Throw away

This borders on the worst crime in interior design - putting throws over sofas and chairs. It's better to leave the threadbare original, or not have those pieces of furniture at all.

Ikebana

Following yesterday's post about hand painted wallpaper, is this blind, "Ikebana" by Knowles & Christou, which is "mirrored" in the vase of pussy willow. The light and refreshing atmosphere in the room is enhanced further by the white tulips.

Spring in some countries, but the beginning of summer here.

Blossom (dearie)

These three pictures are of the very pretty hand painted wallpaper in the dining room of the house I have been lucky enough to stay in when I visit Hong Kong. At the far end of the room, (top picture) is an enclosed verandah, with a smaller round table, used for more intimate dining. Beyond that is the garden, which drops away dramatically to the swimming pool and pool house.

Missing "rubble"

On a visit to Angkor Wat in Cambodia we had a full two days of temple visiting. One in our party declared at the end of it, that he'd had enough of looking at "a bunch of old rubble".

I suppose you either enjoy these things, or you don't. Personally I do, and I'm missing seeing beautiful neoclassical ruins, such as those depicted by Francesco Piranesi: various Roman capitals compared with Greek examples, from Julien-David Le Roy's "Les Ruines des Plus Beaux Monuments de la Grece" (1758): probably Plate 17 of "Della Magnificenza ed Architettura de' Romani" (1761), (2) conjoined leaves, engraved by Francesco Piranesi, 22" x 57.75" (sheet).

Putting you in your place

These place card holders were recently sold at auction for far more than I would have expected. The 6 London sterling silver figural lion heads sold for USD650, against an estimate of USD200-300, and the 4 crown in Birmingham sterling silver for USD425, against an estimate of USD200-300.

Whilst the pieces are very pretty, it surprises me that these are still that desirable. Perhaps it is a cultural thing, but I work out my placement before, (and very carefully), and then I implement it as people are called to the table. But I never have more than 8 at the table and I automatically know where two of us will be sitting, so it is very straightforward.

Place card holders are only really suitable if you have several tables, and you cannot manage the placement, in the way I've described. Otherwise, it's verging on the naff.

Not liking a likeness

Anne of Cleves

The Ambassadors

Sir Thomas More

A recent programme about the work of Hans Holbein the Younger, (some of whose work appears above), reminded me of his extraordinary talent. It coincides with watching The Tudors, which concentrates on the reign of Henry VIII. Holbein moved to England from Germany in 1526 and was introduced to Sir Thomas More, Henry's chancellor, by Erasmus and on a second visit to England became the favoured court painter.

His extraordinary work, with almost photographic depictions gained him favour with the king, who commissioned him to paint the portrait of Anne of Cleves, whom Henry wished to marry. It appears that the likeness was more flattering than realistic in this case, and when Henry set eyes upon his betrothed he was very displeased indeed, and by now used to the habit, soon thereafter divorced this, his fourth wife. Holbein received no further commissions from the king and died shortly thereafter at 45.

One of the most outstanding works by Holbein is The Ambassadors, which utilises the whimsical device at the feet of the French ambassador, (on the left).

Joining the unemployed

An unfortunate but expensive accident occurred in the newly carpeted Picture Gallery at Buckingham Palace, when a trolley with a faulty wheel and laden with tea, tipped over spilling its contents onto a newly laid carpet, which had just been installed two days previously at the staggering cost of GBP250,000.

Despite attempts to clean the stain, it remained. Read the rest of the story in yesterday's Daily Mail.

Oops! It just goes to show that accidents will happen, and we are none of us immune, and we are quite often unamused by them.

Wishes

To commemorate one year of blogging, I'm posting this still life by Dimitri Bouchene (1893-1993) Vue d'atelier Pastel, 60 x 72 cm, which I wish I had bid on. It was estimated at EUR3-4,000 and sold for EUR2,000. Thanks to those of you who do, for your readership, comments and interest.

Three strikes

This is my own modest collection of match strikes - they're antique and silver mounted. Even with clear glass they're rather pretty, and coloured matches make them more so. They would even be a cherished receptacle for a very singular flower, allowing it to feel a little more important, which couldn't be a bad thing.

