Tuesday, March 4

Foreign Correspondent: Living Etc.

International design magazines are one of my weaknesses. But these babies are pricey. I've decided to defer the costs of my addiction, by dispersing the best of their contents with you. If I'm sharing with y'all, the costs seem well worth it. So, consider me your new Foreign Correspondent! This week some pretty pages from the March issue of the UK publication Living Etc.

Designers Guild buyer, Mark Homewood's fabulous West London home.


Grazia's style director Paula Reed's home.


Art Director Al Davis' beautiful Brighton home.


Fashion designer Claire Stansfield's Los Angeles pad.


Living Etc.'s Dream Spaces feature.


Living Etc.'s Decorating with Multiples.

For more fabulous inspiration from Living Etc., look for their magazine
in major bookshops and magazine stands in your hometown.

30 comments:

amber {daisy chain} said...

I've bben oogling over this magazine via their website, so I don't have to shell out the dough for the real thing. I'm really loving it, though, and hoping we get a cheaper version here in the US.

Thea said...

Thank you Victoria! You are ever the inventive blogger - great idea to share these pages with us all...i love these cozy and arty rooms, thanks for being so inspiring to us all!

Anonymous said...

Thanks for sharing, Victoria. I love these rooms. I hope I can nest in any of them right away.=p

Anonymous said...

I love Living Etc!!! It's my monthly must-read. But I never know when they hit the stand at B&N so it usually requires a few trips to the bookstore at the end/beginning of the month...

Kathryn said...

that couch is so beautiful with that rug. now i am addicted to living etc.

Anonymous said...

This is so funny... being from London, UK magazine seem so much less interesting than US ones... I guess the grass is always greener.

April Elle Deco and Living Etc should be out here in the next few days...

Coco said...

I love that magazine. I thought the "dream spaces" was your apartment for a minute.

Anonymous said...

You SO RULE right now. I love this mag.

Unknown said...

every time i see photos from this magazine it makes me wish i either a) lived in australia or b) could afford a subscription to it here. everything about it is so stunning!!

Anonymous said...

i love your justification!
now we all get to see it :)
i feel like all windows should be like the ones in Claire's LA house.

Libby said...

the thing is that i love big white paper lanterns no matter what the context - even though they seem so played out, i will always love them. my dream is to have some big wrap around porch lit by white paper lanterns and summer evenings.

nice work.

sfgirlbybay said...

I'm so glad you like my plan, which rationalizes these purchases with the promise to share with y'all! I love these magazines.

Anonymous said...

Thanks so much for sharing. They are pricey. You are way generous.

JLC Studio said...

Oooh, these photos are beautiful! I especially love the patchwork sofa in the first group...Thanks for sharing this!!

Robin said...

So where, exactly, does a magazine-obsessed girl find Living Etc. in the Bay Area?

Oh, and you were right about the bookstore in Japan Town. It ROCKS!!

sfgirlbybay said...

Robin - you can find a lot of the international mags at newsstands like:

Smoke Signals - Polk & Vallejo
Juicy News - Fillmore & Jackson
Farley's - 18th St. (Potrero Hill)

Also, Barnes & Noble carries them.

lovely textiles said...

I love your idea of sharing the mag like this - it's like going to see a film with friends! you're creating a virtual magazine/coffee morning! personally, I'm a squint sofa-junkie and am hankering for one quite desperately.

G. said...

Oh, i've already discovered the magazine in Empic... little suprised to see it here after few days ;)

Anonymous said...

a little advertisement won't hurt them. this makes me want to buy the issue even more.

Teresa @ good-grace said...

oooohhh goodie! That bedroom is DREAMY!

bixx said...

the only design mag i consistently love. it's always so solid.

Anonymous said...

Wow, I guess I may be the only one who finds this a little distressing. Bloggers continue to publish images from new magazines, and then complain when magazines go out of production. I appreciate the fact that they can be expensive to buy, but so many bloggers express a want to support things/people/artists they love (eg. via etsy/buy handmade) but won't pay to support design publications they love? And then get upset when they see magazines go out of print?

It also seems like there is a line that is crossed when you publish so much printed content on your website without permission. Luckily, sfgirlbybay is certainly not the worst offender of this magazine thing!

I have a fairly new blog, and I try to contact people when I use images from their websites - I often get replies that are thankful, saying that they rarely get asked permission, or credit, despite the fact that they put that requirement on their site.

It just seems that bloggers in particular, who love what they are putting out there, should be a bit more supportive and respectful of magazines (and of artists who provide images free of charge for the asking).

sfgirlbybay said...

Anon - While I completely respect what you're saying, I can tell you that it's the magazines that often write to me, and other bloggers, asking that we blog from their pages. It's like free advertising and publicity for them. In fact, one magazine just sent me a digital subscription from their magazine so that I would have hi-res images from their pages to pull from. And, I am clearly credited the magazine here, all over the place, and linking back to their website. I love this magazine and would not disrespect it by not publishing clear credits for it.

My editorial about making the magazine more cost efficient by sharing it was really one in jest. And I photograph the pages instead of scanning them, so that you can clearly see it is a magazine spread. I'll bet many of you ran out to buy a copy to see what other greatness lies beneath its cover. I know I do that when I see something that intrigues me. I wanted to clarify that I am in no way hoping these pubs go out of business and as I said, they have encouraged me, for one, to blog about them in this way. I hope that makes you feel a bit better. Honestly, I don't think that is the intent of any of the bloggers out there, and again, I have never heard one complaint from any of the magazines I have blogged about - only thanks.

rachel @ blackeiffel said...

Thanks for showing these, I haven't got this month's issue yet, I'll have to go get one now. I share your weakness of the foreign titles :) and I think that it is fantastic that you share.

j said...

so many lovely rooms.

I love the round table, fifth picture down, dark stand and white top.

Claire said...

I'm with read me who commented abouve. I'm from London and I was going to say exactly the same thing!

"This is so funny... being from London, UK magazine seem so much less interesting than US ones... I guess the grass is always greener."

I'd always be up for a swap Victoria - I have 5 or 6 years worth of back issues of Living Etc and Elle Deco hanging around...

Claire said...

grr, I meant above, obviously...

sfgirlbybay said...

that would be fun lola! i've got a ton of domino back issues. email me!

Anonymous said...

okay, can I just confess that I was totally tickled to see Claire Stansfield mentioned-- she used to be Simon Le Bon's girlfriend back in the 80s. Hee!

K (still a Duranie, at age 41)

sfgirlbybay said...

Yes you can K! Who else would let us in on that little bit of trivia? That's awesome.