Hiccups in House and Garden

Here is the Hiccups 'Carpark' puff print cushion as seen in the December 2009 Australian House and Garden  Magazine Christmas shopping ideas article.

And here it is in detail!

The race that stops a nation

Its all about the horses here in Melbourne today - so to join in the equine spirit on Melbourne Cup Day, here is our Hiccups bed linen design for girls - 'Horsing Around'. And now I am off to the TAB for my once a year flutter on the gg's. And perhaps a few glasses of champagne too....






And here a few more Horse-y decorative items from around the web - I love this Sandberg wallpaper design - 'Collette'.

And this horse themed stool designed by Angus McDonald for Zaishu.


And these Thoroughbred Horse jute pillows from Thomas Paul fit the bill too.



My bets will be on the Bart Cummings trained 'Viewed'. Go Viewed!

Danish kids

Classic pared-back children's bedrooms from Danish photographer Lisbett Wedendahl.

Colour amongst the Ironbarks

At the back reaches of my family's farm in country Victoria lies a bush landscape of Ironbark and Grey Box eucalyptus. The recent spring rains have brought out some colourful wildflowers that haven't made an appearance for a few years.

Kangaroo Paws

Not sure of the name of this purple orchid.... but it did have a lovely chocolate scent.

Billy Buttons 

'Silver Princess' Eucalyptus

Everlasting daisy

Grey Box eucalyptus blossom

Cootamundra wattle seed pods

'Kangaroo Tails' in blossom

Black Wattle

A few more majestic 'Kangaroo Tails'

And the dark textured bark of the Ironbark eucalyptus.

From South Africa

Its Market Week here at Linen House, so all of the international partners have made the long journey to Melbourne to view the new bed linen collections (due to be released around February 2010). Adrienne is the Linen House partner from South Africa, who brought along some rather lovely magazines including House and Leisure - a stylish interiors magazine that features our Hiccups rug in the 'Small Wonders' kid's bedroom article. Great styling!

A palette of lilac and green

A serene colour combination from a Danish summer house, photographed by Nathalie Kragh for Idenfor & Udenfor.

A Princessy tale

The Princess Who Had No Kingdom is a delightful fairy tale written by Ursula Jones and beautifully illustrated by Sarah Gibb using a combination of silhouettes and a colourful painterly style.

Here is a wise tale about a princess who had no kingdom and whose only possessions were a pony and cart, and a red umbrella to keep her dry from the rain. What the princess lacked in wordly possessions, she made up for in kindness, cleverness and beauty - qualities that made all of the rich princes with kingdoms of their own to ask for her hand in marriage. But what is a kingdom without love?

The Princess Who Had No Kingdom is published by Orchard Books, 2009.

Melody and Hummingbird

Here is our Hiccups 'Melody' bed linen design from the latest Harvey Norman catalogue.

And from the latest Forty Winks catalogue  - our Hiccups 'Hummingbird' stripe design.

V.T Wonen

A gallery of kinderkamer inspiration from the VT Wonen Magazine, Holland.

Our Hiccups Matryoshka wall stickers make an appearance in an all-white bedroom.

Dressing for spring

Layers and layers of gorgeous prints, ruffles and hand-finished shirring - there is a lovely attention to detail to be found on all of the clothing in the Spring Summer 09/10 collection from Australian brand Paperwings. 

Vintage pattern inspiration

Another Japanese book filled with retro pattern goodness - Vintage Dress Fabric from the States, published in 2009 by Pie Books.

Serenely Vintage

I have just returned from my always relaxing Botanical drawing class, so these serene photographs by English photographer Claire Richardson are rather fitting mood-wise. I came across her lovely work in the UK magazine Country Living.

Kids Factory Holland

Gorgeous kids spaces from the Dutch Kids Factory website. I love the sophisticated colour palettes used in each setting, and I especially love the decorative tiled floor in the second image - what a great idea!

