A little while ago I received my copy of the long awaited The Homemade Home for Children by stylist, designer and author Sania Pell. Long awaited, because I pre-ordered it last year when I discovered Sania’s amazing blog At Home, and the book wasn’t published officially until last Thursday – but boy, was it worth the wait! I’m really excited to be able to show you some of the loveliness that’s inside.
Besides being absolutely gorgeous to look at, Sania’s book is full of entirely do-able creative ideas for crafty projects that you can make for or with your children. The book is aimed at creative parents mainly, but also at family and friends of people with children, as many of the ideas would make super sweet, personal gifts.
This is perhaps what I liked most about the book and Sania’s approach. Her homemade projects really do come from the heart and many of the objects have the potential to become treasured heirlooms, or at least much-loved possessions that will grow with your child through the years. It’s easy to imagine how much love you’ll pour into each and every one of these handmade projects, or how much fun you will have with your child making something together.
My favourite project is perhaps the bookcase dollhouse (pictured above) – though it’s hard to pick just one! I have a soft spot for dollhouses – as my website shows – and I adore the colours and simple beauty of this one. My parents made me and my sisters a dollhouse when we were little, and though it sadly hasn’t survived, some of the handmade furniture and quilts that furnished the place are still with us! I find it amazing to think how they must have crafted away in secret night after night after we’d gone to bed to build us the house and all that was in it. But I digress…
The Homemade Home for Children includes projects for different skill levels and covers things to make for your baby’s nursery, child’s bedroom or playroom, as well as things to wear and things to use outside. There are easy to follow instructions with each project, which you can follow step-by-step or use as a starting point for your own creativity. This is something I really liked about the book as well – Sania encourages you along the way with tips and ideas on how to make the project even more your own.
I know a ton of people I want to give this book to already, so before I buy all available copies, you can order your copy at Amazon now. I’m absolutely sure it will give you so much pleasure every time you work on one of Sania’s ideas and connect with your loved ones – or feel inspired to work on your own. Happy making!
PS. If you haven’t visited Sania’s blog At Home before, go take a look. You’ll find lots of inspirational ideas for your home and gorgeous colour inspiration. You can also read more about the inspiration behind Sania’s work and her love of flowers over at the fabulous Flowerona blog.
(images: room to bloom)
OK – when I came across these eye charts at Molly-Meg my heart nearly stopped. How inspired are these prints!? They are produced as a limited edition by creative design studio Floor 4 Projects in New York, who make eco-friendly toys and room decor for kids. 
Molly-Meg have two of a 100 prints in black and also 2 in colour, so if you want to get your hands on one of these be quick!
(Oh – and this Easter weekend I noticed Molly-Meg offers free shipping or 20% off all purchases – I’m not paid to mention this, but honest to goodness get over there fast).
(images: floor 4 projects)
What better excuse than Easter looming to list your favourite bunnies?
My all time favourite children’s light has to be the Dutch designed Miffy night light. Inspired by Dick Bruna’s legendary picture book rabbit Miffy (or Nijntje as I knew her), the light is an amazing focal point for a simple nursery. It’s made from recyclable plastic (read: shatter proof) and shines a soft ambient light which you can leave on at night whilst your little one dreams away. I love the supersize floor version (80cm tall), but her smaller sister (50cm) is rather fabulous too. They’re available here.
Did you know that Miffy was created after Bruna had been telling his one-year-old son stories about a little rabbit they had seen in the dunes while on holiday? Miffy became a girl after Bruna decided that he wanted to draw a dress and not trousers on his rabbit. Her Dutch name Nijntje is short for konijntje, meaning ‘little rabbit’.
Sweet dreams x!
(images: unknown + room to bloom bunny love, papamaria)
Whilst browsing the blog of Sisters Guild, a gorgeous online boutique chock-full of children’s decor, gifts, toys, and clothing with a vintage slant, I spotted a great little tutorial for a weekend project that I wanted to share with you. These animal storage jars would make fun storage for a playroom or your child’s bedroom, don’t you think? Come to think of it, I could do with some on my desk too.
You can find out here how to make these animal storage jars yourself, and don’t forget to read some more of Carla and Bekka’s blog, as it’s full of inspiration for life with little ones.
Happy weekend and happy making!
(images: sisters guild)
When I spotted that Donna Wilson (of the quirky knitted toys and homewares) has teamed up with ‘once bitten, truly smitten’ chocolatiers Rococo to create these hand-painted chocolate eggs, I knew that my Easter egg hunt was over. Her signature creatures feature alongside more typical Easter bunnies, chicks and lambs and all come beautifully packaged in Rococo boxes.
My favourite is the ‘Food Chain’ Russian doll style egg above. With typical Donna Wilson humour, there are 3 Rococo ganaches inside the carrot, which is inside the rabbit, which is inside the fox.
The Owl and the Pussycat feature on Wilson’s round cushions, sailing away in their beautiful boat.
Let me know which design is your favourite!
