Baby its cold outside

Its just turned Autumn and the wind is beginning to bite and the rain and cold is sending us scurrying to our fireplace.  We thought its a good time to look at the warm heart of the home.  The place where on a cold Melbourne night the family, dogs and cats included seem to clammer for pride of position snuggled in front of a warm fireplace. We also understand that for some the idea of chopping wood is not always practical.  

Wood Fires

These days the new range of wood fires have ratings and are very efficient at heating your home without burning tonnes of timber.Slow combustion open fires offer one of the most beautiful, efficient and cost effective heating solutions in wood fired heating.  Their beautifully designed cast iron fires are the benchmark in style innovation, efficency and performance in slow combustion technology. For Phillip Island where bottled LPG Gas is the only gas available we opted for a Wood Fire.

Gas Fires

Gas fires with sleek contempoary designs with a choice of logs, pebbles or coals, have programmable thermostats which control how warm your house is and can be set to warm your toes in the morning or warm you when you come home at night .

Landscape your Garden

We recently attended the Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show and as usual were inspired by some of the inovative and creative garden spaces created by some amazingly talented Landscape Architects.  We thought it would be a great time to outline what you need to know about Landscaping and whether you need a registered and insured Landscape Builder. Ashley is not only a Registered Builder but he also studied Horticulture at Burnley. We can help you create the ultimate garden and outdoor rooms.

Insurances

All landscapers should carry public liability insurance - check that they do. Similarly landscape designers should carry professional indemnity insurance.

If your project is larger than $16,000 and you are using a licensed (registered) landscaper, they should provide you with home warranty insurance. Home warranty insurance guarantees the structural components of the project for up to six years - just like warranty insurance when building a house. Unlicensed landscapers cannot offer home warranty insurance.

Using licensed landscapers

Legally all landscapers undertaking structural works (paving, decking, pergolas, pools) over $5,000 should be a registered building practitioner. You can ask to see their license as proof. Only licensed landscapers can offer home warranty insurance. You can find out more about this from the Victorian Building Authority www.vba.vic.gov.au. All relevant member categories of Landscaping Victoria that require a license, are either already licensed, or in the process of becoming so. 

Will I need a permit?

Your landscape professionals should know and secure all appropriate building permits that you may require. If you are unsure, contact your local council and they will advise you which permits are required. For example fences over 1700mm high require a permit.

Plants to consider

A landscape designer will be able to put togther a plant list specific to your garden. For more ideas, take a walk around your neighbourhood - this will give you a reasonable idea of which plants are doing well in the local area under similar weather and soil conditions and will also give you information about size and maintenance.

New Trends in Kitchen Design

The future of kitchens is shifting away from high gloss white and breakfast bars.  The modern city living and open plan living encourages new designs.  Using a mixture of finishes and textures and creating new and innovative storage solutions with clever push open cupboards the kitchen is evolving.  The colours are muted, natural and more bespoke in design. Gone are the kitchen stools and the dining table becomes a feature or extension of the overall design. Lots of greenery is featured and using stone, timber and gloss in a variety of texture and shapes makes the future of kitchen design really exciting.

Have a look at the video to see what designers and suppliers are looking forward to in 2015 and beyond.  

We custom design and install Kitchens for our clients.  By taking the extra care with designing the kitchen as another room in the overall scheme of the house design is imporatant to us. 

For a look at the latest trends from Eurocucina 2015 dowload the PDF catalogue here.

Trends - Diamonds and Peacock Blues

Have you been watching the Block on Channel 9? Are you over the Seagrass Wallpaper saga? We've been watching the new trends from Europe and the Asia Pacific region. It seems Diamonds are making a great deal of fuss both in Interior Styling and Finishes but also in Architectural details and designs. Strong punches of Peacock Blue and Rich Velvet Blues are big in Fabrics and accent elements. Honey comb shaped tiles and blending gloss and matt versions of the same tiles are big. Botanical and Plant inspired wallpapers and Indoor Plants are big too. We will have features on the upcoming Laminex Range and the brand new color and selection from Ceasarstone following our visit to Sydney In Design later this year.

Melbourne InDesign Event - August 2014

This weekend we visited the showrooms and warehouses of some of Melbourne's most impressive Supplier and Creatives behind the amazing Interiors and finishes available on the market.  We especially loved Space, Poliform, Smeg, Coco Republic, Weytlandts and Lump Sculpture Studio, Designer Rugs and Temperature Designs.  It was a treat to get to touch and see up close some of the most original and cutting edge design. 

Press - Spaces Magazine - Volume 2

We were thrilled to have one of our projects by the wonderful creative minds of Barbara Moje and Simon O'Brien featured in the most recent copy of Spaces Magazine.  The project is nestled into Melaluca Forests and hugged by sand dunes and is the perfect cave like retreat. Its interior is utilitarian and clean