There’s a new, affordable service in Australia, promising to be your interior design matchmakers!
Richard Misso and Samantha Eades created The Stylesmiths to bring accessible interior design to everyone in Australia
The Stylesmiths, Samantha Eades and Richard Misso, are all about accessible design; creating authentic interiors to suit your budget. They want to shake up an industry that’s traditionally been reserved for an elite few and make the experience of interior design simple and fun.
So, how does it work? They select the best Stylesmiths designer for your budget and work by the hour, charging a straightforward rate. For you this means no commissions, no markups and no fuss. The process starts with a one-hour in-home consultation for $60, then you can buy a designer’s time by the hour, from $60 an hour for a junior through to $150 for a senior with a five-hour minimum purchase.
Project by Stylesmith Sam
The Stylesmiths have a national database of vetted interior designers and architects that are amongst the most talented in Australia and they send the perfect one for your project to your home, office or retail space. They work by the hour – no markups, no hidden fees. From vintage markets to high street stores, the Stylesmiths bring you exclusive trade discounts and trusted talent.
Project by Stylesmith Diana
“Charging a straightforward hourly rate and taking the ego, commissions and markups out of the equation, we pair you with a professional Stylesmiths designer who creates your dream space on any budget, unleashing their talents,” Richard says. “We meet you at your doorstep after hours, on weekends or on site.”
Samantha is an award-winning interior designer and Richard is an industry supplier and editor of Design Addicts Platform. They saw a gap in the market and, inspired by a business model Samantha discovered while working in New York, they set out to bring accessible design to Australia.
Project by Stylesmith Diana
The Block judge Neale Whitaker says: “The Stylesmiths is an innovative addition to the Australian interior design industry. Maximising interaction between designers and potential clients, The Stylesmiths reflect our ever-increasing interest in style-conscious, cost-effective design solutions.”
Believing coastal decorating had become extremely cliché, stylist Tim Neve decided to take matters into his own hands, writing the new interiors book, Sandcastles.
“When you hear the phrase coastal decorating, I don’t blame you if you shudder,” says Tim. “For too long, faux starfish and mass-produced Gone Fishin’ signs have reigned supreme and muddied the waters of what should be the clearest, most authentic inspiration in home styling.”
Beautifully designed, Sandcastles sees Tim explore many versions of coastal style: from the elegant, salt-bleached driftwood neutrals of Beachcomber and the retro zing of Endless Summer to the rich velvets and vintage collections of Bohemian and the lush tropical foliage of Islander.
As an avid collector of vintage wares, Tim uses statement pieces and salvaged objects to achieve timeless interiors. Drawing on inspiration from his surroundings, Sandcastles encourages you to do the same. Interwoven throughout, Tim has also provided a wealth of practical advice, moodboards, colour palettes, stylist’s tips and insider secrets.
Newcastle-based Tim is the creative force behind Australian Coastal Home magazine and has spent most of the past decade working in styling and writing features for magazines including Real Living, Home Ideas, Country Home Ideas and Modern Home.
Sandcastles is published by Murdoch Books and retails for $49.99. Available for purchase online.
If, like so many of our readers, you dream of becoming an interior stylist, Coco Republic’s Styling Savvy 301 course, starting again next month, could be just the place to start or to work out if it’s for you. Running over 14 weeks, one evening class per week, it’s perfect for anyone who works full-time and finds it hard to study with their other commitments. It will also gain you TAFE credits.
You’ll learn the secrets of successful styling from Coco Republic’s creative directors and by the time you complete the course, you’ll be able to source, assess and recommend products for interior decoration projects with ease. This is a great introduction into the world of interior styling where you’ll be given a real client brief to answer, the results of which you can show off in your portfolio.
The campus is in a unique position being right next door to the Coco Republic showroom, allowing you to see the most beautiful products in action. This course gains TAFE credit: MSFID3001, MSFID3002 and SIRXMER202.
Classes start on 12 March 2015 and run every Thursday from 6-to-9pm until 11 June 2015.
The 14-week on-campus course costs $2,950 (including GST) but our readers get 20% off if they book by 8 March, bringing the cost down to $2,360. This course is also offered online.
Course Overview
Styles & current trends
Applying the elements & principles of design
Creating moodboards
Concept development
The design process
Mind mapping
Colour & colour psychology
Lighting displays
Analysing a client brief
Sketching plan layouts
Coordinating products & finishes
Concept presentation, product selection & developing a schedule
Major Project: Styling a retail display
SPECIAL OFFER
Interiors Addict readers can get 20% off this and any Coco Republic Design School course (on campus or online) until 8 March 2015. To take advantage of this offer you must book via email or phone and mention Interiors Addict.
