Design Notes

Three Common Design Mistakes and our Workable Fix
Like any creative discipline, interior design is about experimentation and discovery - an artistic process through which ideas are explored but also rejected; a process that is developed through time and finesse. For every good idea there are many more...
By 40 - the 3 pieces you should own by this milestone birthday
In the milestones of life, 40 has always been significant. More than the getting of wisdom, it’s an age that represents authenticity; of shedding the unnecessary insecurities of our youth to claim, and really define, who we ultimately are. While...
Atlas interiors - 4 ways travel inspires us and how it translates into the home
While the presence of COVID is still being felt in our communities, for the first time in years the world has re-opened to travel and with it, a craving for new experiences. Having been denied us so long, our renewed freedom is...
As seen on the Grace Tales: The Tale of Rachel Donath
Click here to read the full story on The Grace Tales If you read The Grace Tales regularly, you’ll know we’re a little (or a lot) interior obsessed... Which is why when we first discovered the work of Rachel Donath,...
The Art of Play: 3 Rules for injecting whimsy into any interior
Adding whimsy to an interior can often feel daunting. Where classic lines are time-won, playful elements are defiant - departing from ordinary rules and convention to add something unexpected and youthful: a way to spark joy, find fun, add sentiment...
A Pattern Language - unpacking the purpose of a complex device of design.
From the bustling interior of a bistro to the elegant private rooms of the industry’s most elevated homes, pattern is a language of depth and dimension, adding texture and interest through a layer of elements that recur and connect, accent...
Higher Love. Creating ambience with Lighting
So much of the ambience of an interior is shaped by the interaction of its elements. Mostly, these are obvious - the tangible structures of furniture and art finding harmony and resonance with each other. However, just as negative space...
Real Living April Issue: At home with Rachel Donath
It is such a thrill to see your home published in a magazine, particular one that you have personally subscribed to since your early 20's! Here is the spread that was featured in the April 2022 edition of Real Living...
Sotto Voce - Five ways to accent an interior
The way we accent is a way to draw in story and ambience; to establish mood through our emotional connection to colour and interest through moments of difference, executed in texture and detail.
Romance was born - How to create beauty and mystique with mirrors

Creating charm, curiosity and romance within the narrative born of physical and philosophical reflection, mirrors are as much an object of art as a tool of refraction, bending light and directing the eye to depths outside our ordinary line of vision. On our design notes now, how to create beauty and mystique with antique and contemporary mirrors as art pieces.

Now and forever: a conversation between old and new
Across time, design is a representation of ideas. For the creative, it is a way to showcase, engage and sometimes challenge our interpretation of beauty - reflecting the world and our commentary of it through subject, form and fashion. The...
Something of the unexpected: Stainless Steel Furniture
Unexpected detail in an interior piques our interest. When executed well, it feels deftly woven into its surroundings: an addition rather than a distraction; an element of intrigue rather than something that feels out-of-place. With many design pairings feeling like...
Inside Rachel Donath's Curated Melbourne Home - By Kip and Co
This interview was first published by Kip and Co here. Forging a name for herself as one of Australia’s most sought after furniture designers, Rachel Donath is a pillar of the interiors scene. In today’s blog, we take you inside her beautiful...
Making the most of limited space: Tips for styling small living areas
  Making the most of limited space: Tips for styling small living areas The premise that only grand spaces — with sweeping architectural features, high ceilings and endless areas for living — can be home to good design is an...
My Grandmothers home, a conversation with Lady Anna Cowen
My Grandmothers Home; a conversation with Lady Anna Cowen by Rachel Donath  The living room, with a portrait of my Grandfather by Carmel O'Connor On a visit to spend time with my grandmother last week, I was sitting chatting to...
Furniture as Art
Your guide to selecting and mixing contemporary and antique furniture When a home or space is filled with carefully curated contemporary and antique furniture pieces selected for their shape and form, magic happens. Image Credit @fayehy   A table with sculptural...