16 Australian Country HOMES
from the inside we could be on acreage.”
The couple’s three children have
gorgeously styled bedrooms, fi lled with
inherited pieces and quirky fi nds. Each
treasure on the shelves tells a story, and
vintage sheets from Riza’s grandmother
are layered into the linen on the girls’
beds, perhaps inspiring dreams of days
gone by. Riza even transformed a Kmart
play kitchen with warm white paint,
and custom handles. “If I’m going to do
something, I’ll do it properly,” she says. The
master bedroom is painted in low-sheen
Dulux Orbit, exuding an old world elegance,
complete with a cluster of vintage oil
paintings, and a kimono a friend brought
back from Japan brings Riza’s signature
touch of Asia to the room. “I love that
Asian colonial luxury feel, the elegance of
the 1930s in the tropics,” she says. “I’m also
very driven by unique pieces made with
age-old quality, so I love buying vintage.
In a world with so many mass-produced
options, my style compass compels me
to create rooms that are distinctive. To
me, homes grow like people do. The most
beautiful homes create a feeling, you want
to be in them. And they tell you about who
lives there and what is important to them.
That cannot be manufactured.”
No matter how far or how wide they’ve
roamed, it’s clear this family has found
their forever home, and stamped it with
a style as timeless as its timber and tin
facade. “We are so happy in our home and
I think she knows it,” Riza says. “It’s our
sanctuary, the city stops when the gate
shuts.” ACH
This page: The bedrooms are filled with inherited pieces and quirky finds such as a kimino one of Riza’s
friends brought back from Japan, creating a luxurious colonial Asian atmosphere.