put your hand up....

if you've styled for the entity that is martha stewart. anyone? hmmm, well, maybe one day.

for now let's have a sticky beak at the work of a woman who has. many times.

she is super talented and very inspiring. she has also worked for kate spade, instyle and nylon. her name is randi brookman harris. and she has even managed to style her dogs ears to match the antlers on the wall in her profile pic. don't believe me? look.

if you need more beautiful images you can drop in to her website here.

she makes it look so easy!

The ball is rolling

after meeting with the lovely couple who have chosen the equally lovely Nielsen Park for their december wedding, i could barley control my excitement. they have some great ideas for the direction they want to head with their wedding design and are incorporating some lovely personal touches in to their day. lovely!!

the highlight of our meeting was when the word 'marquee' was mentioned. yipee! oh, the opportunities for styling the humble marquee offers. and to have one standing next to the kiosk at nielsen park makes my job so much easier. Unfortunately decent photos of decent marquees are hard to find. have to keep you posted on that one. in the mean time, here's some pretty inspiration for e & a's big day....



the kiosk. check out those beautiful coloured windows. inspiration city.




it's great that, although their venue is right on the beach, the couple have chosen not to take direction from this. i'm super happy we are going with a rustic, wildflower kind of vibe. no frangipanis* at this beach wedding.

december + sydney + outdoor ceremony equals sunburn and sweat. ew.

bring on the pretty parasols and fans. details and style bonanza.

and just in case the guests forget what they came for! ye old chalkboard sign. too cute.

*nothing particularly wrong with them but they've been done. haven't they??

Tuesday's list.....

Once upon a time the boy asked me to have a browse through his phone address book and rate his friends. Rate his friends??? Rest assured I declined, a) because first of all, how do you rate your friends exactly?? and b) I'm sure he was just bored and possibly looking for a fight*.

Making lists is a fun thing to do, as long as no-one gets hurt in the process. It's helps set priorities and let's other people inside your head just a little. Today here is a list of things I will never understand

* How exactly television works ( And not in a Willy Wonka way)

* Why my dog flat out refuses to eat out of a bowl or walk over metal grates

* How to spell restaurant ( three cheers for spell check)

* Scrunchies. Enough said.

* Why people rely on staring in reality shows ( I'm looking at YOU masterchef) to follow their dreams/start a new career. They're clearly amazing enough to do it solo.

*Algebra ( sorry Mrs Silsby**)

*Why my mum sees it as a personal attack when I can't talk on the phone to her right now.

* The relevance of the above picture to this post. Or this post to this blog even.

Disclaimer: No friends feelings were trampled on during the making of this list. No promises for next weeks though.

* not that this is a common occurrence, think he was just trying to be controversial

** my year eight math teacher. She had a beard, which was VERY distracting. So,you see, not exactly my fault I don't understand algebra.

they say it's goodluck

So they (who ever they are) say it's goodluck for your marriage if it rains on your wedding day. Personally that statement is right up there with 'luck' coming from a bird pooping in your hair whilst on a walk through the park with a really cute guy*, or 'bad luck' coming from dropping your school bag from the second story balcony causing your make-up mirror to smash to smithereens**.

If it was to rain on your wedding day (which is pretty much the only thing out of your, or your families or your planners control***), why not make the most of it by turning it into a styling bonanza?

hmmmm. Almost makes me want it to rain ( just a little). These couples make it look so fun!

*true, it happened. The boy married me though, so perhaps....
** true, it happened. Can I put my entire teenage years down to that moment?
*** Although you might expect your planner to have Godlike abilities. She can't control the weather.

P.s first pic is of the fabulous Mrs Mouse from weddingbee on her wedding day

love letter to DesignEx

Design Ex. We love you. Me for your eye candy and opportunity to wear a lanyard. Proudly announcing I am in the industry. The boy for your free wine and opportunity to talk about wood and tools all day ( with someone who is actually interested/knowledgeable, ie not me).

However, my all time favourite quality about you, dear DesignEx, is your ability to bring so many talented and aspiringly creative people together under the one roof. And not just big name famous successful people. But the little guys too.
I will never tire of checking out the imaginative and thoroughly researched design concept boards put together by students. Often for big name clients. Or seeing a design concept come to life through one of those aforementioned big name designers.

Greg Natale is a big name in the industry I'm pretty sure he wouldn't even have to wear a lanyard if he came to visit you. I guess that's how you know you've made it.
Here are some images of a design that was shortlisted for the residential decoration award, by Greg Natale Design.
If I lived in this house, I'd certainly be giving them a big gold star.








All images from here

Stylist stalking: Sibella Court

Everyone has someone they admire? Right? Well, for me this person is Sibella Court. I think she is amazing and I would seriously love to have her life. Not in a creepy single white female kind of way but just to exist doing something I love day in day out as she seems to do.
Her list of achievements is inspiring: Lived in New York? Check. Opened own store. Check. Design colour palettes for murobond, write book on interior styling, judge on a panel for popular design show? Check, check, checkity check. Whew!

Here is one of her many palettes she has designed for Murobond. So pretty, and so easy to translate in to your own home. Or, to use as a theme for your wedding. The browns and greys (so creatively named 'nautilus' and 'whalebone') add a sense of strength and masculinity to the scheme preventing the colours from becoming overwhelmingly girly.

Here are some images from her beautiful book ETCETERA.




Sibella draws a lot of her own inspiration from nature and her sense of style is very eclectic. By combining antique collectables with contemporary elements Sibella is able to transform a space without any drastic renovations or huge monetary expense.

DO try this at home!

Effective styling can simply be a matter of collecting the things you love, be it toy cars, vintage vases or medieval swords and displaying them in a creative way. Grouped in colour, size, age or texture your favourite things have the potential to create a design focal point in your home.

Goodluck & happy styling!

P.s if anyone does have a medieval sword collection I'd love to see pics

Lets talk about scarves baby

Confession: I love this time of year. I love wearing jackets and scarves and beanies and gloves and all the lovely warm fashion accessories that winter brings. I have a h.u.g.e scarf collection. So big that it is impossible to contain within the realm of a drawer or cupboard or garbage bag as the boy sometimes suggests. My solution to this problem to get those babies out. This is a great way to style your home for winter. Budget friendly too!

Here are some very cute ways to display your favourite winter scarves, hats, coats etc




One:Image via livingetc you can buy a similar one here or, if you are feeling a little bit handy you can make your own. How to do it? Look here


Two: Been to London? Miss that squashed under someones armpit, avoiding eye contact with everyone feeling you get on the underground?? Why not remind yourself every morning when you reach for your coat as you race out the door.
Image via here Alternatively buy one of these and paint it yourself. Or leave it black....


Three: Hide those boring walls with your beautiful winter woolies. Save on floor space too. You'll need to make holes in the wall for these ones, so make sure you really like them!
Image from here and you'll find the hooks ( well, disc kind of shaped thingies) here