SHORTLIST - TEA TOWELS

Painterly designs and graphic motifs that will add decorative notes to your kitchen. Menagerie 100% linen tea towel, exclusive design by Michael Angove for Avenida Home.  Linen tea towel available at SCP, London www.scp.com 

Gypsy Spirit

Lift your room and your mood instantly with a splash of boho colour, says thehousedirectory.com's Nicolette Le Pelley.

Hand Made in the UK using the finest materrials Folk Stripe Round Table Mats and Drinks Coasters by Alabasta are an exclusive design for Avenida Home.

Garden Florals By Amy Bradford

Prints, embroideries and appliqued fabrics featuring prettY blooms formed a counterpoint to the trend for modern digital florals that has reigned in recent seasons.  Work a traditional country garden look with trailing roses, clusters of daisies and romantic watercolour prints, on everything!

"Pink Rose" Round Table Mats and Drinks Coasters By Michael Angove for Avenida Home. Exclusively available at Article Design, Dublin and SCP, London (www.scp.com) 

Add witt and romance to a simple dinner - His and Her's Table Mats by Nathalie Lete.

Article Dublin

Today’s introduction goes to a shop that houses as much interesting history as it does extraordinary gifts. In the thriving heart of Dublin, Article sits in a Powerscourt House that housed Richard Wingfield the 3rd in the 18th century. By 1830, this gorgeous building was sold to the government for official use and was eventually turn into a boutique shopping center in 1981.

The interior of the building still holds the charm and character it had when constructed a few centuries ago. This precise craftsmanship is still visible in the traditional Irish tendril plasterwork on the ceilings of the shop and much more of the space around.

Article shop opened in 2010 by John Adams in what used to be Wingfield’s dressing and bedroom and has been a source of inspiration to anyone who walks inside its confines. There is a wide array of carefully chosen gifts and home accessories available there and the place is bound to stun the visitors with its many details.

Last but not least, you can find contemporary British designers like Alabasta, and longside the National Gallery and V&A beautifully fitting in the displays of this shop. Some of the trays offered here are available to view on the Article Dublin website but make sure to visit 22 Powerscourt Townhouse, South William St if you find yourself near Dublin.

The Butcher’s daughter.

If you’re looking for something a little different for your table settings, our Butcher’s Daughter tablemats fit the bill. Bursting with eccentric and fun imagery, these unusual designs brim with humour and are sure to inspire a spot of table talk. The Butcher and The Butcher’s Wife designs feature a collage of quirky motifs set against a traditional chequered background. If you fancy creating a unique tabletop set, Butcher’s Daughter is also available as square drinks coasters. We also think this design works well with Nathalie’s Charcuterie Coq and Hen placemats and Deli worktop saver.

The family orientated theme is eccentric and fun – typical of Nathalie Lete’s underlying and addictive humour. Featuring the entire family from the butcher himself to his mum, dad, wife, son and daughter, these square drinks coasters make for an unusual gift, or will add a touch of eccentricity to your own table settings.

This new Avenida Home collection is available on our website and shall be showcased for the first time at Maison et Objet in Paris from 7-11 September, Hall 7, D63.

Alternatively for those living in the UK, catch the first glimpse of these products at Tent London 2012. For this first hand experience, make sure to visit us at Stand F17, Hall T1.

First-class dispatches from Lucia van der Post, the grande dame of luxury

Every household needs a tray…or better still, two, or three and there is no better trays than the iconic birch wood trays. Dill is the latest and most beautiful Chinoiserie design by Michael Angove, they come in natural and black and are available from Avenida Home.

NEW from Avenida Home

Why not bring a sprig of greenery to your table settings with Michael’s Dill round placemats. Set against a bold black background, the vivid greens and striking whites of the dill and feathery sword fern make this comtemporary Chinoiserie print jump out at you. Surprisingly lifelike, you’d be forgiven for thinking a butterfly had just landed on your table setting. Also available as round drinks coasters, go with the natural theme and pair your Dill coasters and placemats with Michael’s Feathers tablemats.

