If you haven't heard of Sticky Tiki before, let me introduce you... they produce a range of gorgeous wall decals and murals. Formed in 2008 by the talented Kim Hands, Sticky Tiki features cute and quirky designs crafted from original paintings. The painterly effect complete with visible brush strokes will bring warmth and character to your home. In 2014 Rose Wells, who has a background in graphic design, bought Sticky Tiki and continues to produce these beautiful, high quality wall graphics produced in Christchurch, New Zealand.
The Sticky Tiki decals are made from fabric and won't rip, wrinkle or damage your walls. They adhere to any smooth surface and can be removed and repositioned countless times. They're also weatherproof which means they can be stuck outside and wiped down if little fingers mark them.
There is a fantastic range that your little ones will love. The kereru with ribbon is specially designed to be customised by writing your child's name on the ribbon.
My personal favourites are the dress up dolls which have a range of outfits that can be removed and swapped as much as your child desires (much cooler than the paper dolls we had as kids).
There's also a range of chalkboard decals. Chalkboard letters that can be bought individually to make up a specific name or word, and you can mix and match them with other decals to create a fun feature.
Plain chalkboard decals come in a range of sizes and shapes and can be used in so many different ways...
Sticky Tiki have also collaborated with other artists to bring you a varied range of decals including the intricate line drawings of Scribblelicious.
Pop over to see the full Sticky Tiki range. With Christmas just around the corner you may want to do away with a real tree this year and opt for this Christmas tree wall decal instead.
Let me introduce you to The Lovely Wall. They create an amazing range of wall decals that will look fabulous, not just in the kid's room, but any room in the house.
Let your imagination run wild with all the beautiful coloured shapes available to you. Create your own design - as structured or as whimsical as you please.
Many of the decals are available in a range of colours. If you need more than one pack you could decide whether you want to mix or match the colours.
For all the typography lovers, there are some really cute options. My fave - "be nice or leave" - is going to be my new motto at home! :)
As well as the plain vinyls, which by the way are fully removable and reusable, you'll love the collection of chalkboard decals, which come complete with two sticks of chalk.
The range of removable wallpaper is lots of fun, and could be used on the walls, a door, the back of your bookshelf, or to brighten up a table top...
As if that wasn't enough, The Lovely Wall also produce their own adhesive labels in a range of different shapes and designs. Some are even chalkboard stickers so you can label them yourself.
Based in the US, all of the products can be shipped internationally. If there is something special you have in mind contact the Lovely team for custom designed decals and wall wraps. There is something for everyone to love in The Lovely Wall's range!
Happy Monday everyone! I have one daughter back to school tomorrow and the other two next Monday, then work life will get much easier for me :) In the meantime, check out some of my favourite recent finds...
I have Jen of Interiors Addict to thank for my first find - a Marble Macbook Skin. I've been looking for some kind of cover for my Macbook Pro for a while now, and this was the perfect solution for me. It comes all the way from Canada, but shipped relatively quickly, and was so easy to apply. You can see (below) that I chose a white marble skin, but they're also available in black marble - very cool!
These wall murals created in France are quite stunning, don't you think?! There is a range of equally amazing scenes to choose from, you can see them all here.
If you're interested in creating your own personalised wall mural (and purchasing it closer to home) our super talented sign writer can create photos and murals printed on a self adhesive material that is applied directly to the wall. He created this old fashioned world map for his son's room, and can do the same with any image you choose, as long as it's a reasonably high quality. If you live in Hawke's Bay contact me and I can help you order one.
Inspired by industrial crates these Bias Shelves look fantastic hung on the wall or used as a side table. Made in the US by Evan Clabots and Louis Filosa, they do ship internationally, and although NZ is not listed on their shipping page, you could try getting in touch for a shipping quote.
Last, but not least, this Chocolate Pumpkin Bread looks delicious! Pop a slice in the kids' lunchbox, they'll never know that they're eating veges :)
If you're a long-time follower of the blog you may remember my post from a couple of years ago featuring ixxi, an amazing decorative wall system created from a series of small squares snapped together with x's and i's. You can choose a single image, either your own or one from their image bank; or create a montage or a design from individual squares pieced together.
I've been dying to try out the system, so was really excited when I was contacted by ixxi recently and asked if I'd work with them on a collaboration for their blog - ixxi your world. Of course I jumped at the chance, and the next thing was to decide which image to use.
I knew the spot for my ixxi. Our kitchen and dining room are the last spaces in our home to get my attention. I wanted a piece of artwork with some impact for the back wall of the dining room, which you see when you walk in the back door. Our home has a laid-back coastal vibe with lots of colour and pattern - a real mix of Mark and my interests. So I chose a very cool surfing photo by US photographer Stephanie Sherman. Stephanie was kind enough to let me use the image and forwarded the digital file to ixxi for me.
It was an exciting day when the ixxi box arrived all the way from The Netherlands looking very smart.
I thought it might be a two-man job and waited to put it together until the weekend when Mark was home. But when he was more interested in tinkering with his mountain bike I decided to go it alone. I was pleasantly surprised how simple it was, and had a real sense of accomplishment when I stood back to see it hanging on the wall.
At first I was worried that I would tear the corner of the ixxi squares when I pushed the x's in, but the panels are extremely strong and durable. I just put both thumbs on either side of the hole and pushed down gently but firmly. The x's and i's just snapped into place.
When completed I attached the special band provided to the wall and snapped the entire ixxi onto it. I used a tape measure and level to make sure the band was in the right place, and it looked fantastic. Honestly, I was so impressed with how easy the whole process was.
When we got home from our holiday a couple of days ago, I opened the door and my ixxi was the first thing I saw - it made me smile, I love it! Now to rip up the horrid old lino and get a new table and chairs! ;) I can now happily recommend ixxi to all of you, it's such a great product. Pop over to their website to see exactly how it works.
There is no doubt that decorating and styling your home can be much harder when you're renting. You can't rip down walls or pull up carpet, and even hanging pictures on the wall is often frowned upon by landlords. If you're prepared to do the work yourself (or pay someone to do it) you may be able to paint the walls a neutral colour if your landlord agrees, but you have to weigh up how much you want to spend on a place that you don't own. There are, however, ways of adding your mark to your rental home.
You can get some fabulous wall decals that are removable - perfect for renters, as they can be taken down without damaging the wall, and reapplied in the next home.
If you're not allowed to put nails in the wall, try leaning your artwork up against the wall. You still get great impact, and there's something a bit more casual about this look.
The same can be done with mirrors.
Invest in pieces that you can take with you when you move, pieces that will bring personality to your home. Rugs are fantastic for bringing warmth, colour and texture, and for covering up any unsightly flooring or stains. Great furniture and accessories are key.
Plants help bring life and texture to a room, as well as purifying the air. Have fun by housing the plants in attractive pots and baskets.
You may even want to take down any particularly ugly curtains and replace with some of your choice. Just make sure you keep the original curtains safe and rehang them when you leave.
A lot of these images feature more than one of the tips I've mentioned, so I hope they can inspire you to make your rental home a place you can be proud of.
