Natalie and Nick’s Colorful, Playful Melbourne Hideaway

Name: Natalie Jeffcott, Nick Fitzgerald, and Arthur
Location: Inner north; Melbourne, Australia
Size: 500 square metres (5,382 square feet)
Years lived in: 1 year; Owned

Natalie, Nick, and their 10-year-old son Arthur are seasoned renovators, re-cyclers, and collectors. Throughout their home you can see various collections of vintage items, from Natalie’s cookie jars and squeaky toys to Nick’s old radios, light fittings, and furniture- and even young Arthur has the vintage collecting bug, too. He collects Pez dispensers, vintage toys, books, and Pop! Vinyl figurines. This is not surprising, given that Natalie and Nick are the former owners of the now-closed vintage shop Arthur’s Circus in Melbourne.

Natalie currently works as a freelance photographer, vintage stylist, and member of the photography licensing co-op Stocksy. When Nick isn’t busy with renovations- he project manages and does much of the work himself- he works in the healthcare industry. They share their home with 2 cats, Diddle and Frankie, and 2 rabbits, Ghost and Busters (named by Arthur after one of his favorite movies).

Their home is one of the oldest in their suburb and was originally the local dairy. It was built in the 1870s and is in need of some serious TLC. It is a double-fronted brick home on a large block for the area. Natalie and Nick bought it just over a year ago after living literally a dozen doors down the street. Nick had dreamed of owning it and always said if it ever came up for sale, they had to try and buy it. So they left their previous super-efficient, eco friendly, double-glazed, completely finished, renovated home to start all over again- and they all couldn’t be happier.

Our Style: Colourful, vintage, and found items with a fun and happy vibe.

Inspiration: Traveling and trawling flea markets and vintage shops. Luckily, we have trained Arthur well and he now has things that he will look out for which keeps him busy looking, too.

Favorite Element: The outdoor space and garden.

Biggest Challenge: Everything. The rising damp, the old roof, the cracking walls, water damage…

What Friends Say: I can’t believe how big your yard is.. And you guys have a lot of cool stuff.

Biggest Embarrassment: The carpet, the beige/cream wall color, the bathroom, the pine cabinetry in the kitchen… I could go on…

Proudest DIY: So far there hasn’t been much DIY as yet, but painting the kitchen from bright blue was a start. As well as the bathroom from a pale, depressing green. We also recently found a great clawfoot bath on eBay for a good price that we are yet to install.

Biggest Indulgence: For us it is travel. We try to have a big trip overseas every 2 years, but once we start renovating again our biggest indulgence will be the entire house I’m sure.

Best Advice: Surround yourself with things that make you feel good and happy – and always paint your walls white not beige.

Dream Sources: Alameda Flea Market, Rose Bowl Flea Market, and any Flea Market in France. We don’t buy much from regular stores anymore and we really don’t need any more artwork or stuff. Although we could always have another amazing vintage French poster from The Galerie here in Melbourne. Also, to create our dream Hawaiian-style garden, a buying spree at Palm Place would be great.

• Dark grey/blue: Dulux Domino

• Jour de Fete vintage poster: found at a flea market in Paris
• Vintage Mannequin bust: found on the side of the road by Nick
• Gramophone: from Natalie’s grandparents
• Platter: by Rowena Martinich
• Framed Wookie photograph: by Neon Werewolf aka Mako Miyamoto
• Small Ghostbusters and Star Wars prints: by Marz Jr

• Photographs: by Natalie Jeffcott
• Tiger cushion: by Alice Oehr
• Vintage French bus poster: from The Galerie
• Pez collection: Arthur’s
• Oregon pigeon holes: made by Nick and a friend
• Peters ice cream light: vintage
• Lamp, elephant jug, and other items: vintage collected over the years
• Modular couch: made in Sydney by Matt Blatt

• Table: from Nick’s Aunt
• Sebel stacking chairs: vintage
• Scientific beaker as vase: a gift from friends
• Orangina sign: from a Paris flea market bought to remind them of Arthur’s love of the drink when they were there

• Vintage items and cookie jars: collected over the years from flea markets, vintage shops, eBay, and Etsy
• Atomic coffee machine: can be bought new from Bon Trading in Sydney
• Blender: Kitchen Aid
• Milk Bar sign: from Fryerstown Antique Fair

• Spotted doona cover: from Sheridan
• Vintage game board artwork: made by Natalie, available on Society6
• Pop! Vinyl toys: by Funko
• Curtain: made from an old flag
• Small robot screen print: by Allan Sanders
• Wookie photo: by Neon Werewolf aka Mako Miyamoto.
• Oregon shelves: made by Nick and a friend for their former shop

• Doona cover: from Kip & Co
• Blanket: by Pendleton
• Pillow case: by Misaki Kawai from Third Drawer Down
• Vintage deer lamp and Bluebird plaques: eBay
• Photographs taken on Route 66: by Natalie Jeffcott, available from her shop
• Small painting: by Martin Harris
• Embroidered cloth: from Guatemala

• Dirty/Clean bath mat: Urban Outfitters
• Vintage sign: eBay
• Squeaky toys: collected by Natalie

• Shelving system: String
• Oh No print: by Gary Taxali
• Hilltop photograph: by Natalie Jeffcott, available from her shop
• Vintage night lights and toys: collected over time from flea markets and eBay
• Love gocco print: by Gemma Jones
• Sweet mama print: by Yeehaw Industries
• Camera gocco: print by Lab Partners
• International (retro car) print: by Kareem Rizk
• House print: by Ashley Goldberg
• Photographs: by Natalie