Categories
Homewares

Barefoot Gypsy: “A destination for beautiful global objects with a conscience.”

As a fanatic global traveller, Maxine Smith, like many of us interiors addict, always loved collecting home furnishings, textiles and accessories from around the world. Yet after a point, her collection grew so big that a business was born: Barefoot Gypsy.

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Maxine describes the online boutique as: “A destination for beautiful global objects with a conscience.” She’s committed to supporting local craftspeople and artisans, sourcing old and new pieces from Uzbekistan to Bolivia to Morocco. Moreover, she wants to give customers an insight into the rich tapestry of world cultures, with eclectic pieces telling their own individual tales.

“We have a dynamic mix of products, all unique and beautiful in their own right,” says Maxine. “I do not limit my collecting to any one region or country; I just keep searching for more spectacular pieces to add to the collection, wherever they are.”

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Maxine says she sources everything responsibly: “I really love when I can support something bigger than the piece itself. For example, with the Moroccan wedding blankets and wool pom pom blankets, I have started to work with a co-op in a village outside Marrakesh to support the community. It means a lot to be part of something more.”

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With her travel bug by no means sated, she is determined to keep sourcing new stock from around the world. And while that requires a lot of research, it is the fortuitous discovery of a new place, shop or artist that makes Maxine incredibly grateful that she has managed to make a career out of what she loves.

Shop online.

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Designers Interviews

Interview: Architect Mel Bright on building smarter, not larger

She may be the director of an award-winning architecture firm, but humble Mel Bright still sees herself as an emerging designer: “Building a practice and good reputation takes time – each project takes about two years so seven years go by very quickly. For me, I’m still very much an emerging designer, which is all about thinking big, finding a life balance and working hard.”

Mel Bright, Make Architecture. Photograph by Martina Gemmola.
Photo credit: Martina Gemmola

The founder of MAKE Architecture, Mel and her team of four work primarily in residential. With more of an interest in process and approach rather than style, the outcome of all their projects is driven by the client’s brief and the site itself.

“A site-specific response is an important starting point for us,” says Mel. “This happens at the scale of the city and also at the smaller scale of the specific site context. Much of the work we do is renovations to existing residential buildings in Melbourne so the existing heritage of the house plays an important role in forming our design response.”

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House Reduction. Photo credit: Peter Bennetts

Believers in quality not quantity, MAKE focus on the way buildings can make our lives better, an idea that is particularly evident in their award-winning project, House Reduction. The first project that saw them gain national recognition, House Reduction was a novel idea that saw the interior of the house actually be reduced in size. “The brief was to help this family remain living in the inner city but give them a larger garden,” explains Mel. “So we removed their 80s extension and rebuilt that part of the house in a much more efficient way. The idea being that maybe we can design smarter rather than larger.”

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House Reduction. Photo credit: Peter Bennetts

The property also comprised another of their projects, Little Brick Studio; a studio garage at the rear of the site. MAKE didn’t stop there, also designing the landscape and the pool to create an integrated overall design concept, something which Mel believes is pivotal when creating a home.

“I always feel disappointed if the landscape’s not done at the same time as the rest of the project. I don’t understand how you can have a beautiful house but then look out onto a patch of dirt and broken fences. So we are really trying to push our clients to finish the project and that’s not just finishing the architecture and the interior but finishing the landscape as well.”

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Little Brick Studio. Photo credit: Peter Bennetts

With many projects in the pipeline, Mel is particularly excited about a house and studio in St Kilda and house in Balaclava. Here they are exploring some new materials, as well as having to work within the tight parameters of a site that has two huge trees which are in the way of the planned extension. But it is this idea, of working with the site, rather than against it, that has always been MAKE’s approach, something they count as their niche.

“We believe good design shouldn’t just look good it should be useful and it should last,” she explains. “We also like the idea of process rather than style, of drawing on the materials and details in the existing house to inform our design response and reinterpreting and responding in a contemporary way.”

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Balaclava Tree House

While MAKE have taken out the top prizes at the Houses Awards and the Think Brick Awards, Mel is most proud of the fact that she has done all of this while being a mother. “I am very proud that we have done all of this while I have juggled two small kids (now five and two) and that we manage to work sustainable working hours. I think it is so important in our industry that we strive to achieve excellence within sustainable working hours and with a work life balance!”

