by James Balston | Feb 16, 2016 | Antiques, Apartments, Architecture, Artists' Homes, Contemporary, Crystal Palace, Designers & Architects, London, Restaurants, The Triangle SE19, Workplace
London’s centre of gravity is on the move. The city’s ancient roots are of course north of the river, with many of its landmarks and institutions dotted along that side of the Thames. Centuries of expansion, while not confined to the north, saw it’s... 
by James Balston | Feb 14, 2015 | Antiques, Bathrooms, Bedrooms, Classical, Contemporary, Decoration, Homes, Kitchens
Grey is so over! It has reached saturation point, or should that be desaturation? So ubiquitous is it, that it’s becoming the butt of jokes, as in this amusing sketch which pokes fun at designers and a certain brand of paint. Clearly grey is the new beige. Then... 
by James Balston | Nov 11, 2014 | 1950s, Antiques, Bedrooms, Homes, Kitchens
Liz’s 1950s style kitchen was the perfect cover for Vinny Lee’s latest book Kitchenalia, but there’s so much more to her Ramsgate cottage that deserves to be seen. For me, some of the most interesting homes I’ve shot, are not necessarily the... 
by James Balston | Sep 1, 2014 | Antiques, Art, Bedrooms, Decoration, Homes
I’m guessing Shaun Clarkson and Paul Brewster aren’t big fans of Ikea. You may recall how a few years ago the Swedish furniture store proclaimed tunefully that we should all “Chuck out the chintz”. Their delightful but somewhat anarchic Norfolk... 
by James Balston | Feb 17, 2014 | Antiques, Architecture, Bedrooms, Classical, Homes
I’m not normally a fan of new classical buildings. So often they are poorly detailed and the proportions are all wrong. Besides, I’d much rather see good modern architecture which is of its time rather than something which pointlessly mimics the past. So I... 
by James Balston | Oct 28, 2013 | Antiques, Art, Blog, Restaurants, Seaside, Shops
Rather like Brighton & Hove, or even Ant & Dec, Hastings & St. Leonards are inseperable. I would say indistinguishable, but unlike the northern celebrities, the Sussex towns have plenty that sets them apart from each other. While St. Leonards was...