About

 
Arren Williams is the name, and I'm a stylist, editor and trend reporter. You'll catch my work regularly popping up in print in the likes of the National Post, House & Home and elsewhere. I'm also a guest expert on Citytv's CityLine, and you can occasionally find me on ABC 7 News in Chicago.

To keep things fun I've tapped a couple of friends - Julia Black and Jenn Hannotte - to contribute their views on design too. Enjoy!

Subscribe

 Subscribe in a reader

New posts delivered right to your inbox!

Search
Login
Powered by Squarespace
Add to Technorati Favorites
http://www.twitterbuttons.com
Wednesday
10Mar2010

Simply gorgeous

Okay, after a slight fashion-y detour in the last post, we're back in a particularly gorgeous all wood architectural space. While I'd like to think I could live this kind of simple, uncluttered life in the snap below I just don't think it would be possible. Where would all the collectibles go, and what about some art? Anyways, this is the rather lovely new Raleigh line of sofas and chairs from the folks at DWR. The seating, designed by Jeffrey Bernett and Nicholas Dodziuk, has a swish streamlined Danish modern feel to it (the cantilevered walnut frame is extra sweet) and looks awfully nice with DWR's Skagen coffee and nesting tables.

Tuesday
09Mar2010

The industrial Dutch at V&R

I saw all the Tweets about the ultra cool Viktor & Rolf runway show in Paris for Fall/Winter 2010, but only just realized that there was an extra layer of fabulous added to the show by the edgy Dutch design team of Studio Job. The couple behind Studio Job - Nynke and Job - collaborated with V&R and designed that stunner of a backdrop, inspired by the marquetry designs on Industrythis collection of furniture and objects created back in '08. Love it, love the tones of grey, and can totally see it as a surface treatment on textiles or wallpaper. And well, it doesn't hurt that I've always had a thing for erstwhile supermodel Kristen McMenamy - who V&R undress and then re-dress on a revolving stage - ever since she shaved her eyebrows off back in the '90's. Ah, the things we remember from Fashion Television and Ms. Jeanne Beker...

 

Monday
08Mar2010

California dreaming

Right about now, at the tail end of winter, I'm at my wits end with the cold and the grey and my dreams turn wistfully to California. I'll noodle through real estate websites and find Palm Springs gems like this and this that I've been trying to talk friends into buying. Then reality sets in, and the sun - thankfully - comes out.

But it's good to dream, and it's extra good to dream on a blurry post-Oscars® Monday morning. So, when I found this gorgeous Santa Monica home splashed across the glossy pages of the LA Times Magazine, I knew I had to share. The home is owned by photographer Dewey Nicks and was designed with a nod to mid-century California style by architect Barbara Bestor. The interiors are smashing, and shake together kid-friendy glamour with a keen vintage eye by designer Paul Fortune. Maybe the Nicks family needs a pool boy?

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hey, where did the shots go??? Well, I got a rather nasty legalese e-mail regarding copyright infringement, so they just had to come down. Sucks, huh? And the first time that I've ever been asked to do that too! In the meantime I'll be checking in with the Barbara Bestor to see if she has any shots available (check out the rest of her firm's portfolio here, it's brill). If you fancy scoping out the original LA Times article, click here.

Thursday
04Mar2010

Julia Black: Old school movie style

Ever since I can remember the Oscars® have been somewhat of a religious holiday for me, and every year I start counting down the days way before the spectacular event. Of course all the award shows leading up to the Oscars are also scribbled into my agenda, and the most recent ceremony, on the 21st of February, was the BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts) Awards at the Royal Opera House in London’s Covent Garden. Checking into the BAFTA's I discovered illustrator and graphic designer extraordinaire, Tavis Coburn. Tavis was commissioned to design the program covers of the five Best Film nominees, and he brought each film to life in his brilliant retro-style. I love his work, and how his inspiration - 1940s comic book art, the Russian avant-garde movement and printed ephemera from the 50s and 60s - informs his take on each film. Now, with his illustrations in mind, I am over-the-top excited for Sunday night! Oh, and btw, The Hurt Locker won Best Film at the BAFTA's! Click here to see more of Tavis Coburn's work, as well as his online store. [images via: Joey deVilla]

To read more posts from Julia click here, and to check out her cool blog click here.

Wednesday
03Mar2010

Of sport and flashlights

While I might not have a sporty bone in my body, I did recognize the baseball reference in Belgian designer Sylvain Willenz's Homerun chair. It's not just the yellow and grey colour choice, or the friendly, curvy cartoon influenced design, that makes them a standout for me (tho' I am an acknowledged chairaholic), it's also the fact they were a collaboration with a Japanese furniture firm - Karimoku - and use the waste wood byproduct of thinning out trees in managed forests. Check below for snaps of the chairs, and a couple of shots that show production and a prototype.

Willenz is also resonsible for the rather mouth watering Torch lights (that's flashlights to you North Americans) he designed for Brit firm Established & Sons, shown below in a shot from the Milan furniture fair, and then a closeup which I had to include, as much for the light as for that tiled floor. Yum. For more on Willenz you can become a fan here on Facebook (btw, I love all the shots people have sent in that show his designs in their homes).