Sunday, March 05, 2006

Canyons of Your Mind

2006 is the year to finally fix up my flat. All other capital expenditure has been put on hold and I have forced myself to peruse kitchen catalogues, bathroom suites, flooring products and other related products. I have engaged an artisan, Tony, who will carry out the work once I've decided what I want to do.

Interior design has never been a subject close to my heart. I am sufficiently aware of my own limitations in these matters to know that any bold design statement I make will be hideous and a subject of humour to friends and family once I am out of earshot. I know what doesn't work. The previous residents bequeathed me a bathroom in black and pink. I won't be going in that direction.

Yesterday morning I was in a bathroom showroom in Enfield. I'm relieved to see there no longer appears to be a fashion for coloured bathroom suites - bogs and basins were all lined up like sperm in a Woody Allen film, all gleamy and sparkling white. There were refreshingly few gold bath taps on display. Given that I've never seen one in anyone's house, I'm surprised by the apparent popularity of those baths with little jets and nozzles that give you a bath-time fluffing. The fashion in taps these days seems to be for the monobloc design where you get a single up-down left-right lever to modulate the temperature and force of the water ejected. I thought that style was confined to public toilets but it now seems to be permeating the domestic arena. Still, that's Enfield for you. Next week, kitchens. Watch this space.

2 comments:

The Aunt said...

I'm doing my house up too. I'm doing it up in white, so I can rent it out if I suddenly decide to do a runner abroad. If you're ever planning to sell, this is not a bad idea.

Taps - yes, the ones with the lever. I have one word for you: Grohe.

Anything else is tat and breaks in 5 minutes.

King of Scurf said...

Ah yes, I forgot to mention on my post that I was also in the shower section. Products from the good people at Grohe featured heavily. Dead sexy they were as well. I think my brother had a Grohe shower in his house when he lived in NL a while back. One day perhaps, British plumbing will be the equal of continental Europe.

Did I just describe a shower fitting as sexy? I think I did. I need to get out a bit more.