On Wednesday 9th September Deirdre and Architect Timothy Hatton welcomed invited guests to celebrate the re-opening of our spectacularly transformed carpet gallery at 554 Kings Road.
The complete remodelling, masterminded by Tim, and undertaken by building contractors 800 Group, includes the addition of a dramatic glass box extension on the ground floor, a roof terrace accessed by a retractable glass roof and galleried first and second floors inspired by Kew Gardens Sackler Crossing.
Sally Storey of Lighting Design International created a bespoke lighting system to showcase Deirdre’s carpet designs to stunning effect.
The piece de resistance however has to be the patinated steel staircase designed by Tim Hatton and created by New York based metal worker William R. Nitzberg of Enzo Metal – the staircase was entirely hand finished by William and floods the stairwell with light.
On the first floor Colin Peacock‘s wonderful film captures the journey of Deirdre’s designs from their inspiration and Deirdre’s initial sketches and drawings, through to the ancient artisan dying and weaving processes involved in their manufacture in Nepal.
The film is interspersed with a visual feast, and possibly the last known footage, of Nepalese landmarks destroyed during the devistating earthquake which took place just as filming ended.
The entire space creates a light-filled, calm environment in which to browse Deirdre’s designs and delight in her inspired use of colour and texture.
More photographs from the opening event and gallery images can be viewed on our Facebook page.
With Instagram changing the interiors landscape and three very differing perspectives it’s sure to make for an interesting debate!
The talk on 26th April will close the three-day event and takes place at Tom’s Lots Road Gallery.
The conversation will be followed by drinks and canapes but numbers are strictly limited and places will be on a first come first served basis. To RSVP contact elektra@tomfaulkner.co.uk
Inspired by our recent World of Interiors feature, Edison explores the links between street art and style and interiors.
It’s evident by our latest feature in the World of Interiors rug promotion (featuring FLIGHT and HARLEQUIN below) that the cross over from street art and style into fashion and interiors is ever increasing.
Street influences can offer exciting and graphically enhanced motifs, patterns, colour and form that would otherwise have only been applied to the walls of a derelict building or any accessible public surface on which to paint.
Thanks to Banksy, the street style has become widely accepted for its creative contributions and output. Therefore, it’s not uncommon to see the urban ‘out’ creeping ‘in’ by way of graffiti inspired feature walls, whether for the home or the office.
Back in 2015 Ray-Ban collaborated with collectable street artist ‘Mr Brainwash’ applying his distinctive splattering of paint to their iconic frames.
But street style doesn’t have to mean complicated, political or overworked.
These modern creations by French artist ‘Remi Rough’ (below) and Portuguese Street artist Vhils (bottom) use clean lines and textures to form their sublime creations. Both artists sell through galleries internationally and have had their work commissioned for architectural projects worldwide.
Hand knotted rugs are a surprisingly good choice for children’s rooms. As natural fibres, wool and silk are naturally resilient and when looked after properly clean well and last a lifetime.
Wool and silk are naturally hypoallergenic, and unlike machine made carpets hand knotted rugs do not use glues and avoid any of the chemical compounds found in synthetic fibres, an important factor with the increase in asthma and allergies amongst small children.
There is an ever-increasing awareness of ‘off gassing’ and VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds) in interior design products and hand knotted rugs emit little or no VOCs. Selecting a hand made rug in natural materials can help maintain safe levels in the home.
A deep pile in wool and silk dampens sound, provide a soft, comfortable and tactile floor covering and of course create a soft surface for inevitable tumbles.
As sustainable, heirloom quality products Deirdre Dyson’s hand knotted rugs are made to last.
Investment pieces, the right design can grow with a child and become a familiar piece of home they take with them to university and beyond.
We selected a few of Deirdre’s archive designs that would suit a child’s room or play space. As always, every rug is bespoke and colours, size and design can be adapted to suit any room or requirement.
ANGELFISH is a playful, graphic cut-out design in practical black wool highlighted with striking blue silk elements, it would make an ideal addition to a play or bedroom.
DAISY and DAISY CHAIN are two designs perfect for a girls’ bedroom – the subtle colour palettes set off Deirdre’s renderings of a favourite flower.
Little girls are also well catered for by Deirdre Dyson’s Butterfly collection – here a version of MARIPOSA, often selected by Interior Designers for nurseries, is rendered in soft pinks and created in a round shape to add contrast.
BUBBLEGUM with its vibrant pops of pink silk would be a great addition to any room and is a design that can easily grow with a child. Practically the purple/grey wool grade on the background is very forgiving and would be a good choice where the occasional spill may happen.
