Oh England, dark, grey, rainy, somber England – oh wait, meet Squint.

The good people at Squint seem to believe we all need a little color in our lives. OK, maybe not a little. They use  woven English damasks and shot silver and gold satins with Swarovski rose crystal and pearl detailing. They use  rare 18th and 19th century from French trimmings with woven silver and gold thread. They use Japanese ceremonial Kimono silks which have been embroidered, appliqued and finished with turn of the century lavender glass beads. And everything they make is beautifully crafted with meticulous attention to detail. And if you think the exuberant wall sconce shown above is bright and playful just wait until you see their sofas.

The Simpson is from Squint’s bespoke range. The furniture is made to the highest  specifications. Furniture frames are constructed by hand with hard wood, dowelled joints and hand carved mahogany legs. And if you are troubled by mismatched sofa legs you probably aren’t going to be a fan of the upholstery either.  I have a theory – this is furniture for people who are fun, confident and alive.

Now here’s a nice traditional chair, sort of. The Stamford is a piece of furniture you could just sink into and abandon the afternoon. Or you could stand back and admire the many fabrics. Everything Squint does is the very antithesis of boring. And they have absolutely no fear of playing with the iconic.

I’ve always thought that a chaise is, essentially, a camp piece of furniture. Is there really a masculine chaise? If I’m right then Squint take it to extremes and their Vienna Chaise is as camp as a pantomime dame. And once again, irresistible.

At this stage some of our readers will be pondering the idea of mixing some of this bright, fantastic furniture with a calmer surrounding environment. In which case this maybe for you. One of our favourite pieces the solid dark wood of the dining chair makes the bright fantastic upholstery sing.

Looking for a brighter cabinet? Squint will make you one. This is a bedside cabinet and, to be honest, no picture will ever really do it justice. If you are anywhere near London a trip to Squint should be enough to lure you to the East End. If you find yourself an ocean away can we just remind you that money spent on travel is never wasted and if you contact us we will recommend local bars and an exceedingly good place for a curry! OK, a mirror and some lights before we go?

Never boring, never dull. Squint do mirrors like no one else does mirrors. By now you were expecting something bright, but what would you expect a Squint chandelier to look like. Because chandeliers can be a little over -the-top.

And if you are the sort of person who is vibrant enough to fall in love with this chandelier, lighting candles and dealing with a spot of wax isn’t going to trouble you at all. Can we have a campaign for real candle driven chandeliers? And on the subject of candles,

This is a monster and it is a beauty.  And just in case you’re one of those people with a thing for lamp shades, voilà, feast your eyes.

Here’s a pile of the most brilliant lampshades I have ever seen. The urge to wear one as a hat would be irresistible. I was listening to the radio the other day and heard a vox pop of the good people of Washington being asked about the English. Apparently it is a dull, grey country full of reserved people never see the sun. Hey people, time to visit Squint!