Marc Kitchen-Smith: 2012

Sunday 16 December 2012

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

Santa has dropped off a whole pile of delightful objects at the Marc Kitchen-Smith Ltd Depot - all perfect for (almost) last-minute Christmas presents!

We have an eclectic range of prints available. These Victorian colour lithographs from an early 20th century children's book are framed up in tulip wood and ready for suitable wall space. These are being sold individually rather than as a set, so shoppers can just choose their favourites!

If you are into 1960's/70's psychedelia, then make sure you put these great fish plates on your Xmas list. They are great fun, and really deserve to be appreciated as pieces of wall art rather than being covered in a Mornay sauce!

We tend to buy old children's toys based primarily on their aesthetics, and so this rocking horse is certainly a good example. Made of beech wood, and dating from the 1950's, it has been constructed to create the most beautiful and graceful lines: minimalist and totally functional.

Traditionally-made, wooden children's toys are immensely popular. Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without a BIG wooden toy train under it! Or is that just nostalgia? Anyway, it seems most of our customers buying them on a regular basis, are WELL beyond school age, and one particular celebrity chef is using them to decorate his restaurants!

The original owner of this beautiful home-crafted doll's house was a lucky lady indeed. Dating from the late 19th century, this is a simple and elegant piece of folk art. It oozes bags of character, from the scalloped shingle roof, to the carefully fret-worked staircase, making it totally unique and now elevated from toy to a lovely example of country folk art. We suggest it is adored for its decorative qualities, and played with sparingly!

This delightful object is for the 'collector' of all things fine and rare. An exquisitely made Victorian miniature doll's rickshaw. Dating from about 1895, and made of a painted hardwood, it is in superb condition and could well have originated from one of the British Colonies such as India or Hong Kong.

OK, who thinks of Rudolph when they see antlers at Christmas? This splendid 14pt set of antlers, are ready mounted on an oak plaque, and ready to be hung above the mantlepiece above the stockings. They make the ideal home for your flashing Christmas lights and/or the odd bauble...

Browse our stock online or in real life at LASSCO Brunswick House in London or LASSCO Three Pigeons in Oxfordshire.

Merry Christmas!

Sunday 4 November 2012

Industrially furnished

The influence of the industrial on interior design is as popular as ever. We particularly like the 'mechanical' approach to design that this aesthetic brings - the function of the object defines its form.

In September, we visited Design Junction at The Old Sorting Office on New Oxford St. There were some fantastic exhibits from leading furniture and interior designers, but it was the mail chutes and machinery of the building itself that we found incredibly inspiring.

Soon after, one of our industrial cabinets was featured in October's issue of 'Elle Decoration', as part of an article on the use of colour and pattern.

We found these lovely steel paint cabinets in Lincolnshire. They had come from an old 1960's autos garage. The scratched, rusty cabinet exteriors hid a vibrant, original egg-yolk yellow painted interiors. The cabinets are very robust, with adjustable shelves and each come with a lock and key.

Like wood, metal can take on a beautiful patina over time. These stacking shelves have just the right combination of original pale blue paintwork and corrosion. Consisting of sections, the are easy to stack, and each one comes with adjustable internal section plates - ideal for book shelving or shoe racks.

This green, painted steel shelf unit has two panels of original 1930's black glass. It would make an ideal bedside/sofa-side table or bathroom storage unit.

Thursday 4 October 2012

All Things Bright and Beautiful

How can you spot a 'Delightful Object'? Well, it might be its age, design, patina, functionality, or sometimes simply its colour. An object's colour can reflect both the era in which it was produced and the market it was produced for. Maybe it was advertising a product, or catching a child's gaze in a toy shop window. Here are some of our most vibrant items in stock at the moment...

Originally designed by the infamous Robin Day for furniture makers S. Hille & Co. in 1963, these polypropylene stacking chairs are iconic pieces of design, seen everywhere from schools and hospitals to restaurants, cafés, and airports.

They've been so successful, they've never gone out of production, merely evolving with subtle design changes. These vibrant child-size examples were known as the 'E-Series' designed for educational establishments in 1972, and their size graded by a letter of the alphabet alongside the Hille trademark underneath the seat. The orange ones here are a 'B', whilst the blue ones are very small nursery school size 'A".

What could be more dramatic than that (terribly British) red/white/blue combo? We always try and have a few framed vintage Union Flags in stock - they make such great, vibrant wall decorations. This large framed flag is over four feet wide, and was brought back from one of our trips to Canada. It's in perfect 'tatty' condition - complete with authentic faded edges and the odd tiny rip or hole.

BIG and BRIGHT RED! We love these vintage homemade wooden toy trains for dressing our showroom. They add an essential colour accent to a minimal monochrome scheme, which is probably why they sell so quickly... or is it that they tap into people's nostalgia for a long-lost childhood?

Funky, red, AND with shiny bits! We just had to buy this child's sledge when we saw it on one of our trips to Sweden. A basic yet sophisticated child's sledge dating (we think) from the 1950s - it's crude steering mechanism pivots the front left or right. Whether it ever sees any snow is questionable, but hey, it looks great just to have it to look at!

We bought these two enamel signs because of their great graphic qualities. Using the classic Automobile Association black and yellow colour scheme, they combine deco-style patterned borders with bold '50's typography. They really are in nice condition too!!

It was particularly beautiful teal blue that this old 1930's pine stepladder had been painted that meant we simply had to have it! It's a sturdy number, and as you can see it makes an excellent bookshelf.

No prizes for guessing what this nifty bit of advertising was selling. Worthy of being framed, this gorgeous 1940's cardboard advert in the shape of a bar of Palmolive Soap, is still as vibrant as the day it was printed.

Sunday 20 May 2012

Jubilant Times

The build-up to a summer of Great Britishness has begun! Britannia has decked out the place in her finest Union Flag bunting, has stacked her shops' shelves with all manner of quality merchandise, and is ready for the world to come over for some tea and cake.

The first major event is of course the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations (although for some, the extra bank holiday will be the real cause for celebration).

We've got our china cabinet full of original Elizabeth II coronation mugs, as well as a few Silver Jubilee ones.

For those with rather grander ambitions (and wall space) this fab vintage flag is the way to celebrate in style.

London is leading the way with the Jubilee celebrations. We have got some more of our London cushions in stock to help bring a bit of Capital Style to your living room.

Whether you're celebrating our monarch's reign, or just happy to have an extra day off to escape to sunnier climes, enjoy!

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