Whilst working in advertising, Briar Stanley found herself on the set of a Kellogg’s television commercial and was immediately enthralled by the job of the set decorator.
Briar and daughter Sunday
“It had never occurred to me that the job even existed,” explains Briar. “You could say that I had my calling that day. I quit my day job, worked nights as a waitress and offered myself up for work experience during the day on film sets.”
After six months of working for next to nothing, Briar started getting paid jobs as a props buyer and set dresser. Over the years, she’s worked on everything from low-budget ABC television series to better known shows such as Underbelly and Rake and big films like Australia, Wolverine and The Great Gatsby. However since having her little girl Sunday, Briar has changed tack; focusing on residential projects through her interior decoration business, Sunday Collector.
With an accompanying blog of the same name, Briar creates rooms from scratch and even provides an affordable Work with what you’ve got package, where in a two-hour consultation (available in the Sydney metro area), she talks about everything from wall colours to sofa positioning.
With a personal style that’s a little quirky, she loves mixing old with new and having clashing colours and patterns, but always with a base of whites and soft greys. “I’m also hugely sentimental, so my cupboards are bulging with memories,” explains Briar. “Although, if my house burnt down tomorrow and I had to build from scratch, I’d say the interiors would end up completely Scandinavian with a ‘by the beach’ vibe.”
However, when it comes to her work style, she is very aware of listening to what her clients want. “I’m never going to turn up to someone’s house and insist that they like the things I like. I think it must be my film training, but I like to get into their headspace and understand their style and what they love — even when some clients insist they have no style! I’m a big believer in reviving old pieces too. Not sure about the old armchair in the corner? Let’s re-cover that armchair and make it a focus in the room!”
Originally an occupational therapist, it took having children for Nicole Rosenberg to start obsessing over interiors. “Once I had children, I started becoming infatuated with how my children’s rooms looked and perfected the art of creating a space for each individual child’s personality — they were very varied! A few friends of mine asked if I could do their children’s rooms after seeing what I had created for my own and then it was like a snowball effect!”
Starting up her own interior decorating company, Little Liberty, Nicole specialises in transforming rooms for kids of all ages. With a distinct style that is “modern, fresh and fun with a Scandinavian twist,” we particularly love her nurseries that are both on trend and gender neutral. “The black and white scandi trend is often used for both boys and girls. But at the same time people are really steering away from the more traditional colours such as pink and blue. Yellow is a hot colour for boys and peach is big for girls! The copper trend is also huge at the moment as is light wood kids furniture, which gives the room an instant contemporary feel.”
With a variety of decorating and styling services available, including on site full service consultations, e-design and a baby room registry, Nicole knows a few tricks of the trade when it comes to styling a nursery on a budget. “Places like H&M Home, Cotton on KIDS and even K-mart and Target are great places to hunt for cheap room products. Also, scouring the internet for cheaper furniture and soft furnishings can be a great way to save money.”
While all nurseries differ, Nicole believes every nursery must have five specific products and the rest is up to personal taste. “My must-buys are a cot, change table, book stand, rug and artwork.” And while they take up the bulk of Nicole’s dream nursery, what else would it include? “I really love Scandinavian rooms so it would have to be filled with greys, white, hints of black and copper!”
In part one, we showed you how getting the right bed and mattress is key to a great night’s sleep and the foundation of your restful bedroom, But there’s so much more to a beautiful sanctuary than that! Here are my top tips for styling your bedroom.
Image: Mrs Darcy
By your bedside
Bedside tables are pretty much the second most important furniture choice for your bedroom. There are few people who don’t need somewhere for their glass of water or morning coffee, book, alarm clock (who am I kidding, mobile phone!), book, watch, and so it goes on!
There are several key considerations with your bedsides. First, make sure the height is right for your bed. You don’t want to have to reach up or down to grab what you need half asleep. It will also look odd if your bedside is too high or low.
Image: King Furniture
When it comes to matching or not, that’s a decision for you. Many people prefer the balanced, symmetrical look of two identical bedsides, but it isn’t the only option. I have seen many examples of two different, but equally fabulous bedside tables, adding interest and character. Don’t be afraid to think outside the box.
Think carefully about how much storage you need and how tidy you are. I, for example, keep a pretty minimalist bedside: book, coffee cup, lamp, and that’s about it. My husband, on the other hand, well, that’s an argument I don’t need to get into again! But suffice to say he has a lot of stuff by his bed. I would never even consider bedsides for us without drawers ever again (been there, lived to see the mess and dust accumulate). Some bedsides even have cupboards (great for those things that won’t fit in a small drawer like piles of magazines, headphones, iPads, need I go on?). Consider the width of the bedsides too, and make sure there’s enough room for them to breathe with a gap either side. There’s nothing worse than wedging bedside-bed-bedside into a narrow room.
