The mid-century modern inspired artwork you have to have by Inaluxe

Another amazing Australian-designed Christmas gift idea: the Sleepy Lion art print by Inaluxe - the masters of mid-century modern-inspired artwork. It's a piece that transcends all ages, and would look pretty fabulous with some beautiful mustard linen sheets, or even adding a massive pop of colour in a neutral space. It's certainly a head-turner.

Finally mini couch covers that you and your child will love

I’m so impressed with this spill-proof mini couch cover by Aussies Alicia, Hayley and Hayley from Marmalade Lion. We had two of those fold-out foam couches in the ugliest fabric possible, and if you have one yourself, you’ll know that the little ones adore them. They have been so practical; and now they can be cute too.

Personalised Brett Curzon kids' book by Hippo Blue

Brett Curzon is a pretty fabulous Australian author and illustrator who has teamed up with Bondville sponsor Hippo Blue to create The Adventures You'll Have - a fun 32-page kids' book about being unique and special, and having the inspiration to Dream Big. Even better - the book is available with either a boy or girl main character and can be personalised with your child's name; and we know how much kids love to see their own name printed! Having your child referenced as the main character puts them front-and-centre in this story of self-belief.

Original A-frame kids play Wonder Tents

You might remember my story on rustic-inspired goodies, including Adelaide-based Such Great Heights in July last year where I showcased their amazing A-frame play tents for kids. There have been lots of imitators along the way, but SGH is still the original and the best. I love that they can guarantee that their products are created ethically, and with the genius conversion kit, the tent becomes a super-stylish clothes rack.

Laura Blythman kidswear

Laura Blythman is without a doubt one of my favourite Australian artists and is super-clever to boot with partnerships with all sorts of Australian makers. One of my favourite collaborations is the kidswear (and cushions, and tea towels, and adult tees!) with The Club of Odd Volumes. So many cute pieces of art ready to wear:

You can find Laura Blythman's kidswear and other homewares at The Club Of Odd Volumes online store.

Read more about Laura Blythman here on Bondville.

Images: Laura Blythman for The Club Of Odd Volumes

Love Mae sale: Let's Go Camping wall decal

Our recent trip to Seattle has me dreaming of fir forests and Sasquatch. Luckily, the indomitable Love Mae has a cute solution with this Let's Go Camping wall decal set, now on sale from $229.95 down to $130.00. Get this and many other sale items for a limited time only (including party goods from $2!) in the Love Mae online store. Be quick!

Image: Love Mae

Crochet watermelon rug for girl's rooms

Do you remember the cute-as house shadow box with pirate scene styled by Karen from Yellow Dandy? Karen is also a keen crafter and sells these amazing handmade crocheted watermelon rugs in her Etsy store. They are beyond fantastic - just look at the face on Karen's gorgeous daughter Willow. Loving it! More great news from Karen - she is opening her very own online store chock-full of gorgeous clothes, design and fun for kids. Can't wait!

If you love watermelons as much as I do, head over to our watermelon birthday party that we had in January with watermelon cake and more!

Image: Yellow Dandy

40 gifts for kids from Australian online stores

Each year I feature fabulous Australian online stores stocking gifts, kids' fashion, kids' interior products and art. These stores are always listed in my shopping directory (make sure you bookmark it!) for whenever you need to order something special online. Here are 40 of my favourite products found in these stores at the moment, for all budgets:

Love these hip fair trade felt softies

I just love these felt softies from Bondville sponsor Happy As Larry Designs. Just look at them! Rabbit and Bono are great for cuddling and as display pieces. They are great gifts for both boys and girls and are made with love in Nepal with pure NZ wool. You can find them in the Happy As Larry Designs online store or at stockists around Australia, US, Israel and online.

Image: Happy As Larry Designs

Homely Creatures kids' room decor

There is so much to love about this image by Melbourne-based kids' homewares brand Homely Creatures. The fawn pillow is beyond cute, and I love the pastel pink with graphic black and white palette.

The great news is that you can find many of these pieces in the one place. Head to the Homely Creatures online store to find the gorgeous fawn pillow, Moon cut-out banner and pink wall dot decals, as well as many other cute homewares for kids' spaces designed by the very clever Emma Patterson. I promise you will love everything!

Image: Homely Creatures

TinyMe wooden name puzzle

Australian company TinyMe are well-known for their cute personalised stickers and products for kids, and are working on the production of this cool-looking wooden name puzzle.

With it's smart felt case and stylish design, it's a great gift idea for babies and small children. If you're interested in purchasing a name puzzle, head over to the Kickstarter page that TinyMe has set up and pledge away; delivery is expected in July 2014.

Image: TinyMe

Make: Free Superhero doll craft pattern

So you crafty types out there - what do you think of these gorgeous DIY Superhero dolls designed by my friend Lisa from the red thread? Head to Lisa's blog now to get the free pattern for these dolls and surprise the little ones in your life. Great for using up scrap fabric!

Image: the red thread

Dudley Co amazing toddler ride ons

Hang on - a cool toy for the kids that ticks the boxes of the design-sensitive too?!? Dudley Co.'s Courtney Wall and her carpenter husband create these fantastic toddler ride-on scooters in Brisbane. Each piece is hand-crafted and screen-printed in Brisbane to suit one to four-year-olds. So great.

Dudley Co.'s ride ons are handmade in Brisbane using certified plywood, sealed with a water-based polish, and finished with solid rubber casters and water-based paints. The ride on is available in three designs, but as they are hand screen-printed, each is unique. They are tested by the couple's son and his friends who love them to bits. I can see why!

You can find Dudley Co.'s ride ons in the online store.

