Trick or Treat - Stylish Creepy Coastal

I absolutely adore styling, but unfortunately I rarely get the time to do any of this good stuff at home.
So today spurred on by my very excited 7 yr old who was dressed in pink tights with black witches on them, I indulged in some spooky styling, just in time for ye ole Hallows Eve.

I really enjoyed playing around this morning creating a spooky yet stylish Halloween inspired trayscape. Trayscapes are my adopted invention, they are genius for styling in a real home, need space just move the tray off the table and your creative vignette is still intact - marvellous thing for a designer at home.

So here are the results of my spooky stylin' Sunday escapade.

My spooky inspiration was to inject some stylish and romantic Gothic elements into the mix.

I played with the images in Coral Paint shop and love this effect.

It's edgy, hard, masculine and a little eerie.

My main aim with the spooky styling was to abandon all the cheap Halloween rubbish out there, so only the stylish remained, tricky bit is to do this in a coastal setting.

I  love the way the silver pineapple has replicated in this stylised image, I think I've just invented a new twist on Halloween - Spooky Glam.

Come on girls, lets set this new trend!

This was an experiment - I have a zebra inspired rug and I quite like the contrast of the smooth white coral and black bat on the contrasting stripes, very Film Noir.

This is an overhead shot of my trayscape, I quite like the orange filter over the black and white image - very Tim Burton. 

Whilst searching around home for props I looked at the India Hicks Island Night candle I have.

How perfect it is for a coastal Halloween with its Gothic silver coral sprawling around a dark glass holder.

The final image, my stylishly spooky coastal trayscape.

Mixing Coastal and Halloween elements is not an easy thing to do, but I'm happy with the results - what do you think?

I'm very excited about this new take on Halloween decorating that a lot of you are creating and sharing online.

Let me know what cool creepy coastal creative you've styled recently in your home.

 

Happy 'Spooky' Island Styling.

 

(All images by Oceania Island Living)

 

 

Flip Flop Friday - Around the World

Living in Australia we are a head of time, literally.

(image Pinterest)

(image Oh Dee Doh)

And living in the Southern Hemisphere, geographically, I am half a world away from my original home, the UK.

So, in tribute to being half a world away and hopefully a little bit ahead of time, I bring you this cool upcycle of a globe being transformed into 2 pendant lights - what a bright idea!

Let me know what cool world globe/map inspired craft you've encountered or created.

Have a wonderful weekend to you all, my world wide coastal lovelies.

Happy Island Styling.

Cushion Queen

Confession: I am a cushion queen!

It's an occupational hazard and a strange phenomenon to most men who just don't 'get it'.

Cushions are one of the cheapest, easiest & effective ways to change an interior look. I love their versatility. A pop of colour in a cushion is literally like a face lift for your room.

So when the latest catalogue from Kas cushions arrived on my desk, I went into a tail spin.

Their latest summer edition is divine - let's take a peek.

I love the Kelly green, so fresh & vibrant and the pineapple design is terrific.

Such a cool laid back 'Byron Bay' feel to this shot.

Classic neutrals on a cool verandah.

I love this shot, its got such a cool surfer kind of feel, a real young coastal vibe.

I wonder how many of you lovely coastal girls out there love cushions as much as I do?

Drop me a line and let me know your cushion antics!

Happy Island Styling.

Exquisite Ocean Botanicals

This months edition of Australian Vogue Living has the most enchanting article on 'ocean flowers' or seaweed as most of us better know these mysterious ocean botanical.

I just have to share this with you, because it's too good to hide.The article is stunningly styled and art directed, a work of art in itself, so thank you Vogue Living for creating and bringing this to us.

I know you'll all be as delighted and inspired by this ethereal article based on the romanticised Victorian love and fascination of the humble sea flower as I am.

(all images courtesy of Vogue Living)

Happy Island Styling

Flip Flop Friday - Find the Magic

Have a magical weekend everyone.

Happy Island Styling.

Exclusive Interview - Plumeria Coastal Home

In the second part of our exclusive interview series on gorgeous Australian coastal homeware companies, we proudly introduce you to Plumeria Coastal Home.

Meet Sam the delightful and bubbly Founder and Creative Director of Plumeria Coastal Home. Sam's honourable mission when establishing Coastal Home was to bring only the very best in stylish coastal inspired homewares, particularly those that have a handcrafted artisan feel rather than mass produced items.

Sam hand selects all the items and has skillfully tailored them to key interior styles popular in Australia as well as overseas.

Right now Plumeria Coastal Home has 15% off all products until Tuesday 18th Oct, just visit Coastal Home on facebook, hit the 'like' button and enjoy online coastal shopping from your own sun lounger.

Meanwhile, we caught up with Sam were she gives all aspiring business owners some fantastic advice from her own experience, here's more;

Tell us more about Sam.

Funny, outgoing, champagne lover, determined and headstrong.

How did your career bring you to this point?

I’ve finally found my calling combining my 2 great loves, chic products and the coastal life. Growing up on Qld’s Gold Coast, I spent my youth retrieving sand from my togs and building sandcastles on Burleigh Beach.

