KEY POINTS:
Shaz Dixon opened Ponsonby Rd boutique Styledirect in 2001, after working and travelling in India sourcing wholesale clothing.
Dixon, who has previous experience as a stylist, wanted to open a store with fashionable and contemporary design, without the excessive price
tag. The shop reflects Dixon's own modern and eclectic taste, selling furniture, bedding, homewares, original artwork, refurbished retro furniture and more. Dixon loves to support local art and artists, and stocks a comprehensive range of original local art as well.
She confesses to being difficult to buy for because she has "access to just about everything a girl can need".
Here are her 10 favourite things.
1 My Angie Dennis pohutukawa print
It evokes memories of New Zealand summers. Angie creates both original artworks and limited edition prints. She completed a Masters degree in Environmental Science, which perhaps explains her passion for preserving native flora and the focus for many of her paintings. Angie's contemporary artworks complement and enrich the interiors of many homes and businesses here in New Zealand and abroad.
Her Mt Eden home is set up as a gallery for customers to enjoy her artwork in a relaxed environment. A lot of her art is limited edition and gets snapped up pretty quickly, but I managed to get this last one!
2 Norm 06 light
I love all the lights from Normann Copenhagen, but the moment the Norm 06 light (designed by Simon Karkov) came into our store, I just had to have it! He worked on the Norm 06 for three to four years and, like many of his projects, he had to leave it for a while then look at it again a few months later.
He is inspired by nature and this light had the inspiration of water lilies. I am also eagerly awaiting the arrival of Norm 03 Steel designed by Britt Kornum. It's an organic, modern lamp in stainless steel - this is designer plus! It's currently available in white but this stainless steel one is out-of-this-world. It even comes with white gloves to assemble it!
3 Sally McVicar
My interior designer and right-hand-lady at Styledirect. Sal has worked with me for the past three years and I couldn't do without her. She keeps me grounded when I go off with some hare-brained ideas and encourages me to follow my instincts on new business ideas. Her knowledge of interiors is amazing, so together we are great team and our interiors side of the business is growing fast.
4 Louis Vuitton
I am a huge fan of Louis Vuitton and would love to own a trunk and loads of luggage, but I have to settle for a couple of well-loved things. These are my travel bag, a couple of handbags and my gorgeous red wool military coat. These will never ever go out of style. Marc Jacobs has brought a lot of fun to
the brand with his quirky design, but I personally can't stray from the monogrammed design; it is classic. I like to tell myself they are investment pieces!
5 My grandfather's old leather hat box
It's been all over the world with me and is now my family memory box. It's full of letters, old photos and things that are special to me. When I am feeling homesick for my family in Australia, I often sift through it, looking at old letters and pictures drawn by my nieces and
nephews when they were kids. The oldest is now 21, so there are
a lot of memories in this tatty old gorgeous hat box. I will never,
ever part with it.
6 My iPhone
Mac is the ultimate in computer design, it is so sexy and stylish! So recently a good friend talked me into buying his old iPhone when the 3G one came out in New Zealand. It is the ultimate in mobile phone design. It took a bit of convincing to use the email (I like to get away from emails sometimes) and internet on it, but now I love it and am ready to upgrade to the latest one.
7 My funky retro armchair
I see so many of these come and go through the store, but this one I just had to hang on to. It is fully restored and covered in a black
and white ring print fabric by Warkworth textile designer Ingrid Anderson. It's so comfortable to sit in. The construction on the older furniture is amazing and I just added a simple twist of modern fabric and lacquered the arms to match.
8 Ashley & Co home perfumes
This amazing New Zealand made brand is created by Auckland creative duo, Jackie & Ben Ashley. The Blossom and Gilt home perfume scented with tuberose and jasmine is my favourite, and has been a constant in my home for at least two years.
9 Shimano Lipstix hot pink fishing rod
Owning a homewares store means I have access to just about everything a girl can need, so all my friends say I'm hard to buy for. Last Christmas my very dear friends Rich and Kate bought me this fishing rod. It was the perfect designer gift. Now I just need a Louis Vuitton tackle box!
10 The new Working Gear wall clock
Karlsoon is a well-known Dutch design clock label of the Present Time Company, located in the Netherlands. A Karlsoon clock can be recognised by its good quality, funky graphics, basic shapes and innovative details. It's sleek and stylish and you can see the inner workings.
