A Modern Farmhouse | House of the week

This weeks home tour is a gorgeous Modern Farmhouse that has touches of country and Hampton's style.  With four beautiful children and a gaggle of animals this home will make you want to move to the country and enjoy this enviable lifestyle!

Who lives here 

Ryan McDonald - Builder and Farmer

Rebecca McDonald - Stay at home Mum

Matilda  - 9 

Tommy  - 7

Annabel  - 5

Elsie - 3

Pets - too many to name all!

Snow flake - horse

Wrangler - horse

Tractor - Jack Russell

Dorothy - Blue Cattle dog

Pig - Kevin

Peacock- Pedro

Tiger Lilley - Cat

19 chooks 

9 Guinea fowl

Vegemite - goat

Ice cream - goat

Lots of Black Angus cattle

Style of home and location 

A modern farmhouse, a little coastal, a little country, a little Hampton's. I don't think it could be described as just one style. Our home is located 17km from the Queensland country town of Goondiwindi.

Timeline of build 

The build began in April 2016 and we moved in just before Christmas 2016. 

Tell us a little about your build journey

When we purchased the 5500acre property is was a blank canvas. There was no water, no electricity, no roads and no infrastructure. We realised a lot of work would be needed, however the property was a good size and only 17km from town. Therefore we knew we could have the best of both worlds - continue the farming side of things yet also have the luxury of going to town when needed. From the start we focused on creating a home that was easy to live in, with plenty of room for the family and able to accommodate visitors and guests effortlessly. We wanted the home to be practical and functional while taking into consideration where we are located.

What do you love about the Modern Farmhouse style and where did you find your inspiration for your beautiful home?

I love that the home is designed with zones and wings allowing areas to be closed off when not in us. It is incredibly spacious and the home's layout flows seamlessly throughout. We found a lot of inspiration from previous renovations we have undertaken and other projects Ryan has completed as a Builder for clients. I also found a lot of inspiration from magazines, pinterest and instagram.

Did you enjoy the process of building and designing your home? Any hiccups along the way or things you would do differently?

We love a project and we thoroughly enjoyed the process. Ryan being the builder makes its quite easy. The only part I didn't enjoy was not being on site regularly as I was living four hours away from Victoria Park during the build. 

With 4 beautiful children and lots of animals what are some key features that you included in your build to suit your family? 

Functionality plays a key role in our home, with additional areas built internally and externally to accommodate our lifestyle. For instance, entering from the garage into the laundry, a wet room has been constructed with four nooks - one for each child- for school bags, sports equipment and everyday items. A cold room has also been installed with double sided access from exterior and interior which allows for easy hanging of meat and also makes easy work of unloading cold items from the grocery shop. The addition of a craft room/school room is a favourite with the children. Plenty of fun measures have been put into place to keep the kids occupied, with a pool and guest house, fire pit, full size tennis court and footy posts. A large chook pen, stable, pig sty and animal enclosure has been constructed for the animals. 

Favourite room in your home?

My favourite room of the house is most probably the kitchen/dining and deck area.  This is where we love to gather with family and friends. With the addition of beer on tap, built in bbq and projector screen it is a very easy place to relax and entertain.

Tell us a little about staying at Victoria Park farm in your Airbnb guesthouse

We have recently listed our guesthouse on Airbnb.  The guest house consists of two bedrooms, bathroom, kitchenette and living areas. Our guests can make use of the pool, tennis court and firepit and can enjoy a night away in the country. To stay at this beautiful property see HERE

LINKS TO LOVE

Instagram account    @victoriaparkfarm  and @ryanmcdonaldbuilding

Builder                        http://www.ryanmcdonaldbuilding.com.au

Photography               @elouise_photographer

Styling                        @lanacaves_styling

Enquiries relating to any items used in the house please contact Kate over on her Instagram @victoriaparkfarm

The Wren & Whippet | House of the week

This gorgeous Modern Country style home located in the picturesque Blue Mountains is a stunner. Recently featured in Country Style Magazine, this beautiful 5 bedroom home is now offered as a luxury getaway for those that love style and sophistication. It's the kind of house that you can enjoy with family and friends for the perfect country weekend escape.

Who lives here

Kasturi; owner of legal practise Wren & Co Lawyers, hubby Simon; Director of IT company Bluesource plus two fur babies; Whippets Coco & Toby, ages 5 and 6 respectively. 

Style of home and location

Modern Country style located in Leura, Blue Mountains, Australia

Timeline of build

It took one and a half years to find the perfect block. The block itself was a jungle but the tree lined driveway gave it a glimmer of possibility and hope.  It took 9 months for the design process and preparation for the DA and another 9 months to get council approval. It then took 1.5 years to actually build the house which my husband did as an owner builder.

Tell us a little about your build journey

The journey had its moments of joy, anguish, trepidation and uncertainty. There were unexpected costs, delays and problems.  There were times I thought we would never be done. I used to dream of what it would be like sitting in my lounge room. The part I loved so much was towards the end when I got to style the home.  You can read more about their building journey on their blog www.Passagetoleura.com

What do you love about Modern Country style and where did you find your inspiration for your beautiful home?