Categories
Homewares

Frankie’s SPACES volume 2, keeping interiors real

So I’m going to make a big call here, but SPACES volume two has to be my favourite (if not my favourite, definitely in my top five) interiors books ever!

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Created by Frankie magazine, SPACES volume two is a collection of homes and homes-away-from-home from around Australia. Not that unique a concept in itself, but here’s its point of difference: the homes are real. They are real and raw and quirky.

Because while I love aspirational luxury living as much as the next person, these homes, which belong to designers, photographers, foodies, musicians and artists, are full of so much character. They actually feell lived in and not staged, and that’s because while they may have been tidied up a bit for the photos, these homes, put simply, aren’t fancy.

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The images are beautiful, but it’s everything put together that makes this book so impressive: the typography, the layout and the interviews and essays that accompany the images. I would highly recommend this book (if that’s not obvious!).

SPACES volume two retails at $24.95. Buy here.

Categories
Designers Interviews

James Dawson’s award-winning edgy apartment, inspired by all things Parisian

James Dawson is still on a high from last week’s win. James Dawson Interior Design came home with the Best of State – Residential (Queensland), at the Australian Interior Design Awards (AIDA) as well as a commendation for Residential Decoration.

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“I entered the awards on a reluctant whim,” says James. “And to be listed with those that have been in the industry much longer than me, that on its own was a huge thrill. Considering the experience of the judging panel and the high standard of entries, it was a great professional achievement in the eyes of my industry.”

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Marine Parade Apartment

It’s no surprise James’s Marine Parade Apartment was a winner; avant-garde in design and inspired by all things Parisian, it is sophisticated but risky and that’s exactly how James likes to design. “My niche is my ability to create spaces that require risk-taking and conviction,” he explains. “Even if the client doesn’t always see it at first, they love it in the end! It’s a self-confidence and belief.”

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Marine Parade Apartment

A risk taker not just in interiors, he rocked a black custom kilt, jimmy high tops and a tuxedo shirt for the AIDA gala night! James’ dream project would be to create a space for Bjork. He is inspired by all things music, fashion and architecture and definitely marks them as influences for the change in his practice: “My style has been evolving recently, it was light and playful but after the recent project I feel I have found a new style, more sophisticated and moody.”

New projects will soon be added to this list, with James currently working on a riverfront penthouse in Brisbane’s St Lucia, a residence in Sydney’s Neutral Bay and, fingers crossed, a commercial space he is currently in negotiations for.

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Marine Parade Apartment

Working in residential, commercial and hospitality, James started James Dawson Interiors in late 2012. With a team of three, he is based in Brisbane and will be adding a Sydney office to the mix in August this year. Starting his own firm has had its challenges, but he says having patience has been the key to his success. “The challenges of starting your own practice, from my experience, were finding the right people to surround myself with, getting a good balance between work and home life and having the right clients that have confidence in me and my ability. All of these things take time, so have patience.”

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Studio 23

Though for James, the benefits far outweigh any initial teething problems: “You get such a variety of work each day and work with interesting and creative people. There’s a sense of freedom.”

A lover of mixing materials, textures and finishes, James first found his love for interiors when, at 20, he started flipping properties. From there, he dabbled in a number of different industries before settling down for a life as an interior designer.

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Springwood Residence

For James, interior design is all about self-expression, finding your own place and style in the industry and realising that the design world is big enough for everyone!

Categories
Furniture Homewares

Olivia’s Fab Four Insta-Finds 21.05.14

 

Olivias-Fab-Four-1Olivia’s Fab Four is a weekly post that features my favourite finds on Instagram for the past week. To be in the running all you have to do is hashtag your product photos #oliviasfabfour and tag them with my handle: @oliviashead.

olivias fab four 2Here are this week’s gorgeous products (clockwise from top left)

1. Feather Tribe Illustration from Maryla Surf Lifestyle. @maryla_surflifestyle

2. Orange Clove Soap, $12, from Cleanse With Benefits. @cleansewithbenefits

3. Geo Pear Wood Block, $55, from Ettie Ink. @ettie_inkgirl

4. Faceted Dish, $24.95, from Misskelly Made In Tasmania. @misskellymadeintasmania

I’ll be back with more next week! Olivia x

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House Rules RENO ADDICT

Post House Rules Reveal chat with contestants Lisa and Adam

“I felt really in control walking up to the house,” explains Lisa. “I thought my emotions were in check. But when you open that door and you see all the effort that’s gone into the last seven days… it’s an incredibly humbling experience. An overwhelming feeling that’s for sure.”

