It's a cover-up

Very limited edition IKEA furniture

My colleague, Sara, sent me this link this morning. What a great start to the week! Have a close look at the picture to the left and tell me if you notice anything unusual about it...

Ivar shelving. Check. Lack table. Check. Klippan sofa. Check. It's all IKEA furniture. So what's the hitch you ask? This is official IKEA furniture, produced by IKEA in 1/6th scale for a doll's house! Apparently, it is made for IKEA staff only but was bought on eBay by blogger Nat from Milkshake a la Mode, a blog about dolls, video games and life in Japan. Nat obviously takes her doll's house very seriously - check out those accessories! I wonder if she baked those little mini cookies? Amazing.

"This klippan is so roomy!"

Included in the purchase was a paper pattern for making your own new slipcover for the Klippan sofa. Something for Bemz perhaps?

Even the dolls love the Poäng armchair (although I would perhaps get a cover for them in Prisma Stripe- Moss Green to add a little color and tie in with the cushions on the sofa).

My daughter has a doll's house but none of her dollies are nearly as cool or as fashionable as that gaggle of girls. Well done Nat!

Typography throw back to the 80s?

I came across this great post on designfeedr about retro typography, design and illustration and thought it a perfect follow-up on my earlier post about typography.

Illustration by Sakki Soini c/o designfeedr

Much like the clothing industry's latest obsession, these creative designers are using cool 80s style with a dash of modern edge to niggle at our emotional sides via a nostalgic trip back to the years we grew-up in.

Illustration by Nicolas Alexander c/o designfeedr

Although I swore I would never revisit the 80s and their contiguous fashion mistakes, I must admit that I now find myself smiling whenever I see anything reminiscent of that decade - from fluorescents, leg warmers, tulip skirts and sweater dresses to movie remakes like Fame and (gasp) Knight Rider!?

Illustration by Sebastian Bentler c/o designfeedr

It is with an emotional mix of two-parts yearning-for-yesteryear and a fraction of smug satisfaction that I welcome this tribute to an era I had the pleasure of enjoying the first time around.

Illustration by Will Consiglio c/o designfeedr

I am obviously not alone in my desire to relive some of my youth: the 80s has firmly established itself as a trend for the coming years.

What do you love and hate most from the 80s?

Pigge and John-John reach for the stars

I know from our My home, My way: Bemz competition (now closed) that many, MANY of you are animal lovers so thought you'd appreciate the news that our "in-house" dogs-cum-models, Pigge and John-John are going large with their modeling careers. They made the cut recently for Desire to Inspire's Monday's Pets on Furniture installment. Woof!

Btw, those Ikea PS chairs (top) are covered in (from left to right) Sage Brown, Old Fashioned Linen - Ash Brown Stripe and Symmetry- Jet Black and the Henriksdal chair (above) has an Ash Brown cover on it. (And, yes that is a lovely Orla Kiely bag draped over the side!)

Desire to Inspire is a fab blog run by 'an Australian and a Canadian trying to inspire the world one room at a time'!

Interesting fact #10 - Most popular models

Did you know we sell more covers for the Tomelilla 3-seater sofa, a sofa model now discontinued at Ikea, than any other cover in the Bemz range? In fact, the Tomelilla family sits squarely at the top of the Bemz most popular covers, with the armchair and the sofa bed following swiftly behind their big brother, to take up second and third places.

Pictured left Tomelilla sofa with a Light Denim Blue Linen blend cover and a cushion covered in True Rose- Caffe Latte; in the right picture is a Tomelilla armchair with a Fandango - Red Marimekko cover.

The 3-seater sofa models from Ikea which are next in line (and no longer available at the Swedish furniture giant) are the Karlanda, Goteborg, and Nikkala series.

Pictured: a 3-seater Karlanda cover from the Mix and Match Palette Stig Redux. The armchair has an Unbleached Linen cover with a Classic Ruta-Black cushion. On the floor are two cushions: one in Hounds Tooth- Sand Beige and the other in Old Fashioned Linen- Ash Brown Stripe.

Pictured: a 3-seater Goteborg cover in Prisma Stripe Eggshell Blue.

