The Design Files Daily

Sydney Homes

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Sydney Home – Alexia Gnecchi Ruscone and Family

The Paddington apartment of Alexia Gnecchi Ruscone – all photographs by Felix Forest, styling / production by Lucy Feagins.

Treasured antiques and eclectic finds on the mantlepiece – cute monkey in the palm tree!

Living room

Today’s eclectic Sydney apartment is another that seems to have a truly international flair. No surprise, really, as designer Alexia Gnecchi Ruscone and her family are in equal parts Italian / Australian, and have spent a good deal of time living in Europe before settling here. After returning to Sydney from Milan in 2003, they spent time living in Double Bay and Avalon before moving to their current terrace apartment in Paddington.  They’ve been here now for three years.

Alexia lives here with husband Paolo, and grown-up kids Tania (21) and Vittorio (18), plus a string of nieces and nephews that love to come to visit Australia!  The whole family is incredibly creative – Alexia is the founder and key designer behind classic fashion accessories label Eclettica, with two stand alone stores in Sydney and stockists Australia-wide, whilst Paolo runs super popular vintage furniture store Junktique in Glebe.  Their daughter Tania has also recently launched her very own design business - TDesign …whilst Vittorio is in his first year of industrial design!  That’s one seriously impressive collective skill set – all under one roof!

In true European style, Alexia and Paolo have adorned every inch of their home in amazing artwork, antiques and collectables. Gallery-style hanging systems were installed early on to allow for Paolo’s growing collection of paintings and artwork.  Alexia says everything in the house has a sentimental value – ‘our collection tells our story, individually through our family pieces and together through our travels’.

Alexia’s most treasured aspect of this home is it’s cosy-ness – ‘we love coming home and throwing our shoes off!’ she says.  Of course after many years living in Milan, Alexia also adores the sunshine, blue skies, harbour and beaches of Sydney, and in particular the central location of this apartment in Paddington. ‘It’s a great spot – walking distance to fab cafes, book shops and cinema; once I get home from work I really don’t need to drive’ she says.

Big thanks to the Gnecchi Ruscone family for sharing their beautiful home with us today!  I feel it’s only fitting to sign off in Alexia’s signature style – ‘Ciao, Ciao, Tanti Baci !’ xx

CLICK HERE for the full tour and many more pics!

Posted by Lucy at 6:00 am
Categories - Australian Homes, Sydney, Sydney Homes, Uncategorized Comments (10)
Wednesday, May 09, 2012

Sydney Home – Vanessa Steele & Peter Braig

The beautiful Sydney home of Vanessa Steele and Peter Braig.  Sunroom – patchwork kilim from I & B Perryman Oriental Carpets, Woollahra.  Photo – Felix Forest, Production Lucy Feagins / The Design Files.

Living room – straw and wool embroidered Moroccan rug, purchased on a recent overseas trip.  Large photographic artwork by Peter Braig.  Photo – Felix Forest, Production – Lucy Feagins / The Design Files.

Living room – large photographic artwork by Peter Braig.  Photo – Felix Forest, Production – Lucy Feagins / The Design Files

We’re back in Sydney again with today’s seriously lovely Australian Home – although I must say, this one could almost pass for a classic LA apartment, with it’s Spanish Mission styling and those amazing arched windows!  That top image of the sunroom  is such a stunner – totally magazine-cover fabulous (nice work Felix!).   It’s incredible how certain architectural details really give a space the feeling of being somehow so very ‘international’!

The lucky residents of this beautiful two bedroom apartment are Vanessa Steele, who runs her own PR company, and Peter Braig, a photographer (plus Macchiato the cat!).  This creative pair moved to Sydney from Melbourne five years ago, but hunted for three years before finding the perfect pad to call home.  ’We were looking for something special – it was worth the wait…’ says Vanessa!

One of just a handful of boutique apartments in a building known as ‘La Granada’ in Sydney’s leafy Bellevue Hill neighbourhood, this apartment really does have a special something going on. Tucked at the back of the block on the ground level, and opening out onto a leafy patio, it’s wonderfully private, and with windows on all sides, it feels more like a house than an apartment.  Vanessa puts that down also to the layout of the rooms and shape of the space.  ’ The square footprint makes it more like a house, and means we use every room’ she says.

Vanessa and Peter have been here just two years.  Since moving in they haven’t needed to do too much – other than polishing the floorboards and painting the walls white throughout. Of course they’ve also pulled together a tight, cohesive edit of furniture, soft furnishings and artworks to enhance the features of the space. I must say they’ve done such a stellar job of styling their home – all the colours and textures are so perfectly balanced, and not a thing out of place!  Vanessa and Peter’s favourite pieces at the moment are their antique Moroccan rugs in the living and dining rooms, found on their most recent overseas trip. Peter is originally from Europe, and the pair love to travel, inevitably collecting things to bring home with every trip!

