THE SLEEPY CHAPTER + GETTING COMFORTABLE

Over the past couple of years as my circle of friends has expanded and we have grown older, we are all reaching that next stage of our lives where we are preparing to fly the coop. It is a little unbelievable that this year alone we will be attending six weddings, whom are all very good friends or close relatives young in age. It is pretty amazing how time brings forth all these different stages. These stages have brought up a lot of questions about what I think is best to look for when wanting to buy all your new furniture for the new pad. It has been dominating phone conversations that is for sure!

I was recently having a discussion with a close girlfriend who is preparing to move out very soon with her soon to be husband and was looking for great quality, comfortable linen. So, I thought why not do a post on the blog about what I look for and what I think are the best elements to create a really comfortable bed. Your bed is super important as you pretty much spend almost half your life sleeping which it allows your body to restore itself so having the right support and comfort is essential. To me it is not something that you skimp on... by the way, I need to take my own advice because my mattress is completely outdated and not supportive anymore! It's on the "To Do List" trust me.

Good quality linen, duvet covers, throws and pillowcases can be hard to come by, which is why I wanted to share with you a great bedding resource, Parachute. They have a great range available at affordable prices. Currently, personally and a lot of my friends are after things that have a really natural look to them, so there does not have to be too much fuss about the sheets, they always look clean, they are simple, feel good and neutral.

Here are some of my favourite tricks when making your bed look pretty amazing and just overall effortless.

+ Think about it as a composition - Layer the bed with different colour linen. For example you may have a white flat sheet and loose sheet but then two different combination of colours for the pillowcases and a different colour for the duvet cover.

+ Add character to a bed by adding at most 3 cushions. Yes, see how I did not say 10 cushions? It is very unnecessary to have excessive amounts of small cushions, 3 is enough and it allows you to have two different colour combinations.

+ Have different sized pillows, 2 x large square size and 2 x normal sleeping size.

+ Add texture to the bed by complimenting it with a casual throw to make it feel that extra comfortable and inviting. Your bed is also a great place for journaling, reading, meditating so having a great throw to lie on top of with your normal clothes is a great idea. 

All products shown in the images below can be found at Parachutes to create your ultimate sleeping haven.

Make sure to visit their website by clicking here

Images sourced from Parachutes. 

MEET THE DESIGN TWINS

Have you heard or discovered the latest amazing set of homewares yet? You all know how much I love concrete so it is really no surprise when I say how much I love the designs by this dynmaic duo, Crystal and Mitch, better known as The Design Twins.

Last month Crystal took the time to chat to us about all things design and business, what inspires them and what they believe is the key to success. I want to take this opportunity to thank The Design Twins for taking part in this feature to share with all my amazing readers, I have not been able to publish this until I got back on Australian land so now that I am back, it is the first feature of many more to come.

I know music has been a huge part of your life, how do you think it has helped you channel your creativity into what you are doing at the moment? 

Music gave me the strength and persistence to pursue what we are doing now with Design Twins. Our products are definitely influenced by music and fashion, allowing us to create unique and bold pieces. 

You create some really unique and interesting pieces. What is your creative process? 

With our designs, we always think of the craziest idea possible, to the point of where it can't be made and then bring it right back to a products that is practical, logical and beautiful. For instance, with our concrete pillows, we thought of large outdoor pillows. These would be heavy and not practical, so we created mini pillows for candles, keys and jewellery! 

We have noticed you use concrete, what gave you the idea to use it? And is there another material both you and “Twinnie” would love to introduce? 

We started off with a bag of concrete in our kitchen sink and the craziness went from there! We realised it could be shaped into ANYTHING and we wanted to take it from being a DIY project to the next level of crazy homewares. We would LOVE to introduce copper or steel into the designs somehow. We love all things marble, copper, leather, glass and recycled timber!!

What would be the best three words to describe what The Design Twins is all about? 

CRAZY, UNIQUE, FUN!

What do The Design Twins believe is the key ingredient in working to make your dreams come true? 

Love what your doing and keep persisting even when everything seems impossible. There have been so many times when we wanted to give up, but we just knew that if pushed through, something unique was going to be created.

What would you consider would be the most important step you took in making the business happen?

Moving out of our kitchen sink, to a workshop, where we could experiment with designs in a bigger and better scale.

What do you believe is the best part about having your own business and what would be your piece of advice for those wanting to follow their passions? 

We get to work the hours we choose, although lately its been from 10am until 1am most days, we hope to reduce that to some type of normality soon. We get to do fun things like snorkel on our lunch breaks, as we live on a reef! If you have a dream, don't give up on it! Stay curious. Stay creative. Stay hungry!

