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A Touch of Flock

For our Spring issue, Heart Home were lucky enough to spend some time with bespoke furniture maker, Johnny Egg. We found him with wife Lucy in the aptly named Egg House. They share their Essex home with two dogs, one cat, a handful of chickens and hundreds of furniture prototypes…

Photographs Paul Craig

Words Ellie Walker-Arnott 34

Though Johnny has been crafting

furniture since the age of sixteen,

when he was a cabinetmaker’s

apprentice, his career really took

off in 2003 after he exhibited at

the prestigious 100% Design show.

Since then, his flamboyant style has

been embraced by interior designers

and nowadays his furniture is

stocked by contemporary design

store Heals.

Johnny’s work ranges from

elegant and understated to

wonderfully wacky. Using bold

patterns and vibrant colours,

Johnny takes traditional shapes

and distorts them to create clever

and innovative pieces of furniture.

His specialises in sharp lines and

seriously stylish mirrored and

gloss finishes as well as softer

shapes, designs and textures. And

that’s where Johnny’s trademark

finish comes in. Johnny loves to

add a twist to everyday items, be

it telephones,light fittings or the

inside of drawers, with a touch of

“Travelling the world gave me a taste for what’s around in different countries”

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“I’ll have things in the house,

sometimes for six months, before

I realise that I actually do like

them!”

flock. The idea originated from the desire to create

something soft inside his furniture.

After his apprenticeship, Johnny travelled to all

four corners of the globe aboard cruise ships,meeting

his wife Lucy when working in an onboard casino.

They decided to settle down and they have lived a

much quieter and laid back life ever since. Now,

instead of card dealing, Johnny is happiest walking

his dogs or having a quiet drink in his local country

pub, The Compasses in Littley Green.

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It was once he was back on British soil, that Johnny

rekindled his love for carpentry, and his home is now

the place where Johnny decides which pieces he’ll

take further. Living with his designs helps him decide

whether or not he really likes them. “I’ll have things in

the house, sometimes for six months, before I realise

that I actually do like them! Then I’ll carry on and

actually make it as a product,” he says.

The inspiration for his designs comes from the

world around him. “I am inspired by so many things:

colours, fashion,the shape of cars...” he says.

“I enjoy taking something old and then updating it”

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“I normally start with a shape. The shape of old

furniture is a constant inspiration. I enjoy taking

something old and then updating it.”During our visit,

Johnny took us to one of his favourite British haunts,

Metro Retro, a warehouse filled with mountains of

covetable vintage furniture. It was easy to see why he

is so inspired by the shape and feel of old design.

This year Johnny is launching an impressive four

new collections. We had a sneak peek at Safe, which

features chunky wooden cupboards constructed to

look like retro metal safes, and Pashley, a range of chic

black and neon pieces.Though increasing the website

is the focus of his attention now, Johnny does have

aspirations to have his own shop one day, so watch

this space...

Designs for life.When Chelsea Cefai finally landed her dream home, she also discovered a treasure trove of rare designs which changed the direction of her life.

The journey began when Chelsea fell in

love with a property that was virtually on

her doorstop. “We’d lived around the corner

from this house for quite a few years and

I’d always kept an eye on it hoping that one

day I would see a ‘For Sale’ sign.” It was an

event that was clearly meant to be. The sign

did indeed go up eventually and Chelsea and

husband Gary managed to sell their current

property within a week. Five years later they

are still living in their coveted Victorian

property, which is located in the historic

market town of Rugby. One of the main

features of the house Chelsea originally fell

in love with was its unusual layout:

“It’s a double fronted Victorian property

so the rooms are laid out squarely on either

side of the entrance hall, rather than the

usual long narrow format you get with a

Victorian terrace”. Chelsea realised that

Photography Jon DayStylist Emily HensonWords Claire Marie Slight

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housing two businesses, two daughters and Dusty

the cat was always going to be a big demand on

space: “I knew the layout would work perfectly for

family life; with plenty of use able space and separate

working areas for our businesses”. After the initial

excitement died down, the Cefai family had a real

task on their hands, building an extension to the rear

ground floor. Chelsea added, “We also decided to re-

point the entire house more than half way through

the project, hence a constant cloud of orange brick

dust to contend with!”

On the decoration front, Chelsea has a real knack

of putting together different looks, a good eye for

colour and had no problem with pulling it all in. “I’ve

never felt uncomfortable or nervous about mixing

styles and love to experiment with different styles.