It’s clear from chatting to Vanessa that she and Peter are still kind of pinching themselves, even two years after securing their beautiful apartment – and after 3 years of looking I would be too!  There is so much to love about the place – Vanessa says favourite elements include the Spanish Mission style of the space, the privacy, and their wonderful leafy outdoor area.  ’The courtyard is such a great space – excellent for parties, it extends into an outdoor room in the warmer months’ says Vanessa.

Massive thanks to Vanessa and Peter for sharing their beautiful home with us today! Aaaaww Sydney.  You’re so pretty.

CLICK HERE for the full tour

Posted by Lucy at 6:00 am
Categories - Australian Homes, Sydney, Sydney Homes, Uncategorized Comments (24)
Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Sydney Home – Heidi Gill and Family

The Sydney home of stylist Heidi Gill and family.  All photos – Felix Forest, styling / production – Lucy Feagins.

Beautiful leafy Sydney courtyard garden!  All photos – Felix Forest, styling / production – Lucy Feagins.

Sydney greenery. Love it.  All photos - Felix Forest, styling / production – Lucy Feagins.

Can’t you just tell in an instant by the lush green (and very mini) garden that this is a Sydney home!?  It’s all about the FOLIAGE.  A garden overflowing with glossy green foliage is one thing worth moving to Sydney for, I reckon.  You’d have to break all water restriction rules in Melbourne to achieve this level of garden cuteness!

The home, in Sydney’s Woollahra, belongs to illustrator/stylist/merchandiser Heidi Gill, husband James and Jemima (8 yrs old) – they’ve been here almost four years. Aside from the sweet courtyard garden, this supremely pretty little house is such a perfect exercise in efficient city living!   It’s truly tiny – with just two bedrooms a kitchen / living space too small for a dining table – and yet it works so well for this busy family of three, plus Pepper the dog!  Amazing.

After buying the home, Heidi and James renovated the interior, with an emphasis on space efficiency – the result is a multi-use space which conceals clever storage in every nook, leaving just enough room for key furniture items. Bespoke cabinetry streamlines the kitchen / eating zone, and a cantilevered breakfast bench doubles as a dining table / workstation, leaving space for a just a 2 seater couch.  Somehow it all just fits together like Tetris, without an inch to spare!

Despite it’s modest proportions, Heidi’s home has a genuinely relaxed, comfortable feel – which I reckon can be put down in large part to her ‘stylist’s touch’ – a classic, understated and intuitive sense of style. The pared back palette – monochrome, blonde timbers, carerra marble, charcoal and a touch of mauve – gives the home a real sense of calm elegance and restraint.

Heidi says she loves her ‘postcard sized garden’ the most, as well as her pretty bedroom with its generous bay window.  As for the local area – the greatest drawcard for Heidi’s family is the proximitiy to Centennial park, and ‘Plane Trees, Plane Trees, Plane Trees’!

Massive thanks to Heidi and family for sharing their perfect pocket home with us today!

CLICK HERE for the full tour and many more pics!

Posted by Lucy at 6:00 am
Categories - Australian Homes, Sydney Homes, Uncategorized Comments (23)
Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Sydney Home – Sally Campbell

Sally Campbell‘s Sydney home.  Photographs - Felix Forest, styling / production – Lucy Feagins / The Design Files.

Dining room.  Painting above mantle by Cressida Campbell, Sally’s sister.  All Photographs - Felix Forest, styling / production – Lucy Feagins / The Design Files.

Details in the dining room and hallway – Beach Scene painting on bookshelf by Peter McGregor.  All Photographs - Felix Forest, styling / production – Lucy Feagins / The Design Files.

Today’s stunning Sydney home is one I’ve been chasing for quite some time – the creative couple who live here, Sally Campbell and her husband Greg will certainly attest to that!   I must shamefully admit I’ve been badgering them (not relentlessly, mind you – off and on!) for almost 2 years… but this busy pair spend so much of their year travelling due to Sally’s incredible business, and so it wasn’t until last month that the opportunity finally presented itself to shoot their beautiful home.  Wowsers!  Luckily, it was totally worth the wait!

As I am sure many of you know, Sally is an amazing textile designer responsible for the most vibrant, beautiful quilts and soft furnishings, created under the name Sally Campbell Handmade Textiles.  In fact Sally was one of the very first people I ever interviewed on this site.  I’ve admired her work for a very long time, especially because like me, Sally is an escapee of the film industry!  (ha ha just kidding, kind of).  After 25 years working as a set and costume designer, Sally’s passion for beautiful textiles eventually inspired her to produce her own collection of soft furnishings – she launched her business in 2005, and hasn’t looked back.

Sally and Greg have lived in their beautiful and rather massive Victorian home in Sydney’s Randwick for 10 years.   The best way I can think to describe their very special home, is to say that it somehow has that luscious-but-lived-in feel, normally reserved for the homes of fictional film characters!  It’s unpretentious and ‘real’, even though it’s grand and busy and a little overwhelming!  Since being here they’ve updated only small sections – the bathrooms, pantry and laundry have been re-worked, and Sally has created a beautiful lush courtyard garden at the rear of the home, which spills glossy foliage across every window and doorway.  It is SO heavenly.

