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Sensitive souls that we are, the new John Lewis ad made us sob all the way through supper (alongside most of the population). Our tears of emotion quickly turned to tears of joy when we spotted not one but two Original BTC lights.  

We've been greatly amused by the reaction to the advert in the blogisphere - a big thumb's up to the Mumsnet blogger who, in response to detractors criticising the fact that the ad only relates to women in the home, pointed out that John Lewis are big on homewares, but not so big on office furniture!

Just back from LA. A smorgasbord of styles, from these alarming neo-classical sprawls with UPVC windows being built and re-built in Beverley Hills...

...to these appealingly laid-back Venice Beach homes, overlooking the Pacific Ocean.

We're over the moon that Original BTC were highly commended by Elle Deco in the 'most inspirational showroom' category at Design Week Chelsea Harbour.

Well done team!

Looking for lighting? Need inspiration? Now you know where to go!

Original BTC, Unit 228, Second Floor, Centre Dome Chelsea Harbour 020 7351 2130

Heading to Chelsea Harbour for Design Week on Monday? Please do join us for a glass of champagne  at Original BTC's new showroom.

The showroom houses the full range of over 200 lights including this stunning bespoke Pembridge - a 15 tier chandelier made of over 500 translucent bone china petals. A triumph of British manufacturing and design!

If you can't make it on Monday, drop in at any time - the team would love to see you.

A great time was had by all at Maison et Objet, where we visited clients Compagnie de Provence, Original BTC and Gone Rural.

Trends-wise, we'll all be living in homes decorated with paper furniture, with plants sprouting from desks and sidetables, adorned with motifs of goldfish and birds. That's goldfish and birds together, mind - feature them alone and you're soooo 2009....

Here's Original BTC's Titan lamp hanging over a display of Pantone mugs at Paris boutique Merci, shortly to be launching a pop-up store at department store Liberty.

It's party time on the Talking Tables stand at Top Drawer, with new kids ranges including Ladybird Football and Where's Wally. For the grown ups, two new baking and tea-inspired ranges are the icing on the cake for home cooks - including a brilliant pop-up cardboard tiered cake stand - a genius solution for those of you who've ummed and aah'ed over whether spend money on a potentially little-used item which takes up more than it's fair share of space in kitchen cupboards.

The star of the show was - wait for it - the Showstopper, an aptly named all singing, all dancing flower shaped ice fountain. Simply light the ice fountain which in turn activates the flower's petals which open to reveal a row of candles which are lit by the flames in the ice fountain. Stand back in awe as the flower begins to dance and sing happy birthday - this one has to be seen to be believed!

We were greeted at Top Drawer by rows of limited edition bottles of Extra Pur Savon de Marseille liquid soap designed by Marseillais artist and reknowned poster designer Stephan Muntaner to celebrate Compagnie de Provence's 20th anniversary. Tattooed sailor's forearms symbolize the busy port, the city's religious fervour and the Mediterranean sea, with three designs depicting Marseille's harbour, local sailors' reverence for the Virgin Mary and finally a romanticised 'miraculous catch'. Each bottle - named 'La Macquerau' (mackerel), 'La Sardine' and 'La Girelle' (rainbow wrasse) - is filled with a specially created Marseille soap, with a fragrance inspired by the fresh, salty sea air. Here's a close up of  Stephan's beautiful designs - certain to be a hit in stylish kitchens and bathrooms looking for a taste of contemporary France.

Today we paid a visit to Original BTC's new showroom at Design Centre Chelsea Harbour. The 1,200 space is the first opportunity to view the British manufacturer's collection of table, floor, wall and pendant lights in full. So for those of you who've asked us over the months whether there's anywhere you can see all lights in situ - we're thrilled to say the answer is now YES! From industrial-style metallic pendants and flexible task lights to delicately translucent bone china chandeliers, there's something for all tastes...in fact, we'd say there's so much for our tastes, we're thinking of moving home to fit them all in! With this year's focus on sustainability, craftsmanship and nostalgia it's the perfect time to buy into the classic designs of one of the country's few remaining designer/manufacturers.

A very happy New Year to all! We hope you had a fab Christmas. Copious overconsumption has forced us into our double slanket til mid-January. We will emerge like butterflies in a few weeks and look forward to seeing you at Top Drawer and Maison et Objet!

Wishing you a marvellous 2010.

Jo and Rachel x