Don Rex Looks Hot in a Kilt

A few weeks back, Flourish and Blume had a jaunt to our favourite seaside spot where our trusty traveling companion lives when she's not on the move. We were on our way to the pub in the dark through the pouring rain and parked in front of a skip that had some interesting legs sticking out the top of it. The next day when the sky cleared...

One rocker and one TV chair, same arms, same construction, one label - Don Rex (the best things in life are free). I inherited a kilt a couple of years ago that is never going to fit me so I'm keeping the rocker and it's going to wear a kilt (one day soon).

A short time after the few weeks back, we dropped that Cintique lounge suite off and detoured off to Bellingen (my first visit, Katie's first visit goes six generations back) and I spotted this vintage ankle length kilt flouncing its pleats at me. In my opinion, the kilt is the perfect object - it seamlessly combines culture, fine craft work and brilliant design.

The chair was truly stripped this time, the piece of old rag that was tied around the front of the frame was a pair of knickers. A very old pair of knickers... for comfort... maybe not such a perfect object.

the process among the pansies...

Don Rex wears a kilt, buckles and all.

We weren't quite ready to leave our new chair when we'd only just finished it, so it took all the boot and one seat in the back and came with us. Now sitting in Reverse Garbage, hanging with the cool stuff, in Taylor Square waiting for a kilt lover.

Sydney Segue

Flourish and Blume thought they'd have a quick trip to Sydney, especially since our favourite traveling companion invited us for the drive - it's just down the road really (on the iPhone map).


Only a little bit of pollution, only a slight nip in the air, everyone on their iPhones and a hell of an adventure for a couple of country chicks with a chair (I'll get to that later, this is the segue). The best bits: -Graffiti, stencils and a bit of needle craft on a wall in Newtown (I'm sure your iPhone will know which wall). No artist credits I'm sorry, if you hear of who did them get them to tag themselves on Facebook on their iPhone.

-How cool are these? Helacool. They are by Helen Proctor, she was selling them too cheap in Newtown in the bit where they have a little market, right near that wall. You can contact her at this email address: helacool@tpg.com.au

Best of all was the lovely chicks we met up with who offered everything from their beds to their electric blankets - the kind of hospitality that restores a chick's faith in human kindness. We <3 Sydney and the bit just north of it where this house can only go one way...

First Print Press + 100!!

Hey, Flourish and Blume has 100 followers - thank you for joining us! It means a lot when your blogging-on isn't disappearing into the ether and that we can share our enthusiasm with you. And we also got our first bit of press - Home Beautiful magazine pg 34 (below) and figured out how to use our Facebook page. All practically simultaneously (give or take a week!)

Here we are, featuring the chair covered in Umbrella Prints fabric - Grand Hearts in Kimono Red.
We're sorry about that ugly Facebook button on the right, they went and changed it on us and we don't know how to fix it! Give us another week and we may have sorted it out!
Happy winter/summer solstice, may it be auspicious for you too!

'Sitting is Believing'!

These 1970's Cintique chairs have been sitting on our verandah for the last year at the perfect height for us to be seated and undetected by passersby and pop up like meerkats when a car pulled up. As attached as we were to them, we knew that one day they'd transform and leave our little furniture orphanage we call home.

The poor old girls weren't in great shape, nasty dark stain that had gone patchy and even mouldy in places, holes in the rattan and loose legs.

We were unsure if the sanding would ever be finished and the three seater couch went up and down our stairs so many times according to the weather that we developed manly biceps. After many many hours of electric and hand sanding, we finally had that beautiful bare bones structure.

The polishing we love so much, would you look at that grain. And then the rattan... o lordy, what a job but one must be true to the original.

And then a wee jaunt down the motorway to deliver our babies to our dream clients who even had afternoon tea laid out for us, bless. The cintique looked beautiful in their newly refurbished apartment overlooking the ocean.

Fabric is 100% wool from Sustainable Living Fabrics. Colours: 'olive' and 'azalea'.

Hanging with Thea and Sami

We've just returned from a quick nip up to Brisbane with the highlight of our trip being a visit to Thea and Sami 's studio. We had such fun with Thea, we were throwing bolts of fabric around in an excitable frenzy and making a right mess of her pristine studio. Sorry we didn't help you clean up Thea! She even sneaked a pic of us, tape measure and notebook poses ha ha(we really were measuring though!) Thanks so much for having us Thea, we came away truly inspired.

Here's some more photos of the two chairs from the last post using Thea and Sami's 'Marguerite' print on her Dusky Pink linen. SOLD!!

A close-up of the whitewashed teak and neutral linen piping details.

We've used neutral linen for the back as well and nickel tacks for bling.

Thea's taken some photos of two Don Rex chairs of hers that we've nicked off with. We'll keep you posted on what happens to them! We came away with a pressie too - a 'dotty about roses' tea-towel. Katie's going to do something special with it! Thanks Thea :-)