Our story — Meet Phillip
I never thought a folding desk would change my life, but in 2016, I found myself at the kitchen table most nights, sketching ideas after the kids went to bed. We were living in the suburbs of Melbourne at the time, and I was juggling part-time admin work with school pickups and a toddler who didn’t nap. I’d started tinkering with small home projects to reclaim some time and space for myself — the kind of products I wished I had during the chaos of everyday family life.
Before this, I'd always leaned toward practical work. My dad was a teacher in Bendigo, and on weekends, we’d go to the Bendigo Showgrounds Market. He’d pick up books, and I’d look at tools and scrap wood. I didn’t expect any of that to be useful decades later, but it planted the seed for figuring things out with my hands. When I first made a folding desk to fit into our cluttered apartment, I only meant it for me.
The first desk was made in 2017 from leftover bamboo we had lying around after a failed DIY project. I posted it on Facebook Marketplace, and within 24 hours, someone from Brunswick bought it for $50. That sale made me think, 'Maybe there’s something here.' Over the next six months, I kept making and selling desks, then vases, then other items, all while working school hours. By 2019, the idea had grown enough that I registered BRAND CARBON PTY LTD and named the business Claretrow — a mix of Clara and Edward, my kids’ names.
These days, Claretrow operates out of a small workshop in Bendigo, and everything is still made with the same focus on practicality and simplicity that started at my kitchen table. It’s still a school-hours operation, and I like it that way. From the folding desks to the picnic sets, everything is designed to make life a little easier at home and out and about.
— Thanks for supporting a little idea from Bendigo — Phillip, Phillip Blakely-Kidd
Journal
Spring Cleaning: Making Space with Bamboo Desks
Cleaning out the study this spring reminded me why I love the Swanston Folding Bamboo Desk.
Spring cleaning hit hard this year. I had a proper look at the study — aka what used to be the spare room — and realised it had turned into a dumping ground. Old receipts, a few too many novelty mugs, and truly baffling amounts of dried-up pens. The real casualty was my trusty Swanston Folding Bamboo Desk, which has been swallowed up in the chaos.
Once I cleared some space, though, it was a good reminder of why I picked bamboo in the first place. It’s light but holds its shape, and you can fold it away without much fuss. I set it up in a corner where the sun hits mid-morning, and suddenly the room looked like someone actually used it.
Fun fact — the bamboo comes from a supplier up in Far North Queensland. I remember being floored when they told me it only takes a few years to grow a full crop of bamboo, compared to decades for hardwood. Eco marketing buzzwords aside, it’s just sensible when you think about it.
I ended up using the desk to sort through a mountain of papers. It felt oddly symbolic. A folding desk built for temporary setups is perfect for the limbo of deciding what to keep and toss. I even found an old grocery list from when my youngest was still in nappies. Nostalgia hit me like a truck.
By the end of the day, I’d filled two recycling bags and wiped everything down with eucalyptus oil. The desk stayed set up — I think I’ll take my laptop in there tomorrow, maybe even shut the door for one uninterrupted hour. Imagine that.
How to Style the Maribyrnong Vase Set for Spring
With spring in the air, I’ve been feeling inspired to play around with the Maribyrnong Ceramic Vase Set.
Spring flowers are finally here, which means half the garden ends up in the house for a few weeks. I spent an afternoon fiddling with the Maribyrnong Ceramic Vase Set and raiding the backyard for inspiration. It’s a three-piece set, so you can spread them out or cluster them together depending on what you're aiming for.
For the large vase, I went with some Australian natives — grevillea and kangaroo paw. I love how sturdy they are. They don’t shed much and look like they’re mid-conversation with each other. The medium vase got lavender, mostly because I forgot I planted lavender and there it was, thriving in the corner. The tiniest one is great for a single dramatic stem, so I pinched a camellia from out the front.
The trick, I think, is to cut things at slightly different heights and not overthink it. You don’t want everything lined up like soldiers. I also like tucking in a bit of wild grass or even some parsley to make things interesting. You can’t really stuff it up, honestly.
One of these vases lives permanently on my kitchen windowsill. It’s the best spot for a splash of colour, especially when I can see it while chopping potatoes or pouring a cup of tea. I might hate the kitchen wallpaper, but a good vase can distract me for a few minutes.
Spring is also when the Bendigo Farmer’s Market has the best flower stalls. If you’re not growing your own, it’s worth a wander. I grabbed a mix of dahlias and sunflowers last year and it changed my whole week.
The People Behind the Fitzroy Wool Throw Blanket
Last month I visited our wool supplier in Geelong to see how the Fitzroy Throw Blankets are made.
