Textiles for home
Here we take a little look into what makes a home, Emilie's textiles design inspiration and the exciting launch of the latest textiles collection printed here in Melbourne and made with natural, ethically produced, eco-friendly fabrics.
Home.
A space? Or a place? Or more than that? A feeling. A person. A smell.
A texture? A colour. A memory.
A home is many things and the essence of a home is perhaps a little different for all of us?
Perhaps a home is made up of all of these details and more…
When we Google’d the word “home” the definition, with all these details, encompassed a sense of longevity. That a home is something long lasting, perhaps something special, providing comfort and warmth, like a really really, good hug.
And this feeling and longevity has been something founder and designer, Emilie, thinks about when she creates her textile pieces. She wants to create designs that last and become part of a loved home. Not just temporary touches but inspiring elegant textiles with warmth and depth, that take on their own life, their own character and become part of the stories that you share from home. This is reflected in the way that Emilie designs and the fabrics she chooses to work with.
A story from a far away, different home…
Emilie first started making textiles in her home country of England, founding the company 009Textiles in 2006. And only ever chose to work with high quality, natural fabrics, such as silk, linen or cotton.
At the start of 009textiles she travelled to her business partner’s home in India to find these fabrics and work closely with the crafts people who produce them. And these fabrics, unlike synthetics, have the ability to age with elegance and grace, rather than becoming just another throw away piece. So when she designs a print she envisages it lasting for at least a decade.
Leopard pansy screen printed and hand painted bead heads featured in Telegraph magazine , London June 2018
Her process is and always will be slow and considered. The colours are carefully selected and the designs refined and distilled over time. This is why they might cost more than your usual high-street cushion or curtain, but they will last far longer too.
As Vivienne Westwood so beautifully puts it, and Emilie firmly believes too, we should all aim to “Buy less, choose well, make it last.”
Butterfly fabric blind and cushion with sequins and hand painted butterflies to make it a treasure.
The latest textiles collection to add to your home
Here at EmilieOConnorHomestore we really want you to buy our cushions as things to cherish and become part of your home. None more so than our first ever textiles collection made in Melbourne, designed by Emilie and of course, inspired by the sea.
Like Emilie’s previous designs for 009textiles, these cushions and fabrics at Emilie OConnor Homestore are only ever made out of natural materials and often inspired by nature.
A more natural home
We know that chemicals are needed for all kinds of textile productions including in ours, but here at Emilie OConnor Homestore we are doing all that we can to avoid the toxic ones that are harmful to the environment, animals and our health. Used in the textiles are pigment basic inks which are Oeko-tex – meaning that they are approved by a system for environmentally friendly and socially responsible production.
A New home, a new collection, new techniques
When working on prints for 009textiles , Emilie used screen-printing with hand painted splashes of colour, where no one piece of cloth is the same and draws you eye into the detail of the colour.
But Since moving her home to Australia and living for the first time in her life by the Ocean she needed a way to capture the depth and variations of colours that you might find underwater and on the reef. A challenge that has lead to the first collection being digitally printed here in Melbourne.
Each cushion is designed using a beautiful selection of timeless, ocean inspired colours.
BUY TEXTILES or follow us @emilieoconnorhomestore on instagram to keep up dated with current projects and collections.
And lets carry on the conversation… we would love to know what exactly makes a home for you? Share your comments below…