born out of passion, research and an inkling of blending herbal oil extracts and fragrances with proven cosmeceutical  properties from Africa and India, Maruva Cosmetics  is a formidable  brand manufacturing  a line of skin, bath and beauty products.

Made by the coming together of precious African flora such as Baobab, Marula, Trichilia and Parinari with the similarly exotic and potent oils and fragrances like Basil, Cardomom and Patcouli  from India, Maruva’s products will excite your senses, enhance your sense of self and release your inner beauty.

Fittingly, the logo depicts an Indian water lily encapsulated by the famous African flame lily representing this union of cultures.

With a belief centred around protecting the environment and preserving it for future generations as well sourcing the best raw material based on fair trade principles, the range includes, Baobab and Marula soaps, hand sanitizers, lip balms, scrubs, fragranced candles and must have gift hampers.A sensory adventure, you will also find a range of unique candle stands, incense sticks, aroma diffusers bath salts and bath accessories.If you want to know more, contact Maruva Cosmeticeuticals - 0772 228 747, info@maruvacometics.com.  

Favourite Sultry Reds

As we celebrated the month of love in February 2010, it was all about the sultry reds and boy did we have fun! Here were our favourites from our local outlets...

Balunga Chair, Hand woven chenille throw with hand-beaded fringe, luxury scatter cushions, Lifestyle Interiors (top left); Pure Indian silk patchwork cushion covers, Bijoux Boutique (centre);  All Red cushions, Perspectives and Red and white scatters, Emma French Collection (top right);  Love seat sofa, Bigr Living; Footstool, US$120, Perspectives; Red glitter and rose cushions, Dreamz (bottom left); Striped scatters, Elements; White cushion, Perspectives; Red velvet cushion, Elements (bottom right)

Treasure in Glass

"Stained glass and glass work as an interior design and décor trend explored"

Having only seen stained glass on cathedral windows, it was at the St John’s College Spring Fair in 2010 last year in October where I met glass artist, Annelie Martens. Four months down the line, I made an undertaking to know more about this intriguing age old phenomenon and explore how stained glass decorations can also accentuate one’s home. 

In probably the cosiest house I have ever been in, the scene is Borrowdale Brooke where I was to interview Annelie about her craft. Warmly invited, she gave me a tour of her wonderful home that I must say is a true homage of her craft.

Originally from Germany, she carried with her, from Deutschland, very much to her family’s surprise, antique pieces dear to her that harbour timeless stories meant to be told. From old and functional cooking pots where her great grandmother fried eggs for her husband, her grandmother’s kitchen scale to chairs where her grandfather once sat , this was certainly what I would like to believe makes a home.As we sat down for some coffee and freshly baked chocolate cookies, our meeting steadily settled into the core of my business- to talk to an artist and explore stained glass and glass work as an interior design and décor trend.

Apart from sharing the amazing history surrounding the discovery of glass, it is how the colour of stained glass is created that blew me way .When you look at those cathedral windows, there was certainly no use of paint or colourful adhesive films to create these hues, the making of these entrancing shades is a science and a true ancient craft.

Minerals are used as colour agents with copper making green, cobalt creating blue glass, manganese for brown and yellow from iron. The most expensive are the red and orange variations because precious metals, silver and gold are the colour ingredients. The intensity is determined by the different firing temperatures. 

Meticulous, thorough and mostly one of a kind, Annelie creates glass panels for house doors, windows, room dividers, cabinet doors and cathedral windows.  Lamps are among other items worked in stained, opalescent, cathedral,  translucent and  brilliant glass. The highlight of my day was being shown the array of multi-coloured as well as textured glass shelved in her workshop. Here is where all ideas are transformed into masterpieces. A unique artistic medium, Annelie let us in on the creative process.

 “A client comes to me and says I want my bathroom windows designed, I go to the client’s home and get an idea of what his or her tastes are, is it ethnic, modern or contemporary? I also have to understand their interior design and décor- the art work, curtaining and colour coordination.  Then I take my measurements and work from there. I create various design options to choose from.” says Annelie

The process continues with enlarging the sketch to the actual size (to the scale which she is working with).  Using accurate measurements, she then makes two templates, one of which she uses as a reference and the other to mark out patterns for the working foil. On the foil, she also marks all the different types of glass to be used with a number so that she knows which piece is going where. This ensures that the colours are just right and everything works together aesthetically. For choosing the right glass, texture and colour, the glass sheets are placed on top of a light box or on an aisle in front of a window. Here one can see how the “work in progress” looks when illuminated.