Totally loved the Maison Martin Margiela exhibition

Yesterday, I took my mum and Mila to see the Maison Martin Margiela Exhibition at Somerset House which ends next weekend. So three generations, three different reactions....

My mum told me that she wouldn't have gone there by herself but she enjoyed it and thought it was interesting. My five years-old daughter to who I was saying that it was important that she saw other creative things than Cbeebies or Ben10 told me that 'nothing was really important' but she loved the Fashion Show invit' done on a plate and the people who were filming themselves at home wearing Margiela's clothes and I really enjoyed finding out more about this unique fashion designer, understand the inspiration behind some of his clothes and have a peek at his inspiring offices in Paris.

Maison Martin Margiela is one of the world's most influential fashion houses and is especially known for its deconstructivist approach, its fashion shows in unexpected places and its taste for recycling materials.
One of the most remarkable characteristics of Maison Martin Margiela is its consistent use of white (something I favour) in offices, shops and showrooms.
More than the clothes themselves which are not always easy to wear - I'm thinking of the fur jacket made from blonde wigs from the Spring-Summer 2009 Artisanal Collection which took 51 hours to make, I have always admired Martin Margiela's scenography in shops and his home and how he uses typography and from an interior design point of view rather than fashion, this was a very good and inspiring exhibition to see.
Sadly we could not take any pictures inside but I took as many as I could outside. I hope it will give you a feel of it but if you can, I recommend you go there next weekend as it ends next Sunday!

If you go there, you may want to get hold of a copy of the Exhibition catalogue which is full of inspiring ideas to use typo and I think I may steal a few ideas from the show to display our family pictures at home. Wishing you a good week!

Very cute :-)

Whatever it takes to fly....they look adorable!

(C) Photo: jwlphotography Via Lotta Agaton via iiiinspired

Blue, white, grey...A dream holiday house

When I was in France last week, I saw this beautiful home in Marie-Claire Maison and tought you would love to see how Architect Yorgos Zaphiriou created a soothing, relaxing, simple home with hues of blues, greys and whites. I mean I don't know how the weather is where you live but here in London, it's pretty gloomy, so we have to do everything we can to keep our heads in the clouds and hang onto this holidays feel just a little bit longer, right?!
So let's have a peek and get some inspiration for the weekend...

This home which is located on the isle of Serifos, was before six small houses where miners used to live and I think it's really nice to see how Yorgos kept the original features of the house while making a few changes inside to create a welcoming open-plan home.

Inside the house, Yorgos got all the internal walls knocked down to create a 32 meter long room and created little corners and acolves within the room to break down the space. I really like how simple the kitchen is which is what cooking on holidays should be about.
All the appliances are hidden away below a concrete bench painted in grey and white and the hanging lights are made up with galvanised buckets. You probably can get some from any hardware shop or from Labour & Wait in Bricklane. Personally I think white pendant lights like the ones designed by Kathleen Hills would have looked striking in this corner.

I'm really loving the grey Low Lita seats designed by Paola Navone but as an alternative the Ball chair in white or grey would look very nice too. And look at this bedrooom....don't you love how cute the bed tables look? They are made from all wooden crates painted in blue...super sweet

What are you up to this weekend?
We'll go to Petersham Nurseries, catch up with some friends who are moving back to Turkey, do a bit of decoration in our home, take my mum to the Martin Margiela exhibition at the Somerset House and take our bikes to teach Lucas to run along with grabbing our legs

Please vote for us to win Sheerluxe's Online Shopping awards....

I know, I know...I've already mentioned this briefly during my holidays but this thing is finally sinking in...
First, I'm very surprised that public votes landed us a spot amongst the finalists because we didn't have time to enter the competition in the first place and secondly that we are, in the Best for Online Home Accessories category, one of two independent retailers up against all the major UK retailers and I'm talking the really big ones...like Heals, John Lewis, Habitat, The White Co, Laura Ashley, OKA etc...