You can find The Design Twins website and products by clicking here. 

All images have been sourced from The Design Twins website and Instagram page. 

PASTEL PALETTE

Continuing on from yesterday's post and some of the distinctive colours and details from the button stools, I am going to share some inspiration for a pastel palette. Funny enough it fits in with our first post for this week as pastels I find are a great contrast and complement to a grey and neutral palette. 

A mixture of pastels which are lighter in colour and tone allows one to create a really eclectic look, where furniture of all kinds can be mixed matched in colour and style. I have also been noticing increasingly a trend where part of furniture pieces such as the bottom of chairs, lights, legs of occasional chairs, consoles and shelving have been painted in different pastel colours to add interest and accentuate furniture pieces in a unique way. What do you think about it? Do you like it? 

I feel this can be a great way to add a different feature to your furniture as well as adding in a little bit of colour that does not even need to be bold. What I like about this concept as well is that it can be a really easy DIY job too. If you have an old set of chairs that need some jazzing up or you were just going to throw them away, why not paint the legs of about 30 to 50 cm from the floor just to give them some visual interest. It would take some sanding down of the section you require to paint and then marking off where you want the colour to end. 

I have not always been one for mix matching furniture or mixing different colour with specific things like dining chairs that are not the same style, but in the right interior environment and with the right colours it can really work. 

With the spring coming around next month pastels would be a great way to change up your space to brighten it up from winter months. I am going to say it is going to be another trend we will be seeing a lot more of in the coming months. 

Images can be found via my Pinterest. 

FEATURE FRIDAYS WITH FEATURE PIECES

I have been missing in action for the last couple of days with a horrible flu but I am back in action with our Feature Fridays.

Today I am introducing you to my lovely Friend and her Mum. Together they have created a unique and inspiring business.

Sally & Kerrie are Feature Pieces, a Interior Design and Homewares business that aims to assist clients in bringing colour into their homes. They achieve this through their unique and colourful cushions, wall hangings, lampshades and custom upholstered pieces that become a 'feature' in your home.

Feature Pieces at Warwick Fabric "Furniture in Focus" fair back in May.

It really is a brilliant idea as I often tell my clients that it is a good idea to have a feature element in a space such as a living room or bedroom. This is exactly what Sally & Kerrie believe themselves and are encouraging their clients to embrace. 

Based in Sydney, Sally is always constantly on the go, networking, working with The Designer Chicks and developing her business. They are always seeking out new colourful materials and suppliers that enable them to make their beautiful products.  

Part of the Feature Pieces range. 

It is very inspirational and encouraging for myself to see one of my friends and fellow Interior Designer follow her passion and dream. I have no doubt with the hard work and dedication Sally has to her passion, Feature Pieces will be a continued growing success. Just last week she was seen in the Northen District Times, a great article with a picture from behind the scenes at Feature Pieces. Click here to read more on the article. 

Feature Pieces, with Sally's Interior Design degree & Colour Diploma also aims to assist their clients in developing beautiful spaces, co-orindated colour schemes and floor coverings.

Sally & Kerrie can be found every 2nd Sunday at the Kirribilli Art & Design Markets. The next market is July 14th, so make sure you head down and get a glimps of some of their lovely pieces.

Sneak peek at their Market Stall. 

Below are some images of their designs you can find on their website by clicking here. 

Also if you would like to find out more or follow Sally & Kerrie you can do so by liking them on Facebook or visiting their Website & Online Store. 

Anastasia & Natasha. 

Cody Lampshade.

Antique Style Lamp Base. You can find
this base by clicking here.

Lisa Wall Piece.

Mckenzie Lampshade.

Nell cushion.

Thanks to Sally & Kerrie for letting me post about their business on my blog today!

Be inspired & keep dreaming,

JDZ x

FINDING TREASURE

I have never been antique shopping, but it is a real fun experience. There is so much to find and so many great pieces. What is really interesting is finding out about what era it is from and the history behind the piece. All day I could not stop wondering where certain things were found and who they originally belonged to. When looking for an antique piece it is really important to look for something that is still in good shape and is authentic. It is also important to think about the use of the piece and how you can accentuate it in the space you are going to use it in. You can also find pieces that can be restored and used for something else. For example you could use an old desk or console and turn it into a vanity for a bathroom, the options are endless.

Mixing old with new can be a really great way of adding layers to your home and style. Hopefully some of these awesome pieces I discovered today will be specified in this up coming project.

What is also great about antique or vintage pieces is that they bring their history with them and then become a great talking point.


Hope you all had a long weekend,

JDZ.