We have lots of use able, family space and the things

we find and love are what make it personal.”

Everything flows from a few initial ideas and

key pieces: “Inspiration for each room usually starts

with something quite simple like a picture or a piece

of furniture. In the living room we have a piece of

artwork by Terry Frost, which hangs above the

fireplace”.

But a major discovery was about to seal the fate of

the overall conception of the decor.

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“We’d lived around the corner from this house for quite a few years and I’d always kept an eye on it hoping that one day I would see a ‘For Sale’ sign”

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“We were completing the final stage of the

renovations in the kitchen/dining areas and I came

across the work of Sheila Bownas at an auction. The

illustrations were ideal to display in the downstairs

space but when I discovered there were more than

200 original patterns I had a sudden urge to save the

entire collection!” Chelsea further explains “Flora

Dora our online shop was launched with a limited

range of prints, fabrics, cushions and postcards. So

far we have released 10 of Sheila’s original designs

from the 50s and 60s.” In fact Chelsea is very much

a vintage design aficionado with a passion for the

preservation of British design in particular.

“I knew the layout would work perfectly for family life; with plenty of useable space and separate working areas for our businesses”.

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“Inspiration for each room usually starts with something quite simple like a picture or a piece of furniture”

This is something which Chelsea wanted to reflect

in her home, although there is a real mix of décor

throughout the house:

“There is quite a clear difference in style between

the two floors. This type of house can carry a mix

of styles very well and I’m strongly influenced by

several distinctive periods, predominantly the

40s, 50s and 60s. When we moved here I still

loved the antique French bed my husband bought

for us in our very first home 15 years ago!”

www.flora-dora.co.uk

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Style stealGet the look from Chalsea’s home

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Heart Shopping

Fabric Clock, £25 from Gift

Wrapped and Gorgeous

Sean Connery

Framed Print, £18.99

from Arthouse

Sagaform Retro Teapot, £24.95

from Cloudberry Living

Venetian Mirror, £ 245

from French Bedroom Co

Kitchen Pendant,

£ 54.99 from tch

Big Rose

Pink Wallpaper, £43

from Wallpaper King

Miss Mary’s suggestions for Spring dates

For those of you lucky enough to live in the

country, the sight of a gambolling spring lamb will

be a regular occurrence. For millions of us living in

the city that’s sadly not the case. Spring, to me, is all

about new life and the inquisitive newborn lamb is

the perfect sign that spring has sprung. To bring a

slice of the countryside to town, a great spring date is

a trip to a city farm. There are at least eight in London,

and one of my favourites is Mudchute Farm on the

Isle of Dogs. There’s nothing more incongruous than

hopping on a tube to go and look at some sheep

grazing in front of a skyscraper, but at the same time,

nothing more wonderful! This is the perfect spring

date for a townie wishing they were living the rural

dream or a country bumpkin missing home…

You’ll find city farms dotted all over the UK but

we visited Mudchute City Farm, which is located on

the Isle of Dogs and is free to visit.

www.mudchute.org

For me, “Spring Break” doesn’t mean an annual trip

to Cancun with a bunch of US teenagers (anymore!) it

means a weekend away to relax and unwind with my

other half, somewhere in the great British countryside.

Due to my springtime obsession with lambs I can’t

think of anything better than a weekend in a beautifully

renovated shepherd’s hut, like the Shepherds Return

at the Hollow in West Sussex. Located in a country

garden just an hour from London, but surrounded by

fields, this is the perfect weekend getaway. Charming

and simple with an incredibly stylish interior it’s every

stressed city workers dream!

Take a look at the inspiring Canopy and Stars

website for more special places to stay across the

country, but this particular hut sleeps 2, from

£100 a night.

www.canopyandstars.co.uk

Mary Higgs is the author of popular website The Great Date Guide.

By Mary Higgs

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The promise of spring tends to get me a little over

excited about the prospect of summer! Sunshine,

warmth, evenings spent outside… Sadly the British

climate doesn’t always play fair, so, if you’re desperate

for some sunshine and colour then head to a botanical

garden. In London a great weekend date is a trip to

the fabulous Kew Gardens. The amazing glasshouses

are full of vibrant tropical flowers, but Kew is also a

beautiful spot to experience spring in it’s own right

with lush carpets of bluebells and daffodils making a

colourful display. For a more adventurous date Kew

has a sensational tree top walk, 18 metres high, 200

metres long and designed by the architects of the

London Eye. From up top you’ll get a stunning view

of all the spring flowers, not to mention a very good

excuse to grab hold of your date’s hand on the excuse

of your terrible vertigo!

