Innholdsfortegnelse for 2505 i Australian House & Garden Specials

We are fortunate to have an abundance of creative and lateral thinkers in Australia - not just those in the design industry but lots of imaginative personalities. At art launches and design events I am always pleased to see the inner creativity of people who have demanding corporate professions. They often say their jobs are a little dry, but pursuing those professions can allow the financial independence to decorate and build a creative sanctuary where your true style can be displayed. I love seeing the artworks and carefully curated pieces people choose to live with. Two of our subjects in this special issue are serious trailblazers in the world of publishing: Robyn Holt, who launched the Vogue brand in Russia and was once chief executive of Condé Nast Australia, and…

Design dynamo Joss Knight of Studiojos rents this light-soaked townhouse in Sydney’s Inner West, but even as a rental, the abode still offers generous scope for him to channel his creative energies and showcase his classic style. Joss moved into the property two years ago with his good friends, Jake and James. “We were looking for a brand new property that could comfortably accommodate three young professionals,” he says. “Proximity to work was also a key factor, and, being just minutes from the Sydney CBD, made it an ideal choice.” Comprising three levels, the four-bedroom terrace offered plenty to love, with two bedrooms and a two-car garage on the ground level. The living areas occupy the first floor, while two more bedrooms, both with ensuites, occupy the top. But the…

A round dining table is a must for Imogen Naylor. “Why?” I ask this talented stylist and designer as she drives home along a windy coastal road after a long day on location in Sydney’s Palm Beach for an advertising shoot. “Well, it makes everyone around the table feel like a king,” she says with a laugh. It’s this sense of delight in her family and home that shines throughout our conversation, a chat that is peppered with childhood memories and tales of publishing and renovations. Clearly, home is at the heart of everything Imogen does. Her career was launched with a role at leading interiors magazine Belle in 2005, where she eventually rose to the position of interior design editor. “It was a wonderful time and I learnt so…

One thing is certain, Chrissie Jeffery is never boring, in person or in her work. We are sitting in the “good room” of her Potts Point apartment, but as far as I’m concerned, it’s a title deserved by every room in this inner-city home. When I mention that I’m working on a story about the Sydney decorator behind the No Chintz textiles and interior decorating business, I’m met with a shower of comments. Phrases such as “she has such a beautiful eye” and “colour genius” punctuate the conversation — and all of these accolades are well deserved. Chrissie’s legendary sense of colour is evident around me as I follow her through the apartment, but let’s return to that “good room”. It’s a tranquil space with walls painted a green reminiscent…

Calves are calling to their mothers in the distance as Robyn Holt walks up the driveway. “Come and see the garden first,” she insists, and I’m not about to say no to the woman who launched the Vogue brand in Russia and was once chief executive of Condé Nast Australia. This invitation is hardly surprising from someone who confesses that The Diggers Club catalogue is one of her favourite things to read, usually found on top of a pile of books at the avid reader’s bedside. “I adore books,” she says. The former editor of Vogue Living clearly adores gardens and houses, too. We meet on a clear sunny day. It’s perfect weather for gardening in a small town in the NSW Southern Highlands, where Robyn and her husband, Jim,…

An 18-month sabbatical on Lake Annecy in Haute-Savoie, France, has provided endless inspiration for Anna Kennard, both in the design of her home and in the creation of Sydney vintage and antiques business, Dusty Luxe. Born in England and educated in Scotland, Anna spent years travelling to her parents’ workplaces in Borneo, Libya, Yemen and Abu Dhabi as an “expat kid” before settling in Australia at the age of 23. Her upbringing certainly broadened her perspective, but the time spent in France was the most formative. While her three children attended the local school, Anna and husband Cameron spent their days learning French, exploring the lake and nearby mountains and, on weekends, fossicking in the local brocantes, vide-greniers and estate sales, developing a passion for French antiques. Returning to Sydney,…

When you grow up with a mother who writes stories called “These are the Worst Decorating Mistakes you can Make”, odds are that you are far less likely to make them yourself. Such is the case for Isabella Walker-Smith. Immersed in the world of design since she was a baby, this stylist and creative consultant knows exactly what she likes – and doesn’t like. “I was very lucky to grow up surrounded by beautiful things,” she says. “Mum [stylist and writer Melissa Penfold] has a great eye and was always discovering new places.” It was while Isabella was living in a tiny flat in London, during a two-year stint overseas, that she began to source pieces for her curated collections for Lawsons Auctioneers. “I spent a lot of time on…

Many people have told me over the years that the kitchen is the heart of their home. For Elizabeth Hewson it truly is. It’s the place she longs to be and the place where she is happiest. “I love to feed people,” she tells me, tucking baby Remi under one arm while looking for her four-year-old son Louis’ favourite toy car. And feed people she certainly does. It started with a cookbook, Moving Out… Eating In, published when she was only 21, which was followed by Saturday Night Pasta in 2020 and now her column in The Weekend Australian Magazine inspires an audience of nearly 800,000 each week. We are talking in the light-filled kitchen where the magic happens. Lizzie, which is what most people call her, carefully tests recipes…

Stuart Membery has spent a lot of his life living out of a suitcase, but he’s not complaining. Far from it. “A suitcase forces you to choose and makes you edit down to the things you love the most. And that’s what the job of a designer is: to edit. A poor designer is one who loves everything. A good designer is one who has refined their taste,” he says. And there you have it. The key to the Membery brand. One thing is very clear – this is a man who definitely does not love everything, but he knows exactly what he does like. It’s an ethos he honed in the world of fashion. The Stuart Membery label was launched in 1982 when the Perth-born designer decided to branch…

When Deborah Thomas, chief executive/managing director of Camp Quality, and former editor of The Australian Women’s Weekly and her husband, Vitek Czernuszyn, decided to buy a home in NSW’s Southern Highlands, the primary motivation was not an escape into solitude. “I liked the house because it was purposefully built as a bed and breakfast,” Deborah says of the extensive four-bedroom home, Stonnington, which also has a separate two-bedroom cottage on the same property. “I love entertaining and having friends and family to stay, so having six bedrooms, each with their own bathroom was just perfect!” The exterior of the house speaks to the Highlands style, with its Provençal chic yellow exterior and pale green shutters, but the interior is surprisingly modern eclectic, a reflection of the couple’s love of art,…