Hatching Kids' Spaces: February 2014

You might have heard some buzz (from me probably) about the latest trade show Life Instyle with a meticulously chosen range of boutique wares, this trade show did not disappoint. We were especially keen to check out the Kids Instyle part of it, which of course focused on our fun world of Kids Interiors and also clothing. There was a great sense of wonder and excitement both from us the guests and the wholesalers themselves; many there representing the brand they had made from small beginnings. We were suitably impressed with the wide variety of new ranges from our favourite brands and discovered some hidden gems, that will definitely be used in upcoming designs by Bright Interiors. There was a lot of focus on eco-friendly products, locally sourced materials and a real angle on unique design.

As we made our way around the stalls and chatted to the lovely creators of what caught our eye, I was able to find out how they came up with their ideas and what inspires them. See the amazing displays our our favourites and a little insight in to a few of their stories:

Telegram's giant paper stick dome

Admiring the Marimekko fabrics

So many gifts to trawl through at Peachy By Lark

Raw space goodies

Chatting to the lovely owner of Dulcie and Banana- such soft blankets!

Impressive new range from the Incy Interiors gang

Anyone say toilet roll holder? Why yes I did thanks The Bamboo Design

Teeny tiny teddy's and scotch biscuits to delight your baby from Bower and Beyond

Groovy range of lampshades from Retro Print Revival

Kate and Kate impress us with their modern delicious blankets

Pony Rider live up to expectations

Words to live by Seletti

Working on a new look at TMOD

Urban Road's art

Aura blew us away with their bedding range!!

Lots of new friends to choose from by Craftholic

The sellers of whimsy worked their pom pom magic at Down To The Woods

Bold colours strike with the One Kind display

These pills had a little cryptic message in them to make you smile... cute! by Short Story

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Some handpicked stories from behind the creative talents....

The zany fabric artworks from Pouch

Zoe is a sweet girl from Bondi and just happens to be very gifted at making collage animals. She sources poor old homeless vintage and recycled fabrics from all around the place, and breathes new life in to them when she creates her quirky little animals. The fabric is layered with bright felts and each piece is expertly cut, she uses starch spray on the fabric so it doesn’t fray and looks close to cardboard, it also ensures that they will last for a long time to come, and will make perfect sense in a kids room or nursery. I love the fact that Pouch’s focus is on bringing new life to leftover fabrics, it’s also a nice story to be able to teach your child that just because something has been used it doesn’t have to be left behind. You have a cast of adorable characters too, mr toucan was the favourite of mine!

The ridiculously soft and environmentally conscious blankets from Little Flourishes

Olivia has created really beautiful organic wraps and blankets; each come with a different story with every print having significance and importance behind the choice. I especially loved the Australian Black Neck Storks blanket with it’s simple gender neutral print- it would be special addition to any nursery.

The eclectic collection of goodies at The Bowerbird’s Nest

This little gem was hiding away corner of Kids Instyle near the coffee hello! Speaking to Quinta you get a real sense that she has searched high and low to find exactly the right items for her beautiful brand. I loved the styling choices of the display, also the clear Scandi influence is always a bonus in a kids space I say!

The Funky new range from the Uimi duo

The instantly recognizable brand is a favourite amongst all of us designer types and homeware enthusiasts; their amazingly soft merino wool blankets and cushions come in the brightest range of patterns. It was lovely to meet the powerhouse couple behind the scenes, to hear that they started from such quaint beginnings of making little knitted baby clothes with one machine to now exporting all over the place with a storeroom full of them! Throw in to the mix bringing up a couple of kids whilst expanding their business and you have a winning partnership. Keeping their brand Austrailian made is pretty hard in their industry too, yet they’ve managed to keep their ranges releasing innovative and eye catching ranges, we love you guys!

Delish lighting at Delight Décor

We were relishing a good look at this brands range of lighting, as my partner is an audio and visual technician anything vaguely technogical is of great excitement to him! Speaking to the sales manager Nikki we could see a large scope of lighting from the trendy miffy lamps to the subtle LED mobiles and remote controlled colour changing lights. The business came about- as many great ideas do due to the birth of Jane (the owners) first born and her mum sending her some amazing soft moontly lit moon mobile; she loved their subtly and unusual glow so much she had to spread the word and eventually started to sell them at markets. Lighting is an exciting avenue in Kids Interiors, one of which we are keeping a close eye on (wink wink) babies love to stare at soft lights and it can stimulate their learning capacity and brain development. We look forward to seeing what else these guys discover in their travels!

Special thanks to our professional photo guy mr Matt Furnell for all he's amazing shots, what a man!
All in all we had a great time at Life Instyle and got some inspiration meeting all the kind folks x

As part of my job I'm always on the hunt for the perfect piece to suit a room and also the child's personality, so it came as a surprise when couldn't quite find a suitable chair for my own kids room, hence the hunt began. Having decided on a cane chair sometime before I started my search I'd been keeping an eye out in local op shops and Vinnies for something that would suit her room and also fit her little mini self, but had no luck sourcing that elusive chair.

Then I stumbled upon Etsy's wide world of vintage furniture and fell in love with this teal papasan chair

at the lovely Mu & Mo shop

It would've been a hit if it hadn't been quite so adult sized.... bummer! But then by chance the owner Hannah happened to come across this little gem.

in a extra small size perfect for my XS Sophia! A deal was struck and although Mu and Mo are Brisbane based, they offered to spray the chair in any colour of my choosing at no extra cost.... Nice right? I love working with people of a generous nature, it's fun to colaborate! So I settled on a nice bright yellow to match Sophia's wallpaper.

Julia Rothman's Daydream Wallpaper

A few weeks later I got progress shots of the chair's new skin....

but it was clear that the yellow was too cold and to match the room, and would clash with the wallpaper (I'm not all about matchy matchy but cools and warms can definitely clash!) So the poor wee chair went for another colour treatment and wo and behold the finished product...