Australian_House_Garden_January_2015

Australian House & Garden 13

H&G JANUARY

Photograph by Liz Ham (Lisa).

Ode to summer

S

ummer. In my urban ’hood it

heralds fat-leafed trees, bowing

to meet in the centre of the road,

fragrant frangipani and jasmine, pretty

robinia and a surge in early morning foot

tra c and panting pooches. If an easterly

is blowing, as it was on the day of writing,

there’s salt in the air and it’s still present,

right in the heart of the CBD, as I leave

the o ce in the evening.

How lucky we are to be an island

nation, with a drop-dead gorgeous

coastline everyone feels they have a

claim on, no matter where they reside.

As a country kid who knew the brown

dread that is drought, holidays at the beach were a balm for parched

skin and relief from the dust, washing all tension away. Little wonder

so many of us hold the seaside and its scents and colours so dear.

Interior designer Darren Palmer, the boy from The Block, joins H&G

as a columnist this month. His fi rst Masterclass (page 68) addresses

durable, liveable coastal style and I know you’ll enjoy his no-nonsense,

practical tone and boundless passion for lovely interiors.

It’s an approach refl ected in all of our feature homes too. No one

does summer like Australians. Our lifestyle is informed by climate and

landscape, refl ected in our architecture and held in our hearts and

psyche. Note details like fl ood-proofi ng, sand rooms, servery windows,

outdoor showers and protected courtyards, peruse the H&G team’s

seasonal hints, Summer 101 (page 47), and you will have no excuse for

not getting amongst it. Happy holidays, one and all.

Darren Palmer

Darren’s new decorating Masterclass

debuts on page 68. “Being asked to

contribute to H&G is hugely exciting,” he

says. “I’m grateful to have an opportunity

to share my views on all things interior

and deliver simple, useable insights.”

INTERIOR DESIGNER & AUTHOR STYLIST

Louise Bickle

For this month’s issue, Louise styled fi lm

producer Jan Chapman’s Sydney home

(page 24). “I loved the open, summery

style of the house and feel lucky to have

met such an amazing, elegant and

understated woman,” she says.

EDITOR IN CHIEF

MEHNDI, OR HENNA, IS

TRADITIONALLY APPLIED

TO CELEBRATE HAPPINESS

AND JOY.

It’s a crazy idea to tattoo

a chair but H&G’s

collaboration with henna

artist Lubna Shehzad Pirani

for Temple & Webster’s

Legacy fundraiser came up

a treat. The fl ower design

symbolises joy and

happiness, while the leaves

signify longevity, devotion,

perseverance, entwined

lives, and vitality.

Lubna’s Tattoos (Henna);

http://www.lubnas-tattoos-henna.

webs.com.