(images: donna wilson)
Any parents-to-be with Swiss roots out there? I have the perfect focal point for your baby’s room…
Madame Chalet aka Genevieve Closuit is an east London designer hailing from Switzerland, who is the creator of a range of nostalgically themed gifts, stationary and home accessories inspired by the landscapes and kitch vintage culture of her childhood. The Mon Beau Pays wallpaper panel above is one of her designs and would look stunning in a contemporary, simple white nursery – behind the cot, in an alcove, anywhere!
For all expats who are not from Switzerland, you could of course have a panel produced with a scene from your own native country by one of the many online digital wallpaper suppliers (try muralswallpaper.co.uk). Images can be bought from stock photo libraries such as iStock or Shutterstock.
Happy Monday everyone!
(images: madame chalet)
Designers Hartendief in Holland have added a series of wall lights to their collection of whimsical children’s lights. They come with a little music box inside to play soothing music before going to sleep. My favourite has to be the Lief Toverbos (Sweet Magic Forest) light. I think I could have spent hours dreaming up stories about the animals when I was little – and the nice thing is, designer Hylkia, founder of Hartendief, introduces the light that way:
“Our Sweet Magic Forest is getting ready for the night. Deer, Rabbit and Hedgehog are talking amongst themselves about all the nice things they’ve done that day, but Owl thinks it’s time to go to sleep now… Can you all be quiet please! The little moles underground think Rabbit’s big ears are rather funny – they’re the largest ears ever!”
The magic forest theme also features in Hartendief’s Illuzzz range of pendant lights, which I adore. These lights are white on the outside (perfect!), but come to life when switched on at night.
Similar and even more stylish are Hartendief’s Toverlampen (magic lights). Uni-colour on the outside by day, these lights show their ‘secret’ silhouettes when switched on.
The Toverlampen were inspired by shadow puppetry also known as “ombres chinoises” (Chinese shadows), introduced to western Europe by returning travellers in the mid 18th century. Using silhouettes cast by figures cut from paper or leather, the ombres chinoises usually featured short, amusing tales which people came to see before television took over. Hartendief’s gorgeous and imaginative lights feature scenes and figures that inspire children to dream up their own stories.
If you would like to see how the Toverlampen were conceived, have a look at Hylkia’s guest blog post over at Bloesemkids, with behind-the-scene shots to explain the process used by Dutch paper cutting artist Geertje Aalders to create the illustrations for the lamps. There are five different ‘themes’ in the range and different colours are available to suit you child’s room colour scheme. Perfect!
(images: hartendief)
It feels like spring and I have flowers on my mind! One of my soft spots is floral wallpaper, which reminds me of childhood trips to France (well, that’s my excuse anyway). I think it’s perfect for children’s rooms, but country florals are very girlie, very sweet and very easy to overdose on.
The key to success is to stay with one surface like the examples below and create contrast. Stick with one wall of (vintage inspired) floral wallpaper and keep everything else relatively plain and simple, and you won’t go far wrong. Or turn it around and use floral bedding in an otherwise neutral, modern room to add instant whimsy.
(room to bloom collage – top: photo by jeltje janmaat for vt wonen, cath kidston chintz wallpaper, madame doute, bunny angel liberty flowers, liberty print suitcase – bottom: baby lapin lamp, darling clementine rabbit card, ercol children’s chair, sundvik bed ikea, lloop lamp, fox print – wallpaper left to right: colemans petite fleur, cath kidston winchester posy, room seven winter poppies)
The woodland trend for kids rooms has been going strong for a while and I still can’t get enough. Imagine my joy when I laid eyes on these animal wall stickers from Dutch company KEK Amsterdam. I think I squealed. These cute Forest Friends are photo realistic, which makes a nice contrast and stops rooms from becoming overly sweet. Spot the raccoon below!
But now for the best bit! Gorgeous shop Hus & Hem, who are the first to stock KEK wall stickers in the UK, have generously donated a chipmunk wall sticker for me to give away!
All you have to do is leave a comment on my blog and tell me why you would like to adopt this little fellow. I’ll pick a winner in two weeks’ time (competition closes 19 March midnight) and announce the winner on this blog and by email. Good luck!
In case you haven’t heard about Hus & Hem before, do go and check it out. Owners Louise and Jill have put together a seriously drool-worthy collection of Scandinavian design, including some of my very favourites for children’s rooms, such as Rie Elise Larsen’s paper lampshades, Ingela Arrhenius’ gorgeous prints, and Betty Svensson’s retro floral fabric. Enjoy!
PS: If you’d like to place a link to this competition on your blog, you’re very welcome, and liking Room to Bloom on Facebook is always much appreciated : )
(images: kek amsterdam, collage from kek amsterdam branch sticker and chipmunk plus bread and jam dress)
It feels defintely spring-like and perhaps that’s why yellow has been catching my eye. I love the combination with dark moody blues.
1. mimi’lou bird wall border 2. sal de coco pau crib 3. donna wilson cloud rain cushion 4. muuto unfold pendant 5. eleanor home pandulera pendant 6. pappelina max rug 7. etsy almost sunday family tree print 8. serener hooks 9. toast tin trunks 10. noodoll giant cloud cushion 11. anne-claire petit crocheted lemon cushion 12. tissue rosette 13. daisy fan 14. mrs booth alphabet print
(image: room to bloom)