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Adam and Lisa

On Monday night’s episode of House Rules we saw the completion of Lisa and Adam’s renovation. With a house that had some challenging house rules – they wanted a wow statement in every room and the walls dressed up with wallpaper and mirrors – the Victorian home had the possibility of turning into a clashing nightmare. But lucky for homeowners Lisa and Adam, they were ecstatic with the final results.

South Australia’s Bomber and Mel took out their first win, scoring the highest for their kitchen and entry, a zone that Lisa and Adam scored an eight out of ten for.

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Before: Kitchen

“The kitchen was certainly my favourite,” says Lisa. “We went from having a horrible kitchen, with mice popping in and out of our oven, to this phenomenal open plan kitchen. The kitchen definitely has my heart.”

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After: Kitchen

Having now been living in their newly renovated home for a month, they didn’t get to enjoy their house until after the show’s completion. “You just walk through the house for the scoring and then you’re off again,” explains Adam. “I was absolutely devastated, I said to the producers can’t I just sleep here the one night? You literally just get a couple of hours to look through.”

For Adam, a builder by trade, the experience of putting his house reno into someone else’s hands was a surreal experience: “It was stressful, I wouldn’t say the week was relaxing. We stayed in a beautiful place but unfortunately at the back of our minds was the fact that we had basic strangers doing up our house and we had no idea what was going to happen. It was very strange, very surreal.”

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Yet, if it hadn’t been for Lisa they wouldn’t have been there in the first place, with her applying for the show behind Adam’s back (something he’s now very thankful for!)

“We had been in the home for two years and all our money had gone into the home,” says Lisa. “We were money and time poor so that was my driving force behind applying. I may have lived to regret it, who goes on one of these shows with absolutely no experience? But it’s been an incredible journey that’s for sure.”

Tune in tonight at 7:30 as the teams continue in Tasmania, for what promises to be the toughest reno yet!

Categories
Designers Interviews

Why being a one-woman show is an advantage for Sisalla Interior Design

As a sole trader, it’s a pretty impressive feat to be shortlisted for the 2014 Australian Interior Design Awards, but it is one that Lauren Macer of Sisalla Interior Design, has managed.

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Nominated in the residential decoration category for her Laurel Court project, she’s ecstatic to be up against some of her favourite designers: “Just to be in the same category as other firms whose work I admire is amazing. I have to admit when I found out I was shortlisted I squealed. Loudly!”

Starting her Melbourne-based firm in 2009, Lauren began taking on clients while she was still working full-time at a leading architectural practice in Collingwood. Having worked in both Australia and overseas, she had experience across the whole design process and it was this knowledge that gave her the courage to set out on her own.

Laurel Court
Laurel Court

Whilst there are the obvious challenges of starting your own practice, Lauren believes it also sets her apart: “As a sole practitioner, the client deals with me from beginning to end. I handle the initial briefing, present the concept, complete any architectural drafting, project management and even the final interior styling of the project. So this means that no details get lost in handing different elements to different people.”

Looking after both the interior design and decoration, Lauren’s work covers anything from the spatial planning all the way through to furniture selection and window finishes.

“It’s a great feeling if I’m able to change someone’s environment to enhance the way they live,” she explains. “Receiving feedback from a client saying he loves coming home each day, and when stepping through the front door it really feels like home – for me, that’s what it should all be about.”

