High Street Heroes

A monthly perusal of High Street seasonal newness to find my Top 12 lustworthy items to add to your home or inspire you this June.

This week, I went to London for the Substack party and was VERY poorly dressed. I know that there’s a temperature differentiation between the South and the North of England, but truly, I had literally NFI how hot it was going to be. I had plans to wear a summer dress (in order to fit in with the whole ‘fete’ theme) but changed my mind last minute when I awoke to find it was so cold in York that the heating had come on automatically. So I pulled on black trousers and a long sleeved t shirt, together with a waterproof mac in order to cover my options, only to find upon arrival at Kings Cross that it was about 27 degrees and humid as HELL.

There are a few things that are bad about being overheated and overdressed, the first being that you can’t do a thing about it except change your clothes which would involve going to the nearest shop and having to pay cold hard cash for items you don’t really need. I have had to do this before for a work meeting in Covent Garden where I arrived in a JUMPER during a heatwave and had to run to Zara to strip off before it started. The unnecessary yet self inflicted purchasing still galls me to this day. Also just being generally really hot, so hot that your feet feel swollen like balloons and you feel permanently flustered and sweaty. Urgh. Anyway, by the time it had reached 7pm the weather had slightly cooled, as had I, the only evidence of my previously expiring state being my hair which resembled Crystal Tipps. There is a lesson in this, mostly that I should learn to look properly at my phone weather forecast prior to departure.

Me at the Substack Summer Fete.

Ella has been back home this past week as she carries out her final placement and finishes her dissertation. We are both rather busy at the moment and spent lots of time telling each other that we were going to encourage each other to get it all done, that we’d be working hard ALL DAY with just a small sandwich break. However, so far this has not been the case, particularly yesterday which started with me having a very positive consultant appointment to discuss what I can do about post cancer reconstructed boobs (these were done twelve years ago after chemo and it’s fair to say that they don’t look quite the same as when created) which was quickly followed by the news that Ella had managed to secure a job with the NHS as a Critical Care Scientist which was also a three year Masters degree (complete with an actual proper salary and the Masters paid for - I know, right?). We immediately went to Spark York and ordered wine to celebrate both miraculous events, before giving up our work for the day and going to Ambiente for tapas for dinner. Some days you just need to let it all go, that’s what I say.

But back to the point and what have I spotted whilst perusing the heady heights of the High Street? Organic shapes still ruling the roost on the shelves, particularly in tableware where if it’s not looking like it’s been handmade and fired in a rustic kiln then it has no business being there. More seventies and retro inspiration in the form of tubular curves and smoked and coloured glass, plus lots of texture and painterly styling when it comes to patterns. And finally, you know I like to waffle on about earthy colours but yes, still waffling this month too. Terracottas, sea blues, ochres, deep reds and olive are still hot to trot as we continue to lean into natural tones and warmer colours.

So here’s my list from twelve of the most alluring High Street homeware brands as seen this June. And my favourite find this month? The seventies inspired tubular shelving unit from La Redoute well and truly has my heart, closely followed by the Habitat stacking stools which are perfection. Happy Saturday!

1.Sea Inspired Stoneware Vase - H&M Home, £34.99

There’s a lot of beige going on at H&M Home which I found faintly distressing but FEAR NOT. This excellent vase does indeed come in beige but it also comes in pale blue! Far more joyous. Particularly when it’s labelled ‘sea inspired’, ffs. LOVE the texture and tonal colours and the uneven edges which give it an artisan stylie feel. It’s almost 30cm high and also comes in a smaller size too. Super duper nice.

2. Fruit Serving Dish - Zara Home, £49.99

I am hopeless in the face of nice serving items and this dish is a winner. In fact, Zara Home are winning at life this month with loads of great new items; this is part of a collection which also includes plates, bowls etc, with a variety of different fruit/vegetable depictions. I like the painterly edging here and the colours are perfection. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, please can we have a Zara Home store in North Yorkshire?

3. Pumpkin Wall Light - John Lewis, £70

Ooh, John Lewis, you are really spoiling us. If I’d have seen this wall light last year it would have been a VERY strong contender for my downstairs renovation. Curves, soft glow, interesting shape, beautiful ivory linen - yes, yes, yes. And a quick click revealed that this light is part of a collection of pumpkin lights including floor standing, uplighters and pendants PLUS a travertine based table lamp which is rather excellent. Nice and simple, but super chic.

