The Seafarers Cottages- first look

Happy New Year! As you might have guessed we had a quiet one last night as we were pretty exhausted. The last of the three Seafarers Cottages was rented out to holiday makers yesterday afternoon and it was still a building site a few days ago.

The interiors are done to stage one, that is, furnished and fitted out with the first layer of decoration. I am now looking at the photos like you are thinking, "What else can I add to make that room special?".

I am really happy with the small aqua kitchen in cottage #1 with the marine-style stainless steel bench and old porthole ship's clock. Adding pieces like that old clock give a room some soul. The raffia mirror is one I have had for years. It was in my fisherman's cottage up the road (Country Style Dec 2007) and I have been looking for raffia things to go with it ever since, without much luck.

The fridge and dishwasher are neatly concealed behind cupboard doors and the pantry is built into the old meat safe cupboard. We took the ceiling out to expose the roof line and it does make the space seem bigger. The exposed rafters give it a more boatshed feel and I painted it all Dulux "White On White", including the shutters and woodwork to also add to the illusion of spaciousness!

The tiny bedroom in cottage #1 was a real challenge. I went with this Ikea four-poster bed as I love the fun of putting a box within a box. We had to nail it to the floor so the shutters and doors wouldn't hit it, that's how tight a fit it is. 

The shutters as window treatments were a great solution as there is quite a bit of ambient street light at night. Also I love that greek island vibe.

The bedsides were a dilemma as I wanted something a bit different. At the last minute I drove into town to my favourite 2nd-hand store and found this slightly kitsch side table which sort of matched one given to me by a friend recently. They are crying out to be painted in bold colours and I will get to that...

The floors... had to be whitewashed. I have come up with a new recipe for whitewashed floors and this one seems to be working well. (The cleaner has yet to comment, however.)

Deck The Hall!

I have just dashed home before heading out to do the last bits of decorating on the beach houses before the last one is holiday rented tomorrow. (If my husband knew, he'd be furious!)

Wow, it has been a huge push to get them finished but we have some happy tenants who have taken the other two cottages since Boxing Day.

The old school/church hall arrived last week as well and I am posting pics of that today. We are very excited about that and it has loads of potential... and lots more renovation work to do. The hall was my Christmas present and we discovered once we peeled back the carpet that the old floorboards are lovely thick, wide boards in great condition.

Happy New Year everyone - and I promise there will be lots more posts in the coming weeks!

Renovation Rescue

I do apologise for not posting for a while, but this time of year is hectic in a quiet year, let alone when I have three cottages to renovate and decorate before Christmas. And run a new shop... and a six year old.

The photographer I work with has just about given up on me and I forgot to mention I am the chair of my local town's promotion committee...

Anyway this is all part of it - the renovation process. I am pleased to report that the little houses are almost ready and the work site is just a blur of tradesmen at the moment. Don't anyone ever tell you that a reno is easy, but it can be fun.

Light fittings are my worst fear but they must be chosen and purchased.

The paint colours are usually my forte but this project, I have to admit, had me stumped. What to paint three historic cottages on the beach? I ended up going with a piece of fabric as the key to the colour scheme. This is a good place to start if, like me, you are confounded by a colour scheme!

I have gone with a palette of watermelon, chocolate, citrus yellow and ice blue on the chair pictured. Sounds unusual, possibly edible, but it is really a fashionable line up and I can't help myself there.

The Perry Beach House

This month I have a feature in The Australian Womens Weekly on a stunning beach house owned by the Perry family.

This house is in the same beach village that my little houses are in and I met Justine and Andrew after a stroll along the beach one day.

I can remember what the house was like before they bought it - indeed we had considered buying it ourselves but turned up too late at the auction! It consisted of two very rundown old fibro shacks which they kept and joined together with massive awnings. Justine has decorated it with a combination of minimal modern and vintage which works really well with the old house with sleek renovations.

Its a great escape for the Perrys who wanted their young children to experience the uncomplicated fun of extended holidays at the beach. Lately whales and their calves have been coming close into the beach.