Children’s spaces give the opportunity to go bold with colour choice – SWEETLIPS with its vibrant burnt orange border or HARLEQUIN from the Plumage collection would make a striking addition to any room, with the addition of interesting shapes for imaginary play.
Finally this is FOLD OUT, a brand new design from this year’s PAPER & STONE collection is the perfect playful addition to a child’s space – Deirdre was inspired by paper dolls to create the silk border of this circular rug and selected muted pink tones for our sample version but colour could be really ramped up to add vibrancy and fun to this clever design. Contact us to create your custom version.
The Nepalese weavers who create our hand-knotted rugs are highly skilled craftspeople and work at incredible speed. As such it is notoriously difficult to capture the creation of a single one of their knots as the process is so accelerated in practised hands.
However during the recce for a film commissioned by Deirdre to showcase the creation of her rugs, the exceptional skill of our weavers creating a single knot was ‘captured’ by our Photographer Colin Peacock.
Take a look at the following series of images of a weaver working on one of Deirdre’s SEA WASH rugs and imagine the work that goes into your bespoke rug, there are 100 of these to every inch of carpet, astonishing.
Sir Terence Conran, founder of Conran + Partners, has personally curated the new (RED) suite at the Hyatt Andaz Hotel in Liverpool St, London and selected Deirdre’s UNRAVEL carpet as one of the key pieces in the scheme.
This is Andaz second collaboration with the AIDS charity (RED) – founded by Bono and Bobby Shriver, following the success of the first suite designed by Jonathan Adler at the Andaz West Hollywood.
As in the West Hollywood scheme the interior references the colour red and every variation of the hue. UNRAVEL sits with design classics loved by Sir Terence including favourite armchairs by Karuselli, the Snoopy lamp, a Volta mobile, Eames bird and Lumio book lamps – all available from the Conran Shop together with other custom pieces such as Vitra dining chairs. Artwork includes photographs by Rankin and Nobuyuki Taguchi.
A portion of each booking for this uniquely designed suite will directly benefit (RED) and partner products within the design can be purchased to directly benefit the charity.
Sir Terence says of the project:
The Great Eastern Hotel, as this hotel was once known, was my first big hotel project, so it has been a dream for me to be involved with the building once again,” … “I am proud to have collaborated with the Andaz brand and (RED) on a suite design that will give guests a great deal of pleasure while doing a great deal of good in the world. Through carefully curated and commissioned artwork and photography by local artists, we injected the vibrant and creative vibe of East London into the suite and mixed in contemporary hotel design with a domestic feel.
Our Stylist Louisa Grey works closely with Deirdre as soon as a rug collection is designed to find exactly the right locations for our collection photo shoots and this year one of them stood out, Ahm House.
The house was originally built by Danish Structural Engineer Povl Ahm, a partner of Ove Arup, who worked on some of last Century’s most significant buildings.
Arup also worked on the Opera House and the two men met during the early stages of its design, culminating in Ahm asking Utzon to design his home which he built in Harpenden, Hertfordshire from 1961-3. It was to be Utzon’s only completed project in the UK.
This low-lying Pavilion of concrete and brick unfolds to dramatically reveal floor to ceiling glass bringing the secluded, mature gardens into the classic mid-Century space. In the words of architecture critic Hugh Pearman “Probably the best Modern house in the world”.
As Ahm’s family grew, a later extension was added by Ulrik Plesner in association with Christopher Beaver Associates in 1972-4.
Now Grade II listed, from the street the house gives nothing away, dominated by its car port (and the later garage which formed part of the Plesner extension)
Photo from themodernhouse.com
Ahm’s widow sold the house after his death in 2005 and it was sold again in 2016. The new owners wanted to maintain the character of the home and employed Architects Coppin Dockray to work on the interiors which have been sensitively restored. The restoration went on to win the Wallpaper* Design Award 2019 for Best Remastered Building.
Fast forward to Autumn last year and our shoot which featured Deirdre’s PLUMES, HARLEQUIN, MANDARIN, BURLESQUE and FEATHER BOUND rugs – Deirdre and Edison knew something special would unfold when they attended the shoot at the Ahm House and the finished photographs by Michael Sinclair are testament to that.
Deirdre Dyson Exclusive Carpets and Rugs QuillsDeirdre Dyson Exclusive Carpets and Rugs MandarinDeirdre Dyson Exclusive Carpets and Rugs HarlequinDeirdre Dyson Exclusive Carpets and Rugs Burlesque
Deirdre Dyson has always brought her skills as a fine artist to bear on the beautiful colour palettes and compositions of her carpets.
March’s lockdown came at the time of year Deirdre usually focuses on her creative designs, so she was able to focus on her 2021 ‘Paper and Stone’ collection.