Lamps
Bedside lamps are another essential because nobody wants to get out of bed once they’ve got comfortable to turn off the light. Mood lighting from lamps rather than overheads is also an important part of winding down to a restful night’s sleep. You can make a real statement with your lamps so they can be just as much decorative as they are practical. Make sure the width and height of the lamps and their shades (if they have them) is right for your bed and bedsides. Think outside the box here too: lamps not necessarily designed for bedsides can make a real statement. Pendant lights, as seen all too often on The Block, hanging either side of the bed, are another trend and give you extra space and less to dust on your bedside!
Image: Country Road
Linen
Linen is another very personal choice and somewhere you can really have fun. You can either go for something really striking and bold which becomes a feature in itself, or something more subtle. I don’t think either is particularly on trend and both are popular. Brands like Aura and Kip & Co are great for high impact quilt sets. The textural, deliberately creased look of linen works well without pattern and with soft, muted colours or neutrals. Try brands like Hale Mercantile Co and Major Minor.
Image: AURA by Tracie Ellis
Decorative cushions
It seems it’s something men and women will never agree on, but I’m a great believer in the decorative cushion to finish off your bed. No, you don’t actually use them for anything, but they’re a great way to inject colour, pattern and texture, especially if you’ve opted for plainer linen. It’s a low commitment and low-cost way to include the latest trends in your bedroom too. Consider at ottoman at the bottom of your bed, if you have the space, to store them when you go to bed. You can also sit on it to put your shoes on!
Bedheads
If there’s one trend that’s taken off in bedrooms in the last couple of years it’s bedheads, specifically upholstered ones. Not only are they comfortable to sit up against but they look great too and can make a real feature of your bed. The great thing is, you can invest in a high quality ensemble that lasts you years and change the bedhead relatively frequently if your tastes change or you, for example, move house.
Image: Mexsii
Somewhere to put your clothes
It’s very unlikely there’ll be a time when you don’t have some of your clothes out, whether it’s that day’s discarded outfit or tomorrow’s, ready for the morning. For this reason, one great chair is the perfect addition to a corner of your bedroom. Garments look much better draped over a chair than in a pile on the floor.
Image: Curious Grace
Art
Most rooms cry out for a bit of art on the walls and bedrooms are no exception. That said, in my own, due to having a bold patterned wallpaper and a statement upholstered linen bedhead in a reasonably small room, I don’t think it necessary. If you are hanging art and it’s above your bed, please make sure it is safely fixed to the wall as the last thing you want is a heavy frame falling on your head in the night! Less risky options are lightweight canvas art or the popular juju feather hats.
Rugs
If you have hard floors, rugs are always nice in the bedroom, not least to have something soft underfoot when you get out of bed. A round rug is a nice option to break up a room which is often full of rectangles (bed, bedhead, walls, bedsides, art).
Image: Armadillo & Co
Sleepmaker can help you build your own dreamworld, starting with a great mattress or bed. For more information, visit their website.
Reader Natasha says: “I’d like Alisa and Lysandra to help me with a design question. We have a narrow hallway that is accessed as soon as you walk into the house. It’s only just a little wider than a standard single front door entrance and goes for about six metres. We painted it Dulux White on White and we have regular hardwood floorboards. What can we do to decorate the space so it doesn’t just look like a long white hallway?”
Lysandra says: “This hallway is screaming for some pieces of artwork. This is a great way to inject some colour into this rather lifeless space. If you can find a console (around 300mm wide) then that is going to help break up the length of your hallway. Above the console (which you’d obviously place on the lefthand side) you could place a mirror. This will make the space feel wider and will also reflect any natural light, giving the feeling of space.”
Got a question for one of our Resident Experts? Submit it for consideration here.
It may sound completely clichéd, but Christmas is truly my favourite time of year. Each Christmas is like a new chapter in a story, a place where new memories are written and a time when we can reflect on the wonderful times we’ve had in the past. Decorating my home at Christmas is all about celebrating these wonderful times. From my childhood, to getting married, teaching children over the years and then having my own. You could say that I am addicted to celebrating the memory of Christmas.
Whether you are a fan of decorating your home or not, Christmas truly comes to life if you embellish your home with ornaments and knick knacks that have meaning. It’s not about spending a great deal of money, or having the latest ‘on trend’ style. For me, a home comes to life at Christmas when you bring out the things that remind you of happy times gone by and the people you love. Filling my home with these wonderful keepsakes makes me feel eternally grateful for the blessings in my life, for the people around me, and for those who are no longer with us.
