Meet Fiona Parry-Jones of Von Haus... 
I started my journey as a fine artist in Wales and travelled around the world to Australia where my background in colour and textiles led me into the world of interiors. I never imagined that I would be designing peoples homes for a living, and the favourite part of my job is stepping into peoples lives and helping them to express who they really are and aspire to be through the designs I create.

TDC - Tell us about you. What do you do? 
In 2008 I launched my own brand Von Haus Design Studio where I now incorporate a range of colour, interior design and small build solutions to transform homes into creative and happy spaces.
 
TDC - What sets your studio apart? 
My knowledge and passion for colour and textiles has been the foundation of my design studio. I like to delve into my client’s dreams and deliver tailored solutions that are carefully planned and executed with detail. We recently launched design, build and style packages for small spaces after finding a gap in the market for a one-stop shop to deliver bathrooms, laundries and other small projects that the big guys don’t like to touch. Watch this space!

TDC - What design ethos do you live by? 
Colour and design are essential to how we live and in order for it to be done well; my job is to help clients imagine unique and creative ways to bring life and efficiency to their homes.
Team communication is a crucial element to the success of my business. Building rapport and trust with clients and trades ensures the delivery of a successful result, which we live by.

TDC - What's the favourite project you’ve worked on and why? 
A Northcote home we designed a few years is one of my personal favourites. A colourful and artistic home that embraced the family’s needs and personality. We commissioned an artist to create a mural in the garden that incorporates the family name and the kids retreat was a have of creativity they could grow in over the years with a wall of art and personal projects to inspire them. It was a lot of fun.
 
TDC - What plans do you have for the future?  
I would actually like to do more painting again. I gave up the paintbrushes once life and work got increasingly busy but would now like to bring this back into my life and make it another outlet for my design studio. I also have plans to publish a book on colour exploring the benefits it has on our home and how to break down the barriers people have with it.

Other than that I would love to design Kylie Minogue's house so Kylie call me if you read this!

Meet Manuela...

Manuela Millan is a Melbourne-based interior designer and the founder of Meanwhile in
Melbourne. She started the popular Meanwhile_in_Melbourne Instagram account as a
way of collecting and showcasing local designers and their work. In 2017 she launched
meanwhileinmelbourne.com as a way to share her passion for Melbourne design and get
to know the stories behind the creatives at the heart of the Melbourne design
community.

TDC - Tell us about you. What do you do?
I am an interior designer at Elenberg Fraser and I founded the design blog Meanwhile in
Melbourne. I am very passionate about design and I love discovering new makers and
artists. We do interviews and articles with Melbourne creatives, and we have a strong
social media presence. We launched our site in mid-2017 and we’ve been flat out
creating content since then. We’ve been overwhelmed by the response and we’re
energised to keep discovering and sharing local talent.

TDC - What sets your blog apart?
We focus on Melbourne design. By doing this we can cover local design in greater
depth, and also cover a very wide variety of designers and makers. We are constantly
discovering fresh and exciting creatives, while also featuring Melbourne’s more
established and well-known designers.
We love going into the studios to do our interviews face-to-face, and we take our photos at
the same time. This gives our articles a sense of genuineness which I think our readers pick up
on and appreciate.
Our curated Directory lets you search and easily find locally-made products, and our Events
Calendar lets you keep your finger on the pulse of what’s happening in the Melbourne design
scene.

TDC - What design ethos do you live by?
Authenticity and integrity are very important to me, also the value of determination and
perseverance. These values have served me well in my career so far and have helped
me to get to where I am.

TDC - What's your favourite interview you’ve done and why?
It’s impossible to pick a favourite but one which stands out was our interview with the
artist Rone on the Omega Project at the old Paper Mill site in Alphington. I was just
visiting the site on a Sunday to have a look and we didn’t know that Rone would be
there. We saw him and had a chat and did the interview then and there. It was a true
“Five Minutes With” and was a great experience.

TDC - What plans do you have for the future?
I want to keep growing Meanwhile in Melbourne and getting to know more local
designers and makers. I want to expand the Directory and do more collaborations with
other creatives in the future.
​

Meet Jason Chongue from The Plant Society... Green thumb extraordinaire!