I went crazy on Pinterest. I found the pictures that resonated with me and then made it my mission to source similar finishes.

Favourite room in your home?

My favourite room would have to be the main bedroom and lounge room.

Tell us a little on staying at your beautiful accommodation

The home is a perfect retreat. Luxurious without being too overwhelming. Peaceful with out being isolated.  Nourishing to the soul is the sentiment I experience but to our guests, Wren & Whippet is a place they can escape from the world with their closest family and friends.  We have a perfect cooks kitchen with a large Falcon oven, a fire pit for evening or pre or post dinner ramblings and a French fireplace for those wine and cheese moments.  For families the best part is a large TV on the other side of the home, away from the adult zones.

To book at a stay at this gorgeous country retreat please see www.wrenandwhippet.com.au

LINKS TO LOVE

Instagram account                                           @wrenandwhippet

Building Design                                                Storybook Homes

Garden Design                                                  Myles Baldwin

A few of Kasturi & Simon's favourite suppliers for the house

Lounge Camerich

Tables   Stonepony

Rug Armidillo & Co

Decor Tomolly   

Tiles Rosa Stone

Stools and Hoshi armchairs Stylecraft Home

Enquiries relating to any items used in the house that aren't tagged please contact Kasturi over on her Instagram @wrenandwhippet 
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How I got my dream Hamptons home

The Hamptons is well known as the summer retreat of the rich and famous.  Large sprawling homes on the beachfront with gorgeous gardens and pools to match make this area of the world swoon worthy.

Over the past few years the Hamptons look has become very popular in Australia as we've started to embrace this style and adapt it to the Australian way of living.   Depending on where you live the Hamptons style could be a little more relaxed and coastal if you're near the beach, or mixed in with a modern country look.

Hamptons style can be defined as classic, elegant and sophisticated but also warm and friendly.  A soft colour palette is generally used with plenty of natural textures.  Lots of light, high ceilings, large timber windows, built in cabinetry and a timeless appeal are the key design elements to this style.

My Hamptons Story

When we purchased our half acre block of land with beautiful views, I knew the style of home that I always wanted but it was a difficult road to achieve our dream.  Four years ago, the Hamptons style was just coming into popularity, so it wasn't a case of simply finding a builder, pointing to a display home and saying 'yes please I'll take that one'.  We needed an expert to bring our Hamptons dream to life.

In designing our home  I used magazine clippings from gorgeous homes that I had saved for years, and images saved on Pinterest to communicate the style I was after.  I took a whole folder to our architect and builder, and sat with them both for hours going through the exterior and interiors, piecing the style together bit by bit for our dream house.  I think my builder had a slight heart attack during the process -  what I was designing wasn't something they had built before!

Images below are just a small example of the images I saved on Pinterst during this build - I literally had hundreds!

This home was the inspiration to the colour scheme and weatherboard details

Our land is located closer to the mountain ranges and far from the beach, so it made sense to mix the classic Hamptons style with a modern country look.

My architect was fabulous and delivered exactly what we were after - a mix of Hamptons and modern country style - a home with street presence, one that you have to stop and look at as you drive by. It has a classic and timeless appeal, high ceilings and lots of natural light.  We took into consideration the size of the land, the large 38.5 metre street frontage and situated the house and living areas to the amazing views with floor to ceiling windows.

The look of the exterior was one of the most important areas to design - I wanted it to be timeless and well built.  We mixed exterior elements to achieve the Hamptons meet modern country look, using render with weatherboard details for interest. The front elevation was staggered slightly to go in and out so it prevented our very long house looking 'ranch style'.  We also used 200 x 200 thick veranda posts to the verandas to give the house a very solid well-built feel. The colour palette was kept soft but still had contrast.

Read more - Get the Hamptons look with Sycon Linea weatherboards HERE

Our architect plans - front elevation

Back Elevation

Our house as it stands today - Images Louise Treacy Photography

Classic and timeless features such as high ceilings, large skirting boards and cornice, timber windows, solid hardwood flooring and shaker style cabinetry throughout were some of the design features we included.

Almost every element used, whether it was the style of windows and doors, to the smaller details such as cabinetry hardware had to be researched and sourced independently  - it was a lot of work but I actually enjoyed the design process immensely and the end result is a home that we adore and suits us perfectly as a family.

If you love the Hamptons style and lifestyle and are ready to build your dream home, I suggest pinning all the images of homes, rooms and features you love.  This will give you a great starting point and makes it much easier to communicate the style you are after to your builder. Next, work with an architect or building firm to design your home keeping in mind the location, size and orientation of your block.  Make sure the design of the home,  suits you and your family all the while keeping to your budget ( easier said than done!) The Hamptons style is such a classic look and  I think it's a style that will never date.

Would I do it again??  Its a good question!  I think I'd like to stay in this home until we're old and grey - its our forever home after all!