Striking design that brings nature indoors

As we gradually find our way into Autumn, the winds of changes remind us of the green and gracious space around us. However as the leaves start to fall down, we encourage ourselves to bring the leaves indoors and recreate what is outside. In the October 2012 issue of Homes and Gardens magazine, we see the Dill Chinoiserie by Michael Angove as a part of the accessories list inspired by sylvan scenes. Why not visit Avenida Home for Dill Chinoiserie placemats and drinks coasters.

The award winning, design led department store in the heart of Bath that never ceases to impress

The round 49 cm Ary Tray designed by Alabasta is without a doubt, the eye catching spot on this inspiring window display at Rossiters of Bath.

The 20×27 cm small tray featured as a part of the display is also from the Alabasta Blue Fish collection by Ary Trays. This is the alternative handy choice that fits perfectly those two intimate cups of tea and their accompanying biscuits.

Rossiters of Bath have been around since 1961 and continue to be one of Bath’s most prestigeous and authentic homeware shops. Their selection of functional and beautiful home accessories is amazing. Make sure to pay a visit if you find yourself in Bath.

Celebrating the 10th anniversary of the London Design Festival

We love browsing Homes & Antiques magazine as it is always full of inspiring ideas, interesting things to see and do. The recently published September issue is one to read. Check out the feature on London Design Festival and make a date in the diary to go to the Domestic Matters exhibition curated by Brian Kennedy and Peter Ting.

The London Design Festival will be taking place from the 14th – 23rd of September and it is set to host much art and talent in most fields of design. If you are not a regular commuter to the East End of London this is the time to discover this vibrant part of the city. Pop in to the multi-faceted design event Tent London 2012, and be the first to discover some of the greatest emerging talents in the design world. Avenida Home will be in Hall T1, Stand F17 and will unveil for the first time, the Alabasta place mats collection.

Inspiring photograph by Jan Baldwin showing the Folk Stripe place mats designed by Alabasta. Full collection will be showcased at Tent London 2012 T1, F17. Be sure to look at the website Avenida Home.

New Brand distributed by Avenida Isabel

Avenida Home is a design led British brand founded by Isabel Saiz – The idea behind its first table top collection is to bring together art, craftsmanship and functionality.

Featuring on the place mats , table mats and coasters are much loved pieces of art by Michael Angove and Nathalie Lete and contemporary designs by Alabasta and Puddin’head.

The products are a celebration of British craftsmanship. The strength and durability is due to the high quality materials: 4.8 mm eucalyptus board from renewable sources, rich black baize felt on the reverse, and a protective fine melamine coating heat resistant to 160°C.

Puddin’head have been featured on the front cover of The New Artisans: Handmade Designs for Contemporary Living by Oliver Dupon. A book that has sourced the cream of contemporary craft from all over the world.

The practice of handmade craft has undergone a huge resurgence in recent times. This book captures the new mood – a return to a preference for the unique and the artisanal. Dozens of designers and makers are featured, who use craft techniques rather than mass-production methods to create stylish, whimsical, covetable objects.

Design expert and acclaimed blogger Olivier Dupon has sourced the cream of the contemporary craft world from all over Europe, Australia and the United States. His keen eye and creative flair have led him to be featured in many style magazines. Complete with an introduction as well as the author’s personal recommendations for inspiring shops, websites and blogs to visit, this is the perfect resource for discovering unique and beautiful objects handcrafted by new, talented artisans from around the world.

Puddin’head is the creation of Richard McAdam. From early cartographers’ descriptions to the New World and its fantastic creatures to the surrealist movement’s of the subconscious imagination, Richards sources of inspiration are diverse. If there is any underlying thread in his work, it is the gentle humour that is more whimsical than hard-edged.

Anabel Cutler, Deputy Editor of Elle Decoration selected this Bluebellgray chair, crafted by Roger Lewis as one of the top things to see at TENT.

Bluebellgray is an exciting, young, Scottish textile design company specialising in the home interiors market. Influenced by a love of colour and all things floral, the designs are something unique and special, each design is painted by hand in the Bluebellgray studio before being printing onto natural cottons and linens using state of the art printing technology. The printing methods used by Bluebellgray enable every brushstroke and colour to be captured enhancing the feel of the hand painted design. The pieces have a sense of provenance and the designer behind the product, adding to the feeling of exclusivity.