Image: Dudley Co.

One Very Tired Wombat children's book by Renee Treml

Renee Treml is both a dear friend of mine and a talented illustrator-turned-author/illustrator. Her first children's book One Very Tired Wombat is a counting book for kids full of her incredible illustrations of Australian animals and... wait for it... is on the 2013 Crichton Award shortlist for new illustrators!

What is the message of your story for kids?

RT: Other than the counting theme, I wanted to show off some of my favourite (and sometimes lesser known) Australian birds. I always hope that after reading my book, a child will recognize a crested pigeon or fairy wren in the wild.

Is the Very Tired Wombat based on a real character?

RT: Wombat is based on a common wombat I saw at Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, Brisbane, in 2007 – just a few weeks after I moved to Australia. It was the first time I had ever seen a wombat and all he did was sleep, despite all the noisy children, lorikeets and kookaburras around him. I didn’t realize how impressed I was by his ability to just sleep until the illustrations started popping up in my imagination.

Where did your inspiration for this story come from?

RT: The story came to life after I started illustrating the above mentioned sleeping wombat – first I drew him with one frogmouth, then two galahs, then three kookas and so on. I kept hoping someone else would come along and write me a story featuring the wombat, which I could illustrate.  f course, this didn’t happen, so after my son was born I decided to try to write it myself.  It took well over a year for the story to transform from a straight-up boring counting book (1 frogmouth, 2 galahs…) to the story it is now.

Have you always been interested in illustrating animals, and in particular, Australian animals?

RT: I have always been interested in illustrating animals and I tend to be interested in whatever is in my immediate environment. In the States, it was chickadees and barred owls.  Here in Australia, it’s wombats and frogmouths and boobooks…

How did you decide to make the transition from illustrator to author and illustrator?

RT: Taking on a new title is tough – I didn’t study writing and was very unsure about claiming myself to be an author. But after Wombat was published and the second contract was signed I had to look myself in the mirror and repeat ‘I’m an author-illustrator’ until I believed it.

Are there any more children's books in the works?

RT: Yes! Colour for Curlews is due out in September – in fact it’s at the printers now and I’m anxiously awaiting my preview copy to arrive in a few weeks. Curlews is published by Random House Australia and follows the two curious curlews and a host of other birds as they get into mischief with my paint brushes and paint. (Of course Wombat makes a guest appearance as well.)  I am finishing up two other manuscripts that feature Aussie natives and another pesky one about a cheeky owl that I just can’t seem to whip into shape.

You can find One Very Tired Wombat in good bookstores including Fishpond, and Amazon. Read more about Renee Treml here on Bondville.

Images: One Very Tired Wombat

JAB Designs Australian animal melamine plates at UrbanBaby - 25% off

You know I'm a sucker for good Australiana and I love these melamine plates featuring Australian animals by JAB Designs. Head to UrbanBaby where they are currently 15% off, and get an extra 10% off with the code JUNE10 through until 16th June, 2013. Perfect for the kids and the mono-colour photo prints are so on-trend right now.

Image: UrbanBaby

Spatz personalised superhero capes and masks for kids

We're all about imaginative play at our house, and our dress-up box is the most popular item in our toy room. Hooray for kids' imaginations! I spotted these amazing Spatz superhero costumes today on Facebook (thanks Kylee!) that my kids would go nuts for - masks and personalised capes!

Chalk Chook handmade chalk

My friend Kate (Katie Crackernuts) knows me well and when she sniffs out a great Australian-designed product for families, she sends it my way. Lucky for me, she found a gem with these Chalk Chook hand-crafted chalk products. So great for the school holidays and for parties too!

Herbert and Friends softies, cushions and cards

Another super find from my outing to Koskela a few weeks ago were beautifully-made softies by Torunn from Herbert and Friends. Half-Swedish Torunn lives in Sydney and creates said softies, cushions and greeting cards featuring her quirky-cool characters.

Torunn's softies are made from recycled felt, cotton, faux fur and eco-friendly filling. Can you stand those little faces? The cushions would be great in either a girl's or boy's room and the greeting cards would work well for both girls and boys too.

You can find Herbert and Friends in the online store as well as stockists around Australia and online.

Images: Herbert and Friends

Parrot Carrot book for kids

It's fantastic to see local artists teaming up with local writers to create excellent illustrated children's books. Such is the case with Sydney-based Kate and Jol Temple, who have collaborated with super-talented illustrator Jon Foye (also based in Sydney) to create the beautiful book Parrot Carrot, launching at the end of this month. This is a fun rhyming book that will appeal to a pre-schooler's silly side - a parrot that looks like a carrot?!??! That's crazy!

Jon Foye's fantastical illustrations and hand-drawn typography will appeal to the little ones as well as design-savvy parents. I'm feeling a whole line of licensed products using these illustrations! Who wouldn't love a Whale Snail t-shirt or a Hawk Cork backpack? (I'm looking directly at you Kate, Jol and Jon!)

Carrot Parrot is published by Allen and Unwin.You are cordially invited to the Parrot Carrot book launch, 4pm Sunday 30th October 2011 at Ariel Book Shop, 42 Oxford St, Paddington, NSW. I'm thinking a signed copy of the first edition will be pretty special for years to come. And there is an app coming soon - keep an eye on the Parrot Carrot website.

Images: Parrot Carrot

Tiges and Weince Christmas stockings and goodies

I kept meaning to make amazing Christmas stockings for the girls last year and of course never got around to it, so they went without (sad face) and instead enjoyed their enormous mountain of gifts. What I should have done is just order one of these beauties from Tiges and Weince.