The Claudettes

More beautiful cards from the Norway design duo Darling Clementine. I love the 50's pastel colouration, and how cute is that kangaroo? I found these at the Avenue Bookstore in Albert Park, Melbourne.





These card designs are from The Claudettes collection by Darling Clementine, and are produced by UK stationery company 1973. You can purchase these and many other gorgeous paper designs from the 1973 website here.

Oh to be in Paris.....

If I did happen to be in Paris I would head straight to this Nathalie Lete book signing at Bon Ton Bazar. (Via the Marie Claire Idees blog)

Nathalie's latest book is a version of the classic fairytale Little Red Riding Hood, and is most likely jam-packed with her enchanting painterly illustrations. (I am looking forward to my Amazon France delivery to confirm this statement - thank you strong Australian dollar!).

For more Nathalie Lete loveliness, visit Wee Birdy's lovely post Nathalie Lete in London.

Spot On

New from Hiccups this season - the 'Spot On' sleeping bag, available in a pink or blue colourway.

Wonder Bear - a wonderful book

Wonder Bear by Tao Nyeu is a striking children's picture book where images, not words depict the tale of a bear who magically appears the day after two children plant a packet of mysterious seeds in their garden. 

With his magical top hat, Wonder Bear conjures one remarkable scene after another - dozens of cheeky monkeys playing on a flower laden vine, amazing sea creatures floating in the breeze and bubbles that turn into lions.

The next day, the bear and his top hat have disappeared. Was it all a dream?

Dutch Fairy Tales

From the latest edition of Ariadne at Home Kinderen - mushrooms, autumn leaves, squirrels, polka dots and hedgehogs - all of the finest of fairytale ingredients required to create an inspiring bedroom for kids.

A trip to Tesselaars

Here is a sneak peak of our Hiccups photography for next seasons range. Last week we headed up to Tesselaar's Tulip Farm at Silvan, where the tulips, anemones and ranunculus were in full bloom. Tesselaars is a lovely place, complete with windmills, clog wearing hosts and delicious Dutch pancakes.
The annual Tulip Festival runs until the 13th of October and is well worth a visit.

Beautiful Botanicals

BotanicaAsia is an exhibition of botanical art based on Asian themes from seven of Victoria's leading artists to be held at Domain House, Dallas Brooks Drive, South Yarra, from the 9th to the 25th of October. The central motif of the exhibition is the peony, and here are some of the beautiful examples below, including one from my botanic art teacher (at the Royal Botanic Gardens) Diane Emery.

Dolores Skowronski-Malloni

Dianne Emery

Jenny Phillips

Perhaps visiting this exhibition on the weekend will inspire me to do my botanic homework! Hmmmmm.

Bright and brilliant bedrooms

Marie Claire Maison magazine never disappoints - here are some inspiring and colourful children's bedrooms from the Marie Claire Maison website.

Hot pink and red from the owners of the Parisian brand Petit Pan.

Bunker down.

Timeless Marimekko designs in a light filled setting.

 
Vintage touches and dreamy blue walls.

 
Another children's room from the creators of Petit Pan.

A magical hideaway.

An efficient use of space!

Polka dot paradise.

Vintage florals and toiles.

And a perfect fairytale bed.

Sailing Away

Our Hiccups 'Sailing Away' bed linen design appears in the Manchester Warehouse Magazine Summer 09/10 edition. 

Love Birds - new Hiccups Babies

A beautifully embroidered flower garden surrounds the tree which two love birds call home!

'Love Birds' features appliqued gingham, corduroy and woven stripe fabrics to create a country garden theme for a little girl's nursery.

The 'Love Birds' range includes an embroidered cot comforter, quilt cover and cushion, which all work back with the Hiccups Babies 'Pretty Pony' collection.

A happy little fellow

Here is Mr Axel showing off the new Hiccups Babies range.

Hiccups Babies - Apple Tree

And here is the latest design collection for Hiccups Babies - 'Apple Tree'. Hoot hoot goes the owl. Look out chickens! There's a fox on the loose! Welcome to Apple Tree farm. 

