Born and raised in Orange NSW, Pip Brett and her partner Nick Luelf had always planned to build their dream family house in the Central Tablelands town.
They purchased a block of land in 2018 overlooking Spring Creek Dam, and worked with Studio Esteta to design the home, with Nick on the tools.
‘We knew the block of land was perfect for us, because it is so close to town but feels like a million miles away. We have the most spectacular views that change all day long,’ says Pip. ‘It allowed us to build not only our dream home, but also our forever home.’
Pip worked closely with Studio Esteta’s Felicity Slattery (her friend from high school) to design a home that would grow with the couple and their two sons Digby (11) and Barnaby (9) throughout every stage of their future lives.
‘We wanted to build a home that we could grow old in: no steps, and spacious hallways,’ Pip says. ‘[The boys] could be teenagers studying, or bringing their new families here.’
Aesthetically, the family wanted a home that would capture the landscape, with calming interiors within. Large windows frame views of the paddocks outside that evole throughout Orange’s defined seasons. ‘Every window is like an artwork,’ Pip says.
Landscaping by Greenspace Design blends the house into landscape as much as possible, while a series of courtyards offer relief from each season.
‘Landscaping was a massive undertaking as we had carved our home into the side of a hill,’ says Pip. ‘We wanted the cattle to come right up to the house. The aim was that you couldn’t tell where the garden finished and the paddock started.’
The house itself adopts a block form softened with a Moroccan-inspired earthy render inspired by Pip’s frequent travels to the country. ‘Sometimes it looks like a sandy beige and then the next minute it’s a dusty pink.’
These bold lines are contrasted indoors with plenty of curving forms in the joinery, ceiling detailing, internal walls, and sculptural furniture.
Colour is strategically introduced all throughout the home – from the salmon kitchen island bench (made from concrete poured on site), deep green bathroom, and the selection of art, cushions, ceramics. Of course, many of these pieces come from Pip’s hugely successful homewares and fashion business, Jumbled, which has its bricks and mortar shop in Orange.
‘I think that our home totally reflects our personality and the way that we live. It is our calm after the crazy of the day. It is a relaxing home, but through art and colour you can see our personality,’ says Pip.
The house was finished in 2020 (after two years living with Pip’s mum) following a COVID-impacted build.
The landscaping continues to develop around the infinity pond — a shallow body of water that sits between the house and Spring Creek Dam, with Mount Canobolas beyond.
Pip says she’s still pinching herself to be able to watch the sun rise and set each day from her dream home. ‘We will never move from here’ she says!
