Selling Houses Australia’s best rooms from Season 16
Discover Wendy Moore’s interior design secrets to creating the perfect room
Photography Melissa Heath/Selling Houses Australia
Week after week, Dennis and I were charged with completely transforming rundown or charmless homes on Selling Houses Australia, with a view to increasing their sellability and improving the lives of their hardworking homeowners.
Every home was different and required a bespoke approach – just as your home is! With each home, we listened to the story the home was trying to tell us, and then we brought that to life - whether it was a cool coastal shack buried under a bunch of clutter, or a vast suburban McMansion desperately in need of some character and elegance. Here are some of my faves from Season 16.
“Having a vision and staying true to it is a key part of every successful room makeover”
~ Wendy Moore
Selling Houses Turramurra: a brand-new living room
The brief: Extend the available living space of the home by converting an existing outdoor deck into a new addition. It also needed a ‘Modern heritage’ vibe to suit the character of the home and the neighbourhood.
How we achieved the brief: With a 200K budget, we were able to deliver a brand new living space that blends seamlessly into the home. We kitted out this serene zone in Quick-Step Amato flooring in Cliff Grey Oak, and added rugs in Allure Sky and Allure Indigo (both Flooring Xtra and added some Luxaflex Kori Sapphire curtains and blinds from to enhance privacy and light.
Essential inclusions: Adding a fireplace added a dash of cosiness while adding to the characterful feel, while bi-fold doors increase the functionality of the space. When they’re open (pictured above) the living space feels even large with the chic outdoor entertaining zone complementing the interior vibe perfectly.
An elegant dining zone in Windsor Downs, NSW
The brief: This enormous home had a strong 1990s vibe and lacked appeal for modern families. It had everything needed but due to its size the thought of updating the home felt overwhelming to potential buyers. Creating a chic dining area was part of a larger brief to appeal to a modern family buyer.
How we achieved the brief: A little had to go a long way in Windsor Downs due to the extensive square metrage, so the flooring had to work hard. The new floating timber floors ground the home beautifully. Like the rest of the downstairs, these are Integral Flint laminate floors from Flooring Xtra. Sheer curtains from the Maxwell range in colour Montreal Flint are Luxaflex, bringing softness and glamour. It’s painted in Wattyl Moody White.
Essential inclusions: Zoning the area in the large floorplan was an essential component in creating this dining room. We chose a textured rug that was large enough to host an eight-seater dining table, with room to comfortably pull back the chairs. Above, lighting from Emac & Lawton is a charming touch.
Bringing back the love to Chipping Norton’s living room
The brief: Belonging to a funny former display home in Chipping Norton, this living room’s elongated shape made it a difficult zone to furnish for its hardworking owners. Despite this, it had some nice features, so the challenge was simply to style it up to make it feel comfortable, useable and part of the home.
How we achieved the brief: New carpet from Flooring Xtra now lifts the brown out of this room, while window furnishings from Luxaflex let natural light flow. Then it was all about styling, with some nice comfy furniture. I went for simple shapes and round peices to enable flow.
Essential inclusions: I chose a light colour scheme to make it feel fresh, bright and more spacious, bringing softness through off-white and warm timber tones.
Beautiful rooms in Ellalong’s church renovation
The brief: The church in Ellalong was essentially one big room - being a former church! Its owner Trish created separation between zones using furniture, but that all had to go as part of a larger brief to declutter this gorgeous home.
How we achieved the brief: The lack of privacy in the bedroom was one of the biggest concerns, and then meant building a clever partition wall (with a secret door) between it and the living/dining room. We painstakingly applied the mural on the dining side, to perfectly match the design so the door just… disappears! Cosy rugs underfoot zoned the area and added welcome texture; these ones are ‘Allure Sky’ from Flooring Xtra. On the other side of the wall in the bedroom, we were able to add extra storage. Then, it was all about paint and styling.
Essential inclusions: The bedroom bedlinen is Legend Linen’s Winton Quilt cover set in White, and we styled it with characterful timber pieces and a buttonback headboard to complement the characterful vibe of the church.
Urban character in West Brunswick, Victoria
The brief: This was a home that was once brimming with love and care, but after years as a rental, was in a sad and rundown state. We needed to restore some of its heritage beauty and make it appeal to a young family with a hip, urban twist that felt right for its inner-city location.
How we achieved the brief: A bit edgy, a bit urban and a little bit industrial, with lots of warmth: I went with greens, dark greys and contrasting crisp white to highlight the original features, adding a contemporary urban edge. Underfoot, I chose Dundee Pitkerro laminate floorboards from Flooring Xtra and painted walls in cosy Caster Sugar from Wattyl, with a feature wall for a bit of drama! Adding elegance are windows framed by Calypso Duette coverings from Luxaflex, with statement lighting from Emac Lawson – I just love this Reva Ceiling pendant.
Essential inclusions: The styling involved lots of different textures: natural materials, leather and timber, combined with a saturated colour scheme to feel warm and contemporary.
