Upstairs Downstairs and Every Colour In Between

Did anyone else catch that series Upstairs Downstairs that was broadcast over Christmas? All I can say thank you iPlayer for kindly affording me the opportunity to go back to study particular scenes to, you know, get my hit of colour and my fill of design...

wouldn't that make an extraordinary print for textiles? Great colours

I don't use Photoshop because I prefer to work by eye and so, the colour will differ, slightly. I like the greener tone.

Aside from being an enthralling storyline, the cinematography is incredibly beautiful. These screen-shots do not do the film justice - I struggled to narrow down the selection and evidently just gave up, posting pretty much all of my favourites. If you happen to see the series on DVD, grab it: it is an Education.

The production designer who worked on this series is Eve Stewart has been nominated for an Oscar for her work on the 12 Oscar Nominated The Kings Speech. Although I am excited to have another opportunity to see her work (I haven't seen the film, yet), I am not in the least bit surprised - she is incredibly talented. Just look at her IMDB page to see the how many great films she's worked on. Amazing.

Where does this wallpaper comes from? Could it be an original?

I love this room - every surface area celebrates the next. The colour palette is so elegant. 

a quick selection of modern wallpaper, products & accessories

a Vermeer painting? (I like the way the light catches her elbow)

a quietly dignified, steely grey palette. So fitting.

Thank you to Oliver who says: "I believe the set designer of this 6th Series was Eve Stewart who also worked on “The King’s Speech”." Well, that's certainly not one to miss... 

Other great films with incredible colour work and/or interior design are:

• A Single Man 
  
• The 39 Steps (with Rupert Henry Jones)

Please feel free to add your favourites in the comments box - I'll pop them up here.

Sunday Sermon: The Empathic Civilisation

'Bestselling author, political adviser and social and ethical prophet Jeremy Rifkin investigates the evolution of empathy and the profound ways that it has shaped our development and our society.'

There are a number of these RSA Animate videos that I've been working my way through - I think they're brilliant. Here are a few of my favourites, so far...

• 21st Century Enlightenment
• The Secret Powers of Time
• Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us

Do you have any favourite things 'found on the internet' that you'd care to share? Pop it into the comments box and I'll add it to this post. Have a lovely Sunday afternoon...

a new year, a new leaf

                                                Abigail Percy

    Aren't these beautiful? I found Jeweller  Abigail Percy's website this morning whilst on the look out for good printing companies. She used MOO to do her cards and now so do I -  they make it easy and affordable.

I've decided to create a 'business card'  for my blog. Why it hadn't occurred to me before is beyond me - we bloggers love to talk blogs... It wasn't until I met Lauren of Aspiring Kennedy, last November, where she presented me with this quite elegant embossed card that I got to thinking about this...

This card belongs to a woman who knows how to do things right! (And believe me, she is every bit as charming in person as you'd image.) Do you have a blog card? I'd love to see it...

p.s. Lauren used to work for Bella Notte and that's where she had these cards printed - you may recall an earlier post I wrote about them, so you can imagine how thrilled I was to connect that dot...