4. Coral Linen Tablecloth - Mango Home £89.99

Another hugely underestimated fashion brand with a homeware section that we don’t have enough (or any, in this case) actual stores of here in the UK, although any excuse to go to Spain where they have loads of them. I’ve said before that I feel Mango Home have the most affordably price but also cool tablecloths out there when it comes to the High Street, and this coral linen in no exception. There’s actually a few fishy styled summerish ones on the website at the moment, but I love the colour and watercolour look of this one which also comes with matching napkins. Lovely lovely.

5. Giorgio Wall Mounted Bookcase - La Redoute, £579.99

I went to the La Redoute press day in France last year and when I saw these shelving units (designed in house by Adrien Edel), I was totally smitten. If I had somewhere to put these, I’d be ordering sharpish as they are EXACTLY up my street. Tubular curves, smoked glass, dark wood, seventies vibes - I mean, what more can you ask for? These look vintage and I can confirm that they look equally good IRL too. Genius moves.

6. Set Of 2 Highball Glasses - Marks & Spencer, £15

Liking the whole smoky glass situ at the moment and these highball glasses which are new in at M&S are fabulous. Olive toned, they’re a great shape and feel really fresh stylewise plus they’d look excellent on your summer outdoor dining table. It’s a well known fact that you can never have too many drinking glasses, especially when you have teenage boys who like to use at least 15 a day and leave them in their bedrooms to accrue orange squash mould.

7. Harmonie Stoneware Berry Basket - Anthropologie, £16

Okay, this is kind of a niche pick but I am a big berry fan and every night, I’ll have a bowl of strawberries, cherries and grapes (I’m not nearly as healthy as this makes me sound, believe me). And how better to eat my mound of fruit than from a made for purpose berry bowl? Also, the pattern is super pretty and these would also be nice to serve berries in for other people to share, not just to scoff yourself. Also, anything beats those bloody horrible plastic containers that they generally come in, I’d decant pronto if one of these was in my ownership. The next time I’m in Leeds, I’m 100% picking one of these up from the Anthro there.

8. Four Bistro Napkins - Dunelm, £12

Saw these and KNEW that you’d love them. Never let it be said that I don’t know my audience, ha. These are a set of four bistro napkins with writing on them and a nice black and cream frill and are very reasonably priced, meaning that they’d be great for outdoor use this summer. They also appear from the picture to be huge, which is always a bonus. Although I am not sure that I’d invite anyone to dinner who needed to be reminded to eat with their mouth closed (this is my absolute WORST ick, btw, I challenge you to name something worse than this).

9. Sami Fabric Stacking Stool - Habitat, £30

Ah now, this is the Habitat that we know and love. This little Sami fabric stacking stool bears all the classic hallmarks of great Habitat design and the colours are a dream. I mean, they couldn’t be any better. Perfect for extra seating around the table in a style that won’t date and that you could feasibly store in the understairs cupboard stacked up if you didn’t need them. Bravo, Habitat.

10. Marble Tic Tac Toe - Arket, £45

As someone who has recently bought a chess set for the coffee table (my sons are obsessed) and refused to do so until she found one that was aesthetically pleasing, this tic tac toes many of my boxes (excuse the pun). I have no idea how to play chess but I do know how to play this old classic and this cool marble set would look very nice on the coffee table, possibly even nicer than the chess board. IMO, coffee tables should be interesting and draw the eye and this would be an excellent addition.

11. Pambo Velvet Chair - Oliver Bonas, £575

There is a huge Oliver Bonas which has recently opened a five minute walk from my house but I’m pretty sure you can only buy the furniture online (do correct me if I’m wrong). There is an incalculable amount of fruit and vegetable inspired product in store at the moment, from salt and pepper shakers to shorts coords and headscarves and I find it all a bit overwhelming, but this chair is a sleek little number. Toffee coloured velvet, nice curves, no hard corners and a shape that makes you want to sit in it and shut your eyes. I have mixed feelings about what are generally termed ‘occasional chairs’ but I like this one a lot.

12. NAMARRO Outdoor Unit - IKEA, £110

Honestly? If I had the space to fit this in my courtyard I would be straight on it. This is from the NAMARRO collection which is pretty classic wooden framed stuff but this addition to the outdoor kitchen range is new. I mean, outdoor kitchen but equally feasible as a potting table or display for plants, with storage beneath too. There’s more bits to this product that you can add - longer kitchen benches, sinks, etc - but they are made for use outdoors and are super practical. Unfussy, but looks the part.

So there you have my favourite finds this month. Which do you like the best? Do tell me in the comments below!

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