The quilted cot comforter with embroidery and appliqued fabrics features some very cute farm creatures. Accessories include embroidered cushions, nappy stacker, bibs, an appliqued fleece blanket and bunting to complete your nursery. And don't forget Arnold the owl, available in 3 colours.

Apple Tree cot quilt cover.

Apple Tree embroidered cushion.

Apple Tree quilted comforter and embroidered cot sheet set.

A fantastic fox cushion.

View the entire Hiccups Babies range here!

Little treasures to hang at the window

How lovely are these little ornaments from the V&A shop? This 'Bird and Tree' cut metal decoration takes inspiration from an 1899 C.F.A. Voysey embroidered cushion cover design.

Whilst this floral decorative piece is inspired by Voysey's 'Fools Parsley' wallpaper design.

Spring at Cloudehill

Cloudehill is a beautiful garden and nursery located near Olinda in the Dandenong Ranges, just a short drive from Melbourne. With a layout inspired by the famous Arts and Crafts gardens of England - Hidcote, Sissinghurst etc, this is a great place to wander around with a digital camera, capturing the many colourful specimens only found in the cooler climes of Australia. And a great place to burn off the extra kilos gained by dining at the restaurant....

A lovely meandering pathway

A hot pink carpet of rhododendron petals

Bluebells and Daffodils

A lovely old Magnolia

Showy daffodils

A magnificent peony

Helleborus

Weeping Cherry

A delicate Clematis

One of the many 'Garden Rooms'

A Weeping Cherry against a drizzling grey sky - time to run for cover!

William's wonderful wares

New from the Victoria and Albert Museum is the V & A Pattern book series, a must have for any fan of historical textile design and a wonderful source of inspiration for designers. William Morris is one of four new titles in the series which also includes Indian Florals, Digital Pioneers and The Fifties. I love William Morris's harmonious repeats - he certainly had a talent for creating beautiful and original designs (as did his assistant John Henry Dearle), most of which still have a modern appeal 120 years later.

'Brother Rabbit' textile designed by William Morris 1882.

'Daisy' wallpaper designed by William Morris 1864.

'Strawberry Thief' textile designed by William Morris 1883.

'Larkspur' textile designed by William Morris 1875.

'Michaelmas Daisy' wallpaper designed by John Henry Dearle for Morris & Co. c 1912.

'Foliage' wallpaper designed by John Henry Dearle for Morris & Co. 1899.

'Sweet Briar' wallpaper by John Henry Dearle for Morris & Co. 1912.

New products on the Hiccups website

Visit our website www.hiccupsforkids.com.au to view the latest Hiccups collection!

Go Sainters!

It will be an exciting day here in Melbourne tomorrow - it's the AFL Grand Final between St Kilda and Geelong. Finals fever has hit Linen House in a big way, as the company owners Gordon and Michele Duncan are major fans. To get into the spirit, today everyone bought in a delicious array of red, black and white morning tea items. I can feel a sugar headache coming on.....

Real Living - Kids special

Here is our ad for 'Horsing Around' from the November 2009 Kids Special edition of Real Living.

Also making an appearance is our 'Serenity' cushion in the kid friendly 100 ideas and best budget buys article.

This is a fantastic issue of Real Living, jam-packed with great kid related decorating ideas!

Vintage style in Daylesford

I love the vintage decorating style of Lark founder Allison Jones, as seen in the October 2009 edition of Australian Country Style. The gorgeous strips of retro wallpaper in the top bedroom look fantastic, and how lovely is that knitted cornishware tea set? 

Photography by Lisa Cohen

An island in the sun

Here is our Hiccups 'Holiday Stripe' yarn dyed bed linen which was recently photographed at a resort in Bali.

Such a magical bed - and a great spot to escape the tropical heat.

