Nina Campbell’s Charleston Collection From And So To Bed

Saturday, October 22nd, 2011

Nina Campbell’s Charleston Collection From And So To Bed The magnificent new ‘Charleston Collection’ of beds and furniture, designed by Nina Campbell exclusively for And So To Bed, is launching in their King’s Road flagship store this October.

Nina marries mirror glass, silver lacquered wood and rich dark timbers, inspired by the dazzling zeitgeist of the 1930’s, to create a sophisticated architectural feel; upholstered elements give the final stamp of luxury to a collection, which oozes glamour.

The centrepiece of the collection is the ‘Maud’ bed (from £4,325), (in our picture,) upholstered and dressed with Nina Campbell’s own fabrics.

Silver leaf and mirror glass add subtly reflective elements. Elegant and extremely romantic, it captures a look, which is perfectly situated between retro and modern classic.

Combining Nina Campbell’s design vision with And So To Bed’s exceptional craft skills, all of the pieces in the collection work separately and together to offer great decorative potential.

The range also includes the charming ‘Gladys’ desk/dressing table (£2,595) of which Nina Campbell says, “This piece will work equally well in a bedroom, a sitting room or even a small hall.”

The ‘Claudette’ medium chest (£2,125) and ‘Ella’ bedside chest (£1,550) are also beautiful pieces in their own right. Nina has designed them to work both as independent elements and as bedside tables.

The massive ‘Wallis’ wardrobe (£5,125) is a wonderfully luxurious piece of furniture and, in common with all of the Charleston Collection, is beautifully finished inside and out, with interiors lined in decorative timbers including acacia and sycamore.

The ‘Uno’ padded ottoman (from £2,075) is another favourite piece of Nina’s, “It’s good looking and hardworking; it provides storage space for extra blankets, but you can also put books or a tray on it, or even use it as a seat.”
And So To Bed has showrooms throughout the UK.

To view the superb new ‘Charleston Collection’ of beds and furniture, designed by Nina Campbell, please visit the website.

Tel: (0808) 1444343

Read more about : Bedroom Furniture, Beds, Wardrobes

Homes &Interiors Scotland Exhibition 2011

Friday, October 21st, 2011

Homes &Interiors Scotland Exhibition 2011 The Annual Homes & Interiors Scotland Exhibition is returning to Glasgow’s SECC on the 28th – 30th October 2011, bringing together a wide range of exciting attractions to improve your home and lifestyle.

Show highlights include the inspiring Interior Design Showcase, where the country’s leading interior designers show their unique takes on six different rooms sets, a Kids’ Zone filled with fabulous ideas for children and, for the first time, a Christmas Fair featuring luxurious gifts and stimulating décor ideas.

The Talented Makers section is returning to the show for a second year, presenting the work of the country’s finest up-and-coming furniture and craft makers.

Editor’s Picks, the show’s most popular attraction, features modern and contemporary designs from around the world, plus talks by one of the UK’s leading artists and interior designers, and President Elect of the British Institute of Interior Design, Sue Timney.

The Exhibition will also present a host of high profile chefs, landscapers and gardeners, who will be on hand over the weekend sharing their tips, tricks of the trade and trend predictions for 2012.

The exhibition will be split into zones with exhibitors grouped together by sector, to make it easier than ever to find exactly what you’re looking for.

There will even be a state of the art cinema room, kitted out in the latest high tech gadgets from Loud & Clear, plus a demonstration area.

Presentations will take place over the weekend in the show’s Design Theatre, in addition to TV personalities including interior designer John Amabile.

Meanwhile the hugely popular champagne bar and wine tasting area, will give you the chance to take a break from browsing to sample some fine tipples.

There will also be a host of retailers exhibiting with something to suit every style and budget.

Key Information:

  • Opening times: 10am until 5pm, Friday 28th to Sunday 30th October 2011. Advance tickets £7
  • From ticket soup: £7 (plus £1 booking fee) www.ticketsoup.com or 0844 395 4000.
  • On-the-door tickets, £10 per person.

For more detailed information on the Homes & Interiors Scotland Exhibition, please visit the website.
Tel: (0141) 567 6025

The featured picture – courtesy of Amabile Designs.