The focal point of my home at Christmas is (surprise, surprise), the tree. We always get a real tree as there is nothing like the smell of pine to warm your heart. Each year, I bring out my collection of baubles, stars and ornaments that remind me of great adventures, cherished moments and people who have been in my life. Whether it be handmade stars from Bryant Park in New York, purchased on our honeymoon, glass birds from my late Granny’s tree or ornaments given to me by students I have taught, they all mean something and bring so much joy. A sentimental favourite would have to be a silver baby carriage, given to me by a parent to celebrate the impending birth of my daughter Ella two years ago. Some people might think it’s tacky, but the handmade ornaments made by my daughter sit proudly on the shelf, and I hope they do for many years to come.
This year will by my son Hudson’s first Christmas. To celebrate, a personalised stocking has been made to hang on our new mantle, along with the rest of our family (including our dog, Lloyd). When I was young, I made stockings for my entire family that still hang on my parents’ mantle today. Each time I look at these stockings, I remember what it was like to find them filled with presents as a child on Christmas morning. I can’t wait for my own children to do the same.
Recently, my Nanna gave me her vintage nativity set, one that she has had since the 1960s. It will be the first year that it sits underneath my tree, but it will forever remind me of the many years it stood under hers. Advent calendars adorn the walls for my children to open each day in December, a flashback to my own childhood when we would argue over whose turn it was to open the paper door. A tin Santa sits on my side table, a present from my sister and a reminder of the time when I first moved out of home and decorated my own home for the first time.
Many find it overwhelming to choose a theme, colour and style for their home at Christmas. I prefer to keep it simple. Fresh flowers and lit candles bring the house alive. Each year, I bring out the old and sentimental decorations, but also add a few new friends to the collection. This year, Ella helped me choose a few new ornaments to hang on our tree. Each element, whether old or new, has meaning. For me, this is a simple way to bring love into my home and keep the Christmas memory alive, especially as our children get older and learn about this joyous time of year. There is nothing like a home filled with wonderful reminders of happy times past and Christmas for me is my chance to do just that.
–Kate Korber is a primary school teacher and mum of two who blogs at Happy Ella After.
Have I mentioned 7 Vignettes starts tomorrow, that it’s the last of the year or that it’s a Christmas special so extra exciting? Yes, well, sorry, but it is!
This month’s sponsor, Domayne, have put together some easy to follow tips which may inspire you! Whether you’re taking part or not, check out this video for stylist Danielle Kelly’s tips for styling your Christmas tree!
Day 1’s theme for 7 Vignettes does just happen to be TREE though!
Day 5’s theme is WRAP IT UP, so their wrapping tips may be useful there. But who doesn’t need gift wrapping pointers anyway? I always have the best intentions to try something special and then leave it last minute AGAIN and go so basic! Shame on me!
Marrickville, Sydney (NSW) Houzz Professional: Danny Broe Architect
In their first ever report into the Australian design and renovation industry, leading home improvement site Houzz.com.au have revealed that Australian homeowners are well and truly renovation aficionados!
Marrickville, Sydney (NSW) Houzz Professional: Danny Broe Architect
Out of the 13,000 people who took part, one in 10 (12%) renovate or decorate their homes monthly and nearly a third (30%) every three-to-six months. The Houzz Australia Report also found that in the next two years, 75% of Aussies plan on decorating their homes and 38% plan on undertaking a major renovation.
Other key findings were as follows:
Colour preferences: While two-thirds of Australians stick to neutral colours for their front doors, a few are daring to go bold with blue (6%), red (5%) and green (5%). Once indoors, after the traditional white, it’s yellow and green that are the most common colours used to decorate the dining room, and blues and purples in the bedroom.
Chatsworth Modern Entry (NSW) Houzz Professional: Cambuild
Kitchens on the chopping block: One in four Aussies plan to update their kitchen in the next 12 months (26%), which makes sense given that nearly the same number report that it’s the area of their home that is in most need of renovation (23%). A designer kitchen tops Australian’s wishlists (42%) when given the choice to add any feature to the home, irrespective of cost.
Style by state: Australian homes include a diverse mix of styles, with more than half of homeowners (55%) choosing contemporary and modern styles, followed by traditional (23%) and eclectic (19%). Sydney leads the trend in global influences, as the most likely to pick up Asian, European and Scandinavian styles (17%), whilst Adelaide-residents prefers eclectic and vintage designs for their homes (31%) and unsurprisingly Brisbane-residents prefer tropical (34%).
How eco are Aussie homes? Eco-friendly choices matter to Australian homeowners, including energy-saving lightbulbs (69%), insulation (69%), low flow showers (37%), rainwater tanks (36%), compost (34%) and low flow toilets (33%). Nearly a quarter are even installing solar panels (24%). Adelaide dwellers are most likely to take advantage of natural resources, with 53% choosing to introduce rainwater tanks and 33% installing solar panels. In Brisbane, indoor eco-features lead the way, with homeowners most likely to choose low-flow showers (43%) and energy-saving bulbs (73%) than other Aussies.