Over summer, I drove down to Geelong to visit our wool supplier. They’ve been running the same mill since the 1920s, keeping it in the family the whole time. It was surreal to step into such a space — the air smells faintly of lanolin, and the machines feel like they’re part of the walls.
The wool itself comes from sheep shorn in western Victoria, around Horsham and Hamilton. Australia’s known for fine merino wool, but these blankets use a coarser crossbreed wool, which makes them sturdier. It’s the stuff you want to grab when you’re outside on an autumn night and the fire’s taking its time.
I asked how they manage summer production when wool isn’t exactly a hot-ticket item (pardon the pun). Turns out it’s when most of the weaving happens. The blankets are dyed in batches during the quieter months, then stockpiled until the cold weather hits. The system works — we haven’t had a delay yet.
They also let me pick yarn colours for next year. That’s the fun part, even if you’re trying to imagine how a single swatch will look stretched across an entire blanket. I went with eucalyptus green, a burnt orange, and something they call “storm grey” that reminds me of Bendigo skies in July.
We drove back with the windows down, which might be my last bit of summer freedom before the kids start school again. Geelong has a bakery near the waterfront with an excellent vanilla slice, in case you’re ever there. Worth a detour.
Autumn Evenings and Fitzroy Wool Throw Blankets
Autumn evenings are for layering on the couch, especially with a good blanket like the Fitzroy Throw.
Autumn out here hits all at once. One day it’s ice blocks for the kids, the next you’re pulling on jumpers and wondering where the heater remote’s gone. For us, it means the Fitzroy Wool Throw Blankets start flying out the door. They’re the first thing I grab when the nights go cold.
My favourite thing about these blankets is how they breathe. You can layer them without feeling like you’re sweating yourself into a coma, which is handy when Melbourne inevitably throws a rogue 29-degree day into an otherwise crisp April.
I keep one folded over the end of the lounge. It’s usually the eucalyptus green one, but that’s purely because it hides Vegemite fingerprints better than the storm grey. The kids love them too, mostly for the game of hiding under them and shouting, ‘Mum, I’m gone forever!’
A friend told me she keeps hers in the car for never-ending junior footy games. Smart move. Another swears it’s her go-to picnic rug. I’m torn — I kind of like mine too much to risk a grass stain or crushed biscuit crumbs, but to each their own.
This season is all about the little comforts for me. A hot cup of Earl Grey, the heater just ticking over, and a decent throw blanket to curl up in. Come July, I might need to double up, but for now, I’ll take autumn as it comes.
How I Chose the Tullamarine LED Desk Lamp
Choosing the Tullamarine LED Desk Lamp came down to simplicity and avoiding fussy features that don’t last.
The Tullamarine LED Desk Lamp started as a necessity. My eldest needed proper lighting for homework, and I was sick of him pinching my bedside lamp for his desk. So, I went hunting. It’s surprisingly difficult to find a lamp that isn’t trying to be 12 things at once.
I wanted something solid and simple. No Bluetooth speakers, no colour-changing disco modes, and definitely no app integration (isn’t everything fiddly enough?). Just a clean design with enough light for reading and working. The Tullamarine hit the mark.
The base is weighted, which keeps it stable, and the LED lifespan is quoted at 50,000 hours. I couldn’t picture that at first, so I did the maths — that’s roughly six years if you’re running it for 24 hours a day. My guess is we’ll still have it when my youngest starts high school.
We chose the unassuming white finish because it blends with most setups, but there’s a charcoal option too if you want something moodier. It’s just the right height to avoid glare on a screen, which isn’t something I used to think about before kids and their online study.
Now that we’ve got three of these floating around, I barely notice them — and that’s the point, I think. They’re the kind of product you set up once and forget, which is exactly what I wanted from the start.
Why I Named the Brand Claretrow
Claretrow might sound like a random name, but it’s a nod to my eldest and the mess that started this journey.
If you’ve wondered where the name Claretrow comes from, it’s not some old English family crest or anything poetic. It’s just my eldest’s way of saying his own name when he was two. He couldn’t pronounce the ‘R’ properly yet, so it came out as Claretrow for some reason. It stuck.
The brand itself started around the same time. I was hand-sewing cushions at the kitchen table, mostly because I couldn’t justify buying them outright. Somehow I ended up with a whole pile of them, so I thought, why not sell a few? Claretrow was born from scraps — literal and figurative.
The name reminds me of those early years when everything felt like a blur of nappies, nap battles, and late-night sewing. I didn’t plan on it becoming a business. I just wanted to do something useful during nap time.