Read more about : Contemporary Furniture, Home Interiors, Shows and Events

Gilbert’s New Knife Design Food Preparation Boards

Thursday, October 20th, 2011

Gilbert'sGilbert’s the leading supplier of kitchen products, have introduced a new designer food preparation board that offers a trendy twist to this kitchen essential.

Featured on the board are numerous knives, which highlight perfectly the main function of the board, with the added benefit that this board will not ruin your kitchen knives.

The NSF approved boards are made from Eco friendly natural wood fibre:

  • Knife-friendly, non porous and will not harbour bacteria, stains or odours.
  • The boards are extremely hard-wearing, maintenance free, temperature resistant to 170o C and dishwasher safe.
  • Sizes: -11″ x 9″ (28cm x 23cm) Priced at £22.95, 14″ x 11″ (35cm x 28cm) Priced at £38.00.

These boards are available to purchase from Top Gourmet and department stores, online and from independent cook shops.

Gilberts offer many products to enhance any kitchen, from food preparation, through cooking to tabletop and fine dining, whether for domestic or professional use.
From knives by Gustav Emil Ern or Solicut, valued by leading chefs, to Swiss Diamond cookware featured on numerous TV cookery programs, there are utensils for every culinary purpose.

To view the Gilberts’ range of designer food preparation boards and more, please visit the Top Gourmet website.

Read more about : Kitchen Accessories

Reduce Soaring Domestic Gas Bills With A Zenex GasSaver

Wednesday, October 19th, 2011

Reduce Soaring Domestic Gas Bills With A Zenex GasSaver The latest solution to deal with current dramatically rising gas bills is now available from Zenex with their GasSaver, an energy saving device, which reduces the gas consumption required for domestic hot water by up to 40%!

The Zenex GasSaver is a boiler flue attachment that recovers heat from the waste combustion gases normally lost, and uses it to pre-heat the domestic hot water supply.

It is installed on top of a standard gas boiler as part of the flue-way and recycles heat from the waste gas.

Chris Farrell, Managing Director at Zenex Technologies said: “With all of the big six energy providers raising their prices in the last months by up to 19%, millions of Britons face a huge increase in their gas bills. Many consumers are desperate for proven money-saving solutions that will reduce their soaring expenditures.”

“The Zenex GasSaver is a device that is easy to install, has no moving parts, is silent, and does not require any electricity or gas to operate. The device recovers heat from the flue gases and helps the boiler deliver hot water much faster to the tap, reducing the need to run lukewarm water down the drain, saving both water and energy consumption.”

With average gas consumption bills of £850 per household, the Zenex GasSaver can reduce the bills by up to £220 per year.

The patented GasSaver has been independently tested by the Building Research Establishment and added to their list of approved energy saving devices.

The Zenex GasSaver is priced around £500 and is a highly cost-effective addition to a new boiler installation.

It is sold under licence by the boiler manufacturers, Baxi and Alpha, as the Baxi MultiFit GasSaver and Alpha GasSaver.

The GasSaver is also recognised under the Government’s SAP scheme and can be used to count towards the energy rating of a dwelling. These energy savings, can also help a dwelling reach the various standards under the Code For Sustainable Homes.

For more details and a full technical specification of The Zenex GasSaver, please visit the website.

Read more about : Central Heating Boilers, Condensing Boilers, Gas Boilers

Furniture Village Introduces ‘Home Hub’ Seating

Tuesday, October 18th, 2011

Furniture Village Introduces The 'Home Hub' Seating System Furniture Village has introduced the new ‘Home Hub’ luxury range of sofas and chairs to their stores, presented as ‘the perfect addition for the ultimate bachelor pad’.

The ‘Home Hub’ range, made exclusively for Furniture Village, comprises of a 4 seater corner sofa with chaise, which boasts an innovative hidden cooling or storage compartment, and if that’s not enough, the range also includes a state of the art leather swivel chair with a-built in Bluetooth® surround sound speaker system.

The new range has been designed with comfort and convenience in mind:

  • The swivel chair allows the customer to wirelessly listen to music or audio-books, in the comfort of their own home via a speaker system, which is cleverly hidden under stylish leather, ensuring the modern-day design of the chair is not compromised.
  • As well as having integral surround sound, the new seating system allows people to fetch a chilled drink without even leaving the comfort of their sofa. The sophisticated cooling compartment within the sofa includes a cup holder – just perfect for chilling beer or soft drinks.
  • The collection is available in more than 30 different colours and can be purchased either in individual modular units or as a complete set.

