{ A Fascinating City Escape }

I’ve just come back from a short city trip to Budapest, Hungary and I must say I was pleasantly surprised. I didn’t quite know what to expect but I was blown away by this city that is rich in history and coloured with breath-taking views in shades of amber, burgundy and teal. With great food, friendly locals, interesting sights and reasonable prices I would definitely recommend Budapest for a city getaway.

Photos by Design Loving

{ The Trashcam Project }

Every now and then a project comes along that totally blows my mind, and this one does just that! The Trashcam Project sees Hamburg’s garbagemen using their garbage containers as giant pinhole cameras to capture their favourite spots in the city they love and work hard to keep clean. Not only is the process remarkable - with exposure time ranging from a few minutes to over an hour and no viewfinder to help with composition, the results are astonishing. The images are crisp, beautifully atmospheric with amazing tonal variation. You can visit The Trashcam Project flickr page to see more of their amazing work. I certainly can’t wait to see more!

Credits: The Trashcam Project was developed by Christoph Blaschke, Mirko Derpmann, Scholz & Friends Berlin and the Hamburg Sanitation Department with the help from Hamburg based photographer Matthias Hewing.

{ The fine art of printing }

In 1555 Christoffel Plantin opened a printing establishment in Antwerp, Belgium called the Gilded Compass. 21 years later he moved into a building that now houses the Plantin Moretus Museum.

It is here that Plantin created one of the world’s leading printing and publishing houses and the reason why he became known as the most important printer of his era.

After Plantin’s death his son-in-law Jan Moretus took over the firm and today the museum houses the printing offices, workshop, library and printing room, all of which have been preserved in their original state.

This museum is a must see for all lovers of typography and printing. The museum houses an original Gütenberg Bible, the world’s two oldest printing presses, original typographical matrices by Garamond and the first printed Atlas. If this doesn’t get you weak at the knees – which it should, there are over 30 rooms filled with beautiful printing archives, artworks and printing equipment.

The museum also organises workshops on printing techniques and typography and seems to be very child friendly.

Photos by Design Loving and Iwona Marczak

{ DL Loves }

I’m back from a very spur of the moment week of travelling and it was fabulous! There is nothing better than spending time with fabulous friends and discovering amazing places together. This week it’s back to blogging and I’ve got some cool things I’d like to share with you, so watch this space!

Photos by Design Loving

{ The Grand Beguinage }

During the 13th and 14th Centuries Beguinages were religious communities where women devoted themselves to prayer and good works. Their homes were clustered together on the outskirts of the city where they attended to the poor. Unlike nuns the Beguines didn’t take vows and were still able to earn an income, own private property and leave the Beguinage whenever they chose.

The city of Leuven in Belgium is home to two Beguinages that are now UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The Grand Beguinage in Leuven is breathtakingly beautiful. When you walk through its walled entrance it feels like you’ve uncovered a secret: a village within a city fitted with cobblestone streets, squares, gardens and dozens of houses. Between 1964 and 1989 the Catholic University of Leuven restored this Beguinage and it now houses students and university staff. Can you imagine living there!?

Photos by Design Loving

{ Favela Painting }

The artistic duo Jeroen Koolhaas & Dre Urhahn working under the title Haas & Hahn, has transformed favelas in Rio de Janeiro into works of art. The creative collaboration with local inhabitants has not only created new job opportunities and skill development, but has also seen the rise of optimism and pride within these favelas.

Haas & Hahn’s first art project titled “Boy with kite” involved the local youth of one of Rio’s favelas and depicted one of this community’s favourite pastimes.

Their second mural project “Rio Cruzeiro” took 8 months to complete and stretched an area of 2000m².

The project that Haas & Hahn are currently working on is called “O Morro” meaning “the hill”. This project is the realisation of a dream to complete the world’s largest community artwork, stretching a whole hillside favela in Rio. With the help of locals, phase one of the project saw the completion of 34 houses stretching 7000 m². For the completion of this project more funds need to be raised. Haas & Hahn have therefore created an opportunity for people to make donations and become official members of the “O Morrow” project. To read more about it, and see the development of the project, visit their website here.

