Bargain hunter

Ventura steels the show

This steampunk Churchill dining table, 2m by 1m, in weathered solid oak has an architectural steel joint between its legs, and comes in eight colours and two finishes, rustic (pictured) or smooth. Normally €1,900, it and everything else on view at the Ventura Design (01-8208480 ventura.ie) stand at the Ideal Home Show can be purchased at a 10 per cent discount for Irish Times readers who present today's column. The Morgan and Camilla chairs (pictured above) normally cost €360 and €310, but can be bought for €324 and €279. The Ideal Home Show starts tomorrow, October 24th at the RDS and runs to Monday, October 27th.

Home is where the hearth is for energy-saving warmth

Keep the look of an open fire but increase the amount of heat retained in the house with a smart glass-fronted stove. O'Rourke's Fireplaces and Stoves (090-6485 094 myfire.ie), based at Glasson Village, Athlone, Co Westmeath, has a mobile showroom with the lit stove (pictured) on view at the entrance to the Ideal Home Show, RDS Simmonscourt, Dublin 4 from tomorrow, October 24th.

O’Rourke’s is offering 12 per cent off the marble surround fireplace complete with black granite hearth and Kingstar insert. The fireplace usually sells for €3,300. Readers can buy it for €2,900, a saving of 12 per cent, and that includes standard installation. Offer ends Monday, October 27th.

Shoe Bubble’s clever design

Not everyone has the space or the money to install walk-in wardrobe shoe racks a la Sex and The City. The Shoe Bubble (087-9110417 shoebubble.com), 18.5cm by 15cm by 33.6cm, is an Irish design patented by Joe Kelly. The smart storage system comprises a set of four boxes in durable polypropylene with clear polycarbonate fronts so you can see what's inside each. A pack of four costs €23.95.

Shoe Bubble is offering Irish Times readers 15 per cent off, so you can buy them for €20.35 each. Delivery is an additional €3.95. Offer ends October 30th.8

Firm bargains under foot

Carpet and Flooring Concepts (01-9033613 carpetandflooringconcepts.ie) 95 Lower George’s Street, Dun Laoghaire, Co Dublin is running a promotion with 30 per cent of its entire range of Axminster carpets. Pictured is the hard-wearing woven Princetown-Matisse Grouse in 100 per cent pure new wool, reduced from €88 to €61 per square yard. The 100 per cent wool with loop pile in London Grey is down by 40 per cent, with Persian rugs similarly reduced.

Three of the best . . .Contemporary art as decor

Vue, the national contemporary art fair, is on at the RHA Gallery from Friday, November 1st to Sunday, November 3rd, and brings together 17 leading galleries to create a one-stop shopping experience. The Creation (pictured) an oil on canvas, 120cm by 80cm, by Margaret Corcoran, whose work hangs in the collections of the Arts Council and the OPW, will be on sale for €6,000.

SO Fine Art Editions (01-4721050 sofinearteditions.com), 10 South Anne Street, Dublin 2 specialises in prints, ceramics, sculpture and photography by Irish and international artists with many of the pieces relatively affordable. These Belly Bottles, 19cm high, by glass and print-maker Paula Stokes, feature opaque hand-blown glass forms and cost €460 each.

For years London-based furniture maker Jimmie Martin (0044-2079381852 jimmiemartin.com) lamented the fact that mirrors were the one item in the home that people never seemed to do anything with. So they decided to customise their own floor-standing models. Still functional, they’re now also a fun piece of artwork. Prices start from about €3,180, ex delivery.

Trending . . . rock’n’roll interiors

Brennan and Burch (0044-208144 9981 brennan-and-burch.co.uk) is a fashion brand run by London-Irish illustrator Lisa Brennan and her long time friend Majida Burch. Their independent label specialised in limited edition streetwear which sold in Selfridges and Topshop. Now they've branched out into interiors and have clients that include homeware website Bouf. com, Brighton-based rock 'n' roll boutique hostelry Hotel Pelirocco and designer Paul Smith.

The latest range of furniture, wallpapers, cushions and rugs showed earlier this month at the London show Best of Britannia and featured up-cycled furniture in their own fabric and wallpaper designs. Alice Glamour wallpaper costs about €191 per linear metre (125cm wide by 100cm drop). It can also be ordered on a roll. A cat head mini-cushion costs €64 and customised footstools, from €827. The Let the Music Play utility chair costs about €1,653.