The brief for clients Jan and Karla called for a redesign of their existing split-level apartment in inner-city Melbourne. With the clients living overseas, they wanted to soon move home to Australia and make this space their ‘forever’ residence.

In response to the client brief, the goal was to re-emphasise the possibilities in this location and deliver a space that was clean, simple, and functional. The clients wanted to optimise the views and bring a sense of movement and flow into the space. Wishing to implement neutral tones and Australian materials, the aim was to create a retreat for Jan and Karla by introducing Australian and Brazilian-inspired design elements, whilst still accommodating their active and exciting lifestyle.

This led me to the concept - Grounded - The Home Away From Home. As Jan and Karla are big travelers, where the world has essentially become their home, I wanted the space to focus on this idea of being grounded. Connecting back to Karla’s Brazilian heritage and Australia as the future place to call home, I wanted to take elements of Brazilian design and contemporary Australian design to reinforce Jan and Karla’s Inner sense of place.