Is this just an excuse to put pictures of half naked men on my blog? Probably. So shoot me!
The search is on for Sheridan’s next “Towel Man”. The linen brand is on the search to find a man with the same qualities as their towels – great looks, dependable, a big softie and a little bit luxurious.
It’s not my style but there’s no denying the timeless popularity of French Provincial furniture and it’s certainly a new look for online retailer Milan Direct.
The prices, as you’d expect, are very reasonable. This substantial dining table (above), in real oak veneer, is $699 and sits 6 comfortably. You might even be able to get it in time for Christmas Day entertaining, with the first shipment arriving mid next month.
By Sonya Pala
Given that we spend a third of our lives in bed, sleeping in a non-toxic environment can have wonderful health benefits. But let’s face it, eco, sustainable, fair trade and organic aren’t always synonymous with stylish.
Here are some tips to get a unique, stylish and affordable eco luxury look for your bedroom:
1. Invest wisely Start off with a budget. This will help in the decision-making process! Invest in a primary piece that will last you for years and then update the room over time using accessories, smaller furniture items and fabric. During our renovation, I invested most of our budget into an amazing eco-bed and re-covering an old occasional chair with eco-velvet fabric. Many of the smaller accessories and mother of pearl inlay chest of drawers were bought over the years.
2. Non-toxic bedding Given the rise of allergies over the last few decades, it’s really important to look at the toxicity in everyday items in our home. Conventional foam in mattresses, pillows and furniture, contains a plethora of chemicals which emit VOC gases for the life of the product. Many of these are known carcinogens and combined with conventional cotton bedding (cotton being the most heavily pesticide-sprayed crop in the world), can create a hazardous sleeping environment.
Bednest, home of upholstered bedheads, and linen brand Cultiver, have collaborated on a classy and classic children’s range.
Wanting to offer an alternative to parents tired of the garish colours and clunky bed designs crowding the childrens’ market, Nicky Line of BedNest and Nicolle Sullivan of Cultiver joined forces to come up with something altogether more sophisticated but kid-sized.
There’s some great quality linen out there in Australia, and for those who love the perfectly crumpled look and feel but prefer theirs with a shot of bright colour, mother-daughter team Major Minor could be just the ticket.
I spoke to Hannah Seely, one half of the new, online linen business, with her mum, Anne. They launched earlier this year after struggling to find linen bedding that was contemporary and modern at an affordable price.
“We knew we wanted to work together on a project that would allow us to travel, be creative and have a good laugh in the process,” says Hannah. “The ball started rolling a couple of years ago after a trip to India. We’d already decided to offer classic linen colours such as white and grey but also wanted to add some vibrant pops of colour to our range and thought there was no better place than India to locate and source beautiful bright linen!”
Here are the most-read posts from the last 7 days, with Hunt & Bow making it in for the second week in a row!
1. Stylist Alana Langan launches online homewares store Hunt & Bow
2. Kip & Co’s new bed linen range is inspired by the dappled light of summer
3. New IKEA Stockholm range has premium design and materials without the big price tag (check out the green velvet lounge, I’m in love!)
Enjoy and happy weekend, readers! Don’t forget to check out the Dinosaur Designs annual sale if you’re in Sydney. On until the end of tomorrow!
Melbourne’s boutique bedding company Kip & Co, has launched its latest collection, Dappled Dreams, adding towels and rugs to complement its linen for adults and kids.
It’s a celebration of summers gone and the possibilities of summers to come – dappled light and warm nights, radio crackling, beach swims, salty skin, friendships made, gold and braid.
“We wanted to create a relaxed range that conveyed that sense of freedom you get over a long coastal summer,” said co-founder Hayley Pannekoecke.
The range features Kip’s first collaboration with Obus founder, Kylie Zerbst. Kylie’s energy and independence found a kindred spirit one summer with Kip’s Kate Heppell, and together they began a long and fierce friendship.
