URBAN JUNGLE BLOGGERS | A wish for Christmas and New Year

I cannot believe how much time it was since my last post but I am very happy to be back on time to wish you all a very Merry Christmas. And there is no better way to do it than joining the Planty Wishes challenge of the Urban Jungle Bloggers community! We won't be spending these holidays at home as we will join my family in Italy but I managed to get some shots of our essential Christmas decorations for this year (have a look to my holidays inspirations here).

Christmas has always been an amazing time for me since I was very young: I used to put on my wellies and go for hunting in the family nursery and its surroundings and coming back with berries, fresh branches and funny things that I would decorate with ribbons and gold hues. In the older age (oh my..), I shifted from ribbons to a more minimal greenery style but foraging is still the best and funniest part of this. I have to go know for long strolls outside Barcelona ( and get my hubby's car a mess- which his allergy and himself are always grateful for...) but it was so special to do it this year as a family for the first time.

This was such a crazy year and, undoubtedly, the most amazing one as we welcome our little Bianca into our hearts and home. I hope to be able to share with you some moments here soon.

In the meanwhile, let me wish you all a wonderful Christmas time and a 2016 full of love, peace and happiness. A special thanks to dearest Igor and Judith, who created an amazing green hearts community.

Until my next post - that I promise will come much sooner -, let's keep in touch in Instagram!

 All images © facing north with gracia

URBAN JUNGLE BLOGGERS | My green workspace

Here we are with the September issue of the Urban Jungle Bloggers's Back to Work. This month's theme couldn't fit better the atmosphere of my studio that, after the holidays, has been transformed into a real jungle. I really felt an urge for green tones and luxurious plants next to me recently so, before coming back home from the seaside, we stopped at a local nurseries and did some shopping. Placing green plants in interiors, especially in a workplace, is extremely important for the relaxing effects greenery has on our mind and brain.

 

Monstera deliciosa is always a great choice and I was very happy to find a small specimen that could fit our flat: the idea is to let it grow a bit more and later place a grid where it can climb through. We bought also a Rhipsalis paradoxa, an epiphyte cacti, that has been placed on the String Pocket. An epiphyte is a plant that grows non-parasitically upon another plant,such as a tree, and derives its moisture and nutrients from the air, rain etc. Therefore, they can be a bit tricky when grown on soil, like orchids. And last but not least, an Asparagus, one of my all-time favourite for its airy look and woodland memories.

 

All images © facing north with gracia

Kristina Dam | The Danish way

Kristina Dam is a artist and graphic designer based in Copenhagen. Her work aims to visualize the dialectics among art, graphic design and interiors. In Paris, at Maison et Objet 2014, she presented her newest creations: the Botanic Series, a modern and poetic interpretation of the urban jungle trend of the moment created in collaboration with the Danish photographer Tuala Hjarnø.

In her works, tropical plants becomes shy interpreter of a new way of understanding nature in the interior world: they appear not mere adornments of our home but characters of the tale of everyday life, each of them with a different and peculiar personality. Though Monstera (Phylodendron) is still my favourite, I find a Sanseveria has never been so beautiful. And surely some of fellow Urban Jungle Bloggers will agree with me.

I particularly appreciate Kristina Dam's new work I decided to team up with The Poster Club and run a very special giveaway on my Instagram account: one lucky follower will have a chance to win one of the poster in their selection (value 80 euros). It is an amazing opportunity to be among the first ones to get one of these original prints; in fact the prints can be now only pre-ordered. Head to my Instagram profile here to know how to participate.