Now that Claretrow’s grown, the name also feels like a reminder to keep things grounded. Every product has to pass the ‘would I actually use this in my own house?’ test. It keeps me honest, even if it means saying no to trends every now and then.
Sometimes I miss the chaos of those early days, but I wouldn’t swap them for what we’ve built. Claretrow’s bigger than me now, which is both surreal and deeply satisfying to think about.
Quiet Summer Break and Plans for 2025
The summer break is always a mix of slowing down for family and ramping up for the year ahead.
January always feels weird. The whole country slows down, but my brain never quite switches off. Maybe it’s because I’m juggling the usual school holiday chaos — beach towels everywhere, cricket on the TV — and also trying to plan Claretrow’s year.
This summer, I’ve been forcing myself to shut the laptop by 4 pm and join the kids outside. We’re lucky to have a big backyard, so the slip ’n slide has been getting a workout. I’ve also been using this time to test a few new product samples — one of them got its first run as a picnic blanket last weekend. It passed.
We’ve already locked in a few things for 2025. There’s a new colourway for the Fitzroy Wool Throw coming in April (look out for a soft clay pink), and I’m working on a dining table runner that’s surprisingly difficult to prototype without spilling tea on everything.
Summer’s also when suppliers have time to chat. I had a long phone call with our ceramics guy in Ballarat about batch sizes. Turns out he’s been flat-out with Christmas orders too, so we’re both ready for a quieter February.
By mid-January, the house feels like it’s bursting with energy, which is both exhausting and motivating. I’ll be ready for routine again soon, but for now, I’m soaking up the late sunsets and occasionally remembering to wear sunscreen.
Preparing the House for a Bendigo Winter
As winter creeps closer, I start pulling out the wool throws and looking for those socks I swore I’d kept.
Autumn’s almost gone, and the mornings are starting to bite. Bendigo winters aren’t as tough as Melbourne’s, but they definitely find their way into your bones. Around this time, I start dragging out everything warm and woolly we own.
The Fitzroy Wool Throws are first on the list. I washed them last week in cold water and laid them flat to dry, which always makes the house smell like fresh air. They’re draped over the couch now, ready for movie nights and keeping feet warm during late-night tea runs.
The Tullamarine LED Desk Lamp also comes into its own in winter. By mid-May, the sun sets before dinner, so you need a proper desk light to get anything done. I might grab a fourth one this year — the kids keep stealing mine.
Winter prep in our house also means sealing off draughty windows with some adhesive strips I found at Bunnings. Everyone laughs at my ‘self-adhesive obsession,’ but older houses need all the help they can get. At least until I win the lottery and replace every window with double glazing.
By the end of April, the house starts to feel cosier. There’s something satisfying about getting everything organised before winter properly hits, even if it’s just finding my favourite pair of thick wool socks (they were hiding in my daughter’s dress-up box).
Customer reviews
Claire H. — Fitzroy, VIC — 2024-02-10 — 5/5
Perfect for remote work
I ordered the Swanston Folding Bamboo Desk and it’s been a game changer. It’s sturdy, easy to fold away, and arrived faster than I expected.
James T. — Surry Hills, NSW — 2024-07-22 — 4/5
Stylish and practical
The Maribyrnong Ceramic Vase Set looks great on my dining table. One of the vases was slightly smaller than expected, but overall I’m happy with the purchase.
Eva K. — New Farm, QLD — 2025-01-05 — 5/5
Warm and cosy
The Fitzroy Wool Throw Blanket is perfect for winter evenings. It’s soft, warm, and the shipping was quick to Brisbane.
Ben F. — St Kilda, VIC — 2024-11-03 — 4/5
Good desk lamp
I bought the Tullamarine LED Desk Lamp for my home office. It works well and the brightness settings are useful, but the power cord could be a bit longer.
Lucy W. — Marrickville, NSW — 2024-06-15 — 5/5
Great value yoga mat
The Windsor Eco-Friendly Yoga Mat is excellent value for money. It has great grip, and the material feels durable even after daily use.
Tom B. — Cottesloe, WA — 2025-03-24 — 5/5
Exceeded expectations
Bought the Swanston Folding Bamboo Desk for my small apartment. The quality is solid, and it fits perfectly in my space. Delivery was smooth and on time.
Sophie M. — Hobart, TAS — 2024-09-12 — 4/5
Lovely vase set
The Maribyrnong Ceramic Vase Set adds a nice touch to my living room. One vase had a tiny scratch, but it’s barely noticeable.
Liam R. — Norwood, SA — 2024-12-01 — 5/5
Fantastic throw blanket
The Fitzroy Wool Throw Blanket is exactly what I needed for my couch. The texture is lush, and it’s kept me warm on chilly nights.