Design, Trends
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Cork is for life, not just for coasters

Cork in Interiors

Hello hello, how are you all this week? I have a couple of public announcements to make before I get stuck into this week’s blog post, so please bear with me…

1. Sorry for missing last week’s post everyone. I had the lurgi and tonsillitis so I spent most of last week moaning and watching Netflix. I’m just about back on it now, so i’ve got a lot of catching up to do!

2. THANK YOU ALL SO VERY MUCH! To those that voted for me in this year’s Amara Interior Blog Awards, you did it. You got me shortlisted for Best Interior Designer Blog, so i’m off to the awards ceremony later this month. Eeeek! I can’t tell you how happy I was. Thank you so much once again! You guys are total legends 🙂

So onto today’s post. It’s about cork. Admittedly it might not sound that exciting, but you’d be wrong. I love cork and not just because it normally comes with wine or fizz. The use of cork in interiors is pretty mega right now so am sharing some bits and bobs that might catch your eye. AND actually, cork has appeared in two of my last four posts, so it seemed a good time to focus a whole post on it.

cork wall

Charlie’s Cork Wall

This cork wall appeared in my last post all about Charlie’s new bedroom furniture. I had a couple of messages asking about it, so thought i’d post a bit about it here. This was bought as a self-adhesive, cork roll. At 1m wide, 5m long and 8mm thick it was a good size to create a floor to ceiling notice board. Killing two birds with one stone it : a) gave our son somewhere to pin all of his tat… sorry, I mean, pieces of art, and b) adds some colour and interest to this side of the room.

I love playing around with textures and what better space to play around with ideas than in a kid’s room? Admittedly, the adhesive aspect of this roll wasn’t that great, hence me not linking to it. It’s taken some additional methods to keep it up there including batons screwed around the edge to frame it and random panel pins knocked into the wall to stop it was peeling away. Seems to be up there for good now… **crosses fingers**.

You may also remember I’d also bought myself a little cork-y treat not so long ago:

SAMMANGHANG – Ikea, £15

I picked up these little cork storage boxes from a recent trip to Ikea and whilst there tried to hunt down this cabinet that had just hit the website.

SAMMANGHANG – Ikea £350

Alas, it wasn’t there in August…. But it was in September!

sammanhang-cabinet-cork

This is a pic I posted on Instagram Stories, hence the rubbish quality. But it was good to see it up close and personal. It’s a great price for a feature piece of furniture, not an heirloom piece by any means, but for those Scandi purists out there, I can see this in a lot of spaces.

So what other cork goodness is out there at the moment? Here are some bits and bobs i’ve come across during a recent search. Enjoy….

Loft Cork Veneer Bar Stool – CFS, £53

Could also be used as a side table, bedside, plant stand. Very versatile and love that rope detail for added texture. Bargain too!

Drum Side Table – Blue Sun Tree, £116.10

Harvest Side Table – Blue Sun Tree, £234.90

Ubikubi ‘Marco’ Stools – Beut, from £160

Cork Set of 3 Baskets – La Redoute, £60

‘Zuiver’ Tripod Cork Floor Lamp – NAKEN, £219

Danuta Cork Table Lamp – Ideas 4 Lighting, £86.28

Chloe Cork Flecked Lampshade John Lewis, from £20

 

SINNERLIG Table Lamp – Ikea, £27

Klum Collection – MADE.COM

Cork Bed

Bisu Cork Bed – OTQ, price on request

For those of you that think cork is a modern day fad, it aint. It’s been used for years.  Cork is synonymous with 70’s design, so it’s no surprise there are some vintage corkers (see what I did there) available online right now. Check out this late 60’s beauty from 1st Dibs:

 

Smart 1960s Chrome Tubular Chandelier with Cork Shades – 1st Dibs, £508

Black, chrome and cork. Be still my beating heart. I love this.

So what do you think? Like, dislike, love? Either way, you’re going to be seeing more of it, as design brands invest in the use of sustainable materials. Cork is an extremely ecological material to use as it is created from the bark of the tree. This means the tree does not have to be cut down and can continue to live and grow, maintaining natural habitats for the wildlife in that area. All in all, it’s a bloody wonderful material to use, so much so, i’m currently looking at cork flooring for a big kitchen refurb at the moment. ‘Citing!

“Cork is for life, not just for coasters.”

3 Comments

  1. Elaine Mason says

    Congratulations on making the shortlist! Now you’ve just got to nerve-rack your way through the ceremony!

    I love cork, although it does remind me of growing up in the Seventies, with our avocado bathroom suite and cork floor. I did love that floor. I’ve just bought a cork case for my phone, and there’s something irresistible about the texture and the colour.

  2. I remember my auntie had a wall of cork tiles in the 70s 😊 I’m glad to see it’s making a comeback as it’s pretty versatile! Congrats on the shortlist too 😊

  3. Sandra says

    Not only is a beautiful material it is an amazing thermal and sound insulator.

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