MONDAY CRUSH | Urban jungle in a monochrome world

After some time, Monday Crush is back and entirely dedicated to monochrome interiors and green plants. Summer was quite busy, with lots travelling around Europe but we are now back "in town" and ready for a spectacular Autumn season.
Also, later today the winner of the ONE MUST DASH giveaway will be announced here on the blog: stay tuned! And remember, there is a new, amazing giveaway going on on my Instagram account in collaboration with the Poster Club but I will tell you more tomorrow. In the meanwhile, go and check it here.

| 1 | Ficus elastica via

| 2 | Inspiring Words I

| 3 | Therese Sennerholt's kitchen via

| 4 | Inspiring Words II

| 5 | Anna Gillar's bedroom

Stefan Diez for HAY | An office like a jungle

If I had to imagine my ideal studio, surely it will look very similar to this one: an open space probably with an warehouse past,  filled with light to create the perfect indoor environment to host an urban jungle.

The studio belongs to one of the most interesting German designers, Stefan Diez, based in Munich. His name is well known within the Scandinavian design world for Diez's collaboration with Danish brand HAY for the creation of a new generation of shelving system: the images pictured here actually belongs to HAY catalogue for Diez's New Order.

I find very interesting how HAY decided to make so visible the strong connection between the product and its designer by shooting part of the catalogue in Diez's studio. In a way, it becomes a manifesto of the importance of craft as an essential part of the design process. It also mirrors HAY's desire to reconnect to the glorious innovative craftmanship that made Danish design so famous during the 50's and 60's; also, it is a declaration of Diez's approach to design through an intense work with materials and technology.

However, New Order is a "100% industrial choice, [...], a high-precision product" that speaks our contemporary language: in a digital world where everything is stored online, the traditional office material is disappearing from our shelves, leaving space to display more objects and memories. Therefore, here it is the choice of many brands to re-think the traditional shelving unit; to make it versatile and flexible, able to both divide space and to create it. Just take a look at the image above: the group of two could actually be easily repeated at home, almost like an overlapping scenography populated by our favourite pictures, photographs, objects and curiosities. A wall-less room that could grow in height and length according to the movement of our life. Design has never been so human.

New Order is the shelving system for a new type of space, one that adapts to contemporary life and its needs of flexibility and, at the same time, is also a cocoon inhabited equally by plants and human beings in harmony.

All images © HAY

MONDAY CRUSH | Outdoor Inspiration #1

Summer has arrived and here it is my collection of inspirations for a contemporary urban patio. I like the idea of mixing raw concrete with architectural plants, like tall grasses or wetland plants that will be planted in pots. A great possibility are these contemporary fabric pots  produced by French brand Bacsac. For the seating area, the Boiacca concrete table by Kristalia is a great solution for the outdoor space. Finally, for an extra seat, I love the idea of using thin bamboos hold together by metal elements like in the natural bench created by  Steven Banken.

Enjoy!

| 1 | Miscanthus in Bacsac pots

| 2 | Fig Tree via Stil Inspiration

| 3 | LucidiPevere's "Boiacca" table for Kristalia

| 4 | Steven Banken, Sheaves

| 5 | Equisetum japonicum in a concrete low pot

PLACES | A special plant store in Australia

 

For today PLACES, I invite you to come to visit Loose Leaf, in Collingwood, Melbourne. A poetic plant store that opened its doors just a couple of months ago thanks to partners Wona Bae and Charlie Lawler. The shop is actually a multi-functional space designed to allow space for Wona sculptural creations and workshops ( a must-have for any plant shop nowadays). After educating herself in both floral art and fashion in Korea where she originally comes from, Wona Bae decided to move to Germany to improve her skills. It was here that she met Charlie and decided to go back to Australia to pursuit their dream.

The shop is located in what used to be an old warehouse. In my opinion, this kind of industrial locations are the perfect background for a plant shop for the airy indoor space they usually have and the minimalistic rawness of the space.

Wona Bae's creations mixed together the essential art of Kokozi (Korean style Ikebana), the natural sculptural techniques I honed in Germany with master florist Ursula Wegener and the incredible local material available in Australia. The result is something unique, like this baskets that remind of the world-wide famous kokedamas but are actually a hand-woven pots.

You can also follow Loose Leaf via Instagram. To know a bit more about them, please visit The Design Files where I originally spotted the place. 

PHOTOGRAPHY | Sean Fennessy