The well-dressed home
FORGET ALL-WHITE WALLS – WITH LABELS LIKE GUCCI NOW OFFERING HOMEWARE, YOU CAN ENJOY A VIBRANT, MORE FASHIONABLE (HOME) LIFE, SAYS PIP MCCORMAC
Adorn your home with the most vibrant pieces from fashion’s finest
In the Louis Vuitton palazzo at Milan Design Week earlier this year, I had an aesthetic epiphany: fashion is interiors is fashion. The two worlds are no longer separate but extensions of the same thing, or perhaps even are the same thing, a way to fill all areas of our lives with soul-enriching beauty. For swinging under the palazzo arches was a Louis Vuitton hammock in teal, draped in a monogrammed towel, next to an angular stool made by the in-house design team. Covered in the blue that was seen on some of the models at the Louis Vuitton resort collection, these pieces were made with the same mood in mind: luxury and relaxation. There was no real distinction between the brand’s homeware and its clothes.
Fashion houses selling interiors is not a new phenomenon – Missoni Home, Armani/casa, and more, have been around for two decades. But as Gucci Décor and Preen Home launch this month, what has changed is the cohesion between the two disciplines, and the way we want to consume design. I feel it’s partly down to Instagram – the whole world can see every aspect of our lives, not just our publicfacing clothes – so we want it all to look perfect. But it’s also because of a movement towards finding magic in each moment, whether that be the shoes on our feet or the cushion we lie back on. “There is such satisfaction in simply setting a table,” says JJ Martin, the fashion and homeware designer behind La Double J, whose plates have sold out three times since their launch in April. “It’s fun to create an experience to share with loved ones.” Designers understand the zeitgeist is for these communal occasions, hence their interiors lines being promoted to the same status as fashion.
It helps that we’re less afraid to fill our homes with pattern. Gone are the days of all-white rooms. Now the big homeware story is Anthropologie collaborating with Liberty – swirls and paisleys and colour. Which suits the big fashion houses well – they already have these fabrics in their portfolios. “As soon as I saw Preen’s snuggly-looking wraps on the runway, I started wondering when I might be able to buy the print as a scatter cushion,” says Red’s executive fashion and beauty director Kim Parker, who’s happy to find out she now can. So from Hermès wallpaper for Dedon, to Mother of Pearl stationery for Papier, there are new entry points to each brand that don’t just involve clothes. New ways, in fact, to let our sense of personal style seep into our lives.