I've been meaning to start a series of posts for a while now about inspiring family homes - I'm sure most people (especially if you're reading this) love a good nose around someones house, and this is the perfect excuse. I love interiors magazines, but I do find that sometimes they can get a little samey and sometimes can be a bit trend led rather than focused on the individual. I also find that even the real home type ones still are so often either really beautiful picturesque cottage style homes, or huge spaces that don't really allign with everyday people. And while I still love to look at aspirational interiors, what I really love are proper real homes that show that people actually live in them, and homes that really reflect the type of person that they house.
I met Stevie on the school run when my oldest daughter Delilah started, she so warm and friendly and effortlessly stylish and I knew straight away that she would have the coolest home. She lives with her husband Jay and daughters Rubie, 6 and Daisie, 3. They've only lived in their home for a year and a half and yet have done so much in that time. Jay came up with most of the decor in the house, he began repurposing props they used at their wedding, and then went from there. Beautifully old worn books adorn the shelves alongside vintage toys, cameras and family photos. The layering and composition of all of the objects is so clever as it could so easily begin to look cluttered with such a variety of things, but because they are all so contained and so curated it just really works. I love the character and quirkiness that this gives to their home - we are so often fed pictures of bland beige/grey homes that seeing items that are vintage and completely unique give such a great quality to a home.
An incredibly creative couple Jay often makes all of their things by hand, the coffee table, chair, storage and pots lamps etc are all handmade and give such a fresh authentic edge to their look. Clearly plant lovers, the lush greens give so much life and humour to the rooms, I love the artwork by the girls who obviously also love a succulent! On a side note I always love seeing pictures of peoples children in their homes - just how adorable do Daisie and Rubie look here!
I love the use of all the reclaimed wood and industrial style furniture set against the rooms textiles. I love how the famly clearly have such a strong sense of style and yet their home looks completely livable. One of my absolute pet hates is homes which don't actually look like anyone lives in them - which I find so odd, my favourite things about interiors is seeing how people live and imagining what they're like.
Below is a pic from Jay's instagram feed - you should definitely follow for beautifully styled interior shots like below - how cute does Daisie look at that typewriter?!
Jay and Stevie say they find inspiration everywhere and don't like to stick too much to one style, often they find things they like from charity shops or vintage places and adapt them to use their home like the old milk crate which was turned into a foot stall, the tea boxes which became side tables and filing cabinets which became planters. They love to see the potential in things that might otherwise be thrown away or destroyed. Lots of their reclaimed wood has been saved from house clearances and charity shops provide ample resources to make furniture to exactly their taste. Not only is this such a fantastic way of recyling but I love the feel and look that it gives to their rooms.
Stevie made the black crochet wall hanging in their bedroom above, it gives such a lovely element of texture and I love the way their style seamlessly works its way through the whole house.
Rubie's room has this gorgeous leafy print wallpaper with this magnificent pink flamingo from Magpie Line.
I often get inspiration from films and am always intrigued if other peoples favourite films work their way into their interiors. Stevie loves Alice in Wonderland, which I think you can see with all the little trinkets and vintage pieces about the house, while Jay's was Jumanji - saying that he wants to reach the stage plantwise while they come thrashing through the walls like in the film!
They are currently working on the garden which is already adorned with beautiful deep purple lupins, festoon lights and wonderfully made furniture from pallets. Hopefully they'll let me back in with my camera to show you all some pictures of that soon! xx
Posted under – Interiors, Kids, Making
Tags – Making, Live Creatively, Live Colourfully, Kids, Inspiration, Make it yourself, The Bright Home, DIY, Vintage, Interiors, Family Interiors
