Wednesday, October 23, 2013

max, ochre + art

"In 2011 Fliss and Hal packed up all their belongings, rented out their Queenslander and moved their young family to Bali. They stayed there for a year and found a small, ethical production house to manufacture their design and clothing brand, Udder. It was an experience that has, on every level, changed their lives. Upon returning to the Sunshine Coast Hinterland and their beloved family home, they have imbued the interior with a distinct Indonesian aesthetic. The children's rooms are living, breathing reminders of their travels where the practical elements of childhood blend effortlessly with art installations and handmade toys."

I had the pleasure of writing about Max, Ochre and Art's rooms for the latest issue of Little One Kids magazine (in newsagents now!). Fliss has a innate ability to create beauty in the home (and the garden) and for the past year she has been working on the kid's rooms - creating unique and organic spaces. She doesn't follow a plan nor does she set out to create a theme; instead she adds items as she finds them - the rooms are ever-changing. "I ask the children if they like things here or here, I listen to their ideas and then I mix in my own and from there it evolves," she says.

I really appreciate Fliss' intention to create authentic and comfortable rooms for her children. As she mentioned to me during our interview: "It's essential that they have their own personal space for them to be. To be quiet, noisy, to dance, play, create, dress-up." 

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I gave Che's room a good spring clean on the weekend and together we arranged his beloved possessions and planned to buy some picture ledges to use as book shelves. On Monday afternoon he added a new item - a tissue box with ten caterpillars (they were eating my herbs), a few sprigs of green and a folded tissue for a pillow. The next morning he woke to find that his "new pets" had gone crawlabout. He found one in his school shoe, I found two more later in the day. The others? I have no idea. 

posted by: Jodi

10 COMMENTS

  1. JessicaOctober 23, 2013 at 10:03 AM

    Such a lovely space! That sideboard is to die for.

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  2. AnonymousOctober 23, 2013 at 10:32 AM

    wow! I love that bookcase. What a lovely room to grow up in!

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  3. ClaireyhewittOctober 23, 2013 at 4:29 PM

    I love unplanned rooms, but my children have rooms that are very unplanned - currently a half broken birds egg is in one of my quiche dishes on a window sill....

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    1. JodiOctober 23, 2013 at 4:51 PM

      But isn't it beautiful that nature has made its way into the room? Bird's eggs are rather gorgeous, caterpillars can be cute. I'd draw the line at snails and worms, I think ;)

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    2. Obaitori October 25, 2013 at 2:23 PM

      Thank goodness they were just caterpillars and not ten brown snakes that hatched in that little 3 year olds wardrobe last month. He had innocently collected them from the backyard. Don't think I'd cope too well with that! Lovely post. Have a great weekend. Katie x

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    3. JodiOctober 25, 2013 at 8:06 PM

      Shudder! x

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  4. AmandaOctober 23, 2013 at 6:27 PM

    Your tale of Che's caterpillar friends made me smile xx

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  5. AnonymousOctober 23, 2013 at 10:23 PM

    I love this aesthetic - rough and organic but charming at the same time.

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  6. sianOctober 24, 2013 at 6:33 AM

    we had stick insects that exhibited similar houdini-esque tendencies! x

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  7. flissOctober 29, 2013 at 4:46 PM

    So happy you were the writer for this interview!!!
    Thanks for sharing their rooms here Jodi, and the story of the caterpillars....we recently had a pet cicada in a box!

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