Palm Springs

 A while ago I designed a print for one of the Spoonflower design challenges. The prompt for the challenge was 'Palm Springs' and I designed a 1950s/Mid Century modern print in shades of coral pink and turquoise. Since then, I have cerated a more simple version of the print where I have kept the main images and spaced them out.

The print includes a fabulous 1950s-inspired turquoise car as a well as a modern house, surrounded by cacti and palm trees. The coral pink bakckground gives it a fun, fresh vibe.

This would make a great print as a wallpaper. It comes in many different finishes and has easy-to-use options such as pre-pasted or peel-and-stick. The vinyl wallpaper is great for using in high traffic areas such as the kitchen or hallway.

This print would make great bedding and is a way of adding a splsh of colour to the bedroom. I love the Palm Springs duvet cover made from a cotton sateen fabric. Match it with a soft coral pink paint colour on the walls.

There is also a Palm Springs sheet set available that comes in a variety of sizes and includes a fitted sheet, a loose sheet and two pillow cases.

Another way of adding colour to the home is with this Palm Springs cushion cover. It comes in a variety of shapes and sizes and a cushion pad can be added if needed.

Art deco floral

The latest Spoonflower design challenge is 'Art Deco' where we have been welcomed to use bold, decadent designs reflecting the Jazz Age. This includes geometric designs, with bold curves and sleek lines. I decided to take the floral route and created this teal Art Deco floral with stylised flower shapes and trailing leaves. I added touches of mustard and cream for a contrasting colour and I'm really pleased with the final result! You can vote for my design here.

This Art Deco design would look great as a wallpaper print and is available in my Spoonflower shop on a wide variety of finishes, from pre-pasted and peel-and-stick to fabulous metallic gold and metallic silver options.

The Art Deco print looks great in the bedroom and would look good as a statement wall. The other walls could be painted in a matching deep teal colour and even the ceiling, to create a cocoon feeling.

The metallic Art Deco options look stunning and this could work so well with a wall lamp that would cast a dramatic glow on the wall.

Match furniture to the Art Deco print.

 

Beautiful birdhouses

 I really enjoyed creating this decorative birdhouse design. It uses a folkloric style and includes birds and foliage on a cream background. Each birdhouse has a floral decoration around it and each bird has a decorated belly and wing.

You can buy this sweet birdhouse print in my Spoonflower shop on a variety of wallpaper options and it makes a great print for a kid's bedroom. There are peel and stick and pre-pasted options as well as a gorgeous grasscloth version. And if you're feeling really brave, there are also silver metallic or gold metallic options.

It looks great on a statement wall in the bedroom to give it a summery feel.

It would also look great in the kitchen. There is a vinyl version of this wallpaper so it's easy to wipe down and keep clean.

Beautiful buttercups

 This week's Spoonflower design challenge is 'Buttercups Home Decor' so I designed these happy white buttercup silhouettes on a bright yellow background. You can vote for this design here.

It looks great as a bright wallpaper for the bedroom.

Spoonflower shop

Pot plant print

I really enjoyed designing this pot plant print for my Etsy store. It comes on a lovely thick watercolour paper and is a calming addition to the home. It makes a great house warming gift and can be sent straight to its recipient with an optional gift message included. Each print is gift wrapped and sent out in a hard-backed envelope.

You can now surround yourself with my pot plant print as my Spoonflower shop sells it on a selection of home items. This duvet cover looks lovely and fresh in the bedroom.

This design can be printed by the fat quarter or by the yard onto a wide variety of fabrics from cotton and chiffon to velvet and linen.

It can also be printed straight onto a cushion cover in a selection of sizes.

And if you're feeling really brave, why not use it on wallpaper?!

Kirath Ghundoo

Surface print designer Kirath Ghundoo has a beautiful wallpaper range where she does away with the idea of perfect repeats. In her 'Mix 'n' Match 11' collection she introduces a mix of design styles and eras to create a unique blend of pattern and colour. The mis-matched images mean that the wallpaper can be hung in any way you like and there is no need to worry about matching up the repeat. There are a choice of seven digitally-designed patterns which can be displayed with a mixture of combinations or as single strips. Perfect for a statement wall.

You can check out her lovely online store here, or meet her in person at 100% Design from September 22nd - 25th in London.

Hold tight!

I love the quirky wallpaper designs by Mini Moderns and couldn't resist mentioning their 'Hold Tight' range, produced in collaboration with the London Transport Museum and inspired by their collection of vintage bus tickets. I love the retro feel and the muted colour palette.

Louise Body

I'm obviously rather taken by wallpapers at the mo and have just discovered another fab wallpaper designer called Louise Body. She uses photos and delicate drawings of nature on simple white grounds, and I love her birds on a wire with its subtle water colour-effect tint. I also love her new "Paper Tiles" collection which was inspired by Victorian wall tiles and trips to Marrakech.

Wonderful Wallpaper

Wallpaper has had a big resurgence over the past decade, and comes in many forms. It could be used in the bedroom as a damask in soft tones of cream and beige, or as an art piece on a statement wall, or even for full-on effect, transforming a small, drab living room into a haven of pattern and colour. This resurgence means that wallpaper design has become more and more inventive and there are some wonderful creations out there.Deborah Bowness was a bit of a trail blazer with her wonderful handprinted, photographic creations, depicting grainy images of household items, with a shot of colour here and there. She started using this idea seven years ago and now has a wonderful collection of objects that can adorn your walls. Such as chairs, piles of books, dresses and clocks. I rather like the idea of having one piece of the standard lamp.

Claire Cole's style is very different. She produces couture wallpapers where she uses fragments of vintage wallpapers layered and intricately embroidered with silks and leather to create a range of patterns and scenes. They transform walls into individual works of art.

Tracy Kendall uses a variety of techniques in her wallpaper designs, but I like her photographic images of cutlery and feathers. These become like one-off works of art and something I would love to have on my walls.

Catherine Hammerton produces beautiful textural wallpapers that ripple as you walk past. I love this Scale wallpaper which is handmade and stitched onto traditional wallpaper.

Keeping It Dark

I have been coveting this fabric for a while and love its haunting ethereal feel, I'm just not sure what I would do with it - quite different in feel to the fresh leafy creations by Ella Doran that I mentioned in an earlier blog. Maybe the rain is taking its toll on me.

This fabric is designed by Larsen and is called "Wind". Larsen draws inspiration from textile traditions from around the world, using traditional and modern weaving techniques to create unusual pocket weaves, printed velvets, silks and sheers as well as wallpapers.