We moved into our house a little over a year ago, and the project of decorating it is still an ongoing task. Walls need artwork, sofas need cushions, we still desperately need a mirror in our bathroom (the list goes on)! I only just managed to get some very much-needed hooks up in the kids’ rooms — it’s amazing how long it can take to do something as simple as putting hooks on a wall!

Anyway, in my quest to buy new cushions for our home, I have discovered the most wonderful webshop specialising only in cushions and pillows. Yellow Velvet is a stylish and well-organised site with an even more stylish selection. They have cushions for every setting: living room, bedroom, outdoor areas, children’s rooms, etc. There are so many great options, my only problem was choosing! I ended up buying a selection of these embroidered linen cushions for the yellow sofa in our living room (see below).

And now I’m super tempted to buy some cushions for the kids’ rooms. There is no end to decoration it seems! Do check out Yellow Velvet if you’re also in a decorating mood…

x Courtney

I recently came across this great online shop based in LA called Waanaki (which means ‘to live in peace’). Owner Nanette Sulano focuses on carefully curated vintage pieces for children age zero to six. Check out the shoes and accessories for some great one of a kind pieces!

-Elizabeth

When we moved back to New Zealand I had grand plans of what the kids bedroom would look like.  I had bought them matching beds to bring back and bought loads of dark grey gingham to make matching duvet covers.  In my head it was going to look so cute! When we finally found a house to rent, the bedrooms were so small I couldn’t fit in their matching beds.  Luckily, we had bought Mia’s toddler bed back with us so Kees ended up having to sleep in that. For a while he also had to use his sister’s girlie duvet covers.  Last week I finally got around to making him his own duvet covers so his bed feels more like his own.

How I made them:

• I cut up an old white sheet.
• I printed Kees’ name on normal printer paper
• I traced Kees’ name with pencil onto the sheet.

• Then I hand embroidered over the pencil line.

• Finally I sewed on a matching grey gingham back.

I think his new duvet looks very smart and its always good to recycle old sheets.

Steph xo

xxx Esther

I was feeling a bit blue the other day when I stumbled upon Sharon Montrose’s Animal Print Shop. There is nothing like portraits of bunnies, ducks, and sheep to instantly elevate your mood. I am still trying to decide which animal needs to come home with us. Maybe the two bear cubs?

I recently discovered the fantastic Australian-based shop, Inaluxe, while browsing Pinterest. I quickly ordered a couple prints (although I must admit, it was difficult to only choose a couple!), and I’m so pleased with them. What I like is that the prints can work in an adult’s space or a child’s room. I think the bright colours and birds would really appeal to children, while adults might like the more abstract pieces. (The prints I ordered are for me, not the kids!)

Inaluxe is run by Kristina Sostarko and Jason Odd, two artists who met in school. Their attention to detail and quality is so immaculate — they use only the best archival fine art papers, and work with the best giclee reproduction print technology out there. And they ship all over the world — my prints arrived super quickly!

x Courtney

There is a little shop in Encinitas, California (where I used to live) called m.o.m that has the most adorable decor pieces, accessories and handmade clothes for children. They often use one-of-a-kind fabrics with fun prints for their items. I bought the most adorable pink striped tie for one of the favorite little boys in my life when I was last down there and he adores it. These would be darling additions to any easter outfit or to have around for a dress-up occasion.  (They don’t show a big selection on their site, but they are great at taking custom orders and letting you pick out the fabrics.)

-Elizabeth

Rootsliving is a new UK-based company run by Charlotte Kjeldsen, a lovely Danish mum who stays true to her ‘roots’ by sourcing all the products from Scandinavia (mostly Denmark). She carries one of my favourite Danish brands, Rie Elise Larsen, as well as other little Scandinavian treasures. Find everything from homewares and accessories to children’s fashion and decor. I like the selection of jewellery, I love these yellow candlesticks, and you’ll probably be interested to know that all the children’s clothing is now half off!

x Courtney

Where are you from? Are your family roots from all around the world or perhaps you still live in your place of birth? As you can see from the image above my family’s origins are somewhat spread out, so it’s no wonder I fell in love with these prints entitled My Roots Collection created by Children Inspire Design.

What a lovely way to teach our children about their background, their roots or perhaps if you have family scattered around the world this can help them understand where everyone lives.
These posters come with heart stickers and are therefore entirely customizable; I really love the different available colors and the simplicity of the graphic design, cute in any room! You can choose from something more global like the world map, or narrow it down to a continent, a country or even an American state. To top it off, these are made from recycled card stock and printed with soy ink.

Which map would you choose?

-Celina

Happy Valentine’s Day! Hope your day is filled with lots and lots of love. xoxoxo

PS — Hearts print is from the Laura George Etsy shop along with loads of other cute prints. (I bought this print for Ivy’s room and it’s so cute! And Esther has this cool print and I was so in love with it I bought one for myself as well!)