Pictured: a Nikkala cover in Basiq Unbleached Cotton, the Bemz low-price alternative for the most popular discontinued range of Ikea models.

Our top 10 countdown of most popular Bemz covers continues with the favored Klippan followed by the discontinued Ekeskog 3-seater.

Pictured left: a Klippan cover in Soft White with cushion in Josephine- Strong Pink; pictured right is an Ekeskog cover in True Rose- Light Denim Blue.

It's not all about sofas though: the Henriksdal and the Tullsta chairs also make the Top 10 cut.

Pictured left: Henriksdal covers in Toronto Ticking- Khaki Beige, Toronto Ticking- Teal Blue and Sand Beige; pictured right: a Tullsta cover in Stockholm Stripe- Deep Navy Blue with cushions in Deep Navy Blue and Classic Ruta- Eggshell Blue.

At Bemz we offer covers for well over 50 variants of Ikea sofas, over 20 chair models, plus benches, footstools, daybeds, current and discontinued, as well as cushion covers to accessorize, and fabric by the meter for the more dexterous amongst us. All that, and over 100 different fabrics to give that Ikea piece your own unique stamp.

If your favorite model hasn't made the cut, or worse, isn't even in the Bemz range let us know.

To find out which are our most popular fabrics, click here.

Interesting fact #9 - Fun facts about Cotton

Did you know that everyday, unassuming cotton has been cultivated in many different parts of the world for more than 5,000 years and is used as a food as well as a fiber source? Cottonseed is used as a supplement for dairy feed and processed into oil. The use most of us associate with the plant is of course for the manufacturing of fabrics, ranging from heavy industrial to fine fabrics.

The word cotton is an English version of the Arabic qtun or kutun, a generic term meaning fancy fabric. But one of cotton's original popular names was vegetable wool.

Cotton seeds are tough enough to survive travel across oceans on the wind which may explain why similar varieties sometimes grow thousands of miles apart.

Amazingly, populations separated by oceans and never in contact still managed to develop similar tools to clean, prepare, spin and weave this cloud-like plant.

And finally, did you know that US paper currency isn't paper at all... it's a blend of 75% cotton lint and 25% linen?

At Bemz, we offer over 90 fabrics in various cotton textiles for 59 styles of sofa and chair. Learn more about fabrics through our Fabric Workshop.

Credit: The South Carolina Cotton Museum, CCGGA, Associated Content

Interesting fact #8 - Amazing Linens

Did you know that linen is one of the world's oldest fabrics, dating back over 4000 years and tops the charts on eco-friendliness? Here's more on amazing linen:

• Linen, derived from the Latin linum and the earlier Greek linon, is woven from the fibers of the flax plant and is a completely natural resource.
• Even though only the very best fibers are used by the linen industry, no part of the flax plant is wasted; the left over linseeds, oil, straw and fiber are used in everything from lino and soap to cattlefeed and paper. Also, the linen fabrics are biodegradable and recyclable.

 

• The production of linen fabric uses five to twenty times less water and energy than the production of cotton or other synthetic fabrics.
• "Linens" became the generic term for sheets and pillowcases as they were once made of linen, although these are now often made of cotton or synthetic fibers. 

 

• The characteristic most often associated with linen yarn is the presence of "slubs", or small knots that occur randomly along its length. However, these are actually defects associated with low quality. The finest linen has a very consistent texture and no slubs.
• Linen is renowned for its spectacular durability and long life. The tensile strength of linen thread is twice as high as that of cotton and three times that of wool. Flax yarns and fabrics increase about 20% in strength on wetting which means linen is stronger when being washed helping it last longer than other textiles while linen textiles become softer and actually improve in comfort over time.

 

• It can absorb up to 20% of its own weight in moisture while still feeling dry to the touch; the nodes along the length of the fiber absorb perspiration, then swell and release the moisture to the outside air, thus creating a fabric self cooled by evaporation which is why linen cloth always feels fresh and cool.
• Linen is virtually lint free, non-static, non-allergenic, naturally insect-repellent and gives UV protection.

