Black, Bold and Inspiring Melbourne

Black, Bold and Inspiring
Melbourne

We're taking part in the Fall Cure and have been searching for lots of inspiration. The top of our inspiration pile comes from a magazine from the other side of the world, this months Living Etc and bizarrely it features a home only 10 minutes down the road from us.

Originally this country home was filled with florals, chintz upholstered furniture and plush carpets until it was bought by local landscape architect Rick Eckersley. This home was then stripped right back to the basics, with locally quarried stone laid throughout the house and feature walls painted in strong grays, black and crisp whites. Add in some iconic furniture mixed with antique and commissioned pieces all complimenting each other while holding their own in this bold space. Of course the exterior and garden on this home does not disappoint, painted matt black with splashes of colour. This home has inspired us to be braver when considering using black paint, maybe even magenta! See the full article here on Living Etc.

Comments (5)

i really like it, actually. though i do wish he'd have used lighter colored furniture against the dark walls...things kinda blend together.

posted by nikki moore - photography and vintage treasures on October 20th 2009 at 11:16am
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I do like some of the wall colors and slate floors, do not like the choice of furniture. The furniture is too hard and cold for this kind of space, ok to have one or two special pieces like that red web chair, but there needs to be some balance.

I do not like the Pantone chairs as dining chairs epecially on hard floors very noisy and not fun to sit on for a long dinner party.

The mini pier is cool.

posted by LoriSF on October 20th 2009 at 11:50am
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i really want to paint my hallway black, but i don't know what sheen to use. does anyone have recommendations?

thanks!

posted by berkeley.loves.grey on October 20th 2009 at 1:23pm
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@berkeley A black hallway sounds v. cool - I would go with something towards the semi-gloss side so that there's a nice effect with the lighting throughout the day. The only problem there is the shape the wall's in... semi-gloss will highlight any imperfections. If your walls aren't perfect I would play it up by adding some subtle texture and then painting.

posted by cleveburg on October 20th 2009 at 3:31pm
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thanks for the suggestion cleveburg!

i was thinking matte black because the walls have uneven texture from years of bad patch jobs (it's a 1950's house).

the halllway is very short and my plan is to hang a lot of artwork on the walls to disguise the imperfections.

thanks!

posted by berkeley.loves.grey on October 20th 2009 at 3:57pm
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