The normal retail price of the ‘Home hub swivel chair’ is £999; however, in the Furniture Village sale, there is 35% off this price – making it just £649.

The ‘Home Hub 4 seater corner sofa with chaise’ normally retails at £2,899, but with 30% off in the sale, it’s now just £1,955.

To view the whole ‘Home Hub’ seating range, please visit the sofas and chairs section on the Furniture Village website, or visit one of the 39 stores nationwide.

Read more about : Home Entertainment, Leather Chairs, Leather Sofas

Top Tips For Weatherproofing Your Home For Winter

Monday, October 17th, 2011

Top Tips For Weatherproofing Your Home For Winter NHBC, the UK’s leading warranty provider and standards setting body for new build homes, is offering the following tips to keep your home watertight and draught free for the coming winter:

There are many things we can and should do to protect our homes from the effects of harsh weather and good planning also helps to reduce maintenance and utility costs.

Gutters: Gutters should be cleaned out at least once a year to remove leaves and debris. Wet patches on the walls below (both external and internal) may indicate that gutters or downpipes are blocked.

Paintwork: External finishes will become dirty over time and, where appropriate should be washed on a regular basis. Owners of new homes should consider repainting after two years. You may need to repaint more often if you live by the sea or in an exposed area.

Drainage access: Inspection chambers and rodding eyes are there to provide access to the drainage system below ground – so it’s important that these are not covered by soil, turf or paving.

Flat roofs: Flat roofs should be inspected once a year, to ensure that they remain in sound condition and rainwater outlets checked to ensure that they are not blocked.

Heating Systems: Central heating boilers should be checked and serviced at least once a year by a registered competent maintenance engineer, to check they remain safe.

ChimneysShould be swept at least once a year (unless the notice plate suggests alternative maintenance arrangements) to prevent chimney fires and the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.

Bleeding radiators: If you notice that a radiator is warm at the bottom but cool at the top, this indicates that there is air in the system, which prevents the warm circulating water from reaching the top of the radiator. If this is noticed, the radiator will require bleeding.

Cold Spots: An important job as winter creeps in, is to make sure that the house is free of draughts. Look for potential cold spots, and take the necessary cheap and simple measures to eliminate them, to keep the heating down and the home comfortably warm.

If your home is covered by NHBC’s 10 year Buildmark warranty and you spot any problems within the first two years after the home is finished, you should notify the builder in the first instance (keeping a copy of any correspondence) telling them about the damage or defects to your home.

If the builder fails to meet his obligations or it is after the two-year period (years 3-10), contact NHBC on 0844 633 1000, or visit http://www.nhbc.co.uk for further advice.

Read more about : Building Services, DIY Advice

Easifit – Replacement Cylinders For uPVC Door Locks

Sunday, October 16th, 2011

Easifit - Replacement Cylinders For uPVC Door Locks A range of hardwearing replacement cylinders for uPVC door locks has been launched — Easifit by Kasp, the leading security brand from Carl Kammerling International.

Consisting of 16 double euro profile cylinders, in eight of the most popular sizes and two finishes – Brass and Nickel, the convenient Kasp Easitfit range has been designed to provide homeowners with a quick and simple increased security solution.

The 5 pin cylinders are anti-drill for added security and have the additional benefit of being ‘key both sides’; which allows the lock to be operated even when a key is left in the opposite side.

Easifit is a well-timed development, as the latest statistics on home security have highlighted some disquieting trends among homeowners:

  • An Esure Home Insurance survey published earlier this year revealed an alarming 70% of new homeowners never change their locks, despite a fifth of all previous homeowners retaining the keys to their old homes.
  • The research also highlighted that 11% of Brits do not change their locks after losing a set of keys.
  • Following the surprising survey results, Kasp has targeted consumers directly to challenge common misunderstanding around the need to change cylinder locks.

Eye-catching and informative in-store sales support has been introduced, highlighting the importance of changing locks , designed to increase awareness and inform the consumer on how easy it is to replace door cylinders.

Also available are free measuring guides, to help customers ascertain the required cylinder size before making a purchase.

For more information about the Easifit euro profile cylinders by Kasp, please visit the website.

Tel: (01758) 704704

Read more about : Security Services, Wireless Alarm Systems

It’s Time To Put Back Your Clock!