Most major cities have botanical gardens. We

visited Kew Gardens in West London, which costs

£13.90 for an adult.

http://www.kew.org

All this excitement about spring is cause for

celebration, and what’s the best way to celebrate?

With a cocktail of course! Gone are the months of

mulled wine and sloe gin, now it’s time for some

fresh and fruity cocktails – umbrella optional… The

UK boasts plenty of fantastic bars but one of my

favourites is the quirky Paradise by Way of Kensal

Green in London. With an eclectic interior, including

a candlelit karaoke room, and a huge roof terrace

Paradise truly is one of London’s hidden gems. I

asked them for their signature Spring cocktail – the

answer? The “Paradise Gin Mule”.

Ingredients:

50ml Millers gin

Large chunk of cucumber

20ml lemon juice

20ml gomme (sugar syrup)

Ginger beer

Method:

Pour the gin over the cucumber

and muddle. Add the lemon and

gomme, top up with ice and shake. Strain the mixture

into the glass over crushed ice and top with ginger

beer. Garnish with peels of cucumber and mint sprig.

The verdict? Delicious. Spring in a glass that will

give you a spring in your step!

You can find the “Paradise Gin Mule” at Paradise

by Way of Kensal Green and it will set you back £6.

http://www.theparadise.co.uk

Michaela Mildenhall, otherwise known as Pargy, is the author of the blog which hunts down the best in bold and daring design from the past and present.

you thought that kitsch interiors were

all about cheap tackiness, high cartoon

camp and shallow sentimentality then

think again. Kitsch is a very exciting concept, and

some of the biggest names in design are currently

experimenting with this style and taking it in a whole

different direction.

Kitsch is often mistaken for bad taste but it’s

actually quite a complex idea, questioning the concept

of what is good or bad taste. It also has a chequered

past. First we had the cutesy-pie kitsch charm of the

50’s. This then mutated into the garish and super

sexy 80’s version. Kitsch is now the comeback kid in

interiors, except that it’s gone and grown up, becoming

polished, witty and virtually unrecognisable. This

new breed of kitsch is breathing an air of exuberance

into otherwise average interiors.

The word kitsch has German origins and was

basically a term used to describe cheap, sentimental

mass produced ornaments. The biggest decades for

kitsch however are the 50’s and the 80’s. In the 1950s

we saw the “Tiki” type of kitsch; with its proliferation

of Tretchikoff’s “Chinese Girl” pictures and nightmare

nick-nacks from hell. The 80’s saw the emergence of a

less innocent kind of kitsch, spearheaded by Artists and

photographers such as Jeff Koons and Pierre et Gilles.

This type of Kitsch was heavily sexualised, glamorous

and worshipped at the altar of pop culture.

Over In the world of furniture design, a group of

influential Italian designers that called themselves

the “Memphis” group, took bold geometric shapes and

mixed these with kitsch colours and humour. These

pieces of furniture were also created in the 1980s, and

are highly collectable today. Contemporary designers

are becoming very excited about the Memphis style right

now so I’m sure you will see exciting developments in

this area. So how do you incorporate this over-excitable

trend into your surroundings? Well, clearly kitsch is

not for everyone (and most definitely not for the faint

hearted). I personally think it works best when you

really embrace it. If you’re a fashionista, dandy, hedonist

or joker, then I’m sure you will work it well, if not, don’t

panic; here are some pointers!

The elegant Naturo Fantastic range from Lladro.

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MoooiHorseLamp.

Blaue Blume petit four stand from Undergrowth Design and Temple Tulips wallpaper from Amy Butler, available at Graham & Brown.

Above all else kitsch is extreme and joyful. Forget

less is more; more is more!

Rumble at the jumble; or even the charity shop

for fabby vintage finds. Some retro kitsch is becoming

very sought after and you might end up buying a future

antique!

For walls, why not try out some vibrant kitsch-style

wallpaper (I think Amy Butler works the trend very

well). Alternatively, you could get some cheap copies of

tretchikoff (in the true spirit of Kitsch) or a selection of

postcards featuring the work of Jeff Koons and Pierre et

Gilles.

There are some great kitsch accessories in the shops

at the moment. Kitsch lamps are particularly striking.

Think about some modern designer pieces for your

home. The key is to go for well executed design that has

really good detailing. Typical Kitsch themes are cute

animals, cartoons, crazy florals, femme fatales and

pretty sailors!

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