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Laurel Court
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Laurel Court

Working primarily in residential, her passion lies in working directly with a client on their home. Lauren prides herself on focusing on her clients’ needs and enhancing their space with an understated luxury and an element of the unexpected. “It’s really about listening to the client’s requirements resulting in a space that expresses their personalities and needs rather than being dictated by a particular style,” says Lauren. “However, I suppose it’s inevitable that a certain style starts to develop. I’m drawn to quite a sophisticated, eclectic style, featuring mid-century and incorporating contemporary design.”

A lover of colour and combining texture with pattern, Lauren puts a lot of emphasis on lighting in helping to create warmth and atmosphere. For her, it’s all about mixing it up, meshing the old with the new “to avoid that showroom look that has no soul.”

Laurel Court
Laurel Court

Currently in the final stages of renovating her own place, Lauren has been able to put these skills into practice, as well as teaching interior design courses at CAE in Flinders Lane, an experience she loves. “It gives me the chance to talk about interiors for hours with lovely people!”

It is also a place where she gets to interact with emerging interior designers and for her, her advice is simple: gain experience. “For those thinking of starting out in the interior design business I would recommend getting experience at different practices to learn how to operate with integrity and skills such as architectural drawing and how to compile a presentation,” explains Lauren. “Also, from my experience, the fun part — concept design — is only a small fraction of the work we do. It takes a lot of work to get to the end of a successful interior.”

Categories
Designers

Technē design stylish Mexican restaurant for Melbourne

From interiors to food, Mexico is the country of the moment, but these days it’s less pineapple motifs and Tex-Mex and more authenticity and warmth.

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Technē Architecture + Interior Design have created an interior that meets just this brief, designing new Mexican restaurant Fonda, in Flinders Lane, Melbourne. The new location is the third to join the Fonda family (alongside Windsor and Richmond), with the restaurant featuring bold, playful colours next to graphics by Luke Henley of Wild Hen Design, emphasising the festive Mexican vibe.

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With a previous string of failed hospitality businesses in the existing space, Technē’s approach was to break down the large, 400 square metre tenancy, into more intimate spaces. Through a variety of dining experiences, like custom-made booths, banquettes and tables, this intimacy has been successfully created.

There is also a focus on authenticity, with the lighting scheme reflecting the power line compositions of suburban Mexico, as well as the rectangular pattern found in the original windows on levels two and three of the heritage site, similar to vernacular Mexican patterns found in buildings.

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All of these components work together to enhance the feeling of being in a traditional Mexican Fonda; a Mexican home kitchen which sells food to the public. With this in mind, the end result of a casual, friendly space is a perfect match for the words behind the restaurant.

Book a table.

Categories
Expert Tips

Melbourne interior designer Joanna Ford puts on an interior styling workshop

For all those who call Melbourne home, this interior styling workshop by Joanna Ford later this month may just tickle your interest.

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Entitled Interior Styling Secrets – for any room and any budget, the workshop promises to teach you the tricks of the trade so you can master the necessary skills to create a moodboard for your very own room.

Presented in partnership with Globe West and Planinsek Art, the workshop will be held in Black Rock on Wednesday 28 May from 9.30am-to-11.30am and costs $60 per person.

For more information.

Categories
Designers Interviews

The Hotel Centennial, Sydney’s hottest new restaurant interior

I’m one of those people who cares more about what the restaurant looks like than the actual food being served. It’s a bit embarrassing, but alongside fellow Interiors Addicts I feel I can admit this!

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The new look Hotel Centennial in Woollahra

One hospitality interior design firm that really gets my heart racing is Luchetti Krelle. Without me even realising, they designed three of my all time favourite bars (The Cottage, SoCal and Donny’s Bar). However, the reason I didn’t realise is not because I’m losing my design eye (promise!), but because none of them look anything alike and, and that’s the exact point.

Krelle and Luchetti
Krelle and Luchetti

“We’ve got a real passion for not having a signature style,” explains co-founder Rachel Luchetti. “Rather, we’re inspired by the food offering or the client or something about the space. We try our best not to revisit previous designs.”

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Hotel Centennial

Their latest offering is the newly re-opened Hotel Centennial in Sydney’s exclusive Woollahra. Once an ultra modern, sparse and hard interior, the venue has now transformed into a more homely, residential space that aims to have the feel of your very own living room (if you had mountains of cash and impeccable taste!) “The brief was it had to be comfortable, like a second home, a second living room,” says Rachel. “The type of clientele in the area have the time to go out and have nice meals so we are expecting to have a lot of regulars and we want them to feel at home.”