You can now rent it - contact www.outriggerawnings.com.au

More Xmas decorations...

I really love some of these festive decor ideas from Living Etc Magazine. Its great to see ideas for a modern interior, like the one with the orange chair with simple "JOY" letters on the hearth and hand drawn bauble on the pillar.

The simple idea of baubles on plain vase is nothing new but a good one to remember.

Festive Decor Inspiration

Each year its fun to come up with a new decorating ideas for the festive season. Here are some unusual and stylish concepts that have taken my eye. I love the oversize baubles hung over a small-ish table and the simple idea of a card or paper tree on a mirror.

The School House

One of my most re-read books is Paul Bangay's "The Enchanted Garden" about the building of his garden and renovation of the old school house at St Ambrose Farm, Woodend. Paul Bangay is one of Australia's most successful and talented garden designers and his gardens can be seen all over the world from East Hampton to St Tropez to the Caribbean.

Paul has sold St Ambrose Farm this month and has bought another property nearby in the Mt Macedon area of Victoria called Stonefields where he is creating a new garden in a more open, rural setting.

It is serendipity that just as St Ambrose has sold, I have my own school house project approved by the authorities and ready to go. My husband Rob and I have wanted to extend our old farmhouse at Sky Meadow since we moved in nearly 5 years ago. As it is heritage listed, we are obliged to build a separate pavilion and we secretly wished we could find an old church hall or school house to move to the property instead of building a new wing. Well, totally unexpectedly, an old school hall found us. It was going to be demolished to make way for a new building which was such a waste so we offered to recycle it!

The school house is a timber weatherboard-clad building which is almost a perfect match for the age, scale and materials of our house. It is going to be moved sometime in the next couple of months on the back of a giant truck and will become our living and kitchen wing. There are really two buildings and they will need some work once they arrive, but will end up with a screened porch, kitchen with scullery, laundry plus living and dining area.

Hunting Lodge Style

This week I flew down to Melbourne preview the new Meizai concept store in Richmond. Meizai is a collection of unique designer accessories and furniture for the home and until now was a name familiar only to (and available only through) decorators and up-market retailers. 

Pick of the rooms was what I call the "explorer's den", a masculine study with shabby leather chesterfields, industrial tables and lights, brass desk ornaments and framed fossils and specimens. It's a look Ralph Lauren did very well back in the 80s and 90s and has recreated this season with the Indian Cove Lodge Collection, pictured.

I am no fan of hunting but I do like the interiors!

 

I will be doing my version of this look updated with pieces of industrial-inspired furniture. You'll be seeing it at In My House soon...

Choosing Paint Colours

I have been trying out ideas for a colour scheme for the three "Seafarers Cottages" we are renovating in the quaint seaside village of Currarong. (It seems I have a bit more time than anticipated as our renovation plans have been held up by the local council).

I really like a slightly darker than bright red for the central cottage. This is an unusual colour here in Australia but I have seen a few photos of old port houses painted deep reds in Scandinavia and on the east coast of USA.

Now as an art director I am right into colour and not afraid of trying daring shades, be they very dark, murky or very bright, but it is always a challenge to find just the right shade. I apply the same advice I give to other people - Have a theme. Then create a mood board of photos of all the houses or rooms you really like for this project.

My theme is "Nautical" as the cottages are called the Seafarers Cottages after the local festival which is held right in front in the beachside park. The history of the area also gives some clues - there were quite a few shipwrecks over the years as the headland juts right out into the Pacific Ocean, so I am inspired by nautical and stormy colours, driftwood and the reds used on lighthouses.

BTW... There is one famous story about a shipwreck of an old steam ship called the Merimbula that ran into the rocks in a storm in about 1928. The ship was wrecked but everyone on board was saved.

The other interesting factor is that the walls of these old cottages are fibrous cement sheeting which suits strong colour with a matt finish. I like to use a paint by Australian brand Porters Paints (now available in USA under name "Sydney Harbour Paint Co") called Stonepaint Fine on fibro. It s a more expensive, hand made paint but the results are worth it.

