Ford X Casa Decor Press Trip

Being a Londnr doesn’t necessarily mean being geographically shackled. If invited away to play, why ever decline?

Last week saw our editor flown out to Madrid by Ford Cars to explore Casa Décor. Ford (the stylish bunch!) was a major sponsor for international design fair; Casa Décor, this year held in Spain. If you’re not entirely sure what I’m going for with ‘design fair’, imagine a beautiful historic mansion in central Madrid being transformed into a series of spaces, each one taken over by a different designer and concept. It’s like Frieze Art; but for Interior Design.

We did a lot of what I’d like to call intrepid exploring. Weaving in and out of mouth-watering kitchens and beckoning bedrooms, you get lost in a maze of luxury living and flights of design fantasy. More than just looking at rooms, you begin to realise how much thought goes into the practicalities of creating intelligent interiors.

HP Packard took over a room where everything from the floor to the wallpaper was printed. Samsung showcased their tech kitchenware. Designers such as Pepe Leal use cork to immolate traditional Portuguese aesthetics and improve acoustics in a room. Cinius teaches us how to trick this overpopulated world and live comfortably in tiny but smartly designed places with moving beds and unexpected storage areas. Peketoyas use imitation painted glass to bring light into dark rooms like cellars or basements… And architect Hector Ruiz-Velazquez designed the Ford Vignale Pavilion, a swooping structure befitting Ford’s deliciously sleek Vignale model that took centre stage at the fair’s outside area.

I couldn’t be more grateful not only for being chosen for the trip, but for being so spoilt too! Thanks to the wonderful Ford team, the sweethearts who showed us round Casa Décor and the the ME Hotel in Madrid for my own designer sleeping spot! Oh – the champagne, rooftop dinner and really golden Spanish sunshine was good too. I think I finally found Home Sweet Home!