The Aqua dining table, Steeple chair and Omino lamp from Roche Bobois.

Autumn: The season of ever-changing hues. And no better time for Dulux Paints Ireland to reveal its annual interiors forecast. 

Dulux Colour of the Year 2023 ‘Wild Wonder’ aims to bring energy and a connection with the natural world into our living spaces. 

This is all very on-message seeing as the natural world is in its rightful place, at the top of the global agenda. Dulux 'Wild Wonder' in Diamond Matt Finish, €77.50 for five litres. Check out the Dulux Visualiser on Dulux.ie to see your home transformed prior to painting.

Don’t these dining chairs, €45 each, from Jysk give off a real back-to-school vibe? The Danish homewares brand is aiming for a reset this autumn/winter, and its interiors collection includes a palette of pastels and neutrals as well as browns, khaki greens and Nordic blue shades. See www.jysk.ie.

Picnics, barbecues and all kinds of al-fresco dining are on the backburner for now as we turn our thoughts to indoor entertaining again. 

As we plan the real and fantasy dinner parties let’s dream big. Looking for some mood-board inspiration? Behold the Roche Bobois dining set — the Aqua marble dining table, €9070, Steeple chairs, €1450, Omino lamp, €2990, and rug, €4000.

Ever been in a situation where you’d invited a few buddies over for a bite to eat, and thrown open the cupboard only to discover you had fewer plates than pals? If you’re looking to invest in some new ware, the Mikasa’s White Swirl 12-piece dinner set, from Harvey Norman, is usually priced at €120 but we spotted it online this week for €60. 

Each piece is made from hardwearing Portuguese clay. A glaze also helps protect against cracks and chips (under regular use).

It’s microwave and oven safe. See Harveynorman.ie

Remember that Cadbury’s Flake ad? Don’t we all love the idea of luxuriating in a free-standing tub? Strange but true, according to bathroom designers, one of these opulent-looking creations can actually make dinky bathrooms seem expansive. 

These rooms can be the tiniest yet most hardworking spaces in our homes. And free-standing oval baths like the Abyss design from Sonas, below right, €1,695, incorporated into a little bathroom, can make it look bigger — apparently, because it cuts corners and all that extra floor on view boosts the impression of the room’s size. Who’d have guessed? See Sonasbathrooms.

All that talk about painting and bathrooms got me thinking about brushes and mirrors. At Wish List we often feel like we have more brushes than paint cans — mascara brushes, specifically. 

Irish entrepreneur Aimee Connolly came up with MyMascara, €19, left. It’s super-pigmented and long-wearing and, best of all, just like it says on the tin — the formula softens and conditions every lash. See Sculptedbyaimee.

ART'S THE WAY TO DO IT

We just couldn’t resist these tactile-looking lovelies by Cork ceramicist Nuala O’Donovan. Nuala creates abstract patterns inspired by the natural world and her interest in the use of geometry in art. 

Every piece is made in unglazed porcelain clay. “Each work is unique and forms part of a progression,” says. Nuala. Where possible, I show my work in groups on a plinth which is specific to the work and based on geometric principles related to those used in the studio pieces.” The plinth is treated as an element of the final piece. 

Nuala holds a BA in Three-Dimensional Design from Middlesex University and an MFA in Ceramics from Crawford College of Art and Design, Cork. Prices for Nuala’s ceramic pieces are available on request. Her work also features in the book ‘Irish Craft Heroes’, €35, which marks the 50th anniversary of the Design & Crafts Council Ireland; the book is available at https://www.ndcg.ie/news/article/irish-craft-heroes-book.

Could your child be the creator of the next ‘Simpsons’? Top cartoonist Harry Burton is starting weekly online classes for budding artists, aged eight to twelve, this Tuesday, October 4. ‘They are one hour long and taught through Zoom,’ says Harry. ‘I will teach children how to draw facial expressions and gestures, create characters, make a comic strip and lots more. If they like, they can then show me and the class the cartoons they’ve created! 

The most important thing for me when teaching this class is for the kids to have fun!’ All abilities are welcome, he adds. ‘The children have loads of fun drawing away and I’m always impressed with how funny and creative the young artists are,’ he says. 

All you need to take part is a laptop/device for Zoom, a pencil and paper. It is €50 for five classes; email haricatures@gmail.com.  Harry, from Greystones, Co Wicklow, was a runner-up for the prestigious European Cartoon Award 2022 for his Roe v Wade cartoon which was published in the ‘Irish Examiner’ in May 2022.

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