Archive for September, 2014
Have you seen Donna Wilson’s first ever collection of fabrics, “Forest & Friends”? Printed with her signature creatures and other motifs drawn from nature, it’s available by the metre and got me all excited about two-tone children’s curtains. The patterns would look lovely as an edge with plain fabric – or the other way around. If that’s too much of a statement, you could make cushions, or simple tote bags or drawstring bags – lovely off a peg rail and great for storing toys.
Not so handy with a sewing machine? Take some classes this autumn! Check out The Thrifty Stitcher (where you’ll find great free downloadable sewing tutorials too).
Here are some more of Donna Wilson’s fabrics to get you inspired – happy crafting!
This shared boys’ bedroom belongs to Merlijn and Julius who are six and four years old. They live with their little sister Kate and mum and dad in a new built townhouse on one of the canals in Leiden, the Netherlands.
Merlijn and Julius’ room was designed by their mum Femke, who is a designer and founder of interiors boutique Femkeido. The room features a rustic bunk bed made from scaffolding boards and retro elements like vintage wallpaper silhouettes and an old school desk.
Femke’s advice for designing your children’s bedrooms is to experiment – and not just with “kid’s stuff”.
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Time to find out a bit more about Merlijn now. Tell us Merlijn,
♥ What is your favourite food? Spaghetti with red sauce.
♥ What are you into right now? Football and lego.
♥ What is your favourite colour? Green.
♥ Your favourite animal? A snake.
♥ And your favourite book? Mouk.
♥ What do you want to be when you grow up? A professional footballer.
♥ What is your favourite thing in your room? My globe.
♥ What do love doing in your room? Reading and sleeping.
♥ Which is your favourite duvet cover? The one with the trees [from Ferm Living].
♥ Your favourite pyjamas? The FC Barcelona ones!
Thank you Merlijn, it was super to meet you!
(images: photography by Ernie Enkelaar)
Staying with the back-to-school theme today with some interiors inspiration around kids’ desks – these are currently some of my favourite images. I’ve noticed there are a lot of vintage school desks in there (instant whimsy), and I seem to have a penchant for simple desk tops suspended on wall mounted brackets. These offer plenty of room to spread out and make a practical work and play space to share.
There are many ways to make sure a desk doesn’t feel isolated on a wall. You can use wallpaper behind, or maybe just an accent strip like the supersize hare below. Wall stickers, prints or postcards can do the trick, and of course, shelves. I like the playful effect of box shelves, plate racks and vintage tins for storage and display. The house desk above also does a clever job at anchoring the desk and creating a cosy nook.
If you study these images, you’ll spot some nifty little ideas, like keeping pens and pencils off the surface with wall mounted pots, and using wall hooks to keep things out of the way. Space saving fold-down desks are great for small rooms of course (leaving room for sleep-overs), and no desk is complete in my opinion without a bank of small drawers for little treasures.
image sources, clockwise from top left | 1. vintage wooden school desk, tree desk, geo bamboo kids desk, blue vintage school desk | 2. desk with dog wallpaper, double vintage school desk, house desk, alcove desk | 3. bed with fold-down desk, vintage desk, desk in front of window, suspended timber desk | 4. yellow desk with book rack, desk with hare wallpaper, blue bed with desk, yellow fold-down desk
I used to favour the kitchen table, and later my bed or the couch for homework. But when it was time for serious revision, my mum made me sit at my desk to help me concentrate. So what are the things to bear in mind when creating a space for study? Make sure that your child is seated comfortably and correctly, especially if in front of a screen, and that there is adequate light. For older children it’s important to have enough room to spread out their books and personalise their desk space – add a pinboard if you can. Good storage around the desk is a must – if not part of the desk, use drawers on castors, stacked crates, or shelves and display boxes on the wall.
Sources: 1. harvard children’s desk 2. laurette L50 desk 3. vintage school desk 4. les gambettes romy desk 5. lola dolls house desk atelier sans souci 6. irene writing desk xo in my room 7. sebra white metal desk 8. K desk with internal storage rafa kids 9. geo bamboo kids desk
