After living in an open-plan warehouse in Collingwood, creative agent Kelly Thompson and restaurateur Christian McCabe moved to this three-level townhouse designed by Melbourne architect Robin Williams four years ago. They were attracted by the grand ceiling height in the upstairs living area, and the diffused light that streams through shutters into the ground floor level. While unable to make structural alterations to the building, the couple have imbued the place with their own unique sense of style, simply by ‘filling it with things they love.’

This love is evident, in the way Kelly and Christian have married the architectural characteristics of the space with their own distinctive aesthetics. The golden, timber-clad interiors give the home a warm, nostalgic feel, which the residents have enhanced with carefully selected furniture and artworks. Vintage gold lamps, pink marble side tables, and cascading ferns contrast with the ‘perfectly square, considered building’.

Kelly says her styling approach here has been to deliberately ‘mess up’ the clarity of the home’s architectural  lines, with a warm materials palette, inviting textures and pre-loved finds. Kelly has an eagle-eye for second hand and vintage furniture, and loves the thrill of the hunt! ‘The house has clean lines, but we want to clutter it up a bit and want it to be comfortable’ Kelly explains.

Another distinctive feature of this home, is the way the interior spaces connect to the exterior streetscape. Tall, narrow and framed by giant plane trees, this home has the feeling of an urban ‘treehouse’. Kelly describes the joy of sliding open the windows to have the room open to the treetops ; ‘it’s so nice being high up and watching the trees change with the season.’