1. Zenology Sycamore Fig — discovered recently in a hotel and love the entire collection.
2. Company de Provence Savon de Marseille Extra Pur Figue — I love Marseille soap, I love fig, so this combination is hard to resist. The hand soap is a fixed staple in our house.
3. Diptyque scented candle — Very rarely I splurge on a Diptyque candle. Figuier is one of my favourite scents (I love Pomander too).
4. l’Artisan Parfumeur Premier Figuier — a beautiful perfume, that I’ve never owned but always run to in shops.
5. Rituals Under a Fig Tree fragrance sticks — the best fragrance sticks, I think.

xxx Esther

If you’re looking for something truly special for your house, take a look at Davina Zagury’s website. She has a collection of beautiful still-life images with three main concepts. The first one is about the land of lost toys. Vintage toys, found at flea markets, second hand stores or in the garbage bin (!), make us wonder about the children that once treasured these toys, their home, their story, their life. The second series is about kitchen appliances. Not only are the objects so interesting and beautiful to look at, they also hold memories of our grandmother’s kitchens; they smell of home-made biscuits, chocolate cake, and warm milk. In the animals series that Davina created, little toy animals take centre stage and tell us a special story in which they play the main part.

xxx Esther

Tante Ted (‘Aunty Ted’) is a Dutch brand focussing exclusively on boys bedding and accessories. I’ve known Ted for a few years now and I’ve seen his brand develop, and it’s so cool that his collection is now professionally produced by bedding company Damai! Well deserved, because Ted just knows what boys like. The bedding for starters, all very cool and with bright colours and graphics, inspired by traffic, travel, insects and other things boys love. But what about the lights (my son Pim LOVES this builders’ light!), or the carpets (made from moving blankets! And there are lampshades too!). Everything is just so very cool, just what boys love… and stylish too, just what their parents love. Way to go, Ted!

xxx Esther

P.S. The Tante Ted site is still just in Dutch, unfortunately, but just email Ted if you have questions or would like to order something!

Swedish design company Fabriko was started last year by Lisa Erikkson, a Stockholm-based designer and mum. Her patterns are aimed at children but I’m sure they are as attractive for big people as they are for the little ones! The collection consists of wallpapers and a textile collection including bed linen, pillows, quilts and bags, all made from organic cotton and really super cool and decorative. Lisa currently works with 4 amazing patterns, but I hope we will see more in the future.

xxx Esther

Can you believe it’s December already?! Wow! It crept up quickly this year, didn’t it?!

This year will be the first year we stay in London for Christmas… which means we get to properly decorate the house and make it nice and cosy and christmasy (!!!). We’re all very excited about it and have already hung our stockings, set out the decorations, and of course, hung the Advent Calendar (which starts today!). And… I’m listening to Christmas music as I type! Oooh Happy December!

Have you caught the ‘holiday bug’ yet? Do you do an Advent Calendar? Any other little traditions you do around this time of year? I would love to know!

xx Courtney

xxx Esther

I loved living in London and it still tops my favourite city list.  A while ago I saw this fabric in a Cath Kidston shop and had to buy a couple of metres.  I love the vintage look and the colour and the detailed pictures. In fact I love everything about it!  I ended up making a couple of cushions out of it for my bedroom so I will always have a little reminder of London when I go to bed at night.

Steph xo

I’m a big fan of the whimsical prints and calendars from The Wild Unknown — I have this calendar hanging in my office and it’s one of my favourite things in my house! So of course I was so excited to receive an email from them announcing their latest project: a series of art prints for children… and a children’s ABC book! I love the touch of watercolour to the ABCD print and the fact that a butterfly lands on B and a mouse creeps across M, etc. So sweet. And from the sneak peeks of the book, it looks to be just as beautiful. It’s available to pre-order now.

-Courtney

A few months ago we stayed in Emilie’s flat for a few days, which is a feast for my kids because they love all the new-to-them toys and secret hide-aways! (Emilie’s daughters also have a ‘real’ mini sized Vespa which my kids go crazy about. I think baby Ava and Pim sat on it every single minute we spent in the apartment!) We also got to discover some new books while we were staying there, and ‘Goldilocks’ was one of them — funnily enough it made a deep impression on them! I know this might sounds strange, but my kids didn’t know the story of Goldilocks — it’s not a common tale here in the Netherlands at all.
So when I saw this pillow from Samantha Morris, I thought I should get it as a little fun joke in our living room (and how cute is the little bear at the end of the zipper?). I also would love to get my kids a good Goldilocks book — I found this one in Dutch that looks nice, but can anyone recommend a good one in English? (Or any other language for our readers in the rest of the world!) Thanks!

xxx Esther

How cute is this little guy? I’d like to say I made him for my kids… but in fact he sits on our bookshelf in the living room keeping an eye on family life.  I wanted a quick craft project one day and found some instructions on line.  Have a look here for some instructions on how to make one.

I love the fact that every monkey is different — from the way you sew them up to the positioning of their eyes, they all have their own personality.  I think my sock monkey looks a bit bewildered but then he does have to watch our family all day!

Steph xo