It's not often that I take the time to sit back and ponder on our journey because I rarely have the time to do so but recently things have been good for us...
Our team is growing and it feels good.
Although, horribly stressful, our office move turned out to be a very good thing because we'll have central heating at Xmas (crazy!) and in fact, this year, we will be packing in our underwear!
We're getting incredibly kind and generous independent reviews from genuine customers on our products but also our customer service which is really important for me and I can't tell you how encouraging it feels and how much we would like to do for you, together.
My recent meeting with French Interior Designer Jacqueline Morabito was a big deal for me and all in all, things are good at home. We had an amazing time in the South of France and maybe....maybe, we will move BODIE and FOU to the South of France in the future and open a shop...who knows.
But for the time being, we are happy in London and it would be really nice to win Sheerluxe's Online Shopping Award so please vote for us here. First votes do not count for the last round so if you've already voted for us, please do it again.
I wish you a lovely evening
xoxo
Karine

'Office-ready' style!

It's kind of funny but I have been thinking for a while that if Clare Vivier was a fashion designer, I would wear her clothes....Every leather good she designs becomes staple pieces.

I had her Tropezienne tote bag for over 18 months (see the black version here modelled by our lovely intern Marion) and I'm still not bored with it. I ab-so-lu-tely love it!
Someone recently left a comment about how mine looks well-worn and well-loved.... erm... Well-loved definitively but I guess I can credit Lucas for the well-worn look since he thought chewing one of the handles while I was driving to work would be a good idea.
I'm not totally over the moon by having my dog's teeth on my beloved bag but I also had Petits Filous spilled in it by Mila... c'est la vie.
While in France, I swapped my La Trop in the evening for this gorgeous clutch Clare kindly sent me as a gift (thank you thank you again!) and I really wanted to add it on BODIE and FOU but sadly this gorgeous leather is no longer available.

But don't despair....we've just received these beautiful flat work totes made of soft gold and silver leather and they are STUN-NING!!
And perfect to take to the office and carry your laptop, leather notebook, magazines etc.
This Clare Vivier flat work tote is already winning some serious fans with its Parisian flair and timeless design + you can wear it as folded over as a clutch when you go out...

My meeting with Jacqueline Morabito...

Yesterday, Steve did the sweetest, loving thing for me, driving 160kms from our holidays place to just take me to Jacqueline Morabito's shop in La-Colle-Sur-Loup...

I can't express how much this meant to me...I guess, Morabito is to me what Anne Wintour would be to fashionistas. An exceptional woman with an amazing vision for simplicity and beauty and someone whose work and vision has influenced my life immensely and of course, the birth of BODIE and FOU.

Nowadays, white interiors can be seen everywhere but Jacqueline Morabito was an Avant-gardiste in the way she created simple, flawless, understated yet welcoming contemporary white interiors and although often copied, her style is very unique. You won't see shabby chic in Morabito's work but rather a vision for purity and simplicity, which can also be found in the small decorative pieces she designs for the home.
I remember the stab of pain I felt the first time I came across her home in a French magazine in my twenties... There it was, spread over a few pages, her amazing white, simple and achingly cool contemporary home. I never looked back and although my work at B&F introduced me to a lot of talented designers, Morabito is right up there, at the top as my Design icon.
So going to her showroom in La-Colle-Sur-Loup was like a pilgrim for me but never in a million years, I would have dreamt the amazing and magical day that I had...
I spent a good hour in the shop, talking about her work as an Interior Designer, the objects she designs, taking photos and buying some beautiful gifts for Elodie and my mum and I was leaving... she arrived, beautiful, radiant and smiling.

I introduced myself, she kindly invited me to sit in her office (can you spot my Clare Vivier Tropezienne bag?), told me she knew about BODIE and FOU (honestly...this is mad!) and we talked about her work, about B&F, about what we could do together and all this time, while I was sitting in front of her, the only thing I felt doing was hugging her. I just wanted to hold her. She was so warm and welcoming, so passionate!
She is 'petite' (I'm only 1.55m), she has beautiful lines on her face, white long hair and the most sparkling eyes. Dressed in white with a pair of Bensimon, she looked amazing.

Anyway, to cut a long story short (the long one with photos of her shop and inspiring studio will be for when I get back to work next week), we talked and we agreed to work together... So good things are going to happen on BODIE and FOU soon, very good, nice things and right now, I'm feeling incredibly lucky not only to have met such an exceptional woman but also to know that this is not the end.
And I can't thank enough Steve who waited and looked after Mila for 2.30 hours while I was talking with her.

