Situated across the road from Melbourne’s botanical gardens in South Yarra, Lynch was issued with a brief that called for a redesign of the existing layout in order to create a home befitting a busy executive lifestyle. With virtually a clean slate to begin with in terms of both the home and the existing furniture (there was none) Lynch both sourced and designed furniture for the entire house while also designing new schemes for the finishes and reconfiguring the floorplan. Transforming the tired, dated interior from the pre existing 80’s style renovation to the modern Australian aesthetic that the home exudes today involved stripping back the rooms to their bare bones and adding blackbutt timber cabinetry in the kitchen and living areas. Raw materials of copper and marble have been used in the kitchen and in finishings throughout as a reference to the Victorian heritage of the two storey terrace. Facing the eastern sun, the back room has been divided up to house both kitchen and dining with an armchair for one to catch the morning sun. Combining two different marbles in the kitchen benchtop design with the polished brass clad cabinetry reflecting the leafy back garden effectively adds a sense of opulence to the inner city home. Photographic artwork by Chris Pennings hangs above the marble fireplace in the living room while a custom-made bench seat designed by Lynch makes clever use of space in the casual dining area off the kitchen. Here an old 80’s style skylight was opened up and squared off to allow greater access to natural light, a rare commodity in traditional Victorian houses. The existing three bedrooms were redesigned and reduced in size to allow for the addition of an ensuite as well as a laundry. Designed as the consummate ‘lock up and leave’ executive home, Fiona Lynch has successfully created an interior here that also acts as a warm welcome each time the owner returns from being away.
SPENCE & LYDA Mantis Sconce