Crushing on CLAIRE
I have had a style crush on Claire Collected for sometime now! I literally gasp every time one of her pics pop on my instagram feed. You seriously HAVE to check out her feed! Follow her on instagram here. So I feel super lucky...and maybe a little star struck to have been able to chat with Claire about her blog, style, photography and future renovation plans!
Claire is a mum of three, who has started a blog Claire Collected that showcases her favourite fashion finds, our colourful home decor, and some super fun party ideas. Check it out here, it is colourful, fun and happy! Enjoy the read! Pip xxx
What inspired you to start your blog Claire Collected? This is a really good question and it's surreal looking back at how it all evolved. When Ruby was born (now 20 months) I spent countless hours looking at beautiful inspiring instagram feeds during those middle of the night breastfeeds. Particularly baby fashion and nursery decor which I was utterly blown away by as it had been such a long time since I had my other two children (8 year gap) I was so impressed with the variety that was now available in terms of kids fashion and decor I couldnt wait to get involved. So that is what I originally blogged on. I started buying cute things I found on instagram and posting them to my private feed. My followers (all 150 of them) loved seeing Ruby, but weren't really that interested in the brands I was getting so excited about. I quickly realised I needed to be sharing this passion with other like minded people not just my real life friends. So I decided I would open my page up to the public, brand it, and start a 'thing'.
I dabbled in the fashion for a little while, sharing my love for supporting small businesses and hand made finds / organic cotton clothing etc with like minded Mamas. Then I started doing my kids rooms up and this is when my blog, and IG feed, took a real turn to include interiors, and I got a boom in subscribers. The response has been amazing, there are a real die hard group of interior lovers on social media (myself now one of them). All looking for inspiration for their own homes just like I was. At the time that I started my blog, everything was monochrome. Everything! I actually quite liked it, but only in small amounts. I had one or two things but quickly realised I was just following a trend, that this really wasn't my true style. So I backed off and went back to my true passions, ignoring the pressure to succumb to instagram trends which can be all too inviting! My first few pictures where I literally just did my own thing were so well received I realised there were lots of people craving something different to look at, away from the scandi / monochrome look that was now everywhere on IG. So colour became my point of difference.. Don't get me wrong, I genuinely LOVE the colour, and I have a house full to the brim with neon pops and all sorts of fun accessories. But I suppose, to settle into what I wanted to be a bit of a niche, I fully EMBRACED the colour. And I've never looked back! My instagram feed is exaggerated. In real life things are a little tidier, a little less cluttered. But that's the whole point, its FUN, it's over the top, it's inspiring. Which to me is what I look for in a blog or instagram feed. Fresh fun inspiration, good vibes, and family fun is what I am about.
Mix or match? MIX, all the way. You only need to glance at my instagram feed to realise there isn't a lot of match, at all ha ha!
Describe your perfect day? COFFEE, beach with our two chocolate labradors, family time, once a week some really good champagne, clean sheets, a good book ( it's been way too long, too many blogs ha ha!), did I mention coffee? ;)
Fave colour combo? ohhhh that is hard! I'm going to say, anything unpredictable, pink with orange, and so on. But at the moment i'm loving pink/peach tones with gold. I have a bit of that going on in my bedroom atm and i'm loving it.
What is your next design project in your home? We are actually about to renovate! yikes! the whole kitchen / family living area. huge project. very very exciting! watch this space! I'm VERY excited to share this with my followers as it progresses.
Describe your style at home? chaos ! ha ha! no really, I often read interviews with people like myself and they are self confessed OCD, that is not me. I am the opposite ! rather unorganised, sigh. I like the warmth and friendliness that colour bursts bring to our home. That said, whilst I can tolerate a bit of clutter for a certain amount of time, I then hit a limit and it's time to put it all away, or rearrange. I suppose I enjoy clusters of things in our home that make it feel like exactly that, a home, but I do enjoy clean lines in the kitchen. Probably because I don't love our kitchen at the moment so I find the only way I can cope with it is to have it spotless! Once we renovate I hope to have some lovely nooks in there just like I have around the rest of the house that make that space really feel like it reflects our happy cheerful family vibe . Spots to display the kids art, plus decor that makes it really feel like home. We are really sick of that space not feeling like home, but haven't wanted to spend any money on it until the renovation is underway. Only weeks away now!
Heels or sneakers? sneakers, always lately! I worked full time in between my older children and Ruby, i've done my time in heels I think! Most days i'm juggling a camera in one hand and a toddler in the other. sneakers are essential.
Dream holiday destination? New York, get me there!
What inspires you? lately, photography. Not necessarily styling photography like mine, but amazing portraits, landscapes, images that take your breath away. I could look at them all day long. I hope to one day have the time to take my photography to the next level and explore new ideas.
What is on your home dream wish list? Oh gosh, this is very relevant to us at the moment. I suppose the biggest thing for us is a large family area that looks out over our back yard. We currently have open plan but low ceilings and not enough room for our family of five, I am absolutely dying to open that up and create a family space. Our oven is currently broken and we are going without until this renovation starts in a few weeks. I am missing that creative outlet, but more so , cannot wait to have a communal space we can be together as a family. So I am lusting after all the usual renovation touches, the polished concrete, island bench, but I'd say the big picture for us is the space, taking the walls out, and the ceilings up, so we can feel like we can all be in that room together and not literally piled up on top of one another !! I love the chaos, but at the moment it's a little cramped for comfort. Not long to go now!
Make sure you jump on over to read Claire's blog here, or check out her instagram! We promise you'll love it as much as we do!