Australian Country Homes Issue 10

I love our gorgeous country and its infrastructure. From the sprawling historic homesteads to the eco-friendly pods, there’s something about Australian country homes that I cannot resist. Perhaps it’s the people. They often say they’re at the heart of the home, and that’s why each house featured in this issue comes with a story. Because on the outside, these dwellings may look like the product of careful planning and engineering but on the inside, they’re about journeys, family and love. I am honoured to be able to celebrate our Australian country homes with you as editor of this magazine. I can’t wait to share some of my favourite houses with you in this and future editions as we visit not just some gorgeous homes, but some fascinating people as well. In this issue,…

The Richmond Deluxe range from Belling is the perfect asset for country-style kitchens and homes. Rated the number-one oven brand in the 2019/20 Finder Retail Awards, Bellings’ Richmond Deluxe range includes classic-style cookers with modern features, and is an ideal choice for those looking for a product that is both functional and innovative, yet still emanates a traditional aesthetic. Available in two sizes (90cm and 110cm) and offering your choice of induction or dual-fuel cookers, the Richmond Deluxe range consists of top-of-the-range features including Equiflow fans for even heat distribution and removable telescopic runners for safe and easy access to food. The Richmond Deluxe range also boasts quad-oven technology, creating four independent ovens in one, giving you more flexibility when you need it. It is available in an array of…

Family and friends are near and dear to Elizabeth Raupach’s heart. That’s just one of the reasons she and her husband, Mark Lloyd, decided to construct a tiny home on their 90-acre (36 hectare) property located near the popular South Australian wine region of McLaren Vale. “It is accommodation for our guests when they come to stay at our property,” Elizabeth says. And with an outlook like this, it’s easy to imagine that Elizabeth and Mark would be inundated with visitors. The house sits in the recently planted arboretum paddock approximately 200 metres from the family home. Deciduous, drought-tolerant trees were planted around the house, designed to provide shade in summer and pops of colour in autumn and spring. Grape vines twist along stakes for the nearby family vineyard of Coriole, where Mark…

When the mercury rises, tourists flock to the well-known waterfront suburbs of the Mornington Peninsula to enjoy a relaxed walk along the beach. On the way, they’re bound to pass some of the 600-odd rustic wooden boatsheds that dot the coastal sand dunes. Most of them are nestled among towering trees, decades’-old observers to the changing moods of the vast Port Phillip Bay. These are the views that Sally and Ben Hannemann have enjoyed since childhood and the memories they wanted their three boys — Harvey, Ned and Archie — to make as they grew up. “My parents bought the boatshed next door a long time ago,” Sally says. “So visiting the beach after school, on weekends or during school holidays has always been a way of life for us. After many…

When New Zealand architecture student William Giesen went to Bordeaux University in southern France in 1997, he was following his passion for rugby rather than his career. But the move yielded unexpected results when he teamed up with fellow architecture student Cecile Bonnifait. The couple moved back to New Zealand in 2000 and established the Wellington-based Atelier Workshop, a practice that specialises in sustainable design. Like countless other Kiwis, William’s family had long spent their summer holidays in a “bach” (“crib” in the South Island), a holiday shack on the north coast of the North Island. And as is also common in New Zealand, the Giesens’ bach was on Maori leasehold land. When the lease expired, the family had to demolish the building to return the land to its original state. “The…

It’s little wonder Jo and Kyffin Thompson’s friends jokingly refer to their Adelaide Hills home as “the resort”. Visitors to Aramoola arrive to a landscape filled with Australian native plants and a coach-lamp-lined driveway guides them to a quaint, vine-clad English cottage. When Jo and Kyffin started their family, they lived in Stirling, near Aldgate, in the Hills. “It was a beautiful place and we renovated it,” Jo says. “But it was on a sloping block, which was always frustrating.” They navigated their young family across the treacherous entrance steps through the baby and toddler years but after Jo had a bad fall, they decided to move somewhere that was more level. After a long search, the couple found Moola, in Aldgate. “It was the middle of winter, pouring with rain…