Author: Vanessa

by tuiss :: Energy saving blinds for draughty windows

January 26, 2010 by Vanessa·1 Comment

I’ve just spent a very nice weekend wandering around beautiful villages in the Cotswolds. Between the cream teas one thing I noticed was the poor state of many of the window frames, they must have let in quite a draught, and occasionally a gale! Many of the homes and buildings are ‘listed’ so new energy efficient UPVC windows would look out of place or simply not allowed.

It occurred to me, what these homes needed was tuiss NRG energy saving blinds! These Energy Saving blinds with their thermal coating can cut energy consumption and your bill by 15%. Clearly if your windows are particularly rickety then even more warm air will be drawn outside meaning that radiators have to work extra hard to keep it warm and toasty on the inside.

Simple NRG11 Oatmeal

Index NRG12 Taupe

Legno NRG12 Linen

There are over 20 blinds in the tuiss range of ‘NRG’ energy saving roller blinds. The collection includes many neutral fabrics as well as greys, darker browns and pastels too. The blinds will work well in contemporary styled rooms as well as traditionally styled rooms.

If you like curtains but are tempted by the warmth of the NRG blinds then simply hang the blind inside the window recess and keep your curtains as well. This curtain / roller blind combination gives such a smart and luxurious look to a window.

Eclipse NRG15 Stone

Native NRG15 Bamboo

Eclipse NRG15 Sky

The technical bit

The thermal coating on the rear of the blind keeps the heat in and the elements out, the most thermally efficient blinds are from the NRG¹⁵ range, the energy saved is 15%, that’s £133 per year saved off your energy bill and in your pocket instead.

tuiss Love :: Norton & Sons

January 25, 2010 by Vanessa·0 Comment

Norton & Sons was established in 1821 by English Tailor Walter Charles Norton to make clothes for the young gentlemen of the City of London. The company still thrives to this day, just proving that there will always be a place for tradition and expert craftmanship, in this case Savile Row tailoring.

Here at tuiss we of course love fabric as do Norton & Sons.

At Norton & Sons we take great pride in sourcing the finest British materials. We use English Worsteds from the mills of Yorkshire, and the best woollen spun tweeds from the Borders, the Highlands and the islands of Shetland, Harris, Mull and Islay. Many of the Mills date back centuries, with their cloths gracing occasions from Coronations to the Oscars.

We also source two unique hand-woven tweed collections directly from individual weavers working in the Hebrides. These wonderful craftsmen create beautiful cloths using traditional methods.

Patrick Grant is the owner of Norton & Sons, he’s quite the chap about town and to hear his take on fashion, tailoring and dressing to impress just click here to go to an interview with Style Salvage.

tuiss Love :: Harris Tweed (and window blinds)

January 22, 2010 by Vanessa·1 Comment

Harris Tweed is known as the ‘Champagne of fabrics’ and it’s steeped in history dating back centuries. The fabric is currently enjoying a resurgence in popularity and we don’t think it’s hard to see why. (In fact we’re in the throes of developing a tuiss range of Harris Tweed blinds, more about that later!)

Authentic Harris Tweed is governed by its own Act of Parliament and to be given the Orb stamp of authenticity the cloth has to be made to stringent standards, this from Harris Tweed Hebrides:

The law decrees that genuine Harris Tweed must be made from pure virgin wool which has been dyed and spun on the islands and handwoven at the home of the weaver in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. The cloth is then returned to the mill for finishing. Only then can it be given the famous Orb stamp which authenticates it, metre by metre. And each piece of tweed can be traced back to the individual home weaver.

Cairngorm Tweed

Lovat Blue Tweed

Keepers Tweed

At tuiss we are always looking for new avenues to explore and at the moment we are busy talking to Crofters about a collection of authentic Harris Tweed roman blinds. We can imagine how beautiful these blinds will be and are very excited.

Until we can get the blinds on stream why not have a look at our Connecticut roman blind collection? The fabric is inspired by tweed and has a wonderfully soft handle. We have more than 15 colours in the range and the fabric makes up into the most wonderfully luxurious blind.

Connecticut Harvest

Connecticut Samphire

Connecticut Lobelia

Connecticut Hessian

Connecticut Hemp

Connecticut Damson

thursday thought by tuiss :: Smarter more fuel efficient driving

January 21, 2010 by Vanessa·0 Comment

Thursday thought is all about easy things we can do to be greener. They don’t come much easier than these driving tips from the Energy Saving Trust which guarantee to reduce your fuel consumption and the hit on your wallet.

Check Your Revs. Change up before 2,500rpm (petrol) or 2,000rpm (diesel)
Drive Smoothly. Anticipate road conditions so that you drive smoothly and avoid sharp acceleration and heavy braking. This saves fuel and reduces accident rates.
Step Off The Accelerator. When slowing down or driving downhill, remain in gear but take your foot off the accelerator early. This reduces fuel flow to the engine to virtually zero.

Visit Energy Saving Trust for more tips on reducing your car’s emissions. If you need a little more convincing then take a look at one man’s attempt to reduce his mpg, Can a petrolhead be an eco-driver?

tuiss Love :: Who’s glass?

January 20, 2010 by Vanessa·0 Comment

Who’s Glass is our sort of company, they’re clearly passionate about what they do and their heart is in the right place. And it goes without saying that their products are gorgeous.

