Relax, it’s just taking a break. It is sundowner season, so take time to sit back and appreciate the saturated shades of the sunset. Here are 6 ways you can work the mood into your space.
The day is done, and the light is beginning to fade. There are pinks, reds, cool and inky blues, mauves, magenta, and deep purples to be seen in the sky.
It’s time to pause and drink in the natural show on display.
Celebrate the sunset and bring its life-affirming mood into your home.
Cool cloths that do double duty
Intensely colored tea towels can do double duty as napkins for summer meals al fresco.
They’re especially useful for messy seafood meals.
Dock and Bay sells a set of three for €37 that show off Balearic-like sunsets. Fold as napkins for summer sundowners and use in the kitchen as tea cloths in the darker months.
Serve up sunset in a bowl
1815 was the year John Doulton founded Royal Doulton, now a world-famous pottery.
To commemorate that heritage, the brand has created the 1815 pattern, comprising complementary coloured glazes creating a relaxed dinner vibe for family and friends.
The Brights collection includes this set of 23 cm four pasta bowls, €72, reduced from €90 at Arnotts.
It’s lighting-up time
Festoon your outdoor space with these cool flame-effect string lights, €29.95 from Arboretum, which has shops in Leighlinbridge, Co Carlow; Kilquade, Co Wicklow, and on Dublin’s Parnell Street.
In sets of 10, they are ideal for decorating shrubs, a balcony, a trellis, a parasol or a doorway.
They automatically light at night and charge in sunlight.
Break bread and share these saturated shades
Combining colour, texture and craft, these simple Maegan pieces in handwoven polypropylene help create a rattan texture effect but are also weatherproof.
The yellow and lilac breadbasket, €35, can be bought from Nordic Elements in Blackrock, Co Dublin, while the matching oil pourer, about €37.50, can also be ordered from the store.
Setting sun accents
Designed for Heal’s in collaboration with London-based independent fashion label LF Markey, this cotton-linen cushion brings an abstract design to life through a considered mix of techniques.
Screen-printed artwork is enriched with raised satin stitch embroidery and delicate hand-appliqué, all carefully crafted by skilled artisans in India.
Its inky blues and oranges make it a distinctive accent for the modern interior. It costs about €99, ex-delivery from UK-based Heals.
Dusk falls and the mood changes
Something is life-affirming about dining outdoors at dusk.
Some carousel lights hanging overhead, suspended between two trees, add illumination and a harlequin set of Vitra seating mean there’s room for everyone at the table.
It’s about sharing the moment.
In existence since 1967, with an outdoor version added in 1999, the Panton chair by Vernon Panton, in red, Bordeaux, rose and glacier blue, about €370 each to order from Vitra, helps set the scene.