You can rest assured the food will be pretty impressive too, with Justin North (ex-Becasse) as executive chef. He may have recently been banned from running a business for two years following financial difficulties, but there’s no stopping him being a chef at someone else’s and his culinary skills have never been in question. He was 2009’s SMH Good Food Guide Chef of the Year

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Hotel Centennial

The project took four months from conception to completion, with only a short six weeks on site, where they did an extensive cosmetic fitout, including a new cool room and kitchen. The majority of the furniture is custom-made and designed by Rachel and her business partner Stuart Krelle, with antiques and contemporary photography finishing the space. With a variety of drinking and dining spaces — there is a restaurant at the rear, a bar and lounge at the front and a dynamic open kitchen at the centre of the venue — what is probably the most exciting part of Hotel Centennial is its new dining concept: The High Table.

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Hotel Centennial – The High Table

“The front bar never worked before so we actually changed the layout and created this High Table concept,” explains Rachel. “It’s a nine-metre table, carved out of oak with a stone top, that seats 30 people and everyone gets served the same meal. It’s a great way to meet other people, as on communal tables you always end up talking to the people next to you.”

From Monday to Wednesday night the chef will prepare a daily plate for the entire table for $24 per person. The changing menu follows a different theme for each night — Mondays are Meat and Three Veg; Tuesdays are Favourites and Wednesdays are By Request, offering a level of patron-kitchen engagement that is a first for the Sydney restaurant scene.

Can’t wait to book your table? Visit the Hotel Centennial’s website.

See more of Luchetti Krelle’s work.

Categories
Designers

Entries for the 2014 Intergrain Timber Vision Awards now open

Celebrating the innovative use of timber, the 2014 Intergrain Timber Vision Awards are now open and encouraging design professionals in Australia and New Zealand to enter.

2013 ITVA Winner for the Residential Exterior category: House House by Andrew Maynard Architects
2013 Residential Exterior winner: Andrew Maynard Architects

This year’s categories include Exterior Residential, Interior Residential, Exterior Commercial and Interior Commercial, with the awards aiming to celebrate projects that push the timber design boundaries.

“Timber continues to be a growing trend in both commercial and residential design and with this movement, projects are breaking away from traditional applications to using timber in new and innovative ways,” says Intergrain trade brand manager, Amanda Chalmers. “We can’t wait to receive entries which speak to this sentiment, once again highlighting the important role timber plays in Australian architecture.”

2013 Commerical Interior winner: Breathe Architecture
2013 Commercial Interior winner: Breathe Architecture

Entries for the fifth Intergrain Timber Vision Awards will be judged by a prestigious panel including: Rob Backhouse of Hassell; Elizabeth Watson-Brown of Architectus; Cameron Bruhn from Architecture Media and Phil White of Dulux Trade.

Winners will receive a $2,000 cash prize plus Intergrain product to the value of $5,000, whilst also gaining industry exposure with an editorial feature in Architecture Australia. Entries close Friday 27 June.

For more information.

Categories
Designers Interviews

KALEIDO: a unique collaboration of interiors and fashion

It shouldn’t work so effortlessly well, but somehow KALEIDO has been able to merge interior and fashion design and make it seem natural.

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The debut collection, which was created by interior designer Danielle Brustman and fashion designer Michelle Boyde, was two years in the making, with the friends collaborating across continents in a call and response style.

“KALEIDO sprang to life in 2011 when I was in New York for six months and Michelle was in Melbourne,” explains Danielle. “We began KALEIDO without predetermined ideas as to where this process or project might lead. One of us would offer an idea in sketch form and the other would respond, all via email or Tumblr. An idea for a chair could provoke a design for a hat, which in turn might inspire a sketch for a light that becomes a swimming costume and so on and so on.”

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This collaborative approach across design disciplines may at first glance seem incongruous, but in context, actually makes up a unique and slightly eccentric family of pieces.

While Danielle is the expert in interiors and Michelle in fashion, the beauty of working in their distinctive manner, means that they can dip their toes into other design specialties.