Did you know that about 3.6 million tonnes of glass is used in the UK every year and over 1 million tonnes goes to landfill? Who’s Glass is doing their bit to correct this by upcycling old bottles into new things of beauty:

Every bottle we use is collected locally, heated and shaped by hand, then slowly cooled and packed. We take pride in ourselves that our glass is about as environmentally friendly as it possibly can be! We use no glues, either with the glass or in our packaging and every piece is hand engraved instead of labelled.

by tuiss :: Roman & roller blinds with cotton seeds

January 19, 2010 by Vanessa·0 Comment

For a natural look then cotton flecked and dotted with cotton seeds is second to none. The cotton seeds (or cottonseeds as one word) are usually removed from the cotton production process, however, for some fabric designs a proportion are left behind and incorporated into the weave. The seeds that are left add extra character to fabric as well as exuding a natural and luxurious feel.

How many seeds would you like? Roller or Roman?

Some fabrics have more seeds than others, choose the Stria Cotton roller blind for example which has quite a lot of scattered seeds, if you prefer less seeds then something like our Sommeil Calico blackout roller blind will fit the bill.

We have cotton seed fabrics available in both our roller, roman and blackout ranges, please click the links to see the entire range.

Stria Cotton Roller Blind :: the cotton seed flecks give a natural and organic feel to the blind

tuiss Love :: Use UK

January 18, 2010 by Vanessa·0 Comment

Use UK is a wonderful website packed with unusual things. Just like us they love good design but they also have a conscience and do all they can to limit their impact on the environment.

In particular I love the limited edition cushions made from quality fabric sample books, also the vintage bags that have been given a good clean and are truly unique. What do you get for the woman who has everything? A cushion or a bag with a difference of course.

Cushion :: made from fabric samples that were destined for landfill

Hand & Nail cream :: Free from nasties and beautifully presented

Vintage bags :: Rescued bags that all have a history and story

by tuiss :: Fusion Brevis Venetian Blinds with cotton tapes and wooden rails

January 15, 2010 by Vanessa·1 Comment

Are you looking for something a little different? Why not consider a blind from our Fusion Brevis collection? We’ve taken a 25mm aluminium slat and then teamed it with cotton tape to overlay the cords. Sounds good so far? Then we’ve obviously added top and bottom rails…………………………in wood! The tape and the wood give the aluminium a softness yet substance also.

There are many bonuses of the Fusion Brevis range:

Fusion is exclusive to tuiss so we can promise you a unique look.
The cotton tapes work well at reducing the light into a room as they overlay the cord holes.
Big windows? Fusion has the answer with its wider than normal width (2887mm) owing to the strong head rail but lightness of the aluminium slats.
Our designers have put together some fantastic combinations, keep it light with Deco, go really dark with Obsidian or maybe hi-tech with Metro.

(If would like a wider slat then take a look at Fusion Maxim range which features 50mm slats. We’ve blogged about them too, have a look here.)

Fusion Brevis Solum :: Just where do you begin when describing the Fusion Brevis Solum? This blind has richness running through it from the warmth of the Cream aluminium slat to the Walnut wood and finally the deep depths of the Cocoa cotton tape.

Fusion Brevis Deco :: A wonderful blind, the Light Oak wood of the valance and bottom rail harmonises beautifully with the Gloss White aluminium slats. The white slats are further softened and warmed by the addition of the Natural cotton tape.

Fusion Brevis Urbane :: This is a successful marriage of dark exotic Wengi wood and sleek silver aluminium slats giving a distinguished and sophisticated look. The Chocolate cotton tapes give the Urbane a final designer flourish.

Fusion Brevis Metro :: You may have been waiting for this blind for some time! An aluminium venetian blind is just the ticket for some rooms but the Metro cleverly raises the style stakes with the addition of a black wooden head rail and valance plus a black cotton tape.

Fusion Brevis Obsidian :: This makes a special and strong style statement with its luxurious good looks. The striking combination of the cotton tapes, aluminium slats and wood, all in black make this venetian blind extraordinary, we promise that it will be much admired by all.

thursday thought by tuiss :: Anyone can upcycle

January 14, 2010 by Vanessa·0 Comment

This is fabulous, the ‘What Watt’ by Tim Fishlock. It took 1243 spent incandescent light bulbs to create a very nice chandelier indeed.

Making a chandelier is upcycling on quite a grand scale, but anybody can do it, and here’s the proof.

Faced with a snowy drive that we needed to clear but only a narrow shovel to hand we needed to make a wider tool. We had a bit of old plywood but what to use for the handle? Aha, one Christmas tree stalk later and a few nails and we were there!

Clearing the snow

Have you upcycled recently? We’d love to hear about it.

tuiss Love :: Sled Coffee Table

January 13, 2010 by Vanessa·0 Comment

We love something a bit quirky here at tuiss and it’s not often you see a coffee table / rug combo! The sled is available from Duffy London.

A Coffee table that interacts with its Rug, the coffee table is in the shape of a traditional child’s sled and sits neatly into a thick pile rug with two deep grooves cut into it, giving the impression of compressed snow under the weight of the skis.

The table is made from Walnut and high grade birch plywood from Stewardship Council managed forests and other controlled sources.