Win tickets to Decorex Joburg

With only a few weeks to go, the team at Decorex South Africa is busy putting the finishing touches to the annual Gauteng showcase of the best décor, design and lifestyle trends and accessories that the country has to offer.

The show kicks off on 8 August, 2012, and the five-day feast of home décor ideas and inspiration is set to be the highlight of the winter calendar.

The freshest and finest exhibitors

Once again, Decorex SA has put together a mix of the freshest and finest exhibitors, workshops and demonstrations, feature areas, beautifully decorated home-living ideas, plus plenty of fun pop-up restaurants and bars. For trend watchers, the news that the world's leading colour expert, Leatrice Eiseman, will be making an appearance and giving a talk at Joburg Decorex, is bound to be of interest.

Joburg Decorex visitors can expect five halls and more than 700 exhibitors showing off the latest in colour, fabric and flooring trends, the newest in bathroom and kitchen innovations and accessories, as well as on-trend and inspiring interior settings.

Launch of the Plascon colour forecast

One of the biggest drawcards at Joburg Decorex is the annual launch of the Plascon colour forecast. This is where homeowners and décor professionals get their first glimpse of what paint colour, fabric and general décor trends are going to look like in 2013, as four of South Africa's leading designers interpret the colour palette for the year ahead.

American colour expert and executive director of the Pantone Colour Institute, Leatrice Eiseman, will be at the show as the exclusive guest of Plascon and Decorex SA. The colour sage who brought us honeysuckle pink (the colour of the year in 2011) and tangerine tango (2012), Eisemann will deliver a talk on colour trends at the Design Dialogue mini-conference, which takes place during Decorex. An essential update from Eisemann, plus some stars of the South African design world, the conference is a must-do for decorators and design lovers in general.

The highlights of Joburg Decorex include:

• The Plascon 2013 Colour Forecast: Look out for the Plascon colour interpretations by Laurence Brick Creative Design, Yvonne O'Brien of The Private House Co, Joburg newcomers Egg Designs as well as Ink. At the nearby Plascon Colour Café, the menu will be inspired by the 2013 colour forecast and round-the-clock fashion shows will feature local designers' stylish interpretations of the new colour palette.
  
• The M-Net Cares Café: We can all help to improve the circumstances of those children who have no books at their schools. A partnership between M-Net Cares, Decorex Joburg and Salvocorp results in the launch of the M-Net Cares Café, where visitors will be invited to contribute to the Naledi Children's Literacy Project in the form of children's books, while relaxing over a cup of coffee. Local designers Aidan Bennetts, Katie Thompson of ReCreate, Joe Paine and Goet have volunteered to design the bookshelves for the café, so we're counting on visitors to help us fill them with children's books for underprivileged primary schools. M-Net is the media partner of Decorex SA.
  
• Operation Mercedes-Benz Man Cave: After much success at both Durban and Cape Town Decorex, this manly concept comes to Joburg. Four local celebs are being teamed up with designers to kit out the ultimate man space and drive donations for a charity of their choice. Decorex promises to top-up all the donations from visitors with R10 000 for the charity of the winner's choice.
  
• Designer feature areas: Joburg Decorex has identified the leading lights in local design and invited them to create feature areas to inspire our visitors. The first one, a feature area at the entrance to Hall 5, will be designed by one of South Africa's leading interior designers, David Muirhead. The invitation to be Decorex Joburg's featured designer at the entrance to the main creative hall has become a hot ticket and we can't wait to see what Muirhead will come up with. And one of our most successful local product designers, Ronel Jordaan, will also be showcasing her latest felt creations at Joburg Decorex.
  
• Contemporary Country: Last year, the team at Laurence Brick Creative Direction (LBCD) wowed us with their colourful riot at the Afropolitan stand. This year, this creative foursome has chosen Contemporary Country as their theme. An expression of all of our yearning to bring some simplicity and honesty to our crazy city lives, the stand will be a comfortable fusion of country and city, where the "platteland" look finds itself in an urban context. Look out for knitted upholstery, raw linen and natural wood.
  
• BOS Ice Tea Bar: The BOS Ice Tea Bar has become a much-anticipated Decorex feature and we can't wait to see Haldane Martin's creation for this show.
  
• The Graham Beck Wine Bar by Wetherleys: This classy pop-up bar, designed by the team from Wetherleys, will give visitors the opportunity to sip on Graham Beck's finest vineyard selection while relaxing on stylish furniture and reflecting on the ideas and inspiration around them.
  
• Kaya Garden Café & Theatre: An expert line-up of green gurus will dig into the wonderful world of the great outdoors and organic gardening essentials. Be inspired by the trickle therapy of water features, transform garden décor with clever paint techniques and design ideas, learn to grow your own edible garden, and discover the deeper meaning of plants. Also in the Garden Pavilion will be the Garden Café, with food and interior design inspired by the modern locavore movement.
  
• The Artists Café: Decorex has again invited South African artists to use the Decorex platform to showcase their work as home decoration. We have rounded up 17 of the best.
  
• Kitchens and bathroom essentials: Every year, Decorex brings visitors a comprehensive line-up of kitchen and bathroom essentials, plus expert advice and money-saving ideas on tap. From bathtubs to basins, the latest in kitchen accessories to hobs that dreams are made of - this is the essential kitchen and bathroom showcase for homeowners and décor professionals.
  
• Fine finishes: For everything you need to know when it comes to finishes, this area is dedicated to making sure that visitors leave with the information that they need. From smart surfaces to tiles, window treatments to wall art, expect to be blown away by the exciting developments in this field.
  
• Conversations On Architecture & Design Dialogue mini conferences: We haven't forgotten about the professionals. A day out at Joburg Decorex is an important trend and product update for all professionals working in the architecture, construction, decorating and design fields. The annual architecture and design mini-conferences have achieved "must attend" status by many in the industry - and this year is no exception. Conversations on Architecture, sponsored by Caesarstone, will take place on Wednesday, 8 August and the Plascon Design Dialogue is on Friday, 10 August. Both conferences will feature leading local and international experts. Tickets should be booked online at www.decorex.co.za

Decorex Joburg exhibition details

Tickets: R75 for adults, R65 for pensioners and students, free exhibition entrance for décor, design and architecture professionals (registration online).

Gautrain: Take the Gautrain to the Midrand station. For your convenience, shuttle buses will be running to and from the Gallagher Convention Centre.

For more information, go to www.decorex.co.za or call +27 (0)11 549 8300.