“It’s great having another eye, but also bringing different perspectives to the table with our individual skills base and experience,” says Michelle. “Danielle might come up with a colour palette that I’ll interpret into wearable panels, but then she’ll work with me on the finish and I’ll help her problem-solve an interior concept.”

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Both having a strong interest in seeing how far they can push the boundary between interiors and fashion, Danielle and Michelle plan to interweave the two to the point that they are inseparable.

“We’re more interested in the whole than the individual parts and the play between the two disciplines,” says Michelle. “Hence the reference to ‘gesamkunstwerk’ [a German word meaning a work of art that makes use of all or many art forms].”

With a joint love of colour and line, this first collection features fashion, jewellery, stools, murals and lighting and with an aim to bring out two collections a year, there will be a lot more of KALEIDO to come.

Shop online.

Categories
Competitions Designers

2014 Dulux Colour Awards finalists announced

After reviewing close to 200 entries from some of the top names in the Australasian design community, the judges of the 2014 Dulux Colour Awards have narrowed the list down to 76 finalists.

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Murphy’s House by Alex Fulton Design

Now in its 28th year, the Dulux Colour Awards recognise the imaginative use of colour by architects and interior designers, to redefine the spaces they have created.

Standouts this year include Murphy’s House by Alex Fulton Design, a renovated 1903 villa, whose colour palette of a vibrant, bold and at times kooky theme, reflects the creativity of the owners.

Little Red Riding Hood by Nexus Designs is also a frontrunner, with the bold use of colour on the built-in joinery allowing for a simplistic look that feels complete without layers of accessories.

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Little Red Riding Hood by Nexus Designs

Both finalists are in the Single Residential Interior category, one of the nine categories. A winner will be announced for each, with the best of the category winners going on to be awarded the Grand Prix prize.

Dulux’s Andrea Lucena-Orr, said 2014 was another inspirational year, with submissions reflecting key commercial and residential trends: “The use of block colour was prominent in the [residential] categories. For the Single Residential Interior category, red, green and grey were popular colours.”

19 Vincent Street, Glen Iris by Austin Design Associates
Another finalist in the Single Residential Interior category: 19 Vincent Street, Glen Iris by Austin Design Associates

Winners of the 2014 Dulux Colour Awards will be announced at a gala event in Melbourne on 27 March. More information and all the finalists can be found here.

Categories
Designers Styling

Transforming runway fashion into beautiful interiors

In a novel approach to design, Dulux has partnered with Australian fashion labels Romance Was Born and Gorman, to create four interiors inspired by their latest collections.

Dulux Australia Interior, Inspired by Gorman's 2014 AW Collection, Room named Harvest, Image credit Mike Baker
Harvest, inspired by Gorman’s Winter Harvest collection

Led by Dulux stylist Bree Leech, the project, United by Style, saw its interior design team create rooms that transformed the fashion colours straight from the runway, into the home.

Gorman AW14 Look that inspired Dulux interior named Harvest
A dress from Gorman’s Winter Harvest collection

“The latest collections from Gorman and Romance Was Born embrace colour wholeheartedly,” explains Bree. “These rooms take their cues from that amazing use of colour and demonstrate how effective paint can be in creating mood and character in a space.”

One of the rooms, named Harvest, was inspired by Gorman’s Autumn 2014 collection Winter Harvest. Based on nature, the collection features prints with a range of magical symbols, winter vegetables and botanicals. Following on with the theme, the Harvest room champions moody paint colours that draw on the natural shades of the land and sea.

Dulux Australia Interior, Inspired by Romance Was Born's 2014 AW Collection, Room named Portal, Image credit Mike Baker
Portal, inspired by Romance Was Born’s collection Dream On

Another of the rooms, Portal, was interpreted from Romance Was Born’s Autumn 2014 collection Dream On, which embraced a psychedelic and hyper-colourful palette. The room follows suit with a vibrant interior, showcasing strong graphic lines contrasting against curved, organic-shaped furniture.

Romance Was Born AW14 Look that inspired room named Portal
A dress from Romance Was Born’s Dream On collection

To check out the other rooms by Dulux visit United by Style.

