Forget everything you think you know about wallpaper
November 21, 2016
Wallpaper never really left us but every now and again the interior spotlight swings back around and highlights the exquisite beauty of this versatile wall covering. With the swing comes the revelation of the vast range of coveted new designs that get interior designers in a renewed tizz.

Thankfully, we are long past the era of retro geometrics in brown and burnt oranges. We seem also to have been spared from the dizzying florals or fruit on the walls of kitchens that used to be an assault on the eyes, and yet somehow was always a decorator’s go-to for freshening up tired interiors.

“My wallpaper and I are fighting a duel to the death. One or the other of us has to go” said Oscar Wilde.

From fur walls to walls that you can draw on

Fortunately, the 21st century has brought with it an unlimited choice of colours, patterns and textures, a perfect addition to our current culture of African art-meets-life visual consumption that we crave wherever we go.

Today, like a new Banksy piece on a public wall, covering an old interior wall with new wallpaper can transform a room into a work of art that will draw gasps of admiration for your use of contemporary interior design features. Wallpaper has even moved beyond being just paper. Plastic, metallic, faux fur and fabrics make up the myriad choices we have to make strong individual statements in rooms that make up our private and commercial properties.

Parents views and rules about “drawing on the walls” have completely changed, with wallpaper that you can colour in that has kept kids quietly occupied for hours in their rooms doing something that was once a punishable offence.

Technological advancements have also helped the wallpaper industry boom over the past decade. Gone are the days where it took obscene amounts of glue and deft arms to apply and quickly smooth out air-bubbles at the same time. Technology has introduced a non-woven fibre backing which allows paste to be applied to the wall and then the wallpaper simply applied over that. It also comes off all at once with one pull instead of in tiny strips that make it seem like the wallpaper has merged entirely with the wall behind it.

Wallpaper just isn’t scaring people anymore. Modern interior design trends are favouring more minimalist uses of features and statement pieces, and you need only to cover one wall in a breath-taking design to add dimension and that extra bit of shine that every room needs.

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By Kyra Harper August 15, 2023
Back in March of 2020, Bianca and Jana were dusting off their Fez’s and grabbing the pashminas out of storage in preparation to Rock the Casbah! However, as we all know and vividly remember - with March, came the eventual Covid shutdown, and instead of frolicking down the Moroccan streets, we all shut ourselves inside and watched the days tick by… 3 Years later, and now we can finally say - with conviction - that they’re going to Morocco at the start of September! This blog, filled with excitement and curiosity about all the weird and wonderful curios they might find, and endless sourcing they’ll do, stays as a reminder that sometimes plans change, things go awry and there’s not much you can do about it other than persevere - and that we did! So, here’s Bianca and Jana’s innermost thoughts about the trip, 3 years before it came to fruition, enjoy :) We've got our passports out and Jana has already picked out what she's going to wear each day… Come March [September] we'll be heading north with Air France to the Kingdom of Morocco, bright eyed and bushy tailed as we make our base in the ancient city of Marrakesh (also known as Marrakech to the French, but we're not French, so we'll go with the English version until all that fuss about Brexit is sorted out) - This turned into a year long negotiations trade, and now us outsiders would pay nearly double what we used to if we visit the UK - thankfully our flight is direct!! We'll be looking for inspiration and will be investigating what's there that we could possibly bring back to The Hoed. We can't wait to experience the atmosphere and afro-arabic influences of this amazing place as we visit the celebrated souks and off-the-beaten track artists and craftsmen that make Marrakesh so special. We're desperate to see the beautifully hand-crafted furniture, textiles, fabrics, rugs, carpets, objets d'art, accessories, lighting… anything that catches our eye and could possibly be brought back south. Berber mats and rugs are definitely on our list, as are the kind of furnishings you might find in a gorgeous Bedouin tent. If you think about it, the Bedouin refined the art of "glamping" into an artform - fabulous carpets on the ground, soft, billowing fabrics hung here and there, plump cushions spread on the ground, intricate leatherwork and carved wood, patinated metal… Total Glamping vibes! We just love all of it and will be tracking as much of it down as we can. We'll also have an eye or three out for wonderful ceramics and glassware and wonderful lamps that give off soft, filtered light.  For us it's about workmanship, so we'll hopefully be finding the people who make furniture and ceramics using techniques that have been passed down over countless generations meaning that everything we look at will have its own, and its own special story. Our mission is to share those stories with you and, if it's feasible, bring some of that special workmanship home to the Rainbow Nation. We're most definitely inspired and are sure this is going to be a truly special trip! Counting the sleeps till then! Less than a month to go now - we will be keeping the updates going on our social channels as well as another few blog posts to explain in detail our wild adventures - Stay tuned!
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A safari theme never really runs out of viewing time and is particularly popular for interiors at the moment. The warm, earthy tones give a sense of comfort and the accessories offer the anticipation of travel and adventure.
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