IT WAS ALL HANDS ON DECK AS THE HOUSE RULES TEAMS CREATED A FAMILY-FRIENDLY HOME NEARLY FROM SCRATCH IN ONE WEEK WORDS LYNNE TESTONI PHOTOGRAPHY SUE STUBBS WALLPAPER: Lines wallpaper by Ferm Living, Annandale Wallpapers. ARTWORKS SIRIEUSE 2 UNITED ARTWORKS 134 HOMEBEAUTIFUL.COM.AU I JULY 2018 Page 1 of 6
A mix of soft greys, including the Basix three-seater sofa from Matt Blatt, creates a relaxed family space that complements the home s calming colour scheme. of this year s House Rules held a special surprise. All seven teams, drawn from all over the country, combined forces for a brand new challenge: to not only tackle the usual task of redesigning an entire house in just seven days, but to do so to sell it on and hopefully! profit from the deal. With the team that topped the leaderboard at the end of the series set to win potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars, the pressure was on to create something truly special. The house, located in Sydney s inner west, was renovated, extended and styled for sale. The teams are usually designing with one of the other contestants in mind, but this time their only guidance was a set of rules supplied by judges Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen, Wendy Moore and Drew Heath. Drawing inspiration from Australian art and artists including legendary 20th-century designer Florence Broadhurst the contestants delivered an urban oasis from a relatively small footprint, generating plenty of living space in clever and creative ways. All three judges agreed that the biggest hit of the renovation was Queensland team Josh and Brandon s elegant handmade timber staircase. The tradie brothers work especially impressed HR judge and Home Beautiful s Wendy, who loved the vertical balustrade that the boys built. The kitchen was also a success: It was a good, compact, urban kitchen, thought HR Judge and architect Drew, who felt that the teams managed the space constraints well. The whole space is nice and busy, he says. It is kind of like walking into a furniture showroom in a good way. Because there s just stuff everywhere, and there s a lot to look at. All the palettes work together. FLOORING: European Oak engineered floorboards in Latte, Sydney Art Flooring. A neutral palette forms the backdrop to the living room s inviting textural features, including a Cemintel plasterboard feature wall and handmade floating staircase. LIVING-DINING ROOM A spectacular handmade staircase acts as a sculptural focal point for the living-dining area (opposite & above), with judge Drew observing that the design brings light into the centre of the house, connecting the two floors in style. It gives you light and rhythm, he says. It lets light come down into the space and tells you it s a two-storey house. You could obviously see it was handmade and is made of real timber, which is what I liked. > Page 2 of 6
THE LAYOUT OF THE KITCHEN WORKED REALLY WELL IN A SMALL, OPEN-PLAN SPACE, THE KITCHEN NEEDS TO FEEL LIKE a living, NOT A FUNCTIONAL ONE ~ WENDY MOORE, JUDGE room With so much natural light in the kitchen zone, courtesy of the skylight and stairwell, the lighting could be decorative as well as practical, with Clayton ceramic pendant lights in Black from Beacon Lighting illuminating the work area. Page 3 of 6
TAPWARE: Vivid Slimline sink mixer, Phoenix. BENCH: Silestone benchtop in Calacatta Gold, Kinsman Kitchens. KITCHEN Part of the success of this open-plan area is the cleverly designed pantry/laundry tucked away beside the kitchen. It really is quite a functional butler s pantry, because it s got the laundry in there, says judge Wendy. This is such a great solution for a small house. It allows the kitchen to feel like a showpiece and part of the living space, and still have the functionality of all the storage that you need. > JULY 2018 I HOMEBEAUTIFUL.COM.AU 137 Page 4 of 6
Page: Section: Region: Circulation: Type: Size: 134 General News National, AU 82339 Magazines Lifestyle 3,606.00 sq.cms. %$7+5220 Dramatic feature tiles line the floor and wall behind the freestanding Lucini tub from Highgrove Bathrooms. The effect has extra impact thanks to the reflective qualities of the bath surface. The decision to use a gloss-black ovoid bath knocked the scheme into the rarified realms of a sexy contemporary art installation, says judge Laurence. Amazingly inspirational. TILES: Majorca Press feature tiles in Black and White, Beaumont Tiles. USING PATTERNED MONOCHROMATIC TILES ON BOTH THE FLOOR AND AS A BLOCK ON THE WALL WAS A. IT CREATED SUCH A DYNAMIC VISUAL RUSH AS YOU WALKED IN ~ LAURENCE LLEWELYN-BOWEN, JUDGE of genius Page 5 of 6 stroke
Page: Section: Region: Circulation: Type: Size: 134 General News National, AU 82339 Magazines Lifestyle 3,606.00 sq.cms. NURSERY Wendy felt that the nursery was an example of how to get a lot of personality into a small room (top left & right). It offered a bit of flexibility, she says. They ve got built-in wardrobes, which means that the rest of the space is just for living, not for storage. The compact space offered up lots of quaint touches and accessories, such as this chic adaptable Rocky plywood cot from Lilly And Lolly and artworks Rexa (left) and Harry (right) both from United Interiors. (168,7( The ensuite s spectacular expanse of Florence Broadhurst wallpaper followed one of the House Rules faithfully, providing a striking feature and bold hit of colour. Laurence was a big fan of the design. Invisible until the door was closed and you turned around, it had an elegant theatricality to it, he says. I think La Bella Florence would have loved it. WALLPAPER: Japanese Floral in Kingfish by Florence Broadhurst, Annandale Wallpapers. Page 6 of 6