The Art of Rest | A Special Sanctuary for Primrose

When Emma Hawkins set out to create a bedroom for her daughter Primrose, the brief was about more than simply creating a beautiful space. It was about giving her a room that felt distinctly her own – a place where her personality could unfold, her interests could change and, most importantly, a space that could grow alongside her.

In this edition of The Art of Rest, Emma shares the inspiration behind the new Primrose design, why practicality mattered just as much as aesthetics, and how creating a space of her own has helped Primrose embrace a new chapter of childhood in Melbourne. She reflects on the beauty of letting children shape their surroundings, the rituals that help them unwind, and why the rooms we grow up in can hold such lasting memories.

You’ve created a bedroom for Primrose that is designed to grow with her, from childhood through to her teenage years. What was most important to you when imagining a space that could evolve alongside her?

When we moved to Melbourne, it was really important to us that the kids felt some ownership over their new bedrooms. It was such a big change for them, so we let each of them choose their wall colour and wanted their rooms to feel like a reflection of who they are, rather than just an extension of the rest of the house.

With Primrose’s room, I really wanted to create something that felt timeless and classic, but still had a point of difference. I didn’t want a bedhead that felt too young or that we would want to replace in a few years. The idea was to create a beautiful foundation that can grow with her, and then let the personality of the room evolve through paint, bedding, artwork and all the things she collects along the way.

Her tastes will inevitably change, probably many times, but I love that the bed itself can remain the constant. It feels very Primrose now, but I can also imagine it working just as beautifully when she is a teenager.

The Primrose bedhead is named after your daughter, making this collaboration particularly personal. What did you want the design to capture about Primrose, her personality, the things she loves, or perhaps the girl she is becoming?

Primrose is such a mix of things. She is strong willed, confident and a little bit wild, but she also has this incredibly soft and caring side to her. She knows exactly what she likes and definitely isn’t a traditional girly girl. At the moment her world is lizards, footy cards, drawing, making things and collecting all sorts of little treasures, so I never wanted her bedhead to feel too pretty or precious.

I think the design actually reflects her personality really beautifully. The Bronze is bold and strong, while the Ivory softens it, and I love the little glimpses of Bronze coming through the Ivory sections. It makes it feel a bit unexpected and different without being so much of a statement that she is going to grow out of it.

That balance was really important to me. I wanted something that had personality, because she certainly does, but that was still neutral enough, perhaps for my own sanity, that we could keep reinventing the room around it as she grows. Her interests will change, her wall colour will probably change and there will no doubt be many different versions of Primrose between now and her teenage years, but I love that this piece can evolve with all of them.

Having it named after her makes it even more special because it genuinely feels like there is a little bit of her personality in the design.

You’ve chosen Ivory and Bronze for Primrose’s bedroom, a beautifully soft and timeless choice for a child’s space. What drew you to the palette, and did the practicality of the FibreGuard fabric give you the confidence to embrace Ivory?

I can confidently say I would never, ever have chosen Ivory for one of my children’s bedrooms without knowing what the fabric could withstand! The FibreGuard definitely gave me the confidence to go there.

Primrose actually loves colour and her walls are blue at the moment, so I didn’t want the bed itself to dictate what we could do with the rest of the room. I loved the Bronze because it brings that stronger, bolder element, while the Ivory keeps it soft and classic. Together they feel strong and soft at the same time, and importantly, they will work with so many different colours. Her wall colour, bedding and taste will no doubt change many times over the years, but the bed can stay as the constant.

We often think of rest as something adults need to consciously make space for, but childhood is filled with its own kind of busyness. What does rest look like for Primrose, and what are the little rituals that help her slow down at the end of the day?

Her days are actually incredibly busy between school, friends, sport and family life, so I think having a space that feels like hers is really important. When we moved to Melbourne, one of the things we wanted to do was make the kids’ bedrooms feel really special for them. We let them choose their own wall colours and wanted their rooms to reflect the things they genuinely love, not just what looks good.

And for full disclosure, we haven’t pictured Primrose’s box of Squishies, footy cards or the lizard usually sitting on her table, but I can assure you they are all just out of frame in these beautifully styled photos! She also loves drawing and making things, so there is usually artwork and some sort of project scattered around the room too.

I would love to say all of their little loves are displayed beautifully and neatly, but unfortunately that doesn’t seem to be in any of my children’s natures. I actually think that is part of what makes their rooms feel like theirs though. At the end of the day, rest for Primrose is usually the simple things, a shower, pyjamas, reading, drawing or just pottering around in her room before bed.

You’ve spoken before about how important your own bedroom sanctuary has been through different seasons of motherhood. Has that experience influenced the way you’ve approached creating a bedroom for Primrose?

Definitely, although I’m not sure any bedroom in our house can currently be described as belonging exclusively to one person! Since moving to Melbourne we seem to have entered a season of musical beds. Henry is often in with me, which means Tom seems to spend a surprising amount of time in Primrose’s bed, so it was probably equally important that he liked it too!

I know this is just a season, and as the kids get older I’m actually trying to embrace the musical beds, the cuddles and everyone crossing over into each other’s spaces rather than wishing it away.

I think that has probably changed how I look at bedrooms too. They don’t have to be these perfect, untouched sanctuaries. They are places where family life happens, where someone climbs in beside you at 2am, where you read stories, talk about the day and sometimes wake up wondering whose bed you’re actually in.

There’s something special about giving a child a space that is entirely their own, somewhere they can read, dream, play and eventually retreat from the world. What do you hope Primrose feels when she walks into her room?

I remember my own childhood bedrooms so clearly, and I think what you really remember are the different eras and all the things you were obsessed with at the time. At one point mine involved beads, blow-up armchairs, lavender lamps and posters everywhere, which felt incredibly chic at the time and is very funny looking back now.

Primrose’s current era is blue walls, lizards, footy cards, artwork and all of the little treasures she collects. No doubt there will be another phase after this, and then another one after that. That is what I love about a child having their own room. It gives them somewhere they can experiment and express themselves without everything having to fit into the style of the rest of the house. Right now, this is her space, and I want her to feel comfortable making it completely her own.

If you could bottle this particular moment in Primrose’s childhood and leave a little piece of it within the room for her to discover years from now, what would you want her bedroom to remind her of?

I think I would want it to remind her of exactly who she was at this age. She is still little enough to need us, but she is also becoming so much her own person. She has her own style, her own interests, very strong opinions and this wonderful confidence in the things she loves.

This room will also always represent such a big chapter in her childhood because it was the bedroom she moved into when we left the farm and moved to Melbourne. That was a huge change for all of our kids, and I know it is something she will always remember.

There have definitely been days where the change has felt hard for her, which I think is completely understandable, but I hope when she looks back she feels proud of herself for embracing such a big move. I hope she remembers this room as part of a new and exciting chapter in her childhood, while still remembering all the things she loved and exactly who she was at this moment.

Bedlinen: Castle & Things 

Floor Rug: Weave Home 

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