TDC - Tell us about your brand. What do you do? 
The Plant Society has been born from a passion for design and plants, but also to create a plant community, or as we like to call it, a ‘plant social network’. Our goal is to nurture and preserve rare and interesting plant species for future generations and share the knowledge and skills required to grow them with our community. By celebrating plants and all things green, we hope to establish a knowledge bank of skills and techniques that can be enjoyed by all plant enthusiasts, whatever their skill level.
Alongside our plant foraging we are actively involved on a range of events and projects to promote positive and open conversations around greenery. We collaborate closely, designing greener spaces, both internal and external, with architects, interior designers, council and developers.

TDC -  What sets your brand apart? 
We make sure to tailor our service for varied industries and spaces. There is never one simple answer when it comes to indoor greenery, so we work alongside our clients to design the right solution and maintenance service for their needs.

TDC - What design ethos do you live by? 
We aim to motivate a considered use of indoor greenery in our urban context. The more greenery we use in our indoor spaces, both public and private, the lusher our city will become.

TDC - What's your favourite plant and why?
Devil’s Ivy (Epipremnum aureum) is one of my favourite plants to use in interiors. With spaces becoming smaller they are the prefect plant to suspend from ceilings and cascade off shelves.

TDC - What plans do you have for the future?  
We’re set to open our Sydney store within weeks and are excited to be launching our book in the UK and USA in April.
​

Sisällä is about creating spaces for living, always with good vibes. We share a Scandinavian design philosophy of beautiful, authentic design, combined with a sophisticated use of colour and interesting mix of materials. 
Sisällä is Lauren and Phil Li, a husband and wife team, with a studio based in South Yarra.  We focus on creating a full interior design and styling service for residential projects.
 
TDC - Tell us about your Sisalla. What do you do? 
At Sisällä we are all about creating spaces with a great atmosphere, they have to feel good as well as look beautiful and function seamlessly.
We are completely immersed in the interior design world, and love nothing more than to share our ideas and unique finds from near and far.
In the spirit of sharing, we offer studio sessions on various interior design topics.  Held in our studio, which is more like a chic apartment than an office, we hope to inspire with our mix of local and international furniture pieces and artwork.  Living in Melbourne is a great city for design, we love to share the local makers, artists and do-ers in our apartment.  Our collection of our favorite things is shoppable on our website enabling to find all of the good stuff in one place!
 
TDC -  What sets your studio apart? 
Sisällä is approachable and we love to share!  We share our knowledge to others in the design community and aim to nurture new talent.  We also love sharing information about our projects, in the hope to open up good design to all and not just keep it a secret!  We believe that design should be democratic, not snobby and elite.

TDC - What design ethos do you live by? 
Design should make everyday moments feel good.  At Sisällä we aim to create good vibes.  The spaces we design have a great atmosphere and we also focus on making the interior design process enjoyable for our clients.
 
TDC - What's your favourite project you have designed and why? 
Our favorite project is always the most recent.  We have designed the interiors for a lovely family, which is almost complete and looking absolutely stunning.  Since they lived in Asia over a number of years, we have integrated their love of Chinese antique pieces, mixed with European design for a space that truly reflects their story.  We have got to know each member of the family well (even the dog) and it’s very rewarding seeing the pieces arrive and the space come together.  It’s a great feeling for us when they tell us how much they all love being together at home.
 
TDC - What plans do you have for the future?  
Sisällä is sharing even more in 2018! We are launching our apartment with accompanying online platform to share our design finds with everyone, not just our clients.  We’re holding our studio sessions and already have bookings up to June, which is very exciting.  We are also working on a Sisällä product range of small furniture pieces and cushions.  We look forward to sharing with you!

View Sisalla events here.

“For me, weaving projects a mood. I follow my instinct to create designs that feel balanced. I am very visual, always taking note of my surroundings and believe this is reflected in my work.”
— TAMMY KANAT

TDC - Tell us about your brand. What do you do?
I am a fiber artist
 
TDC -  What sets your brand apart?
Innovation is at the heart of my work.

TDC - What design ethos do you live by?
To keep connected with my work and always produce authentic designs.
 
TDC - What plans do you have for the future?  
To keep creating with passion and  experimenting  with new ideas.