Striking

These images from the latest House & Garden are of the Wiltshire house of Lucy Cope. For those of us who enjoy symmetry, the pair of upturned Corinthian column lamp bases are an added bonus for me. I'm also drawn to the muted colours employed in the drawing room with a classic green and purple, and the volume suitably turned down.

Lucy Cope makes the most glorious match strikes, and as well as these examples shown, there are many more to choose from here, as well as glass lamp bases.

Palladio makes an exhibition of himself

Well, not strictly speaking, but the Royal Academy of Arts is running an exhibition "Andrea Palladio: His Life & His Legacy", which I recently posted about.

House & Garden has written this excellent piece, with the above pictures accompanying it, providing a lesson in architectural design, which probably hasn't differed greatly to this day.

Minding your (p)agers & (q)ueens

An amusing anecdote from the diary of the junior minister in Tony Blair's government:

As important as the Queen?
June 26, 2002
George Foulkes, who has just been made a Privy Counsellor, tells the following tale. Some time ago Clare Short and Mo Mowlam were attending upon the Queen when Clare's pager started vibrating. Clare surreptitiously checked the message. Whereupon Her Majesty looked up and enquired: 'Someone important?'

Or as the saying goes: "It's nice to be important. But it's important to be nice." And obviously "we" weren't very amused, either.

* A View From The Foothills, by Chris Mullin, is published on March 12 by Profile Books at £20.

* Photo: The Monarchy, by Robert Hardman. The Queen and her Privy Council prepare to swear in two new members at a monthly meeting, Buckingham Palace.

Detail devil

The "right" height.

Previous installation.

The brown paper cut-out method.

In progress.


I mentioned previously that I was not altogether happy with the initial height of the two China Trade pictures, (which were hung using the existing screws for other pictures). The initial placement wasn't hideously wrong, but it just wasn't quite "right", a comment I made several times to my partner, which resulted in a refrain of expletives.

So finally on Friday, feeling calm, I put into place my brown paper cut-outs of the pictures at the height I thought they really should be: aligned with the top of the framed Chinoiserie wallpaper. Perfect. It does two things: raises the eye, and therefore the height of the ceiling, and two, removes the obviously uneven distance that existed between the bottom of the picture and the yellow cachepots. Well, actually three things. The bottom of the picture is now also aligned with the bottom of the lampshades.

Oh, the trials of symmetry, (and anality?). The devil is in the details.

Stokin'

It is perhaps slightly premature to be splurging on a Palladian mansion, but if you had a cool GBP2.75m to spare, you could pick up this glorious house in Derbyshire, not far away from the seat of the dukes of Devonshire.

It does need a lot of work, but significantly the roof has been releaded by the former comptroller at Chatsworth, so you could take your time about getting on with other essentials.

There are splendid wall carvings by the master woodcarver Grinling Gibbons, and the land is a perfectly manageable 22 1/2 acres. Further details of the property offered through Knight Frank are here.

But in these times of uncertainty I suspect most of us would rather be cool, and pass up on this opportunity to acquire Stoke Hall. Marcus Binney of The Times writes about the house here.

No dog food here

But perhaps mad dogs and a Englishman. This more artistic approach to what one assumes was an iconic building - Herod's Temple - has been painstakingly built over 30 years by a retired farmer in England. The story in full here.

Taking the biscuit

On a recent trip to the Saatchi Gallery in London during its "The Revolution Continues", the exhibition included this installation, entitled Love It! Bite It!, a model city of Western culture's "tastiest bits," including the Colosseum, The US Capitol and the Guggenheim Museum in New York, built from dog chews, by Liu Wei. "The piece obliquely hints at the fragility of our civilization in the aftermath of 9/11," the Daily Telegraph's art critic commented.

I'm never a big fan of the so-called installation art, because I'm never quite sure what you're supposed to do with it, and clearly it's only ever meant for gallery display, as it would look a bit daft in your drawing room, even if you had one large enough to display such a confection.

However, I do admire the work that has gone into this exhibit, even if it's only because of its somewhat bizarre nature. Well, maybe that just sums up installation art for me.