Bob and Friends

I love being the bearer of good news, especially when it involves the opening of a fabulous furniture and homeware store in one of my favourite shopping precincts. Bob and Friends have opened up on Auckland's Ponsonby Rd and I had the pleasure of popping in recently for a look around. As soon as I set foot inside the spacious store I was met with an eye catching array of designer wares including furniture, rugs, pouffes, art, lighting, ceramics, cushions... the list goes on! 

Bob and Friends (the Bob stands for Best of British) owner Ron Redel is responsible for bringing world renowned UK-based SCP Furniture to our shores, in addition to boutique products sourced from around the world. With an extensive background in the London furniture industry, Ron is passionate about great design. 

Having admired the String Shelving System for such a long time, I was really excited to see that the Scandinavian design classic is available exclusively through Bob and Friends. 

More design goodness in-store... 

I love everything from the Donna Wilson range, so thought I'd share a few of her gorgeous designs with you. You can see more here. 

I'm on the lookout for a dining table, stools and lighting right now. These would do nicely! 

A true British design classic, the gorgeous Robin Day chairs have just arrived, including new designs such as the Pepperpot Stool. They come in a range of brights and are really affordable. I think the hard part will be deciding on which colours...

The store is located at 62 Ponsonby Rd and is open seven days. There is also a Bob and Friends 'store within a store' at Homage in Newmarket and you can shop online. Make sure you 'like' their Facebook page to stay up to date with new arrivals! 

Images courtesy of Bob and Friends and here. 

In case you're wondering, the new Bob and Friends store was formerly home to the Endemic World pop up store I featured prior to Christmas. The NZ art prints store has now moved to a permanent location just downstairs. We're working together on something exciting, so keep a lookout on the blog later this week! 

London Calling

With the Olympic Games in full swing, London is the place to be right now. It's one of my favourite cities but for us Kiwi folk it's a long way to travel. Luckily there's lots of design inspiration around the web right now to keep us on the pulse! These images have caught my eye recently. 




01. One of the images from a slide show by photographer Edmund Sumner showcasing architecture created for the London games. Spotted here in Dezeen Magazine. 

02. Boat Magazine (which by the way has nothing to do with boats) is a bi-annual publication that bases itself in a different city for each issue. A move to London to produce the latest issue has resulted in over 100 pages about the capital. Published by Boat Studio, a design agency, the photography and illustrations are top-notch.

03. The phenomenal success of British Fashion Designer Stella McCartney is due to her design talents, rather than her famous parents. Since graduating from Central Saint Martins she worked for top fashion label Chloe, before launching her own fashion line in 2001. She now has 16 stores and her collections are distributed in more than 50 countries worldwide. Her partnership with sports giant Adidas has seen her design The British Team Kit for London 2012.

04. Founded by Sir Terence Conran, one of the most influential British designers of our time, The Conran Shop has become one of the leading lifestyle retailers in the world. The stores make up part of the Conran Group, a brand that encompasses all areas of design including, architecture, interior, product and graphic design. The Conran Shop is currently celebrating the Olympics with its Fly the Flag Range of red, white and blue products. This Classic Toy Racing Car is one of them!

05. The London Underground Map was designed by Harry Beck in 1931 when the Tube grew so large it became impossible to map the lines and stations geographically. The map is now considered a design classic; in 2006 it was voted one of three favourite British designs of the last century.

06. This Anarchy in the UK T-shirt, by Vivienne Westwood and Malcolm McLaren, 1977-8, worn and altered by Johnny Rotten can be seen at the British Design 1948–2012 exhibition currently showing at the V&A Museum in London (see more on this at number 09 below).  

07. British design studio Barber Osgerby designed the stunning London 2012 Olympic Torch, for which they won the Design of the Year 2012. Chosen from 89 entries, the award designed by Swarovski was presented at an awards ceremony held at the Design Museum in London earlier this year.

08. A design by British graphic designer, typographer, art director and brand strategist Neville Brody who was included in the line up of 'Best of British Design' in a recent article by UK publication the Guardian. Well known as director of cult magazine The Face during the '80's, he started his own design practice, Research Studios in 1994. Based in London, studios have since been opened in Paris, Berlin, Barcelona with representation in New York and Tokyo.  

09. British Design 1948–2012: Innovation in the Modern Age is currently showing at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London until August 12th. The last time London hosted the Olympics was in 1948 and the exhibition looks at how London has changed by way of buildings, objects, images and ideas produced by designers and artists born, trained or based in Britain. This Festival of Britain poster was designed by Abram Games, 1951.

10. Manufactured by Hille, the Hillestack chair was designed in 1950 by Robin Day. One of Britain's most influential furniture designers of the 20th Century, he introduced contemporary furniture to post-war Britain.