A Designer’s Eclectic Melbourne House, Wealthy In Storytelling

Ryan Fernandes and his companion Vik bought their Edwardian residence in Northcote, Melbourne in 2016.

The home had beforehand undergone a high quality renovation by architect Peter Dredge, however the onset of the pandemic compelled Ryan to rethink the areas and the way they had been getting used. 

Lockdowns provided an opportunity to restyle the house, placing Ryan’s newly minted designed coaching into follow, following a profession change from the world of company banking. (Ryan now works on the acclaimed Melbourne design studio, Hecker Guthrie, as an inside stylist.) 

In reworking his own residence, Ryan created compelling compositions throughout 4 key rooms, with every area imagined as a unique ‘chapter.’ 

‘The problem available was to repurpose the area by layering furnishings, artwork, lighting, and introducing color and texture to create one thing private and distinctive,’ Ryan says. ‘I wished to combine the previous and new, and reference our cultural heritage… I wished to really feel each timeless but additionally a robust private expression of favor.’

Influences of Ryan’s upbringing in Mumbai and Auckland, paired with inspiration from Scandinavia and Italy, are evident throughout the house. 

The open-plan lounge showcases a mid-century really feel layered with a wide range of contrasting textures and color. Fifties armchairs upholstered in alpaca bouclé wool sit on a patterned rug, with an paintings by Indigenous artist Zaachariaha Fielding introducing each scale and color. 

The eating room scheme is extra cinematic and indulgent, that includes wealthy mustard tones and framed textiles. 

The primary bed room takes a softer strategy encompassing silk and romantic textiles in step with the property’s interval detailing. 

Final however not least, the ‘whiskey parlour room’ (transformed from an current entrance room) is an area for night leisure and reflection. Ryan describes the room as a ‘cocktail of perfection that channels a Gucci Alessandro Michele, meets English membership, meets British Raj, temper’. The result’s an intimate cocoon, with sensual supplies fused with sentimental artefacts. 

With out the strain of a consumer deadline, Ryan’s residence continues to slowly evolve. ‘Not like a number of initiatives — which regularly contain rushed deadlines — furnishing a house has been a a lot slower, extra thought of endeavour: an ode to curating and accumulating,’ he says. ‘The result’s definitely not minimal!’