Vintage Homewares

THE COCOON LAMP: A GERMAN STORY WITH AN ITALIAN SOUL

THE COCOON LAMP: A GERMAN STORY WITH AN ITALIAN SOUL

The lamp that FLOS couldn’t have existed without.There is a particular pleasure in owning a piece that sits at the origin of something much larger. This 1970s cocoon table lamp...
How to Mix VINTAGE FURNITURE With Modern Interiors (Without It Looking Like a Museum)

How to Mix VINTAGE FURNITURE With Modern Interiors (Without It Looking Like a Museum)

I deal in Italian vintage furniture. I source pieces three times a year from markets and dealers across northern Italy. And the question I hear more than any other is:...
WHAT'S IN MY SUITCASE

WHAT'S IN MY SUITCASE

The pieces I hunt for at every Italian market visit - portable treasures that fit in luggage and transform Melbourne interiors.
The ITALIAN DESIGNER series: Roberto Rigon and Bertoncello

The ITALIAN DESIGNER series: Roberto Rigon and Bertoncello

Roberto Rigon and Bertoncello's partnership produced some of the innovative and creative ceramics coming out to Italy in the mid century era. 

Vintage Jewellery

The Quiet Joy of Vintage Jewellery

The Quiet Joy of Vintage Jewellery

There is a particular pleasure in fastening a piece of jewellery that has already lived a life. A vintage brooch or a weighty mid-century chain carries something a brand-new piece...
Trifari: Costume Jewellery With the Soul of Fine Jewellery

Trifari: Costume Jewellery With the Soul of Fine Jewellery

Of all the great American costume houses, Trifari is the one that came closest to the real thing. For decades it was run by people who understood precious jewellery from...
D'Orlan: The Canadian House That Inherited a Legend

D'Orlan: The Canadian House That Inherited a Legend

If Monet was built on restraint and Napier on longevity, D'Orlan's story is one of inheritance. This Canadian house produced some of the most finely finished costume jewellery of the...
Napier: America's Oldest Fashion Jewellery House

Napier: America's Oldest Fashion Jewellery House

When Napier finally closed its doors in 1999, it was widely regarded as the oldest fashion jewellery house in America — the end of a lineage that stretched back well...
Monet: The American House That Made Restraint Look Like Luxury

Monet: The American House That Made Restraint Look Like Luxury

Some costume jewellery shouts. Monet, by contrast, has always understood the quiet authority of a clean line. For the best part of the twentieth century, this American house built its...

Home Fundamentals

Why the Corners Do the Work

Why the Corners Do the Work

*Every room has four of them, and most of us waste all four. Here's how to decorate from the edges in — and why the corners are where a room...
Brass Beyond the Tap

Brass Beyond the Tap

*The warmest metal in the house, and most of us only ever meet it on a tap. Here's where else it belongs — and why you should never, ever polish...
Colour and Softness, Without Touching the Walls

Colour and Softness, Without Touching the Walls

For those of us who like things too much for coloured walls. I’ve never quite trusted myself with coloured walls. It isn’t that I don’t love them. I do. Some...
Overhead Lighting Is Not Your Friend

Overhead Lighting Is Not Your Friend

Why the best rooms are lit from below — and how to do it properly. I want you to try something tonight. When it gets dark, walk into your living...
The Case for Large Checks: Five Ways to Use Them in Your Home

The Case for Large Checks: Five Ways to Use Them in Your Home

There’s a reason Gingham has never really gone away. While other patterns drift in and out of fashion, the check endures — in part because it’s so fundamentally architectural. It’s...
The Undertone Rule: How to Pick Whites That Actually Work in Melbourne Light

The Undertone Rule: How to Pick Whites That Actually Work in Melbourne Light

Choosing a white paint should be the easiest decision in the room. It’s white. How many options can there be? The Dulux White & Neutral collection alone has over 500...
Go on mix up your Patterns! Here's how.

Go on mix up your Patterns! Here's how.

Most people stop at one pattern because they’re afraid of getting it wrong. The trick isn’t restraint — it’s knowing what connects them. I hear a version of the same...
The Room Audit: How to See Your Space With Fresh Eyes

The Room Audit: How to See Your Space With Fresh Eyes

Here’s a strange truth about the rooms we live in: we stop seeing them. Our brains are incredibly efficient at filtering out the familiar. That's why you don't see that...
The 60-30-10 Rule, Explained for Real Aussie Homes

The 60-30-10 Rule, Explained for Real Aussie Homes

  If you’ve ever read anything about interior colour schemes, you’ve probably encountered the 60-30-10 rule. It’s the most widely cited formula in decorating, and for good reason — it...
Why Most People Choose Paint Colours Wrong (And What to Do Instead)

Why Most People Choose Paint Colours Wrong (And What to Do Instead)

I’m going to tell you something that might save you a hundred dollars and a weekend of repainting: the way most people choose paint colours almost guarantees they’ll get it...

Room Design

LANDING: The Room Nobody Decorates

LANDING: The Room Nobody Decorates

It’s the half-floor everyone walks across and no one thinks about. Here’s how to turn it into the most charming small room in the house.Every house has one, and almost...
The COASTAL AUSTRALIAN Bathroom: How to Make the Smallest Room Feel Like a Retreat

The COASTAL AUSTRALIAN Bathroom: How to Make the Smallest Room Feel Like a Retreat

The bathroom is the room most people think about last and regret first. It’s also the room where coastal style works hardest, because the materials that define Australian coastal —...
The COASTAL AUSTRALIAN Living Room: Why It’s the Hardest Room to Get Right (And How to Do It Anyway)

The COASTAL AUSTRALIAN Living Room: Why It’s the Hardest Room to Get Right (And How to Do It Anyway)

The living room is where coastal style faces its biggest test. A bedroom has one job — sleep. A bathroom has constraints that actually make design easier. But the living...
COASTAL AUSTRALIAN Style: What It Actually Is (And What It Isn’t)

COASTAL AUSTRALIAN Style: What It Actually Is (And What It Isn’t)

There’s a reason Australian coastal is one of the most searched interior styles in the country. It promises exactly what most of us want our homes to feel like: light,...
The ENGLISH ROOM series : Kitchen

The ENGLISH ROOM series : Kitchen

The kitchen is where the modern English aesthetic faces its greatest test. How do you reconcile the need for a functional, contemporary workspace with the layered, collected look we love...
The ENGLISH ROOM series: DOWNSTAIRS LOO

The ENGLISH ROOM series: DOWNSTAIRS LOO

The downstairs loo feels like Narnia's wardrobe to me. Endless possibilities with excitement at every turn. Not the clinical white loo for me. Let's get stuck in. The downstairs loo...
The ENGLISH ROOM series: LIVING ROOM III

The ENGLISH ROOM series: LIVING ROOM III

As we have looked at the light and the key elements of our living room, we can now pull everything together into a scheme.
The ENGLISH ROOM series: LIVING ROOM II

The ENGLISH ROOM series: LIVING ROOM II

While a south facing room is about creating warmth, a north facing room is about managing it.
The ENGLISH ROOM series: LIVING ROOM I

The ENGLISH ROOM series: LIVING ROOM I

A plotted history of the English style Living Room. Part one of the section on Living rooms.
The ENGLISH ROOM series: HALLWAY

The ENGLISH ROOM series: HALLWAY

Stuck on where to start with the hallway? We have some advice.