Interior stylist and blogger Briar Stanley from Sunday Collector and daughter Sunday
I love this new concept from fellow blogger, stylist and decorator Briar Stanley of Sunday Collector.
Briar Stanley and daughter Sunday
“When visiting a house — be it the home of a client, family member or friend, I’m frequently asked to have a quick look at a certain room and give some advice. So often, the room is halfway there — it may need some furniture rearranging, a piece of art positioned and a new rug. I find the home owner often loves all their pieces, but doesn’t quite know how to combine everything to make the room ‘work’. I thrive on giving this sort of advice, which is why I’ve put together a package for the Sydney metro area that I’m pretty excited about,” she says.
For $300, Briar is offering two-hour in-house consultations (Sydney only) where you can talk to her about everything from wall colours, to sofa positioning. “If it’s something like a bookshelf you need styled, I could do that too. I can primarily ‘work with what you’ve got’ but also recommend any additions that I think will improve the space.” Afterwards, she’ll email you a summary of her advice, including online links to any items she recommends. “One week of email conversations can follow this email, all included in the one-off fee.”
I think this a great, affordable way to get just enough decor and styling advice to put the finishing touches to your home. I might even try it myself…
Here at Interiors Addict, we just don’t buy into the idea that rental homes have to look bland or lacking in style and personality. Rent My Style is dedicated to showcasing the best of our readers’ rental home decorating efforts. They’re not show homes, they’re real homes!
Moving to Melbourne two years ago with only the small items that could fit in their car, Jess Viscarde and her partner Ryan were prepared to start from scratch. Finding a 90s townhouse rental home in the Northern suburbs of Melbourne, which was in some serious need of TLC, Jess immediately saw it as the perfect decorating challenge.
“On the whole, the house has great bones, a major reason we wanted to live here. Timber floorboards, high ceilings, lots of natural light. But the house is in a major need of TLC, the walls are in terrible condition, and are about seven years overdue a paint job! We try to hide all the nicks, water stains, peeling paint and eyesores with artwork or just learn to live with it!”
With a style that is an eclectic mix of contemporary, industrial and vintage, Jess has a knack for blending and mixing styles. A designer by trade, she has an eye for seeing potential where no one else can, having decorated the majority of her home with quirky secondhand finds.
“As budget was a major issue, many of the pieces in our home are from thrift shops or Gumtree, eBay or the classifieds. We have a few splurge items, but made sure these things were items we absolutely loved and would be happy to live with for many years to come.”
For Jess, the secret to rental decorating is something very simple: treat the rental like your home! “Make it a space you enjoy coming home to after a busy day or a place where you are proud and happy to invite your friends over as guests. Don’t just think just because it’s a rental and it’s not mine, I can’t be house proud.”
To make your rental feel like home, Jess recommends doing three things: hanging art, being inventive with light fixtures and adding indoor plants and fresh flowers.
“Personalise the space with things you love, make it reflect you and the people you’re living with, hang art using 3M adhesive hooks (or I have used oversized pegs with Velcro 3m adhesive to hang photographs and lightweight prints). Be inventive with light fixtures. I use a bamboo ladder with an industrial miner’s lamp attached to it to add some ambient lighting and height to the room (see below). And make indoor plants and fresh flowers a big feature in your home, they inject life and colour and can be moved around, making that boring, lifeless corner more interesting.”
Having just launched her own small business, The Eclectic Creative Studio, Jess has found the experience of rental decorating really useful in growing her design skills. Not only has it required her to work with a very tight budget, Jess has learnt the importance of experimenting and working with what you’ve got.
“Decorating whilst renting definitely makes you work with what you’ve got and be more spontaneous and open to rearranging furniture and mixing things up. I regularly change the house around; it helps keep things fresh and interesting. And I like to ‘shop your home,’ so change up accessories and soft furnishings that you already own, put some away, take some out, put the cushions on the bed instead of the sofa, that sort of thing.”
Here at Interiors Addict, we just don’t buy into the idea that rental homes have to look bland or lacking in style and personality. Rent My Style is dedicated to showcasing the best of our readers’ rental home decorating efforts. They’re not show homes, they’re real homes!
When Anne Ellard stumbled upon her Brisbane townhouse, she knew she had found a gem. Bright, white and full of open space, she saw it as the perfect blank canvas!
“What drew me to the property when we first went to look at it was the fact that everything was white or neutral; white kitchen, white walls and neutral floor tiles. It was the prefect crisp backdrop for our colourful wall art, reclaimed furniture and vintage unique accessories.”
