And this is what she said. As a creative person, I have always been surrounded by artists and creators. I’ve always been inspired by products that share a story and treasures that have been made by someone with their own hands. I’ve spent a lifetime collecting such treasures and supporting their creators to keep making, to keep sharing their talents. Through Scouted Design, it has been an absolute pleasure to be able to combine this passion with interior décor and now styling and source items to share with other like-minded individuals. What makes us different, I guess that would be Alice, our 1969 renovated vintage caravan. She is a 10-foot vintage Regal Caravan and with the exception of the timber Bi-fold window at the rear and the indoor cabinet (needed for additional storage) she is completely original and she is a real talking point.
We source handmade items as locally as we can, all our items sourced off shore are from brands with strict Fair-trade policies. We are also environmentally sustainable in a number of ways. All our products are of high eco standard - organic and made from natural fibres and materials, with the majority of our wood products carved from reclaimed timber. We reuse packaging and boxes from stock orders to package our online orders, meaning nothing goes to waste or is added to landfill. Our office is entirely digital with all our accounting, invoicing, receipting being managed paper free. We very proudly use paper bags at our pop ups instead of plastic and actively promote the use of reusable bags, even stocking a range of them ourselves.OF COURSE ECO PACKAGING COMES AT A COST AND THE GREATEST CHALLENGES AT TIMES CAN BE COST AND FINDING GREEN ALTERNATIVES SO THAT WE REMAIN FINANCIALLY VIABLE AND CAN CONTINUE WITH WHAT WE ARE DOING.We have managed to overcome most obstacles through building relationships with others, connecting with others, learning from those around us and not being afraid to question people. Rewards have by far been the relationships we have built with people and the differences that we are making in supporting people rather than multinationals.
At Scouted Design we scout for makers, 100% of our treasures are made by someone, crafted by hand often by people with skills passed down to them through the generations, mostly women who have families to support. It is this type of purchasing that gives us goose bumps, supporting this type of process empowers people, builds communities and ensures that these skills continue and are not lost or replaced by factories, machines and big business.
When it comes to styling your home, ensure you start with a neutral colour palette especially in your big items such as lounges. Ensure that your furniture is appropriately sized for your space, slim lines and light colours will always create the illusion of space.Choose items that you love, that strike a chord with you, the type of pieces that you think about two weeks later and regret buying, you will be less likely to buy items that are ‘on trend’, breaking that ‘disposable’ attitude that plagues us, creating an environmentally and socially sustainable home that reflects you and your uniqueness.Natural fibres, we love them, they always create warmth in your home.
My personal sustainability mission is in everything that I am and everything that I do, I have taken lots of serious steps to reduce my own foot print and promote this to others. I believe the most powerful way to change those around you is by doing, showing others how simple it can be and how small changes make big differences. Just like with Scouted Design I take great pleasure in sourcing things as locally as I can, handmade where ever possible and I can’t get enough of natural fibres.
2019 will see us continue with our Pop ups with Alice stretching our current horizons and into regions such as the Sunshine Coast, Gold Coast and Northern Rivers New South Wales.We also have some very exciting prospects on the horizon which will see us Styling and Staging properties for Photography and sale which we are incredibly excited to explore and watch grow.