Emilie, one of our Australia blogger tryouts sent us this fascinating and inspiring peek inside an Art Deco apartment in the Beverley Hills block (Australia, not here in the 90210). Tell us what you think.
We were thrilled to be given a tour of a very special Art Deco apartment block built by notable Melbourne architect Howard Lawson in 1935. Made up of two separate buildings sitting one behind the other on a hill, the Beverley Hills block is Lawson’s best known work. Walking up the steep staircase feels like you’ve entered somewhere in between old Hollywood glamour-land and Miss Havisham’s crazy mansion...
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The apartment itself is currently on the rental market – hence the sparse furnishings. That said, the furniture present complements the geometric angles of the space by keeping a light feel to it. The apple lights and aqua blue walls create a whimsical feel perfectly at home within the wild building. When the apartment was purchased it was in it’s original, untouched form – apparently not a pretty sight. New carpets were laid and the whole interior was re-painted. Our host told us most visitors quickly develop an obsession with the place and keep coming back to spy.
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The owner studied industrial design and created the vases and nested coffee table.
Check out the original shower pipes/taps!
Aside from a paint job, the kitchen is in original form – we guess people ate out a lot back then.
Underwater view of the pool.
An exotic inhabitant of the buildings.
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Wow wow wow! Has almost a gothic feel to the exterior. Mysterious. Definitely haunted.
view MoJonson's profile
Good photos, and a really fascinating glimpse into this place!
view visualingual's profile
How delightfully creepy! I hope they never change a thing!
view btoddster's profile
Wow. What a fabulous apartment. So much to love. You got really good mileage out of the blue paint. It is interesting to see the modern furniture juxtaposed against the deco stylings.
view yolio's profile
Love this! more more more!
view southof290's profile
Those art deco ceiling roses are exquisite, and it's wonderful that the original bathroom has survived... and still looks far sleeker and more stylish than 90% of modern Australian bathrooms!
The exterior has a beautiful, almost pre-raphaelite feel - I half expected to see Ophelia floating in that swimming pool...
view Blandwagon's profile
What lovely details, right down to the ceiling medallions and mailboxes. I'd love to see someone clean it all up without changing a thing otherwise.
view kuroneko's profile
Beautiful! Absolutely beautiful! Where are these apartments - am I right in thinking that they're in that pocket of South Yarra (Melbourne) where there are lots of art deco houses?
view AARgh's profile
I would eat out a lot as well. People make such a big deal out of eating today and the restaurant industry is making hundreds of millions of dollars. But if you live in a kichen like that you probably would try and eat out as much as possible http://houston1apartments.com/galleriaapartments.php
are located around a lot of restaurants.
view Apartment High Rise's profile
Love the pics, Emilie.
South Yarra, yes. Right on the river!
view pjon's profile