Of course the home has very impressive bones; generous rooms, high ceilings and Victorian fixtures, such as the marble fireplaces in almost every room – one of Sally’s favourite features.  But the real specialness here is in the eclectic details, and the stories this space tells about Sally and Greg and their creative friends and family.  Sally and Greg travel to India every year,  and as you can see, their home is filled with souvenirs from their travels.  Sally’s sister Cressida Campbell is a BRILLIANT (and very famous!) artist – her work is dotted around the house, and in turn, this eclectic home has been the subject of many of her incredible paintings.  (TRULY amazing work you must check it out!). Amongst her many treasures, Sally says Cressida’s paintings are her favourite possessions.

Massive thanks to Sally and Greg for generously sharing their home with us today!  If you love Sally’s home you will most certainly love her beautiful work – do check out her brand new website, blog and online store to see some of her pieces, and shots of her amazing travels in India.  I am especially in love with her new Frenchie-style lightweight cotton towels… you know the ones.  So posh.  Love love.  (Sally are those solid red/blue stripe ones in stock yet!? Keep me posted!).

CLICK HERE for the full tour and many more pics

Posted by Lucy at 6:00 am
Categories - Australian Homes, Sydney Homes, Textiles, Uncategorized Comments (29)
Friday, December 30, 2011

Top 5 Australian Homes re-visited – Heidi Dokulil’s Sydney warehouse

The Sydney home of Heidi Dokulil and Richard Peters – architectural perfection! (…and that couch ain’t bad either).  All photos – Lucy Feagins.

Designer details – love love love that ENORMOUS Akari paper pendant lamp by Isamu Noguchi and amazing green dining chairs by Vico Magistretti / Artemide.  OK Hand by Tim Fleming, Flatland OK (from Workshopped).

Eames LCW Plywood chair in RED pops against the utilitarian concrete floor.  So so good.

To top off our TOP 5 Australian Homes of 2011 this week, I just had to slide in another personal fave, the super slick yet super understated home belonging to creative Sydneysiders Heidi Dokulil (of The Parcel Group and The Australian Design Unit) and partner Richard Peters (who studied architecture and is responsible for designing their beautiful home)!  When we first posted this home back in June there was much admiration for the clean lines and clever use of a small space – we even had a few requests for floorplans!

As we outlined in the original post, this unique home is an inspired re-working of what was once a shed at the bottom of a larger property in Sydney’s Randwick – it’s now subdivided, with access via a rear laneway.  Whilst the open plan living and pitched roof give it a spacious feel, this perfect pad is actually deceptively tiny – just 85m2, with one modest master bedroom and an even smaller study. Clean lines, clever built-in cabinetry, under-floor heating and a second roof (to sandwich insulation above the existing corrugated roof!) combine to make this minimalist home practical and comfortable for two very busy creative people!

Whilst the architectural elements and Japanese proportions are a large part of this home’s appeal – it sure helps when you’ve got the coolest furniture in Sydney!  For the full run down and all design details do pop back and re-visit the original post!

Too cool for school.

Bathroom – cute succulents on the balcony.  Galvanised mesh allows light through to the lower level windows.
Posted by Lucy at 6:00 am
Categories - Architecture, Australian Homes, Sydney Homes, Uncategorized Comments (1)
Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Top 5 Australian Homes re-visited – Maria Villa and family

The Sydney home of Maria Villa and family!  Paintings in dining area by Maria Villa.  This photograph – Lucy Feagins.

Dining room details.  Paintings by Maria Villa.  Photos – Lucy Feagins.

Upstairs patio / balcony, adjoining dining room.  Photo – Lucy Feagins.

WOW September was a really good month for home tours this year!  Another gorgeous pad we shared in September was the stunning Sydney home of artist and designer Maria Villa.  As mentioned in the original post, Maria is one amazing woman – after undergoing major surgery earlier this year she bounced back with even more energy and zest for life than before!  She is one truly inspiring lady, whose infectious enthusiasm and positive spirit is perfectly exemplified in her home in Sydney’s North Shore – full of life, bold colour and vibrant details.

Maria lives here with her husband Eduardo and son Mateo, aged eleven.  Maria has a background in fine art and interior design, whilst Eduardo is an architect, and together they run architecture and design firm Villa + Villa.  This creative pair renovated the kitchen and bathroom soon after moving in, and added the finishing touches more recently.  An extra living area was added upstairs, in addition to a very special room downstairs, which opens onto the lush back garden – ‘this is our fav-fab room’ says Maria!

Massive thanks again to Maria’s dear friend, photographer Ross Coffey, who kindly allowed us to use some of his own shots of the home, taken independently (which of course are so brilliant and full of deep, rich colour).

For the full tour and many more pics do pop back and re-visit the original post here!

Maria’s new and much-loved downstairs living room!  Rug by Loom.  Amazing paper sculpture artwork by Tracey Deep.  This photo by Ross Coffey.
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Posted by Lucy at 6:00 am
Categories - Australian Homes, Sydney Homes, Uncategorized Comments (3)