Haas & Hahn’s work is absolutely remarkable. I find it so inspiring that the dream of two individuals can bring so much change to an entire community.

{ Cologne Christmas Markets }

Over the weekend we took a trip to Cologne, Germany to visit their historic Christmas markets. It was such a magical experience and I’d definitely recommend it. Germany’s Christmas markets are renowned for their old world charm and traditional German craftwork. On top of this they serve a superb range of delectable German delicacies, from baked apples to hot chestnuts, bratwurst, potato pancakes, gingerbread biscuits, chocolate and mulled wine to name a few. It’s the perfect way to get into the Christmas spirit. Here is a link to a very comprehensive site about the different markets. It really is a must see!

Photos by Design Loving

{ Absolutely Outstanding }

Outstanding in the Field, founded by Jim Denevan, started as a series of farm dinners in Santa Cruz, California. Since then, it has evolved into a travelling farm dinner series with Outstanding in the Field hosting over 90 events a year.

Outstanding in the Field aims to re-connect diners to the land and origins of their food, and at the same time celebrates the farmers, food artisans and chefs who work hard to transform harvests into creative feasts.

Each event starts with a tour of the location, whether it is a mountaintop, sea cove, island or ranch and ends in an exquisite setting with a grand table shared by farmers, producers, chefs and diners.

To take part in this wonderful celebration, visit their schedule here. January 2012 sees Outstanding in the Field in Hawaii for the first time, with 4 dinners at 4 farms on 4 islands. How Fabulous!

Photo Credits: Jeremy Fenske

{ The Selby }

Jeff Halmos and Sam Shipley // Designers at their office and home in New York City

Hitoshi Uchida-san // Owner of J'Antiques Tokyo and his family at their home in Kamakura, Japan

Charlotte Rust // Stylist and vintage store owner at her home in Auckland, New Zealand 


I am a huge fan of The Selby. If you don’t know it yet, make yourself a cup of coffee and go get lost in the world of interior eye candy.

Todd Selby is the creator behind The Selby and what started in 2008 as a website to document photo shoots of his friends and their insanely awesome homes, soon became one of the most popular go-to sites for unique interior design inspiration. Today, Selby gets requests from people all over the world to feature their homes and the result is one of the most interesting documentations of homes and the stylish people they belong to.

{ Belgian Bunting }

Over the weekend I came across the most beautiful display of bunting in a street in Leuven, Belgium! Happiness!

Photos by Design Loving

{ Fabulous Fringe }

I can spend forever on CONFETTISYSTEM’s website as I’m hypnotized by the eye candy created by artistic duo Nicholas Andersen and Julie Ho. Their work is lighthearted and fun, yet very sophisticated and lush. These Installations by CONFETTISYSTEM are the kind that stop you right in your tracks and slap you in the face – it’s THAT amazing!

CONFETTISYSTEM has art directed and created installations and sets for fashion brands, clients in the music industry, private celebrations as well as galleries to name a few.

To see some more fabulous eye candy or buy some of your own, visit their website and blog! Have fun!

{ Urban Knitting }

On my way to the shops yesterday I stumbled across this display of urban knitting. It totally made my day! There is no way you can walk past it and not smile!

Have you ever been part of an urban knitting team? I’d love to hear about your experience!

Photos by Design Loving

{ Hello Belgium }

WOW! This post is way overdue! Since my last post, my husband and I packed up in Spain, went back to South Africa to pack up there, do a crazy amount of paper work, say our goodbyes and move to Belgium. Now we’re here, and I couldn’t have asked for a better welcome than Antwerp Central Station. It is honestly the most beautiful station I have ever seen. So thank you Antwerp…first impressions really do last.

Photos by Design Loving