# Another contemporary chair

How many chairs can there be in the world? Barely a day goes by without another international name revealing the next big contemporary chair. How many different places to place our bottoms do we really need? Portuguese designer Joao Valente came up with a slightly different tack with his # Another Contemporary Chair by covering it with mirror, forcing the user to analyse their relationship with the chair itself rather than just collapsing down on top of it.

Tralhão Furniture: A hit in Milan

Usually when I think of MDF, I am plunged headlong into ghastly recollections of home improvement shows in the late 90's where they'd cover everything in the stuff and spray stars onto it and so I quickly change mental channels. However, Portuguese design group Tralhão Furniture have completely changed my mind about it. They scored high with critics in Milan this year with their MDF cabinets. Using everything from silver leaf to glass feet, you would never guess that a material commonly associated with flatpack furniture provides the frame for these creations. IKEA eat your heart out!

It's owl in the details

Presents are always hard to choose, even when you know the recipient well. I usually go for something the person probably wouldn't splurge on themselves which is also, hopefully, something rather unique. My little sister hit the ball right out of the park when she gave me my birthday present this year. She'd been given an old Singer sewing machine (when I say old, I mean old; you have to wind a wheel to make it sew) and since then she's been happily absorbed in sewing everything she gets her hands on into beautiful quilts and cushions. This handmade quilt is easily one of the best presents I've ever received, not just because it's covered in owls (my somewhat obsessive love for all things owl is well documented) but because it was handmade and she must have spent weeks on it. Handmade presents are the way forward - any suggestions for what to name the owls?

Thought on blogging rights

Like hygge nook, where I found out about this, I don't usually right about blogging issues. However, the problems that shoeperwoman is experiencing (namely, that some ghastly woman has copied her branding and is trying to steal and trademark the shoeperwoman name for a new shop) really upset me. Plagiarism is such an ugly practice in the blogging world and for that reason, I wanted to post this link to show my support for the ORIGINAL shoeperwoman. Accept no substitutes!

The spirit of the Portuguese, distilled into a hat...

Friends, I've neglected you again, for which I am truly sorry. But I've been up to my eyeballs in a very exciting project that's soon to be announced. Next week in fact. Watch this space! In the meantime I wanted to share the newest project to come out of the studio of the very talented Portuguese designer Catia Sul. She created these nifty hats as part of a design project with fellow Portuguese designer Suzana Rezende (watch this space for more!). The project is called "Cada cabeça sua sentença" (Each head has a destiny...) which can be found on sale at Aguas Furtadas in Porto. I'm fascinated by these hats. It's like she took the very essence of the Portuguese people and made it into headgear! I can't tell you how much I want the birdie hat... By the way, as part of this project, please be aware that the London Lisbonite blog is moving to a new home so please bookmark http://www.londonlisboniteblog.com/!