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Design + Diplomacy’s creative director Nicole Langelier had been waiting for a client brave enough to embrace bold colours in their home.
When she came across this single-storey, late 20th-century Kew East abode with no defining architectural features, she was excited to play with a blank canvas.
‘It gave us the freedom to introduce character rather than having to work around a particular architectural style,’ Nicole explains.
That freedom is evident throughout the home, where a bold green kitchen sits alongside plenty of warm, natural plywood.
‘This project is our plywood palace,’ Nicole says.
This simple material forms the central core of the home, creating a mudroom and entry storage on one side and the kitchen on the other. Chosen for its simplicity and versatility, its natural finish also provides a calm introduction to the home before the bright green kitchen comes into view.
‘The idea was to really hero a humble material: you first see it in its calm, natural finish when you walk through the front door, then get the surprise of that bold green when you round either corner,’ Nicole explains.
That particular shade of green had been on her team’s radar for years, appearing again and again on Pinterest boards used to develop ideas for projects.
‘We finally found the clients brave enough to say yes to it!’ she says.
‘Colour was always a key part of the brief… Getting the clients to agree with each other on the exact choices held us up slightly — but we were very happy to get our green over the line!’
The clients, a young family of three, purchased the home in 2025 after moving to Melbourne from Sydney. While their initial brief and $100k budget called for a simple kitchen redesign with a focus on storage and flow, it soon expanded (and budget doubled) after they fell in love with the vision of what their home could look and feel like.
Previously separated from other communal areas, the kitchen now opens to both the living and dining spaces, while the reverse side of the joinery doubles as a mudroom and entry storage. Nicole and her team also borrowed a small amount of space from the bathroom to create a separate powder room.
The renovation has given the family a home that works harder for them, without losing the playful character that made the project so exciting in the first place.
‘We transformed a small, boxy footprint into a highly functional family home. The clients can now keep an eye on their child while cooking, entertain friends comfortably and keep their private areas completely separate,’ Nicole says.
And even better, ‘That green itch was finally scratched, and it felt so good!’