A kitchen designer by trade, Anne has always loved decorating, having constantly rearranged her bedroom furniture from a very young age. Combine this with a very eclectic taste and an appreciation for all design styles and Anne has managed to do what many deem impossible: making a rented house feel homely.
“The addition of artwork on the walls always helps to make a house feel more homely,” explains Anne. “All the photographs on our walls were taken by us so we really feel like we have put our stamp on the place. I’m also a huge fan of cushions and throws, nothing makes a lounge room or bed more homely and cosy than the addition of some comfy cushions!”
Sharing her home with her husband Joe, they both have a passion for DIY projects and designing their own furniture. Their most recent collaboration saw them design and build an entertainment unit in their living room, something Anne marks as her favourite impermanent change to the house.
“We designed and built an entertainment unit to suit the living space in our home. We designed it to fit around a boxed in corner of the wall so that it has more of a built-in look. We loved the idea of having it floating but obviously didn’t have the option of fixing the cabinets to the wall – so we sat the unit on a recessed base and put some LED ribbon lighting underneath which gives it the effect of floating!”
Other successful DIY jobs include both their indoor and outdoor dining room table, the former being Anne’s favourite piece of furniture that she salvaged from kerb side collection. “It was very faded and drab looking when we found it. We sanded it right back, painted the beautiful colonial style legs black and oiled the top. I love real wood and oiling the top has brought out some beautiful tones.”
Having a true love affair with furniture, Anne sees one of the benefits of rental decorating being that she can experiment. That she doesn’t have to worry about investing in the expensive pieces that may or may not suit her future home. “We don’t spend as much on furniture and accessories for our rental home as we would if it was our own home,” says Anne. “There’s always that thought in your head that this isn’t your house and the furniture you choose now might not be what you want for your new home when you eventually buy somewhere.”
Here at Interiors Addict, we just don’t buy into the idea that rental homes have to look bland or lacking in style and personality. Rent My Style is dedicated to showcasing the best of our readers’ rental home decorating efforts. They’re not show homes, they’re real homes!
Although fortunate enough to own their own house, when Danusia Glover and her partner Luke moved to Melbourne, it was time to start renting. And while Danusia is a keen decorator and a student of design at ISCD (the International School of Colour and Design, Sydney), she couldn’t help but find the idea of rental decorating to be extremely daunting.
“I honestly found the first few months of renting really, really hard,” explains Danusia. “I didn’t have a single item on our walls and was so scared of actually living in the space in case I damaged anything. Once I finally got past that fear, things were fantastic. Even though you don’t have as much freedom in a rental, if you think about the fact that nothing’s permanent, that in itself actually gives you a whole different kind of freedom to try new things and just have fun.”
And fun she has had, filling their three-bedroom home with personality, from statement furniture, to displays of books, photos and mementos and walls covered with art. “I really think having artwork, whether it be from famous artists, unknown artists, graphic prints, vases, business cards (anything goes!) is just such a great point of interest and instantly makes a house feel like a home,” says Danusia. “I’ve aimed to fill the house with beautiful things and I’ve been lucky enough to temporarily adopt some pieces from well-known artists as my mum collects art.”
Situated in Melbourne’s Caulfield North, the brick veneer unit or “granny flat” as Danusia affectionately calls it, originally had two bedrooms and a formal dining room before being converted to a three-bedroom with an open living space. As a result, the property is in good shape but that didn’t mean Danusia wasn’t going to make any changes!
“Adding an island bench from Ikea to the kitchen is by far the best thing we’ve done in the house that isn’t permanent,” explains Danusia. “Our kitchen is designed in an L shape, so not only did we lack bench space, we also had a large space in the middle of our kitchen that needed to be filled but wasn’t suitable for a dining room table. For $500, not only is it a great functional addition to our rental but we also get to take it with us!”
With a reasonable landlord they’ve also been lucky enough to make a few permanent changes, including adding the odd light, power point or TV point. The addition of down lights above her desk is Danusia’s favourite permanent fix-up. “My favourite space would have to be my office. It is my happy place, it’s imperfect and messy and that’s why it works so well. I love my open gold shelves because they’re overflowing with inspiration — magazines, paper, stickers, ribbon, spray paint, everything I could ever need for my study and design is at my fingertips. The addition of down lights right above my desk has been invaluable and oh so helpful for those late nights studying!”
While Danusia has undoubtedly found the decorating experience very different, she believes there are some huge benefits to rental decorating, such as being able to experiment with your own style while simultaneously saving money! “I’ve found that it’s actually been a really good chance for me to play around with my style and find what I like,” says Danusia. “I’ve also been careful not to commit to expensive statement pieces if I’m not 100% certain I would want to take them with me when we finally buy again.”