(C) Photos: BODIE and FOU

La Tropezienne tote bag en vacances

So far, my La Trop tote bag by the talented, uber cool Clare Vivier has been to New-Zealand, Paris, Hong-Kong, Barcelona, the Bay of Arcachon, Bristol, Bordeaux but frankly it's in the South of France that my La Trop would really like to hang out for maybe another few weeks while it's sunny....Where did you take your La Trop this Summer?

And do not leave this post without reading all the beautiful things written about La Trop...it deserves it! Have a lovely evening!
(C) Photo BODIE and FOU shot in front of Carolyn Quatermaine's home

J'aime...

the colours, the montage of these beautiful images on a torn piece of paper, the sea...

Via Glouglou et chou

Inspiring shots

It's raining in Aix-en-Provence...one can't complain...it is the first since the beginning of our holidays so we take it easy...the girls have created a pop-up restaurant in the lounge with all the cushions they could find in the house...it's a mess (happy) but there is 'Apl pie' on the menu!
And then there is the latest copy of Marie-Claire Maison and the work of Mark Eden Schooley, an American photographer who lives in Paris. Poetic shots for Hermes, inspiring homes for Selvedge, Elle Decor....

If someone feels like treating me with a gift...I very much love this gorgeous Hermes bag in white and I'm still in love with this beautiful, airy pendant light by Mark Eden Schooley, first saw in MERCI in Paris (although I need two for our lounge) Thanks in advance :-)

C'est bientot la fin....

et oui....the BODIE and FOU Summer Sale end soon....

(C) Photo Cortoboy

Still loving....

The Apple Papple poster by Fine Little day :-) and if you are in Copenhagen on 7th October, Elisabeth Dunker will give a talk at Underwerkets Projects

Sheerluxe online shopping Awards

I'm now on holidays hence the lack of post but frankly if you were sitting by the pool near Aix-en-Provence with me, you wouldn't feel like spending anytime in front of a computer...except at 2am because you would have had such long nap today that you would be feeling full of energy!

Today I received an email informing us that that BODIE and FOU is finalist in Sheerluxe's 1st Annual Online Shopping Awards!! It made me happy because it was on my to do list but with the events of the past few weeks, I never got around to enter the competition so I'm glad we made it as Finalists in the Best for Home Accessories online category within HOME & GARDEN, competing against big companies like The White Company, Graham & Green, OKA, Habitat, Heal's, John Lewis and Laura Ashley...
Errm....I just read the list again I've just typed.... there is no no way, we are going to win against these big companies!
Anyway, we never know....W. Clement Stone wrote: "Aim for the moon. If you miss, you may hit a star" and as it is something I've always lived by then I'm going to ask for the Sheerluxe moon :-) If you get a chance, please go here and vote for us! And if you need a bit of an incentive....each person voting will automatically be entered in a competition to win a pair of Christian Louboutins!! Now I better get some sleep because I'm due to run with my friend Mel at 7am...

(c) Photo credits: 1) ThePhotozoo 2) SuperBomba 3) Cassia 4) IrenaS all via sfgirlbybay (thanks Victoria..I could spend hours browsing your selection...)

PS: Sheerluxe sent an email highlighting that all the finalists made it down to public votes which is actually quite impressive so I have now a stupid, beaming smile on my face....

HELLO CHISWICK!!

Ca y est! We have moved into our new offices!
I'm a firm believer that things happen for a reason and something good will always come out of something bad but flipping hell....I just wished this time I had more than 2 weeks to sort out this massive move because it was hell.

Anyway, it's done and dusted now, we all love our new space and it's a pleasure to be working in a brand new office with plenty of natural light, space and more facilities that we could think of on our wish-list and I can even take Lucas to the office.

We moved all our stock on Saturday (massive, massive job but if you are looking for two great removal companies in the UK, I recommend Trek Removals which moved all our stock and Rapid Man & Van (especially Ben who was super efficient) which moved our roller blinds.
We've set up a brand new 5 meter long packing table for 8 people, got Interlink & Royal Mail collections set up today et voila.....we are back in business baby!
And today...well today I just twittered about our latest best-selling design: the STAR t-shit being back in stock instead of STAR T-shirt :-) So yes it was a typo, yes I'm the Queen of multi-tasking (not just doing it 100% accurately) and yes it made giggle lots of people including moi...C'est pas grave...Have a lovely week....Two more days and I'm off to France to pick up my 5 years old 'bebe' and then we're all off for our holidays in Aix-en-Provence with some friends