NINA CAMPBELL DOES DECOREX COVERING THE BEST IN BRITISH DESIGN NOW

With the buzz that comes from London's Decorex Show held every September, I asked Nina Campbell to take us along for the ride, showing us her favorite new things along the way. No stranger to the best of British design, I figured she could be my eyes and ears, and she delivered! Since 1974, Nina has been seeing things through her signature rose colored heart shaped glasses, wowing the world with her color - infused antique - filled interiors and fantastic sense of humor. In addition to shopping for clients, she was shopping for her 30 year old eponymous store on London's fashionable Walton Street. She added, "Something I have noticed which is very apparent this Decorex is the refreshing blaze of so much colour, it seems miles away from the boring modern minimal look of everything in beige. People seemed to be having so much more fun with colour. I am thrilled about this having always been a fan of colour." Me too!

Nina strikes a pose by her new oval Grace Table and charming high-backed Coco Chairs

Alice in Wonderland's Madhatter’s Bar with chandeliers from Ochre

Alice's fanciful bedroom with Nina Campbell floral wallpaper and fabrics from her Osborne and Little collection and a Julian Chichester mirrored four poster bed

"I was asked to design the entrance at Decorex this year the brief for which was Alice in Wonderland...I decided to split the room into Alice’s Bedroom and The Madhatter’s Bar. I have had such fun doing it and have really tapped into my truly eccentric side! I used fabrics and wallpapers from my new collection Paradiso for the walls and curtains and then had a wonderful time commissioning special pieces and selecting pieces from other designers. I discovered some fantastic new talent in the process such as Diffuse, who made the beautiful butterfly lamp above Alice’s bath. I love what they do as it is feels contemporary but with a traditional influence which I like. I also love the softness of light that the lamp gives off. I discovered Helen Amy Murray who’s leather ‘painting’ was one of the most innovative new pieces I have seen. This new take on wall hangings are adding a new dimension to the art world which I find so interesting. I also got lots of my old friends in the business involved such as Julian Chichester who made the mirrored bed and William Yeoward who filled the bar with all of his glassware. I love these rather crazy red and black chairs in the Madhatter’s bar which are all four suits of a deck of cards. The wonderful glass chandeliers above the tables and bar are by Ochre and are so chic and striking. I also used quite a few pieces of my own furniture as well here such as my Grace oval table by Alice’s bath which is such a diverse little table and perfect for a bathroom. Two of my favourite new chairs are shown in this photograph, called Coco which are adorable little occasional chairs which are perfect in a bathroom as here or to pull up to add extra seating. I love them upholstered in rather wacky colours such as my lime green Sylvana satin here."

A framed "leather painting" by Helen Amy Murray of hand - cut and layered leather

COLLECTION PIERRE

Nina perching on a glamorous bench

I absolutely loved this stand. This circular Mattias chandelier is so ravishing and really reminds me of the London Eye. Mattias is a totally genius chandelier maker who I have worked with for years. Collection Pierre had some wonderful pieces of furniture. I as particularly drawn to this fabulous red half moon seat. I was then told it was eel...having been working a lot in China recently and having been offered it at many dinners there I can safely say I would far rather sit on it than eat it!

LUKE IRWIN

"I was stopped in my tracks by this colourful Ikat rug by Luke Irwin, I think it is one of the most beautiful things I have seen here. I have known Luke from the start and have watched him go from strength to strength. He has won a prize here from Conde Nast for the Most Stylish Exhibit and from this rug you can certainly understand why. What I love about Luke is his diversity from the rose carpet he designed for Alice’s bedroom in my foyer to this spectacular Ikat rug on his stand. He is always so open to everything and such fun to work with."

SERIP

"I came across this stand and instantly fell in love with this wonderful hanging light. It immediately conjured up images of a magic mushroom forest gone mad! I think it is so beautiful and really interesting and so in keeping with this year’s Alice in Wonderland theme. Serip also had this rather marvellous light on their stand which would solve all problems of finding a ceiling light for a room with low ceiling height."

CHRISTOPHER GUY

"I really love the way Christopher Guy has updated classic mirror ideas in his own rather mad way. He is really having some fun with it which is what I like and is absolutely not modern, boring or minimal. As they said to me it is about having less but more beautiful things. They had some fabulous stools on their stand too which I love. I have noticed stools are really making a comeback. They are so diverse and useful where people these days have less space."

CRAFTED

A chair of tooled leather from Helen Amy Murray

Ndidi Ekubia silver vases
"Crafted is a fantastic platform which helps new craftsmen show their work. Funded by the American Express Foundation in England, Crafted was developed by The Walpole British Luxury Group and Arts & Business to allow emerging craft businesses to develop their business skills while teaming up with luxury brands, thus creating a new generation of skilled craftsmen. I love some of the pieces on their stand and really look forward to going to see their studios. I found the work of this silverware designer, Ndidi Ekubia particularly interesting. Her silver pots and vases are all made from a single sheet of silver that she hammers and manipulates into these beautiful shapes. On this stand is also the work of Helen Amy Murray who designed the leather wall covering for me at the entrance. I love the diversity of her work, here she showed a black arm chair done in the same style. I really love these stands where you see such fresh and innovative work. It’s what keeps us all excited and interested. I feel there is so much talent in Britain at the moment so many people doing really interesting things."