A Love That Lasts: 5 highlights from the Heals launch party
Last week I was invited to a launch party at Heals – in celebration of their new advertising campaign #ALoveThatLasts. Held at their flagship Tottenham Court Road store, the event featured DJs, live music, design workshops (and drinks on every floor) so sounded like an opportunity not to be missed!
I may not be very green fingered, but I was quite pleased with my finished article! Apparently with the right care (a little bit of sunshine and a spray of water once or twice a week) this should live for a year or two. My track record isn't great, but I'm ever the optimist, so fingers crossed.
You simply can't beat a tan leather chair, so it's no surprise I fell in love with this Ease chair. Apparently it was the winning design from Heals' first Great Bodging Race last year (where they invited 6 designers to create chairs live in store, with the winning design being put into production). Designed by Gareth Neal, who happens to be based in nearby Dalston, East London (clearly I'm just drawn to all things East) it looks like a lovely marriage of Danish and British furniture design. Plus it is comfortable and definitely fits my California aesthetic. One more to add to the wishlist...at least there is 15% off at the moment in the Heals sale.
If you're not familiar with Tottenham Court Road, it's home to some major flagship homeware stores – Habitat, Lombok, Calligaris, Dwell, BoConcept, the only UK branch of West Elm, a whole raft of sofa and bed specialist stores (and, of course, Heals itself) so it's well worth a nosey if you're into interiors. I trundled up Tottenham Court Road from the new central line tube station (which isn't yet finished but is looking pretty impressive itself) at about 7pm, having a quick peak into every window along the way (there was free champagne to be drunk, so I couldn't dawdle!)
The Heals flagship is a massive store, spread over 4 floors, so there was a LOT to see, but rather than ramble on for hours, I thought I'd give you 5 highlights from the evening.
1. Terrariums
As you know, I'm a big fan of bringing a little life inside with plants. A dash of greenery is good for the atmosphere and good for the soul I think – as well as making any surface look a little bit cooler. When I saw the terrarium workshop being run by London Terrariums I had to have a go! We were given a lovely glass hanging terrarium to make our own (sort of like a Christmas bauble but with an opening on one side) – which will look fab hanging from the ceiling (very Cali-cool). Then Emma, the founder, gave us some instructions on adding the compost, plants, moss and stones – and off we went!
I may not be very green fingered, but I was quite pleased with my finished article! Apparently with the right care (a little bit of sunshine and a spray of water once or twice a week) this should live for a year or two. My track record isn't great, but I'm ever the optimist, so fingers crossed.2. Hand thrown ceramics
The trend for all things handmade shows no signs of abating, and Heals are clearly embracing it. Why would you buy something mass-produced and ten-a-penny when there are so many fabulous artisans creating unique, collectable items with a real story and provenance? I loved this range of handmade ceramics by Mervyn Gers – they're a little bit wobbly and organic, as each piece is handmade. There were also some lovely ranges by Da Terra, handmade in Portugal and handprinted too. I really couldn't really choose between the 3 ranges below Splash, Dark Blue and Coral (metaphorically speaking that is, unfortunately new crockery is way down my priorities list):
3. The Togo sofa
OK, so I can't claim this is a new find, but I did have to spend 5 minutes reminding myself why I love the Togo sofa by Ligne Roset so much. It may be older than me (just) but it looks just as stylish and contemporary today as it did when it was launched in 1973. It's laid-back and loungey, super comfortable and incredibly flexible. There is now a mini kids' version too! I have dreams of owning a mountain hideaway with a gorgeous leather Togo sofa in front of an open fire like this...sigh.
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| Image via my domain.com |
Heals currently have a bright red version (available from a cool £5k) but I can dream.
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| via madamoisellepoirot |
4. Statement Lighting
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| Heals |
You can't beat a fabulous piece of lighting to make a statement in any room, so I loved the new Tim pendants. Available in 3 sizes, these pendants are handblown in the Czech Republic. Because the glass is blown without the use of a mould they have a wonderfully thick, organic, handmade feel to them – like pieces of ancient sculpture for the modern day. The largest pendants are almost a metre tall, so would be a fantastic centrepiece – or if your budget can stretch, then hanging 3 different sizes together would look pretty cool too!
5. Slung Leather Chair
You simply can't beat a tan leather chair, so it's no surprise I fell in love with this Ease chair. Apparently it was the winning design from Heals' first Great Bodging Race last year (where they invited 6 designers to create chairs live in store, with the winning design being put into production). Designed by Gareth Neal, who happens to be based in nearby Dalston, East London (clearly I'm just drawn to all things East) it looks like a lovely marriage of Danish and British furniture design. Plus it is comfortable and definitely fits my California aesthetic. One more to add to the wishlist...at least there is 15% off at the moment in the Heals sale.
So, that concludes my roundup of highlights from Heals. Which is your favourite Heals product?
Those terrariums are so cute. I miss TCR. I used to spend many a happy lunchtime in Paperchase's flagship store. You'd have walked straight past my old office - it's the home of BGT and the XFactor ;-)
ReplyDeleteSounds very cool. It's not far from one of my old stomping grounds either...the BT Tower! I always find Paperchase dangerous...it's impossible to come out having spent less than £25!
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