March 27, 2019
Getting to know the design duo behind Zephyr + Stone.
Kasia Clarke & Ania Forster are the sisters behind the phenomenal interior design brand, Zephyr + Stone.
Best known for their design and styling tips, with thousands of raving loyal followers tuning in across the platforms of Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook & their online blog.
Their love for natural materials and neutral colour palettes is inspiring home renovators, stylists & homewares lovers everywhere.
The sisters are respected as experts in great home design, that is not only aesthetically beautiful but functional too. Thanks for joining me ladies.
I would love to hear more about how Zephyr + Stone was created and what it’s like working with family every day?
Zephyr and Stone was created mid-2017. Previous to this, we lived interstate from each other for a decade (Kasia in Melbourne and Ania in Queensland), so had never considered working together. When Kasia moved to the Gold Coast in 2017, it quickly became apparent that our career directions were similar, so we decided to join forces and Z + S was born. We work incredibly well together and our skill sets compliment one another. We both play important roles and combined have so much more to offer than individually. We’re lucky that we can be brutally honest with each other (as only sisters can be) and we don’t take one another opinions personally, so we have a great working relationship.
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Your signature styling & design tips are so ingenious and functional. What is the best piece of advice you can give anyone who is renovating or building? And how can we ensure that our home is functional without compromising on the aesthetic?
Whilst we love a beautiful aesthetic, our biggest consideration when designing a space is that it meets the needs of it’s intended occupants. When a space is designed specifically for the way its occupants live and their needs, it is functional and improves the quality of their everyday life. Our best piece of advice is not to skip the planning stage, and to consider all elements and requirements before getting bogged down with finishes and colours. After the layout of a space is finalised, it’s easy to select finishes and palettes to suit your desired aesthetic. Choose a style or colour and this becomes your baseline that all ongoing selections are made from. Below we choose grey and used grey linen sheets as a base.
What does your average day look like and what is your favourite part of interior design?
Every day is different which is one of the best parts of our business. We always start our days really early, with exercise, kids routines and running around before hitting the office by about 8:30am. We usually spend at least 2 days in the office together, designing, writing and working ‘on the business’. The rest of the time consists of site visits, showroom visits, client meetings and some time working from our home offices individually. Our favourite part of design is definitely creating solutions. We love solving a good design problem and creating spaces that are both functional and aesthetically beautiful.
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We know that you specialise in kitchen, laundry and bathroom design. Can you tell us about any upcoming trends that we can look forward to seeing in these spaces?
As our lives are getting busier, there’s an increasing demand on homes to be a sanctuary away from the everyday. Also there is a clear shift to smaller homes due to smaller lot sizes and more households of single or couple occupants. Therefore homes will increasingly need to be designed with smart solutions and rooms that can adapt to multiple uses. We’re definitely seeing a shift to more minimal lines, and uncomplicated designs with a clear resurgence in natural finishes such as timber, concrete and stone and natural fibre textures such as linen bedding. Think downsizing, but upscaling finishes.
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What are your styling essentials and what are a few pieces that you couldn’t live without?
We are strong believers in quality over quantity and that less is more. We love styling spaces simply and incorporating elements of texture and nature in each space. We often use native foliage to add this natural element and most of our styled spaces include ceramics and trays and layers to create warmth and texture.
In todays fast paced lifestyle, winding down and getting a good nights sleep is much harder. Do you have a bedtime routine or anything you swear by to ensure you get the rest you need?
We try to switch off from our phones and social media before getting into bed. Charging phones away from the bedroom is a must and generally incorporate nightly rituals like yoga and herbal teas into each evening. We’re definitely early to bed as we find the early hours of each day most and are most productive.
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Tell us something we don’t already know about you?
We live a few streets apart, spend more time together than we do with our husbands and are always trying to out-pun each other.
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What’s coming up for Zephyr & Stone?
We have several exciting client and personal projects underway or in the pipeline, including a duplex we’re designing which will be showcasing Coastal Design two ways. That’s all we’re willing to reveal…you’ll just have to wait and see for the rest!
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Kasia & Ania's favourite product from The Cover Collective is
"Our favourite products from The Cover Collective are definitely your linen sheet sets. We'd never opted for linen because it wasn't soft enough, but your linen absolutely converted us. Thank you"
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Contact Kasia & Ania from Zephyr & Stone on the below platforms:
Thank you for taking the time to read our interview.
I hope you loved reading it as much as I loved writing it.
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Live Well,
Nikki &
The Team at The Cover Collective
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