I am thinking of painting each cottage a different colour, though the two smaller ones will be similar shades.

The best way to try out paint colours for exteriors is to buy some sample pots and paint up sheets of masonite or anything laying around the building site such as fibro or even plasterboard. Pick sheets that are at least waist height. You can then move them around to different spots to see how the colour looks in light and shaded areas. When you think you have narrowed it down to say, two colours, get a small amount mixed up in the actual paint and try that directly onto the walls of the house.

Abigail Ahern

I have been looking at what coffee table books to buy for the shop and found Abigail Ahern's book "A Girl's Guide to Decorating"which many of you bloggers may already know about. What great style and a sense of humour this girl has! 

Love the moody backdrops with punches of fluorescent colour and the mix of old and new, rustic and slick. 

In My House - the shop!

This is the second time I have set up a shop and it doesn't get any easier... But hey it is pretty good fun and here is my latest venture, still a work in progress.

In My House is in Berry, a small historic town 2 hours south of Sydney. The countryside is idyllic - all green rolling hills running down to lovely beaches. The town used to be well known for its antiques but this all died away in the past decade. That is why I am pleased to be bringing back some vintage mixed with new. The "old mixed with new" thing is my point of difference and don't most of us have that sort of mix in our houses?

I have found some excellent craftspeople in the area who help me restore furniture, not to mention one lady in particular who makes fabulous cushions and soft furnishings. 

Pics: The garden corner features beautiful hand-made, rustic garden products from Heaven In Earth which is a local business set up by Jocelyn Van Hoven who originally hails from Conneticut, USA. Very Martha! I painted the dresser lime green and rubbed it back to show the pink underneath.

Aqua Chair: This is an original Parker Knoll chair from England which I had restored and covered in an American linen.

Seaside Corner: Berry is a stop off point for people heading down to beachside weekenders so its great to stock some white-washed firniture, shells, coral and driftwood.

Garden Setting: I love that the shop opens onto a garden laneway. I am collecting architectural bits and pieces, like gates and doors which I put out here.

Back At The Beach

I was talking to Thea about her new home furnishing fabrics yesterday, which are gorgeous by the way, and she said the shop must be taking all my attention as she noticed I hadn't blogged for a while.

Well I am going to take some photos of the shop today to show you (and Thea) what it's like.

For today though, I thought I'd share another beachy place on the south coast I have done a story about.

The Balinese house at Werri Beach is one of the best I have seen in this genre. This style of decorating has become almost like fast food here in Australia as there are "Bali" shops selling cheap knic knacs in every town. Andre, the owner, built this house new and managed to achieve a fabulous relaxing resort-style atmosphere with clever landscaping and architectural details. It helps that he actually imports these huge wooden doors and stone baths...

Collecting Beach Inspiration

Just thought I would share with you some of the images that are going on my mood board/scrapbook of beach house ideas. Isn't that lime and white striped door fabulous? I already have some red and white doors which I am going to install in the big cottage.... but I am now thinking about a lime and white door too.

Also loving the re-use of sails in soft furnishings. That will be popping up at my shop soon.

Beach Cottage Decorating Project

The little houses we are renovating have now got a name -"The Seafarers Cottages" and their facelift is well underway.

The biggest change so far has been the windows. We replaced all the old brown aluminum sliders with old wooden windows which we have collected from tips, building sites and op shops over the years. The new old windows match in beautifully with the original wooden windows and really contribute to the rustic old-world vibe.

I am contemplating exterior paint colours and an overall theme for the interiors and have some inspiring pics here to share.

If anyone has other great seaside cottage pics - please post them!

More from Marina

I just had to put in some more pics I found of Marina's beach house at Hyams Beach. Love daughter Stephanie's lilac bedroom and the little vignettes Marina has created on tables and shelves.

The beach at Hyams is stunning - it reputedly has the whitest sand in the world.