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Harpers Bazaar Arabia
03-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Harpers Bazaar Arabia
Introducing The Summer 2025 Issue Of Bazaar Arabia Interiors
Celebrating the designers, spaces and visionary tastemakers that bring this season's most stylish interiors to life… The last few months have served as an incredible reminder of the profound impact design has on every facet of our lives. The inaugural Downtown Design Riyadh in May put Saudi front and centre, with its four-day event at JAX District in Diriyah, celebrating both regional and international talent and connecting global brands with the Kingdom's creative community. The 64th edition of Salone del Mobile in April once again proved why it's the most influential fair in the global design calendar, with a theme this year of Human Touch that focused on materiality, emotion and craftsmanship. EXPO 2025 also opened its doors, running until October in Osaka, with the Middle Eastern pavilions blending millennia-old civilisations with cutting-edge visions. New ideas, new names, new launches… The design world is as vibrant and remarkable as it's ever been. Unearthing uniqueness is one of the greatest privileges when putting together each edition of Harper's Bazaar Interiors. Discovering and delving into truly singular spaces that push the boundaries of design, experience and livability is the cornerstone of what we do. Casa Roca, a quiet sanctuary in Jumeirah Park, is one such space. Designed around raw, earthy, natural elegance, the villa celebrates the spirit of Wabi Sabi – a Japanese philosophy that finds beauty in imperfection – allowing nature's rawest elements to take lead, ushering in a quiet luxury that feels inherently organic. Turning to homes across the region and beyond, we explore the different connections we have with the spaces we live in and love. For Carmel Harrison, her Palm Jumeirah apartment is an extension of her spiritual second home, Ibiza, asserting, 'If I can't live there yet, I'll bring the island to me.' For Shima Samaei, her creative domain, a sun-drenched apartment in Index Tower, is an extension of her broader ethos, that a home should provoke thought, stir emotion and still serve the quiet rituals of everyday life. And in London, Brigitta Spinocchia Freund treats her west-London villa as an ever-evolving gallery space. Thought-provoking design from myriad perspectives. As we welcome summer, and thoughts turn to vacations and perhaps lighter, brighter colour codes – such as our Mediterranean-infused cover – now is the time to be playful. To allow design to enhance your world, rather than be dictated by it. Whether you're led by nature or perhaps something altogether more instinctive, the foundations of design remain the same: it should be fun. I hope this issue sparks wonder in all the right ways. From Harper's Bazaar Arabia Interiors Summer 2025 Issue.
Observer
03-03-2025
- Health
- Observer
Accepting imperfections in life...
There are days that seem to be like a dream, and there are days that can be choppy. For some, the days which are smooth could be boring and at the same time, they might thrive on the choppy days because they find the days adventurous. It must be the adrenaline rush, but they find the rough day to be active and fulfilling because of the problem solving opportunities, while others can sink down under the weight of pressure. So what makes some people have all the resilience and bounce back when others tend to give up easily? You will be surprised that this too is connected to childhood. 'Resilience is acquired throughout life, but especially during childhood,' writes Sparrks Coaching. Emmy Werner who had done extensive research on the subject in 1955, explained that resilience is not innate, but can be learnt. This was a fresh look because earlier it had been concluded that if an individual had a tough beginning, it was almost impossible to be successful later in life. But, we have come across so many successful stories of people who had difficult childhood. Now, according to experts, there is a key factor that can make a difference. And that is relationships. Moreover, genetics also play a significant role in the shaping of resilience. It also depends on how well one's HPA axis (Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis) is functioning. Misregulation of the stress hormone also creates a difference. Eventually, it is easy for us to understand how the miss regulation of stress hormone can also be related to mental health. Knowing so much more than ever before, it is important for us to know the impact of our words on other people. If the objective is to communicate, that is to convey a message for another person to improve or do better, insulting them or being aggressive might have the reverse effect. So why do people say hurtful things especially at work places when actually we want the best performances from our team members? Breaking someone's self-esteem might be easy if the individual is not strong enough but what the doer doesn't realise is that they lose an important part of their team. Instead of nurturing we tend to destroy and the destruction can take a long journey of recovery. Came across in an article on National Library of Medicine, US, an interesting definition of self-esteem and resilience. 'High self-esteem has been regarded as a protective factor for resilience, at the same time, resilience is seen as a promoting factor for self-esteem.' Along with resilience and self-esteem is an integral element that can ease into smooth transition and that is social support. This is extremely important during adolescence. Resilience and self-esteem has another interesting cultural practice from Japan called Wabi Sabi. Dr Jo Nash wrote about Wabi Sabi, published in Positive Psychology titled, Wadi Sabi Lifestyle: How to Accept Imperfections in Life. According to the Zen Philosophy, Wabi Sabi has seven aesthetic principles which were explained by Lomas, Etcoff, Van Gordon and Shonin in 2017. The seven aesthetic principles are simplicity, asymmetry or irregularity, the beauty of the understated, naturalness without pretension, subtle grace, freeness and tranquillity. Basically Wabi Sabi requires you to be authentic. Dr Nash writes, 'A Wabi Sabi lifestyle prizes maturity, depth and wisdom over the vitality of youth.' So acceptance of our imperfections can make a difference in how we look at ourselves. Could acceptance lead to confidence? Looks like it, because each experience can make us stronger. This leads us to grow. Why do we hide our flaws? We hide our flaws because we are afraid of being judged. We fear that when we are judged we might lose opportunities. But the reality is that with perseverance it is tough to lose out in life. Belief in oneself is the key. The writer is senior editor of Observer