I learnt to speak Japanese at school from the age of 13, which spring boarded me into sales roles for some of the world’s luxurious labels, Gucci, Fendi, Versace and Salvatorre Ferragamo.

My love for luxury products, living by the beach and making a house a home have all come together beautifully.

What are you most proud of?

I’ve always believed in myself and taken risks. No matter what I always give 150% commitment to whatever path I choose to take, so I’ll never be left knowing ‘what could have been’.

You may not always succeed at everything you try your hand at, but at least you had the conviction and confidence to give it a go.

Tell us what your best decision has been?

To stay true to myself and the direction I want my business to go in. As a business owner, it can be easy to be led down a path that doesn't reflect your brand ethos or direction by people who think they know better.

No-one knows your business better than you do, so stick to your guns and stand firm.

Creatively, who inspires you?

India Hicks for her idyllic island decor, Jeff Leatham for his amazing floral creations and Kelly Hoppen for pure style.

What is Sam most passionate about?

I’m a typical Taurean, so I love beautiful things and beautiful homes. A home really is your sanctuary, somewhere to retreat to and recharge.

Plumeria Coastal Home is all about sourcing quality, unique products that enhance your space so you’ll want to spend more time there.

I’m also very passionate about timeless 5 star customer service, it’s about the whole experience, which is why we have such a high return customer base.

Can you share with us your best lesson learnt?

Be prepared to put in the hard yards, don’t have instant gratification expectations and never compromise on what it is you stand for.


I’ve also learnt that having a Pinot Gris at 3:30pm after a hard day of wrapping starfish and cushions is totally acceptable.

Which person living or deceased would you most like to meet?

There’s too many ….Princess Diana, Dame Edna, India Hicks, Hugh Jackman, Lucille Ball, George Burns, oh what a dinner party that would be!

What are your future plans for Coastal Home?

To establish Coastal Home as Australia’s premier coastal/beach home wares online store.

I also dream of hating hot chips, white Tim Tams and melted cheese jaffles but that’s a work in progress.

What are you reading?

“Last night at Chateau Marmont” by Lauren Weisberger, I’m still only on page 8, as I’m always running behind on my home décor magazines. Elle Décor is my absolute fave.

How fabulous, thanks Sam it's always a delight to talk to you.

 

 

Here's Oceania Island Livings tropical pick of Coastal Homes beautiful products, they also have a lovely range based on Aussie Beach House, Coastal Home as well as the gorgeous and ever popular Island Style.

 

 

Visit www.coastalhome.com.au to see much more.

(all images courtesy of Plumeria Coastal Home)

Happy Island Styling.

Flip Flop Friday - Caribbean Weekend

I love this kitchen. The high contrast of dark timber set against a back drop of white airiness gives such a tropical island feel.

The kitchen style is smart but relaxed. I believe it's owned by a Dutch family and I'm really getting into Dutch design must be the European in me.

Can just imagine serving up some beautiful Caribbean style food

with a cool crisp G&T.

Have a gorgeous relaxed weekend everyone.

(image courtesy of Home Beautiful)

 

Happy Island Styling.

 

Exclusive Showcase - Island Collections

In an exclusive to Oceania Island Living, we are so pleased to be able to showcase some amazingly gorgeous talented Australian coastal designers and retailers over the next few weeks for you all to discover.

Today I'm introducing you to Island Collections. A fantastic coastal inspired online store that has the most beautiful homewares at amazingly affordable prices.

I caught up with the two founding members, the lovely Faith & Evanthe. We had a natter on how it all started, what inspires them and what their future plans are for Island Collections.

Give me 5 words that best describes you both?
Colourful, spontaneous, honest, hardworking and loyal.

How did you end up on this career path?

Both of our careers have taken very different paths to lead us to our current situation. Evanthe is a Special needs teacher and I (Faith) worked in Finance prior to having children. Evanthe and I have been friends for a long time and always shared the same passion for interior design and shopping! We finally decided that the time was right and we took the plunge to form Island Collections.

What’s your proudest achievement?

Opening our online store.  Such a lot of effort and planning went into the concept and design of the website, it was great to see our vision come to life after all of our hard work. 

Tell me what your best decision has been?
Definitely going into partnership together. We both bring such different assets to the business, Evanthe is our ‘Creative Director’ and Faith brings her ‘Business Head’ to Island Collections.  By having a partner  it’s great to have a sounding board to bounce ideas off and really keep you focused and motivated.

Who inspires you both?

Lots of things, family, other bloggers.

What are you both passionate about?

Decorating, family and travel.

What's the best lesson you’ve both learnt?

When it comes to decorating, if you truly love something, be brave and trust your instinct,  you will always find the perfect place for it at home.

Let us into a secret - what's your dream for Island Collections?
We have visions of opening our own store one day- we already have it planned, dark wooden floors, crisp white walls filled with stock in shades of turquoise, silver, white and blue....we could go on!

Well thanks Faith & Evanthe, it's so nice to meet the people behind these coastal enterprises.

Here's our tropical island pick of some more of their gorgeous homewares, they also have Hampton's, Nautical & Beach Cottage inspired homewares - so please explore www.islandcollections.com.au today.

Happy Island Styling.

(images courtesy of Island Collections)