The Specifier’s Guide to Flooring has launched in the UK.  Officially unveiled at Shaw Contract’s showroom during Clerkenwell Design Week, the new ‘definitive guide’ will provide a specification tool for architects, designers, facilities managers and specifiers on all aspects of flooring.   Exploring key materials, from carpet to vinyl, ancillary products and accessories – and everything in-between – the Guide will provide a rich resource for the industry, in hard copy format and online at http://www.specifiersguide.co.uk

Palm leaves sway in a lazy breeze, a large pink bird stalks through the thicket and the air is heavy and sweet with the taste of exotic fruit – doesn’t that just sound like the dream? Sadly, not all of us can just pop over to the next tropical island with the flick of a finger. However, nothing speaks against bringing the oasis home to you! We’ll show you how easily this can be done with stunning foliage prints from Posterlounge – almost like the flick of a finger.

Sprucing up one’s home with large plants and bright colours to bring a bit of an exotic flair into the décor has been an ongoing trend since 2017 and has lost nothing of its popularity. Interior design departments display ceramic pineapples and flamingos and glossy magazines feature gigantic plants with thick, dark-green leaves that give the impression of a colonial conservatory à la My Fair Lady. Sounds easy enough, yet not everybody has the space to accommodate large ferns and window leaves or even the occasional fake fruit or bird. Thankfully enough, the tropical trend does not confine itself to figurines and hothouse-greenery, but has conquered the walls as well with artwork featuring gigantic leaves and rich blossoms.

Vision 2018  –  a two-day conference and exhibition aimed at architects, designers, specifiers and clients –  takes place on 21^st and 22^nd June at Islington’s Business Design Centre.  The event showcases the latest developments in materials, products and technology alongside a rolling programme of lectures, seminars and debates examining the key issues facing architecture and construction today

Vision 2018 has joined forces with Architecture Today to produce a high-profile conference programme where some of the biggest names in the industry discuss the challenges facing architecture and construction and suggest solutions and set out their thoughts as to how to adapt and thrive.

Should our homes carry health warnings or health labels? A new survey published today demonstrates that Brits are largely unaware of the significant health risks posed by spending too much time indoors in unhealthy homes.

Whether we like it or not, we are the so-called “Indoor Generation”. On average, people spend 90% of their time indoors, yet many of us are not aware of the risks associated with our indoor environments. A new study by YouGov for the VELUX Group asked 16,000 members of the public in 14 countries across Europe and North America about their perceptions of indoor living.

Traditional 430 mirrors, £195 each; Marlborough 1200mm freestanding basin unit in charcoal with white solid surface worktop and two underslung ceramic basins, £1,795; Clifton basin mixers, £177.50 each; wall lights, £148 each; Alveston bath, £1,131.50; Clifton bath shower mixer with stand pipes, £668

Give your classically styled bathroom the perfect finishing touch with Laura Ashley Bathroom Collection’s two new Traditional mirrors.

Featuring the same understated yet elegant design as the existing Traditional 600 Mirror, the two new models will also beautifully complement Laura Ashley Bathroom Collection’s classic bathroom furniture, sanitaryware and brassware ranges. With their striking beveled edge, these stunning mirrors will add an on-trend vintage look and feel to country and period-style interiors while reflecting light around your bathroom.

Milan, April 17^th 2018

For nearly a century, KitchenAid has supported passionate makers with premium kitchen appliances that combine professional performance, artisan quality and iconic design. Their stylish range of major domestic appliances features carefully crafted, chef-inspired features that yield consistently professional results, inspiring those who are Serious About Food to express their culinary creativity.

At Eurocucina, KitchenAid presented new appliances from its premium cooling range, including flagship products that offer a greater storage capacity than ever before. These combine advanced technology and versatile storage solutions to ensure your ingredients are freshly preserved and easy to find when culinary inspiration strikes. Designed with a bold blend of design and functionality, the range features built-in and free-standing models that are available in a wide range of configurations for seamless integration into your kitchen. The versatile interiors can be fully customised to the individual needs, tastes and gourmet lifestyles of passionate makers.

Marlborough 1200mm freestanding basin unit in charcoal with honed marble worktop and unslung
basin, £1,895; tallboy, £680; York basin mixer, £201.50; traditional 1200 bathroom mirror, £350

Laura Ashley Bathroom Collection has extended the appeal of its popular, classically styled Marlborough range of bathroom furniture even further with the addition of stunning new basin units and an additional tallboy.

Providing generous storage space behind its four soft closing doors, the new 1200mm freestanding single basin unit with worktop and underslung ceramic basin will make an elegant statement in every spacious bathroom. Available in three, on-trend hand painted finishes of cotton white, cobblestone and the recently introduced Charcoal, this statement basin unit comes with your choice of a beautiful honed marble worktop or a solid surface worktop in carrara or white. Both styles of worktop offer plenty of room either side of the underslung ceramic basin for displaying toiletries and other accessories. The 1200mm freestanding single basin unit is priced around £1,895 with honed marble worktop and from £1,595 with solid surface worktop.

New from Binopolis: For 600mm pull-out doors, the Blanco Select 60/3 Orga 45L Recycler with Drawer,
left, costs £349, and the Blanco Select XL 60/3 46L Recycler, right, £275

Specialist retailer Binopolis.com has boosted its comprehensive collection of in-cupboard bins and added premium German brand Blanco to its offering for the first time. Designed to make optimum use of space, the models being stocked by Binopolis include the Select range of pull-out bins, which is the recipient of a coveted Red Dot Product Design award.

Ideal for planning into your new fitted kitchen, Blanco bins are among the easiest on the market to retrofit so you can effortlessly transform a cupboard in your existing kitchen into a neat and discreet waste management system. With three in-cupboard bins for hinged doors and eight for pull-out door cabinets, designed to fit 450mm, 500mm or 600mm-wide base units, to choose from, you’re sure to find the perfect model for your recycling and rubbish requirements. Capacities range from 14-litres to 49-litres to suit varied households from sleek compact apartment kitchens to busy family homes.

With increased growth in sales, Brio, the leading global brand name in sliding and folding gear for interior and exterior door hardware, has recently appointed two experienced sales personnel to manage and support the company’s sales activity.  The two new appointments – Daryl Curtis and Nigel Walsh – bring with them a wealth of knowledge and product expertise.

Brio’s two new Business Development Managers, Nigel and Daryl, share more than 65 years of building industry experience, with particular emphasis on door, sliding door systems, fixings, sliding door gear and architectural hardware.

Both have spent time with leading industry manufacturers at management level with Daryl experiencing time overseas in Hong Kong and Malaysia.

InSinkErator^® has announced its partnership with 2020, ensuring kitchen designers can access the InSinkErator^® range of steaming hot water taps directly from the cloud-based software.

Widely utilised by kitchen designers and architects, the 2020 Cloud software enables users to create 3D models of proposed kitchen designs with exact dimensions and components of InSinkErator^® steaming hot water taps, reducing the risk of errors while offering efficiency and speed to the designer.

A steaming hot water tap is an invaluable and convenient addition to the kitchen, making everyday tasks much quicker, while saving valuable worktop space. InSinkErator^® has a range of taps to suit every household and lifestyle. Already available via 2020 Cloud is the brand new InSinkErator^® 4N1 Touch, which, at the touch of a button, instantly dispenses filtered cold water, designed to meet the increased consumption of filtered cold water in the home. The 4N1 Touch taps also dispense filtered steaming hot water alongside regular hot and cold water too.