For those who can’t get enough of DIY, Chrissie Jeffrey from No Chintz is the person to talk to. A fabric designer and craft guru, she has spent 30 years in the business, and thanks to this week’s Sydney Craft & Quilt Fair, you get the chance to learn from the woman herself!
Chrissie Jeffrey
“I will be showing how anyone from novices to creative geniuses can turn humdrum living spaces into incredible rooms using DIY interiors, creative patchwork, curtains and wallpaper ideas,” explains Chrissie. She’ll also be hosting daily, 50-minute ‘Make & Take’ workshops, where you can create your own lampshade using a pre-made kit and your own fabrics or a choice of 10.
Chrissie has created homewares and furniture for designers and architects for many decades, through her store, No Chintz Textiles and Soft Furnishings. Giving people retail access to well-designed fabrics off the roll as opposed to having to order them in through designers, No Chintz makes getting crafty a whole lot easier. They also offer goods to order, manufacturing anything from lampshades through to bed quilts, curtains and blinds.
However, one of the things Chrissie and her team are most known for is their new spin on patchwork, something that you will get the chance to hear more about at the fair. “We have been experimenting with patchwork on furniture since Vogue asked us to do a patchwork chair, curtains and tablecloth for them in 2007,” says Chrissie. “We love to piece together uneven, large pieces of assorted patterns. We have put together a kit for creating a blue/green quilt or a pink/cream quilt for the craft fair and online.”
While Chrissie admits she sees far more bad DIY interiors than good ones, she believes that through her workshops even novices will be able to create something beautiful. “Visitors will learn how to make something well through the step-by-step processes that we use in manufacturing ourselves,” explains Chrissie. “These are simple projects that even inexperienced sewers and decorators can easily master, are cost-effective, visually interesting and can totally transform any room.”
Chrissie’s lampshade classes, Handmade Room display and wallpaper demonstrations will be amongst a host of other Make and Take classes and displays at the Sydney Craft & Quilt Fair this week.
From Wednesday 9 to Sunday 13 July, Sydney Exhibition Centre. Buy tickets here.
Here at Interiors Addict, we just don’t buy into the idea that rental homes have to look bland or lacking in style and personality. Rent My Style is dedicated to showcasing the best of our readers’ rental home decorating efforts.
Today, we’re sharing Laura Koomen’s cute balcony makeover in Melbourne. Her one-bedroom apartment has been home for three years. “One of the best things I did was put a floating wooden base covered in AstroTurf down on my balcony,” she explained. “The floating base was important as it is one of those old concrete tub style balconies that fill with puddles when it rains! Also, I had a wooden bar built that sits atop the balcony edge.
“It’s been transformed from concrete box to my little oasis! The rest of my apartment is lovely too and I think the key for me has been about getting the right size furniture for the right space, not overcrowding and keeping a consistency to every room.”
We love how Laura’s inexpensive additions have made all the difference, and everything can be easily removed when she moves out (although we think her landlord should pay her to keep them!).
Earlier this year, Radiant Orchid was named as the 2014 Pantone Colour of the Year and it certainly ruffled some feathers with many (including Interiors Addict’s Jen!) questioning the bold choice of colour. Whether you love it, or are yet to be convinced, here are my tips for confidently incorporating the bold shades of purple into your interior colour scheme.
Purple has always been a colour of contention as some love it and others really don’t. I’ve heard a lot of talk of people fearing this new colour direction or being lost for how to make this work in their home. With any new trend it takes a while for people to embrace it, so in the spirit of embracing change, here are some of my suggestions for how to incorporate the purple jewel tones into your interior palette.
Recently, I have been talking a lot about using ‘grown up’ pastels in interior colour schemes and purple provides the depth of colour required for such a scheme, as it’s dramatic and rich, which adds punch.
There are two ways to incorporate such a bold colour into your home. You can either use it as an accent/feature colour in a room or be brave and use it on your walls as a bold statement. I’ll demonstrate this by looking at the same room but using the colour in two different ways:
As an accent colour:
The introduction of a new trend colour doesn’t mean you have to redecorate a room from scratch. You can alter the look of a room by adding accessories in various purple colours. As you can see in the picture, the bottles and accents on the cushions are a purple colour, beautifully accompanying Taubmans Endure Bald Mountain on the walls. This is an easy way of leaning gently into a new trend.
As a bold wall colour:
If you’re feeling bold you can paint your walls in Taubmans Balloon Pop. The use of neutral white, black and charcoal in the furnishings such as the couch, rug and mirrored tables allows you to be more adventurous with your wall colour and accessories. With this bold wall colour, you may choose to remove the bottles and instead have a small vase of flowers and replace the patterned cushions for textured ones in more neutral tones.
