Sania Pell

orchids & architecture: singapore

June 11, 2013  in flowers, inspiring places

Singapore was the most wonderful place to stop over on our way home from Australia. We broke up our return journey with a two day visit to this amazing city. We had heard some reports of it feeling a little sterile, but we found it fascinating and absolutely loved it. They have embraced modern architecture (we felt as if we were part of a science fiction film set at times) and, in contrast, other parts of the city felt like you were immersed in the old mysterious Orient.

Our first stop was the newly opened Gardens by the Bay. The Cloud Forest dome was fantastic with a 90 foot waterfall cascading from the man-made mountain inside, mossy trees nearby and walls filled vertically with an enormous range of tropical plants and flowers. There must have been every type of Orchid in all shapes, sizes and colours. The mists were ‘switched on’ at various times and the whole dome enclosed you in its artificial cloud which my children absolutely loved. The Flower Dome next door was also wonderful.

There were also towering, tree-like sculptural metal structures with plants growing upwards around their trunks. The walkway linking these metal trees allowed great views across the gardens but even these towers, which felt high from the top, were dwarfed by the huge hotel next door – The Marina Bay Sands.

We walked through the Heritage Gardens, over the foot bridge and took the lift to the 58th floor observation deck where the view was out of this world, across the city and out over the bay; tankers in the shipping lanes below us looked like ants and the sheer volume of them was unexpected.

I love the juxtaposition of tropical flowers with modern buildings and Singapore did this so well.

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fluoro & flora in elle decoration

May 28, 2013  in interior styling, news

After Chelsea flower show last week and all the floral fringe events that have been happening in London, I wanted to show you the six page story I shot with photographer Uli Schade for the June issue Elle Decoration magazine which is out now. We shot my flower-themed interior story early this year at Julia Bostock‘s beautiful new skyrooms location in Sussex. The room sets were simple,  with what I call a Japanavian or Scandanese feel – I know, I made the words up! But I love how these two wonderful design aesthetics can be visually combined.

This issue preview video gives a peak into the magazine:

Japanese and Scandinavian are two of my favourite design styles. I think I am naturally drawn to this style of furniture, beautifully made in natural and tactile materials, light, classic and simple furniture accessorised with graphic, hand-crafted ceramics.

There are so many people involved in a shoot like this and to mention just a few; textile artist Debbie Smyth made a beautiful, threaded floral picture especially for the shoot, Libby from local Ipswich florist Myrtle & Mint came along and helped me with the flowers, Polly Ord who assisted me and of course all the shops and designers that lent me their products. They are all listed in the magazine but if you would like to know about any specific items do leave a comment on this post and I’ll add their details.

I wanted to add some unique and handmade touches that readers can make themselves at home. These included silk flowers dipped into plaster of Paris, Cole & Son wallpaper cut out and reconfigured on the walls, floral canvases and spraying hydrangeas with yellow fluorescent paint plus a favourite of mine: wrapping vases with fabric and leather.

I will be adding these photos to my folio gallery soon but you can pick up a copy in newsagents now before the July issue comes out.

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weathered glamour

May 20, 2013  in inspiring places, interior styling

From Sydney we flew up to Cairns in Queensland, hired a car and drove an hour North to the sweet, relaxed seaside town of Port Douglas. It was the perfect location to visit the Great Barrier Reef and explore the Daintree Rainforest. The vibe was quite different to Sydney, but I loved its relaxed charm.

The wonderful use of corrugated tin and wooden planking as textural building materials, either painted and smart or untreated and raw, rusting patina next to weathered wood. In a local bar, where we watched cane toad racing, the rusting tin was juxtaposed against twinkling chandeliers and more utilitarian ceiling fans and pendant lights. An unexpected and successful combination.

It was the wet season when we visited and with this comes rain, short heavy bursts of it. Looking through the car window there were rain specks dotted all over, rather like here in London but the views were however quite different. I couldn’t help snapping away as we drove the coastal highway, continuing my ‘through the window‘ series on another continent.

Wonderful palm trees swaying in the wind, fields of sugar cane and the most beautiful sea views and skys. Heavenly.

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two years old

May 16, 2013  in news

I can’t quite believe my blog is two years old today. Like a child, its personality is developing and growing and I still feel like a toddler amongst the blogging community.

Thank you to all of you who stop by and read my posts and for the wonderful support I have been given. I have met some really lovely people through blogging in the last couple of years, online and then in person, and for that I am truly grateful.

Lots of love

Sania x

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details of sydney: mud ceramics

May 10, 2013  in handmade goodness, inspiring places

Another shop that I was really looking forward to visiting in Sydney was Mud. Their store at 134 Edgecliff Road in Woollahra was close to where we were staying, so I popped in to have a browse and take some snaps. I often use their handmade porcelain plates, bowls and cups when styling commercial photo shoots, drawn to it at the prop houses by the beautiful soft colours and mix of matt and gloss finishes.

I bought a little ceramic beaker as a memento of my visit to the shop and would have bought much more if I hadn’t been worried about the pieces getting damaged during the flights on the remainder of our trip.

You can see and find out more on the Mud Australia website.

The Mud website lists only three UK stockists; The Conran Shop, Designers Guild and Zecca, who amazingly is only a 10 minute walk from my house! I will be popping along there soon to see what they have in stock.

For now though I am happy with my little piece of Mud on display.

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details of sydney: sibella’s society

April 30, 2013  in inspiring places, interior styling

Sydney is full of interesting and exciting independent shops without the mass of high street chain shops thet we have here in the UK. One Thursday morning I visited a shop I have wanted to visit for a long time: The Society Inc, stylist and author Sibella Court’s shop at 18 Stewart Street, Paddington. With time restrictions on us, my husband and son went off with the camera to Deus Ex Machina, a shop he has been lusting at from afar for a long time too, and I headed to Sibella’s store with our daughter, armed only with my iPhone to take snaps (so please excuse the quality).

Having viewed the shop online from London it was a treat to visit, a treasure trove of curiosities and useful every day handy items. It was a small shop packed to the rafters with interesting bits and bobs, a combination of vintage, utility and sparkly. Everywhere your eye turned a new goodie was spotted. There was also a beautiful selection of paint designed by The Society Inc for Murobond, colours changing each quarter to transport you to different ‘societies’. I chatted with lovely Hannah in the store who kindly let me take these photos.

Sibella is a stylist and author whose work I admire and her books, Etcetera, Nomad and Bowerbird, are a joy to look through and a pleasure to have on my shelves, now even more so after visiting her gorgeous shop. If you are ever in Sydney do drop by.

Of course I came home wih a few treats, including a sparkly item that now sits on my mantlepiece glinting in the sun. I think I must be part magpie, part bowerbird.

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