Calling All Adventurers

October 27, 2022
BY Kate Rabbitt

If your child is an adventurous animal lover, you will both fall in love with this safari inspired bedroom by Mini Casa. Parents Paul and Leanne were reaching the end of their new home build and were seeking some inspiration to design a bedroom for their little boy. A room that would grow with him (as he was only 2 years old at the time!) and a selection of furniture and decor that was as unique as their son. With a keen eye for detail, interior designer Sandy Folder of Sydney based design studio Mini Casa has successfully drawn on the brief using a combination of rich colour, texture and a sense of adventure.

Building a home is an exciting yet stressful experience. So many decisions need to be made over a relatively short timeframe that even the best of us can reach a point of decision fatigue. Paul and Leanne had spent so much time and energy on the rest of the house they realised if they didn’t ask for help when it came to the children’s rooms, they might not honour the detail and care they had managed elsewhere. They chose to partner with Sandy Folder from Mini Casa whose timeless aesthetic appealed to them.

The Brief

“I wanted each room to be unique to each child and I felt a designer could help me draw these differences out. We were on such a roll with the rest of the house I was worried that I wasn’t going to truly hear what each child wanted without someone else listening too”, explains Leanne.

Jonathon was only two when this room was designed so he didn’t have too many opinions to give. Instead, his love of animals and a clearly curious nature informed the style choices. When Sandy started the journey with Paul and Leanne, they had already chosen the wall colour and the timber joinery. Add in the original fireplace and it really became about making a unique and beautiful space for Jonathon that worked with these existing features. Having only one uninterrupted wall made meant careful thought was required to make sure the space did not feel too busy, though high ceilings certainly helped as well!

Design Inspiration

Drawing on the animal theme was a non-negotiable but doing so using an African feel enriches the story of the room as does having the different animal forms: the Charlie in the Woods framed art, hand carved wooden toys, Fiona Walker felt animal heads, cushions and even the careful selection of books on display. The lion head mirror from Etsy continues the animal parade taking pride of place above the mantlepiece.

The room has a feel of adventure created through little touches like the ever-important camera which an intrepid explorer would never leave behind, or the outback campfire play set giving the impression of being on safari. The added benefit the African theme is the ability to introduce amazing hues of earth from the African landscape. The Bloomingville rug not only captures these colours but also the feel of native handicrafts through geometric shapes and variations in depth.

Decor Details

The tan ottoman from Onyx and Smoke provides a reading zone for Jonathon to enjoy his books or play with his wooden animals. Adding natural fabrics such as leather and linen really help to ground a room, and both suit as a child gets a bit older.

“Sandy’s use of natural materials like wood, hand crafted art and natural fabrics give Jonathon’s room a beautiful earthy quality which I love. Too many furniture items for kids nowadays are a bit plastic fantastic so it is lovely having hand-made, carefully crafted pieces. That speaks to the level of quality and care taken in designing this space which will withstand the test of time”, says Leanne.

Being at the pointy end of their build journey, Paul and Leanne appreciated Sandy’s streamlined process as well as her ability to deliver on what they asked. “Everything just works. Every detail makes sense. It is playful yet has a mature quality”, confirms Paul.