A Minor Øbsession

Category: Design

  • Wallpaper Politics

    Wallpaper Politics

    I do love me some wallpaper.

    Unsurprisingly, most of it is designed overseas, which makes this custom Australian piece feel like a kangaroo photobombing your selfie… delightfully unexpected, mildly disturbing and 100% memorable.

    This wallpaper is tucked inside the QT Hotel in Canberra, where I stayed over the weekend for a museum trip.

    Each QT hotel is an eclectic mix of design, art and playful irreverence with a strong sense of place. In Canberra, that means one thing: politics.

    Originally this was the infamous Lakeside Hotel, a hotbed of handshake deals and secret backroom meetings.  The interior (renovated in 2014) now plays host to very fitting custom wallpaper dedicated to Australian prime ministers.

    From a distance, it’s a bold pattern in black, gold and cream. Look closer and

    it’s a kaleidoscopic tribute to prime ministers past…

    It’s part Rorschach, part political history lesson. 

    Cleverly placed around the elevators, I did a total double take while waiting followed by a moment of waxing lyrical to my son.  He was, naturally, mortified. Being a teenager he is biologically wired to despise anything I get excited about, especially when it involves history hiding in the wallpaper.

    BUT he did admit the hotel was actually pretty cool, which in teen-speak is the highest of compliments. This goes to show that design with story is timeless and that it is possible to fleetingly pull off the impossible cool mum status.

    The designer, Nic Graham, who does all the QT hotels describes his approach like this:

    “We like to create a design that is slowly revealed, with unexpected moments in lifts, bathrooms and corridors, which are often forgotten.

    Guests love a story, they enjoy engaging with the staff about where ideas came from, where things are made and what they are made of. The future is for more informed design influenced by local experience.” Nic Graham

    Bravo, more story filled design in the world please. And more Australian wallpaper.

  • A surprise weekend affair with brown

    A surprise weekend affair with brown

    Brown usually fills me with quiet horror, a lingering trauma from years spent in every possible shade of it for school uniform. Even our socks had to be brown.

    But something about this throw said “shhhhh…. you love me”

    Perhaps because it was all rich fudge and cosy vibes during a frosty weekend on the South Coast. Maybe it was the way the winter light hit those warm tones, or maybe I just needed more chocolate in my life?

    The Airbnb, Station Road Loft in Berry, was full of beautifully curated details – vintage tins, delicate teacups, even framed agricultural show certificates. Every corner felt considered.

    A total dream for someone with a minor obsession.

  • For La Dolce Vita

    For La Dolce Vita

    It’s the passion and joy out of simple things in Italy that gets me. You see it in their design – this self expression of bold colour and big patterns.

    Where Scandi says “less is more”, Italian design says “more is more”.

    If you think about it, Scandinavian design whispers. It’s restraint, functionality and the beauty of clear space. White walls, whitewashed floors and blonde oak all designed to reflect the precious light. There’s a quiet confidence in knowing when to stop.

    Italian design definitely doesn’t whisper. It gestures passionately with both hands. It’s terracotta walls that glow like sunset, hand-painted ceramics in electric blues and stripes in lemon yellows that make your heart sing.

    Maybe it’s the sunshine?

    I feel like Australians are also no stranger to a burst of colour (hello Ken Done 80s). Perhaps that’s why I’m so here for all things vibrant and am LOVING that Italy is having a big moment in fashion and interiors. 

    📷 Dedar

    Once upon a time I went to Italy. 

    Then, while living in London, I went to Italy again and again… and again. So many times that my partner and I had to ban ourselves for fear of missing out on the rest of Europe. The ban didn’t last, years later while living in Copenhagen we took our kids to Italy and they fell in love with it too.

    Resistance is futile.

    When it comes to textiles, Dedar Milano is a firm favourite.

    I got a first glimpse in 2019 at Salone de Mobile and took so many photos it was, honestly, embarrassing.

    Then this week…

    I spotted this gem of a golf cart with Dedar Strange Loves fabric. Swoon. And just like that my entire obsession with Dedar was rekindled.

    Dedar Strangeloves 006

    I wonder if I could convince my in-laws, who have a golf cart, that we should reupholster it? Too much?

    They wouldn’t be surprised at that suggestion, ‘too much’ is my middle name, but I may have to use my own back garden instead as a guinea pig instead.