MINI SPACE: Harper + Henry Lee

Pop Factorys; Bridget Lee with Henry and Harper
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You may have spotted the shortened version of this feature in the current issue of Homestyle and now finally here is the full juicy one worthy of some scrolling!
I popped down to Tauranga to visit the clever Bridget Lee of Pop Factory and check out the spaces she has created for her little boys; Harper and Henry.
The playful and graphic style that comes through in her brand (which she has in partnership with her brother Chris), was translated brilliantly into cool and totally livable rooms.
Further down you can learn how Bridget and her husband Jon put the rooms together and stay tuned for more from Pop Factory here very soon!

WHO LIVES HERE:
Jonathon & Bridget Lee with Harper (3.5yrs) and Henry Beau (1.5years).

WHAT WAS YOUR PLAN BEHIND THE DECORATION OF THE ROOMS?
Our aesthetic is simple, individual, nostalgic, playful, and modern. We don’t like clutter, we appreciate well designed built to last furniture and toys, that are not quickly outgrown.

HENRYS:
The nursery was planned all around the very special Catherine Martin wallpaper – “The circus is coming to town”. We fell in love with it when we were living in Sydney and had to bring it home with us, we moved home when I was six months pregnant with Harper. We chose not to find out the sex our either of our babies, so the nursery needed to be neutral – navy, white and grey with a few pops of colour was the chosen colour scheme. It’s a small room, so we minimised furniture, for example we left out a change table and instead used a change mat on top of the drawers. All toys are stored away in drawers in the wardrobe. The Wishbone Flip is a fabulous little rocker / ride-on and has been well loved by the two of them.

HARPERS:
The big boy room – we began this a few months out from Henry being born. Jon is a very keen fisherman and like father like son so is Harper, so we decided on a bit of a nautical theme. As Harps has grown he’s added his own interests and collections into the space. We used navy, grey and white again, we like the idea of being able to change things from room to room. We decided that because this room was bigger, we wanted to use it as bit of a communal play space and keep as much of the floor space clear as possible. Instead of bunks we went with a trundler option to save on space for visitors. A lot of the furniture is on castors so it can be easily moved around, which is super handy when we’re setting up huts and ‘caves’.

WHAT ARE YOU FAVOURITE FEATURES IN THE ROOMS?

HENRYS:
The wallpaper is still very loved, everyone comments as they enter the room. Our bearbrick (little bears on the picture ledge) collection is special, Jon and I collected these together for many years before the boys were on the scene. I’m a massive linen lover, the G.Nancy bears cot duvet was a perfect addition to Henry’s room, in fact both the boys love to snuggle under it. The pillow cases are by Pop Factory, such a fun and easy way to instantly change the feel of the bedding, though they both quickly settled on their favourites. The Kartell unit and Kartell Lu lu ghost chair were also purchases bought back from Sydney, so practical and hard wearing. Of course before leaving the country we did an ikea run, the picture ledges and forward facing book shelves are such economical and effective way to display the favourites. We have a collection of Little Golden books on the shelves, these are from all over the place, some were ours, some were thrifted, some were given – such a treasure.

HARPERS:
The fish wall is a bit of feature, and idea we’d seen on pinterest. We’ve suggested to Harps that we change it, he’d prefer we didn’t – definitely a favourite for him. The table and chairs have been great, they were purchases online from JS Interiors in Auckland. The shelves on castors are from Freedom, perfect stand for the puppet theatre and the overflow of books. The metal lockable cabinet was an Ikea purchase, an ideal place to store lego creations to keep them safe from little bro. Harper is very fascinated with Lego, so we added the Ikea picture ledges to display his mini figure collection which he is super proud of. Kip & Co velvet bean bag is a new addition, so lush, the boys like to jump off the bed and ‘splat’ into it – also a very good reading spot!

IN HINDSIGHT, IF YOU COULD MAKE ANY CHANGES WHAT WOULD THEY BE?These rooms are evolving spaces, we’re always in there changing and moving things about. We’d love to change the curtains, roman blinds would be ideal. Some new pendant lighting in both rooms would be a great addition too. Oh and some Armadillo & Co rugs wouldn’t go a miss either!

DID YOU GET CRAFTY YOURSELF? ANY DIY FEATURES THAT YOU PULLED TOGETHER?
Yes, we sure did! A lot of the these elements we made ourselves. The prints on the walls were designed by the boys Uncle Chris. Chris is the other half of Pop Factory and he wanted to design something fun for their rooms.  Others noticed them on instagram etc and inquired, I guess that’s how Pop Factory began!
The drawers in Harpers room are a TradeMe find, we really struggled to find a solid set of drawers that we liked, so we sanded and painted them up, removed the legs and added castors, we’re so happy with the result and they’re just the right height for Harper. The lampshade in Henry’s room is a plain drum covered in a remnant of the Catherine Martin wallpaper.

BETWEEN THE INTERNET AND MAGAZINES THERE ARE SO MANY SOURCES OF INSPIRATION OUT THERE TO KICK START INTERIOR PROJECTS.
DO YOU HAVE ANY PARTICULAR INTERNET HAUNTS OR APPS THAT YOU CAN’T QUITE GET ENOUGH OF?
I wish I had time to trawl the net like the days prior to Pop Factory and two busy boys! I love The Selby for a peek inside the lives of the best creatives out there. Whilst planning the boys rooms, I used to spend a fair bit of time on Apartment Therapy. I loved the room tours under the family section. Nowadays, it’s all about whatever pops up on my instagram feed and a fleeting scroll through pinterest.

All photography by Julia Atkinson for Junior’s
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This post was bought to you with the partnership and support of Homestyle magazine.