Homes

Flemish Architecture Revived In Cremorne

Sally Genser is a successful businesswoman who has worked in the building industry since she was just 18!  Her spectacular, carefully renovated bluestone home in Cremorne has been a labour of love, affording Sally the opportunity to be both client and designer – and to collaborate with her four talented grown-up children!

Written
by
Lucy Feagins
Supported by Dulux

The entryway to Sally Genser’s heritage Cremorne home, featuring a collection of Indigenous Art, a tribal rug from Afganistan and painting by Gareth Sansom. When Sally uncovered the original bluestone walls (the house is over 135 years old!) she was determined to make a feature out of them. She contacted a tuck pointer, whose grandfather worked in Italy in this exact trade, who restored the bluestone to its glory. Photo – Benjamin Hosking.

Art from Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu and Africa. Photo – Benjamin Hosking.

The corner of the living room featuring a collection of Ken Whisson paintings. Photo – Benjamin Hosking.

‘Understanding the kitchen is a major feature of any home, I didn’t want it to look like a typical kitchen and be the centrepiece – I wanted the home to look like an art gallery. I went as far as sourcing appliances from Germany with a downdraft exhaust so a range hood did not interrupt the visuals!’ Sally enthuses! Photo – Benjamin Hosking.

Photo – Benjamin Hosking.

Sally sourced recycled timber from the Mornington Wharfs to create the open staircase. Artwork by Rona Green Photo – Benjamin Hosking.

Sally and her four children, Jake Eisen and Nat Eisen of Eisen Property, Zac Eisen who works at Probuild, and Hannah Eisen who works at City of Melbourne. ‘innovative and clever minds to bounce ideas off!’ says Sally! Photo – Benjamin Hosking.

Master bedroom. Photo – Benjamin Hosking.

The dining and living areas are flooded with natural light thanks to floor-to-ceiling folding glass doors. Photo – Benjamin Hosking.

View from the lounge room looking across the balcony area back to the master bedroom. Photo – Benjamin Hosking.

The folding doors were custom made in Melbourne. Photo – Benjamin Hosking.

Sally Genser, who has lived in various homes in this pocket of Cremorne for her entire life!  Photo – Benjamin Hosking.

The Cremorne house facade with original hoop iron fence. Originally built around 1881, Sally purchased the home in 2012. Photo – Benjamin Hosking.

Writer
Lucy Feagins
6th of March 2018

Sally Genser had her eye on this distinctive bluestone mansion house in Melbourne’s Cremorne for many years. Having grown up and raised her four children in this inner-city pocket, she was always drawn to this house, with its impressive scale and grand street presence. When it came up for sale in 2012, she jumped at the opportunity to buy it.

Built in 1881, the house is the only example of Dutch/Flemish Architecture in the Cremorne area, which makes it quite unique. Sally knew the 136-year-old building would need a lot of TLC to return it to its former glory – due to its heritage value, she was required to keep the original façade of the house, including slate roof, and she also chose to retain the decorative cast iron lacework friezes, and the balcony lacework balustrades. Contemporary additions include the steel windows, doors and bi-fold door frames, all custom made locally – no stock standard fittings here!

Sally is the passionate founder and owner of two boutique building and property businesses,  381 Cremorne and Phillip Island Apartments, and her many years working in the building industry proved invaluable, as she navigated the complexities of renovating a heritage building.  ‘I am fortunate that I have worked in the building industry from the age of 18, so have picked up tips and tricks along the way’ she says. ‘I am also privileged that my four adult children also work in the property, building and architecture industry so I had innovative and clever minds to bounce ideas off!’.

The design and renovation process was by no means straightforward. The renovation was held up for 2 years due to council permits (grrr), but the building works were finally complete in 2016. Working closely with her daughter Hannah, who is an architect, Sally spent a long time designing, refining her selections, and managing the project.

During the process, to Sally’s delight, she uncovered original bluestone walls all the way through the original building. Once discovered, she was determined to make them a design feature – seeking out a ‘tuck pointer’ to carefully restore them. ‘The house has given me the confidence to explore and develop spaces that respond to both brief and context. It has also been a new and enjoyable experience to actually live one of my projects!’

Though she’s very much in love with her vibrant, creative home… Sally is equally thrilled to have created her ‘forever home’ in Cremorne, a tiny, tightly-held suburb where she has lived almost her whole life. ‘As Melbourne is once again, the world’s most liveable city, I really feel I am in the heart of it all, I don’t even need a car. I can walk everywhere!’ she enthuses. ‘What makes Melbourne famous is right on my doorstep. The dogs love their daily walks around the Botanical Gardens and down the Yarra River! Melbourne’s best restaurants, bars, art, music and sport are all a stone’s throw away, and yet I feel like I am in a tranquil oasis when I walk through the front door.’

 

 

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