Brunswick mama Joh Lyle is the clever and diverse mind behind the creative design brand Siesta Home and newly launched Siesta home baby. With an exciting past that includes being a Winter Olympic snowboarder, this mama of two brings passion and flair to her range, inspired by wearing some of the brightness ski gear whilst competing. She took her love for colour and artful eye and created a business that has taken off …..literally down the slopes.
Johanna tell us a bit about you and your family.
We are a family of 4 (plus a new Kelpie puppy Syd.) I have a son Nixon who is 7 years old and a daughter Maelle aged 5. We are a busy and active family. We always seem to have many projects going eg. renovating houses, starting new businesses and we spend a lot of our weekends away either at our farm or at the snow skiing. We always do things as a family.
You have travelled the world in your snowboarding days, where was your favourite location?
Yes I have done a lot of traveling in my snowboarding days, it’s so hard to choose my favorite locations, but the one mountain that sticks in my mind would be Red mountain in Canada. It’s a small mountain with a great community. I have spent a lot of my days training and free riding on this mountain so there’s a lot of fond memories I associate there.
What inspired you to start up your own homewares company, something so different to competitive snowboarding?
I have always loved art as a kid and while I was competing I was always accessorising my snowboarding gear to play around with colours textures and patterns. I was often seen in the brightest snow boarding gear when I was competing! After starting our family we renovated 4 houses in 4 years and I become very passionate about design and interiors. Being surrounded by textures, colours and patterns on a daily basis inspired me to take it further, and I decided to start my own bed linen brand to style my own home interiors with. I ended up submitting photos to Real Living and they featured my Brunswick home in their magazine! And the rest you can say, is history!
You have an amazing eye for colour and detail. Where does that come from and how do you translate this into your designs?
Thank you very much, I’m not too sure actually but it’s something I always enjoyed when I was really young, playing with colours in art class and spending a lot of time outdoors. I am inspired by the natural colours that I see in my surroundings; whether it’s out in a nature park or out on the farm where we spend our weekends. I think the natural beauty of all the colours and patterns in the countryside has played its part in the new collection; from the green grass, to the pink and lavender native flowers, grey rock formations, peachy soft sunsets and dusty brown soil that creates patterns in the land. These are the colour palettes used in my latest collection Nomad, and upon reflection it’s pretty clear where each of the colour choices have been inspired from!
Starting a company and becoming a mother isn’t easy. How do you balance both work and children?
No it’s definitely not easy as we know, but when you are so passionate about something you find the time in your schedule to focus on it – which is mostly after the kids have gone to sleep. But now I have both kids in school this year, so it’s much easier to find the time to work. The great thing about entrepreneurship is that I can set my own schedule and hours, work around my kids’ schedules and be able to work from home so I’m not missing out on any special moments (like first day of school!)
What’s your favourite thing about being a mum?
I love watching the kids grow into little people that you have created and you always have their unconditional love. It’s the most satisfying job ever.
You’re currently renovating your lovely home in Brunswick. Will you use your Siesta Home designs in your new home?
Hehe, yes of course! I’ll always use my Siesta Home designs as I feel like I’m also a customer of my brand. I love pops of colour in my home; it really creates a sense of fun, playfulness and joy when you are surrounded by something bright and full of life. I’m constantly changing up my interiors and décor to suit my mood, which is perfect because the colours and patterns in my collections are all designed to intentionally mix and match so you can create your own style. The reversible duvet colours are great for people like me who feel refreshed and inspired every time they update their bedding. I think it re-energises you.
What do you like most about what you do?
I love creating my collections and I love travelling to India to visit my manufacturers. Every time a collection is launched we do a photoshoot – it’s probably my most favourite part of the job, because you get to see all your hard work come together and make sense as a whole. I always get a burst of energy when I see a customer tag us on Instagram to show how they’ve styled their Siesta Home goodies!
Any advice you can give to aspiring mums wanting to branch out and change careers, start up a business?
It’s never too late to start or change your career, you just need to be passionate about what you want to do and jump into it and you will learn along the way, I promise.
What’s next for you and Siesta Home?
I have just launched Siesta Baby which is really exciting! We have fun baby wraps, bassinet and cot sheets and these gorgeous pompom knitted blankets which feel amazing. I’m really happy to be expanding the range and create spaces for both mums and bubs!
You can find Siesta at www.siestahome.com.au
Instagram @siesta.home