Designers we love around the globe: Australia

This week it’s designers from down under that are captivating us here at Roost Living, with a bit of an unintentional print theme – we're sure you'll love them, too.

Everingham & Watson
Brisbane based design duo Susie Everingham and Liz Watson create Australiana inspired homeware, injected with fun and colour.   We love their bold shapes and colour and this very prawntastic prawn

And of course we are not biased,  even if we do know them from our high school days..

Ink and Spindle

Melbourne-based Lara Cameron and Tegan Rose are the creative forces behind interiors label Ink & Spindle. Together, Lara and Tegan screenprint all of their textiles by hand, using ethical and sustainable processes wherever possible. It’s their prints that really set them apart and we’re coveting each and every one. If we simply had to choose, it’d be ‘blockprint’ which adorns their cushions, and ‘wrens’; a lovely inky blue pattern upon neutral cotton that you can use for all manner of furnishing projects.

Bonnie & Neil

Also in Melbourne, Bonnie Ashley and Neil Downie describe themselves as “compulsive hoarders”, clinging onto scraps of vintage fabric and pieces of timber that often serve as inspiration. The design duo, similarly to Lara and Tegan of Ink & Spindle, hand-print their expressive shapes upon bedding and tea towels to beautiful effect. We love the organic feel to their use of paint, and their choice of equally natural materials such as linen.

Caslon & Co: traditional tools, contemporary prints

Passionate about pattern is by far the most apt way to describe the homeware label Caslon & Co.

Founder Andy Rouse lovingly hand-crafts original prints in his Birmingham studio using antique letterpress blocks known as ‘ornaments’ and ‘fleurons’- once used by printers to decorate posters and books. 

After Andy has perfected his motifs, a highly-skilled team of UK-based craftsmen and women transform them into statement soft furnishings and homeware, such as the Vintage Corner Piece Cushion - our much-loved latest arrival here at Roost Living.

Designer Andy Rouse formed Caslon&Co after acquiring a retired printers press at the beginning of 2012, and their vintage inspired patterns are created using antique wooden printing blocks known as ornaments and fleurons. Printers traditionally used the beautiful little blocks to add decorative flare to books and posters, you will have seen them in use on vintage circus posters, before they fell out of fashion and became a thing of the past, which is a bit of a shame if you ask us! Caslon & Co have put their collection to good use (and they’ve got quite a collection) creating patterns for use in the home, and in turn giving a forgotten art a new lease of life.

Andy explains his approach: ‘I work in our studio using traditional relief printing techniques, working in black and white at first, so that I can focus on creating repeating or tessellating patterns from the printing blocks, I only adding colour when I am happy with the pattern. Depending on how many of the blocks we have, I either work on the press, creating a small repeating pattern or printing a single block a number of times before developing a pattern. Some of the blocks can surprise you when you work with them, they can create patterns that you didn’t expect. I think that’s why I love working in the studio, plus I always feel like it’s a day well spent when I return home with printing ink on your hands!

‘Once I’m happy with the patterns I will transfer them to a silk screen so that I can expand them and start to experiment with colours. We’ve developed a colourful but soft monochrome approach for Caslon & Co, the colours a very fresh and although our patterns have a vintage quality the colours bring a very contemporary feel.’

‘I like to select a fabric that adds to the vintage quality, the natural cotton we use for our cushions has a character of its own, it's a lovely textured fabric with visible flecks of fibre.’

The resulting patterns bring character and charm to the home through a collection of cushions featuring their vintage inspired patterns and fresh, contemporary colour palette.

A new year, a new designer

At this time of year, we’re all itching for a little newness and it’s with that we’d like to introduce to you Tori Murphy; the latest addition to our portfolio of designers.

The Nottingham-based designer graduated from the Royal College of Art with an MA in textiles and launched her eponymous label last year. Her first collection of cushions and throws spoke of what was to become a signature style for Tori: bold, graphic lines, Merino wool and with the emphasis on all of her items being carefully crafted in Britain.

We’re thrilled to be stocking an edited collection from Tori’s second collection, including the Broadway Cushions and Broadway Blanket which capture Tori’s “Love of pattern, texture and colour.” We hope you love them just as much as us.

Smart space-saving

Doesn't it always seem as if there's never enough storage? Bedding, towels, and toys all need a home - but where to put them? We spotted some ingenious ideas for saving on space that are suitable for all sizes of homes. Take a look...

1. Wall art, if you like, that's wholly functional, too. A wonderful idea from German industrial designer  Yi Cong Lu. 

2. Don't be fooled into thinking this is just your ordinary (rather tidy) linen cupboard - the sheets have been neatly folded and placed into their matching pillowcases to flatten things down. More space and a pretty shelf, too!

3. Ok, so this one's more decorative, but it's such an adorable idea, we just had to include it. Great for bookworms!

5. What a clever use of space - this above-door-shelf proves that being inventive with the room you have can lead to both aesthetically pleasing and functional results.

Introducing our feline friends Bandit and Fidel

Two new arrivals have stopped off at Roost - Bandit and Fidel, the curious kitties that will have your door propped open in no time, not to mention add a touch of fun to your décor.

Both humourous characters are crafted by Charlene Mullen, a London-based designer whom since graduating in illustration at the city's Royal College of Art, has become known for her quirky, sketch-like embroidery. 

Bandit and Fidel's inky lines epitomise Charlene's love of the drawn line. Plus, each feline is scented with of a hint of lavender too, making them a welcome addition to any home. Get them before they're gone! 

Charlene with her London Scenic Cushion

Selina Rose: crazy about cut-outs

Award-winning textile designer Selina Rose has a thing for cutting out designs in felt; when she was studying at university, she was immediately drawn to the fabric and how it could be cut, punched or perforated and never fray.

Seven years down the line, Selina’s love affair with felt continues and has blossomed into a self-titled range of beautifully crafted soft furnishings. Each piece, in her searing colour palette of citruses and cerises, is crafted from 100% wool, dyed using natural pigments and features cut-out work inspired by nature; a detail that has become her signature.

We're thrilled to stock Selina's Bloom range at Roost. To find out a little more about Selina herself, read the chat we had with her last June.

Bloom Rug

Bloom Throw

Bloom Coaster, set of four