In order to embrace a bold colour, you need to know which colours it complements. There are two ways to approach it:
Select colours of a similar hue:
The first way is to select a colour that is in a similar tone to your starting colour, such as Taubmans Ellie May Rose, Taubmans Leaden Sky and Taubmans Spring Mauve. Using these colours in a lower intensity makes them blend together, creating a more harmonious look.
Taubmans Ellie May Rose, Leaden Sky and Spring Mauve
Choose a cool colour:
For a more dramatic look, you can choose a cool colour like Taubmans Grand Gusto and Taubmans Blueberry Bush with accents in Taubmans Crisp White. This colour palette creates a fresh and impactful colour scheme for your interior.
Taubmans Grand Gusto, Blueberry Bush and Crisp White
When using complementary colours, the key to creating the perfect look is to use the colours in different proportions, so one colour is dominant and the other is an accent. For example, you may decide to have your walls in Taubmans Leaden Sky and then introduce the trend colour through painting a chair in Taubmans Balloon Pop.
Taubmans Balloon Pop
For those who love a crisp look, you can paint your walls in Taubmans Crisp White and accent the room with artwork and cushions in different shades of purple.
The most important thing to remember is that trend colours are supposed to be a starting point for inspiration to bring to life your perfect interior scheme, not to create colour stress. Embrace it!
For more tips for using colour in your home visit Taubmans. Interior designer Shaynna is a judge on The Block, host of Selling Houses Australia and creative director for Taubmans.
Decorate your home without the need of a hammer or drill and without damaging your walls with 3M Command Picture Hanging Strips, which hold up to 7kg. Visit go.3m.com/loveyourwalls/ for decorating inspiration and the chance to win some great prizes.
If there’s one thing that annoys me more than the painfully slow scoring process on The Block, it’s people saying you can’t or, worse still, there’s no point, in making an effort with your interiors if you rent your home. AAAGGGHHHH. Nonsense!
Of course there’s a point. One of the main things I hope to get across in this blog, is how much joy and fun you can get from making your home a nest, filling it with things that make you smile or perhaps feel calm and secure, or remind you of a great holiday. It can be as simple as the lovely feeling of your home being very “you” or feeling so super cosy that there’s nowhere you’d rather unwind after a busy day at the office. And it doesn’t have to be hard, expensive or permanent.
Here are my top 5 ways to add some personality and you-ness to your rented home. Because we all deserve to love our home and get the feel-good vibes that go along with that, whether we own or not. And let’s face it, it’s increasingly bloody hard to get on the housing ladder, especially in Sydney!
1. The last time I looked, rugs, furniture and accessories were all removable and therefore able to be moved from room to room or home to home, or even packed away and saved for a future home if they don’t work in the next place. There is no reason why you can’t invest in these items because they can move with you. Be smart and buy key, larger pieces in neutral colours.
My last rented apartment in Home Beautiful
2. Put up art and framed photos using 3M Command Picture Hanging Strips. These aren’t just for small frames. You can use them to hang frames weighing up to a whopping 7kg. No limits! Creating a gallery wall of photos or hanging a favourite art print above your bed are now options without leaving so much as a mark on your landlord’s walls. Winning.
3. Change curtains and blinds. I have never EVER lived with the supplied curtains or blinds in a rental. I remove them, put them away safely somewhere and replace them with whatever I like. I simply put back the originals when I come to move out. You can also change the shower curtain if you have one.
Urban Outfitters sell great shower curtains online
My wallpaper being removed at the end of my last tenancy
5. Ok, so this one isn’t temporary but bear with me. Depending on how long you’re likely to live in your rental and how important your interiors are to you, weigh up whether you might be prepared to spend a little money on things you won’t be able to take with you when you leave. This isn’t for everyone, but I’ve done this myself. In one apartment I HATED the kitchen floor so much I offered to pay half for a new one and the landlord said yes. In another apartment, when I moved in, I realised quite how badly the place needed a lick of paint (but it certainly wasn’t bad enough that you could argue it HAD to be done). I offered to pay half to have the small place painted and the job was done within a week. Happy days! I can’t tell you what a difference it made and I didn’t regret a dollar. Yes, you won’t get that money back but if you, like me, are really fussy about what your home looks like, you might consider it’s money well spent.
Having both rented and owned, I don’t think there’s been much difference in how much love has gone into my homes’ interiors. How about you?
Love to hear your tips for making your mark on you rental! Please share in the comments.
Decorate your home without the need of a hammer or drill and without damaging your walls with 3M Command Picture Hanging Strips, which hold up to 7kg. Visit go.3m.com/loveyourwalls for decorating inspiration and the chance to win some great prizes.
