A Renovated Australian Home Is Light and Bright Thanks to Huge Envy-Inducing Windows

Written by

Natalie Jeffcott
Natalie Jeffcott
Freelance photographer, lover of all things vintage and travel.
published Feb 18, 2021

A Renovated Australian Home Is Light and Bright Thanks to Huge Envy-Inducing Windows

Written by

Natalie Jeffcott
Natalie Jeffcott
Freelance photographer, lover of all things vintage and travel.
published Feb 18, 2021
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Name: Angel Munro and her husband, Ben, with 23-year-old son, Titian, 12-year-old daughter, Lili, and Yoko the dog
Location: Fitzroy, Australia
Type of House: A renovated single-story, semi-detached Victorian terrace house
Size: 3 bedrooms and a study
Years lived in: 7 years

Clinical nutritionist, cook, and educator Angel Munro shares her home — a renovated single-story, semi-detached Victorian terrace house in the Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy, with her family, which includes two kids and Yoko, the dog. Though she says their house looks small from the exterior, after you enter and walk down a long hallway, the entire space completely opens up thanks to walls and walls of windows. The house wasn’t always this way!

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When they first moved in, the original house was very dark, and so their renovation’s aim was to make it as “white, airy, and light as possible.” But this isn’t an overly planned, minimal house. After renovations, they focused on creating a beautiful display space for all the “objects and bits of furniture” they have acquired over time.

Apartment Therapy Survey:

My Style: Eclectic, fun, natural, rustic, midcentury, and Australian

Inspiration: Nature

Favorite Element: The living space, it feels so calming, bright, and light. It’s like living in a glass house.

Biggest Challenge: We haven’t really had any. The original house was quite dark so the brief for our renovation was to make it as white, airy, and light as possible.

We have so many objects and bits of furniture that we have collected over the years; we wanted a space that we could fit it all in without it feeling too cluttered. There was no real decorating plan that went beyond that. Filling any blank spaces has been a very slow and natural process. We have definitely run out of room for furniture but there is still a lot of room for more art; we are happy for that to fill up over time with artwork by friends or my husband.

What Friends Say: The star of the house is definitely the living space. The house looks quite small from the front, but then you walk down a long hallway that opens up to this big bright space. It’s when people walk into the living space that you get the “oh’s” and “ah’s” and “this is amazing.”

Proudest DIY: The front and backyard. Apart from a couple of structural elements like decking and paving, we have done the rest ourselves. Both yards are filled with lots of strange found, hard rubbish items [“hard rubbish” refers to discarded household items like furniture or other large pieces you’d find on a curb for giveaway or trash pickup] and pieces from the old house like the old chimney in the backyard and a lot of the bluestone. They both feel like special spaces and very us. Like the objects that are in both yards, the planting is equally eclectic and I love how organic, green, and rustic both spaces feel.

Biggest Indulgence: The double-glazed eco windows. They provide a lot of light and insulation. The sheer size of them adds so much to the space visually. They were worth every penny.

Best Advice: Don’t rush to fill up and decorate your house. The best houses are always filled with things that have a story and meaning to the owners. 

Dream Sources: Vintage furniture shops, second-hand record stores, plant shops, and independent book shops. My husband and I both love a good hard rubbish find, too; it’s like finding treasure.

Resources:

LIVING ROOM

DINING ROOM

KITCHEN

  • Baskets from markets and op shops
  • Smeg oven
  • Oil painting — Ben Munro
  • Alessi kettle

BEDROOM

LILI’S ROOM

  • Beci Orpin print
  • Yoko Georgiou paintings
  • Vintage prints — Camberwell market
  • Red fiberglass chair — Hard rubbish find

STUDY

  • ’80s red desk lamp — Tarlo & Graham 
  • Eames chair — Angelucci 20th Century
  • Antique table — A gift from my mother-in-law
  • Golden circle fruit box shelves — eBay

Thanks Angel and family!

This house tour’s responses were edited for length and clarity.