Deirdre’s themes have normally centred round the natural, but for this collection she focused on everyday materials like paper – including pieces that were crumpled, folded or torn. Deirdre elevated these every-day, sometimes discarded objects to create a collection of seven stunning hand knotted ‘Paper’ rug designs.
CONCERTINA hand knotted in Tibetan wool and pure silk
‘I’d often used overlapping or crumpled paper in my paintings,’ says Deirdre, ‘so it was fascinating using silk and wool instead and seeing a two-dimensional surface transformed into three dimensions, just by using the same colour in many different tones’.
UNFOLDED does just this, creating a three-dimensional effect with just seven shades. FOLD OUT is reminiscent of childhood with its playful paperdoll design, LOVE LETTER draws inspiration from a torn note with symbols of hugs and kisses, while NOTE PAPER and OFF CUTS make use of her craft cutting mat as a background.
OFF CUTS (floor) and NOTE PAPER (wall) hand knotted in Tibetan wool and pure silk
The extra lockdown time also enabled Deirdre to design three vertical wall hangings that can be adapted for the floor, inspired by stonework and paving.
‘They represent the stones used in walls and floors and highlight the amazing decorative skills of those who work with the materials,’ says Deirdre. The result comprises artworks full of textural depth and light, made with large quantities of silk, like BLUE STONE, woven in silk with wool grouting, or DRY STONE featuring 13 natural stone hues.
L-R: STONEY GEMS, DRY STONE & BLUE STONE wall panels, hand knotted in Tibetan wool and pure silk
View the new collection and watch Deirdre discuss her inspiration for this collection with Design Journalist Amy Moorea Wong
Continuing its expansion in Paris, Deirdre Dyson now meets the needs of the most prestigious French architects, interior designers and specifiers by showcasing selected contemporary carpet designs at luxury interiors showroom Luxe d’intérieur.
By doing so, Deirdre Dyson now offers the same bespoke service provided in the UK, with design consultations held in a showroom dedicated to design.
WINDOWS hand knotted carpet on display at Luxe d’intérieur
Luxe d’Interieur brings exceptional design brands together in a unique location, where interiors specialists can view the very best furniture, fixtures, lighting, heating solutions and home automation in an apartment-style setting.
By appointment, Agnès Guillard (Sales and Marketing Manager Europe) will welcome you to this elegant space where selected Deirdre Dyson carpets sit within elegant surroundings that utilize the latest technology.
The monthly industry lunch at Luxe d’intérieur
Every month, a lunch is organized with invited guests from the interiors industry – a convivial opportunity to share views and projects and explore the brands on display in ‘real life’ surroundings.
The Luxe d’intérieur showroom is situated in 81 rue du rocher, Paris 8 – Metro Villers.
Strictly by appointment only.
Luxe d’intérieur – un lieu unique à Paris
Deirdre Dyson poursuit son développement et souhaite répondre aux besoins des plus prestigieux architectes, architectes d’intérieur de la capitale française et leur offrir le même niveau de service et de conseil qu’en Grande-Bretagne en intégrant un lieu dédié au design.
La célèbre marque anglaise de tapis contemporains expose désormais ses tapis au sein du Showroom Luxe d’intérieur.
Luxe d’intérieur est un showroom unique à Paris. Un vrai lieu du design qui regroupe des spécialistes de la rénovation et de la décoration d’intérieur.
Une offre complète présentée dans un lieu exceptionnel, qui accueille les architectes et architectes d’intérieur, afin d’étudier leurs projets et répondre à leurs besoins : mobilier, luminaires, tapisserie, solutions de chauffage et de domotique. Luxe d’intérieur a sélectionné des marques de prestige telles que Branco Sobre Branco, Orignal BTC, WorldStyle, Les ateliers Philippe Coudray ou encore Technologies d’intérieur.
L’espace est disposé, comme un appartement au design des plus raffinés articulé autour d’un salon, une salle à manger, une cuisine, une chambre, une salle de bains et une salle de cinéma privée. L’ensemble est géré par les dernières technologies domotiques qui rendront votre quotidien plus agréable.
Sur rendez-vous, Agnès Guillard (Responsable Commerciale et Marketing Europe de Deirdre Dyson) vous reçoit dans un lieu intégrant élégance et technicité.
Chaque mois, un déjeuner est organisé au showroom. Un moment de convivialité en présence des architectes, de leurs partenaires et des marques de référence, afin de partager leurs visions et leurs projets autour du design.
The Luxe d’intérieur showroom is situated in 81 rue du rocher, Paris 8 – Metro Villers.
