When it comes to beachside homes that celebrate relaxed living, look no further than this dreamy family abode located in Casuarina, just south of the New South Wales / Queensland border. The house captures the imagination of the kids that live and visit here, with indoor & outdoor spaces created with both adults and little ones in mind. Owner Britt talks about her style and creating a home where everyday feels like a holiday.
Favourite feature of the house…
Oooh that’s a tricky one … My husband Damian, with a lot of help from his Dad Derek who is a builder, did our renovation and there are a couple features we’re really happy with - the glass entry hall and the big bi-fold doors off our lounge & kitchen has created such a tranquil energy throughout our home. Even when we are inside doing homework, cooking, work or the most monotonous task we always have the lush greenery and pool as the backdrop, absolutely no regrets there!
Also, the outdoor bathtub we put in for our never-ending stream of guests. It has created a larger space for them and the sliding glass door opens up to their own private deck with a shower & freestanding stone bath in the open air. Not to mention me and the kids love using it whenever they can!
An artist I’m loving right now is…..
Emma Gale, her "Apple Seller" is featured in our kitchen … we never tire of him, he is now part of the family! We are looking forward to putting a few more of her vibrant pieces throughout our home.
I would describe my style as….
Minimal, but relaxed. I choose pieces more for an “experience” than a trend. I would rather wait for the right piece than over-style. I am quite a rummager though and have collected pieces throughout our home from our travels or Op shops along the way creating interest and personality. I really appreciate things that are unique, but also good quality. My best find has been two solid brass vases I found in Murwillumbah that came from a Catholic church in South America circa 1910. I love a good story behind things, whether they cost a lot or a little.
My top tip for creating spaces little ones love….
Think about the long run. We created The Clubhouse as a place for our kids to go and “Be”… create / read / play … it’s a “hangout”. We didn’t have the space inside our home for a second lounge room, so, we wanted to utilise our generous yard. We designed a large deck and a mezzanine inside that they can play in when little, but, also grow up using for so many memories to come. We hope they don’t outgrow it until their teens. There is a lot of potential out there for sleep outs, and actually this last week we started doing outdoor movies out there with our new projector.
We want our kids to spend as much time as possible outdoors, we are fortunate though with weather here as it’s pretty ideal most of the year around for outdoor activities! We also turned one whole wall in Madison’s bedroom into a chalk board wall, it was great when she was younger keeping her busy, and now she can use it for school work and art.
The kids’ favourite corner of the house is….
The Cubby House is the answer I received when asking my daughter haha. She actually didn’t go down there much over the last year unless she had a friend visiting … but, now that Stone is pottering around, they are often down there playing together. It’s the best feeling watching them as little buddies playing in something that we envisioned years ago.
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