Saturday, October 15th, 2011

It’s Time To Put Back Your Clock! Summer is replaced by autumn officially on Sunday 30th October when the clocks go back by one hour.

Kids’ Rooms, the leading children’s online retailer, has introduced a brand new range of colourful, fun wall and alarm clocks to make those darker, colder mornings that little bit more cheerful.

The ever-tricky task of learning to tell the time is a continuing challenge for many children (and parents!).

However, the new collection of easy to read and colourful clocks from Kids’ Rooms facilitates effortless understanding, with its comprehensive range of children’s “easy-to-read” clocks:

  • With clear, large numbers and eye-catching clock-face designs, children are encouraged to learn to tell the time with a clock they really enjoy watching.
  • Additionally, every clock in the Kids’ Rooms collection has a silent tick mechanism, to ensure children sleep soundly all night and wake up feeling refreshed for the day ahead.
  • Kids’ Rooms’ fantastic range of colourful clocks makes clock-watching fun – there’s a clock to suit every child’s taste and interest; from the super-sonic Rocket Clock and playful Jungle Fun Clock, to the delectable Fairycake Wall Clock, pretty Pink Pony Clock and classic favourite – the Flowers Wall Clock featured here.
  • There is also has a beautiful range based on hand-painted designs; including vibrant and fun designs such as Noah’s Animals, Friendly Dinosaur, Pretty Butterflies and Duelling Pirates.
  • The traditional retro-cool ringing of the Pink Ponies Alarm will put a smile on their faces and help begin the day happily!

To view the whole Kids Room’s fantastic range of colourful clocks, please visit the website.
Stockist Tel: (02380) 675941

Read more about : Clocks

Cormar Carpet’s New Stain Resistant Primo Delight Range

Friday, October 14th, 2011

Cormar Carpet’s Stain Resistant Primo Delight Range Cormar Carpets has launched a new heavyweight, stain resistant Primo Delight carpet range, designed to add a touch of luxury to the home.

This durable, low maintenance carpet collection is available in 12 very popular non-fade flecked heather shades – including fashionable Violet, Raven and Steel – making easy living more stylish than before.

David Cormack of Cormar Carpets commented: “In these difficult economic times shoppers are increasingly looking for better value carpets and we feel that Primo Delight really hits the spot!

It looks every bit as good as it feels and offers all the advantages of a deep pile heavyweight carpet, suitable for all areas of the home together with the added bonuses that easy clean carpets bring.”

Primo Delight is made from 100% stain resistant Excellon polypropylene fibre.
In line with other members of Cormar’s Easy Clean brand, the collection is bleach cleanable and comes with a 10year stain guarantee.
Expected to retail at around £22 per sq metre.

Said David: “Our ‘family’ of Easy Clean carpets has been a huge success over the past few years and with its stain resistant qualities and non-fade colours, Primo Delight is perfect to cope with hectic family lives and our confidence is reflected in the full 10 year warranty.”

Included in the Cormar Carpets’ Easy Clean ranges are Apollo, Primo Plus, Tweeds, Ultra, plus the new Delight.

For more information on Cormar Carpet’s Easy Clean collections, please visit the website.

Read more about : Tiles & Flooring

Roca’s Senso Square Bathroom Furniture Range

Thursday, October 13th, 2011

Roca’s Senso Square Bathroom Furniture Range Roca’s Senso Square furniture range is just the thing if your bathroom needs brightening up, to help you face those dull winter mornings.

You don’t need to completely renovate your bathroom just to add some colour to the room; simply include a space efficient column or base unit, in a bold and revitalising colour such as red, (as pictured here) will provide the perfect solution for tired and dreary washrooms.

Senso Square

  • Includes a stylish and adaptable range of matching units, finished in three matt lacquer finishes red, black and white.
  • The compact furniture consists of a column module (301x183x1500mm, (approx. £610), as well as base units in a selection of four sizes – from small and compact – 306x258x540mm (approx. £447) to large and practical 946x450x540mm (approx. £812).
  • The sleek, towering column module is fitted with multiple shelves – perfect for storing bathroom toiletries and towels.The base units come with aluminium pull handles and are all water resistant, keeping the inside compartments clean and dry.

For further information about Roca’s Senso Square furniture range, please visit the website.

Read more about : Bathroom Cabinets, Bathroom Furniture, Bathroom Vanity Units