An Incredible 1896 Waterfront House, Accessible Only By Boat

We see phenomenal houses on a daily basis at The Design Files, but rarely do we audibly gasp like we did seeing garden designer Richard Unsworth’s home for the first time!

Located on Rocky Point in Lovett Bay – a northern Sydney suburb only accessible by water – Richard has been holidaying in this house for 25 years with the previous owner’s daughter, Justine Johnston. The friends and their respective partners purchased the home together from Justine’s mother six years ago, spending weekends by the water ever since!

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A Sydney Family Home Inspired By Wes Anderson, Art Deco + English Country Gardens

In 2021, Chloe Brookman, founder of homewares, apparel and children’s products label Olli Ella, and her husband Charlie Wheeler bought a 1910 home in South Coogee, and embarked on a major transformation project.

Working with architect Sofia Husni to renovate and extend the Sydney property, the couple have created a home that feels classic, yet entirely unique!

The result is a sophisticated and inspired space for Chloe, Charlie and their five children Tennyson (13), Arlo (10), Nell (6), August (3), and Quentin (1), combining diverse influences – from Wes Anderson film sets, to art deco colour palettes, Mediterranean patterns, and English country gardens!

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An Under-The-Radar Modernist Masterpiece In The Dandenongs

When we first came across images of this house, we couldn’t quite believe what we were seeing!

Usually a mid-century house of this calibre has been well-documented in the media, yet this near-original condition property with an amazing indoor garden and pond is almost completely unknown!

Located in Melbourne’s Ferny Creek, on the edge of the Dandenong Ranges, the house has been in the hands of White Salt Photography owner Janine Harris and her family since 2014. They’ve restored the original living spaces, while renovating the bathrooms and a kitchen to suit their young family.

Read the full story here. 

A Spanish Mission Wonderland In Tamarama

The apartment of film and TV directors Jordana Johnson and Charlie Ford is one of those rare rental properties most Sydneysiders only dream of.

Located in a circa 1915 Spanish Mission building, the apartment’s elevated position in Tamarama (on aptly named Wonderland Avenue!) provides views of the ocean in one direction, and the building’s leafy garden on the other, while offering plenty of interior space for the couple’s sentimental art collection.

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The Charming Fitzroy Rental Of Two Artists

It’s amazing what colour infused across art, textiles, and books alone can do for a home, especially when styling a rental property. In the hands of artists, Jordy van den Nieuwendijk and Kate Isobel Scott, a previously cobweb-ridden house has become a warm eclectic home… without making a single structural change!

In creating this home, Jordy and Kate have invested in furniture they’ll have for many years, shipped across delightful pieces and books from their previous home in The Netherlands, and embraced brick and timber surfaces to personalise their Fitzroy rental property.

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A Thornbury Cafe Turned Delightful DIY Home

Buying a home in covetable Thornbury took plenty of research, patience, and persistence for artist Lucas Wearne of Neighbourhood Studio and social worker Lucy Hyslop.

The couple searched across commercial and residential listings for something suitable, which eventually led them to a historical shopfront most recently used as a cafe.

Lucy and Lucas spent six weeks getting the property to a habitable state, creating the charming home you see today!

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An Architecturally Superb Melbourne Home By Sean Godsell

When our art director Annie Portelli returned from photographing this house, she said it was her favourite home we’ve ever featured – and that’s a pretty big call!

Designed by one of Australia’s most acclaimed modern architects, Sean Godsell, the recently renovated South Yarra home is refined, warm, and meticulously considered.

Owner Mandy Wilton lives here with her son Nicholas (whose home and business occupies the rear self-contained quarters), while her other son Dominic lives just three doors down with his family. The home’s internal courtyard and clever design allows space for the entire extended family to congregate — something they do very regularly!

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A Mid-Century Renovation That Masterfully Blends Old And New

If interior designer Sarah Conly and engineer Hugh O’Brien hadn’t bought this mid-century house, it’s likely the Ivanhoe East property wouldn’t exist today.

Not only did the couple save the home from potential demolition, they’ve spent the last two years enhancing its 1960s bones with sympathetic restorations that masterfully blend old and new.

It’s been A LOT of work, but the result is one very special home!

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The 1970s Mudbrick Home Of Jewellery Designer Olivia Cummings + The Teskey Brothers Drummer Liam Gough

The home of Liam Gough, drummer of The Teskey Brothers, and Olivia Cummings, designer and founder of jewellery label Cleopatra’s Bling, is a classic mudbrick home, typical of Melbourne’s north-east.

The couple purchased the 1977 owner-built home in North Warrandyte last year, and have since undertaken only minor updates that celebrate the original design.

Over the past twelve months, this has been the perfect work-from-home and living haven for Liam & Olivia, surrounded by towering trees and native wildlife!

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A Historic Melbourne Apartment With Artful, Lived-In Interiors

Interior Designer Leigh Ellwood is a relatively new resident of the famous 1930s ‘Beverly Hills’ apartments in South Yarra. She’s known of the complex for over 30 years, but was still struck by the light-filled interiors when inspecting this particular apartment for sale – and couldn’t resist snapping it up!

Leigh invited us in for a tour of her calm and content space, personalised with a thoughtful edit of furniture and design objects, and a brilliantly eclectic art collection.

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A Unique 1950s Brisbane Home, Transformed To Bring The Outdoors In

Artist Pip Spiro believes the most beautiful homes are an amalgamation of times, places, and movements  — a sentiment that’s reflected in every element of her Brisbane family house, shared with husband Nick Spiro and children Sydney (6), Beatrix (4) and Fred (1).

The house itself was built in the post-war 1950s era, but adopts an earlier interwar functionalist style, comprising curved brick corners, concrete cantilevered window hoods, and metal verandah railings.

Pip and Nick embarked on a major extension of the heritage home designed by Cavill Architects in 2017. The original brick house meets a stunning white addition, concealing relaxed interiors reflective of the Queensland environment and family of five.

Read the full story here.