Showhome
Southwark Life

Frustrated by a lack of shops to furnish their 1970s homes, Dulwich residents Lucy Ryder Richardson and Petra Curtis have set up a quirky new venture buying and selling beautiful pieces of contemporary design and recent antiques.

After having her daughter Molly, Lucy was looking for a complete change of direction from her life as a fashion journalist. She and ex-graphic designer Petra, decided to turn their passion for collecting into a new project, bringing original pieces of furniture, lighting, ceramics and glassware to local homes and making shopping for the home fun, hassle-free and inspiring.

Showhome, as the venture is known, was launched in June when the pair opened up Lucys bright and airy Dulwich home to shoppers. Everything inside was up for grabs from bold sixties cushions to the Scandinavian teak sideboard. The name Showhome harks back to the building boom of the 1960s and 70s with a certain retro humour, however, it also expresses the teams ethos of making shopping for the home a more intimate and fun experience.

"Why buy cheap, production-line imitations when you can enjoy shopping for midcentury and contemporary originals without huge shop mark-ups? Not to mention, snoop around someones house while you are doing it," explains Lucy.

Showhome has since branched out with a service sourcing individual pieces for buyers. And coming up theres Midcentury Modern a fair planned for October 5 which will bring together international dealers and designers selling a rare mix of contemporary homeware and original 20th century design classics.

The Midcentury Modern fair will be open to the public from 10am to 5pm on October Sat Dulwich College. Entrance fee is £2.50 for adults, children under 14 free.