Major Surgery Produces The EntertainerIt's steeped in history and surrounded by stately gardens. It also exudes hospitality and has been known to sleep 150 people, including 30 in the cinema. This is Rotherwood, the house that grew around a dining table. Read more... |
The Hamptons in The HighlandsRunnymede is a home that's big, bold and beautiful, and cosy to boot. Its owners Suzanne and John Dougall are serial renovators – well, Suzanne is! With lawns rolling down to the Wingecarribee Reservoir, Runnymede is laid out in a setting typical of that seen in the wealthy Hamptons area of New York State. Read more... |
French Influence at Mt Robertson FarmMt Robertson Farm sits proudly atop a well grassed slope leading down to a heart shaped (by accident rather than design) dam. Its strong sandstone walls could be seen as severe, but are beautifully softened by hedges, roses, lavender, shrubs, trees and garden sculpture. Inside, massive wooden doors set into internal glass walls and long, wide, foyers and corridors filled with paintings and French antiques add sophistication and serenity. Read more... |
Same Owners, Three Homes: City, Country and UndergroundDuring the week, international jewellery designer Tony White and modernist architect/designer Alexander Michael live in a classic Sydney terrace. At weekends home becomes a spectacular futuristic steel and concrete mountaintop escape in Kangaroo Valley. Or, if they're in the United States, it could be a decommissioned intercontinental ballistic missile underground silo. Read more... |
Patchway gets a grand makeoverIt didn’t take much looking for the latest owners of Patchway to find the property…it was just up the road from where they lived, and they passed it almost every day while walking their dog. “We used to think, we could turn that house into the most wonderful home,” says the new owner. And so they have. With a hands-on approach to renovation they’ve literally made the house and garden their own. Read more... |
The family that saved CamelotIt’s taken a rescue mission of legendary proportions to restore the dilapidated Victorian mansion Camelot, but the family that took it on are nearing their fairytale ending. Read more... |
The Channel HouseIts owner has nicknamed L’Aiglon the Channel house because it looks part English farmhouse, part French and a “bit of this and a bit of that”, says the owner. “I was in Vail (Colorado) in my 30s and they had a room like our great room, with a big picture window looking up into the mountains, and I loved it. So it’s even a bit ski chalet.” Read more... |
History in the MakingHistoric elements of design influence many facets of James Salmond’s life, from his elegant contemporary furniture designs displayed in his inner-Sydney showroom to a country home that truly is his castle. Read more... |
The cottage that grewAn old Burradoo cottage has a new lease on life, thanks to a brilliant renovation that includes a beautiful kitchen and a master bedroom with its own sitting room and piano. Read more... |
Jackie O’s secret hideaway Radio star Jackie O and her husband Lee Henderson divide their time between Sydney and a cosy farmhouse with breathtaking views over Kangaroo Valley. They tell Deborah McIntosh how they found their dream site – and almost built a very different house. Read more... |
Beyond the brick wallFrom the street it stands as simply another of Braidwood’s attractive old buildings and there’s barely a hint of the glorious garden beyond the high brick walls. The original butcher’s shop is home to an enterprising pair who have created an English cottage garden to complement the Georgian-style building and its collection of outbuildings. Read more... |
The romance of RotherwoodRotherwood’s owners have transformed the historic Sutton Forest estate, adding romantic touches including a walled garden, a front verandah and shutters, and some beautifully personal ones, such as an etched front door and an armillary sundial, which both reference their family. Read more... |
Ready, dwelling and stableSheena Jackson loves horses so much that she built her house between two stables. She tells Deborah McIntosh about her inspired home, her days as a jockey, and why she loves caring for horses, despite “foaling down” alarms in the middle of the night. Read more... |
The rest is historyThe stable at Southdown, now converted into an accommodation cottage, has a rich history tethered to that of Burradoo. Read more... |
The sun shines on SummerleesSix years ago Summerlees owners jumped at the chance to live in a historic Sutton Forest property that was once home to the family that ran David Jones. They tell Deborah McIntosh how they achieved their dream. Read more... |
A mouth-watering homeRelatively few contemporary homes are built in the Southern Highlands but a notable exception is the modernist Alpine Lodge on the Old Hume Highway at Alpine. Here large expanses of glass, an internal sandstone wall and polished concrete floors result in an energy-efficient home. Then, over 25 acres of what was once a pine plantation, the new owners have designed and built their own private golf course. Read more... |
Mexican RaveProbably the last place you'd expect to see a Mexican-influenced house is in the Southern Highlands of Australia. Even in the depths of drought it's not exactly desert thereabouts. But the owners of this property were indeed influenced by the way houses in Mexico seemed comfortable within the land. They took this almost spiritual concept and applied it to bush acreage on the edge of Morton National Park, with stunning results. Read more... |
The Home of a Harry Potter StarAward winning British character actor Miriam Margolyes first visited Robertson when she was making the movie Babe. Now she's back, living in a house in the tree tops with a view all the way to the sea. It’s not that she needed another house – she already has homes in Santa Monica, London and near Siena in Italy. But she just fell in love with Robertson, and decided to build there. Read more... |
A Very Special Love StoryCordeaux is a meticulously planned French style home and stable complex at Berrima. It is one of the Southern Highlands most outstanding properties. It also represents the culmination of a love story that began some 30 years ago when a dashing young French aristocrat met a lovely young fifth generation woman from the David Jones retailing dynasty. Read more... |