Finding design inspiration in the Southern Highlands
Where to Shop, Stay and Get Inspired
As an interior designer, one of my favourite things to do is visit new places, stay in beautifully designed accommodation and uncover interesting suppliers, makers and products for client projects.
Recently, I spent a couple of days exploring the beautiful Southern Highlands of New South Wales, including Bowral, Moss Vale and Bundanoon.
As someone constantly looking for new sources of interior design inspiration and unique pieces for client projects, I found the Southern Highlands to be a lovely mix of antique furniture, curated interiors, homewares stores and boutique accommodation.
I stayed at Osborn House in Bundanoon, which provided the perfect base for exploring the region as well as enjoying some downtime.
If you love interiors, antiques, homewares, gardens and good food, the Southern Highlands deserves a place on your travel list.
Highlights include -
Boutique Accommodation - Osborn House Hotel , Bundanoon
Best Vintage Finds - Dirty Janes Antique Emporium, Bowral
To die for Homewares Store - Suzie Anderson Home, Mossvale
Garden Inspiration - The Potting Shed, Green Lane, Bowral
Beautiful selection of home goods, pottery, house wear, found objects &
handmade wares - Field and Potter
Gabrielle enjoying a Design day out in Bowral in the Southern Highlands. Suzie Anderson Home store in the Green Lane Shopping District.
First Stop - Moss Vale
Surrounded by rolling farmland, vineyards and beautiful gardens, Moss Vale is one of the Southern Highlands' most charming country towns. After a leisurely breakfast at Osborn House (included with our stay), we enjoyed a scenic 20-minute drive through the countryside to explore the town of Moss Vale.
Suzie Anderson Home is a destination in itself
Coming across ‘Suzie Anderson Home’ on the main street of Moss Vale was a lovely surprise. An even better surprise was discovering there are actually two stores located opposite each other.
The original store feels a little like stepping into an English country home, with earthy colours, classic furniture, beautiful lighting and carefully curated accessories. Every room vignette is thoughtfully styled and full of inspiration for anyone decorating their own home.
Across the road, the second store is more like a beautifully curated department store, featuring living room and bedroom settings, fashion, homewares and gifts.
What I particularly loved was how immersive the stores felt. Rather than simply displaying products, they create complete rooms and experiences, helping visitors visualise how pieces might work in their own homes. It is the sort of place that reminds you how important styling and presentation are when creating a beautiful home.
‘Suzie Anderson Home’ in Moss Vale feels like stepping into a beautiful country home.
The Mossy Store is a charming spot
If you’re looking for something a little different and handmade the Mossy Store is the home of handcrafted furniture and homewares and work by local artists.
Informed by the owner’s backgrounds in photography and architecture, Mossy Store features their own Workshop Originals furniture crafted from sustainably sourced Australian hardwoods with a minimalist mid-century aesthetic.
Bowral is a must visit
After exploring Moss Vale, we headed to Bowral, which is filled with beautiful shops, galleries, cafés and design inspiration around every corner. It is the sort of town where you can easily spend an entire day wandering from one store to the next and still feel like you have more to discover.
Dirty Janes Antique Emporium for the perfect vintage find
I had been following Dirty Janes on Instagram for some time and was keen to see it in person. Part vintage market, part antique centre and part treasure hunt, it is home to a collection of individual dealers offering everything from furniture and lighting to artwork, books, textiles and decorative objects.
It reminded me a little of Empire Revival in Brisbane, where I often source vintage and one-of-a-kind pieces for clients.
What I love about places like Dirty Janes and Empire Revival is the opportunity to discover pieces that are a little different. Vintage, antique and handmade items can bring personality, character and a sense of history to a home in a way that mass-produced pieces often cannot.
Vintage Staffordshire dogs at Dirty Janes Antique Emporium, Bowral
Green Lane Shopping Precinct feels like walking down a country lane
Just next door to Dirty Janes is ‘Green Lane’ shopping precinct. Tucked away just off the main street, it is a charming laneway of curated home and garden stores, including another outlet of Suzie Anderson Home.
We stopped for lunch at Harry's on Green Lane, which is clearly a popular meeting place for both locals and visitors. The interiors had the same eclectic feel as Dirty Janes just across the walkway, with artwork from floor to ceiling and French-style furniture creating a relaxed and character-filled atmosphere.
After lunch, I enjoyed wandering through Green Lane and discovering The Potting Shed, with its beautiful collection of pots displayed in a greenhouse-style setting.
Between the homewares, gardens, cafés and beautifully curated stores, I could easily imagine myself living in Bowral in a country home and sourcing unique pieces for client projects in this area.
Bespoke Letterpress for the stationary obsessed
Another spot I had been following on Instagram, as I am slightly obsessed with stationery, was Bespoke Letterpress.
Tucked away on the main street, it is one of those shops you simply cannot walk past without going in. I loved the individually designed prints featured across their stationery, gifts and homewares.
As someone who often helps clients with home offices, shops like this are always a source of inspiration. Beautiful stationery, books and decorative accessories can add personality to a workspace and make it feel much more inviting and personal.
Bespoke Letterpress Store, Bowral, image via www.visitnsw.com
Found Antiques & Field and Potter in the old Coach House
Found Antiques and Field and Potter are housed in a beautiful old Coach House dating back to the 1830s. It is impossible to walk past this building without wandering in. Found Antiques is filled with antique and vintage furniture, artwork, lighting and decorative pieces sourced from Australia and overseas.
I am currently working with a client in Toowoomba who loves a more traditional aesthetic and is keen to incorporate antique pieces into her home, so this proved for a wonderful place to source.
Field and Potter is a beautifully curated store of home goods, pottery, house wear, found objects and handmade homewares.
One of the things I enjoy about travelling is discovering suppliers like this that I can draw on for future projects. Even if I don't purchase something on the day, I am always taking photos, collecting contacts and filing ideas away for the right client.
Hunter Gatherer Collections for house and garden design inspiration
Hunter and Gatherer Collections is an independent Australian homewares store with beautiful organic earthy homewares for the home and garden. It is housed in a beautiful store with a garden to wander through and feel inspired.
Where We Stayed
Osborn House, Bundanoon
One of the highlights of the trip was staying at Osborn House in Bundanoon. Originally built in 1892, the property has been beautifully restored and reimagined by Linda Boronkay, former Design Director of Soho House, alongside MAC Design Studio.
We stayed in one of the Forest Villas, tucked amongst the trees and surrounded by nature. It felt wonderfully private and was the perfect retreat after a day spent exploring shops, galleries and homewares stores.
One evening we made the most of the wellness facilities, spending sunset moving between the sauna, ice bath and hot tub in a secluded corner of the estate.
As a designer, I am always interested in how accommodation makes you feel, and Osborn House does this beautifully. The interiors are layered, eclectic and full of personality, combining vintage finds, designer furniture, bespoke furnishings and carefully curated objects. The gardens are equally beautiful and the entire property feels relaxed, welcoming and incredibly comfortable.
If you’re keen to see my behind the scenes of the trip, check out my Instagram . Or, if you’re dreaming of a home that feels like you, I’d love to help bring that vision to life.
