Kangaroo paws

This weeks project is an exploration of Australian wildflowers for textile products. I spotted these richly coloured beauties in my local fruit shop  - a perfect starting point. The long stems and unusual furry flowers make a strong visual statement (and they last quite a while too). Hopefully the native flowering season isn't over just yet....

Ready made repeats

I must have taken about 40 close-up shots of hydrangeas on the weekend - I think this will make a beautiful water colour textile design! 

The gently faded beauty of Kantha cloths

I have spent the last few hours gazing at these beautiful Kantha cloth images from the Sha D'Lei range now on sale at One King's Lane. The colour combinations are totally unexpected to my Western eye, yet there is something very harmonious about every single piece.

 I love this palette of mint, navy, lilac and coffee brown.

 Perfect for a little girl's bedroom.

Red, pink and jade green - a favourite colour combo!

 A bold stripe reminiscent of 1930's beach umbrellas, lovingly teamed with a vibrant paisley.

Perfect colours for a dreamy bedroom.

A beautiful floral design.

 A bold mix of dark and light patterns and colour.

This exquisite collection of one-of-a-kind hand-stitched Kantha cloths sourced from India and Bangladesh are on sale at One King's Lane until Monday 21st November. Hmmm... would love to visit India again one day......

Friday Flowers

 It's a beautiful day here in Melbourne - I seem to get so much more work done when the sun is shining. Enjoy your weekend!

Lilac Luxe

I love the kooky mix of colours and patterns in Audrey's Parisian bedroom featured in the latest issue of Milk Magazine. I wonder who designed that fabulous wallpaper featuring cherubs, doves and peacocks?

Photographed by Louise Desrosier for Milk Magazine

Spotted in Shop 4 Kids

The latest edition of Shop 4 Kids is jam-packed with stylish summer buys, just in time for Christmas. 

I spotted a few of my Hiccups designs amongst the pages filled with wonderful offerings. It's amazing how much the industry involving children's design has grown over the last ten years - when I finished university there was only a sprinkling of kid's fashion print design jobs, and the kid's bed linen / homewares segment was a tiny one. In the Sheridan Design studio only one or two children's designs were produced each year. Times have changed!

Vintage Belle Quilt cover set

Hiccups yarn dye stripe Apron

 And here is the Hiccups 'Retro Robots' bed linen design spotted in 5 year old Hugh's bedroom.

Shop 4 Kids Issue 14 Summer 2011/12

A pile of painted patterns

It must be alliteration Friday! Here are a few of the hand-painted textile designs I have been working on this week. 

Represented by Advocate Art

Exciting times - I am now represented by the lovely people at Advocate Art Agency in the UK. I can't wait to get stuck into some illustration work  - a new area for me but one that I have always wanted to explore. Here is a link to my folio.

Fairy Bower

Whoops! I have forgotten to post about the last bed linen design I completed for the Hiccups
Summer 11/12 collection - a print and embroidered design named 'Fairy Bower'.

Embroidered fairies decorate a 30cm x 60cm cushion

A festival of pink!

Inspired by Charleston

After a busy week of painting and trying to master designing repeats with Photoshop and Illustrator, (thanks to this very helpful online class from Camp Pikaland) it is time to pop into my slightly abandoned blog.

Most of the UK and Australian Interiors magazines are featuring the latest furnishing fabric releases this month, and I have gathered together a selection of fabric and wallpaper designs from one of my favourite new ranges -  The Bloomsbury, Dalloway and Orlando Collections by Sanderson. I love the painterly (surprise, surprise) peek back into the bohemian times of the Bloomsbury set, and anything inspired by Matisse immediately grabs my attention.

During my two years in England a visit to Charleston was always on my agenda, but unfortunately I didn't manage to make it there. One day......

Matisse Leaf wallpaper

Matisse Leaf is a wallpaper design inspired by the loose and spontaneous brushstrokes of the French artist.

This exuberant design Still Life takes inspiration from the vivid colour combinations, lively brushstrokes and dramatic compositions of Matisse's pattern filled paintings.

The painterly rose design Ottoline was inspired by the rambling gardens of Charleston.

A design close to my heart! I can easily spend hours making sure my palette is just right, resulting in pages of gouache dabs that look just like this wallpaper design.

I love the loose, vibrant brushstrokes that create the peonies of the printed linen design Vanessa.

The Zigzag wallpaper design was painted on plaster to imitate the fresco technique often used by the artists of the Bloomsbury group.

The Cut Flowers design was inspired by the naive drawings decorating a wall of a downstairs room in the Charleston farmhouse.

Another gorgeous colourway - Fitzroy is a bold graphic design typical of those found in fashionable 1930's interiors.

Take a look at this wonderful collection of fabrics and wallpapers here.