February Refurb and Renew magazine

: The Bamboo Papers are an exotic pattern adapted from an iconic 19th Century Japanese
print recreated by Farrow & Ball as a two-colour block-printed collection
Chartered Surveyors (RICS), the UK’s
construction industry is facing its greatest skills
crisis since 1998. Over half of respondents (53%)
reported difficulty sourcing labour, with 71%
saying they had struggled in recruiting
bricklayers, and 64% highlighting a dearth of
quantity surveyors.
Hair watch: Adele and The Duchess
Bad bobs and the Duchess of Cambridge’s subtly
changing hair. For me, the parallel has to be the
return to the interior décor of the seventies;
although, thank goodness, without the avocado
bathroom suites. Hotel rooms all seem to favour
the dirty brown carpets, green wallpaper with
brown and yellow stripes – I’m just waiting for
Del Boy wallpaper to come back in fashion,
which I actually quite like – oh, hang on; Farrow
& Ball has come to my rescue: it’s called Bamboo;
which in fact has been adapted from an iconic
19th Century Japanese print.
Everyone went mad for new label Self
Portrait
“If you’re still not up to speed on this brand you
need to know what everyone else clearly does –
a) they make feminine event dresses and b) they
sell them at a magic price of no more than £350,”
said Lisa Armstrong in her article. If only we could
‘conjure up’ a little more affordability to curb the
spiraling cost of buying a house in the UK.
gas by 2035 – with fuel poverty already killing
around 30,000 elderly people per annum, one
does wonder if this number will increase and what
the affordable, practical alternative might be.
Naked ambition, saved by TH DRESS
Boobs, bums and miniscule outfits were the
weapons of choice at many red carpet events in
2015; even, ironically, at the launch of the film
Suffragette, while at the Met Gala, Beyonce wore
a Barely There dress in gold.
Despite being seriously under-valued by Gordon
Brown, the precious metal is also the choice for
Akzo Nobel, in its ColorFuturesTM 2016 color
trend guide.
"Gold exemplifies the overall theme of duality,"
explained Heleen van Gent, Head of AkzoNobel's
Global Aesthetic Center. "It's bright enough to
attract attention, while subtly referring to history
and heritage. So it represents a fusion of our
past, our present and our future."
The creative director chasm
This year Alexander Wang, Raf Simons and Alber
Elbaz all left their top jobs at, respectively,
Balenciaga, Dior and Lanvin – apparently, down
to the huge commercial demands placed upon
designers in these roles; though it’s not just the
posh end of the rag trade that’s facing huge
pressures. According to the Royal Institution of
: Heatrae Sadia’s ultra slim Megaflo
is ideal for today’s smaller houses
Jan / Feb 2O16 issue 8955 refurb| RENEW 13