International Finalist: Danielle & Lakshan's Urban Cottage

Name: Danielle & Lakshan
Location: Sydney, Australia
Size & Type: 803 sq. ft. house, own
Original Entry: Click Here

Who was your favorite entry and why?

I am a big fan of a couple of the Midwest finalists - Lisette's Pied a Terre because it totally drew me in and I looked at it for a long time, so many interesting things and all beautifully layered together in the tiny space. I also really loved Stephanie's Life of Pie, it's really sophisticated but not overly formal - I'd like to think that's what our house will look like when it grows up!

What's your next improvement?

Small (and achievable): paint the wall in the lounge room a subtle blue colour as a nice background for the art. Find or make some art to hang above the dining table. And also get a heater of some sort – winter is fast approaching and it's getting cold down here in Australia!

Big (pie in the sky at the moment): completely redo the back half of the bedroom/upstairs to make it a better shape and height (so you don’t hit your head!)

Enter Here: Contest Page & Entries

Comments (18)

what kind of dog is that!? I want it!

French Bulldog, cuteness!!

The dog is adorable! I believe it is a traditional Old English Bulldog...the French ones usually have ears that stick straight up.

Okay guys, the dog is adorable but what about the space?! Love the floors, love the natural light, love the clean, simple decor. Beautiful. Oh, and yes, love the dog.

I love the living area and the little desk with the lamp, in total you place looks very clean and fresh. Just the bathroom needs a littlebit of work ... maybe some color?
And I love the dog!

Love your space. So nice, bright and airy. Although.... your sleeping quarters put new meaning to the phrase: "Waking up on the wrong side of the bed". Hope you never do! ;)

the light and floors in this house are gorgeous. i would love to see what the house looks like from the outside as well...

Definitely an English bull dog. It's hard to focus on the design, when the dog is so freaking adorable.

it's true. it's really not quite fair to the other entries who don't have adorable puppies in their homes. but this place lives up to the cute-puppiness of it all. it is a gorgeous home!

Hello!
Morty is actually an Australian Bulldog - hes majority English bulldog but they cross with other similar breeds so he doesnt have as many skin/breathing problems as English bullies do. Hes only 10wks old, so he will get much bigger and wrinklier and end up looking very much like an English bulldog when hes older.

And a huge thanks to everyone who voted to get us into the finals, we are just so thrilled to be part of the Small Cool Comp!

- Danielle & Lakshan & Mortimer

Where did you get that dining table?

Hi Delaks,

I've been so inspired by your word art that I am about to go out and buy a canvas and start on my own, except with song lyrics . . . I'm going to make it huge to cover an entirely blank wall behind my desk. I was wondering if you made yours with scrapbooking letters, letters cut out of newspaper, or (and this may sound stupid but . . ) scrabble letters?
I was thinking I might experiment and lacker aged newspaper onto the canvas and then glue the scrabble peices on over that . . . thoughts? Helpful tips?

Hi Heather, the dining table and chairs are actually Ikea!

Hey Azaleasmoke, the letters on my canvas can be moved around so you can make words and sentences. The letters were printed onto clear sticker paper, which was stuck onto white foam core and cut into tiles that are about 5cm x 7cm. Then we stuck a velcro dot on the back of the tile and the corresponding dot on the canvas so you can take the tiles off and switch them around. Scrabble letters are a great idea, you could enlarge them on the computer and print and stick in a similar way depending how big you want your art to be (ours is quite big). Good luck! :)

Thank you so much! I didn't even know that sticker paper existed! I will have to stop off at the art store on the way home . . . this interactive aspect of your art is amazing, but I can only imagine the things my partner would write while I wasn't looking . . . lol