Categories
Designers Homewares Interviews

Up and coming ceramicist Hayden Youlley on starting your own art business

For Hayden Youlley, being a ceramicist wasn’t always on the cards.  It wasn’t until his second year at the College of Fine Arts (COFA) that he first started working with clay. And he was hooked.

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“I realised straight away that it appealed to me in many ways,” Hayden says. “It’s the only medium I have found that I can use to design, prototype, realise and manufacture products myself.”

Graduating in 2011, Hayden has now come a long way since those first years at COFA. Founding his own company, Hayden Youlley Design, he has now been full-time self-employed for two years.

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His first studio output, which remains a best seller, was the Paper tableware, in both white and colour. A functional dinnerware range that uses a simple creased paper motif, it is cast by hand in porcelain. Transforming the fragile and creased paper into something robust, permanent and precious, the random distribution of creases creates a complex pattern of light, shade and texture.

For Hayden, the Paper series is much more than a design, but a mark of how far he has come: “I still have the first prototype cup sitting on my desk in my studio. It is tiny, not well finished and the paper detail is so faint it is almost unnoticeable, but it showed so much potential that I instantly knew I wouldn’t be able to stop working on it until I had realised the idea fully.”

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Bringing a design to life is never easy, however thanks to an ArtStart grant from the Australian Council, Hayden was able to get the monetary support he needed.

“The ArtStart program was established to give financial assistance to recent art and design graduates to help them make the transition from studying to having a professional career in the arts,” explains Hayden. “That support allowed me to try new ways of marketing — like trade show events, professional photography and a professional redesign of my website — that were otherwise financially prohibitive. I finished 2013 having grown noticeably and substantially as a result.”

With the financial backing, Hayden Youlley Design has continued to grow. The new Tessellate series, a set of functional porcelain bowls that can stand alone or be clustered together, is now on the market. Some exciting collaborations are also in the works, including a Paper lighting series and a cutlery range.

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Hayden hopes the future sees him continuing to design and create from a shared, multi-disciplinary warehouse studio.His dream studio would have a street front gallery and a space for the public to take casual classes, buy handmade objects and watch designers and makers in action.

For a list of stockists visit Hayden Youlley Design here.

Categories
Designers

The Odd Collective: giving emerging artists licence to print

Book designer and signwriter Sarah Anderson and Matt Johnston, took a big leap when they decided to open The Club of Odd Volumes. With a digital fabric printer as their only tool, they began designing a range of homewares and fashion, as well as custom prints for anyone looking to make one-offs.

Matt and Sarah
Matt and Sarah

It was there that they really hit their stride, realising there were a lot of emerging artists looking to print small runs but with nowhere to do it. And their second business, The Odd Collective, was formed.

With a unique model, The Odd Collective is an online store that showcases 20 artists’ designs on a range of homewares and apparel. Four times a year, half the artists rotate and another 10 fill their place, allowing customers to keep buying from those they love and at the same time being able to check out the work of new artists.

Jasmine Dowling - Count stars not sheep pillowcase
Jasmine Dowling – Count stars not sheep pillowcase

“We wanted to aim our services at serious artists so decided to cap how many creatives are involved,” explains Sarah.

Categories
Designers

Shaynna Blaze launches first rug collection

In collaboration with The Rug Collection, interior designer and The Block judge Shaynna Blaze, has launched her first ever rug collection, Textured Coast.

Shaynna Blaze
Shaynna Blaze

Inspired by the texture and colours of the Australian coast, the six-piece collection is a mix of neutral tones and calming greys, aiming to add depth, texture and warmth to any interior.

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Designers Interviews

Young Designer: Briana Hayes, Highgate House

Our Young Designer series aims to inspire those who are yet to get their first foot on the ladder in this fiercely competitive industry. Editorial assistant Olivia Shead spoke to Briana Hayes, interior designer at Brisbane’s Highgate House.

Briana Hayes
Briana Hayes

Briana, 25, always knew she wanted to be an interior designer. From the age of 11, every new year saw her change the colour scheme of her bedroom, where with the help of her father, she would add a fresh coat of paint to her childhood walls.