Aussie Interior Designer shares her latest in-home project!
Today on the blog, Australian Interior Designer Amy McBride from MAX and Duke gives us a tour into her baby boy’s fun filled playspace!
From it’s cheerful pops of colour, to the well thought out space that encourages child development through play based learning, this stunning Sydney playroom ticks all the right boxes! And that fireplace – OMG!
When chatting to Amy McBride of Max and Duke, she was kind of enough to share a few of her favourite interior styling tips, her fave kids interior and decor brands, and also shared a little insight into how she started her Interior Design business with mother’s group bestie Bianca Helena.
Your business Max and Duke – how long have you guys been working together in this field, what made you decide to team up?
Max & Duke was created two years ago when we (Bianca Helena & Amy McBride) realised we had much more in common than just our two tiny tots! Meeting at Mothers Group, we bonded over our love of chocolate, coffee (isn’t that what Mum’s of newborns survive on?!) and of course interior decorating and styling of children’s rooms and spaces.
What do you love most about being an interior designer?
The best part of the job? Who doesn’t love ‘creating visual magic’ by transforming a room or blank space into a stylish work of art? And on top of that, being able to do that while having fun and laughs with a dear friend! That’s what we call winning.
Your current fave interior decor designers/brands?
This one is totally hard! There are so many small brands we love to support!
– Amigos de Hoy
– Olliella
– The designs of duo Mr and Mrs White
– Pax and Hart
… could carry on and on with all the small brands we have worked with …
What are your top three tips for parents when planning a kid’s room?
1. Make the room practical for your child and allow your child’s unique personality to shine through in your design.
2. Design a room that will grow with your child. This can usually be done with a neutral base & let the accessories you add to the room bounce with colour or the theme chosen. By adding or taking away a few of these accessories/elements you are able to change the look/update the room with minimal work as your munchkin gets older and wants a more ‘grown up room’.
3. Many parents choose to use a theme as a jumping off point in designing their child’s room. If choosing a theme for a kids room you can downplay it which will make it look stylish without being too literal. (Safari themed doesn’t just need to mean wild animals). Allow the room to compliment the rest of your home.
The playroom – What do you love most about this space you created?
We love that the playroom optimises the word ‘PLAY’. It is bright, innovative, functional, and heaps of fun! This room is sure to put a smile on any face and will bring out the inner kid in any adult!! It’s a super fun, enjoyable place for the kids.
ABOVE: Beautiful hand illustrated dinosaur artwork by DINO RAW.
ABOVE: Amy built Max’s art station from a piece of pegboard and accessorized it with Ikea pots. Max is 2 and gets into everything (as toddlers like to do!) so this was a good way for Amy to store art supplies out of reach. Amy and Bianca of Max and Duke like to include the kids and clients in each room they create. Here Amy added Max’s handprint to the wall for a personal touch. The magnetic strip (also Ikea) allows Amy to display Max’s artwork or style prints to change up the room – so clever!
ABOVE: The Ubabub Booksees and Dinosaur Book cradle (Bear & Sparrow) have been favourite purchases of Amy’s for this space. Max loves reading and Amy likes to reward/encourage him with books. The Booksees are awesome to display not only books but artwork and prints while the book cradle is home to all of Max’s favourites! Amy changes up the cradle every month so they aren’t reading the same stories.
Amy tells us she is always adding things and changing her little boy’s play space. This playroom features the cool Freddy Alphabet cushion & a beanbag Max’s Nanna in NZ made for him (the black and white check one to the left).
ABOVE: Comfy seating in a reading area – with floor cushions by Amigos de Hoy (one of Amy’s fave brands).
ABOVE: Amy loves to inject a little fun into kids playrooms. According to Amy, this helium balloon “is a sure fire way to add a bit of excitement for kids young and old!” TOTALLY agree!
If you love Max and Duke’s style as much as I do and you’d love to see how they can help you to create a cool space for your minis, check them out below. (Psst their insta is drool worthy!)
Biggest thanks to Amy for allowing us to tour little Max’s cool playroom. I’m off to try and hunt down a certain helium balloon!
Thanks for stopping by,
love ness X
NOTE: all images are credited to Amy McBride of Max and Duke
Love this play space and how they talk about connecting it to the rest of the house…. can’t wait to rip out some brown carpet and update a few rooms.
Thanks for the inspo!
Ripping up carpet, sounds exciting!Love a good reno – good luck with it!
There is no mention of the amazing artwork on the walls. Where can we find those dinosaur prints?
Hi Tina, great point, the artwork is the BEST! I have a dinosaur obsessed nephew, i’m checking it rrrrriiiiigggght now….
They are by Dino Raw – I will add a link to the post now for you X