Finally a little trivia:

• The word ‘spinster’ meaning single woman comes from the day when flax was still spun on spinning wheels by spinsters. This was skilled work and single woman who had mastered the art were at a distinct advantage when looking for a suitable husband. Single women were encouraged to sit outside to spin where they could be admired by potential suitors as they passed by. As a result the word gradually became associated with single women.
• Mummies have been found wrapped in linen shrouds dating as far back as 4500 B.C.
• Casanova allegedly wore condoms made of linen. Who would've thought?

At Bemz, we offer 25 fabrics in our exquisite Belgian Linen blend for over 59 styles of sofa and chair. Learn more about fabrics through our Fabric Workshop.

Credit: Linen Club Fabrics, Pure Linen and Wikipedia.

Interesting fact #6 - How many sofas do you know?

Did you know that we use over 10 (!) different words in the English language for sofa?

A sofa, a couch, a settee, a chesterfield, a loveseat, a sectional, a divan, a davenport, a chaise-longue, and perhaps the lesser known fainting couch (backless or partially backed) and canapés (here I thought that was a form of appetizer!). There are also those that double up as beds like the sofa bed, daybed and futon. Which do you use?

I'm not even going to get into the number of chairs!

And did you know that you can get covers for 56 variants of sofas at Bemz? 56 and counting...

Thanks to Wikipedia!

Interesting fact #5 - Shop? Store? E-tail?

Did you know that originally shop designated a small retail establishment and store was only applied to a large establishment? Today the difference is most definitely blurred. Throw relatively new words like e-tail into the mix and the difference seems insignificant. The word e-tail is derived from 'electronic' and 'retail', in a similar way to e-mail, and has been used since 1995.

An e-tailer is a retailer that uses the Internet as a channel for customers to shop for their goods or services. According to Wikipedia, there are two different kinds of e-tailer: pure play and bricks and clicks. Bemz is a pure play e-tailer as the Internet and its website act as its storefront. Other examples include Dell and Amazon.

A bricks and clicks e-tailer is a more traditional type of retailer that still has a physical shop but has also taken on offering its products or services via the Internet. The combination of Internet and traditional storefront is said to be a part of the green economics movement, promoting ethical consumerism.

'Midsommar' with Bemz

Last weekend marked the longest day of the year and one of the biggest celebrations in Sweden: 'Midsommar'. I wrote about it last year, the importance of light to the Scandinavians and how it is reflected in their lifestyles and their design.

The folks at Bemz celebrated Midsommar at a Stockholm favorite, Rosendahl's Garden. Here is a montage of pictures from the day.

The team was learning how to make wonderful party food, buffet-style.

Colorful inspiration...

That's Libby, deep in concentration, getting the veg ready to roast.

Hmmm... Tina (left) and Lisbeth don't seem as busy! ;)

Katarina (left) and Annika vigorously mixing.

Yum! Roasted veg and goat's cheese pie and rice paper wraps.

Lesley provides everyone with moral support.

If you want recipes, write me. Happy Summer!

Patchwork trend report

Have you noticed how patchwork is making a real comeback? It hit the fashion industry in a big way with patchwork bags and clothing included in earlier collections from such high end fashion houses as Louis Vuitton, Chanel and Ralph Lauren and has now trickled down to the high street with popular shops like Urban Outfitters (chair and bench below), Top Shop (bag above) and J Crew (shorts above) sporting patchwork items on their shelves.

Picture thanks to Spring Globe's Flickr photostream: Arne Jacobsen's Egg Chair in patchwork.

And now this "this crazy-quilt couture", as it was referred to by Elle.com, has filtered through to the homewares industry - or should I say returned as I'm sure some may argue that the origins of patchwork sit firmly with the classic patchwork quilt.

But we're not necessarily talking about going back to the traditional patchwork quilt (though there is somewhat of a revival going on there too) but more of a contemporary take on the classic idea. Patchwork can be surprisingly versatile embracing different design elements, from cheerfully bohemian to discreetly contemporary.

What do think? Is this something for the Bemz range?

Thanks to the Fabric Shopper who did a nice three-part series on the patchwork trend.