The Princess and the Packet of Frozen Peas

The title of this book grabbed my attention straight away - I grew up with three brothers, two of whom only ate peas in their frozen form. Until their 20's. Sad but true. That has nothing to do with this book really, as this is a lovely modern tale about a prince wanting to fall in love with and get married to someone who likes hockey, camping and has a nice smile - a girl who displays all of the opposite behaviour of the usual princess-y types. What better way to test a future partner then with a packet of frozen peas?

The Princess and the Packet of Frozen Peas is written by Melbourne author Tony Wilson and illustrated by Sue deGennaro, and is published by Scholastic.

Hiccups in Studio Bambini

The team at Studio Bambini always do a beautiful job with styling products for the magazine - here a few images of the new Hiccups bed linen range, photographed by Tim Bauer.

And something for the boys - Hiccups 'Sailing Away' bed linen.

Hiccups in Studio Bambini Magazine

Here is our advert from the Spring Summer 09/10 edition of Studio Bambini - featuring 'Horsing Around'.

Horsing Around and painting

Here are a few photos of the design process behind the Hiccups printed bed linen designs. I start by sketching out a rough repeat straight onto the watercolour paper, followed by a detailed pencil outline ready for painting.

The smaller scale floral reverse and sheet set design.

I paint the design using designers gouache - easy to control, bright and opaque colours that can be watered down to create soft wash effects.

Once the design is completely painted I then outline the motifs in pencil for definition.

The finished artwork - ready for the printing mill!

Chambre Chic

From the pages of Milk Magazine Edition 25.

A lovely white space with lots of girly pink and red touches in Paris, decorated by a Dutch mother.

Industrial chic in London  - a sophisticated retreat for a four year old boy.

A healthy dose of pattern

I spotted these two lovely new reference books in my bookshop this weekend - Reprodepot Floral and Folk pattern books by Djerba Goldfinger, published by Chronicle Books.

Djerba Goldfinger is the founder of the online fabric store Reprodepot, and these books contain a wonderful selection of her favourite vintage inspired folk and floral prints in multiple colourways. A disk is provided for non-commercial use of these patterns, handy for whipping up a few paper crafts. 

A yellow weekend

I love this time of year on the farm - wattle blossoms everywhere!

A pinch of Paris

A sprinkling of French children's bedroom goodness from the pages of Marie Claire Maison magazine.

Lucky kids

Designer children's bedrooms from the pages of Cookie magazine. I wouldn't mind if my bedroom was decorated with this Orla Kiely wallpaper....

Or this metallic design.

Love that embroidered Mexican bedspread....

And this higgledy piggledy art display....

And this peaceful pale blue wall treatment is rather lovely too.

Hiccups in the Myer My Home catalogue

Sailing Away


Horsing Around

Tea cups and Apples

I love these Georgian inspired wrapping paper designs from Bath based company Frederica Cards. A healthy dose of Jane Austin style for a Tuesday morning!

Hiccups in Myer Sydney store

The new seasons range of Hiccups is now in store. Here are a few shots of 'Horsing Around' from Myer's Sydney City and Chatswood stores. Thank you Tanya for sending these photos!

Road Trip wall stickers

Pictured here is our freshly released wall sticker collection for boys - 'Road Trip'.

Hit the Road

Pack your surf board and beach towel and work out the best route to the coast - it's time to take a 'Road Trip'.

Choose your ride from these great retro roadsters: camper vans, beach buggies and cool cruisers in bright colours. 'Road Trip' combines hand-drawn printed outlines overlaid with colourful appliqués of cars - an eye catching design that boys will love!

Holiday Stripe for Boys

A classic yarn-dye stripe in a nautical colour palette - 'Holiday Stripe' is an easy way to deck out a boy's bedroom in style! 

Sailing away

Pictured here are the new 'Sailing Away' accessories for boys - Whale, Yacht, and Yachting applique throw. Can you tell it was pouring with rain on the day of our photoshoot? Luckily there were a few gaps in the clouds in between huddling in the photographer's car drinking hot coffees.

Ahoy! coverlet

Here is 'Ahoy' - our breezy new nautical flag inspired coverlet and pillow-sham.