There’s a reason that trends stick around and that’s because they just work. Chevron is one of these. People keep asking me isn’t chevron “over” yet and no, it isn’t, because everyone loves it! AURA obviously agree, because there’s plenty of that old zigzag favourite in their latest colourful collection for summer, released this week.
If you love colour, this one’s for you. I particularly like the mix of neutral natural fibres like linen and cotton with the bright patterns and accents. Choose a lot of colour or the odd pop, depending on your taste. Choose from crochet, oversized chevron, spots, dipped and plain styles.
Jessica Warner, an Australian living in the States, is curating great textiles from around the world and selling them online.
With a lifelong love of traditional craftsmanship, Jessica launched an online store so she could make her favourite textiles available to everyone. Twofold offers a huge selection of soft furnishings and textiles by the likes of Holly Berry from the UK, Zoe Wall and Sally Campbell from Australia, RosenbergCph from Denmark, Comma Workshop, South Street Linen and Proud Mary from the US, Rumisu from Turkey, and Nuno from Japan. If you want something beautiful that everyone else hasn’t got, take a look!
I’ve put together some of my favourite products from West Elm for you, all available to buy online from the Australian website.
(Clockwise from top left, above)
I don’t even need to tell you why this gold cutlery set is awesome, do I? And despite its prettiness, it’s sturdy enough for everyday use and yes, it is dishwasher safe. $34 for a 5-piece set.
There’s a reason these fun Castle polkadot pillowcases are bestsellers. What mum wouldn’t like a pair? Go matching or mix it up with an odd pair!
They’re $49 each and 5-star hotel grade. They come in yellow, pink, turquoise, orange and more.
I was flattered to be asked by Temple & Webster to curate their first guest edit this week. I picked some great linen by AURA, my long time favourite Murchison Hume products, some vintage style glassware, kids’ bed linen, a great rug and more. You may notice most of it is navy or fuchsia. What a surprise!
Why not have a little online window shop and see if anything takes your fancy? Enabler? Moi?!
The sale is on for the next 3 days.
They also interviewed me about my home, how my fiancé and I agree (or not) on interiors, who inspires me and more. Read that here.
But you really must eat off these Markey & Lockyer creations because it’s totally safe to do so and just look how good they look with cake on them!
You may have noticed a bit of a theme emerging on Interiors Addict recently, of handmade and upcycled products from small, independent businesses. I just love the idea of owning one-offs and things made with love and by hand. I won’t pretend I don’t own my fair share of mass manufactured “stuff” but I also love to pay a little extra for something I know is worth it. And there’s nothing like knowing the story behind something too.
Interior stylist Dina Broadhurst collaborated with brandsExclusive to demonstrate an easy classic makeover for your bedroom, step by step. Even better, you can buy everything she uses online!
Here’s the finished look…
And here’s how Dina achieved it, step by step…
Take a look at this sneak peek of Country Road’s new winter homewares, due in store next week.
The brights of last season have been replaced with an altogether more muted colour pallette that sees pops of soft pastels and a touch of yellow, grounded with plenty of black, grey and white. I love it.
Country Road’s collections are always so fresh and on-trend without being too on-trend (there’s definitely a Country Road look).
Some unique new kantha quilt designs just arrived at Fossik and they’re worth a look.
Or so they say!
Linen certainly seems to be making a comeback. Miss Molly is one of a few online stores specialising in linen goods I’ve discovered lately. Its founder, Linda Sheahan, thinks this has something to do with our urge to get back to nature and understanding of where things come from and how and where they’re made.
“Linen is such a pure textile and it remains close to its nature throughout its production,” she says. “It’s gorgeous and pure and so, so lovely to look and touch and sleep in!”
It is woven from the fibres of the flax plant and is a completely natural and renewable resource, perhaps the most ecologically sound fabric of all, totally biodegradable and recyclable.
I happen to think you can’t go wrong with simple and classic things when it comes to Manchester: plain French linen, crisp cotton sheets and white waffle quilts for example. These new ticking stripe sheet sets from AURA have such a lovely old school look about them, don’t you think?
Available in a variety of colours you could easily mix and match them with whites or contrasting plain or patterned coordinates.