A Life By Design...

I am a designer to my very core - whether it's a house, a garden, a dinner table, a journey, even a life - I'm always thinking about how things go together... About what makes things work... About the little things, the bits and pieces that together make a whole... The colour palette in a cafe in Paris... The stone work on the pavement in Venice... The shape of a window... A door... The font used on a signpost... What people wear... How they move through space... Although it can be a little exhausting at times, all of this designing does have a purpose... At the heart of it, design is all about shaping environments... It's about creating surroundings and ambience that reflect who we are and what makes us tick... At its best, design provides us with a comfortable framework within which we can happily exist through all of the hours that make up the sum of our lives.. Our environments are an integral part of who we are... On a larger scale, our towns, cities and personal spaces reflect our values, how we see things, our routines, our ceremonies, our lives... It was such a joy for me to spend time in far away places over the holidays... To exist within a foreign environment for a while, to feel the energy that swirls within these places. To see the effect of these spaces on the people that exist within them is an education - about people, life, time... What an inspiration! And so, here I find myself back at home and ready to design 2011! This year is filled to the brim with inspiring projects and the team at The Little Cottage is well and truly in full motion, what with our wonderful workshops, exciting interior design projects and product launches on the agenda... I graciously thank the skies that Bangalow/Byron Bay was spared the devastation seen in Queensland and other parts of Australia over the last few months... Life can be cruel sometimes and my heart goes out to all of you who have been affected by the devastation... Once the clean up is complete, the questions have been answered and hearts begin to heal -  we will see homes being designed, spaces being constructed and environments taking shape... And over time, these places will once again be a reflection of the people who live there and the streets will pulse with energy... Such is the enduring power of design... And such is the enduring power of people...